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If you can still handle all the April 1st tomfoolery from carmakers today, heres one from Lexus.
The Japanese company introduced its latest performance feature: The Variable Load Coupling Rear Orientation. Yes, the Velcro.
Entitled V-LCRO for short, this technology is the result of the Japanese car makers continuous pursuit to enhance the connection between driver and vehicle, even if that means venturing outside the automotive world for new solutions.
As youd might expect the optional V-LCRO drivers seat was created in partnership with Velcro Companies, and the tech secures the driver in place, refining the functionality of the vehicles contoured seatbacks, as explained by Brian Bolain, general manager, Lexus product & consumer marketing.
While all performance cars use seat bolsters to hold a driver in place during aggressive
maneuvering, were taking it a step further. In this case, the technology were employing is actually over 75 years old. The RC F and GS F are exhilarating, racing-inspired vehicles. By partnering with Velcro Companies, our new V-LCRO technology enhances the drivers ability to maximize the cars track-proven performance.
A very good idea, some might say, but in order for it to work, the driver has to wear a specially designed suit, which hooks up to the seat, creating grip at any angle and G-load according to Lexus. But its okay, the company has got you covered because it has created a line of exclusive custom-tailored suits which connects perfectly with the breakthrough V-LCRO drivers seats, both in form and function.
PHOTO GALLERY
VIDEO
Renault UK is set to air six clips across Discovery Channel, Quest and DMAX sponsoring Discovery Channels latest adventure series Sean Conway: On The Edge.
The clips air across the three channels from April 1st, with the former Olympian and adventurer James Cracknell taking on the Snowdonia National park in northwest Wales in a Renault Kadjar.
Cracknells most recent program had him cross the Empty Quarter on camelback, which aired on the BBC back in 2013.
James Boyer, Renault UK marketing director said: Discovery and its sister channels represent the same values as the Renault Kadjar an appetite for adventure coupled with reliability and trustworthiness. The clips show Kadjar in its natural home the great outdoors with James pushing the car to its limits. We look forward to this new partnership with Discovery and showing the British television-viewing public what the Kadjar is made of, through the six clips.
Since it arrived on UK shores in September 2015, the all-new Kadjar has already strengthened Renaults presence in the crossover market, building on the success of its smaller sibling, the Captur.
The French automakers compact crossover is priced from 17,995 in the UK and comes with a four-year warranty and the Renault Assistance package as standard.
PHOTO GALLERY
Amid compensating its customers and the authorities over the, now infamous, diesel engine emissions scandal, the VW Group has to deal with another potential threat.
This time, it is its own US dealers who are ready to file a lawsuit due to the damage they have sustained in the aftermath of Dieselgate.
Attorney Leonard Bellavia of Mineola, N.Y., told Autonews a complaint is already drafted and just waiting on my desk, so the dealers mean business. Whether it is filed or not, said Bellavia, is a matter of the company offering a fair compensation for their losses and if it does get filed, it will be a class action on behalf of his clients, whose identities he did not disclose.
The draft includes allegations of breach of contract and fraud over the nearly 580,000 diesel vehicles sold with emissions-cheating software and asking for punitive damages due to a practice that was fraudulent, intentional and designed to deceive government regulators and the public.
Although their beef with the German automaker was expressed early on, this is the first open threat and it comes right after a VW dealer council memo noting that some of them have reached a breaking point and feel that pursuing a legal course is the only option.
VW execs will hold a meeting with dealers at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) convention in Las Vegas this Saturday.
My goal is that VW and the dealers can reach a settlement on amicable terms without the added distraction of litigation, Bellavia said, adding that any action would be taken only after hearing VWs proposal at the NADA meeting.
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Photo: CTV
British Columbia now has the dubious distinction of lowest minimum wage in the country at $10.45 per hour.
New Brunswicks wage increase to $10.65, which went into effect today, bumped B.C. to the bottom.
Today is the day that British Columbia officially moves into last place with lowest minimum wage in Canada, said Irene Lanzinger, President of the BC Federation of Labour.
There are more than half a million workers earning less than $15/hour in this province. Thats 27 per cent of our entire workforce earning a wage that is at or below the poverty line.
The BC Federation of Labour is calling on the BC Liberal government to increase the minimum wage to $15/hour.
The province has announced a 'modest' increase is coming Sept. 15.
Despite having the highest cost of living, Premier (Christy) Clark and the BC Liberals have chosen to leave hundreds of thousands of low-wage workers in poverty, said Lanzinger.
A poll conducted by Insights West found that 83 per cent of British Columbians think it is necessary to ensure a person earning the minimum wage lives above the poverty line.
Further, 76 per cent support raising the minimum wage to $15/hour.
Photo: Contributed
The Real Estate Council of B.C. has hired a lawyer to work with private investigators in cases of significant misconduct by agents.
The council already has five staff lawyers who investigate complaints by the public and real estate agents.
Spokeswoman Marilee Peters says the range of complaints could include mishandling of trust-account money and misrepresenting common property in a strata.
She says a professional-standards adviser was hired in January to handle inquiries from the public and agents and to deal with rules about agents' conduct.
Peters says the measures are the result of an internal review that began last year.
She says that since January, three temporary suspensions have also been issued, including one for seven days when an agent failed to act in the best interests of a buyer by not asking the seller whether renovation permits had been obtained.
Photo: Nautiluz
Journalist and photographer Elaine Davidson has turned her focus to exploring her Village of Naramata and surrounding area. When Elaine is not drinking wine with funny names, she is training to swim the English Channel on a relay team this July.
Youd better delete that
By Elaine Davidson
Clever marketing or quelle horreur?
Wines with funny names are cropping up all along the Naramata Bench and in the Okanagan Valley.
A French friend once said she only buys bottles with standard labels and classy names, respecting the French tradition where the Chateaux was of prime importance.
Deeply suspicious of the quality of a product with a name like Well La-Di-Da (Church and State), said friend felt the name was a key indicator of how seriously the winery took itself and its product.
A more recently made French friend brought the above pictured bottle to us as a gift. Names like this would never fly in France," she says, "but this isnt France.
She appreciates the more light-hearted approach, and we enjoyed a very nice glass of Carpe Diem Bitches, merci beaucoup.
A forerunner of fun names, and a well-respected Naramata winery, Therapy Vineyards has gone to town with their wines dispensed from their own Farmacy wine shop.
Freudian Sip and Freuds Ego are two of their world-class wines. On the doctors couch, I would confess to a bit of pinot envy for their naming genius.
Another winery, just a staggering distance from our house, Van Westin has gone a bit haywire with V names:
Voluptuous, Vixin, Vulture and Vrankenstein are Very fun, particularly the latter, as volunteer pickers harvest the grapes at Halloween, in costume, and proceeds are donated to charity.
More ominously, Black Widow offers a very nice Phobia.
Red Eyed and White Knuckle are Monster Vineyards offerings.
Tightrope sells Vertigo and Tip-Toe.
Laughing Stock sells lots of Portfolio and Blind Trust.
A short drive to Blasted Church in Okanagan Falls, and you can taste OMG, Hatfields Fuse, and Big Bang Theory from bottles featuring some very cool, award-winning artwork.
Misconducts wine tourers can decide if they prefer Misfit or The Big Take.
Cant decide?
Quidni suggests, Why Not Red or Why Not White.
If you think that bubbles ramp up the fun quotient, Therapys solution is Fizzio Therapy.
Too many bubbles, and you see Pink Elephants from Elephant Island.
Ruby Blues pops your cork with Peace & Love & Bubbles.
Im with my new delightful French friend. Its all in good fun, and inside those cleverly-named bottles is some very nice wine.
Olivers Church and State really does take the cake, though, with Oh Bloody Hell, Tonight is the Night, Id Shave My Legs for You, and Youd Better Delete That.
Im pretty sure they have their demographic nailed. I dare any 20 to 30 year-old to buy Oh Yeah Post This . . . and not.
Links
Church and State
Therapy Vineyards
Van Westen
Black Widow Winery
Monster Vineyards
Tightrope Winery
Laughing Stock Vineyards
Blasted Church
Misconduct Wine Company
Quidni
Elephant Island
MAP
Interested in writing for Spirited Endeavours? That is an amazing coincidence, because were interested in hearing from you. Drop me a line [email protected]
This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.
Photo: The Canadian Press
Justin Trudeau was invited to visit India during his first formal meeting with the country's prime minister Narendra Modi, as they huddled Friday at an international summit.
The prime minister accepted.
"I'd like to heartily congratulate you for an immense victory in the elections," Modi told him through a translator, as their meeting began. "I'm seeing that after you have become the prime minister there has been a new energy, a new dynamism... in our relations."
Modi said he was pleased to see the prime minister implementing some of the ideas they'd discussed when they chatted at international summits last fall, soon after Trudeau's election.
They crossed paths at the Commonwealth and climate-change conferences in the weeks following Trudeau's election. But their sitdown meeting in a convention-centre conference room Friday was their first formal bilateral.
They were among the dozens of leaders attending a nuclear-safety summit hosted by U.S. President Barack Obama. Trudeau's office said the leaders discussed trade, investment and climate change.
"It's a real pleasure to be able to sit down and talk about deepening the friendship, economic ties and a stronger future between our two countries on many, many different levels," Trudeau said as he sat down for the meeting with Modi.
Trudeau's office confirmed that he'd received an invitation to visit India and accepted. No other details were offered. India's NDTV said Trudeau had promised to bring his family as well.
The meeting received considerable coverage in Indian media. A blog item in the Times of India posted pictures of Trudeau and his wife doing yoga poses and suggested: "(Modi) may want to carry his yoga mat with him (to the meeting)."
There was also a brief moment of cultural confusion.
Some members of the Indian delegation were perplexed as to why Modi was made to stand in front of the Canadian flag, while Trudeau stood in front of the Indian one.
Modi himself remarked on that as he walked into the meeting. Canada had hosted the sitdown and, Trudeau explained, that's the protocol chez nous: "It creates closer ties."
Photo: Twitter
When I was about eight years old, my dad was walking me home from Brownies when I asked why all the adults around us were talking in hushed tones about Iran and the Shah and nuclear weapons. An ugly fear dropped into the pit of my stomach as he told me what nuclear weapons could do, shattering my perception of the safety around me.
That stomach-churning fear has been dulled with time and relative peace and security, but made a reappearance this week as leaders from around the world, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, gathered in Washington for a nuclear security summit. Four decades later, we are still having variations of the same conversation.
Here are three ways that politics affected the lives of Canadians this week:
NUKE TALK: U.S. President Barack Obama pointed out at the summit that 2,000 tonnes of nuclear material is kicking around the world, some of it not properly secured and all of it tempting to increasingly sophisticated terrorist organizations.
"Just the smallest amount of plutonium about the size of an apple could kill and injure hundreds of thousands of innocent people. It would be a humanitarian, political, economic, and environmental catastrophe with global ramifications for decades," Obama said.
"It would change our world. So we cannot be complacent."
The call to action came during a week when the new Trudeau government sought to rebrand its foreign policy. "Responsible conviction" is how Global Affairs Minister Stephane Dion described it: Canada would stick to its principles, but in a practical way.
Was Canada's response to the nuclear summit to donate $42 million to help other countries store nuclear materials the first iteration of the new approach? There was no public mention of leveraging Canada's command in the global uranium market or top-notch expertise in heavy water. Nor was there clarity about how Ottawa would engage with Iran or Russia, the world's largest holder of nuclear weapons.
The Trudeau government has indicated it is open to re-establishing dialogue with both of those countries, much to the dismay of Conservatives. But we're still waiting for the fine print.
BURNING HOUSES: Another week, another tragedy on a remote First Nations reserve. This time, nine people died in a house fire in Pikangikum in northern Ontario, including three children. The death toll is shocking, but the fire itself was not. It's just the latest in a series of deadly fires and crises on remote reserves plagued with problems that include overcrowding, rotten infrastructure and a lack of running water.
At the same time, groups of Canadians who were hoping to sponsor Syrian refugees were crying out about the federal government scaling back its system to bring the newcomers to Canada quickly and in large numbers. The sponsorship groups many of them community volunteers and families who had pooled their own savings in response to the government's request for help accused Ottawa of scaling back their generosity before the job was done. Immigration Minister John McCallum heard their plea, reversed course and restored the previous system for a little while longer.
Would a similar effort for First Nations work as well? For Syrian refugees, the government, organizations and individuals across Canada threw everything they had at a desperate people, with great effect. The problems on remote reserves are deep, disturbing and complex. That's a description that could apply to the Middle East any day.
DRIVERLESS CARS: Where there's technical innovation, you can count on government to be nearby with regulation. Cars, trucks and buses that drive themselves are on their way to streets near you, and the recent federal budget put a few million dollars towards making sure driverless vehicles are safe. This week, industry experts held discussions on how that should be done. It turns out Canada is behind the curve in embracing driverless vehicles. The U.K. and the U.S. are substantially ahead of us in determining a regulatory framework and setting up the conditions for testing.
But more importantly, is Canada ready for the disruption that widespread automation of vehicles could bring? The experts warned about huge changes for those who drive for a living, the demand for cars, and the types of roads and transit infrastructure that we use. Will we be ready for this?
Photo: Contributed
B.C.'s elementary schools will again be under the microscope tomorrow when the Fraser Institute releases its yearly report on elementary schools.
The Report Card on British Columbias Elementary Schools 2016, ranks both independent and public schools across B.C.
The report is based on 10 academic indicators taking data from the annual Foundation Skills Assessments (FSAs).
Traditionally, the report has favoured private schools over those in the public system.
Last year, 16 elementary schools, all private, finished with perfect scores of 10.
The independent think-tank says the report card provides parents with information they cant easily get anywhere else: In addition to five years of academic results, it indicates which schools are improving and which schools are falling behind.
The FSA tests used by the Fraser Institute have come under fire by teachers, administrators and parents over the years.
Last year, Susan Bauhart, president of the Central Okanagan Teachers Association, pointed to multiple issues with the FSA test.
"It's a situation where all are being graded by the same criteria, and that doesn't work," said Bauhart. "It's not right for kids who haven't had some of the opportunities others in the province have had."
She said using the information to rank schools is hurtful
Photo: Twitter - @mc_basia "My child was star struck! Ola with the PM of Canada Justin Trudeau."
Dozens of people swarmed Justin Trudeau today at a farmer's market in Halifax as the prime minister took time to shake hands, cuddle babies and take selfies.
Wearing grey suede shoes, jeans and a blue blazer, Trudeau slowly made his way through the busy market on the Halifax waterfront, stopping to talk to vendors and eager fans.
Sisters Jillian Brown, 11, and Haley Brown, 17, drove 70 kilometres from Windsor, N.S., for a chance to meet the prime minister.
Haley Brown says shes a Trudeau supporter because of the work hes done to bring Syrian refugees into the country and the experience of shaking the prime ministers hand is one shell cherish forever.
Trudeau is scheduled to speak at the provincial Liberal partys annual general meeting on Saturday.
He is also expected to meet with Premier Stephen McNeil.
remaining of
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The Dakotas United Methodist Camps have placed a sign warning travelers their GPS is leading them the wrong way to Mount Rushmore National Monument in South Dakota. A flawed Google Maps app will lead tourists to the camp located on Storm Mountain Road near Rockerville instead of Mount Rushmore. (Sean Ryan/Rapid City Journal via AP) TV OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT (Sean Ryan/Rapid City Journal)
A Google Maps error has been sending tourists seeking "Mt. Rushmore, SD" to the wrong location for nearly five years now. Storm Mountain Center, a retreat center located some 13 miles from the real Mt. Rushmore, has repeatedly asked Google Maps to update the Mt. Rushmore address. But whatever fixes proved temporary for unknown reasons and as of this writing, the address is still wrong.
Eventually, the center has resorted to installing a large sign at the front of their driveway instructing travelers that their electronic devices are wrong about Mt. Rushmore's location. Despite this, guest services manager Ashley Wilsey told The Kansas City Star that she regularly encounters a near-constant flow of tourists mistakenly navigating to the center.
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Although Google Maps is fast becoming the ultimate authority on navigation, the program is proving vulnerable to mistakes and hackers with results that at times can be catastrophic.
One of the latest blunders involved a company accidentally bulldozing the wrong house due to faulty Google Maps directions. Google took responsibility for the maps error. In this case, two different houses were shown as being in the same location, a Google spokeswoman told CNN.
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Then there was the case of a seemingly random Wisconsin murder that investigators say might be due to a Google Earth mix up. Police say that they discovered that the murdered couple's address was switched with another house on the online map that of the president of a local bank who had received death threats. In 2010, Nicaragua blamed an accidental invasion of Costa Rica on incorrect Google Maps information.
These cases shed light on the software's susceptibility to errors and hacks. Google Maps is built on layers on information obtained from satellite images as well as photographs taken by Street View cars, which have driven and photographed more than 7 million miles of roads. Google also crowdsources location information through Map Maker, which allows users to directly update local addresses and details. An unknown number of people are employed by the company to comb through these maps for inaccuracies.
But despite this multifaceted system, location bugs and mistakes still happen. Trolls and pranksters have taken advantage of the crowdsourced feature by changing businesses to offensive names or by doodling on the map interface. One showed the mascot for Google's mobile operating system, Android, urinating on the Apple logo in an area of Pakistan.
More explicit hacks have also proved that Google Maps is easily accessible to outsiders. Bryan Seely revealed vulnerabilities in Google Maps in 2014 when he hacked into Google Map's business listings and changed the phone number for the San Francisco FBI office and Washington, D.C., Secret Service. In a Gizmodo article, Seely described a world of con artists who exploit the feature's vulnerabilities with ease by switching business listings and conning unsuspecting callers. He blames Google's less-than-stellar verification system. "Who is gonna think twice about what Google publishes on their maps? Everyone trusts Google implicitly and it's completely unwarranted and it's completely unsafe," Seely told Valleywag in an interview last year. He also mentioned that he has been paid by companies like Microsoft to spam Google Maps in the past.
Then there's the human error element, such as the case of American tourist, Noel Santillan, who drove six hours in the wrong direction in Iceland through wintery conditions due to a small spelling error he entered into Google Maps. For those misguided Mt. Rushmore tourists, even a large metal sign instructing them to turn around couldn't deter them from total GPS obedience. Some researchers have suggested that GPS dependence is becoming more and more common, and are worried about unforeseen effects. Are we collectively losing our learned sense of direction?
Neuroscience studies suggest that yes, Google Maps and GPS systems may indeed be negatively impacting our brains. Research at McGill University compared the brains of GPS versus non-GPS users and found that non-GPS users had more gray matter and higher functionality in their hippocampuses than those that relied on their devices. The hippocampus is responsible for memory and spatial navigation, the latter of which uses visual cues to create a cognitive map that assists with directionality. An earlier study showed that London taxi drivers, well-versed in the complex map of the city, had much larger hippocampuses than non-taxi drivers. There is also some correlation between those with a more developed hippocampus and lower chances of Alzheimers.
Veronique Bohbot, a neuroscientist who worked on McGill's GPS study, suggests that we limit our GPS use to new destinations only and attempt to build up our cognitive maps by navigating to frequently visited destinations on our own, she said in an article on Phys.org.
Given recent errors, our memories might wind up being more accurate than Google Maps itself.
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Karen Turner is a freelance journalist covering tech.
Adam Kroshus, left, waits for security to open the receiving/ shipping garage at Macys in order to retrieve his car and deliver a food processor, Friday April 1, 2016. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
Not long ago, two-day delivery was considered a premium service. And fast, too. Fast enough, it seemed.
Now new services from Amazon and startup competitors are trying to get shoppers' purchases to them even faster.
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Analysts said that while there's a reason a takeout dinner needs to get the customer in 60 minutes or less, it's less clear shoppers will be willing to pay for the same service when it comes to retail products, which rarely need to arrive so quickly.
When a recent hangout with friends turned dull, Chaim Osina turned to Amazon.com. Two hours later, the game he'd ordered showed up at the door, and a lame evening was averted.
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Adam Kroshus, left, signs his name in his phone app, after picking a up a food processor for delivery at Macys, Friday April 1, 2016. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
"Did I need it? Probably not," said Osina, 25, who lives on Chicago's North Side. "But there's times it's really useful."
According to a survey by Forrester Research, 29 percent of U.S. online shoppers said they're interested in guaranteed same-day delivery, a relatively small share, said e-commerce analyst Brendan Witcher.
"And interested doesn't mean they're going to pay for it," he said, particularly when so many retailers offer a free shipping option that in some cases isn't much slower.
There's a difference between delivery in a day or two and same-day or next-hour shipping, said Paula Rosenblum, managing partner at retail consulting firm RSR Research.
"I've always viewed that as a very niche market, particularly if you pull groceries out," she said. "When was the last time you had a T-shirt emergency?"
A rapidly growing field
Companies handling the deliveries, and some customers, say it's not always about needs.
Mark Morris, 31, likes the convenience of Amazon Prime's same-day service, though he wouldn't be willing to pay extra. "There aren't a lot of things I can't find just down the street," he said.
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Macy's spokeswoman Andrea Schwartz said the retailer works with startup Deliv to offer same-day delivery "for convenience," even though Macy's also lets customers buy products online to pick up in-store in addition to standard shipping options.
"I don't know if we need it, but we've become trained that we can have it," said Deliv CEO Daphne Carmeli. "Did anyone think we needed two-day shipping when Amazon rolled out Prime? No, but we have it, and it's addicting."
Amazon has since picked up the pace, bringing free same-day delivery service on Amazon Prime orders over $35 to Chicago last fall. Another service, Prime Now, will deliver a range of items in an hour or two.
One-hour delivery service Postmates announced a membership program of its own on Thursday. For $9.99 per month, Postmates Plus Unlimited members can get free delivery, with no service fees, on purchases of $30 or more from partner merchants.
Orders from merchants in the company's network, known as Postmates Plus, typically have a flat $3.99 charge in Chicago. About 3,000 merchants are part of Postmates Plus, and those orders make up about 40 percent of all Postmates deliveries, the company said Thursday.
Other orders require a delivery fee calculated based on the distance traveled in addition to the service fee. Postmates makes enough on the "premium" non-Plus orders and commissions from merchants to help subsidize the membership, said communications director April Conyers.
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Postmates started as an on-demand food delivery company, and restaurant deliveries still make up about 75 percent of its orders, but it's working to branch out, she said. The company announced a partnership with American Apparel last week that has Postmates delivering about 50 basic apparel items in no more time than it takes to drop off a lunch.
Conyers said Postmates is trying to build a network that lets companies without Amazon's logistics deliver just about anything to just about anyone at Amazon-like speed.
It's not the only one vying to get stuff to you in a day or less.
On-demand delivery service DoorDash, which came to Chicago in 2014, is concentrating on meal delivery for now but hopes to branch out to other products, said spokesman Eitan Bencuya.
Instacart is best known for its grocery deliveries, but recently began working with Target to deliver small appliances and home improvement products, said Nilam Ganenthiran, Instacart's senior vice president of business development. It's a pilot program in a handful of markets, including Chicago. The company charges $5.99 for an order above $35 with at least two hours' notice, or $7.99 for one-hour delivery, and also gets money from stores and brands. Whether item prices differ from in-store prices depends on the merchant, Ganenthiran said.
Google Express offers same-day delivery from grocers and stores like Costco, Ulta Beauty and Kohl's in Chicago, with overnight delivery in the Midwest.
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Deliv pitches its services to companies, not customers, offering same-day delivery for retailers like Macy's, malls including Fashion Outlets of Chicago and The Shops at North Bridge, and even some e-commerce companies, said Carmeli.
When a customer orders an item that can be delivered the same day from Macy's which charges just $5 for the service on orders of $99 or more Macy's packs the items for pickup by a Deliv driver, matched to the order based on proximity, rating and whether the item will fit in their car.
Uber is taking a similar approach with UberRUSH, which launched in Chicago in October. Businesses can request an Uber driver to make a delivery, sometimes same-day but as fast as 30 minutes or less, said UberEATS and UberRUSH General Manager Paolo Lorenzoni. UberRUSH is betting on the fact that it's already built up a network of drivers who can deliver packages in between dropping off customers.
"It's a way of using their downtime where no one's making money, but there's a set of people who want goods delivered," Lorenzoni said.
Witcher and Rosenblum agreed same-day service is most likely to pay off in urban areas with enough affluent customers willing to pay for convenience to support a delivery network, particularly with inconvenient products, like bulky items difficult for shoppers without cars to transport.
Osina, the Amazon customer, said he uses same-day shipping and Prime Now a couple of times a week, often for business. He's a computer consultant and uses the service to order equipment his clients need, he said.
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He's also used Postmates to order Coke Slurpees from 7-Eleven while watching movies with a friend even though there's a 7-Eleven store just down the street but said he'd be hesitant to use Postmates for bigger-ticket purchases. He's comfortable with Amazon but said he's less certain how newer players would handle problems or returns.
Jill Lindenberg, 52, visiting Chicago from Michigan, said she couldn't see herself using it. She plans ahead, and couldn't picture herself getting stuck with a need that immediate. "And I'm too cheap," she added.
Even Osina said he rarely chooses to pay for same-day delivery if his order isn't large enough to get the service free, since regular Amazon Prime shipping is only a little slower.
Will fast shipping pay off?
Postmates, Deliv, UberRUSH, Instacart and DoorDash all said they've figured out a way to make money on every order, though some said they are taking losses on orders in new markets while trying to attract users.
Even if the economics work for third-party delivery services, retailers have to decide if faster shipping pays off for them. A retailer who passes on the full cost of rapid delivery to customers and some stores absorb a little, since customers are used to free or nearly free shipping still has to handle extra logistics, Witcher said.
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Offering the service could boost business if it brings in customers who would otherwise shop elsewhere, he said. But if shoppers would have been willing to order online and pick up in-store or wait for ground shipping sometimes still only two days with companies that ship from stores retailers could be increasing their costs while getting little in return.
"Most companies don't really understand if this is creating incremental value," Witcher said.
Carmeli is also skeptical delivery speeds will get much faster in the retail sector. Promising same-day service, rather than near-immediate service, lets Deliv batch orders along routes, driving down the per-package cost, while also letting customers schedule arrivals at a convenient time, she said.
"Thirty minutes just isn't the sweet spot in retail," she said.
Postmates and UberRUSH would disagree, and Amazon, with talk of drone delivery, may be aiming for faster still.
That doesn't mean all retailers have to keep up, analysts said.
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"What a lot of people are saying is, 'I'd prefer to get it faster, but it's not that big a deal,'" Witcher said. "If you could teleport it to my house, that would be the best. That doesn't mean retailers should pursue that."
lzumbach@tribpub.com
Twitter @laurenzumbach
In 1970, Congress dropped psychedelics into the war on drugs. After a decade of Timothy Leary, "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test" and news reports of gruesome murders, the federal government declared that the drugs had no medical use -- and high potential for abuse. The chairman of New Jersey's Narcotic Drug Study Commission called LSD "the greatest threat facing the country today ... more dangerous than the Vietnam War."
But over the past decade, some scientists have begun to challenge that conclusion. Far from being harmful, they found, hallucinogens can help sick people: They helped alcoholics drink less; terminal patients eased more gently into death. And it's not just the infirm who are helped by the drugs. Psychedelics are making the healthy healthier, too.
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On this subject, only a handful of peer-reviewed studies have been conducted; sample sizes are tiny. There's still a great deal researchers don't know. But early results suggest that, when used by people without a family history or risk of psychological problems, psychedelics can make us kinder, calmer and better at our jobs. They can help us solve problems more creatively and make us more open-minded and generous. Some experiments even suggest that a single dose can change our personalities forever.
Is it possible that a drug labeled as one of the most destructive and dangerous could make everyone's lives better?
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Americans have had a complicated history with psychedelics like LSD, magic mushrooms and peyote. In the 1950s, researchers began to investigate whether psychedelics could treat mental-health disorders and addiction. Between 1953 and 1973, the federal government funded 116 studies on the subject, affecting thousands of people.
At the same time, large numbers of Americans started using these drugs recreationally (as many as 2 million had dropped acid by 1970). Stories about "bad trips" and psychotic breaks emerged in the press (in one widely publicized incident, a 5-year-old accidentally took her uncle's drug); people got scared. Meanwhile, soldiers were returning from Vietnam addicted to heroin; the country felt like it was locked in battle with illegal drug use. By 1968, President Richard Nixon had declared drugs "public enemy No. 1." Congress banned all psychedelic use in 1970, which made research nearly impossible.
Then, in the early 2000s, a handful of scientists began looking into psychedelics as a way to relieve anxiety and addiction. (They were drawn to the drugs after reviewing the work of researchers from the 1950s and '60s.) These experiments were successful. In one study, cancer patients were given psilocybin, a component of psychedelic mushrooms. Each patient was given one dose and then allowed to trip in a hospital room designed to look like a living room. Two medical professionals stayed close by.
Afterward, almost all of the participants experienced a significant reduction in anxiety and depression. Scientists checked in with the patients six months later; all reported that they still felt calmer and happier. Gail Thomas, a cancer survivor who participated in the New York University study, told me that the treatment helped her overcome a deep sense of loneliness. "The main message from the trip was that we're all connected," she said. "We're not alone."
"The fact that a drug given once can have such an effect for so long is an unprecedented finding," NYU psychiatrist Stephen Ross told the New Yorker. "We have never had anything like it in the psychiatric field."
Other researchers have tested the drug as a treatment for depression, addiction and other mental problems such as obsessive-compulsive disorder. Remarkably, in each small trial, scientists saw incredible results.
In a 2014 smoking-cessation study published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, 15 participants were given three doses of psilocybin under careful supervision by doctors. The participants were all heavy nicotine users, consuming about a pack a day for an average of 31 years. Six months later, 80 percent were cigarette-free (most smoking-cessation efforts are about 35 percent effective). In a 2015 alcoholism study (also peer-reviewed and published in Psychopharmacology), many of the 10 participants saw a significant decrease in drinking for at least nine months after one or two psilocybin experiences. (In both studies, the psilocybin doses were coupled with therapy.)
Here's why scientists think it works: When someone takes a psychedelic, there is a decrease in blood flow and electrical activity in the brain's "default mode network," a group of brain structures found in the frontal and pre-frontal cortex. The default mode network is primarily responsible for our ego or sense of self; it "lights up" when we daydream or self-reflect.
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When we trip, our default mode network slows down. With the ego out of commission, the boundaries between self and world, subject and object dissolve. These processes may be related to something called the "primary mystical experience," a phenomena highly correlated with therapeutic outcomes. As Matthew Johnson, a principal investigator in Johns Hopkins' psilocybin studies, explains, these experiences include a "transcendence of time and space," a sense of unity and sacredness and a deeply felt positive mood.
Robin Carhart-Harris, a neuroscientist with Imperial College London, notes that the default mode network is responsible for a lot of our rigid, habitual thinking and obsessions. Psychedelics help relax the part of the brain that leads us to obsess, which makes us calmer. And they can also help "loosen if not break" the entrenched physical circuits responsible for addictive behavior.
There's also an increase in activity between different parts of the brain that don't normally communicate -- what scientists call "cross-talk." That may be why we hallucinate while on psychedelics; the brain's visual-processing centers are interacting in strange ways with the parts of the brain that control our beliefs and emotions.
Of course, it's not just the mentally ill who need to feel less isolated and obsessive, more fulfilled and creative. Research has shown that healthy people also benefit from the brain shift that psychedelics provide. Taking the drug even one time can fundamentally reshape our lives, making us happier and kinder, more productive at work and more open-minded. (These findings are one of the reasons I became a psychedelics advocate.)
In one study (admittedly, one that didn't follow today's rigorous research parameters) conducted at Harvard in 1962, 10 divinity school students were given psilocybin just before a Good Friday service. Eight reported a mystical experience. In the late 1980s, researcher and psychedelics advocate Rick Doblin interviewed seven of the students who'd taken the drug. All said that experience had shaped their lives and work in profound ways. But Doblin also found that several subjects experienced acute anxiety during their experiences. One participant had to be dosed with a powerful antipsychotic after he became convinced that he'd been chosen to announce the arrival of the Messiah and ran from the chapel.
In 2006, Johns Hopkins researchers tested whether psychedelics induce a mystical experience in healthy people. Thirty-six healthy volunteers were given either a hallucinogen or a placebo at one session. In the second session, the pills were reversed. Six months later, the study participants said they were "more sensitive, compassionate, tolerant, to have increased positive relationships, an increased need to serve others," according to a lead researcher. The doctors interviewed participants' family members, friends and colleagues as well; they all confirmed that the study participants had become nicer and more pleasant.
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The positive changes seen in this study persisted for at least 14 months, which is the last time they were measured. A third of the participants in the Hopkins study rated their psilocybin session as the most spiritually significant experience of their lives, even more important than the birth of a child or the death of a parent.
The 2006 study was published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. In that issue, several prominent drug researchers were invited to comment; all praised the finding and called for additional research. Columbia University professor Herbert Kleber wrote that he saw "major therapeutic possibilities."
In a 2011 study, 18 healthy volunteers were given four doses of psilocybin. The vast majority of participants reported prolonged positive changes in attitude and mood, feelings that lasted for at least 14 months. In follow-up research, scientists determined that many of the volunteers from both studies had undergone a change in personality, something that is supposed to remain relatively fixed after 30. Participants had become more open-minded, tolerant and interested in fantasy and imagination.
"People have certain fears and rigid perspectives and ways of seeing the world that often limit what they can do," said Katherine MacLean, who led the personality research at Johns Hopkins. "A lot of people I saw go through the study as healthy people wanted to make certain changes in their life. And psilocybin helped them make these changes."
A recently published Imperial College London study seems to reinforce the Hopkins findings, although on a much more limited time scale. Twenty healthy volunteers were administered a relatively low dose of LSD. Two weeks later, they were asked to fill out personality assessments. The participants said they felt more optimistic, open-minded and intellectually curious.
Beyond the studies, there is a small community of people who are using LSD to self-medicate through micro-dosing, or consuming tiny portions of the drug. There's no scientific rigor to their work. But in articles and on Internet message boards, these users claim to have experienced some success in using LSD to improve focus, concentration, memory and creativity. In James Fadiman's "The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide," regular acid users said small doses helped them work harder and smarter. Some Silicon Valley workers are taking the drug to increase their productivity.
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Even famous Americans have linked their use of psychedelics to major creative breakthroughs. Steve Jobs famously said that taking LSD "was one of the most important things in my life." The entrepreneur Tim Ferriss said that "the billionaires I know, almost without exception, use hallucinogens on a regular basis." And the beloved and recently departed neuroscientist Oliver Sacks related LSD use to his ability to better empathize with his patients.
So far, about 500 people have participated in formal psilocybin experiments, and researchers have reported no serious side effects. But of course, these volunteers are self-selected, carefully screened and guided by therapists who are well-trained to manage episodes of fear and anxiety that can occur during a trip.
When psychedelics are used outside these tightly controlled settings, major problems can occur. These can come in the form of bad trips, which make users feel extremely anxious and depressed. Sometimes, people do dangerous things while under the influence. And hallucinogens can surface latent psychological problems, such as schizophrenia. Recreational use can occasionally result in terrifying flashbacks. (Though researchers have found that psychedelics like LSD and magic mushrooms are not addictive and far less dangerous than many legal drugs, including alcohol.)
That reality makes it hard for many scientists to imagine a future when psychedelics are used widely. They worry that it will be hard to control the drugs' use. As Nora Volkow of the National Institute on Drug Abuse told the New Yorker, "The main concern we have ... is that the public will walk away with the message that psilocybin is a safe drug."
There are legal considerations, too. Researchers are in the process of asking the FDA to consider rescheduling the drug as a treatment for end-of-life anxiety, a long and complex process. Approval for broader use will likely take decades.
What, then, is the way forward?
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Perhaps the studies that have been have done offer a path. Patients could be recommended for treatment by their doctors, screened for serious mental illness and certain heart conditions, prepped about what to expect and monitored by a medical professional (with whom they built up a trusting relationship) over six to eight hours in case of anxiety and fear. The psychedelic experience should also be integrated into the participant's life through some form of follow-up therapy. Mark Kleiman, a drug policy expert and NYU professor, emphasizes the importance of containing the experience, both during the trip, for the purposes of safety, and afterward, "so it's not merely a one-off mystical experience, but actually something you could build a life around."
Regardless, these drugs would have to be significantly regulated. Psychedelics are simply too potent, intoxicating and long-lasting to be left completely to the free market. Under the right setting, the mystical psychedelic experience can provide us with a lifetime of perspective in one afternoon. We should have access to it not just at the end of our lives, but with enough time to fully reap its benefit. As writer and psychedelics advocate Aldous Huxley said: "The man who comes back through the Door in the Wall will never be quite the same as the man who went out. He will be wiser but less sure, happier but less self-satisfied, humbler in acknowledging his ignorance yet better equipped to understand the relationship of words to things, of systematic reasoning to the unfathomable mystery which it tries, forever vainly, to comprehend."
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Why did he do it? Who knows? But it must have been something. Nick worked his shovel like a catapult and heaved another load. Then another. It all went splat.
Chicago Teachers Union members and supporters attend a rally at the Thompson Center before marching during a one-day strike by teachers April 1, 2016, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
As demonstrators left downtown streets late Friday, the Chicago Teachers Union was left to figure out how to leverage its one-day strike to achieve a new contract and increased funding for education from the state.
"I don't think that's entirely landed yet," CTU Vice President Jesse Sharkey said Friday when asked about the union's next move. "But trying to generate attention and a sense of urgency is the point.
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"Now we've got to keep the momentum going. The protests started a process that is critical and needed."
The CTU and Chicago Public Schools remain in contract negotiations, which are in a final phase that ends in May. If an agreement isn't reached by then, an open-ended strike is a possibility.
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Union members and their supporters cast Friday's protests as a step toward building a populist coalition to advance a labor-led agenda for more government funding and gaining advantage over political adversaries led by Gov. Bruce Rauner.
"This is not a moment," CTU President Karen Lewis said to a raucous rally in the campus commons at Chicago State University. "Brothers and sisters, this is a movement.
"This is about empowerment for people who have been disenfranchised for so long people who have given up, people who have thought 'this doesn't apply to me.'"
Rauner a primary target of hours of protests throughout the city denounced the CTU's strike as the "height of arrogance."
CPS and CTU agree on a need for help from Springfield. But so far there has been no consensus, publicly anyway, on legislation that would increase funding to the district.
The dispute is less about whether to spend more money on education Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Rauner and state lawmakers generally agree that schools should be better funded than it is about how to achieve a funding increase.
Rauner has long advocated spending more on primary and secondary education, but also has been a vocal opponent of the CTU and a longtime critic of CPS.
Emanuel has asked for state assistance to help dig CPS out of its financial hole. Democratic Senate President John Cullerton has pushed to change the formula used to distribute state dollars to schools so that more goes to CPS. Rauner has said he supports changing the funding formula, but only if doing so doesn't take money away from schools outside Chicago.
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But Rauner also wants passage of his bill that would weaken union rights in collective bargaining with local governments and school districts. That's where the various sides have been stuck for the better part of a year. Union officials sense the impasse is an opportunity.
"People are scratching their heads and saying 'Wait a second. My state university is closing, my school system's on the verge of collapse," CTU organizer Jackson Potter said.
Potter said he thinks the influence of what he described as "downtown Democrats" has diminished in the face of more liberal, neighborhood-based anger over economic and racial disparities, in addition to an ongoing state budget impasse the union thinks has left the governor vulnerable. Potter's view, an influential one inside CTU's ranks, is that there's no reason to cede ground on the union's agenda in Springfield.
Rauner on Friday blasted the walkout, saying it was "shameful that Chicago's children are the victims in this raw display of political power."
The governor also said, agreeing with the district, that the walkout was illegal and that teachers who participated were "thumbing their nose at taxpayers."
"It's the height of arrogance from those we've entrusted with our children's futures," the governor said.
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CPS on Friday filed a charge with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board demanding monetary damages from the union and a legal ruling to prevent a similar event.
Rauner is demanding approval for a key element of his pro-business, union-weakening agenda before he'll approve state financial help for CPS. The governor wants legislators to pass a bill that would allow local governments and school districts to decide what gets collectively bargained with unions. The measure is opposed by union-allied lawmakers at the Capitol.
"If local controls had already been enacted, CPS negotiations likely would have been concluded by now, a strike would have been averted, and taxpayers and children would have been protected," Rauner said. "Let's pass real reforms to give the families of Illinois a better future."
Rauner again called on the General Assembly to pass a budget that increases state funding for schools statewide. That's been his push this year, after he approved the education funding portion in last year's Democrat-passed spending plan while vetoing spending for the rest of state government.
On Friday outside Clemente High School in the Humboldt Park neighborhood, union representative Tom Keddy said he's confident Friday's walkout will yield some level of action by city or state government leaders.
"If it's as big of a demonstration as we expect it will be, I don't think they (local leaders) can ignore it," he said.
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Barbara McCoy, a special education teacher at King High School on the South Side, didn't hesitate when asked about her expected outcome for Friday's action.
"First of all, what's going to happen is the awareness of the need for funds," McCoy said seconds before a Chicago Police Department cruiser rolled by and blared its siren to support the protesters.
"Secondly, it is going to bring to light that you don't treat teachers this way," she said. "We also want the citizens of Chicago to know that if we don't stand up to Rahm Emanuel and the governor that this is just going to continue. They need to find another funding source."
During a news conference Friday morning at Beasley Elementary School, Lewis was asked how the union would define success for the walkout.
"Quantified success is we see a lot of people from different unions, from community organizations, coming out to support us," Lewis said. "It's a step in the right direction that CTU is leading. Because we have had kind of a dormant labor movement for many, many years and it will not get better if the labor movement doesn't move."
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Katie Moncton, an art teacher for six years at Lincoln Elementary School, marched during a rally at Northeastern Illinois University holding a hand-painted portrait of Emanuel and Rauner lounging on a tropical island. A message-in-a-bottle floating in the water read "Save our schools." Moncton said she wasn't certain that local leaders would respond to the walkout with a plan to tackle funding problems.
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Gabriel Melchor, 7, naps while being pulled in a wagon by his older brother, Abraham, as teachers and supporters of the Chicago Teachers Union march April 1, 2016, after a rally during a one-day walkout. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
"I do think that we've sent a message though," she said. "That we're not giving up on this. That we aren't tiring of this."
The backdrop of Friday's action was ongoing labor talks between CPS and CTU. A final stage of negotiations will wind down in the coming weeks after an arbitrator rules on the union and school district's quarrels.
Asked if Friday's union gambit would help CTU's stance in contract negotiations, Lewis said: "It can only help."
"Because," she said, "It shows that people are willing to do what's necessary. We're willing to take risks, we're willing to move to the next level. I think that helps.
"I'm hoping we'll land a contract soon, that's my hope, that's my prayer," Lewis said. "And I think that's what our members want."
Tribune reporters Marwa Eltaguori, Jeanne Kuang, Will Lee and Alexis Myers contributed.
A Muslim family of five from Libertyville wants an apology from United Airlines after the family was removed last month from a plane at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.
The removal came after the parents requested an additional strap for their youngest daughter's booster seat, according to Ahmed Rehab, executive director of Chicago's Council on American-Islamic Relations.
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Rehab said the family was ordered to exit the plane for security reasons. When the mother and father repeatedly asked the flight crew why they were being removed, they were told to exit "peacefully," return to the gate and await further instructions, Rehab said.
United Airlines said in a statement that the family was asked to leave a SkyWest flight, operating as United Express from Chicago, "because of concerns about their child's safety seat, which did not comply with federal safety regulations."
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But according to Rehab, when the parents tried to check the seat inside the airport, a United attendant said the computer system was down and instructed them to bring the seat onboard.
As the family settled into seats near the back of the plane, the parents made sure their son and older daughter were buckled in and attempted to secure their younger daughter in her booster seat, Rehab said.
According to Rehab, when the father asked a flight attendant if there was an extra strap for the booster seat, as advertised on the airline's website, the flight attendant said she didn't know what he was talking about and walked away.
Moments later another attendant came by and told the parents they couldn't have the booster seat. They removed the seat and eventually the pilot asked the family to leave the plane. Before disembarking, the mother, who wears an Islamic headscarf, asked the pilot if the family's removal was a "discriminatory decision." The parents then left the flight with their children so as to not further frighten their children or inconvenience the other passengers, Rehab said. He said they felt singled out and humiliated.
The mother posted a video of the interaction with the plane's crew on Facebook, where it has been viewed over 2 million times and shared more than 38,000 times.
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"Shame on you #unitedAirlines for profiling my family and me for no reason other than how we look and kicking us off the plane for 'safety flight issues' on our flight to DC for the kids spring break," she posted. "My three kids are too young to have experienced this."
Rehab said other passengers around the family joined the disruption and said, "They did nothing wrong."
The couple and their children completed their journey on a later flight and booked their return to Chicago on a different airline. Rehab said the family has asked for a formal apology, corrective action for the employees involved and reimbursement for that return flight and accommodations they had to book to adjust their travel plans.
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This is not the first time United has been accused of mistreating Muslim customers. Last May, Northwestern University chaplain Tahera Ahmad was flying from Chicago to Washington, D.C., on a United flight operated by Shuttle America when a flight attendant refused to bring her an unopened can of soda. When Ahmad pointed out that another passenger had received one, the flight attendant abruptly opened the soda and told Ahmad it was so she would not use it as a weapon.
Adopting the hashtag #UnitedforTahera, thousands tweeted messages of support and calls for a boycott after Ahmad detailed the confrontation on Facebook. The controversy ended nearly a week later with an apology from United and the company's promise that the attendant would not work on United express flights until she had undergone more training.
The airline also said employees would continue to receive annual cultural awareness training and that it would reach out to its express partners, including SkyWest, to make sure their staff also receives regular sensitivity training.
amyers@tribpub.com
I am a 24-year-old, Korean-American post-grad, and I have been reading about every turn of this year's presidential campaign entirely on my phone, mostly right before bed. Yes, it is a bad habit, and yes, the blue light is suppressing my pineal gland from releasing delicious melatonin into my brain, but I wouldn't want to get my news any other way. If in my late-night reading I am not being smothered in "Make America Great Again" Donald Trump Sauce, I am usually consuming article after article about Bernie Sanders. So it's been odd seeing recent headlines declaring variations on the theme of "Bernie Sanders Gets Snubbed By The Media."
As I lay in bed, scrolling through my news feed, it occurred to me: There is a big distinction in the type of media those articles mentioned and the type of media I consume. I am a millennial who is getting all of the breakdowns, projections and birds-landing-on-podium videos in the form of media that I have personalized for myself, mainly through Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. My idea of "news" comes through media I have filtered for my interests, and it is delivered in varied and unbiased ways unlike some traditional media where outlets such as Fox News paint a pretty right-wing picture.
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I look to these modern media because I also want to know what my peers think. Online I am often confronted with viewpoints that are not aligned with mine, and if both parties are incisive, discussions can be informative when I participate. My phone can be turned into a Socratic seminar about current affairs if I play my social media handles well, and that is exciting.
I like my form of media because the engagement sustains my passion for current politics. Online I not only keep up with my interests, but I am motivated to keep up with candidates and opinions that I do not care so much about. The Internet allows you to find answers to your questions, but it also confronts you with other things you would not be inclined to seek. I think this makes folks like me who tune in online more informed.
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So why do I bring up Sanders? Because when I saw headlines saying "Bernie Sanders Gets Snubbed By The Media," the notion didn't apply to me. I am given information on him daily. This is a new trend of media and politics that I see, that those on the Internet know exactly whom they are going to vote for and why they are not voting for someone else. My form of media will not only tell me about my candidate, it will also accost me with the latest Trump news, and I will read it because it is interesting to see all sides of this equation.
Content generated online for all candidates is so plentiful and entertaining that it's all that really matters to the youth who will vote in November and we will turn out at the polls. We are not sitting and waiting to find out how things unfold; we're actively participating.
Another important effect of social media is that those who aren't politically inclined are pushed to participate in some form or another because it is important to so many others on social media.
It is important that one voice can be supported by the voices of hundreds of thousands of others online and that this virtual presence can become loud enough to enact real change. Take it or leave it, social media have changed the politics game, and it's all being harvested by the nimble and studious fingers of America's excited youth. We are engaged in this election process because it is happening right now. We are engaged because it is a make-or-break moment for our futures. We're tired of people telling us what is best for us, so we're making our own choices and we're making them often and together. The future is bright, but I can't tell if it's daytime yet, or if my phone is just keeping me awake.
Christina Seo is a Chicago-based comedian, humor writer and illustrator.
I used to chuckle when Donald Trump called himself a "unifier." So far, the Republican front-runner has been about as unifying as a fox in a henhouse.
Yet unity appeared in unexpected ways after his comments on abortion rights in a town meeting with host Chris Matthews on MSNBC. The Donald's views, which he appeared to be sorting out even as we watched, amazingly brought pro-choice and anti-abortion leaders together on common ground against him!
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Hemming and hawing like a student who had forgotten to study his homework, Trump tried and failed to change the subject before he finally seemed to decide what he believes.
That required a big leap for him. He supported abortion rights through all nine months of pregnancy in the 1990s. Now as front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, Trump has evolved. Now, he said, he believes that women who have an abortion should be subject to "some kind of punishment."
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Trump's allies in that cause were no happier with that answer than his adversaries were. The anti-abortion side has long insisted that service providers, not women seeking an abortion, should be prosecuted even though simple logic tells me that if abortion is "murder," as the anti-abortion movement insists, the woman who has one would be at least an accomplice.
So, as pro-choice politicians and other activists said in effect "We told you so," anti-abortion leaders tried to clean up the damage. Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life Education and Defense Fund, for example, called Trump's remarks "completely out of touch with the pro-life movement and even more with women who have chosen such a sad thing as abortion."
How bad was the damage? So bad that Trump, who normally refuses to apologize or give even a nod to political correctness, completely recanted his abortion statement and issued a new one.
"The woman is a victim in this case, as is the life in her womb," said the statement, which sounded downright non-Trumpian in its grace and civility.
Trump's abortion stumble took attention away from his wobbly views on the use of nuclear weapons. He waffled from considering nukes as possible weapons against the Islamic State, to refusing to consider the use of nukes in Europe, to "I'm not going to use nuclear, but I'm not taking any cards off the table."
With that, our overseas allies are likely trembling more than our enemies are.
Watching Trump, I am moved to ask, does this guy really want to win this campaign?
This is a time when the polls are beginning to matter as a serious indication of who's going to win in November. Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton already is running TV ads that attack Trump as if he were the GOP nominee, though the ads don't name him. Meanwhile, Trump is still campaigning as though he were on a comedy tour and, by the way, learning the job as he campaigns for it.
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More bad news for the Trumpster: A new Washington Post-ABC News poll released Thursday found that, instead of expanding the GOP's big tent, Trump has shrunk it.
If he wins his party's nomination, the Post reported, he would start the general election campaign as "the least-popular candidate to represent either party in modern times."
"Three-quarters of women view him unfavorably," the newspaper reported. "So do nearly two-thirds of independents, 80 percent of young adults, 85 percent of Hispanics and nearly half of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents."
Even Trump's widely reported leads among white men, white evangelical Protestants and whites with a high school diploma or less have shrunk, the poll found. Slightly more than half of all three expressed unfavorable impressions of him.
Of course, polling numbers can change a lot before November, as can the front-runners. But, for now, there's no question that Trump has drastically shrunk what GOP leaders hoped would be a big tent of racial, ethnic and gender diversity after losing the popular vote in five of the past six presidential elections.
I'm not going to count him out, but if he really wants to win, he still has a lot of homework to do.
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Clarence Page, a member of the Tribune Editorial Board, blogs at www.chicagotribune.com/pagespage.
cpage@tribpub.com
Twitter @cptime
For one night every March, Mooseheart's Naval Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps company gathers in a theme of honor and celebration for its Military Ball.
This year, that night was March 18.
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The company, which includes all high school students in a mandatory program, dresses in its finery boys in dress uniforms and girls in promlike gowns. All five service branches are honored with a toast, and those who serve in the military are remembered. Then the dancing starts, and the company settles into a relaxed evening, Mooseheart officials said.
Planning for this year's Mooseheart Military Ball began not long after the 2015 celebration.
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"It's a leadership exercise for them. I gave them a catalog after last year's ball and said, 'You saw what they did this year. What would you like to see next year?' I told them it wasn't my Military Ball, it was theirs," retired U.S. Navy Warrant Officer Rick Smith said. Smith is Mooseheart's lead NJROTC officer.
This has been a year of transformation for Mooseheart's NJROTC, Mooseheart officials said. Central in the final phase of the school's three-year, $11.5 million renovation is a new classroom and air-rifle range for the program. Work is nearly complete, and students will begin using that space in April.
Among scheduled events to take place in the gymnasium that is also part of the final portion of the renovation is the May 6 Change of Command ceremony.
"That's going to be an exciting thing for all of us," Smith said. "We're really excited about the air-rifle range because we have excelled in competitions recently."
This year marked the second that Southern California Moose Legion 6 funded the Military Ball, and Smith said that money is very welcome.
"We're really, really grateful for that. We appreciate them for taking care of us," Smith said.
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Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli has urged positive action to deal with pressure on the economy and to pursue steady and healthy growth.
He made the remarks during a tour of central China's Hunan Province from Thursday to Friday.
China remains at a stage of industrialization and urbanization with great potential in a resilient economy, he said.
"There are more hopes than difficulties," said the vice premier. "We should do more to keep the economy within an appropriate range and improve the quality of growth while maintaining a medium-high speed," said Zhang.
He asked officials to push ahead with supply-side structural reform and address overcapacity and "zombie enterprises" in an active and steady way.
The vice premier called for more efforts to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship to foster new growth areas.
Zhang also asked officials to ward off systemic or regional risks and improve ordinary people's life.
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Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang has asked officials to enhance preciseness in poverty alleviation by collecting accurate information of impoverished people.
The poor people should be clearly identified and their information be archived so that the government can help them in an accurate way, said Wang during a recent trip to northwest China's Gansu Province.
At the end of 2014, China had 70 million people in the countryside living below the nation's poverty line of 2,300 yuan (about 354 U.S. dollars) in annual income.
China aims to eliminate poverty by 2020 when its 13th Five-Year Plan is completed.
Rating agencies have overstated China's economic difficulties when lowering the outlook on its sovereign credit rating from stable to negative, an official said Friday.
"Standard & Poor's (S&P) and Moody's have overestimated the difficulties China is facing, while underestimating its ability to push forward reforms and cope with risks," said Shi Yaobin, vice-minister of finance, in a formal statement.
S&P on Thursday cut its outlook for the Chinese government's credit rating to negative because it holds that excessive government spending and debt may curb growth. It did, however, maintain the rating at AA-, saying the government's reform agenda was on track albeit at a slower-than-expected pace.
Moody's made a similar decision earlier in March, based on expectations that China's fiscal strength would continue to decline, its forex reserve cuts, and uncertainty about economic reforms.
"Rating agencies need not worry about China's economic restructuring, debt, state-owned enterprise reform and financial market risks. They need in-depth and comprehensive estimation on China's achievements and structural reform development," said Shi in an interview.
With an annual growth rate of 6.9 percent in 2015, China contributed over 25 percent of the world's economic growth last year, the vice minister said.
"As the world's second largest economy and the top trading nation, China has been a growth engine and a stabilizer since the outbreak of the international financial crisis," said Shi.
Shi further promoted the economy's great growth potential, strong resilience and ample leeway, saying that the on-going supply-side reform, among others, will support a medium-high speed of growth.
It is the economic fundamentals instead of the rating that will have the decisive role on the economy and the financial market, said Shi, adding that the trend of China's economy toward growth and expansion has not changed.
This is not the first time that officials have criticized rating agencies. Responding to concerns over Moody's lowering of the outlook, Finance Minister Lou Jiwei said at the recent China Development Forum that he "doesn't care" about the rating because he didn't see negative fallout in any market, international or domestic, as a result.
Friday's statement was toned down from a previous statement on Wednesday in response to Moody's. An unattributed official from the ministry said then that the action was the result of "insufficient knowledge" about China's economy.
"When an economy is in an upward cycle, rating agencies tend to raise their ratings, failing to identify underlying risks in the economy. And when an economy is in a downward cycle, agencies cut the ratings and exacerbate the risks," the official said.
The March Purchasing Managers' Index for the manufacturing sector, released on Friday, was another rebuff to Moody's and the S&P's downbeat assessments.
The index exceeded forecasts and rose to 50.2, its highest since August and the first time in nine months it had entered expansionary territory.
A pawnbroking company boss was sentenced to life in jail for a Ponzi scheme worth hundreds of millions of yuan in south China's Hainan Province, a court said Friday.
Shen Guilin, former chairman and legal representative of a Haikou pawnbroker, was convicted of illegally raising 882 million yuan (about 137 million U.S. dollars) from 210 people between 2002 and 2013 by Haikou Intermediate People's Court.
Shen was also former deputy chairman of the Hainan Federation of Industry and Commerce. He promised lenders monthly interest of up to 4 percent and used their money to return the principal and interests of previous loans or to purchase houses and luxury goods. The victims suffered losses of 408 million yuan.
Shen fled via Hong Kong to Thailand and Laos in December 2013.
Shen plans to appeal.
A man who attacked a nursing home, killing nine people and injuring nine others in 2015, was sentenced to death on Friday by a court in central China's Hunan Province.
Luo Renchu, a nursing worker, randomly attacked elderly people and staff at the nursing home after a dispute with the owner over unpaid wages, according to the ruling of the Intermediate People's Court of Loudi City.
The attack happened on Feb. 19, 2015, the Spring Festival, at Aixin Nursing Home, Yongfeng Township, Shuangfeng County. The nursing home owed Luo and his wife, also a nursing worker, unpaid wages of about 40,000 yuan (6,200 U.S. dollars).
Luo had asked for the wages many times and had been promised 10,000 yuan before Spring Festival but only received 6,000 yuan.
Luo sought revenge by attacking the home's residents with a brick as they slept in the belief it would cause the owners to lose money. He was arrested two days later.
Luo plans to appeal.
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Fire fighters work near the explosion site in Paris, France on April 1, 2016. [Xinhua]
At least 17 people were injured, including one in critical condition, during the explosion caused by gas in the sixth district of Paris, the firefight commander told BFMTV on Friday.
Among the 17 injured, six were firefighters, BFMTV reported citing the rescue sources.
The firefighters operation is still ongoing to find other possible injured in the building.
The police department of the sixth district of Paris confirmed Friday noon that an explosion took place in its district, firefighters were on their way.
According to local media, the explosion was caused when someone tried to light the gas in an apartment.
Flash
Chinese President Xi Jinping attends the fourth Nuclear Security Summit in Washington D.C., the United States, April 1, 2016. [Xinhua]
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday announced a series of new measures to shore up the nuclear security of China.
In a speech delivered at the opening meeting of the fourth Nuclear Security Summit, Xi said China has been committed to stepping up its own nuclear security while advancing international cooperation.
China, he said, will build a network for capacity building on nuclear security, by using the existing platforms, such as the Center of Excellence on Nuclear Security jointly built by Beijing and Washington in China, to carry out training of nuclear security professionals, exercises and exchanges regarding nuclear security technologies.
Xi also pledged to support all countries in minimizing the use of the highly enriched uranium (HEU) according to their needs as long as it is economically and technologically viable.
China will promote the cooperation model for less use of HEU, Xi said, referring to his country's help for Ghana to convert an HEU-fueled research reactor to using low enriched uranium within the framework of the the International Atomic Energy Agency, the world's nuclear watchdog.
"We are willing to build on the Ghana model and help countries convert HEU-fueled miniature neutron source reactors imported from China under the principle of voluntarism and pragmatism," he told the plenary.
According to China's first white paper on nuclear emergency preparedness issued in January, as of the end of October 2015, the Chinese mainland had 27 nuclear power generating units in operation, with a total installed capacity of 25.5 gigawatts (GW), while another 25 units with a total installed capacity of 27.51 GW had been under construction.
The world's second largest economy plans to raise its installed nuclear power capacity to 58 GW with an additional 30 GW under construction by 2020 and build itself into a strong nuclear power country by 2030.
Commenting on measures to strengthen security of radioactive sources, Xi said that China will, in the coming five years, review the radioactive sources within the country, improve the security system and give priority to conducting real-time monitoring of high-risk mobile radioactive sources.
"We stand ready to share our experience with other countries and work with them to enhance the security monitoring of radioactive sources," he said.
Xi promised to launch the technological support initiative against crisis of nuclear terrorism, vowing that his country will carry out scientific research in the fields of civilian nuclear material analysis and tracing, actively organize mock exercises and jointly enhance capacity for addressing crisis.
He also said that China will promote its national security monitoring system for nuclear power.
China applies the most stringent security monitoring to ensure the safety and security of the nuclear power stations within China and those exported to other parts of the world, Xi underlined. "Nothing is left to chance."
China will help others enhance their capacity in security monitoring and contribute its share to enhancing nuclear power safety and security worldwide, he added.
The 2016 NSS, which was the last in its current format, gathered leaders and envoys from 52 countries and four international organizations. A communique was released along with five action plans.
On the sidelines of the summit, Xi attended a leaders' meeting of the P5+1 mechanism, which comprises the five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- plus Germany and reached a historic agreement with Tehran in July over its controversial nuclear program.
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Indian officials said on Friday that five people belonging to the construction company that was building a flyover in the eastern state of West Bengal were arrested for questioning.
A 60-meter portion of the overpass collapsed Thursday afternoon at Vivekananda Road in the busy capital city of Kolkata, killing 25 and injuring scores of others.
Rescuers using heavy machinery safely pulled over 90 people from the debris of concrete and mangled steel. The flyover's massive steel girders and concrete slabs crumpled vehicles and rickshaws under it.
The number of people trapped underneath the debris was unknown.
However, hopes of finding more survivors seem to be fading with every passing hour.
The flyover was being constructed by a Hyderabad-based construction company IVRCL.
Police has sealed the Kolkata office of the company and sent a team to Hyderabad for questioning higher officials of IVRCL.
"IVRCL faces charges of attempted murder, mischief and criminal conspiracy in connection with the collapse of an overpass in Kolkata," a senior police official told Xinhua.
"We would be investigating the company officials for alleged culpable homicide and criminal breach of trust."
The company signed a contract for constructing the overpass in 2009 and was supposed to complete the project in August 2010.
It has missed nine deadlines with the latest deadline being August 2016. Reports say 80 percent of the work on the flyover has been completed so far.
K Panduranga Rao, an official of IVRCL, described the accident "an Act of God" following the deadly incident.
"It's nothing but a God's act," Rao told media. "So far in 27 years we have constructed several number of bridges, it (today's collapse) never happened."
The state's Chief Minister Mamta Banarjee blamed the construction company and the previous government that had commissioned the project for the deadly collapse.
However, the opposition accused her of playing politics.
Derek O'Brien, chief spokesman of the ruling party in West Bengal said "the most stringent action will be taken" against those responsible for collapse.
"A team from Kolkata Police is already in Hyderabad, acting on three FIRs (first information reports) filed against IVRCL, the contractor building the flyover," O'Brien wrote in his column in NDTV website.
Deadly accidents due to failing infrastructure is common in India. Experts blame the lax administration and corruption for flouting building rules and messy project delays that often results in using poor quality materials, inadequate supervision and poor safety standards for workers.
Flash
The Helsinki District Court has sentenced four foreigners to imprisonment for a serious sex crime, reported Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat on Friday.
Three of the men have been sentenced to four years in prison, and the fourth to two years. The court found them guilty of aggravated rape with brutal violence against the victim.
The prison sentences are unconditional, according to the daily.
The crime took place in the vicinity of the central railway station in downtown Helsinki during the night of Nov. 1 last year. The victim was a young woman.
According to information obtained by Helsingin Sanomat, three of the men are Iraqi nationals and one is from Syria.
Finnish media reported earlier that at least three of them came to Finland last October as asylum seekers.
In addition to the prison sentences, the count also ordered the offenders to pay a total of 20,000 euros (23,000 U.S. dollars) in compensation to the victim.
All the defendants denied the charges, but the district court considered that the crime of gang rape could be convicted on the basis of sufficient evidence it had collected.
Flash
Chinese President Xi Jinping wrapped up a productive trip to the U.S. capital and departed for home on Friday evening after attending the fourth Nuclear Security Summit (NSS).
He took part in all the activities on the NSS schedule, including a dinner hosted by U.S. President Barack Obama at the White House on Thursday evening, an opening plenary on Friday morning, as well as a working lunch, a scenario-based policy discussion and a closing session in the afternoon.
In a speech delivered at the opening meeting, the Chinese president urged countries around the world to increase national input and expand international cooperation so as to further firm up the global nuclear security architecture.
The 2016 NSS, which was the last in its current format, gathered leaders and envoys from 52 countries and four international organizations. A communique was released along with five action plans.
On the sidelines of the summit, Xi attended a leaders' meeting of the P5+1 mechanism, which comprises the five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- plus Germany and reached a historic agreement with Tehran in July over its controversial nuclear program.
He also held bilateral meetings with Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen, Obama, South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Argentine President Mauricio Macri. Following his meeting with Obama, their first so far this year, the two sides issued two joint statements, respectively, on nuclear security and climate change.
Xi arrived in Washington on Wednesday evening from Prague after rounding off a successful trip to the Czech Republic, the first state visit to the Central European country by a Chinese head of state in 67 years.
UNITED NATIONS - China on Friday assumed the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council for April.
China's Permanent Representative to the UN Liu Jieyi in the day took over the rotating council presidency from his Angolan counterpart Ismael Abraao Gaspar Martins, who held the council presidency for March.
At 5 pm EDT, local time, Friday, Liu is expected to hold a briefing on the Council's planned work for this month at the UN headquarters in New York.
Under the UN Charter, the Security Council has the primary responsibility for the maintenance of peace and security in the world at large.
China is one of the five permanent members of the 15-nation Council, together with the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and the Russian Federation. The Council has another 10 non-permanent members that are elected in groups of five by the UN General Assembly for two-year terms.
The presidency of the Council rotates among its 15 member states based on the English-language alphabetical order of the countries' names on a monthly basis.
Following is a chronology of China's presidency at the Security Council in recent five years.
-- February 2015
Under China's presidency, the Security Council held 35 meetings to discuss more than 20 agenda topics, including Syria, Yemen, Libya, South Sudan and Ukraine, with seven resolutions adopted and two presidential statements as well as 15 press statements issued.
The Council also held the 70th anniversary themed debate, "Maintaining international peace and security: Reflect on history, reaffirm the strong commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations."
China also introduced to the Council a fine adjustment on working methods to encourage members to be more focused on analyzing the situations, pinpointing the problems and finding solutions to these key problems. The move aimed to use the council time more efficiently and throw in the weight of the Council behind solutions.
-- November 2013
The Middle East and African issues featured high on the agenda of the Security Council.
On Nov 13, the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution, setting up a framework that would continue enabling cooperation between members of the international community in combating piracy and armed robbery along the coast of Somalia.
-- June 2012
The Security Council reviewed major international hotspot issues including Syria, Sudan, South Sudan and the Middle East.
On June 29, the Security Council adopted a resolution to request UN Secretary-General to expand the 1540 committee which was set up in 2004 and was mandated to prevent the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and their means of delivery.
-- January 2010
On Jan 13, the Security Council held, at the China initiative, an open thematic debate on cooperation between the United Nations and regional and sub-regional organizations on international peace and security.
Soldiers accompany the remains of Chinese People's Volunteer Army (CPVA) soldiers who died in the Korean War during a burial ceremony in Shenyang, the capital of Northeast China's Liaoning province, April 1, 2016. A burial ceremony for the remains of 36 CPVA soldiers who died in the Korean War (1950-1953) was held on Friday at a war martyr cemetery in Shenyang, the third batch returned following a handover agreement signed by China and Republic of Korea (ROK) in 2013. [Photo/Xinhua]
SHENYANG - Remains of 36 Chinese soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War were reburied in China after they were excavated and returned from the Republic of Korea (ROK), the third batch returned following a handover agreement signed by the two countries in 2013.
With the air filled with the national anthem, China held a grand ceremony in northeastern Liaoning province on Friday morning, attended by over 300 people including government and military officials, Korean War veterans, their families and members of the public.
"The heroes defended regional peace with their lives. Our nation will always remember them as martyrs," said Vice-Minister of Civil Affairs Dou Yupei in his memorial speech.
Dou is head of the Chinese delegation that escorted the remains and belongings of the fallen soldiers back home on Thursday.
The remains were buried in a martyrs' park in Shenyang, the provincial capital, together with those of 505 soldiers who were returned to China from ROK in 2014 and 2015.
Bi Chunzhi, an 82-year-old veteran who used to work as an army nurse during the war, burst into tears on seeing the coffins of her comrades-in-arms. "They are finally home," she said.
The Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) fought along with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea army in the Korean War against the ROK army and US-led UN forces.
A total of 197,653 CPV soldiers have been confirmed killed in the war so far, most of whom were buried on the Korean Peninsula.
According to an agreement between China and ROK, the two sides consult every year on the hand-over of remains of Chinese soldiers found in ROK. A hand-over is usually held before the traditional Chinese Tomb-Sweeping Day in early April.
China's Global Newspaper
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Archaeologists excavate the relics of extinct human species dubbed the "Hobbit" on the Indonesian island of Flores. Reuters
The extinct human species dubbed the "Hobbit" vanished from its home on the Indonesian island of Flores far earlier than previously thought, according to scientists who suspect our species may have had a hand in these diminutive people's demise.
Researchers said on Wednesday they recalculated the age of bones of the species, named Homo floresiensis, found inside a Flores cave, and determined it disappeared about 50,000 years ago rather than 12,000 years ago as previously estimated.
The Hobbit's discovery in 2003 created a scientific sensation. Homo floresiensis stood 106 cm tall, possessed a small, chimpanzee-sized brain, used stone tools and may have hunted pygmy elephants.
The researchers said there is not yet direct evidence the Hobbit people encountered Homo sapiens but noted that our species was already on other islands in the region at around that time and had reached Australia by about 50,000 years ago.
Geochronologist Bert Roberts of Australia's University of Wollongong said it was possible Homo sapiens played a role in the Hobbit's extinction and the issue would be a major focus of further research.
"To me, the question is, 'Would the Hobbits have become extinct if humans had never made landfall on Flores?' And the answer is 'no'. We were likely the decisive factor in their demise, but we still need to find hard evidence to back up this hunch," Roberts said.
Numerous animals disappeared on Flores at the same time, said paleoanthropologist Matt Tocheri of Canada's Lakehead University and the Smithsonian Institution's Human Origins Program. These included small elephants, giant marabou storks, vultures and large Komodo dragon lizards.
After fresh excavations from 2007 to 2014 improved the understanding of the cave site, the scientists re-evaluated the ages of sediment containing Homo floresiensis remains and the actual bones.
Homo sapiens
The Hobbits' skeletal remains were 60,000 to 100,000 years old while their stone tools were 50,000 to 190,000 years old, said archaeologist Thomas Sutikna of the University of Wollongong and Indonesia's National Research Centre for Archaeology.
Homo sapiens first appeared in Africa about 200,000 years ago and later trekked to other parts of the world, encountering other human species like Neanderthals who went extinct not long afterward.
The previous assessment that the Hobbits had lived as recently as 12,000 years ago indicated they had survived for perhaps 40,000 years after our species reached the region. The new results show this was not the case.
The research appears in the journal Nature.
Rescuers remove the remains of a person from the rubble of an under-construction overpass that collapsed in Kolkata, India, on Friday. Rupak de Chowdhuri / Reuters
Kolkata accident kills at least 23 people and injures more than 80
Using saws, small cranes and bare hands, rescuers cleared the crumbled concrete on Friday and twisted steel from an overpass that collapsed onto a crowded Kolkata neighborhood, killing at least 23 people and injuring more than 80.
With more than half the debris cleared by Friday, 67 people have been pulled out alive, police said. By noon, rescuers said there was little hope of finding any more survivors.
"The rescue operation is in its last phase. There is no possibility of finding any person alive," said S.S. Guleria, deputy inspector general of the India's National Disaster Response Force. He said workers were focusing on the recovery of dead bodies and removal of the debris.
It was not clear how many people might still be missing, possibly trapped under the debris. Police have detained five officials of the construction company building the overpass.
Smashed yellow taxis, a crushed truck, destroyed rickshaws and the bloody legs of trapped people jutted from the fallen girders and concrete. Building and other construction collapses are common in India, where regulations are poorly enforced and companies often use substandard materials.
The partially constructed overpass spanned nearly the width of the street and was designed to ease traffic through the densely crowded Bara Bazaar neighborhood in the capital of the east Indian state of West Bengal. The steel girders had already been fixed, and on Thursday the concrete was poured into the framework.
Within hours, as the concrete was drying, about 100 meters of the overpass fell, while other sections remained standing.
Whole building shook
"I heard an explosion, a solid one," said resident Rabindra Kumar Gupta, who had been home eating lunch when the overpass crashed down around 12:30 pm on Thursday. "My apartment shook. The whole building shook. When I looked outside, there was a lot of smoke."
Crowds waited anxiously near the rescue area to see if neighbors and friends had survived. The intersection had been a place where street vendors and service workers regularly plied their trades.
"There used to be a tailor who sat here on this corner. We wonder about him. A cigarettes and tobacco vendor - we knew everyone who used to stay around this crossing," resident Pankaj Jhunjhunwala said. "Until this rubbish is removed, we can't say for sure where they are or how this happened."
With army troops and personnel from the National Disaster Response Force joining the effort, police said they expected the rescue and cleanup to be completed on Friday.
Workers in yellow hard-hats operated huge cranes, bulldozers and other equipment through the night to clear the rubble and pry apart the concrete slabs. They also used cutting torches to break up metal beams.
The operation was a "very, very challenging task", said O.P. Singh, chief of the disaster response force. Rescuers also used dogs and special cameras to find people who were trapped, he said.
"The area was very, very crowded. Motorized rickshaws, taxis ... there was a lot of traffic," one witness told NDTV television.
AP - AFP
Worker's Party supporters demonstrate in support of President Dilma Rousseff and former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Curitiba, Brazil, on Thursday. Heuler Andrey / AFP
Brazil's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday to take a corruption investigation of former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva away from a crusading federal judge, as pro-government protests across the country eased pressure on President Dilma Rousseff.
Local television showed tens of thousands of supporters clad in red marching for Rousseff, who has faced growing calls for her impeachment since anti-corruption judge Sergio Moro released a wiretapped conversation of her and Lula last month.
Thursday's 8-2 Supreme Court decision grants Lula and Rousseff a breather from Moro by putting Lula's case temporarily in the hands of the top court, all but 3 of whose members have been named since the ruling Workers' Party took office in 2003.
Lula, Rousseff's predecessor and mentor, is under investigation for allegedly benefiting, in the form of payments and a luxury apartment, from a massive graft scheme uncovered at state-run oil company Petrobras.
Rousseff is fighting impeachment over unrelated charges of irregularities in the government budget designed to favor her re-election in 2014. She could lose power as soon as May if she does not gain more support in Congress.
The scandal, Rousseff's Congressional weakness and a deepening economic recession have led to Brazil's worst political crisis since former president Fernando Collor de Mello resigned to avoid impeachment in 1992.
Up to 3 million people joined a protest in favor of her ouster on March 13, the largest one in decades.
On Thursday, Rousseff held a rally with artists who support her and said opponents trying to impeach her were merely trying to "give a democratic tint to a coup".
Some success
Aides said her government had some success in drawing lawmakers from smaller political parties into her government's alliance, which was shattered by the departure last month of Brazil's largest political party the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, or PMDB.
In a sign of a potential split among the PMDB, Senate leader Renan Calheiros said his party's decision to leave the government was "foolish" and "premature".
"This PMDB meeting was rushed. It is obvious that it caused stark reactions on all sides. ... This means it was an unwise move," Calheiros said.
Reuters - Xinhua
File photo provided by Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on May 9, 2015 shows the test-firing of a strategic ballistic missile in the DPRK. [Photo/Xinhua]
SEOUL - The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Friday fired off a ground-to-air missile into eastern waters, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
The short-range missile, which flew about 100 km, was launched at around 12:45 pm local time (0345 GMT) from the eastern region near the coast of Seondeok in South Hamgyeong province.
The launch came just three days after Pyongyang fired one round of its new 300-mm multiple rocket launcher in northeastern direction.
With projectile launches in recent weeks, Pyongyang has shown its protest against the ongoing US-South Korea joint military exercises and newly-adopted international sanctions on the DPRK.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who attended the two-day nuclear security summit in Washington, reiterated her position on Thursday of focusing on sanctions, rather than dialogue, to make the DPRK abandon its nuclear program.
The DPRK started off a new year by detonating what it claimed was its hydrogen bomb on Jan 6, the fourth of its nuclear tests, followed by the launch of a long-range rocket, which was condemned as a disguised test of ballistic missile technology, on Feb 7.
UN Security Council unanimously adopted tougher-than-ever sanctions on Pyongyang on March 2, and South Korea introduced its standalone restrictions on its northern neighbor such as a ban on foreign ships staying at the DPRK ports from entering the South Korean territory.
Annually-held spring war games between Seoul and Washington kicked off on March 7. The Key Resolve command post exercise ended 12 days later, but the Foal Eagle field training exercise would last until later this month.
Pyongyang has denounced the US-South Korea military exercises as a dress rehearsal for northward invasion.
Photo provided by Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on March 24, 2016 shows the top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong-un guiding a ground test for heavy-lift, solid-fuel rocket engine and its separation. [Photo/Xinhua]
PYONGYANG - The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has test-fired "new-type anti-air guided rockets" under the observation of its top leader Kim Jong-un, the country's official KCNA news agency reported Saturday.
The rockets accurately hit the aerial targets of the simulated enemy, the KCNA said without specifying when and where the test was carried out.
Kim was satisfied with the test, saying it demonstrated the DPRK's rapidly growing defense capability.
The DPRK on Friday fired a ground-to-air missile into its eastern waters, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The launch came just three days after Pyongyang fired a rocket in northeastern direction.
Pyongyang's frequent projectile launches in recent weeks are said to protest the ongoing US-South Korea joint military exercises and newly-adopted international sanctions on the DPRK.
In early March, UN Security Council adopted tougher-than-ever sanctions on Pyongyang over its fourth nuclear test on Jan 6.
On March 7, South Korea and the United States kicked off their joint annual war games "Key Resolve" and "Foal Eagle." The "Key Resolve" exercise ended last month, but the "Foal Eagle" field training exercise is scheduled to last till April 30.
African development week enters its third day with several events scheduled to take place throughout the weekend.
One of the issues set to be discussed on Saturday is on bilateral investment treaties and how African countries can design deals that increase the attractiveness of the continent to investors while handling them in a fair, equitable way that reinforces a sense of security and success.
This comes at a time when there is a planned move to relocate some light industries from China to the continent that is expected to boost economic growth. Industrialization is hailed as the ideal strategy to bring the continent closer to achieving Agenda 2063 and Sustainable Development Goals. Three countries namely Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia have been selected for the pilot project.
Furthermore, several African countries have expressed interest to duplicate the special economic zone model behind the rapid industrialization growth witnessed in China.
The event organized by Economic Commission for Africa will see Paul Jourdan, a mineral policy analyst from South Africa lead his peers in shedding light on how Africa can balance rights and obligations between host countries and investors.
Two reports are also scheduled to be launched, an Africa governance report that gives a continental view of corruption levels and assessing the progress of African integration. The latter gives a regional integration index.
Transport infrastructure largely funded and built by China is expected to feature prominently in the report.
"These reports will give an African perspective. We want to take ownership of our statistics because these numbers will give an African narrative," says Jimmy Ocitti, Director, Public Information and Knowledge Management Division, ECA.
The events are precursors to the annual joint United Nations ECA and African Union Ministerial Conference that is scheduled for Monday next week. The forum will bring together African ministers of economy and finance who will discuss the continent's development agenda.
A hijacked Egypt Air A320 airbus stands on the runway at Larnaca Airport in Larnaca, Cyprus , March 29, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]
NICOSIA - Egypt has asked Cyprus to extradite a man held by Cypriot police on suspicion of hijacking an EgyptAir plane on Tuesday and forcing it to land at Larnaca, Cypriot Attorney General Costas Clerides said on Saturday.
Clerides said Egypt's request to extradite Seif Eldin Mustafa, aged 59, will be examined after investigation into crimes on which Cypriot authorities have jurisdiction are completed.
"When investigations are completed it will be decided whether he will be extradited to Egypt," said Clerides.
He added that the decision will be taken in consultation with the government as a decision of political nature is involved.
Mustafa claimed that he carried out the hijacking because he wanted to see his ex-wife, a Cypriot, with whom he separated in 1994.
But on landing at Larnaca he demanded that Egypt release 69 women held in prison.
The hijacker tried to escape after all people on board were either released by him or left the plane, but was arrested while running away.
He is currently held under an eight-day court remand which is valid until Wednesday.
President Xi Jinping attends the fourth Nuclear Security Summit in Washington DC, the United States, April 1, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]
Dear Colleagues,
As the largest developing country, China has always been committed to development and utilization of nuclear energy while ensuring security in the first place. This is to bridge the gap in energy supply, and address the challenges posed by climate change. China is the country with the fastest growth of nuclear power. At the same time, it has kept a good record of nuclear security. Since the Summit in The Hague, China has made new progress in the field of nuclear security.
- In pursuit of excellence through constant improvement, China has strived to explore effective ways to strengthen nuclear security. We have already incorporated nuclear security in China's national security system, written it into the National Security Law and defined its strategic nature. We are constantly improving the national legal framework concerning nuclear security and studying the promulgation of law on atomic energy and law on nuclear security. We have formulated and implemented the mid-to-long term work plan on nuclear security, and we are making efforts to improve monitoring and law-enforcement mechanisms, carry out capacity building for all personnel in this industry and organize various kinds of mock exercises to raise the ability of emergency response.
- Keeping its promise on nuclear security, China has fulfilled its international obligations and political commitment. China has ratified all the international legal instruments in the field of nuclear security, consistently and strictly implemented related Security Council resolutions, and actively supported and participated in international initiatives on nuclear security. The Center of Excellence on Nuclear Security I promised at the Summit in The Hague has been completed a year ahead of schedule and is now operational in Beijing; the highly enriched uranium (HEU)-fueled Miniature Neutron Source Reactor (MNSR) of the China Institute of Atomic Energy has been smoothly converted to start using safer Low Enriched Uranium (LEU) fuels; and positive progress has been made in the Chinese-assisted program to convert a HEU-fueled research reactor in Ghana.
- Aspiring for win-win cooperation, China is vigorously promoting international exchanges and cooperation. China firmly supports the IAEA in implementing the Action Plan on Nuclear Safety and will increase donations to the Nuclear Security Fund. China and the IAEA have agreed to officially start implementing the first International Physical Protection Advisory Service this year. This February, China and the United States successfully held the first annual Nuclear Security Dialogue. We will also deepen our exchanges and cooperation with other countries, the UN and the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism.
While stepping up its own nuclear security, China will actively advance related international cooperation, share its technologies and expertise and contribute resources and platforms. I hereby announce:
First, China will build a network for capacity building on nuclear security. We will use existing platforms including the Center of Excellence on Nuclear Security and the China Customs Radiation Detection Training Center to carry out training of nuclear security professionals, exercises and exchanges regarding nuclear security technologies and other activities. We welcome the participation of Asia Pacific countries, countries along the Belt and Road and other developing countries in relevant projects and will stay in close cooperation with the IAEA.
Second, China will promote cooperation model for less use of HEU. We support all countries in minimizing the use of HEU according to their needs as long as it is economically and technologically viable. We are willing to build on the Ghana model and help countries convert HEU-fueled MNSR imported from China under the principle of voluntarism and pragmatism. We will present to other interested countries the multi-party cooperation model for converting HEU-fueled MNSR for their reference.
Third, China will implement the action plan on strengthening security of radioactive sources. To prevent the large amount of radioactive sources from falling into the hands of terrorists, we will, in the coming five years, review the radioactive sources within China, improve the security system and give priority to conducting real-time monitoring of high-risk mobile radioactive sources. We stand ready to share our experience with other countries and work with them to enhance the security monitoring of radioactive sources.
Fourth, China will launch the technological support initiative against crisis of nuclear terrorism. We will, together with like-minded countries and organizations, carry out scientific research in the fields of civilian nuclear material analysis and tracing, actively organize mock exercises and jointly enhance our capacity for addressing crisis.
Fifth, China will promote its national security monitoring system for nuclear power. China applies the most stringent security monitoring to ensure the safety and security of the nuclear power stations within China and those exported to other parts of the world. Nothing is left to chance. Relying on the National Research and Development Center for Nuclear and Radiation Safety and Security Monitoring Technologies, we will help others enhance their capacity in security monitoring and contribute our share to enhancing nuclear power safety and security worldwide.
Dear Colleagues,
What we plant in spring will blossom in summer, come to fruition in autumn and sustain us throughout the winter. The more we plough, the more we will gain. As long as we cooperate in good faith and continue to step up nuclear security, nuclear energy will certainly deliver a brighter future to mankind.
Relationship with Seoul a priority in Beijing's neighborhood diplomacy
Beijing reaffirmed that its relationship with Seoul is a priority in China's neighborhood diplomacy and called for both countries to respect each other's sovereignty, security and development interests, amid concern that the US' possible deployment of missiles in the Republic of Korea may spark tensions.
China attaches great importance to the relationship with the ROK and always makes it a priority in China's neighborhood diplomacy, President Xi Jinping told his ROK counterpart, Park Geun-hye, during their meeting on Thursday in Washington.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 4th Nuclear Security Summit and went on for 20 minutes longer than expected. It was the first meeting between Xi and Park since Pyongyang's fourth nuclear test in January.
The ROK and the United States began talks about possibly deploying the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense missile system just hours after the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's launch of a long-range rocket on Feb 7.
Interactions stressed
In the 80-minute talk on Thursday, Xi said: "China and the ROK should maintain the momentum of high-level interactions, make use of the existing mechanisms of strategic communication, accommodate each other's major concerns and respect each other's sovereignty, security and development interests."
Echoing Xi's remarks on the bilateral ties, Park said her frequent interactions with Xi are a symbol indicating the significance of the ROK-China relationship and said Seoul will advance its strategic partnership of cooperation with Beijing in a sustained manner.
On Thursday, Xi also called for all sides to "fully and strictly" carry out the latest UN resolutions on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and stressed that dialogue and consultations "represent the only right way to settle the predicament on the peninsula".
Beijing stands ready to make constructive efforts toward resuming dialogue within the framework of the six-party talks, Xi added.
In response, Park said the ROK is willing to maintain close communications with China on relevant issues.
DPRK response
Hours after the leaders of the US, ROK and Japan vowed to ramp up pressure on Pyongyang and warned it to end provocations on Thursday, the DPRK fired a short-range missile into the sea off its east coast on Friday, AP reported.
Zuo Xiying, an international studies specialist at the National Academy of Development and Strategy at Renmin University of China, said China and the ROK did not shy away from raising their differences during the meeting, which will help to clarify each other's interests and concerns and is thus, conducive to the strategic communication between them.
"Meanwhile, the facts have proved several times that simply putting pressure on Pyongyang only makes it more provocative toward the international community, and we should realize that the strategy to solve this problem is a complex one," Zuo added.
Contact the writers at anbaijie@chinadaily.com.cn
Hezi Jiang contributed to this story.
President Xi Jinping arrives for a working dinner with the heads of delegations attending the Nuclear Security Summit at the White House in Washington on Thursday. JONATHAN ERNST / REUTERS
China and the United States pledged on Thursday to step up their cooperation in nuclear security.
In a joint statement, the two countries said they will work together to foster a peaceful and stable international environment by reducing the threat of nuclear terrorism and said they would strive for a more inclusive, coordinated, sustainable and robust global nuclear security architecture.
They applauded the successful completion of the first round of bilateral discussions on nuclear security that wrapped up on Feb 20 in Stockholm.
"We plan to continue this dialogue on an annual basis, so as to intensify our cooperation to prevent nuclear terrorism and continue advancing Nuclear Security Summit goals," the statement said.
The statement was released after a meeting between President Xi Jinping and US President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the 4th Nuclear Security Summit, aiming to prevent nuclear materials from falling into the hands of terrorists.
China and the US both played an important role in the P5+1 nuclear deal with Iran last summer and in UN Security Council Resolution 2270 in early March on sanctioning the Democratic People's Republic of Korea for its nuclear bomb and missile tests.
China's top legislature is studying a possible new law aimed at ensuring the safety of the nuclear industry, a senior lawmaker has said.
The move comes at a time when nuclear energy is increasingly being seen as an environmentally friendly option, but one that needs safeguards because of the risk should anything go wrong.
Yuan Si, deputy director of the environmental protection and resources conservation committee of the National People's Congress, said at a recent media briefing that nuclear energy not only offers a greener source of power but also allows better use to be made of other sources of energy.
Yuan cited France as an example of a nation with a successful legal framework, noting that 78 percent of its electricity is generated by nuclear power, which benefits that nation's environment.
But accidents at facilities around the world have caused wide public concern, he said.
"There have been no such accidents in France, whose nuclear industry has very good technical protections backed by a sound legal framework," Yuan said.
He said China has peacefully used nuclear energy for about 60 years and has an excellent safety record. "Not only that, we have built up a complete nuclear industry and gained a very solid global reputation for our use of atomic energy."
Despite the good track record, many Chinese people still have concerns about nuclear energy. Yuan said legislation targeting nuclear safety would help ease fears.
During the Nuclear Security Summit two years ago in The Hague, President Xi Jinping said China would insist on a sensible and coordinated use of nuclear energy and improve the legislative measures related to the industry.
"So, making nuclear safety a legislative issue has been a decision of the central leadership," Yuan said.
And it is Yuan's committee that is responsible for drafting the new law. "We encourage the public to take an interest in this work and are keen to hear of any ideas people have," he said.
Li Yan, a researcher with the Department of Nuclear Safety Management, part of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, said during a nuclear and radiation safety seminar earlier this year that legislation is needed "because nuclear development has become a must for China".
Zhang Jin, a researcher with the China Productivity Center for Machinery, said administrative rules on safety within the nuclear industry will also need to be improved.
caoyin@chinadaily.com.cn
Xu Dazhe (L), head of China Atomic Energy Authority (CAEA) and Deng Ge (R), Direcor General of State Nuclear Security Technology Center, speak at a press conference during the fourth Nuclear Security Summit at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC, April 1, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]
WASHINGTON - China stands ready to make good use of a new nuclear security center to enhance bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the field of nuclear security, a Chinese nuclear energy official said Friday.
The Center of Excellence on Nuclear Security in Beijing, the largest of its kind in the Asia Pacific region, will provide a forum for bilateral and regional best practice exchanges, and serve as a venue for demonstrating advanced technologies related to nuclear security.
"We are more than happy to share our good and best practices in the capacity building of nuclear security with other countries," Xu Dazhe, chairman of China Atomic Energy Authority (CAEA) said at a press briefing at the fourth Nuclear Security Summit.
He added that China will use the platform provided by the Center to work even more closely with the International Atomic Energy Agency and provide systematic and comprehensive training services to relevant countries.
On Thursday, US Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz spoke highly of the Center, saying with the capacity of training about 2,000 nuclear security staff every year, it is a "tremendous resource for China and the entire region."
China and the US agreed to establish the Center at the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington in 2010.
Under the agreement, the Center, located in the Fangshan District, Beijing, is run and administered by China, while the US provides nuclear-security equipment.
"This is an important outcome of China and the US deepening their cooperation in nuclear security," Xu said.
The CAEA will continue to work with its American counterpart to promote the development of the center on all fronts, Xu added.
WASHINGTON - President Xi Jinping wrapped up a productive trip to the US capital and departed for home on Friday evening after attending the fourth Nuclear Security Summit (NSS).
He took part in all the activities on the NSS schedule, including a dinner hosted by US President Barack Obama at the White House on Thursday evening, an opening plenary on Friday morning, as well as a working lunch, a scenario-based policy discussion and a closing session in the afternoon.
In a speech delivered at the opening meeting, the Chinese president urged countries around the world to increase national input and expand international cooperation so as to further firm up the global nuclear security architecture.
The 2016 NSS, which was the last in its current format, gathered leaders and envoys from 52 countries and four international organizations. A communique was released along with five action plans.
On the sidelines of the summit, Xi attended a leaders' meeting of the P5+1 mechanism, which comprises the five permanent members of the UN Security Council - Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States - plus Germany and reached a historic agreement with Tehran in July over its controversial nuclear program.
He also held bilateral meetings with Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen, Obama, South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Argentine President Mauricio Macri. Following his meeting with Obama, their first so far this year, the two sides issued two joint statements, respectively, on nuclear security and climate change.
On March 31 US local time, Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Barack Obama held a one-on-one meeting on the sidelines of the fourth Nuclear Security Summit at the Washington Convention Center. It's their first meeting this year, which has attracted the world's attention.
Xi and Obama had held an in-depth exchange of views on a wide range of issues of common concern, while reaching a series of important consensus and obtaining a number of positive achievements.
Beijing and Washington had jointly issued the third Sino-US Joint Statement on Climate Change and the Statement on Sino-US Nuclear Security Cooperation, which had received much praise from the international community.
In recent years, Chinese President Xi and US President Obama have held several meetings, including a one-on-one meeting in Sunnylands, CA.,in June, 2013 and an evening discussion at Yingtai, in Zhongnanhai Compound of Beijing in Nov. 2014.
The Xi-Obama meeting at the White House had coincided with President Xi's second visit to Washington this year that has strengthened Sino-US deep strategic communications, enriched Sino-US new major-country ties and injected new momentum to bilateral relations.
The launch of two joint statements between China and the US reflects promising pragmatic cooperation, which can be deemed an engine with double driving forces that benefit both countries and the world at large.
By Xu Xiujun, deputy director of International Politics and Ecomonics Department, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; cartoon drawing by Liao Tingting
President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the opening plenary of the fourth Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) in Washington DC, the United States, on April 1, 2016. Provided to China Daily
BEIJING -- Chinese President Xi Jinping returned home Saturday after wrapping up a state visit to the Czech Republic and attending the the fourth Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) in Washington.
The five-day tour has again testified to China's continued efforts to promote mutually beneficial cooperation and reaffirmed China's firm commitment to safeguarding global nuclear security.
UPGRADING OF SINO-CZECH TIES
Xi's visit to the Czech Republic is the first state visit by a Chinese president in 67 years since the two countries established diplomatic ties, and also Xi's first state visit to a CEE country since he took office, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
The Czech Republic has become an important partner of China in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), and one of the most active European countries keen on promoting relations with China.
The historic visit will be seen as "a milestone" in Sino-Czech relations and it has given impetus to cooperation between China and Europe, said Wang.
The two countries have agreed to elevate their bilateral relations to a strategic partnership, which Wang referred to as the most significant political achievement of Xi's Czech Republic visit.
Meanwhile, the two sides agreed to further strengthen the synergy of bilateral development strategies within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.
Located at the heart of the European continent and with a solid foundation of industries, the Czech Republic is a key nation along the route of the Silk Road Economic Belt, Wang said, adding that it has become "a front-runner in China-CEE cooperation."
The two sides also signed an agreement on direct flights, an important start for a comprehensive cooperation in transportation, manufacturing and other fields.
(Photo : (Photo by ChinaFotoPress/ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images))
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China's research on artificial intelligence is moving full steam ahead, as the country's leading Internet company is now assembling a team of experts whose main goal is to turn imagination into reality.
Funded by Chinese Internet giant Baidu, the research project dubbed The Verne Plan, named after the French novelist Jules Verne, will be comprised of the world's best science fiction writers and scientists, reported the China Daily.
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According to the Beijing-based Baidu, it has already invited six people to be part of the team's first group of advisers.
The team is composed of Andrew Ng, Baidu's chief scientist, and five science fiction writers, which include Liu Cixin, the first Asian author to win the Hugo Award for Best Novel for his book "The Three-Body Problem."
Another well-known member of the China-supported study on artificial intelligence is David Brin, an award-winning American author.
In a statement, Baidu revealed that the project's pool of advisers will receive regular updates on how the company is developing AI technologies.
Members of The Verne Plan will also be in close communication with Baidu's research and development team to transform ideas into actual products.
"This is an innovative organization," Liu said in an interview. "Many ideas, along with innovative work, will be born here."
"The project will focus on artificial intelligence, and there will be an opportunity for us to work with scientists once the project is officially launched," he added.
Meanwhile, Baidu's President Zhang Yaqin explained that artificial intelligence will provide the foundation that will empower traditional industries and enable them to meet the challenges of the future.
"Baidu has made some world-class achievements in the key subfields of artificial intelligence, such as image recognition, voice recognition, machine translation and self-driving cars," Zhang told China Daily in an interview.
China's aggressive foray into artificial intelligence draws inspiration from Google's AlphaGo artificial intelligence program, which recently beat a South Korean world-class Go player.
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Tagschina, Artificial Intelligence, Baidu artificial intelligence, Baidu
(Photo : (Photo by Wu Hong - Pool/Getty Images))
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China's investment climate is expected to further improve as the Central Government has pledged to foster a more conducive business environment, while upholding intellectual property rights to entice more foreign investors into the country, particularly those from the US.
This was announced by Premier Li Keqiang during a meeting with a US delegation whose visit to Beijing was organized by the Aspen Institute, a Washington-based think tank, the China Daily reported.
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In his remarks, Li stressed to the delegation - composed of 18 US senators and members of the House of Representatives - that their countries have more common interests than differences, one of the main reasons why China is working hard to enhance its investment climate.
Being the world's largest developing country and largest developed country, the premier stressed that the two nations should be able to better handle differences in opinion in order to strengthen Sino-US relations.
China likewise committed to work hand in hand with the US Government to accelerate negotiations on a China-US bilateral investment treaty, which is expected to boost economic and trade activities between the two countries.
The meeting provided legislators from the US states of Illinois, Delaware, California and Nebraska the opportunity to share their views on a wide-range of issues and concerns, such as Sino-US relations, and China's current economic development efforts and business environment.
Representatives from both governments agreed that the Asian manufacturing giant's development also presented great opportunities for the United States as well, which has encourage China to establish a more favorable investment climate.
Xue Lan, dean of the School of Public Policy and Management at Tsinghua University who also participated in a training course at the Aspen Institute, noted that think tanks such as the Aspen have often visited China, but are rarely received by high-ranking Chinese leaders such as the premier.
"It is important, especially for foreign legislators, to meet with Chinese leaders so all can get a clearer understanding of the other side," Xue explained.
The meeting between Chinese and US officials is viewed as another important step in strengthening economic relations between two of the world's biggest economies and bolstering China's investment climate.
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Tagschina, Investment Climate, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang
(Photo : (Photo by Ashley Pon/Getty Images))
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South Korean superstar Lee Min Ho is back in the Philippines for the fifth time to the delight of many Filipina fans.
The 28-year-old actor is set to meet his followers during a series of shows dubbed as "Be My Yeobo: Lee Min Ho in Manila."
On April 2, he will make the hearts of Filipinas pump even more when he meets them at Trinoma (3:00P.M.) and Megamall Mega Fashion Hall (5:00P.M.). On April 3, the actor and model will fly to the southern part of the country, particularly in Cebu, for his show in SM Seaside City and Ayala Center Cebu.
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Lee Min Ho's visit in Manila and Cebu is an activity of the local clothing line he endorses.
The South Korean hunk, who arrived in the Philippines on Thursday night, gained popularity and won the hearts of many Filipinos when he starred as Gu Jun Pyo in the series "Boys Over Flowers." And with his role in "Gangnam Blues," his number of followers got even higher.
Apart from him, another famous South Korean celebrity who is currently in the country is 2NE1's Sandara Park.
Dara also arrived on Thursday for her endorsement, another local clothing line that is among the competitors of the brand endorse of Lee Min Ho.
It can be noted that the 31-year-old K-pop star captured the Filipinos' attention when she joined a local talent show called "Star Circle Quest" in 2004 where she ended up as a runner-up.
With both Lee Min Ho and Sandara Park in Manila at the same time, their fans are expected to have a hard time deciding which shows they are attending.
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(Photo : Reuters) Intel is moving on from the PC era.
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Intel is increasing its focus on cloud computing by offering new set of chips that will aid businesses and service providers create more efficient cloud computing platforms.
In an event held in San Francisco last March 31, the chip-maker unveiled the Xeon server chips that will speed up the cloud and it includes two faster solid-states drives. In addition to the new chip, they also revealed new and enhanced technologies including faster storage and expanded partnerships to make cloud computing easier for many more companies.
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The announcements are part of Intel's 'Cloud for All' initiative. It aims to develop industry-wide standards for easy-to-deploy cloud technology and to encourage the rollout of new cloud platforms.
Enterprises want to benefit from the efficiency and agility of cloud architecture and on their own terms -- using the public cloud offerings, deploying their own private cloud, or both, says Diane Bryant, senior vice president and general manager of Intel's Data Center Group.
The new 27 processors belong to the Xeon E5-2600 v4. It offers 44 percent better performance, 24 percent faster message rate and more efficiency. They are based on Intel's Broadwell microarchitecture, smaller compared to previous chips with only 14nm. It comes with 22 cores and offers up to 44 threads per core. Its transistor count is 7.2 billion. The processors will deliver improved server utilization and better virtualization performance, including reducing virtual machine (VM) downtime by as much as 70 percent.
Moreover, Intel is also releasing new SSDs: SSD DC D3700 and D3600 Series. The solid-state drives are designed to offer critical redundancy and failover to ensure safeguards against data loss in mission-critical storage deployments.
To promote the cloud computing, Intel is using two open source program. OpenStack is included, which comes in commercial versions and is seen as a dashboard for operating resources in a data center. The other one is using containers.
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(Photo : Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)
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After the accident that happened to Dylan O'Brien on the set of "Maze Runner: The Death Cure," many fans might have been asking if the production has been cancelled.
James Dashner, the author of the book which the movie has been patterned from, made an announcement on his Twitter account, emphasizing that filming was only postponed but never cancelled.
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"Production is postponed but certainly not cancelled," Dashner wrote. "All that matters now is that Dylan recovers. We love you, Dylan!!!"
As of this writing, the tweet already gathered more than 12,000 re-tweets and at least 13,500 likes.
Amid what happened to Dyan O'Brien, a lot of his fans shared their well-wishes for the 24 years old actor.
"Health always comes first!!!!!" commented Potatoes O'Brien.
"No worries about production!! Just make sure dylan gets well!!" added Twitter user Dylan Obrien Britt.
A certain Brittany, on the other hand, shared that her only wish was for him to have a "speedy recovery."
On March 18, the lead star of "Maze Runner: The Death Cure" was rushed to the hospital while shooting a scene in Vancouver, Canada, according to the Daily Mail Online.
Based on the report, something went wrong when the part where he was hit by a car was being filmed.
Meanwhile, director Wes Ball immediately took to Twitter to air his side about Dylan O'Brien's accident.
"I've been overwhelmed with feelings of anger and sadness and guilt," he said in the hand-written note he posted on the social media site. "But ultimately I find myself left with just a deep love and respect for Dylan."
While he noted that "It's scary seeing your friend get hurt," he expressed optimism by reassuring fans that Dylan O'Brien "is going to be just fine" and that filming of "Maze Runner: The Death Cure" will be back soon to meet the release date of February 17, 2017.
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(Photo : Getty Images) China on Friday once again blocked Indias move to get the UN to blacklist Pakistan-based militant Maulana Masood Azhar.
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Hours after China blocked India's move to bring Pakistan-based militant Maulana Masood Azhar under a United Nation's (UN) blacklist, New Delhi has registered a strong protest against Beijing's pro-Islamabad stance.
Although India did not directly accuse China of anything, a flurry of angry statements delivered by the spokesperson for the Indian government on Friday were apparently directed towards Beijing.
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"We find it incomprehensible that while the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad was listed ... as far back as 2001 for its well-known terror activities and links to al Qaeda, the designation of the group's main leader, financier and motivator, has been put on a technical hold," Indian government spokesman Vikas Swarup said in Washington. "This does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism."
China, one of the five permanent UN members that has veto power, said that Azhar cannot be blacklisted due to technical grounds.
"Any listing would have to meet the requirements [for blacklisting]," China's U.N. Ambassador Liu Jieyi said.
India alleges that Azhar was the main mastermind behind the terrorist attack on Pathankot Air Force on January 2, 2016. The deadly attack left about seven Indian soldiers dead.
Since the Pathankot attack, India has been demanding that the UN blacklists Azhar. This would include freezing his assets and restricting his travels.
Azhar's organization Jaish-e-Mohammed was banned by the UN in 2001, after India alleged that the terrorist organization was behind an attack on the Indian parliament in 2001.
This is not the first time China has vetoed against India
China has used its veto power against India in the past. In 2008, at the behest of Pakistan, China vetoed against India's move to ban Maulana Masood Azhar. This was for first time that India demanded that the UN blacklists Azhar.
In 2015, China similarly blocked India's move in the UN to take a punitive actions against Pakistani militant Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi. Lakhvi has been accused by New Delhi of being one of the main masterminds behind a deadly terrorist attack in the Indian city of Mumbai.
China and Pakistan, whom are close allies, share an acrimonious relationship with India. Both have fought wars with India in the past. China fought a war against India in 1962 over Himalayan region of Tibet, while Pakistan has fought four wars against India over the disputed region of Kashmir.
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Tagschina, India, Pakistan, Maulana Masood Azhar, Jaish-e-Mohammad
(Photo : Getty Image) China prohibits April Fools Day celebration, according to Xinhua.
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China's state-run media agency Xinhua warned on Friday that China does not practice the tradition of "the West's so-called 'Fools' Day," where people hoax and play practical jokes on the first day of the month of April.
"'Fools' Day' is not in line with our country's traditions and socialist core values," Xinhua posted on its Weibo account on Friday morning. "We hope you will not believe, create, or spread rumors."
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After posting, the message, which was reposted and commented thousands of times, received mixed reactions. Others agreed to the government's opposition, while some wanted to join the Western celebration.
"This is the funniest joke I've seen all day," a person wrote on Weibo. While another user said "Every day is April Fools' Day."
Only a handful of people, mostly college students, celebrate April Fools in China, according to NY Times. It is usually an alibi to pull pranks.
Recently, Chinese officials are starting to control Western influence. In 2015, education minister Yuan Guiren prohibited the use of textbooks promoting Western values.
Just last month, Li Liguo, the minister of civil affairs, planned to replace bizarre foreign names of buildings and residential subdivisions, explaining that these "violate the socialist core values and conventional morality."
Discouraging the practice of April Fools' Day also shows China's persistence about spread of inaccurate online stories and rumors. In 2013, the Chinese government issued a guideline, calling up to three years' imprisonment for people caught posting rumors reposted by over 500 people or viewed 5,000 times.
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(Photo : Photo by Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images) An Apple Inc. iPhone SE is displayed at the company's Omotesando store on March 31, 2016 in Tokyo, Japan. Apple Inc. launched its iPhone SE and iPad Pro 9.7 inch on March 31, 2016 in Japan.
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April 1 marked the release of Apple's latest product, the iPhone SE, but the tech giant's newest creation may not be enough to save it from the global sales decline that iPhone products have been facing since last year.
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According to Digitimes, the demand for the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus in the first quarter of this year has been way lower than the demand for the iPhone 6 in the first quarter of last year.
Apple's chain of distributors are reportedly anticipating that shipments of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus in the second quarter of this year will decrease by 50 percent.
This does not come as a surprise, given that Apple itself has been very vocal and open about its sales woes. In its most recent income and revenue conference, the company conceded that 2016 may be the very first year in history that it will record a drop in its iPhone sales. Apple CEO Tim Cook, however, dispelled the idea that the sales drop would be very drastic.
"We do think iPhone units will decline in the quarter," Cook admitted, but noted that the decline will not be as bad as many analysts have predicted. "We aren't going to project beyond the upcoming quarter," Cook added.
This is where iPhone SE may come in handy. In 2015, Apple was able to record a sale of 30 million units of 4-inch iPhones alone. Additionally, more than 33 percent of all iPhones sold in the market to date are models that came before the iPhone 6. It is therefore clear that a large chunk of iPhone users are still utilizing the iPhone 5 series and are probably waiting for a cheaper and a smaller unit before deciding to upgrade.
With a recorded 3.4 million pre-orders from China alone, the iPhone SE is said to be Apple's way of "testing the waters" in the international market against newer and better Android smartphone giants such as Huawei, Xiaomi, LG, and Samsung.
Will Apple make it once again?
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Protestors outside Mark Driscoll's new church Easter open house 01 April, 2016 by Kevin Porter , |
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (Christian Examiner) Ex-Mars Hill Pastor Mark Driscoll's attempt at a new beginning was somewhat overshadowed Easter Sunday as protesters gathered outside Driscoll's new Arizona-based Trinity Church to warn congregants of the pastor's alleged misdeeds.
Although few in number, protesters held signs that read: "Trinity = Mars Hill" and "Where'd all the Money Go, Mark???" alluding to the allegations surrounding the embattled pastor's tenure at the now defunct Mars Hill Church.
Protester Bob Sluys, a former member of Mars Hill, according to a report from KCTV5 News, yelled to parishioners as they entered the building, "Ask Mark, but he won't answer! His [Driscoll's] empire was built on the back of unpaid labor, volunteers, abusive culture, and all for Jesus' fame."
Driscoll denies the allegations against him, which include plagiarism, fostering an abusive work environment, and most recently civil racketeering. In fact, regarding the racketeering claim, the pastor told the local news station that he has no knowledge of it and hasn't even been served with charging documents.
"I don't know anything about that," Driscoll told KCTV5. "Haven't been served, nothing has been done. At this point it's false and malicious, and I would reject and refute all of that, and I'm very excited it'll all be cleared up."
The Christian Post reported earlier this month that the latest allegations against Driscoll include a lawsuit that names him, former Mars Hill chief elder Sutton Turner and others, alleging fraud and racketeering regarding donor contributions. Filed by the Law Office of Brian Fahling less than two weeks before Driscoll announced the Easter gathering at his new church, the suit questions how more than $2 million in donations for church planting and a festival were spent during Driscoll's tenure as pastor of Mars Hill.
Hoping for a fresh start with a new congregation in Scottsdale, Driscoll told KCTV5 that he'll function as a Bible-teaching pastor at his new church. "I'll open the Bible and preach and teach Jesus."
Despite his troubles, Driscoll has received support from many fellow clergymen South Carolina-based megachurch Pastor Perry Noble being one of the most vocal. In early February, Noble took on critics of the ex-Mars Hill pastor who felt that he wasn't ready to lead another congregation.
"Here's a man who messed up, made some mistakes, admitted it, apologized, said he was sorry he's starting over. ... Who made you the judge on whether or not he's ready?" Noble questioned.
Driscoll was once described as one of America's "most prominent and celebrated pastors" by Forbes, but he resigned in disgrace as senior pastor of Seattle-based Mars Hill in October 2014 after a confluence of events marred his reputation, including allegations of plagiarism and fostering an abusive work environment. Two weeks after Driscoll's resignation, Mars Hill Church announced that it would dissolve.
This article was first published at Christian Post and used with permission.
As the presidential elections are quickly approaching, the Korean Resource Center (KRC) has decided to offer free workshops on how to apply for citizenship to help as many Korean immigrants as possible to become eligible to vote.
According to the statistics from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, only 8.8 percent of Korean residents who are eligible to apply for citizenship actually have and received citizenship.
This means that about nine out of ten people are giving up their right to become citizens, the KRC stated. As the November elections are approaching, helping Koreans receive citizenship will be a priority to address in order to advance the needs and interests of the Korean community.
As such, the organization will be hosting a free workshop on Sunday, April 10, from 9 AM to 12 PM at the Long Beach Convention Center to help individuals understand the process of applying for citizenship, as well as provide legal services free of charge for those who are of low-income families.
Those who are interested must reserve a spot in advance by calling the Korean hotline number for the KRC (800-867-3640).
The Korean Resource Center is a non-profit organization that offers various services and programs to help the Korean immigrant community, such as holding citizenship application workshops and seminars to help undocumented immigrant students to apply for the CA Dream Act.
home US Bible bill gets 7-1 vote from Tennessee Senate committee
A Senate committee voted Tuesday, 7-1, to make the Bible Tennessee's official state book.
If House Bill 615/Senate Bill 1108, generally called the Bible bill, becomes law, then a section will be added to the Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 4, Chapter 1 -- a part that tackles Tennessee's state symbols. The proposed addition reads, "The Holy Bible is hereby designated as the official state book."
There has been ongoing opposition, however.
"It's fundamentally wrong. I think it's sacrilegious," The Tennessean quotes Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris as saying. Norris, last year, recommended that the bill be sent to a committee, thereby curtailing its progress.
In April 2015, the constitutionality of the bill was already put in question. The Office of the Attorney General wrote in an opinon that the designation of the Bible as the state book would be a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution as well as Article I, 3, of the Tennessee Constitution. The latter specifies "that no preference shall ever be given, by law, to any religious establishment or mode of worship."
The opinion explains that if the Bible becomes the state book, it would be placed in the same category as the state flag, the Tennessee seal, the official state songs, among others, something that represents the state and its values.
"We are disappointed that Tennessee lawmakers have voted to use their official positions to promote their personal religious beliefs," Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, said. "Selecting the Bible as the state book amounts to government promotion of one religion over other religions, which clearly violates both the U.S. and Tennessee Constitutions."
In a press release, also in April 2015, Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III said that even if the state does not endorse the Bible, its "distinguished place in history will not be diminished."
The House approved the bill, sponsored by Sen. Steve Southerland, in 2015 with a 55-38 vote. It reached the Senate, which passed it on to the committee. It will be sent back for a full senate vote.
Tennessee governor Bill Haslam has not expressed if he would approve or veto the bill should it reach his office. WJHL reported that he has reservations.
The adoption of the new anti-conversion law has left the whole Christian community in Karnataka deeply troubled and tremendously hurt, according to a statement from the Archdiocese of Bangalore.
Expert shows how West can defeat radical Islam: Assert your Christian values and will to fight
An expert on Islam said even with a huge military force, America cannot defeat radical Islam if it does not assert its Christian values and will to fight.
In a recent CBN News interview, Harold Rhode said if the West wants to crush radical Islam, its people need to embrace their Christian roots.
"The Christian world is a very powerful world if it chooses to be. It has enormous abilities," said Rhode, a religious Jew who lived and studied in universities in the Islamic world for years and advised the U.S. Defense Department on Islamic affairs for nearly three decades.
He said America's traditional Middle East allies feel betrayed by Washington even as they blame President Barack Obama's weak policies for the current chaos and violence in the region.
Historically, when Muslims see weakness they pounce. America, the leader of the West, is showing weakness, Rhode said.
He pointed out that Muslims and the West view peace differently.
"Peace in the West is let bygones be bygones," Rhode explained. "Let's say you and I had terrible problems in the past. We sit down, you give a little. I give a little. We shake hands. We don't forget what happened, but we work together toward our new goals."
But he said Islam is different.
"Revenge is the basis of everything," he explained. "If you don't avenge something, you lose personal honour. You are shamed. I am in a lower social position because of it. So there's never peace. You do not let bygones be bygones."
Moreover, what the West calls terrorism, Muslims see as classic Islamic warfare.
"Islamic warfare comes basically from the time of the Quran. They were tribes fighting tribes out in the desert...You raid the other side," he said. "You take its property; you take its women, you take its children. Your goal is to make the other side afraid. You raid and withdraw. Now eventually, by making the other side afraid, they withdraw and you take their territory. That's what terrorism is."
Nevertheless, Rhode said America can still win the fight against radical Islam.
"America and Europe have unbelievable reserves of awesome power, but we don't seem to have to stomach now to use it," he said. "Power, without the will to use it, is irrelevant and that's how the West is acting now."
He cited one recent example. When Iran captured American sailors after accusing them of breaching its territorial waters, "America did nothing," he said.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry even thanked the Iranians after releasing the sailors the next day. "This was shameful on the American part," Rhode said.
If the U.S. would stand tough to adversaries like Iran, many Muslims would cheer, he said.
Rhode said Americans need also to return to their roots and truly believe in the power of Jesus.
"I don't believe in Jesus. I'm a Jew, but I want Christians to believe in Jesus. I want them to observe Christian values. With that, our America is safe. Europe is safe. Israel is safe," he said.
"The world will be safe because America will stand up for the values of the founding fathers of the United States," he said.
Georgia religious liberty bill collapses amid pressure from Disney and Marvel
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal vetoed a religious liberty bill that would prevent the state government from punishing churches, pastors and faith based organisations for refusing to perform same sex marriage or declining service to those who violate their sincerely held religious belief.
However, it is speculated that the veto may be related to pressure from Hollywood studios who have threatened to boycott the state if it passes the bill.
According to a report from Christian Post, Georgia's "Pastor Protection Act," or H.B. 757, was passed by both legislative houses in February despite opponents of the measure claiming it facilitates discrimination of LGBT people.
Disney and Marvel have recently threatened to stop filming in Georgia if the bill is passed, in its effort to oppose discrimination. The Human Rights Campaign also wrote to Deal with signatures from Hollywood A-listers who are strongly opposing the bill, NBC reported
In his statement on Monday, Deal said he sees no need to discriminate against anyone in order to protect the faith based community in Georgia.
"Georgia is a welcoming state. It is full of loving, kind and generous people. And that is what we should want. They choose to worship God in the way they see fit in a myriad of ways, in a variety of different settings. I believe that that is our best side. And our people, every day, work side by side without regard to the color of their skin of their fellow mate. Or the religion that their co-worker might adhere to. They are simply trying to make life better for themselves, their families and their communities. That is the character of Georgia. I intend to do my part to keep it that way," he said.
"For that reason, I will veto House Bill 757. I do not think that we have to discriminate against anyone to protect the faith-based community in Georgia, of which I and my family have been a part of for all of our lives," he explained.
While members of the LGBT community lauded Deal's decision, the governor has earned criticism from faith leaders.
Russell Moore, the president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, wasted no time in tweeting his disappointment over the decision, saying it was "shameful."
"GA Gov. @NathanDeal sell-out to big business pressure on religious freedom one more example of what serving Mammon does to the common good," Moore posted in another tweet.
For his part, Timothy Head, the Executive Director of the Faith & Freedom Coalition, contradicted Deal's statement that HB 757 enables discrimination when it specifically provides for its prohibition.
"Governor Deal had publicly stated his willingness to sign a religious freedom bill that did not authorize discrimination. This bill does not, and in fact includes an explicit provision prohibiting discrimination. HB 757 simply protects pastors, churches, and faith-based organizations from being forced to violate their religious beliefs. It also codifies into state law the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, which Governor Deal voted for as a member of Congress."
ISIS parents are telling their children bedtime stories about martyrdom
The Islamic State (ISIS) has taken their use of children to a whole new level by requiring parents to read them bedtime stories about the martyrdom of Islamic jihadists.
According to a report by The Daily Beast, parents are teaching their children about Ali ibn abi Talib, the fourth Caliph of Islam, Usama ibn Zayd's attack against Rome, Tariq ibn Ziyad's assault on Spain as well as Muhammad ibn Qasim and Bakhtiyar Khalji victories against an Indian subcontinent and Bengal at a young age.
Parents are influencing their children to embrace the life of a jihadist probably to minimise their resistance to learning about military training and fitness to eventually become like the people they are hearing about.
The use of children has grown more alarming based on reports from the United Nations, especially with the establishment of the youth wing called Fityan al-Islam, (Boys of Islam) wherein children are being trained and indoctrinated into the group despite their young age.
Based on the report, around 800 to 900 children aged 9-15 have been abducted by the ISIS from Mosul and other cities for the purpose of being trained as spies, preachers, soldiers, executioners and suicide bombers.
From August 2015 to February 2016, there have been 254 reports of children being used in ISIS propaganda with at least 12 children being forced to behead and hold up the heads of ISIS captives to prove that they are ready to wage war against their enemies. One incident even involved a four-year-old British child detonating a car bomb killing four alleged spies who were inside the vehicle.
Children are reportedly being punished severely for "failing" in their duties to ISIS. The Independent reported that the group ordered the killing of 18 children from running away from a fight in Iraq.
"According to a source, the boys left the front without being noticed, but were identified by residents upon their return to Mosul. An ISIS self-appointed court allegedly ordered their killing," the UN report said.
As for the girls and women who have been taken by the group, reports are coming in that they are being raped daily by ISIS fighters and are being used to breed the next generation of ISIS fighters. There are currently 31,000 pregnant women living in ISIS camps.
Palmyra ruins could be saved despite ISIS devastation
Palmyra's renowned Temple of Bel, blown up by Islamic State last year, is not beyond repair but the full extent of damage in the ancient city could take weeks to establish because of mines laid amid the ruins, Syria's antiquities chief said.
Satellite pictures taken after the 2,000-year-old temple was dynamited by the jihadi group, and other images broadcast since Syrian government forces retook the city on Sunday, show almost the entire structure collapsed in a heap of rubble.
It was one of several important monuments blown up in the city last year including the temple of Baal Shamin, a victory arch and funerary towers. The city museum, home to treasured artefacts, was ransacked and statues were smashed or defaced.
Despite the extensive damage, Maamoun Abdelkarim said that the Temple of Bel had not been pulverized and its foundations were largely intact.
Consecrated to a Mesopotamian god, the Temple of Bel later served as a Christian church and a mosque. In an inner sanctuary, carvings showed seven planets surrounded by the signs of the zodiac, and a procession of camels and veiled women.
"What was said about it all being turned to dust - it's not dust," Abdelkarim told Reuters in Damascus. "There is still a lot of the structure ... that can be reused and renovated."
He was speaking before a trip to Paris where he said he would attend a meeting of the United Nations cultural agency UNESCO and seek global help to restore Palmyra. President Bashar al-Assad called on the world on Wednesday to help.
Syrian military engineers were already combing the area for mines which Islamic State are suspected of leaving behind amid the ruins, he said.
Russian de-mining units, using robots and sniffer dogs, have also arrived in Syria to start clearing the area, in the latest support from Moscow to Assad, its Middle Eastern ally.
Russia's military intervention six months ago helped change the course of Syria's five-year-old conflict in Assad's favour, reversing last year's gains by insurgents and Western-backed rebels in northwest Syria, before assisting an assault on Palmyra opening up Syria's eastern desert to government forces.
The Western response to Sunday's recapture of Palmyra has been muted. While some governments have welcomed the setback for Islamic State, they are reluctant to celebrate any victory for a president whose departure many of them demanded five years ago.
TREASURE AND GOLD
Islamic State has also razed Assyrian and Roman-era cities in neighbouring Iraq - driven by a radical ideology which deems the region's pre-Islamic heritage as idolatrous and by the lure of profit from selling stolen artefacts.
Other monuments in the oasis city, described by UNESCO as a crossroads of cultures since the dawn of humanity and a major source of interest for archaeologists, historians of the ancient world and tourists, remain including its Roman amphitheatre and long colonnaded avenue.
Officials have inspected damage at Palmyra's museum, where a 15-tonne statue of a lion holding a crouching gazelle, known as the Lion of Al-Lat, was found broken in the grounds of the building, Abdelkarim said. The statue has already been restored once after it was broken up in antiquity to build another temple.
Abdelkarim said 400 artefacts had been moved from the site for safekeeping before Islamic State overran Palmyra last May, but television images from the museum have shown statues defaced or broken and display cases smashed up.
"Daesh were looking for treasure and gold - they thought there would be tonnes of gold. There was none, because the main articles had been moved to Damascus," he said
Describing the headless or defaced carvings, Abdelkarim compared the restoration work they would undergo to the surgery performed on patients with serious burn injuries.
"You undergo many surgeries and your face won't come back as it was, but you're still alive," he said.
RUSSIAN DE-MINER ROBOTS
The de-miners will deal with more than 180 hectares of territory, Russia's defence ministry said, citing initial estimates. The aim is to clear the historic part of the ancient city as well as residential areas.
Their work is complicated by the fact that the retreating Islamic State fighters "left a large quantity of various homemade explosive devices behind them in Palmyra as well as standard mines", the ministry said.
Abdelkarim said the militants had "a plan to destroy the city" but did not go through with it.
In Palmyra, Islamic State carried out excavations, hunting for buried artefacts, but Abdelkarim said it was too early to say how much digging or damage they had done.
"We cannot evaluate the destruction to the ruins from the criminal secret excavations ... It will take weeks to assess," he said, given that big parts of the old city are inaccessible.
"We have been into the museum and to the Temple of Bel, the amphitheatre, and the colonnaded street," Abdelkarim said, adding: "But where there is sandy ground we cannot go ... because there could be mines."
The overall task of clearing Palmyra, which military sources have told Russian media will involve at least 100 servicemen, is expected to take several months.
Russian forces will draw on their extensive experience of de-mining in the volatile North Caucasus region where a low-level Islamist insurgency has been simmering for years.
For the toughest tasks, the Russians said they would use sniffer dogs and Uran-6 de-mining robots, which can be remotely controlled from around 1 km (half a mile) and do the work of 20 de-mining experts.
Protests mount before EU-Turkey migrant deal takes effect
Migrants and refugees protested on a Greek island and rights groups raised legal objections three days before a disputed EU deal to return rejected asylum seekers from Greece to Turkey was due to go into action, with neither side completely ready.
Hundreds of migrants and refugees on the island of Chios tore through a razor wire fence surrounding their holding center and set off for the port in protest against planned deportation, police said. Police did not immediately intervene.
Clashes broke out at the site late on Thursday, during which windows were smashed and 10 people were injured lightly, a police official said. Some 300 women and children broke out of the camp on Friday carrying their belongings.
"They say that they don't want to go back to Turkey and that they are afraid for their safety after yesterday's clashes between migrants in the hot spot," a police official said, using the EU term for registration centers that have become detention camps.
The tension on Chios raised the possibility of resistance when the EU-Turkey plan to send back all migrants and refugees who have reached the Greek islands since March 20 goes into effect from Monday.
Although arrivals have slowed, more than 1,900 people have crossed from Turkey to Greece so far this week and a total of 5,622 have been registered since March 20.
The European Union plans to send hundreds of police and migration officers to Greece over the weekend to help carry out the first returns under a deal meant to end the uncontrolled influx of migrants.
More than a million people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and beyond have poured into Europe in the last year, most ending up in Germany, triggering a political backlash and pitting EU governments against each other.
However, the U.N. refugee agency and rights group Amnesty International raised objections, with Amnesty accusing Turkey of sending thousands of people trying to flee Syria back into the war-racked country in recent months.
"In their desperation to seal their borders, EU leaders have wilfully ignored the simplest of facts: Turkey is not a safe country for Syrian refugees and is getting less safe by the day," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International's director for Europe and Central Asia.
The European Commission said it was investigating the Amnesty charge and would raise the issue with the Turkish authorities, who had promised to apply the principle of non-refoulement under the Brussels pact.
"SERIOUS GAPS"
UNHCR spokeswoman Melissa Fleming told a Geneva news briefing there were still serious legal gaps in both Greece and Turkey and urged all sides to ensure all safeguard were in place before any returns begin.
The Greek parliament was set to adopt a bill amending the country's asylum laws to enable asylum seekers and other migrants to be sent back to so-called safe countries, without explicitly naming Turkey.
Migration Minister Yiannis Mouzalas sought to reassure lawmakers of the ruling left-wing Syriza party that Athens would not be party to violating migrants' human rights.
"A blame-game against our country is starting, that, based on the new agreement we will encroach on human rights," he told parliament. "I assure you and I believe this will relieve everyone that we will strictly adhere to human rights procedures as stipulated by international law and the Geneva Convention."
There was no indication that Turkey was about to change its regulations to grant international protection to non-Syrians returned from the Greek islands as stipulated in the EU deal.
The Turkish parliament was in session on Friday but officials said there were nothing on the agenda relating to the migration agreement. It is not due to sit again until Tuesday.
Any new legislation would need to be signed by President Tayyip Erdogan, who is on an official visit to the United States until at least Sunday, although Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu could in theory sign an executive order.
The European Commission continued to put an optimistic face on the implementation plan after EU special envoy Maarten Verwey held talks in Ankara on last-minute preparations.
"Preparations are now well under way to ensure that returns of persons whose asylum claims have been declared inadmissible, and those who have not claimed protection, can start in line with the resettlement of Syrians from Turkey on April 4," Commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva told a briefing.
Asked about the absence of Turkish guarantees on the treatment of non-Syrians, she said no one who would not benefit from international protection would be returned to Turkey.
Altogether some 53,000 migrants and refugees are trapped in Greece in deteriorating conditions after its northern neighbors closed their border to bar the route northwards to Germany.
The UNHCR said conditions on the islands of Lesbos and Samos and at the Athens port of Piraeus and Idomeni at the border with Macedonia were worsening.
"The risk of panic and injury in these sites and others is real," UNHCR spokeswoman Fleming said.
Where is Jesus now? And what is he doing?
Where is Jesus Now?
At Easter we repeat the joyous affirmation of faith. "Christ is risen. He is risen indeed." In St Pete's as we have some Greeks in our fellowship we always use the Greek version "Christos Anesti...Alithos Anesti." But then comes the question: OK, He is Risen. Where is he then? And it's not just the question of an inquisitive child, it should be a question for every adult and for every Christian.
The Apostles' Creed tells us "On the third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead."
So Jesus is in heaven. But where is that and what does it mean he ascended? It's not just non-Christians who regard this as somewhat fanciful, many Christians struggle with this idea. Is the idea that Jesus was on earth and then went up into the heavens like a spaceman? Is this not something that clearly belongs to a past where they believed in a three-tiered universe - heaven above, hell below and earth in the middle? Are we not so much wiser now?
This question is all the more important to our non-Christian friends because Christians talk about knowing Christ, having a personal relationship with Jesus, talking to Christ, and wanting to introduce them to Jesus. Unless this is just spiritual code or mumbo jumbo we need to be able to say what it means. Surely it requires a real Jesus, with a real presence and not just 'Jesus living in my heart' (as a child that always made me think about some weird John Malkovich-style body!)
The key to this is the biblical teaching about the Ascension. I have been enormously helped in thinking about this by my book of the week this week, Gerrit Scott Dawson's Jesus Ascended the Meaning of Christ's Continuing Incarnation. I have unashamedly relied on it for much of what follows.
1) What is the ascension?
It is stated simply in at the end of Luke's gospel
When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God. (Luke 24 NIV)
The Ascension seems such a strange doctrine. It's hard enough to believe that Jesus physically rose from the dead. But the idea that he physically rose to heaven seems far-fetched. The usual liberal dismissal of this is expressed by
Bishop Richard Holloway who says Jesus is not coming back. And the best way to honour him on his birthday is to look for him not in the skies, but in the streets of our own town. That's one solution: deny the Ascension happened and spiritualise its meaning so that it becomes all about us.
For those who actually believe the Bible and don't just make up their own faith the teaching is quite clear. Two Greek words are used for Ascension. One talks about Christ ascending himself, reflecting the Old Testament's Psalms of ascent (Ps 120-134), another talks about Christ being raised up. He was raised up. An early church statement of faith is expressed in Paul's letter to Timothy: Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great:
He appeared in a body,
was vindicated by the Spirit,
was seen by angels,
was preached among the nations,
was believed on in the world,
was taken up in glory.
There is the key. He was taken up in glory. He was taken up to glory. Again, what does that mean? "I've gotta home in gloryland that outshines the sun" but where is gloryland? Where did Jesus go? Where is he now?
Where did Jesus Ascend to?
Heaven. The bible uses the term heaven or heavens in different ways. It can refer to the sky above, or the vast region of stars beyond our world, or another dimension altogether the realm of God beyond all sense perception. The Ascension does not mean that Jesus is somewhere up there in the stars where if only we could get a spacecraft which could travel far enough and quick enough we would be able to get to him. One of those 'ignorant' earlier Christians, John Calvin, put it clearly: "What? Do we place Christ midway among the spheres? Or do we build a cottage for him among planets? Heaven we regard as the magnificent palace of God far outstripping all this world's fabric."
Heaven is the place where God is. He is of course everywhere, but this universe has been tainted by sin and it is therefore not, in Moltmann's phrase 'totally pervaded by his glory'. Heaven is. To put it in modern terms, heaven is another universe. Out of this world, but nonetheless real.
What does the Ascension of Jesus tell us about Jesus?
Many Christians seem to think that the Ascension means the undoing of the incarnation. God became man in Jesus, and after Jesus ascended to heaven he became God again. CS Lewis observes: "We also in our heart of hearts, tend to slur over the risen manhood of Jesus to conceive him, after death, simply returning into deity, so that the resurrection would be no more than a reversal or undoing of the incarnation."This is an enormous error. When Jesus became man he did not cease to be God, and when he ascended he did not cease to be man. He is still the God/Man and that has enormous practical consequences for us. Karl Barth said: "The son of God maintains our humanity to all eternity. It is a clothing which he does not put off. It is his temple which he does not leave. It is the form which he does not lose." The dust of earth now sits on the throne of heaven.
What does it mean for us?
1) Jesus is not here - At least not in his body. He has gone. He is risen. We do not literally see his body, hear his voice or touch the holes in his hands. But that does not mean we cannot know him, hear him or be with him. We need to point out to our unbelieving friends that the argument 'if only Jesus was here and I could see and hear him, then I would believe in him' does not hold water. Why? Because most of the people who did see and hear Jesus did not believe in him. In fact many of them crucified him! They and we, need something more.
2) He has sent his Spirit We have lost the human voice on earth and the presence of the physical body. But Christ still has a human voice and a physical body which we can communicate with. How? He sent his Spirit.
I have just become a granddad. The only problem is that my daughter is in Australia. I can't just hop on a plane and go over and be physically with her. But through the wonders of modern technology I have seen my granddaughter, spoken to her and to my daughter. There is a sense in which the connection between the believer and Christ through the Holy Spirit is like the ultimate Skype call. The bible uses the idea of being 'in Christ' to describe the intimacy of the connection in such a way that it parallels the intimacy of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Just as Skype collapses the distance between here and Australia for some of our senses, so the Spirit collapses the distance between here and heaven so that we really are in Christ. When we sit at the Lord's Table he really is there, when two or three gather he really is present. The Holy Spirit unites Christ and his Church in such a way, that although the ascended Lord is not everywhere, he is everywhere accessible.
Again to our unbelieving friends we point out that unless they are 'born again/from above/of the Spirit', they cannot even see the kingdom of God, never mind enter it. Becoming a Christian is not about adopting a way of life, religion or philosophy. It is about becoming connected to the living, risen, ascended Christ. Becoming part of his body. Knowing him, following him, serving him, loving him. It is the most dynamic and real of relationships.
3) Christ's work continues He is still actively our Prophet, Priest and King. He sends us his Word the scriptures are the living, breathing, cutting voice of Christ to us today as much as they were when they were written. Christ's work continues as priest. His sacrifice is finished but his work of intercession continues. Hebrews 4: "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we areyet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."
We really can approach the throne of grace. It's not just some inner mystical experience. This is for real! When we take communion, it's not just a symbol, nor is it the literal physical body of Jesus but He is really present. We are connected to the whole Christ and fed by the whole Christ.
He is our king. Whatever our circumstances, however powerful our enemies appear to be Christ reigns over all. His kingdom will come. Ephesians 1: "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come."
4) We have a glorious hope: "Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body." (Philippians 3 - NIV)
The Christian is always in the realm of the 'now but not yet'. Christ reigns now, Christ is with us now, but there is more to come. There will come a day when our bodies will be renewed like his. We shall be like him for we shall see him as he is. This is not 'pie in the sky when you die' but 'steak on your plate while you wait!' It is because we are 'in Christ', it is because we know Christ the king, it is because we are assured of his return and ultimate victory that we can live in hope, serve the poor, weep with the broken, and share the Good News. We are now Christ's body here on earth. He is our Head. We can do nothing without him. But we can do all things through him.
This is the wonder. The Spirit not only collapses distance, he also collapses time so that we connect with Christ in the past we are with him on the Cross, Christ in the present and Christ in the future.
Some might say, that's all very well but it sounds like high falutin' theology... not much practical use. You are kidding! There is nothing more practical than this. Even in terms of evangelism and worship, when we are gathered together as the covenant community of Christ's people, we need to know his presence in such a way that any unbeliever walking in falls down and says 'truly God is among you'! This is only the foretaste, the first fruits. The best is yet to be. We long for his return, when everything shall be reconciled. Maranatha. Even so come soon Lord Jesus.
The only thing better than a bike tour to raise money for charity, is a bike tour of Houston tacos to raise money for charity. Yummy.
HOUSTON HEROES: Meet the people and organizations who give back
Crucial Matter held their 32nd Tour De Taco event on April 1st. This month they decided to help March of Dimes and Bottles for Babies with donations from sales at the trucks and bars on the tour. The riders were asked to arrive at Market Square park at 6:45 p.m., and all the riders were ready to roll out by 7:30 p.m. The first stop was at Maya Quiche Food-truck located at Axelrad bar, the second stop was Taco Keto Food-truck located on Cullen and Polk, the third stop was at La Macro Food-truck located at Raven Tower. They concluded the tour at Lucky's Pub in the Heights.
The event creator, Ivan Fuentes, gave a quick speech before the ride to instruct riders about the rules and precautions they must all take in order to have a fun and safe ride. Riders were also informed that this was a very relaxed ride and it was meant to be social. Many riders brought their own speakers for the ride and some even had bike attachments to take their kids along as well.
Take a look through the gallery above for a look at the fun. See anyone you know? Let us know in the comments below.
A Brenham couple and about three dozen other bikers arrested following the deadly melee at the Twin Peaks restaurant in Waco last May may avoid prosecution.
A Houston lawyer contends that all criminal charges were automatically dropped against them since they were not indicted by the midnight Thursday deadline for a McLennan County grand jury to have completed its work.
"It timed out," said Houston lawyer Paul Looney, who represents Morgan and William English. They originally were arrested for allegedly engaging in organized criminal activity and were held on $1 million bail each, as were all others in the case. "Pop the champagne."
He said that while the investigation remains open and a new grand jury could take the case, under the law, the charges that had been pending are now gone.
Looney met behind closed doors Friday morning with McLennan County District Attorney Abel Reyna, first assistant prosecutor Michael Jarrett and State District Judge Matt Johnson.
The district attorney's office, however, cautioned nothing is over.
"We have not filed any dismissals in any of the remaining Twin Peaks cases," said Amy Kuzniarek, spokeswoman for the office.
"Furthermore, any McLennan County grand jury can hear evidence on this matter and decide to issue additional indictments," she said. "This is an ongoing, continuing investigation."
Exactly how many people have had their charges dismissed is unclear. At least 148 have been indicted over the incident. At least 177 were originally arrested following the clash that left nine dead and two dozen wounded. Others were arrested later.
The judge declined a request to clarify the situation.
Looney said they all agreed the judge would have had to sign an order to keep the cases active, but no such request was made.
William and Morgan English had faced the prospect of up to life in prison if convicted of engaging in organized criminal activity as part of a turf war between the Bandidos Motorcycle Club and the Cossacks Motorcycle Club.
Of those who are not facing charges so far, none was a member of the Bandidos or Cossacks. All were in the vicinity of Twin Peaks for a regional motorcycle club meeting that was supposed to be about safety and changes in the law.
The Englishes were part of a small group of bikers from the Brenham area who call themselves the Distorted Motorcycle Club. They arrived at Twin Peaks in a Nissan Sentra, not on motorcycles, and maintained they had no hand in the violence.
Morgan English, a bank teller, has no prior criminal record. William, a Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq, had only a years-old prior brush with the law for driving under the influence.
Looney said the couple were relieved at not being indicted, but they still are dealing with having their lives suspended and their mug shots distributed around the Internet.
"I'm happy these people can try to regain their lives, regain the respect of their community and find a way to deal with the emotional trauma of having had this happen to them at all," Looney said.
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.
Elegy: The First Day on the Somme, by Andrew Roberts (Head of Zeus, 292 pp., $30)
It was a sunny morning, that of July 1st, 1916, the poet Edmund Blunden recalled in a broadcast of 1928.
The right notes for it would have been the singing of blackbirds and the ringing of the blacksmiths anvil. But, as the world soon knew, the music of that sunny morning was the guns. They had never spoken before with so huge a voice. Their sound crossed the sea. In Southdown villages the school children sat wondering at that incessant drumming and the rattling of the windows. That night an even greater anxiety than usual forbade wives and mothers to sleep. The Battle of the Somme had begun.
The purpose of the The Big Push, as the British called it, was straightforward: to draw German forces away from Verdun and to break the stalemate on the Western Front by inflicting a massive blow against the German defenses in Picardy along an 18-mile front, from Gommecourt in the north to Montauban in the south. As it happened, the Sommes first day remains the worst that the British army ever suffered. Very little went as planned, and what Churchill referred to as its melancholy and prodigal slaughter still staggers the imagination. On that first day of July, the British lost nearly 20,000 men, with 40,000 wounded or missing.
Many fine historians, including Denis Winter, Trevor Wilson, Robin Prior, John Keegan, Michael Howard, Gary Mead, and Hew Strachan have produced fascinating studies of the Somme. Now, in Elegy, another good one, Andrew Roberts, has written a masterly and moving account of the Sommes first day to honor its centennial. Elegy is an evenhanded, elegant overview that does justice at once to the complexity of the battle and the bravery of the men who fought it. Drawing on rich historiography, Roberts recreates not only the battles harrowing first day but also the strategy, tactics, and preparations that went into its planning and execution. He also makes incisive use of contemporary accounts, including Siegfried Sassoons Memoirs of an Infantry Officer (1930) for the British experience of the battle, and Ernst Jungers novel Storm of Steel (1920) for the German experience.
The British encountered a battlefield altogether different from what they expected. Assured that the seven-day, pre-battle bombardment would knock out enemy defenses, they were met, instead, by German machine-gun fire at every turn. The deep German dugouts withstood the bombardment almost entirely intact, and when it ended, the Germans simply put their machine guns in place and fired at will at the pitiably exposed, advancing enemy. The British also had to contend with the German wire, which the bombardments shrapnel left uncut. Those who were not immediately hit were pinned down or forced to find shelter in shell-holes.
Tragic irony abounded. Generals Sir Douglas Haig and Sir Henry Rawlinson, the battles chief architects, assumed that the obliterated enemy trenches would need to be rebuilt. This was their justification for saddling each infantryman with over 60 pounds of equipment. That few made it past their own trenches, let alone the German ones, made this a particularly galling miscalculation.
Rawlinson also instructed officers to have their men walk, not run, across no-mans-land, on the assumption that there would be no need for haste before German defenders who had been rendered defenseless. This order was countermanded only after waves of troops had been mown down. Moreover, Rawlinson was convinced that the Germans who did survive would make easy targets because of the higher ground the German positions commanded. Yet it was precisely this higher ground that enabled the enemy to see and react to the British infantrys every movement. As Roberts observes, From the German trenches at . . . Beaumont Hamel today, it is easy to spot with the naked eye individuals standing where the Newfoundlanders trenches were sited. The Newfoundlanders, whose ordeal opens the book, suffered some of the worst losses of the day: 89 percent were killed or wounded, 684 in all, including all 26 officers.
There were exceptions to the general debacle. The Ulstermen of the 9th Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, fighting on what was then the 226th anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne, were awarded four Victoria Crosses for their work taking Schwaben Redoubt, along with 400 prisoners. But they encountered cut wire, and, in any case, they lost 5,104 men, more than a third of the division. Moreover, they could not hold the ground they won: the failure of other divisions to match their advance, not to mention the German counterattack, made sure of that. When Haig heard of the Ulstermens gains, he advised that they advance to the enemys second line, to which Roberts mordantly responds: The fog of war was rarely foggier.
Seeing the pre-battle bombardment from the air, in which 1,627,824 shells were fired, Cecil Lewis, the famous ace, and, later, author of Sagittarius Rising (1936) was convinced that Nothing could live under that rain of splintering steel. This was why so many were convinced of the likelihood of the bombardments success, and why Haig held an Indian corps of cavalry in reserve in anticipation of the breakthrough he was certain would ensue. What went wrong? In addition to the depth of the German dugouts, the hastily assembled ordnance was often defective, detonating prematurely or not at all. Yet even well-made ordnance could never have knocked out the German trenches. Haigs 400 heavy and 1,000 field guns were simply insufficient for so large a front.
The casualty toll for the British was 35,494 wounded, 19,240 killed, 2,152 missing, and 585 POWs. Nearly half of the 120,000 men who went over the top became casualties. These numbers have to be seen in terms of the numerical superiority the British enjoyed: their 143 battalions were pitted against 32 German battalions, which made the scale of defeat all the more stunning. Speaking of the crucial contribution that Hiram Maxims invention made to the battle, Roberts parodies Churchill: Never in the field of human conflict could so many be killed so quickly by so few. (The Germans lost only 12,000 men.) Certainly, it was providential that Lord Kitchener never lived to see the fate of his New Army. As one wag put it: Two years in the making and ten minutes in the destroying: that was our history. Still, as one German eyewitness wrote, the Sommes first day was an amazing spectacle of unexampled gallantry, courage and bull-dog determination on both sides.
Robert brings equanimity and shrewdness to his reading of a battle that remains highly controversial. Though appreciative of Haigs deficiencieshis uncritical confidence in his artillery and intelligence, his excessive planning, his reliance on group think, which was indicative of his lack of confidence in both his officers and his infantryhe still gives grudging praise to a man who learned from his mistakes and did the best he could with an admittedly poor hand. In this regard, Roberts rejects Erich von Ludendorffs claim that The English Generals are wanting in strategy. We should have no chance if they possessed as much science as their officers and men had of courage and bravery. They are lions led by donkeys. As Roberts says at the outset, If there was a way of fighting the First World War that did not involve trying to smash frontally through formidable enemy defenses, neither side discovered one. Nevertheless, Roberts shares Ludendorffs high opinion of the courage of the British infantry, agreeing with what one of Frederic Mannings characters says in that wonderful novel of the Somme (Hemingways favorite), The Middle Parts of Fortune (1929): They can say what they bloody well like . . . but were a fuckin fine mob.
When it comes to Haig, no one could improve on Churchills amusing portrait in Great Contemporaries (1937), where he finds the perfect analogy for the man cordially known as The Butcher, likening him to a great surgeon before the days of anesthetics, versed in every detail of such science as was known to him: sure of himself, steady of poise, knife in hand, intent upon the operation; entirely removed in his professional capacity from the agony of the patient, the anguish of relations, or the doctrines of rival schools . . . He would operate without excitement, or he would depart without being affronted; and if the patient died, he would not reproach himself. It must be understood that I speak only of his professional actions. Once out of the theatre, his heart was as warm as any mans.
Roberts is adamant that Haigs most notorious battle, for all its horrors, was not futile. Despite Britains taking 450,000 casualties when it was finally over in November 1916, the battle forced General Erich von Falkenhayn to withdraw heavy batteries from Verdun and wrested the initiative away from the Germans. The Somme might not have broken the stalemate on the Western Front, but it paved the way for that otherwise elusive breakthrough. Roberts also appreciates how Churchill and Sir Alan Brooke applied the lessons of the Somme to their strategic conduct in World War II, in which, as Robert says, they put off the return to the Continent for four years after the retreat to Dunkirk, preferring to fight in North Africa and Italy, rather than risk a direct assault on France and Germany, which would only have entrapped them in precisely the same war of attrition that bedeviled the Allies on the Western Front. (Attrition, as John Keegan wrote in The Face of Battle, is a game at which two can play.)
What finally makes Roberts book special is that it never loses sight of the human dimension of the war. The voices of the soldiers whom the Somme changed forever are heard on nearly every page. Blunden, concluding his broadcast, gave voice to a truth that has not always been acknowledged: What men did in the battle of the Somme, day after day, and month after month, will never be excelled in honour, unselfishness and love. Roberts, in his solicitude for the men who underwent this terrible trial, and in his judicious, revelatory scholarship, proves himself a worthy historian of their embattled good faith.
Top Photo: Scottish troops advancing in the attack near Arras, during the Battle of the Somme (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, Ohio - The city's planning commission voted Friday to allow FirstEnergy to demolish its century-old Lake Shore power plant, an iconic example of industrial architecture whose preservation could have been better explored according to some advocates.
Representatives of FirstEnergy said they were concerned primarily about safety given what they described as the advancing decay of the plant, built in at least five stages between 1915 and the 1970s.
The company closed the plant after deciding it would be too costly to upgrade it to meet new federal emissions standards.
The building began crumbling rapidly after it was shut down last April, they said, because it had no independent source of heat other than its furnaces and boilers. Once it went cold, Cleveland's damaging freeze-thaw cycles quickly left its brick facades in danger of collapse.
FirstEnergy's demolition schedule calls for completing the job by the end of 2016.
The 4-1 vote to allow the demolition came over the heated objections of Councilman Jeffrey Johnson, whose 10th Ward includes the facility, located along I-90 at East 72nd Street.
Johnson said the administration of Mayor Frank Jackson cut him out of discussions with FirstEnergy over the future of the lakefront site.
Ward 5 Councilwoman Phyllis Cleveland, the only council member on the commission, sided with Johnson and cast the sole vote against the demolition. Commissioners Fred Geis, David Bowen, Gloria Jean Pinkney and Lillian Kuri voted in favor.
The vote came a day after the city's Downtown/Flats Design Review Committee voted unanimously for the second time in four months to table the demolition request in an attempt to create more time for advocates to analyze the feasibility of preserving and reusing the plant.
"I am angry," Johnson told the commission on Friday after a lengthy presentation in which FirstEnergy officials promised to clear and the 52-acre site occupied by the plant.
Ward 10 Councilman Jeffrey Johnson makes his case for preserving the Lake Shore power plant on Friday, April 1, 2016 at a meeting of the Cleveland Planning Commission.
"They have made decisions that are not respectful of me and of legitimate organizations in this ward," Johnson said of the Jackson administration. "The process was wrong."
The city's position
City Planning Director Freddy Collier said the Jackson administration was firmly in favor of preservation in most cases.
But he said the administration decided the Lake Shore plant was beyond saving and that it wanted to accept FirstEnergy's offer to spend $15 million now on the initial cleanup of the lakefront site, plus an unspecified additional amount later on that could make the land clean enough for housing or a park.
The ultimate level of environmental remediation would depend on the final use of the property, FirstEnergy officials said.
Collier said the city was concerned that if FirstEnergy didn't get the go-ahead, it would spend its demolition and cleanup dollars elsewhere on other coal-fired plants it needs to remove.
The city is eager to explore potential new uses for 52 acres of lakefront land that were not included in the city's 2004 lakefront plan, which assumed that the utility could not be moved off site, Collier said.
"We're at a point where we are satisfied as to the need to demolish the structure and we want to focus our efforts on highest and best use" in the future, Collier said.
Johnson said he had never been consulted by the city about the future of the power plant and that he felt disrespected by Collier's remarks.
Referring to the disagreement with Collier, he said: "This should be done outside of this room."
Collier responded: "There is a necessity for this [demolition]. That's our position today. I don't want the narrative to be shaped in a way that's adversarial on our part."
Experts argue for preservation
Preservation experts who spoke during the meeting said there was ample reason to believe that architecturally significant portions of the plant, such as its big turbine room and adjacent four-smokestack boiler facility - could be saved and used for a new purpose.
Peter Ketter, director of historic preservation at the Cleveland firm of Sandvick Architects, said the firm is working on two power plant rehab projects in Toledo and Columbus, in which both buildings are being repurposed as corporate offices.
The availability of state and federal historic preservation tax credits could make redevelopment of buildings such as the Lake Shore plant highly attractive to developers, he said.
"There is significant potential here," he said of the Lake Shore plant.
Kathleen Crowther, executive director and president of the Cleveland Restoration Society, offered planning commissioners a report from the American Clean Skies Foundation detailing the successful rehabilitation and reuse of eight power plants around the U.S.
She said she felt that FirstEnergy had never tried to undertake a professional analysis of whether the plant could be saved.
"When you ask deconstruction companies what the best outcome is, I think we know what the conclusion is going to be," said Michael Fleming, executive director of the St. Clair Superior Development Corp. "Let's ask companies whose business model is restoring these things."
Terry Joyce, business manager of Laborers Local 310, was the only audience member at the meeting to speak against preservation on the grounds that the 60 workers at Lake Shore who are clearing asbestos and lead form the building in advance of the demolition, aren't entirely comfortable being there.
"Our people are nervous," he said. "They're safe but they're nervous about being in the building."
Geis, a developer who recently joined the planning commission, said he was in favor of demolition, but he proposed requiring FirstEnergy to give Johnson and preservation advocates a month to explore whether the power plant could be saved.
When no one seconded his idea, Kuri said she was moved to vote in favor of demolition by the prospect that FirstEnergy would thoroughly clean the site, creating a lakefront opportunity for the city.
"I want to see a clean site and I mean clean to the standard that some development can be done with it," Kuri said.
Note: This article has been updated with the correct spelling of Peter Ketter's name.
How does a person become a monster? There's no easy answer in Johnny Dwyer's American Warlord (Vintage, 285 pp., $17), the true story of Chucky Taylor.
Born in 1977 in Boston to an American mother, Chucky grew up not knowing his Liberian father, who had returned home.
Then, at 15, Chucky received a summons to Liberia, which was embroiled in civil war. His father, Charles Taylor, would later become the murderous president of the country. (He is now serving a 50-year jail sentence for war crimes.)
In Liberia, Chucky went from a troubled but generally benign teen to a vicious warlord. His casual, relentless use of torture shocked even his father.
As Liberia crumbled around them, both father and son fled. Chucky might have gone free were it not for a dogged American immigration agent and an obscure law that allows prosecution of an American citizen for torture, even if carried out in a foreign country. Chucky is now serving a 97-year sentence in a federal prison. He has no regrets.
It's a stomach-churning read, but Dwyer has done a fine job reporting this complicated, chilling story.
Sisters of Heart and Snow
Margaret Dilloway
Putnam, 375 pp., $16
In her new novel, Margaret Dilloway skillfully intertwines the story of a contemporary family with that of a 12th-century female samurai.
Sisters Rachel and Drew Snow aren't exactly estranged, but they haven't been close since they were little girls. Rachel was cast out of the house as a rebellious teenager and never returned. Drew managed to stay in her strict father's good graces, but has never been entirely happy there.
Now they find themselves united to try to help their Japanese mother, Hikari, who has been diagnosed with dementia and whose American husband, Killian, neglects her. Tensions resurface.
In a surprisingly lucid moment, Hikari asks the girls to look for a book she has hidden. When they find the book - about the samurai Tomoe Gozen - they also find some mysterious photographs that lead them to understand the mother they always thought cold and pitifully compliant to her boorish husband.
Along the way, the tale of Tomoe helps the two regain the joy of sisterhood as they repair the rift between them.
The Shadow of the Crescent Moon
Fatima Bhutto
Penguin, 231 pp., $16
Fatima Bhutto's devastating novel "The Shadow of the Crescent Moon" unfolds over a single morning in a village in Pakistan's tribal region near Afghanistan.
The villagers are always on edge. Trouble lies around every corner in this place of outsiders, anathema to the central government. Families no longer shop together, work together or eat out together.
"In case something happens," explains Aman Erum to the taxi driver ferrying his single passenger to a mosque. One bomb blast, one family member dead, perhaps. Not the entire family.
Aman is the eldest of three brothers. Recently returned from America, he has little interest in the political turmoil. His younger brother, Sikandar, is a doctor whose son was murdered by the Taliban. He grieves quietly; his wife, Mina, grieves loudly and publicly.
The youngest is Hayat, an idealist who has promised allegiance to their father's firebrand politics.
All three head in different directions that morning, but in just a few hours, tragedy will shatter their lives, each in a different way.
Visceral and powerful, with a driven narrative and convincing characters, this is a stunning debut.
Marchetti is a critic in Cleveland Heights.
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A father and son make a perilous journey across Europe in "Babai."
(Niko Film/CIFF)
Cleveland, Ohio - There's a heartbreaking moment in the movie "Babai" in which a young boy hopefully watches from behind a refugee camp fence to see if his father will come back for him. It's not a given. This is, after all, the father who abandoned him in their native Kosovo, leaving his 10-year-old to the whims of his brutal uncle who beats even his adult children with abandon. The father who literally pulled him off and pushed him away at the bus station.
But that didn't stop 10-year-old Nori (a stoic Val Maloku) from following his dad, as far as Germany. He steals his cousin's wedding money and begins a perilous journey across Europe in search of his father - his "babai." Though the movie is set in the early 1990s, before the current refugee crisis, viewers can't help but think of the children we see on the news risking their lives to make such a crossing today.
Nori may not be fleeing war, but the bleak poverty he and his father leave behind in their dusty, hopeless village filled with wild dogs and beaten-down residents is just as tragic. His father's abandonment is proof of just how desperate one man can be for freedom, and opportunity. Nori's perilous journey is proof how much one son can love his father, even one who pushes him away. Will the two ever be reunited? And even if they are, could there be a happy ending for these two wandering souls in a harsh, unwelcoming world?
REVIEW
Babai
What: Directed by Visar Morina (2015/Germany, Kosovo, Macedonia, France). 104 minutes. In Albanian with subtitles.
When: 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 5 and 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 6
Grade: A
CLEVELAND, Ohio - In the documentary "Unseen," directed by Laura Paglin, the title emerges from wisps of smoke - no doubt, we are to imagine, from a crack pipe.
Crack cocaine, after all, was the drug that swept through the Mount Pleasant neighborhood where serial killer and rapist Anthony Sowell hunted for his victims, laying waste to whole families.
"It was like Hurricane Katrina," says Vanessa Gay to Paglin's camera. She's one of the few women who met the ex-Marine and lived.
"It came though and ravaged my whole life."
As Gay tells it, it was her addiction to that drug that brought her to Sowell's door at 12205 Imperial Ave., a bland white duplex that no one realized was the source of the sickening stench that dominated the area for years, baffling health inspectors and residents alike.
If you lived in or around Cleveland in 2009, you know about the bodies found there - 11 in all, some discovered in the attic and basement and more in the backyard.
Convicted of those murders, Sowell was sentenced to die in 2011. Today, he sits on death row and is back in the news. The Ohio Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments in his latest appeal beginning Tuesday, April 5.
Sowell's crimes have inspired a lurid cottage industry of paperbacks, cable specials and docu-series that dwell on corpses and severed body parts.
But for Paglin, the shocking tale of the Cleveland strangler wasn't the narrative she wanted to follow.
It was the victims' stories.
As the title implies, many were ghosts in their own neighborhood, adrift and unnoticed amidst the wreckage that crack had wrought in Mount Pleasant. Whole families were addicted, across generations. Sowell capitalized on the women's disposability, luring them with drugs and counting on their transient lifestyles to conceal their final disappearance at his murderous hands.
As Paglin's lens frames Sowell's clapboard double-decker, a chilling phrase is superimposed on the screen: " . . . Until the bodies were found, the eleven victims' disappearances had not been investigated by police."
In 2016, heroin has replaced crack as a national scourge.
"Now, because it's affecting middle-class people, everyone is calling for compassion and calling it a public health problem and not a criminal problem. It's like, where was that compassion for these women or for these families?"
She started thinking about the drug in a different way. Crack, she says - "that's a serial killer, too."
In "Unseen," Paglin speaks to the people closest to the victims and mines harrowing stories from the handful of women who got away, including Latundra "Lala" Billups whose to report police - that Sowell had raped her and strangled her with an extension cord - finally brought investigators into the home of the known sex offender.
"The idea of telling it from the victims' perspective is to make the horror up close and personal," continues Paglin. "Because I think people tend to distance themselves from a crime like this and say, 'That could never happen to me. I'm not that kind of person.'
"But if you hear these women speak, they talk about how they never thought they would be that kind of person. They had hopes and dreams and aspirations."
Labeling the murdered women as "crackheads," as many did, says Paglin, is a way to objectify people and distance yourself from their suffering.
She recalls an interview with Assad Tayeh who, at the time of the killings, owned Imperial Beverage, a concrete block grocery store across the street from Sowell's house. In what is sure to become one of the most talked-about moments of "Unseen," Teyeh says he wishes there were a million Sowells, because "he cleaned up the garbage."
Paglin was so startled she says she stopped filming, sure he couldn't have meant it.
She showed Teyeh a recent photo of Billups, her days of addiction long behind her. "I said, 'What about Latundra? She's in college now.' "
The shopkeeper was unmoved.
In the editing room, she debated using his comment, worried people would fixate on it and cast Tayeh as the villain of the piece.
She decided to include the line "because I think what he says is something that a lot of people may feel but know better than to articulate in public."
Some neighborhood residents expressed similar sentiments to her, though not on-camera. And she's seen equally odious comments online.
Below a February cleveland.com story announcing that the Ohio Supreme Court would hear Sowell's appeal, a commenter named "EmbraceDiversity," wrote:
"let the guy go...he was doing a great job!"
Just as she didn't want the film to become a discussion of the toxic feelings of one person, "I didn't want it to be a finger-wagging film," Paglin says.
"I think it's a much bigger problem."
Sowell, she says, took advantage of the perfect storm -endemic poverty and indifference, misogyny and despair.
"I know some neighbors called the police or called the health department to report the smell," she says. But it persisted, as Sowell did, month after month, year after year.
"That couldn't happen on my street. If there were such a smell in the air, there'd be an outrage, and there'd be petitions and meetings. Some people did do what they could, but . . . there's almost an acceptance of bad things being normal."
"He wasn't careful," Paglin continues. "He didn't try very hard to conceal himself."
In one unbelievable sequence in "Unseen," a naked Sowell, captured by a video surveillance camera at a nearby business, is seen searching in the bushes for something. Soon, he finds what he is looking for - a woman, also naked.
The woman the world would later know as Shawn Morris seems dazed as he helps her to her feet. She'd landed there after tumbling from an upstairs window trying to get away from Sowell. A passerby called 911, but Sowell convinced authorities he was her husband and even caught a ride with her to the hospital.
Owners of the local pizza joint told another woman, Gladys Wade, who'd also escaped Sowell and burst through the door begging for help, to leave because she was bleeding on the floor.
"Someone falls out a window or runs out of a house naked - as of the neighbors told me, 'It's Imperial Avenue. You expect that kind of thing, ' " says Paglin.
But survivors, like Billups, are determined to make themselves visible.
"I heal from this by helping others," she says toward the end of "Unseen." She is dressed in bright fuchsia and her eyes are alive. She looks and sounds like a woman you'd want to have coffee and swap gossip with.
Nearly seven years ago, Sowell almost killed her, choking her until she passed out. When she came to, he seemed surprised, she says. She seized that opportunity to head for his front door. She was a different woman then, one who wouldn't believe all that Billups has accomplished.
"You could have never told me, or told anybody, that in two and a half to three years, [I'd] have an associates' degree," Billups says.
Or her kids would be with her, not farmed out to relatives or in foster care.
Or she would be clean and sober.
You couldn't have told nobody that," she says. "They'd be like, 'What? ' " she says, laughing.
More words are superimposed on the screen, and this time, they are hopeful. "Latundra Billups earned her masters degree in social work at Cleveland State University in 2015."
"These were real people," says the Rev. Larry Harris, pastor of the neighborhood's Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church, as images of a candlelight vigil for the lost flicker across the screen.
"These were women that belonged to mothers and fathers. These were women that had family - cousins and uncles and aunts. They had children. These were women that would be greatly missed."
Paglin's film reminds us of that.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A charred piano was the only thing left standing after a fire ripped through a former church in Cleveland's Fairfax neighborhood Friday night.
Fire investigators are working to determine what caused the former Mt. Hebron Baptist Church on East 105th Street to ignite about 7:30 p.m. Friday.
A woman walking her dog near the church saw a man in dark clothing walking around the church just before she heard "a boom" and the church caught fire, Cleveland Fire spokesman Larry Gray said.
Firefighters showed up and found the church completely engulfed, Gray said. By the time firefighters put out the fire, the church had been completely destroyed.
One firefighter sprained his ankle while fighting the blaze, Gray said.
Gray said it's too early for investigators to determine whether foul play was involved.
The church had been empty since the congregation moved to Park Synagogue in Cleveland Heights.
Mt. Hebron Baptist Church owns the property, according to property records. The church did not return a voicemail seeking comment Saturday.
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Brandon Blackburn, 22, was found dead inside a minivan Friday on East 53rd Street in Cleveland's Broadway Slavic Village neighborhood.
(File photo)
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A 22-year-old man found shot dead inside a minivan Friday afternoon has been identified.
Brandon Blackburn, of Cleveland, was found dead about 1 p.m. inside a minivan on the 3600 block of East 53rd Street near Mound Avenue in Cleveland's Broadway Slavic Village neighborhood, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office said Saturday.
Police said Blackburn had a gunshot wound, though the medical examiner has yet to rule on his official cause of death.
Cleveland police homicide detectives are investigating the circumstances of Blackburn's death. Police have made no arrests or identified a suspect.
Anyone with information about the killing is asked to call homicide detectives at 216-623-5464.
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Middleburg Heights police station
(Joanne Berger DuMound, special to cleveland.com.)
Speeding, Interstate 71: An officer saw a car speeding in the far left lane at 9:50 p.m. March 20. The car was going between 77-89 mph. The motorist merged into different lanes four times without using a turn signal. The car eventually stopped after seeing the cruiser's flashing emergency lights.
The officer immediately noticed the driver's eyes were glassy and bloodshot. She also had slurred speech and an odor of alcohol. She initially could not find her driver's license or insurance card. The woman told the officer, "I failed," while taking field sobriety tests. She was arrested for drunken driving. She refused to measure her blood alcohol content level.
Fraud, Stoneloch Court: A man's credit card company alerted him March 29 that two separate transactions may be fraudulent on his card. Both involved in-store purchases at Target, one located in Akron and the other, Canton. The man contacted his credit card provider and said he still had his card and did not allow anyone to make those purchases or made them himself. The disputed charges were $238 and $116. He was told to file a police report. He asked the company to deactivate his card. The victim was advised to contact the credit bureau regarding his credit report.
Theft of identity, Yorktown Lane: A man came to the police station March 26 about an IRS form he received in the mail. The agency claimed the man had two additional incomes that he did not claim on his 2014 tax return. The IRS said he owed the agency $9,000. The man told police the agency claims he owes taxable wages for employers he said he never worked for and in cities and states to which he never traveled.
The man also checked his credit report online that listed loans and accounts that used his name and Social Security, but he did not authorize them. They were filed in different states and were fraudulent. One credit report had a wrong birth date, address and list of employers and banks. The detective bureau is investigating the report.
Theft, Bagley Road: A woman parked her car in the Southwest General Health Center's overflow lot at 10 a.m. March 25. When she returned to her car at 6 p.m., its catalytic converter was missing.
Lost property, Bagley Road
It's the most blighted block in the state of Ohio. For now it's the shame of East Cleveland, but it could belong to Cleveland.
Getting there is easy enough. Start at East Cleveland City Hall, 14340 Euclid Ave., and head east for about a quarter of a mile. When you reach Chapman Avenue, turn left and prepare for a visual shock. You have reached Ground Zero.
What is instantly observed on the street that runs maybe 300 yards long are 15 abandoned and collapsing brick apartment buildings. The roofs, windows and doors are missing on each of the three-story units. No pedestrians or auto traffic were on the street at noon on a recent Friday, but heaping mountains of trash and tell-tale signs of arson and drug abuse were everywhere.
It wasn't just the highly degraded condition of the street, however, that created an almost apocalyptic sense of foreboding. The place had the eerie feel of an unmarked cemetery. The barely standing structures resembled the industrial ruins of a lost war.
"I call that scene a hurricane without water. Except man made this one. This was no act of God," said Jim Rokakis, former Cuyahoga County treasurer and a nationally recognized voice on urban renewal.
The wretched decay of East Cleveland, a town that is racing toward financial insolvency, will become Cleveland's challenge if the towns are ever to merge. Ohio Auditor David Yost re-ignited merger talks this week when he floated an idea that state lawmakers should seek $10 million in the upcoming capital budget to encourage the union.
The often stalled merger talks should continue in earnest. But Yost's $10 million request for roads, bridges and emergency equipment is misplaced. East Cleveland is not in need of asphalt Band-Aids. It's in need of a wholesale transplant.
Much of the city's rotten infrastructure must be torn down before it can be absorbed and rebuilt as part of Cleveland. Indeed, one can only wonder if the auditor has ever been to East Cleveland, a city whose miserable financial plight and planning has competed for his attention since his 2011 election.
Has he ever walked Chapman Avenue or any of the other hundreds of vacant and horribly blighted streets of East Cleveland? Does he really know the place he's now advocating for?
A strategic Marshall Plan will be needed to save what is now known as East Cleveland -- not a few million spent on paving projects or service vehicle.
"Ten million dollars for roads is a start. But it's like having a gaping head wound and thinking, 'I'm going to take care of my hurt ACL,'" said Rokakis.
"We have 140 vacant and heavily blighted apartment buildings in East Cleveland that must be torn down. When you add to that total nearly 1,000 vacant housing units, we will need to spend nearly $23 million to clear the land for reuse.
"Once this land is clear, once there are multiple acres of land to develop in East Cleveland, then economic progress is possible. But there will be no tomorrow if we don't eradicate the existing blight that has a stranglehold on the city," he said.
Rokakis is 100 percent correct. East Cleveland must be viewed against the optimistic vision of what it can become with a dramatic reset as part of Cleveland.
Ohio currently has a considerable amount of federal money earmarked for aggressively attacking the blight that continues to choke cities, suburbs and rural areas alike. Thanks to the sustained efforts of Rokakis, vice president of the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, and many others, Cuyahoga County alone has more than $80 million in federal funding to demolish and clear blighted structures.
It would take a considerable portion of that money to fix what ails East Cleveland. But it's also going to take the will and desire of citizens of both towns to make a marriage work. It's not certain that will exist.
Councilman Mike Polensek is as familiar with the challenges facing East Cleveland as any Cleveland politician. His Collinwood ward ran contiguous to the suburb before recent redistricting. He shared a telling story Thursday with several council colleagues as Yost's $10 million funding recommendation made the political rounds. It was the story of an African-American senior citizen whom Polensek said he met at the Glenville library branch last year during a public discussion of the merger.
"Councilman, here I am, I can't take care of my own house, my own family, and I don't have the money that I need for myself. Now you want me to take on my broke-ass brother-in-law. Unless you give me some real money, don't waste my time."
That, in a nutshell, is the tale of both towns. Cleveland finds itself questioning how much blight, crime and additional public service burden it is willing and capable of assuming in return for future reward. Meanwhile, a proud East Cleveland is forced, with each passing day, to realize its only hope for survival is to drop the "East" from in front of its name.
It's an awkward dance, playing out in the poverty-stricken place a Rockefeller once viewed with pride.
President Barack Obama said he is disappointed that the United States and Russia have not made as much progress in nuclear arms reduction as he would've liked.
Speaking at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. on Friday, Obama addressed members of the media following his fourth and final Nuclear Security Summit of 2016. There, the president said that Russian President Vladimir Putin prioritization of defense is slowing efforts.
"Because Mr. Putin came into power, or returned to his office as president, and because of the vision that he's been pursuing of emphasizing military might over development inside of Russia and diversifying the economy, we have not seen the kind of progress that I would've hoped for with Russia," he said.
Putin, whose massive nuclear weapons stockpile is rivaled only by the U.S., refused to attend this year's summit. Moscow scoffed at what it deemed U.S. efforts to control the process and take power away from international agencies. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of Pakistani, another nuclear-armed country, canceled his trip following a bombing that killed 72.
Should GOP front runner Donald Trump head to the Republican nominating convention short of the required delegate threshold, scores of those functionaries currently committed to his candidacy are ready to break with him on a second ballot, Politico reports.
According to the publication, more than a hundred delegates won't support Trump if he fails to clear 1,237 votes, the number necessary to win the nomination. Politico says it spoke to "dozens of delegates, delegate candidates, operatives and party leaders."
As controversies swirl around the billionaire mogul, all eyes are on his chief challenger for the nomination, Senator Ted Cruz. The Texas Republican has been mounting a stealth campaign to recruit his own loyalists as convention delegates, Politico reported. That could mean that if there's a second ballot, many of these delegates may be free to cast their lot for another candidate.
Read MoreCould this delegate plan blow up the GOP?
The arcane rules governing electing a party nominee have taken on a new level of urgency, with Trump retaining a commanding lead in delegates and grassroots support. However, large swaths of party members still refuse to back Trump, and are searching for an alternative that can unify the party in time for the general election.
"As far as the stealing of the Trump nomination, that's a big concern for everybody," Diana Orrock, the RNC committeewoman from Nevada and the only one of 112 committeemen and women who openly supports Trump, told Politico.
Yet political watchers are becoming increasingly resigned to the potential for the first brokered convention in decades. Although Trump has a wide lead in delegates, Cruz is posing a stiff challenge in several upcoming contests most notably Wisconsin, where the Texan is currently polling ahead just before next week's primary vote. Meanwhile, Trump's polling among key demographics suggest he could face stiff resistance from certain voting blocks in the general election.
The full story can be found on Politico's website.
Workers wash off hoses that are part of the oil rig owned by Liberty Resources, located just outside of Tioga, ND in the Bakken region of US.
The U.S.'s embarrassment of oil riches may not have been that beneficial after all.
Those are the findings of a recent Goldman Sachs report, in which the bank explained that the net effects of cheaper crude on growth have been "negative so far," given the impact on oil producers who are now finding it hard to churn out more black gold while maintaining needed levels of capital expenditures.
Although Goldman acknowledged a lift to consumer spending, the summary constituted an admission that the virtues of the boom that sent U.S. oil production skyrocketing, leaving world markets awash in inexpensive crude, may not have delivered the economic boost many observers had anticipated at its outset.
"While cheap oil has become 'too much of a good thing' for growth, the employment impact of lower oil prices is likely still positive, reflecting the modest effect on employment of the capital-intensive energy sector," Goldman wrote.
Last year, the U.S. produced nearly 10 million barrels per day the largest amount in decades and second only to Saudi Arabia. As a consequence of the massive buildup of supply that flooded world markets, oil prices slumped by more than half, placing intense pressure on domestic energy producers.
Read MoreThe 30-year old prince who is changing the world
In the research note released on Saturday, Goldman estimated that the level at which U.S. producers would need to breakeven is somewhere within a range of $45 to $80. On Friday, crude closed below $40 per barrel.
Given current levels of crude, the crumbling of capital expenditures is a net drag on economic growth, Goldman notes. It added that oil would need to climb back to $70 at least to give energy capital spending a second wind.
"Adding up, we conclude that the net effect of cheap oil on growth has probably been negative so far, with the capex collapse outweighing the consumption boost," analysts wrote.
"But going forward, the net effect is likely to be neutral at worst under our $30 scenario, but would be moderately positive if oil prices rebound to $50 or $70, reflecting the outsized impact of price changes in this crucial range on energy capex and production," it added.
watch now
William Koch, billionaire, energy mogul and political activist, is a huge wine aficionado. Now, part of his extensive wine collection is set to hit the market. Buyers should be prepared to have deeop pockets, because some of these bottles will sell well into the seven figures. Auction house Sotheby's is planning to sell 20,000 bottles of wine from Koch's private cellar of William Koch, one of the richest men in America. The entire collection, encompassing 2,700 lots and 20,000 bottles, could bring in a total of $10 to $15 million dollars when they hit the auction block this May. Koch, 78, is founder of Oxbow Carbon, a petroleum and oil refiner. He is also a well known philanthropist, art collector, yachtsman and conservative activist with an estimated net worth of approximately $3.6 billion dollars. In describing the Sotheby's sale, Koch explained that his collection that was forty years in the making. "I aimed to assemble the very best Bordeaux and Burgundy where you could taste the love and the passion that the vintner had in making it," he said. "With around 43,000 bottles, I could not possibly consume everything in my cellar so I am delighted to offer this selection to allow collectors all over the world to enjoy the glorious moments that come with these wines."
Five figure wine bottles
Some wealthy individuals and collectors see wine as an investment that's as valuable as a luxury car or a painting. Silicon Valley Bank said in a recent report that fine wine sales are expected to rise by at least 9 percent globally this year, even as overall U.s. wine consumption is expected to dip for the first time in 20 years. In 2014, fine wine sales alone accounted for more than $350 million in global sales, according to a report in the Wine Spectator. Connor Kriegel, head of wine auction sales at Sotheby's, told CNBC that the upcoming sale is a "once in a lifetime opportunity" for the public. According to Kriegel, whether you are a novice, a serious private collector or a top restaurant, the breadth and depth of the collection offers something for everyone. "It's so rare to get a crack at a spectacular wine cellar like Mr. Koch's," said Kriegel. "What sets this wide-ranging collection apart, aside from the obvious provenance, is the quality, quantity and impeccable storage. Each bottle is in exceptional condition." For instance, one single Jeroboam of 1959 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Burgundy could sell for between $30,000 to $42,000. Meanwhile, a six-liter Methuselah of Romanee-Conti 1989 DRC Burgundy could fetch $70,000 to $100,000 dollars. Another standout is Koch's collection of 1953 Chateau Lafite Rothschild lots. The six lots, each containing six magnums, have a pre-sale estimate between $24,000 to $34,000 dollars apiece. "The majority of these vintages from the last century never come to market. Ever. So to have access at these first growth, large format magnums is just astounding," said Kriegel. "I expect these lots will draw a hugely international crowd and bidding to be especially fierce."
Selections from the wine cellar of William I. Koch. Source: Sotheby's
Three takeways from Missouri's game against Vanderbilt
Missouri football took on Vanderbilt for its homecoming game on Saturday. Here's what to know from the game.
Stan Carroll/The Commercial Appeal April 1, 2016 - Osceola mayor Dickie Kennemore (right) and city finance manager Steve Purtee walk from a barge docked at the Mid-River Terminal located about 5 miles south of town and adjacent to Big River Steel.
SHARE April 1, 2016 - Hundreds of worker's vehicles are parked near the Big River Steel mill being constructed near the Mississippi River about 5 miles south of Osceola, Arkansas. (Stan Carroll/The Commercial Appeal) April 1, 2016 - Ventilation pipes await installation along a service road leading to the construction site of Big River Steel mill about 5 miles south of Osceola, Arkansas. Once connected the pipes will be used to draw off the dust and gases to the bag house and scrubbers at the $1.3 billion facility. (Stan Carroll/The Commercial Appeal) April 1, 2016 - Osceola mayor Dickie Kennemore. (Stan Carroll/The Commercial Appeal)
By Ted Evanoff of The Commercial Appeal
Forty miles upriver from Memphis, nearly 2,000 construction workers from far away as Utah and Texas are completing the final stages of a $1.3 billion steel mill that has turned the once faded Arkansas Delta city of Osceola into a boom town.
Home rental rates are rising and sales tax collections have soared in advance of five suppliers bringing in more than 250 jobs to complement the 450 expected at Big River Steel LLC once the mill reaches full output later this year.
Pressing home the notion that this hard-pressed old river town has turned the corner: Big River Steel job fairs have been scheduled in East Arkansas cities in early April, and training classes are ramping up at Arkansas Northeastern College for workers such as welders and forklift drivers.
"I never dreamed in my wildest dreams we could ever attract something like this,'' Osceola Mayor Dickie Kennemore said. "If you want a job in Mississippi County today all you have to do is show up for work.''
The arrival of 700 permanent jobs steel mill wages start at $75,000 per year is welcome in a small city that fretted even Walmart passed it by after the U.S. Air Force in 1992 closed the huge B-52 bomber base up the road near Blytheville.
After the 3,000 military personnel moved away and a series of factories moved offshore, including the Fruit of the Loom plant, Osceola and surrounding Mississippi County struggled with double-digit unemployment rates through two decades.
Kennemore said the drop in the local jobless rate it fell to 7.6 percent in January from 11.8 percent in 2010 reflects more than the recession finally easing.
"It's not just recovering from the recession,'' said Kennemore, whose city contains only about 7,300 residents today, about 1,500 fewer than in 2000. "We're looking at about a $1 million increase in sales taxes over two years. That's indicative of the commerce that has increased in our community."
In 2013, the 1-cent sales tax contributed $750,000 to the city budget, then about $950,000 in 2014 and $1.3 million in 2015. The rise in sales taxes does not lead to lower property taxes the state sets the millage in Arkansas.
"I'd say we're in a boom,'' Kennemore said, pointing out a local supermarket reports a 60-perecent rise in annual sales. "I guess maybe it's unbelievable because we had a large industrial base in the 1990s and we lost it. We had all these plants that moved the work offshore. When the rest of the country was in a boom we were in a depression.''
A sign the economic siege has lifted came recently when Arkansas Northeastern College in Blytheville announced it had received $180,000 in grants for schooling material handlers such as forklift drivers. This provides free training for low-income residents.
Those occupations are in demand at Mid-River Terminal, a new Osceola vendor to the steel mill. It unloads scrap from Mississippi River barges and delivers the metal to Big River, which melts it into molten steel shaped into coils for automotive, appliance and other manufacturers.
Last year, Mid-River disclosed its new $40 million plant would employ 130 workers. Other new suppliers include Arkansas Steel Processing's $35 million plant, which will create about 50 jobs, and SMS Millcraft's $30 million investment, which will create about 70 jobs.
Kennemore credits local officials with helping attract Big River. After Eaker Air Force Base closed and Fruit of the Loom left, the county enacted an economic development tax. When Big River came calling, the city pitched in $15 million in incentives, the county $2 million and the state eventually $125 million, making it the largest incentive package ever in Arkansas.
"As far as I'm concerned," Kennemore said, "we won the industrial lottery for any town in the U.S., particularly small-town America."
Free Parking Brigade volunteers hand out stickers to visitors that say "I did not park on the grass :)"
By Kayleigh Skinner of The Commercial Appeal
Barricades and a strong police presence led to a quiet standoff at the Overton Park greensward Saturday, a contrast to last weekend's more raucous confrontation between protesters and zoo patrons parking on the grassy area.
Stanchions blocked off a section of the lawn for zoo parking, preventing park visitors and protesters from entering.
Some there on a sunny Saturday morning to carry on the protests against using the greensward for zoo parking feared the barricades were a bad omen.
"It's a provocation," Bill Stegall said. "It establishes their (the zoo's) right to own that piece of land forever."
Rodney Nash said he was worried the barricades are the first step to a more permanent solution.
"I'm a little worried that this is a preliminary step to putting up a fence and paving the area," Nash said.
The barricades didn't stop every protester.
Cathy Wood wanted to protest from inside the barricaded area, so she paid the parking fee and drove her car onto the greensward. Crowds cheered when she climbed on top of her car and held protest signs, but police escorted her from the area.
"They told me, 'you can exercise your constitutional rights to protest, but you have to do it on the other side of the fence,'" Wood said.
On the open side of the barricaded area, protesters donned bright green "Save the greensward" shirts and stickers. Others took it a step further by wearing traffic cone hats and dresses.
Roughly 20 police officers stood inside the barricaded part of the greensward, and patrol cars were stationed throughout the park and nearby streets. Mounted patrolmen also rode horses around the main parking lot. Memphis Animal Services officers were present in case protesters with pets were arrested and taken into custody.
Only those who paid the zoo parking fee and parked on the greensward could enter the blocked-off space. Protesters and reporters were barred from entering.
"During a public assembly or protest, MPD's lawful obligation is to provide public safety for every citizen," MPD interim director Michael Rallings said in a Friday statement. "MPD understands the history and sensitivities associated with the Overton Park Greensward; however, we will not allow the disruption of business, or the interference of a citizen's right to enjoy the park."
Not everyone understood the ongoing controversy when they showed up at the park Saturday.
Erica Crunk traveled with her family from Rogersville, Alabama, to visit the zoo during her children's spring break. She and her young son posed for a photo with the mounted patrolmen. She said she had no trouble parking in the zoo's main lot.
"We saw signs that said 'free parking,' but we didn't know what it was about," Crunk said. "If the zoo tells you that it's OK (to park on the greensward), then I really don't see a problem with that."
Ken and Cindy Eppley visited the zoo Saturday morning and parked in one of the zoo lots. The couple, from North Carolina, said they were unaware of the greensward controversy, but did see people with signs encouraging them to park on the street.
"Why," Cindy asked, "is it a problem to park in a field?"
SHARE Robert Perkins
By Katie Fretland of The Commercial Appeal
Robert Perkins was waiting in a courtroom about a driving case when victims in a shooting pointed him out.
Perkins was charged with attempted second-degree murder, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm with intent to cause deadly harm, said attorney Charles Waldman.
A jury Friday found Perkins, 32, and another man, 20-year-old Monterrio Pipkins, not guilty of all charges in the shooting case.
Memphis police responded to the shooting Sept. 21, 2014. The victims said they were in a 1995 Nissan Maxima in the 2700 block of Lamar, and a black Dodge Charger approached for an arranged meeting for the sale of a gun. Two armed men got out and approached the victims, according to an affidavit. Several shots were fired into the vehicle, and one victim was shot under his left arm pit.
While in court Nov. 17, 2014 waiting for a hearing, the victims saw Perkins.
"Each victim stated the male black they saw in the courtroom is the same person that shot at them," according to an affidavit.
Perkins, whose release was expected Friday, has been in jail since Nov. 25, 2014, Waldman said. Pipkins has a pending robbery case, according to court records.
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, center, takes questions about a de-annexation bill during a Senate committee hearing in Nashville, Tenn., on Wednesday, March 23, 2016. Strickland is joined by Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke, left, and Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero in opposing the bill that could wind up shrinking the size of several Tennessee cities. Strickland has said that if the bill passes it could be financially "devastating" to his city. (AP Photo/Erik Schelzig)
By Ryan Poe of The Commercial Appeal
Jim Tomasik of South Cordova said he rolled his eyes when he heard a new city task force could study the cost and benefits of de-annexation.
He rolled his eyes because he'd tried years ago to get city council members to consider de-annexing his neighborhood. He rolled his eyes because no residents were invited to join the task force, which will be called the Strategic Footprint Review for a Better Memphis Task Force. He rolled his eyes because he doesn't believe de-annexation will save the city money.
"They don't give us anything, but they take our money," Tomasik, a former City Council candidate, said of the city. "They don't give us squat. Of course it's going to cost them money to de-annex us."
But the task force could solve the question of how much money de-annexation would cost a question that was hotly debated last month, when a bill began picking up speed that would have allowed de-annexation referendums in areas annexed since 1998. A version of the bill passed the state House only to be sent to a Senate summer study committee, where it will sit until a new session scrubs clean the slate of old bills.
The Memphis City Council is scheduled to discuss a resolution creating the task force at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in its executive committee meeting on the fifth floor of City Hall, 125 N. Main, before meeting in the council chamber at 3:30 p.m.
The committee would be made up of city, county and state lawmakers, who will research the "reasonableness" of de-annexation and the best way to coordinate a handoff of the areas to Shelby County, according to the resolution, which is being sponsored by all 13 council members.
If the committee recommends de-annexation for some areas, the council would just have to approve an ordinance after three readings, said council attorney Allan Wade. During that process, any residents who oppose the de-annexation could petition for a referendum.
In the reprieve before the next legislative session in January, the task force will look at the cost-to-benefit ratio of de-annexation something city officials said they hadn't had time to do during the debate in Nashville because of the speed with which the bill was pushed through the legislature.
Although de-annexation advocates argued that the city will save money from shrinking its footprint, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said the city stood to lose up to $28 million in residential property taxes if all 10 of the eligible areas of the city were allowed to de-annex.
If the council voluntarily de-annexed South Cordova and Southwind-Windyke the two areas Strickland told state lawmakers that he would be open to de-annexing if other areas remained in the city the city would lose $5.7 million in annual residential property taxes.
City spokesman Kyle Veazey said Strickland will wait for the committee's report before deciding whether to support de-annexation.
"The purpose of that committee will be to study any potential actions, so it's premature to say what would happen without that study," Veazey said.
Shelby County Commission chairman Terry Roland, who supports de-annexation, said he ballparks the city's savings from not having to provide services to South Cordova and Southwind-Windyke at $3.5 million.
Also, Roland said, the Shelby County Sheriff's Office shouldn't need more funds because it hasn't decreased its staff since the areas were annexed..
"It's a win-win for everybody, and the problem goes away, and everyone quits fussing," Roland said of de-annexing the two areas.
City Council chairman Kemp Conrad said he's hoping that legislators will see the effort the city is making, whatever the outcome is, and not make Memphis a "target" in future legislation.
"The whole thing is, we're trying to be collaborative and work with people and not sit back and let this happen to us," he said.
Conrad said the task force will have broad authority to review all areas of the city for de-annexation, and cautioned against people taking sides before the study is over. "You don't know until you dig into the details," he said.
At a press conference Friday in front of City Hall, Rep. Joe Towns said he was skeptical that the General Assembly will back down from including Memphis in next year's bill.
"We cannot afford to rest," he said.
Senate Minority Leader Lee Harris, D-Memphis, who was also at the conference, said the city and county should decide the size of Memphis' footprint not "Nashville."
"That's not the way you do business, that's not the way to run the city," he said.
Related: "You had a lot of people voting with their feet"
March 28, 2016 - (Left) - Eleanor Mason Ramsey, Ph.D., president, Mason Tillman Associates, LTD., presents results of the final report of Shelby County's disparity study during the Shelby County commission's general government committee meeting at 160 N. Main St. on Monday. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
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By Linda A. Moore of The Commercial Appeal
The Shelby County Commission will hold a special called meeting on Wednesday to accept and release the draft of the county's 200-plus page disparity study.
The document comes after the observers were evicted Monday from a committee meeting in which commissioners discussed the report with the county attorney in an executive session. Two commissioners, Walter Bailey and Mark Billingsley, took issue with the closed session Monday.
The Commercial Appeal filed an open records request with the county for the document and Billingsley called for a meeting to release the draft.
However, commission Chairman Terry Roland said the document could not be released until the full commission voted to accept it.
"With all due respect, neither Mark Billingsley nor The Commercial Appeal had an impact on me releasing this," Roland said. "I just had to make sure that we were doing everything legally. I didn't want to put the county in jeopardy."
The resolution for Wednesday's meeting states that the commission "will produce for public inspection an un-redacted copy of the disparity study draft."
The $310,000 study conducted by Oakland, California-based Mason Tillman Associates found that businesses owned by white men received 88.32 percent of the county's contract dollars between 2012 and 2014, or $168.2 million of the total $190.5 million spent during that period.
Businesses owned by African-Americans received 5.8 percent of the county's contracts or $11 million and businesses owned by white women were awarded 5.15 percent or $9.8 million.
The special called meeting will be held at 9:30 a.m. on the first floor of the Vasco A. Smith Jr. County Administration Building, 160 N. Main.
The Commercial Appeal files April 3, 1952 "The Negro's Case For and Against Compulsory Fair Employment Practice Codes" was the topic of discussion on April 3, 1952. The topic was to be discussed on Freedom's Series through WMCT. J.M. Edmonds (center) will moderate the program, which will present widely known Memphians (from left) Blair T. Hunt, principal of Booker T. Washington High School; Milton Hampton, of 714 Mississippi; A.A. Latting of 974 Clack and Nat D. Williams, editor and radio commentator.
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April 2
25 years ago: 1991
Washington The Supreme Court ruled Monday that prosecutors may not exclude potential black jurors from hearing a white defendant's criminal case because of their race. By a 7-2 vote, the court said prosecutors violate the Constitution if they bar prospective jurors for racial reasons. The court had ruled in 1986 that black defendants have the right to challenge prosecutors' removal of black jurors. The new decision broadened that ruling to include white defendants.
50 years ago: 1966
The Shelby County Board of Education voted yesterday to permit Bible reading in all county schools until a state law requiring it is tested in court.
The decision reversed an earlier one by Supt. George H. Barnes. Mr. Barnes issued orders Tuesday to principals at Nicholas Blackwell High School in Bartlett and Brownsville Road School to halt Bible reading and prayers after he received a complaint from a parent.
75 years ago: 1941
Tom Collier showed his disapproval yesterday to the City Commission of City Attorney John Exby over a tax assessment dispute and invited Mr. Exby to "step into the hall and I'll throw you out the window."
100 years ago: 1916
Four hundred Memphis business men attended the Business Men's Club Preparedness for Progress dinner in the Chisca last night and heard splendid talks made by Bishop Gailor; John Howe Peyton, Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway; and H.B. Anderson.
125 years ago: 1891
There is a chance just now for Memphis to have electric street cars. Work has already begun and it may be cautiously predicted that there is some hope of getting rid of the mule-box sometime in the future.
By Kayleigh Skinner of The Commercial Appeal
Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect the correct age of Gloria Flythe Walker and the date of her funeral service.
The two bodies left inside the Hickory Hill Funeral Home last month have been returned to their families.
Two local businesses provided burial services for free to both families, although the exact details of how and why the bodies were left inside after the funeral home closed for business remain unclear.
Gloria Flythe Walker, 57, was cremated by Nu-Way Funeral and Cremation services, one of former Memphis city councilman Brent Taylor's funeral homes. A separate funeral home provided a cremation for the second family but declined to provide details.
Taylor learned of Flythe's situation through news reports and felt compelled to help.
"When I see what another funeral home has allegedly done to a family, and more importantly, what a funeral home has allegedly done to a deceased person, it gives the entire profession a black eye," he said. "I just couldn't sit idly by and watch the story unfold and not try and to restore some faith in funeral directors to that family first and foremost, and secondly to the public."
Flythe's mother, Barbara Walker, said her daughter died December 28. She said her granddaughter paid for a funeral package with Hickory Hill Funeral Home for Flythe to be embalmed for a ceremonial funeral service and cremated afterwards.
Flythe was embalmed for a Jan. 31 funeral service at Breath of Life SDA Church. Walker expected to receive her daughter's cremated ashes soon after, but they never came. She called the funeral home repeatedly but could not get in touch with anyone, she said.
Walker said although her family had already paid for her daughter's funeral package, funeral home owner Terry Magee Jr. began calling her and her granddaughter demanding payment for the cremation before they received her ashes. Magee threatened to call the police and accused her granddaughter of abandoning a body, Walker said.
Unsure of what else to do, Walker called the Better Business Bureau in Memphis who directed her to officials with the Tennessee State Department of Commerce and Insurance, which oversees licensing and regulation for funeral businesses in the state.
Last week, the department released a statement and said they were notified on March 21 by two former Hickory Hill employees who told them the remains of two people were inside the funeral home with no utilities or licensed staff present.
"I was just so afraid, not knowing what the state of the body would be with the lights off and all," Walker said. "I couldn't sleep and my head was hurting. I was like 'How did all this happen?'"
After officials tried unsuccessfully to contact Magee, representatives of the Department of Commerce and Insurance drove from their offices in Nashville to the funeral home to inspect the facility.
According to the department,the funeral home was issued a license on Aug. 15, 2014 with Dwight Darrell Crayton, who holds a license as a funeral home director, shown as the Hickory Hill manager.
Efforts to reach Magee and Crayton were unsuccessful.
Crayton served in the manager's role until Jan. 11, 2016. The department received notification nine days later that Madeline Elizabeth Lyles, a funeral director and embalmer, was appointed the new manager, according to the department.
Less than a month later, on Feb. 17, 2016, the Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers was notified that Lyles was no longer serving as manager, but the department was not notified regarding the new funeral director and manager.
Department spokesman Kevin Walters said Magee told the board that the funeral home closed on March 1. He does not hold any license or registration with the board, Walters said.
"It's crazy that someone would abandon your loved ones, lock them up in a building," Walker said. "This has been the most bizarre thing I've ever witnessed."
Walters said department representatives worked with the Tennessee State Department of Health Wednesday to help a family obtain a death certificate for someone who passed away in Nov. 2015.
"The death certificate for the deceased had apparently not been filed by Hickory Hill Funeral Home," he said. "Any family with a death certificate problem at Hickory Hill Funeral Home may call the Board of Funeral Directors at (615) 741-5062 for assistance."
The Memphis Police Department is still investigating the situation and no criminal charges have been filed, according to MPD spokesman Sgt. Louis Brownlee.
Walker is just happy her daughter can now rest peacefully.
"You lose your loved one, you think it's all done and then you have to go through this? But you know, it all worked out wonderful," Walker said. "The moral of the story is there are still great people in this world."
March 23, 2016 A Memphis Zoo employee who declined to be identified helps direct traffic across the Greensward as park users pass behind him. The overflow parking now extends the south end of Rainbow Lake. (Mike Brown/The Commercial Appeal)
By Thomas Charlier, charlier@commercialappeal.com
Anticipating another round of protests, the Memphis Zoo will deploy stanchions temporary upright barriers around its original parking area on the Overton Park greensward Saturday, officials said Friday.
In addition to the barriers, which will replace the traffic cones used in the past, the zoo has hired some officers from the Memphis Police Department's Special Events unit to help maintain order on the greensward, zoo spokeswoman Laura Doty said.
Doty, however, said the barriers will remain temporary, and there are no imminent plans for permanent fencing.
"We're doing it for the safety of everyone," she said.
Numerous events are planned for the greensward Saturday, including a rugby tournament and an annual "reading flash mob." Doty said the stanchions will allow different groups to use the lawn safely.
The decision to put up the stanchions came as a surprise to the Overton Park Conservancy, which manages the park under a contract with the city. "The OPC was not consulted on this decision," said executive director Tina Sullivan, who declined further comment.
Doty said the zoo will use only the original parking footprint encompassing the northern third or so of the main lawn of the Midtown park. It will not use the greatly expanded area authorized by the City Council in a March 1 resolution.
A week ago, protests over the expanded parking led to a standoff with activists blocking the vehicles of zoo patrons that ended when Memphis police helped broker a compromise in which the zoo agreed to use the smaller area.
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By David Weigel
With growing confidence about a big potential win in Wisconsin, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is trying to discredit Ohio Gov. John Kasich's campaign before it gets to more favorable ground. In interviews this week, Cruz has repeatedly invoked the RNC's rule 40b, which allows candidates to be nominated only if they've won total delegate majorities in eight states or more.
That rule, hastily written in 2012 after then-Texas Rep. Ron Paul nearly grabbed enough wins to be nominated, is now favored by allies of both Cruz and Donald Trump as a way of making Kasich or any establishment "savior" irrelevant.
"I think that would be a terrible idea for the Washington power brokers to change the rules, because they're unhappy with the candidates who the voters are voting for," Cruz told radio host Hugh Hewitt on Tuesday. "It was the Washington establishment that put this rule in place. So now when the Washington establishment candidates are losing, they want to change the rules to try to parachute in some candidate who hasn't earned the votes of the people. That is nothing short of crazy."
Hewitt was following up on what Cruz told CNN's Anderson Cooper at this week's televised "town halls" in Milwaukee. With close to 3 million viewers watching, Cruz flatly stated that it was "against the rules for John Kasich to be on the ballot" and that "if no one has 1,237, you have to have won at least eight states."
That was a slight mangling of the rule, though it went uncorrected onstage. In rule 40b, it is not enough for a candidate to have won the popular vote in eight states. He must have won a majority of pledged delegates something tied to the seemingly capricious standards of each primary.
Trump has crossed that threshold. Cruz has not. He has won in nine states, but in three Alaska, Iowa, and Oklahoma he won only pluralities of delegates. Even if he won Wisconsin, current polling in upcoming states suggests that Cruz may not meet the 40b standard until May's contests in states, such as Indiana and Nebraska.
But Kasich, who is optimistic about winning states later in April, would struggle to win outright majorities in eight of them. By insisting that rule 40b is immutable, Cruz is signaling to later-state voters that any Kasich victories would be nullified by the convention, raising the possibility of a sitting governor of Ohio being kept from the table at a nominating contest in Cleveland.
To ensure that, Cruz and Trump need the 112-member rules committee, which will meet before the convention, to be pledged to the old rule. In interviews with Politico's Kyle Cheney, four early-appointed members of the committee said adamantly that the rule could change. "It was designed to prevent Ron Paul delegates their votes from being counted," said David Wheeler, a committee member from South Dakota. "I don't think it's necessary to do that this year."
But people in Trump's delegate-chasing operation say that its desired rules committee candidates will all stick to rule 40b. Cruz said as much on the record to Hewitt, imagining a ballot with only two names on it, and the "establishment" forced to choose between him and Trump.
"I think the delegates are naturally going to know that rules changes designed to subvert the will of the voters are a bad idea," he explained. "And I would expect the delegates who were elected supporting me would have that thought. But I would also expect the delegates supporting Donald Trump would have that thought, that we need to respect the will of the voters . . . there are only two candidates who are going to meet that threshold, Donald Trump and me."
David Weigel is a reporter for The Washington Post.
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By Lewis Diuguid
I feel dirty. I got the following email from Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz.
This message from the Texas senator has to be an April Fools Day gag, considering who it's from and that it came to me (my thoughts are in parentheses):
Ted Cruz Personal Email May Include Privileged Communication (And I have the privilege of sharing.)
Dear Lewis, this is UNREAL. (Ya think?)
"Once in a lifetime," is not a strong enough phrase to describe the importance of this moment and the amount of pressure our campaign is under right now.
AND I don't have anywhere else to turn so I'm turning to you. (A desperate and bad move.)
I need to ask you for a personal favor even though it may come at great personal expense. (He's kidding, right?)
With only hours before tonight's MIDNIGHT FEC deadline and just a few days before the Wisconsin primary (perhaps the most important primary before the RNC nominating convention) I need your help now more than ever. (Oh, that's going to happen.)
I'm going to do my part to take on Donald Trump and show all of America that I'm the one candidate who will defeat Donald Trump, who will defeat Hillary Clinton in November, and who will reverse the years of destruction from Obama restoring our country to its founding, conservative principles. (Who does he think he is? King Arthur?)
But I really need you to do your part too. (I'm all ears, as Ross Perot used to say.)
You see: my campaign faces its biggest challenge in only a few hours, and I know we can win if I have the resources.
But as of this morning, I am $189,326 short of what I need for my FEC deadline. (I'd rather give to a panhandler on the street.)
Will you do your part right now before tonight's deadline by making a $35, $50, or $100 special gift? (PLAH-EEEZE! I don't respond to political begging. Lock the doors and shut the windows.)
I hope you know me well enough by now to know that I wouldn't ask if it weren't vitally important and that I wouldn't ask you this favor if I wasn't willing to make the same deep sacrifices myself.
Please let me briefly explain because I'm running out of time.
Running for President of the United States has come at a steep price with relentless attacks coming from all sides on my family, my marriage, and worst of all, attacks against my young children.
It is only by the grace of God, the prayers of my friends and family my dad is a prayer warrior and the continued support of people just like you have I been able to endure such deep personal sacrifices.
Lewis, this battle I fight daily is a responsibility not to be taken lightly.
But, if I'm being honest, I must share something with you.
Every single time we have a victory for the campaign or that we see a bump in the polls the negative attacks double and triple against us. (Big boys don't cry.)
Between Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, the liberal media, and the Washington Cartel, there is not one moment where they are not savagely attacking me. And Lewis, by extension of our shared conservative values, they're attacking YOU too. (That may be the only time in my life that anyone has mistaken me for a conservative. Cruz needs to do more research before sending out such email willy-nilly.)
Rest assured no matter how hard they try to drag my name through the mud, I will not give in to them.
But now, I really need you to make your own personal sacrifice for this campaign click here to make a special sacrificial donation of $35, $50, or even $10 if you can afford it.
You see: the sacrifices I'm making for our campaign are deep and personal. I'm proud and even honored to be making them on your behalf, but today, before the most important deadline that we face at MIDNIGHT, I need to hear back from you personally.
To make it as quick and easy as possible for you to respond, I've asked my team to put together the secure links below.
You can use them to make an instant, secure gift to support me when I need it most:
I WILL HELP WITH $3 BEFORE MIDNIGHT >>>
I WILL HELP WITH $35 BEFORE MIDNIGHT >>>
I WILL HELP WITH $100 BEFORE MIDNIGHT >>>
I WILL HELP WITH $250 BEFORE MIDNIGHT >>>
I WILL HELP WITH $1000 BEFORE MIDNIGHT >>>
Please, time is critical.
Lewis, I hope to hear back from you before tonight's deadline passes.
For liberty,
Ted Cruz
(Yep, I feel real dirty because in all likelihood, some folks will give Cruz the money he seeks.)
Lewis Diuguid is a member of The Kansas City Star's editorial board. Contact him at Ldiuguid@kcstar.com.
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By Ruth Marcus
WASHINGTON As a matter of politics, Donald Trump's comment that women who have abortions should suffer "some form of punishment" was a disaster. As a matter of intellectual and moral consistency, Trump has a point one that exposes a fundamental tension in the Republican Party between its assertion that life begins at conception and the legal and moral implications of that absolutist view.
The party's platform has been clear for years, even if its own presidential candidates, for obvious reasons of self-protection, have strayed from its strict dictates.
"We assert the sanctity of human life and affirm that the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed," the 2012 platform stated, echoing a plank that has been present since 1984. In other words, no exceptions for pregnancies that result from rape or incest.
Indeed, if the fetus has a "fundamental individual right to life," why should it matter in any way how the pregnancy came into being? Either abortion is the taking of a human life that is, murder in which case it should not be permitted, or it isn't. (To be clear, I'm in the it-isn't-murder camp.)
But here's the problem with the party platform: This stance is out of sync with the vast majority of voters. Which is why the last five Republican presidential nominees Mitt Romney, John McCain, George W. Bush, Bob Dole and George H.W. Bush all supported exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. So do Trump and John Kasich; Ted Cruz does not back exceptions in the case of rape and incest.
The question of whether to punish a woman who obtains an abortion raises similar issues. If abortion is the taking of a human life, why punish only the doctor who performs the abortion, and not the woman who procures one? Surely no prosecutor would fail to bring charges against a mother who murdered her newborn child. If the fetus is in the same legal position as a child, why not charge the mother?
Except that if forcing a 13-year-old who has been raped by her father to bear a child is unpopular, imagine how people would respond to carting women off to jail for choosing to terminate their pregnancies. This goes too far even for the no-exceptions crowd.
"Of course we shouldn't be talking about punishing women," Cruz smarmily proclaimed in the aftermath of Trump's comments. "We should affirm their dignity and the incredible gift they have to bring life into the world." Oh yes, let's "respect" women and "affirm their dignity" by denying them the freedom to choose what to do with their own bodies.
Or, as Trump put it, once he got his act together, "The woman is a victim in this case as is the life in her womb." Poor woman, too weak or emotional to know what is in her best interest, or to be held legally responsible for her choice.
Trump's gaffe was telling. It revealed not only his own unreadiness for prime-time, but his party's intellectual dishonesty on this most incendiary of issues.
Ruth Marcus' email address is ruthmarcus@washpost.com.
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The police quietly handcuffed one of Pembroke Academys top administrators and drove her away from the school in the back of a cruiser on Feb. 17, charging her with possessing heroin and steroids.
Rekha Luther, 36, was the newly hired dean of students for the 198-year-old high school that serves Pembroke, Allenstown, Epsom and Chichester. She submitted her resignation a few weeks later, effective March 22, Superintendent Patty Sherman said Friday.
Six weeks after the arrest, the school district made no public acknowledgment of it or that heroin was found in school. Even some officials with close ties to the school system remained unaware.
Jeanne LaBarge, the Pembroke mother of a 17-year-old student, noticed Luthers name in police logs and found that none of her friends knew anything about the charges or why her name was removed from the schools online staff list.
Somebody just disappears from a position of authority and nobody asked questions? The kids dont say anything? Its amazing to me how they kept this so quiet, she said in a phone interview Friday.
Top district officials declined to discuss the arrest in interviews Thursday and Friday. Headmaster Paul Famulari, school board Chairman Tom Serafin and Sherman each called it a personnel issue and said they couldnt comment.
Luther was hired about eight months earlier to be the dean of students at Pembroke Academy a role that deals largely with student discipline after spending 11 years in the Nashua School District. The Pembroke School Boards Sept. 8 meeting minutes state that Luther blew the interview team away during the hiring process.
Criminal charges
Pembroke police Chief Dwayne Gilman said his department began investigating after someone reported theyd found what he described as a whole bundle of hypodermic needles at the school. After seeing the drug paraphernalia, the caller lost track of it, Gilman said, which prompted pretty much our whole daytime department to respond just because of the severity of we had needles, now we dont know where they are.
Gilman said his officers investigated for two to three hours and determined that the needles belonged to Luther.
Obviously with the emphasis on heroin in the state right now, thats just not something we wanted to take lightly, Gilman said of the departments response. Everything you dont want to hear in a school happened in one day.
Luther was freed on $10,000 personal recognizance bail the same mid-February afternoon she was arrested. She was arraigned at Hooksetts district court Monday.
Two weeks after the arrest, roughly 100 Pembroke residents met at the school for the districts annual meeting, but not a word was spoken about Luther. Thomas Petit, the moderator who presided over the meeting, said in a phone interview Thursday: I hadnt even heard about it, to be honest with you.
The high school occasionally sends phone alerts to parents to inform them of important safety concerns, for instance, when a lockdown interrupts the normal course of classes.
School district policy says communications between the school and home are supposed to be regular, two-way and meaningful; parents are full partners in the educational decisions that affect children and families, according to the districts policy on School, Community and Home Relations.
Sherman, the superintendent, said if a student were found to be in possession of drugs, she would take it on a case-by-case basis as to whether she would send an alert to parents
If the headmaster resigned or was replaced, the district would send out a message, but for the dean of students, probably not, she said.
No alert was sent in the six weeks following Luthers arrest.
Gilman said typically when police respond to a school, they make an effort not to disturb the learning environment. That was no different in this case, when Luther was walked out a back door to the cruiser.
The kids dont need to see this stuff, so we did it discreetly, I guess, is the best way to put it, the chief said. Any kind of school issues or public official issues, the kids dont need to see all this stuff, so we kind of go off to the side.
Police would do the same for a student, he said, to avoid perception the school is full of heroin.
Its not the case. One person had it, Gilman said. Theres two ways to get the job done. You can be a bull in a china shop or you can think methodically, still have the same outcome and not affect anyone else.
Gilman said theres no evidence Luther bought or sold the heroin or anabolic steroids at the school.
Dealing with the problem
The news that a highly educated teacher in a prestigious new job is accused of bringing heroin to the school underscores what many advocates have called an epidemic of opioid abuse in the state. More than 400 people in New Hampshire died of drug overdoses last year, the medical examiners office has said.
One of the overdose deaths was Jonathan Pesa, a 39-year-old Seabrook man. In Pesas June obituary, Luther was listed as his fiancee. The Newburyport Daily News reported that Pesa thought he was using heroin and instead got a lethal dose of fentanyl, a more deadly opioid.
As a result of her arrest in Pembroke, Luther is charged with four counts of possession of a controlled drug, including heroin, testosterone propionate, testosterone Sustanon and boldenone undecyclenate, according to court documents. The latter is an anabolic steroid developed for veterinary use, mostly for the treatment of horses. Each charge is a felony.
Luther, who lives in Manchester, didnt return a phone call or Facebook message on Thursday or Friday. She reported in court documents that shes never been convicted of a criminal offense.
Mike Iacopino, a Manchester attorney who is listed as having represented her at her arraignment in court documents, didnt return a phone call left at his office Friday.
Luther was scheduled to be paid $73,000 this year, according to her contract, which she signed June 29.
LaBarge, who notified the Monitor of the arrest Thursday, said she also sent an email to Famulari. The headmaster assured her that student safety was never compromised and said that he needed to protect Luthers professional privacy, she said.
If someone in a position of authority has heroin in their possession, thats not private anymore, she said. You lose your privacy.
The district would have been better off to address the issue head-on, LaBarge said, to teach the students to confront their challenges.
Heroins a big deal right now, and it is a problem. But how we deal with problems we should be setting an example of how to deal with the problem, not trying to hide it, she said.
23 May 2022
- Understand the French healthcare system, how you access it and how you are reimbursed - Useful if you are new to the French healthcare system or want a more in-depth understanding - Reader question and answer section Aimed at non-French nationals living here, the guide gives an overview of what you are (and are not) covered for. There is also information for second-home owners and regular visitors.
Todays Financial Times brings fresh news of decidedly thuggish and undemocratic conduct on the part of agents of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the President of Turkey.
Apparently his bodyguards swore at several journalists and tried to prevent them from attending a speech the Turkish leader was due to give. Police were forced to intervene between security personnel on the one side and reporters and protesters on the other.
This sounds quite par for the course by current Turkish standards, where the Government seized a newspaper in March. Whats surprising is that Erdogans security team felt they could act that way on a visit to the United States, where the incident took place.
But the current Turkish regime and it is beginning to warrant that term has every reason to be bullish. For despite its recent conduct, it appears to finally be making headway on Turkeys long-stalled bid to join the European Union.
This could be a body blow to one of the EUs strong points: using the promise of membership to incentivise better government amongst aspirant members.
A number of countries including, believe it or not, Morocco have enacted a string of modernising reforms in order to make themselves more compatible with the Union in hope of membership.
For most of the post-War era, Turkey has been a stable, secular, and pro-Western country, possessed of one of the largest armies in NATO and driven by the Kemalist instinct to replicate the best of the West. Yet their membership application was continually kicked into the long grass.
The reasons were various: that most of Turkey isnt in Europe (which hasnt stopped Cyprus), for example, and the role of the army in policing Turkish governments and defending the secular order (which looks like a bloody good thing from where we stand now).
Perhaps the aspiring federalists at the heart of the EU project were worried that admitting Turkey would make deeper integration more difficult. There were certainly cultural fears about the project extending beyond the borders of what was once Christendom.
Whatever the reason, it was clear that Turkey wasnt getting in. It should not have come as the surprise it seems to have that this realisation should change Turkish perceptions and incentives.
Erdogan, with his hard-man approach to governing and his attacks on Israel, seems to have decided that if his country cant be European there is no harm in making it more typically Middle Eastern instead.
Except now, in its desperation to find some means of easing the flow of migrants into Europe, Brussels has conceded to reignite Turkish accession regardless.
It may be that, with Turkish collaboration, the EU can do something to staunch the migrant flows which are putting it under such extraordinary pressure. But setting aside whatever is given to Turkey specifically, the EU will have lost precious credibility with neighbouring states.
By encouraging the Kemalists to divest themselves of the instruments built into the Turkish constitution to defend it, such as the armys role, whilst denying Turkey a realistic prospect of membership, the EU has helped to bring about the worst possible result for its own values by disarming its allies and giving hostile forces powerful arguments for a change of course.
Then re-starting accession talks on Erdogans terms shows that, for all its high words and talk of values, the EU is prepared to strike decidedly shabby deals when the chips are down.
Alongside the example of Ukraine, where the EU puffed up its involvement to the point where it spooked Russia but had no practical answer to Putins tanks, the character of the Union has been tested and exposed.
Should the EU emerge from its current crises, it will do so with its ability to inspire and incentivise positive change in its hinterland sharply reduced.
An anti-Corbyn Labour member put it to me the other day that the Government must have a grid, full of carefully placed missteps and own goals, designed to keep the Leader of the Opposition in office until 2020. That or there was no grid at all.
How else to explain the fact that the looming closure of the Tata steelworks in Port Talbot seems to have come as a complete surprise to the Government?
The strategic challenges facing British steelmaking, a combination of high domestic energy costs and cut-throat international competition, havent been kept secret. Even before the Chinese began dumping steel, Tata has been cutting UK jobs and publicly blaming electricity prices.
Even if the Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills somehow slept through all that, surely the closure of the Redcar steelworks last autumn should have put this industrys woes on the radar?
If the Government is going to end up propping up the plant, which seems to be the consensus view, then why did BIS not work quietly with Tata to make Port Talbot more economically viable, for example with some kind of rebate on energy costs?
Alternatively, the Government could have had a proper plan in place for the closure of the steelworks, with a credible blueprint for helping the surrounding community transition successfully into the modern economy.
The arguments for keeping the British steel industry going at all costs are scarcely compelling. Its very hard to imagine a scenario where the UK cant import steel but can import the raw materials needed for steelmaking, such as iron ore, which we dont produce either.
As others have pointed out, if anybody seriously believes we need to be able to withstand a total drought of steel imports it would be far more cost-effective just to import Chinese steel whilst its still cheap and store it.
Sajid Javid, who has been arguing against nationalisation, clearly recognises that simply deferring an inevitable reckoning between heavy industry and the high-cost, high-wage economy of modern Britain is a poor use of public funds which could be better spent building a sustainable future for the area affected.
But because he doesnt appear to have had forewarning that this was coming, confusion reins. Different ministers give different answers as to what is or is not on the table, and the Secretary of State was out of position in Australia as the story developed.
Panic or inertia may lead to a response rooted in expedience rather than strategy, and against the instincts of the Business Secretary. How did the Government end up with its eye so far from the ball?
Part of the answer is surely Europe: as Paul Goodman explained earlier this week, Downing Street is fixated on the referendum. This is scarcely something eurosceptics can complain about, but it seems apparent that this clogging of the Prime Ministers limited bandwidth is hindering the Governments effectiveness in other areas.
It may also be a symptom of the decline of proper Cabinet government that the Secretary of State was less willing or able to take the initiative and engage in contingency planning within BIS. Perhaps in modern Departments the capacity or instinct to do that without central direction has eroded.
One doesnt need to be a member of the Bring back industrial policy! brigade to recognise that this steel crisis illustrates a serious lack of strategic awareness on the part of the Government.
Even those of us who believe in letting unsustainable industries go recognise the Governments role in helping communities to transition and find a new role in the economy. That means you need to know when these events are coming in order to pre-empt them and soften their impact.
The Government shouldnt plan the economy, but it does need to plan around the economy. Its failure to do so must be addressed.
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US Deploying Additional Armored Brigades To Russian Border
By Thomas Gaist
02 April, 2016
WSWS.org
The United States Army in Europe plans to significantly bolster its military presence in Eastern Europe, US European Command officials said on Wednesday.
By February 2017, the US military plans to maintain a permanent footprint of three combat brigades stationed on the continent. The deployments will include 250 combat vehicles, including tanks, armored personnel carriers, Bradley and Paladin Fighting Vehicles, howitzers and thousands of troops.
The 4,200-strong rotation, positioned along NATOs border with Russia, including deployments in Bulgaria, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and Romania, will come in addition to 62,000 US personnel already stationed in Europe.
This is a big step in enhancing the Armys rotational presence and increasing their combat equipment in Europe, US General Philip Breedlove said.
This Army implementation plan continues to demonstrate our strong and balanced approach to reassuring our NATO Allies and Partners in the wake of an aggressive Russia in Eastern Europe and elsewhere, he said.
Americas regional partners will host a more frequent presence of an armored brigade with more modernized equipment in their countries, Breedlove said.
In comments Tuesday, General Breedlove called for NATO to prepare for aerial combat against Russian planes over the Baltic states. I think that the alliance does need to be ready for the air defense mission, he said. Air policing and air defense are meant for two different situations. The Baltic air policing is a peacetime mission.
The latest moves to expand the US military footprint in the East were authorized by the Obama White House in February, as part of the 2016-2017 European Reassurance Initiative (ERI).
This years ERI allocates $3.4 billion to finance the US presence in Eastern Europe, an increase of some 400 percent above the ERI budget for the previous year.
The huge increase in funding is the latest escalation of the US war preparations that have transformed Central and Eastern Europe into a virtual armed camp in the two years since the 2014 US-orchestrated coup in Ukraine.
During this period, the US steadily extended its basing arrangements and political commitments through the post-Soviet sphere.
Beginning in April 2014, the US deployed expeditionary forces of some 600 troops to all three of the Baltic states. In September 2014, President Obama affirmed that the US commitment to the defense of Estonia is unbreakable, unwavering and eternal. Last February, NATO announced plans to double its combat units stationed in Eastern Europe, including the establishment of six command centers dispersed throughout the region.
Together with these deployments, the latest wave of US military assets dispatched to Eastern Europe is designed to allow US forces to engage in large-scale war with Russia, US Undersecretary of Defense Robert Work said Wednesday. There will be a divisions worth of stuff to fight if something happens, he told the Wall Street Journal.
If push came to shove, theyd be able to come together as a cohesive unit that has trained together, with all their organic equipment, and fight. Thats a lot better than what we have right now, Work said.
There will be American equipment and people in each of these countries, US General Ben Hodges told the Journal.
The new US deployments will be equipped with a full kit of the militarys most advanced weaponry and gear, US officials say. Pentagon spokeswoman Laura Seal boasted Tuesday that the additional forces will place the most modern and capable equipment in the hands of US armored units who will train continuously in Europe.
Russian forces are already prepared to counter the confrontational patterns followed by the US and NATO, Russias Permanent Representative to NATO Alexander Grushko said in response to the US military announcements.
Moscow will take all the military measures we consider necessary in order to counterbalance this reinforced presence, Grushko said.
Certainly, well respond totally asymmetrically, Grushko said.
The anti-Russian drive is being accelerated by the role of NATOs Eastern European and Baltic members, which seek to use the growing US-Russian confrontation to militarize their own societies and repress dissent under conditions of deepening social crisis.
In an interview with the Washington Post, Polish President Andrzej Duda denounced Russia and called for a significantly increased presence of US troops on our territory. Duda called for NATO to strengthen its defensive potential in this part of Europe to such a degree as to make it absolutely clear that it does not pay off to launch an attack against any member state. Only the increased presence of NATO in Central and Eastern Europe can ensure real deterrence, he said.
The Polish president is set to discuss a range of joint security projects with US leaders while attending the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington this week.
Dudas rhetoric aside, the military preparations of the US and its allies are anything but defensive in nature.
In reality, the US and NATO forces massing on Russias border are part of preparations for a range of military and covert-intelligence operations directed against pro-Russian political factions and against the Putin government itself, aimed at destabilizing and overthrowing pro-Russian governments using the hybrid warfare methods employed by the Western powers during the 2014 coup in Ukraine and the 2011 US-backed insurgency in Syria.
Pakistan Abandons Plans To Reform Controversial Blasphemy Law
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
02 April, 2016
Countercurrents.org
Pakistan government has abandoned plans to amend the country's blasphemy law following protests in its capital Islamabad that left the city paralyzed for almost four days.
The Sunni Tehreek group descended on the capital on Sunday, March 27, to denounce the hanging of police officer Mumtaz Qadri for the 2011 murder of Governor Salman Taseer.
Hundreds of protesters rallied for days in Islamabad before ending their sit-in on Wednesday after gathering assurances from the government.
"The government assured the protesters that it had no plans to amend the blasphemy laws. We are also not going to pardon anyone convicted by courts for blasphemy," Railway Minister Saad Rafique said, who took part in talks with the protest leaders.
One of the main demands of the demonstrators was government assurances that the blasphemy laws will not be amended.
According to Al Jazeera the protesters were saying that it was a victory for them since they are able to put Pakistan blasphemy law back on the national agenda.
Salman Taseer had enraged many by describing Pakistan's blasphemy legislation as a "black law".
Supreme Court calls for improvements in blasphemy law
In Oct 2015, Pakistans Supreme Court upheld the Oct 1, 2011 capital sentence given by an anti-terrorism court to Malik Mohammad Mumtaz Qadri. The judgment said that blasphemy was abhorrent and immoral, besides being a manifestation of intolerance, but a false allegation is equally detestable as well as culpable.
The Supreme Court called for improvements in the blasphemy law in order to provide safeguards against its misuse by leveling false allegations should not be considered objectionable. It is an unfortunate fact, which cannot be disputed, that in many cases registered in respect of blasphemy offence, false allegations are leveled for extraneous purposes. And in the absence of adequate safeguards against misapplication or misuse of such law by motivated persons the persons falsely accused of that offence suffer beyond proportion or repair, the verdict said.
Pakistans blasphemy laws actually draw from the Indian Penal code of 1860, created by the British colonial rulers of the time. The original laws included a list of crimes which were composed of - among other things - disturbing a religious assembly, trespassing on burial grounds, insulting religious beliefs and intentionally destroying or desecrating a place or an object of worship. These laws also created a punishment, ranging from 1-10 years in jail, with or without a fine. Pakistan inherited these laws when the country was created in 1947 and several clauses were added between1980-1986, which was during the regime of military dictator General Zia ul Haq. These added clauses included the crimes of desecrating the Quran and insulting the Prophet Muhammad.
However, any changes in the law is a very sensitive issue in Pakistan. In February 2011, Pakistan Peoples Party Member of Parliament, Sherry Rehman, withdrew her attempt to amend the laws after receiving numerous death threats. Her bill called for an end to the death penalty under the existing blasphemy laws.
During his trial, Qadri's legal defence was that Salman Taseer opposed Pakistan's blasphemy laws by supporting Christian woman Asia Bibi, who was charged with allegedly desecrating Islam's holy book, the Quran.
Qadri was convicted and sentenced to death in October 2011. But he is viewed as a hero by many people who thought Taseer was a blasphemer. The Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) Judge Syed Pervez Ali Shah, who awarded death sentence to Qadri was forced to flee the country after receiving death threats.
Mumtaz Qadri hanged
Mumtaz Qadri was hanged on February 29, 2016 at Adiala Jail near Islamabad/Rawalpindi. Islamabad Bar Association called his hanging a judicial murder and observed a black day. Okara Bar Association observed a strike in the district complex to protest the hanging. No lawyer attended any court.
An estimated crowd of more than 100,000 people have attended the funeral of Mumtaz Qadri, in a massive show of support for Mumtaz Qadri It was among the biggest funerals in Pakistans history, alongside those of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the father of the nation, in 1948 and Benazir Bhutto, the former prime minister, who was assassinated in 2007. But this was not a state funeral. It was spontaneous and it took place despite a media blackout.
Jamat-e-Islami chief Sirajul Haq, Sunni Tehrik leader Sarwat Qadri, Chairman Ruet-e-Halal Mufti Muneebur Rahman and other religious leaders addressed the participants and paid glowing tributes to Mumtaz Qadri. They bitterly condemned the government for giving the go-ahead for Qadris execution.
The Guardian reported that the extreme sensitivity of the issue was reflected in the silence of Pakistans usually voluble politicians on the decision to execute Qadri. One politician who did comment was the Minister for Religious Affairs, Pir Muhammad Amin Ul Hasnat Shah, who released a statement that described Qadri as a martyr and urged people to participate peacefully in his funeral.
Abdus Sattar Ghazali is the Chief Editor of the Journal of America (www.journalofamerica.net) email: asghazali2011 (@) gmail.com
Printer Friendly Version Love The Country By Gurazada Appa Rao 02 April, 2016
Countercurrents.org
Gurazada Venkata Apparao (18621915) This is to remember and celebrate Gurazada in his 110th year and his all-time great poem DESA BHAKTI, written 1910, which is highly relevant today in the context of debate on nationalism, patriotism and sedition. This is note is compiled from Wikipedia and other sources
Gurazada Venkata Apparao (18621915) (also often transliterated as 'Gurajada') was a Telugu poet and writer of Andhra Pradesh, India. He wrote his Magnum opus, the Telugu play, Kanyasulkam, staged for the first time in 1892, which became an instant hit. It was the first Telugu drama expressly written in spoken dialect, which is often considered the greatest play in the Telugu language. In 1897, kanyASulkaM was published by Vavilla Ramaswamy Sastrulu and Sons, Madras. This drama was written more as an accessory to his crusade against social evils than for literary enjoyment. The Kanyasulkam was the first to achieve both the aims. And an unparalleled achievement it was! It was staged countless times from 1892 to this day, the last was in 2015. He himself re-wrote the second edition of kanyasulakam and published it in 1909. This edition was completely revised and greatly expanded compared to the original version. It is this edition that made the drama a truly outstanding work of art. This all-prose drama that runs over 7-8 hours, if played full length ( as indeed it was staged, the latest 5-6 times in the last few years, during his centenary celebrations and after) was staged countless times but in abbreviated form of 3 hours or so. Each character developed a life of its own and they all came together in an unforgettable comedy in form, but a tragedy about feudal values in content. It was made into a film in 1955 with lead actors NT Rama Rao ( as Gireesam, an immortal character who had all trappings of English education, sophistry and reformist outlook but a sheer opportunist, an anti-hero) and Savitri, the greatest film actress in Telugu, who acted in a few other languages too, as heroine Madhuravaani, the immortal character of a prostitute, an honorable profession of those times, who was honest and more virtuous than many pious characters in the drama. . Kanyasulkam ( Bride price, literally. In those days men used to buy brides, often too young, aged 8 or more, but before she attains puberty) is about the deplorable condition of widows in traditional Brahmin families in the Andhra region of India during the 19th century. The play is a highly thought-provoking social drama dealing with social issues relevant to the time. Gurajada Apparao was deeply troubled by the double standards, hypocrisy and social inequalities in the Indian society. The English preface to the first edition of his play states: "Such a scandalous state of things is a disgrace to society, and literature can not have a higher function than to show up such practices and give currency to a high standard of moral ideas. Until reading habits prevail among masses, one must look only to the stage to exert such healthy influence." Perhaps for the first time in Telugu literary history, a prostitute was given a very positive image so much so that she is shown to better the lives of many people during the course of the play. The play is ageless in the sense that its projection of the Indian mindset and psyche is very relevant and applicable in Indian Society today. The play was in some ways way ahead of its time and was very bold in criticizing the popular opinions and practices during that era. It frequently jabs at the male-dominated society of India, by bringing to the forefront certain egoistic idiosyncrasies of a typical Indian male, in an unflattering manner. It also questions the practices of witchcraft, sorcery, and their popular usage in medical practice during that period in India. He wrote poetry in a modern metre he devised, Mutyala Saralu ( strings of pearls, literally ), in matra Chandassu. Desa Bhakti was also written in that simple, beautiful form. Many poems and short stories in modern style were written during that early period. These were perhaps the earliest instances of modern short stories in Telugu. Also published several essays supporting the use of vernacular as formal language. He championed the cause of spoken language in Universities also and his DISSENT NOTE to the University became a historic document. (Asammati patram Minuet of Dissent - Report against the decision of Madras University to retain classical language as the platform for curriculum development -1914) Finally spoken language forced itself through the print media and ultimately into universities too. Madras University honoured him by making him a "Fellow." He was a lecturer who taught the F.A. and B.A. classes several subjects including English Grammar, Sanskrit Literature, Translation, Greek and Roman Histories. In 1891, Gurajada was appointed to the post of Epigraphist (saMsthAna SAsana pariSOdhaka) to the Maharaja of Vizianagaram. Gurajada Apparao was an influential social reformer of his age and was lauded as Mahakavi, meaning "the great poet". In 1911, he was appointed to the Board of Studies by Madras University. The same year, Gurajada and his friends started the Andhra Sahitya Parishat to promote the use of spoken dialects. The next year, he was invited to attend the meeting of the Bangeeya Sahitya Parishat (Bengal Literary Association) at Calcutta. His was a universal lyric for all times which proclaimed : Desamante matti kaadoyi, desamante manushuloyi meaning, A country is not made of land; a country is made of its people. Gurajada Apparao is popularly known in Andhra pradesh as Gurazada, his surname. He is the most popular poet among Telugu writers, pioneer of modern Telugu literature. . The townhall is constructed on his name at Vijayanagaram, his home town, and Vijag by the Govt of A.P. Almost every popular town has a street named after Gurazada. Statues of Gurajada are seen in Hyderabad, Vizag, Vijayawada, Rajahmundry, Vijayanagaram and many more towns. His poem 'desamunu preminchumanna' is the most popular patriotic song in the Telugu language. His all-time Great poem Desa Bhakti is a lyric with universal appeal. It is highly relevant today in the context of the debate on nationalism, patriotism and sedition. It is a contrast from Rayaprolu Subba Rao's (1892 - 1984) , another popular Telugu poet of nationalist school. His most popular lyric begins as follows : Edesameginaa Endukalidinaa,
Pogadara Nee talli Bhoomi Bharatini,
Nilupara Nee jaati Nindu Gauravamu . Whichever country you go to, wherever you set foot,
Whatever dais you ascend, whatever anyone says,
Praise your Motherland Bharati,
Keep up your nations whole dignity! However , the poet goes into ecstacy and says : leduraa ituvanti bhoodevi endu,
leruraa manavanti pourulinkendu, ( Nowhere there is motherland like this ,
and no-where-else could be found citizens like ours ). Both songs were popular in their own way, but due to indiscriminate, Nehruvian nationalist fervour of that era, its chauvinist tone was not taken note of by many. Together, they sum up and reflect today's approaches to nationalism etc, Gurazadas being the modern, progressive, universal anthem. And Rayaprolus blinded by chauvinism, inobjective as it was and remains. (Desamunu preminchumanna)
Love the country
Telugu original : By Gurajada Appa Rao (18621915), written in 1910 ( Translated By Ch J Satyananda Kumar, 29 September 2010 ) (1)
Desamunu preminchumannA
Manchi annadi penchumannA
vaTTi mATalu kaTTi peTToi
gatti mEl talapeTTavoi Love the country brother
Promote that is good hither
Stop loose talk all together
Think to do solid help brother (2)
pAdi pamTalu pomgi poralE
dArilO nuvu pATu paDavOi
timid kaligite kamDa kaladoi
kamDa kalavADe manishoi Where milk and crops run over
In that way you toil for ever
When food stuff is there, muscle too would be there
One who has muscle is the real man beware! (3)
IsurO mani manushulumTe
dESamEgati bAgu paDunoi
jaldukoni kaLalella nErchuku
dESa sarukulu nimchavoyi If men are distressed and depressed
How the country will be advanced
Be in haste to learn all arts and skills
And pile up country- made goods (4)
Anni dESaal kramma valenoi
deSi sarukulu nammavalenoi
dabbu tElEnatti narulaku
keerti sampada labbavoi Spread to many a country
the goods made and sold by your gentry
The men who cant fetch riches
Their name and fame shall be in ditches (5)
Venuka choosina kAryamEmOi
Mamchi gatamuna komchemEnoi
Mamdagimchaka mumdu aDugEi
Venuka paDitE venakenOi What effect when you turn back and ponder
Little good in the past, no wonder
Dont be dull, march and leap ahead
If you get back, you shall backslide behind (6)
Poonu spardhanu vidhyalamdE
Vairamulu vaanijyamamdE
Vyardha kalaham pemcha bOkOy
Katti vairam kAlchavoi Have rivalry in learning alone
Competitions are in trade alone
Dont rake-up futile squabbles
Set fire to the hostility of swords (7)
dEsAbhimAanamu nAku kaddani
voTTi goppalu cheppukOkOi
pUni yEdainaanu voka mEl
koorchi janulaku choopavoi Dont claim patriotism as virtue of you alone
Dont boast of false claims in high tone
With resolve do some good thing
To show the people that fine thing (8)
vOrvalEmi piSAchi dESam
mUlugulu pIlchEsenOi
orula mEluku samtasistU
aikamatyamu nErchavOi The demon of envy and jealousy
Sucks and swindles the country
Be elated to help the others and
Learn the sense of unity (9)
Parula kalimiki porli yEDchE
pApikekkada sukham kaddOi
okarimEl tana mEla nemchE
nErpariki mEl kollalOi One who envies and weeps when others prosper
Where is comfort to such a sinner
One who deems others good as his good
For such deft person blessings are many (10)
Swanta lAbhamu komta maanuku
Porugu vADiki tODupadavoi
dESamamTE maTTi kAdOi
dESamamTe manushulOi Giving-up a bit of your profit
Help the neighbour for his uplift
Country means not mere mud
But, country means, the men (11)
cheTTa paTTAl paTTukoni
dESastulamtA naDava valEnOi
annadammula valenu jAtulu
matamulannI melugavalenOi Holding hand with others hand
All the country men should walk in a band
Like brothers and sisters
All castes and creeds should stand in a strand (12)
Matamu vEraitEnu yEmoi
Manasu kalasi manushulumTE
jAti yannadi lEchi perigi
lOkamuna rANimchunOi What if the faiths diverge
Uniting hearts if men can merge
The nation shall rise up
And shall shine and stand out in the world (13)
deSamaniyedi doDDa vrukshamu
prEmalanu pUletta valenoi
narulu chamaTanu tadasi mUlam
dhanam pamTalu paDavalenoi The great tree which is the country
Should bloom the flowers of love
Drenched in the perspiration of men
The crops of wealth should yield (14)
Akulamduna aNigimaNigi
Kavita kOyila paluka valenoI
Kalukulanu vini dESamdabhi
mAnamumulu molakettavalenOi Sinking and slipping behind tree leaves
The Cuckoo should sing sweet lyrics
Listening to its poesy
Fondness should sprout up in the country (15)
Malina dEhula mAlalanuchunu
Malina chittula kadhika kulamula
Nelavosamgina varNa dharmama
Dharma dharmambE Branding dirty bodied men as untouchables and
Placing the real filthy-hearted men in high castes,
The moral code that made such unjust classification
Is indeed an act of immorality without justification (16)
Mamchi cheDDalu manujulamduna
Yemchi chUDaga reMDe kulamulu
Mamchi yannadi mAla yaitE
mAla nEnavudun When pondered in mankind
Good and bad are the two castes found
If good is viewed as untouchable
I shall indeed become an untouchable (17)
Matamulanniyu mAsipOvunu
GnanamokkaTi nilachi velugunu
Amta swarga sukhambulannavi
Yavani vilasillun All religions shall fade away
Wisdom alone shall stand and glow
Then all the comforts of heaven
Shall shine in the world (18)
kapaTam vamchana krouryam netturu
dhana vrukshaniki AhAram
adhikArAniki AdhAram Hypocrisy, fraud, cruelty and blood-thirst
Are the food for the tree of money
And the base and support of power
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Why Is Lebanon Holding Hannibal Gaddafi Hostage?
By Franklin Lamb
02 April, 2016
Countercurrents.org
Hannibal Gaddafi the fifth son of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi
Beirut: As of this week, following his arrest on December 15, 2015, Hannibal Gaddafi, one of seven children of Moammar Gaddafi and his Widow Safia Farkash, has spent, without a scintilla of evidence that he violated any Lebanese law, nearly 16 weeks wrongly incarcerated in a Beirut jail.
Mr. Gaddafi is being held for one reason only. A botched attempt by certain politicians here to exact a $ 200,000,000 ransom before releasing Hannibal Gaddafi was made between Lebanese politician Nabih Berri and the illegal Tripoli government , which is not recognized by the UN and which has been recently replaced
Lebanons court appears not to be quite sure how to end this charade. The demand for the 200 million dollar ransom is not being made by the government of Lebanon nor by the Lebanese judiciary, but rather by a Lebanese politician (s) with the political power to corrupt Lebanons judiciary, Lebanons government and Lebanons constitution.
The $ 200 million dollar scheme imploded recently when it was revealed to the international public weeks ago by Hannibals lawyer, Ms. Bouchra Khalil. The lawyers revelations of the scheme put the kibosh on the ransom demand for freeing Gaddafi. The Tripoli coalition government continues to reject the extortion plan despite pressure from certain Lebanese politicians to pay up.
Hannibal has been living in Damascus for more than a year and wants to return there until he can safely return to Libya. Some political observers in Libya and elsewhere believe that Hannibals siblings, brother Seif al Islam Gaddafi, and sister, Aisha Gaddafi, a human rights lawyer and former UN Goodwill Ambassador, will return to Libya and enter politics as the political reformers and champions of human rights they were known to be before NATO crushed the country creating the mayhem we observe today. Support inside Libya and regionally for both Gaddafi children to return and help create a stable government is growing according to Libyan expats living in Cairo, tribal leaders across much of Libya, the French government, and others.
Given that Hannibal has committed no crime, but rather that he himself is the victim of a brutal pistol whipping, torture, as well as kidnapping and extortion crimes, according to Hannibals lawyer and Lebanons judiciary, by the sons of Sheik Mohammad Yaacoub, who along with Imam Musa Sadr disappeared in Tripoli Libya on August 31, 1978, Lebanons judiciary is in an awkward spot.
They realize that they are illegally holding an innocent man under the false pretense that he is withholding information of an event that occurred when he was two years old and who has testified repeatedly in court that all he ever heard about the Musa Sadr case growing up, and which was not much, came from his big brother, Seif al Islam, now being held in Zintan, Libya by a militia.
Needless to say, Lebanons judiciary, which is frequently accused of being compromised by the sectarian poison that has all but destroyed this country, and particularly the presiding judge, are embarrassed and under increasing pressure from local and global human rights groups to end the Hannibal Gaddafi charade and release him. Hannibals release is also being demanded by the government of Syria which granted Hannibal political asylum some 14 months ago and which is legally bound to offer him protection. Both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have criticized his unlawful detention.
The Gaddafi case has also caused tension between the Government of Syria and Lebanons Amal Militia, headed by Speaker of Parliament, Nabih Berri, who according to Hannibals lawyer hatched the ransom project which got messed up by Hasan Yaacoub organizing Hannibals kidnapping and who has long harbored plans to secede Berri as Amal leader, given the latters age and health problems.
Out of sympathy for Imtithal, the widow of Iman Musa Sadrs companion, Sheik Yaacoub and concern for her failing health which has been exacerbated by the arrest of her sons, the Lebanese judiciary has decided to grant bail to Hasans older brother Hussein. It has also decided not to arrest his younger brother Ali who according to Hannibal and his lawyer was the brother who severely beat Hannibals face with a pistol. The presiding judge is also thought to be sensitive to loosing the publics support in this case if the three sons mother is seen as being unnecessarily pressured by all her sons being jailed.
Hannibal has been living in Damascus for more than a year and wants to return until he can go back to Libya, as some political observers in Libya and elsewhere believe that Seif al Islam, and his sister, Aisha, a human rights lawyer and former UN Goodwill Ambassador, will return to Libya and enter politics as the political reformers they were known to be before NATO crushed the country creating the mayhem we observe today. Support inside Libya and regionally for both Gaddafi children to return is growing according to Libyan tribal leaders, the French government, and others.
Hannibals lawyer has filed a motion for the presiding judge, who is a Shia Muslim as is she, and most of those involved in the ransom scheme, to recuse himself given the growing perception in some quarters that Shia pressure may compromise the Judges objectivity so its better that he excuse himself and prevent a possible conflict of interest or perception of lack of impartiality.
Lebanons judges by and large are reputed to be honest but what weakens the legal system here is the same poisonous sectarianism that has deeply corrupted much of Lebanon. Virulent political sectarianism is the main reason that Lebanon has in many ways never been a real country, in not now, and perhaps never will be unless a solution can be found among this countrys 18 sects to create a real democracy. Given the sects inability for even agree on a president the past nearly two years is not encouraging.
Despite the continuing illegal and outrageous detention of Hannibal Gaddafi, a political not a judicial solution is at hand.
It will likely unfold something like this. Hannibal will be released soon since the $ 200 million is not coming this way and the kidnapping scheme has been exposed. He will be free to return to Syria.
As for the kidnappers and torturers, they too will likely have their cases dismissed on sectarian political, not judicial grounds, and they will be released.
Hannibals lawsuit against Ali Yaacoub, the brother of ex-MP Hasan Yaacoub, ,who is accused of abducting him, and Ali Yaacoubs lawsuit against him and his lawyer Bouchra Khalil and the lawsuit by the Imam Sadr family and the family of the second companion of Imam Musa Sadr, Journalist Abbas Badreddin, who also disappeared, will all be dismissed.
At some point Lebanon will have to dismantle its sectarian system which paralyses it and corrupts its government. But the problem remains that the current corrupt system here enriches precisely those whose leadership for reform has been required.
At some point Lebanons youth will surely rise up and with their fed up countrymen throw out the former warlords who have granted themselves amnesty from prosecution for civil war crimes and then anointed themselves as political lords. When this will happen is anyones guess but pressure here is building for major and long overdue reform.
Franklin P. Lamb, LLB, LLM, PhD. Legal Adviser, The Sabra-Shatila Scholarship Program, Shatila Camp (SSSP-lb.org)
Darul Uloom Falls For The Polarizing Agenda Of Hindutva Brigade
By Shamsul Islam
02 April, 2016
Countercurrents.org
It is unfortunate that some Muslim organizations are more than willing to be part of the Hindutva brigade's nefarious design of polarizing India between Hindus & Muslims. Instead of joining this polarizing game Darul Uloom (which played heroic role in freedom struggle against Muslim League's Pakistan project) should have issued a fatwa (it is a matter of discussion whether we need fatwas/hukumnamaas/dharm aadesh by religious functionaries in a democratic-secular India and whether Muslim bother about such fatwas) to ask all Indian Muslims to be familiar with the history of freedom struggle.
Those Hindutva organizations which have recently found 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' as a slogan to prove one's loyalty to India, never-never chanted it during the British rule. In fact, the slogan of freedom fighters was JAI HIND (which even today is a common phrase in all army/police/official communications) with which every PM of India ends his/her address at Red Fort on Independence Day and every President of India concludes address to the nation on the Republic Day. When we have National Anthem, National Flag, Democratic-Secular Constitution and Jai Hind dear to Indians 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' is only a diversionary tactic so that the Hindutva rulers can divert attention from serious issues like poverty, hunger, price-rise, unemployment, rising violence against women & Dalits, loot of public bank money by money-bags. It is sad that Darul Uloom by such decrees is only facilitating the polarizing agenda of Hindutva brigade.
Shamsul Islam is a retired Professor of University of Delhi.Email: notoinjustice@gmail.com
Syria: Kurdish Initiatives On The Rise
By Rene Wadlow
02 April, 2016
Countercurrents.org
On March 17, 2016, the federal democratic system of Rojava (a Kurdish term for northern Syria) was proclaimed officially. Some 150 representatives of Kurdish, Arab, and Assyrian (largely Christian) groups met in the city of Rmellane in north-east Syria and voted in favor of the union of three 'cantons' largely populated by Kurds the cantons of Afrin, Kobani, and Jezireh.
The government as well as a major opposition coalition present in the Syria negotiations which have been going on in Geneva since the middle of March, the Syrian National Coalition, both stated their refusal of a federalist system which they saw as a first step to the breakup of Syria. The Syrian Foreign Ministry said that Any such announcement has no legal value and will not have any legal, political, social or economic impact as long as it does not reflect the will of the entire Syrian people. There was no indication of how the will of the entire Syrian people was to be determined in the war-torn land.
While the Kurdish issues in Turkey have attracted international attention, and the largely autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq is a major player in Iraqi politics, the Kurds in Syria have been less discussed.
The Kurds of Syria have not been as visible a factor until now as other ethnic or sectarian groups. As Michael Gunter, a specialist on the Kurdish world, writes
On July 19, 2012, the previously almost unheard Syrian Kurds suddenly emerged as a potential game changer in the Syrian civil war and what its aftermath might hold for the future in the Middle East when in an attempt to consolidate their increasingly desperate position, government troops were abruptly pulled out of the major Kurdish areas. The Kurds in Syria had suddenly become autonomous, a situation that also gravely affected neighboring Turkey and the virtually independent Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq. Indeed, the precipitous rise of the Kurds in Syria bid to become a tipping point that might help change the artificial borders of the Middle East established after the First World War following the notorious Sykes-Picot Agreement. (1)
In a hope of keeping the Kurds out of the growing armed conflict, shortly after the March 15, 2011 start of the Syrian armed conflict, in April 2011, Bashaar al-Assad had granted Syrian citizenship to some 220,000 Kurds that had been long waiting to be considered as citizens or who had been stripped of their citizenship in a 1962 census.
However, armed conflict spread, and the Islamic State started to control territory near Kurdish majority areas. Some observers see the Kurds as objective allies of Bashaar as they have many of the same enemies.
Working with the regime has largely saved the Kurdish areas from government bombardment and allowed Kurdish leadership to build alternative forms of government. Gunter discusses in some detail the influence among some Kurdish leaders in Turkey and Syria of the writings of Murray Bookchin (1921-2006) and his views of ecologically-sound autonomous governance democratic autonomy. (2)
During the current fog of war it is difficult to see what forms of cooperation will be developed among the Kurdish areas of Syria, Iraq, Turkey and possibly Iran. There have been recent talks in Switzerland among Kurdish leaders of the four countries. There are those who see all proposals for federal-confederal forms of government in a previously highly centralized state as a step toward the breakup of the state.
However, in the first years of the French mandate of Syria after the First World War, the French had created a form of 'federal' administration, although the French had facilitated the creation of Lebanon which until then had been part of Greater Syria. It is difficult to envisage a centralized-one party state such as that under the leadership of the al-Assad father and son being recreated when the armed conflict stops. Although the Kurds are not present in the UN-Geneva negotiations (at the insistence of Turkey), the federal proposal is now on the table, and merits being watched closely.
Rene Wadlow, President and a representative to the United Nations, Geneva, of the Association of World Citizens.
Notes
(1) Michael M. Gunter. Out of Nowhere: The Kurds of Syria in Peace and War. (London: Hurst and Co, 2014, p.1)
(2) Damian White. Bookchin: A Critical Appraisal (London: Pluto Press, 2008)
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By Susan Orr of the Courier and Press
OneMain Holdings (formerly Springleaf) announced Friday that it has sold off its interest in SpringCastle, a joint venture formed three years ago.
Evansville-based Springleaf acquired fellow consumer lending company OneMain late last year. The combined company now does business as OneMain.
In 2013 Springleaf formed SpringCastle as a joint venture between two other partners for the purpose of purchasing a group of loans from HSBC Finance Corp.
When the venture was formed, Springleaf held a 47-percent interest in SpringCastle. Its partners, New Residential Investment Corp. and Blackstone, owned 30 percent and 23 percent, respectively.
This week, Springleaf sold its interest to its partners, raising New Residential Investment Corp's ownership stake to 53.5 percent and raising Blackstone's stake to 46.5 percent.
The purchasers paid $112 million in cash for Springleaf's stake in the joint venture.
OneMain will continue to service the SpringCastle loan portfolio through its London, Kentucky servicing center.
"The sale of our SpringCastle investment is an important step toward enhancing our position as America's premier personal finance company by monetizing what has been an enormously successful investment," OneMain President and Chief Executive Officer Jay Levine said in a news release.
Levine said the sale will simplify OneMain's balance sheet, reduce its debt leverage and "significantly" increase its equity capital.
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Dear Dave: I took a new job less than a month ago. Just the other day, I was recruited by a huge company for the same position that pays twice what I'm making now. I didn't apply for the job that was offered; they came directly to me. I didn't sign a contract or promise to work a certain length of time with my current employer, but they're good people and I want to do the right thing and handle things well. Do you have any advice?
Jeff
Dear Jeff: In situations like this I always try to put on the other person's shoes. Let's pretend you own the company and you just hired a young guy. A few weeks later, someone comes in out of the blue and offered him double what he's currently making. I can tell you what would happen here. I'd tell him to take it. I mean, I would. And as an employer I'm certainly not going to double his income that quickly.
I think you take the job. Just walk into your leader's or supervisor's office and tell the truth. Lay it all out there, and let them know that while you feel awful about the situation, you had no intention or misleading them or causing problems, but you simply can't pass up the opportunity. Be sure to show an extreme amount of gratitude, and promise to do everything possible to make the transition as easy as possible.
Truthfully, if an organization cares about its team members, and one of those has the ability to double their income and they're not breaking a promise in the process, this type of scenario is perfectly reasonable. It may be a little uncomfortable for you and inconvenient for them for a while but they can't realistically expect you to pass up the opportunity to double your salary.
You're a good man, Jeff. Congratulations!
Dave
Dear Dave: Will hospitals take a settlement on past due medical bills, or is this a rare occurrence?
Kristin
Dear Kristin: It's not all that rare for hospitals to accept a settlement on past due bills. Most businesses will accept a settlement on past due accounts, and many hospitals will accept a deeply discounted settlement because they've usually gotten a big chunk of their money up front from the insurance company.
Let's say you had a $1,000 bill with a hospital you honestly haven't been able to pay for several months, or even two or three years. If you go to them and offer $300 or $400 as a settlement, there's a good chance you'll have a deal. Just make sure you get the agreement in writing before you hand anyone a check.
Remember, you have a moral and legal obligation to pay your debts in full if at all possible. But if you truly can't afford to pay, an agreed upon settlement between two parties can be an honorable and acceptable compromise.
Dave
Darrin Phegley / Courier & Press Students watch wood carver Larry Stock (right) make wooden spoons out of a block of butternut wood during the Heritage Artisans Days at New Harmony in 2015. Stock has been making spoons since the 80s and uses 200-400 year old gouges to carve the utensils out of various hardwoods.
SHARE JASON CLARK / COURIER & PRESS Larry Stock of Centralia, Illinois, chisels out chips of wood while making a spoon in front of students during the 29th Heritage Artisans Days at Historic New Harmony in 2014. Students got a chance to learn about soap, rope, rug and broom making as well as pottery and other period instruments during their visit. JASON CLARK / COURIER & PRESS Rachel Schumm, a USI student from Lafayette, educates area students about the period candle dipping process during the 29th Heritage Artisans Days at Historic New Harmony in 2014. Students got a chance to learn about soap, rope, rug and broom making as well as pottery and other period instruments during their visit. Darrin Phegley / Courier & Press Soap maker Deborraha Burnett (right) shows students from Mount Carmel School how she makes soap out of lye, tallow, and water at the 30th Heritage Artisans Days in New Harmony in 2015. Burnett is using a soap spurtle to stir the mixture and to determine when it is ready to be poured into forming molds. She said it takes one month and one day to make soap. Darrin Phegley / Courier & Press Justus Grobe, a 4th grader at Mount Carmel School, (left) and classmates make alien ears after joining in with soap maker Deborraha Burnett singing a song and making music with their spoons during the 30th Heritage Artisan Days in New Harmony in 2015. Burnett said making soap holds the kids' attention for a few minutes so she adds in song, music and storytelling to spice things up.
By Abbey Nickel, abbey.nickel@thegleaner.com/ / @abbeynickel
Historic New Harmony will step back into the 1800s during the 31st annual Heritage Artisans Days in New Harmony later this month.
From 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 20-22 history will come alive as presenters demonstrate skills, crafts and arts that were popular during the 19th century.
"This is not only for students, this is for everyone," said MeLissa Williams, visitors services coordinator for Historic New Harmony. Schools looking to participate are encouraged to register now.
Historic New Harmony is a joint program of the University of Southern Indiana and the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, with a mission to preserve New Harmony's utopian legacy.
New this year is an artisan from Westphalia who will be demonstrating how to weave and spin wool from her own sheep, who will be accompanying her in New Harmony.
Another new presenter is a Johnny Appleseed impersonator from Steve McPhail from Upland, Indiana.
Some of the features returning this year include a beekeeper and period musician. A 19th century doctor will present interactive shows each day at Murphy Auditorium.
"Having artisans from all over the Tri-State and the Midwest perform helps us show others, especially younger audiences, a glimpse into history," Williams said.
The Heritage Artisans Days attracts around 3,000 students and 72 schools every year. Despite it being a large attraction for students, there are attractions fit for every age group.
She encouraged any adult audiences to attend between 1-3:30 p.m. Daily tours are given at 1 p.m.
For any type of group tour, Williams highly suggests preregistering.
"I really do think computers take over today, and sometimes children don't even think about how their clothes were made or how soap was made, or how brooms were made," Williams said. "This gives them an idea of what it was like to live in the 1800s."
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The following verse in Quran describes our spiritual relationship with the Almighty God, core beliefs and some of the responsibilities toward other human beings who need our help for one or the other reason:
"True righteousness does not consist in turning your faces towards the east or the west but truly righteous is he who believes in Almighty God, and the Last Day, and the angels, and revelation, and the prophets; and spends his substance however much he himself may cherish it upon his near of kin, and the orphans, and the needy, and the wayfarer, and for those who ask; and for freeing of human beings from bondage; and is constant in prayer, and renders the purifying dues; and (truly pious are) they who keep their promise whenever they promise, and are patient in misfortune and hardship in time of peril; it is they who are conscious of God." (Translation Cow 2:177)
In simple words it enunciates the Islamic beliefs, devotion and the social and moral duties. The implication is that only the performance of obligatory ritual duties or show of devoutness is not the real virtue. According to the famous translation in English and the commentary (1934) of Yusuf Ali, this verse is a beautiful description of the righteous and God-fearing person:
"He should obey salutary regulations, but he should fix his gaze on the love of God and the love of his fellow beings. i.e. our faith should be true and sincere; we must be prepared to show it in the deeds of charity to our fellow beings; we must be good citizens, supporting social organization; and our own individual soul must be unshaken in all circumstances. They are interconnected and yet can be viewed separately."
The Quran not only in this verse but also at many other places emphasizes the principle of ensuring the fulfillment of the basic needs of the less privileged and vulnerable in the society. Almighty God has granted every human being the right to live with dignity. Therefore, our individual and collective social responsibility is not only to our kith and kin but also to others in need, especially those in need but never ask. This is based upon the perspective that everyone in the society is connected to each other through their shared humanity. It is gratifying that a significant number of individuals and groups do provide the help and support to those in need. Almost all the cities have homeless shelters, soup kitchens, social services and a score of other helpful activities through their volunteer efforts. However, there are a number of areas that are beyond their capacity for which nations, state governments and local communities must be responsible e.g. to provide support for the poor and disabled, health care and opportunities for the education and employment of its citizens.
According to Oxfam (an international, anti-poverty charity organization) just 62 people, 53 of them men, own as much wealth as the poorest half of the entire world population, and the richest 1 percent own more than the other 99 percent put together. The Oxfam report suggests that global inequality has reached levels not seen in more than a century. At the same time, over the five-year period, the wealth of these 62 individuals has risen by 44 percent (more than half a trillion dollars), while the wealth of the bottom half has fallen by over a trillion dollars. This disparity is inexcusable.
The above verse does not imply that the wealth has to be redistributed but tells us that it is our collective responsibility to build a fair society of support and to uplift the less fortunate. In the modern world it means that on the basic level food, water, shelter and appropriate health care services should be available to all. It also requires that educational and employment opportunities and incentives are available to the people to become productive members of society. This is being righteous.
Saiyid M. Shah, Islamic Center of Evansville
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Dr. Mohhamad Hussain is a man on a mission, that of peace, understanding, sharing and caring. In a world rocked by ethnic and religious intolerance. He has been a beacon of interfaith understanding, finding common ground with the Jewish and Christian communities.
Dr. Hussain moved to the U.S. in 1975 to complete a residency in pediatric medicine. During his time in Youngstown, Ohio, the hospital had a relationship with the Jewish Community Center for use of a gym and other facilities, and this began a relationship with Jewish contemporaries, something not always easy between the two cultures. It was his intent to return home to Pakistan for practice but he fell in love with the U.S., particularly Evansville, where he arrived in 1981.
Since his arrival in Evansville, Dr. Hussain has been a voice of leadership in the Islamic community, and, as importantly, bridging the relationship between that growing community and the community at large. The Islamic center was built in 1987, and there were about 15 families. Today, there are around 150 families. He says that "to follow one's faith teaches respect for everyone, and as new members of the community, I wanted to share that message."
Dr. Hussain has shared his message by speaking with many different congregations and participating in events to promote peace and understanding.
Over the recent past, he has on behalf of the Islamic Society of Evansville, partnered with First Presbyterian Church and Temple Adath B'Nai Israel to accomplish some bridge building events. There have been two Habitat builds, one led by the First Presbyterian congregation and the other led as a consensus. Along with TABI, he was instrumental in bringing "One Muslim, One Jew, One Stage" to town as a friend-raiser. That comedy team now features a Christian and is called "Laugh in Peace." The three congregations partnered in the fall of 2014 to bring them to The Victory and as a fundraiser for the Tri-State Food Bank.
Dr. Hussain was part of the founding team of the One God One Community project, a venture between the Islamic Society of Evansville, First Presbyterian Church and Temple B'Nai Adath Israel, to inspire understanding, education and friendship.
SHARE From left, Ange Humphrey, pastor of the Fresh Air Community, puts her arm around Roberta Meyer, the pastor of Grace and Peace Lutheran Church. submitted photo Members of Grace and Peace and Fresh Air Community assembling personal care product packages for the City's homeless population as part of the work of Mission of Grace. submitted photo Outdoor worship service with both congregations together. submitted photo
By Sara Anne Corrigan
Soul sisters.
Two chicks and a church.
Whatever nickname one might choose to describe the two women who shepherd two distinct congregations within one house of worship, theirs is a story for the 21st Century.
Roberta Meyer is the pastor of Grace and Peace Lutheran Church, 200 S. Boeke Road in Evansville, itself a blending of two small Lutheran congregations dating back about 10 years.
Ange Humphrey is pastor of the Fresh Air Community, a small four-year-old nondenominational congregation that has also called that address home for the past 18 months.
Sunday services are held at separate times, although some members routinely visit each other's services, and increasingly the congregations are collaborating on specials services Christmas Eve, Blue Christmas, Maundy Thursday special projects and the ongoing inner city Mission of Grace operating out of the former Grace Lutheran Church.
Mission work of any consequence is something that Humphrey said her small flock of about 40 individuals was very interested in but could never have mustered on their own.
Shared worship space, while still uncommon in the Tri-State, is not altogether new; it makes economic sense as smaller, fledgling congregations find they can benefit from sharing the cost of keeping a single church building humming while retaining their identities and worship styles.
Women as pastors, however, once unheard of, remains uncommon.
To find two of them and their respective congregations sharing a single address, well, that is completely unique to this area, said Phil Hoy, a retired United Church of Christ pastor who has worked in this community for more than half a century.
The first woman ordained as a minister in the U.S. actually dates back to 1853, Hoy said; Antoinette Brown was a Congregationalist a denomination that eventually joined what is today known as the UCC.
"This does not mean women were widely accepted as pastors, but it was a beginning," he said.
In contemporary times, the trend began to take root in the 1970s Hoy said, but there was and remains a lot of resistance among some denominations.
"The UCC, Methodists, Episcopalians, Presbyterians mainline protestant denominations began doing this more often, but others Southern Baptists and Roman Catholics, for instance are still holding back.''
Locally, women are at the helm of several churches, not all of them mainstream denominations.
But two? In the same building? With separate congregations and worship styles?
Merger
Meyer has been leading a congregation of about 75 at the Boeke Road church home of the Peace Lutheran and Grace Lutheran congregations since 2012; the merger between the two struggling congregations dates to 2007, she said.
It was a merger of economic necessity, said Luke Anderson, who came from Grace Lutheran Church. And it has allowed the Mission of Grace, an inner city project of Grace Lutheran church, to continue, he said.
The transition was seamless, he said.
About the same time that Meyer came to the merged Grace and Peace Lutheran Church, irreconcilable differences among leadership at American Baptist East Church on Washington Avenue, led to pastoral team member, Ange Humphrey's abrupt resignation.
And not just from that church.
"I separated from the Baptist tradition, the tradition I was born and raised in," said Humphrey, a graduate of Oakland City University's Baptist Divinity School.
And she did it over the church leadership's decision to exclude the homosexual community from its membership roles.
"It was time for me to find my own path," she said simply.
Humphrey had not thought about leading a new congregation and was in fact looking at the UCC widely seen as being among the most welcoming, progressive denominations in the country as a potential new church home, she said.
The first Sunday after her resignation, Humphrey and her husband, George Relyea, met for breakfast at the Carousel Restaurant with a couple of other American Baptist East refugees.
This was, technically, the beginning of the Fresh Air Community, said Glenn Ballard, who with his wife, Carol, was at the table that morning.
"We were having breakfast, and some other people (From American Baptist East) began to show up after church they noticed us and came over to our table.
"The next Sunday there were eight of us. A week later, 12, then 18, then 30 it was not about starting a new church, but it happened."
And Humphrey agreed to be their leader.
"Our first foundation meeting, at McCollough Library had about 60 people," Ballard said.
Ballard became the first president of the congregation that adopted the name Fresh Air Community, he said.
The Fresh Air Community was, 18 months ago, a congregation of about 40 in search of a permanent home when Ballard said he put in a call to some friends he had at Grace and Peace.
"We know about you we'd be delighted to have you!" his recalls his friends saying.
Humphrey and Meyer met at the church a short time later.
"And they hit it off right away," Ballard said.
Meyer said there was an immediate sense of shared values "to do and not to be (Christians) we both are open, diverse, welcoming progressive and radical," she said.
"We are twins in so many ways," Humphrey said.
Anderson said the qualities that stand out in both congregations are openness and inclusiveness to everyone and anyone, "anyone who wants to worship and be a Christian it's a new way of doing things . We are different but we have a common spirit."
The theology of the two churches is the same, it is their worship styles that is different, Ballard said.
And the focus, Meyer said, is not abstract but instead on action loving people and doing for them.
"When you come in here (regardless of which congregation you wish to join) bring all of you with you everything you've got," Humphrey said.
IF YOU GO
Grace and Peace Lutheran Church, 200 S. Boeke Road, Evansville.
Lutheran services are at 10 a.m. Sundays.
Fresh Air Community services are at 1 p.m. Sundays.
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By Max Roll of the Courier and Press
A Brandenburg, Kentucky man was arrested around 6 a.m. Saturday after police say he crashed into an empty sheriffs vehicle while drunk.
According to a Vanderburgh County Sheriffs Office news release, Jacob David Humphrey, 32, failed to spot the vehicle that was stopped at a crash scene involving a tractor trailer on Interstate 64 two miles east of Indiana 65.
Humphrey failed sobriety tests and had a 0.185 blood alcohol level, according to a portable breath test used by deputies. He refused to take a certified breath test, according to the release.
Humphrey is lodged in Vanderburgh jail and faces three preliminary drunken driving charges, including one for having a conviction in the past five years and another for refusal to submit to a certified breath test. No bond is set as of Saturday morning.
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By Max Roll of the Courier and Press and Bradie Gray
Update:
According to Evansville police records, the fire is being investigated as an arson case as of Saturday morning.
An investigation report mentions a "potential" suspect but no names have been released. Police believe the person, who is barred from the apartments, previously threatened a resident.
The resident showed police threatening text messages that mention the apartment fire, according to the report.
Police have two names of possible owners to the phone that sent the messages but aren't releasing them.
The building is extensively damaged and all four units in the building were affected by fire or water damage, according to the report.
Earlier:
Three residents were displaced after a fire at Vann Park Apartments Friday evening.
There were no injuries, according to district chief Ray Goff. Five people were inside the building when the blaze broke out. The Red Cross was contacted to assist the displaced residents.
Goff said could have been much worse.
"My firefighters did a great job putting this thing out without burning it to the ground," Goff said.
The call for a working fire at 3221 Pollack Ave. came across the scanner about 7 p.m.
The fire appeared to start in an upper-right unit. Flames were coming from a second-story window, according to scanner traffic, and light flames could still be seen after 7:30.
Vectren also responded to the scene to shut off gas and electricity.
The fire was mostly extinguished by 8 p.m.
By Thomas B. Langhorne of the Courier and Press
At first blush it sounds pretty good for a part-time gig. You get paid almost $34,000 annually plus benefits just for being a Vanderburgh County commissioner.
There's one problem: It's not really a part-time job, according to three men who have done it.
In fact, said Pat Tuley, Tom Shetler Jr., and Mark Owen, serving on Vanderburgh County's executive governing body is challenging, time-consuming, lifestyle-altering work.
"If you do your homework and study up on everything that's coming before you, it takes quite a bit of time," said Tuley, a Democrat who served as a county commissioner from 1993 until 2001. "I've always said it's hard to really do justice to both jobs if you're working full-time somewhere else and trying to be a county commissioner at the same time."
The three-member board of commissioners wears dual hats as county government's legislative and executive branches, while the County Council is the budget-writing fiscal branch. The commissioners pass ordinances, approve all county government contracts and hire several high-level county officials.
"It's just like being the mayor, except you're the mayors of the county," said Mark Owen, a Democrat who served for about six months in 1990.
The County Commissioners' Web page includes "general powers and duties," including awarding of contracts for public works projects, approving rezonings, making board appointments and overseeing Burdette Park.
But Owen said the list doesn't even begin to explain the necessary preparation, attention to detail and time spent in hourslong hearings over proposed rezonings, subdivision review and drainage plans. It doesn't mention such responsibilities of the office as negotiating union contracts for some county employees, determining Highway Department equipment priorities and making decisions about paving and snow plowing routes on county-maintained roads.
Other lesser-known duties include administration of Vanderburgh County's Old Courthouse and Old National Events Plaza.
"It's a huge job. It's a huge job, and it ought to be full-time," Owen said. "Anything you don't know what to do with goes in the commissioners' budget."
It is a full-time job in a handful of northern Indiana counties, such as Allen, St. Joseph and Lake, and in Vigo County. Making the job full-time in Vanderburgh County would be a matter of self-determination, but it has not been seriously considered as a public policy proposal.
"It's just been talked about in small circles," said County Councilman James Raben, that body's longtime finance chairman.
When Owen looks back on his time as a county commissioner, it's the work put in during the hours before public meetings that he remembers. The commissioners held meetings on Monday nights in those days. They now meet on Tuesdays.
"I'd go to lunch, and then the rest of the day was county," said Owen, who worked then as a property manager. "I'd either personally drive to all the rezonings or go to the commissioners' office (in the Civic Center) and go over everything that was coming up that night."
Tuley remembers conducting meetings on Saturdays and Sundays because he couldn't reconcile them with his full-time job on any other day. During his first two years as a commissioner, his work took him out of town Tuesdays through Fridays.
"Let's just say you have a controversial rezoning. Well then, the developers are wanting to meet with you and talk to you about their vision and all that kind of stuff and then you may have somebody representing the other side, the homeowners or neighbors or whatever, and they want to meet and talk to you," he said. "This is all outside of your public meeting."
After Tuley got a job that didn't require travel, he could set meetings for weekdays weeknights, actually, and at home.
Shetler, a Republican who served as a county commissioner from 2005 until 2007, estimated the job requires a minimum of 20 hours a week but often eats up 30-40 hours.
"Don't get me wrong, it's an honorable position and we need good people to do it. It's just that, it is time-consuming," he said. "If a person that is well-experienced in business and government, that has the time because of their job situation and etc., and that's their lifestyle, they want to do it that's perfectly fine."
Shetler and Owen are former chairmen of their local party organizations. Each man remembers talking then to potential candidates for commissioner, only to have them decide the job would take too much time.
Tuley had a blunt warning for anyone who looks in the mirror and thinks he sees one of county government's three mayors staring back at him.
"If you're gainfully employed somewhere else, that means it's probably going to be nights and weekends," he said.
DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS Bee Slough
SHARE DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS Bee Slough DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS A sewer pipe drains into Bee Slough near Shawnee Drive. Parts of the water way will be upgraded and replaced as part of the cities combined sewer overflow project. DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS Bee Slough DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS Storm drainage
By Mark Wilson of the Courier and Press
There is a certain reaction Mike Labitzke gets when he talks about Bee Slough to people.
It's an immediate "don't even talk to me about that smelly mess" facial expression.
Labitzke, who is deputy director for engineering at the Evansville Water and Sewer Utility, talks a lot about Bee Slough these days.
"It's a microcosm of the whole combined sewer overflow issue," he said.
The most visible reminder of the city's sewer problems, fixing Bee Slough is a priority in Evansville's $729 million plan to fix its combined sewer problems to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's satisfaction.
While the combined projects making up the fix will take years to complete, costing nearly $150 million, city officials hope that when done a problem considered both a health hazard and eyesore will be erased.
A cornerstone of the plan will be a constructed wetland that will work to naturally treat sewer overflow and touted as a green solution to environmental problems posed by Bee Slough.
Combined sewers carry both sanitary sewage and storm runoff. A hard rain is effectively like flushing a toilet carrying sewage to the city's two treatment plants.
But when the sewage-laden storm runoff backs up faster than it can be treated, overflow gates are triggered to open and relieve the pressure by releasing polluted water into the Ohio River and Pigeon Creek.
There are 22 combined sewer overflow points in Evansville, Labitzke said. Three of those open onto Bee Slough an open sewage ditch draining most of the city's East Side into a concrete paved ditch along Veterans Memorial Parkway, a major thoroughfare bringing people Downtown.
Because the Levee Authority pumps aren't triggered until the water reaches a certain height, raw sewage can stay in the slough for days, creating aesthetic and odor problems, as well as a potential health hazard. When the river is high, it creates a similar problem.
Even after the water drains, sewage that has settled out is left behind to bake and smell in the sun until utility department employees can scrap it out with a front-end loader to be trucked to the treatment plant.
"It smells like a giant septic tank," Labitzke said. "We try to keep it as clean as possible."
As a ponding area for water waiting to be pumped out from behind the levee during rain events, Bee Slough also frequently becomes a holding area for the untreated sewage flushed out of city sewers by those rains.
Evansville experiences on average about 90 rain events each year, filling Bee Slough with combined sewer overflow about 50 times a year, according to the utility department.
Labitzke estimates nearly a billion gallons annually of combined sewer overflow goes through Bee Slough about half of Evansville's annual total.
He noted a citizens advisory committee for the sewer project identified fixing Bee Slough as the No. 1 priority for the community.
The solution includes a series of projects that will take more than 10 years to complete, Labitzke said.
The first two projects will greatly diminish the amount of water and the length of time it sits in Bee Slough, he said.
Beginning this year, a sewer line will be installed along Bee Slough from Cass Avenue to Shawnee Drive between the slough and the backyards of homes on Riverside Drive. The line will intercept and consolidate combination sewer overflows from Cass Avenue and Shawnee Drive overflows which would normally spill into the slough.
However, it will have another important component too. The sewer line will include a series of inlets the utility can use to open the slough into the new sewer line when necessary. That will allow slough water to pass through the city treatment plant for cleaning before being sent back to the slough until it is released to the river by the Levee Authority pumps.
The plan's second phase is for the Evansville Water and Sewer Utility to build its own pumping station somewhere in or near Sunset Park close to the city riverfront. It is slated to begin in 2019. Currently, Bee Slough doesn't drain to the river until enough water builds up to trigger the Levee Authority pump, Labitzke said. The new pumping station will give the utility the ability to send treated water directly to the river instead of recirculating it back to Bee Slough.
In 2020, the utility plans to expand the treatment capacity at its East Side waste water treatment plant, near the slough, to handle up to 40 million gallons per day.
Doing this will increase the plant's ability to treat what Labitzke called the "first flush" or most sewage-laden stormwater during a rain event. Construction of a pumping station to eventually move sewer overflow from the portion of Bee Slough between Kentucky and Cass avenues to the wetlands treatment site also will start in 2020.
Following those projects, in 2021 work will start to place a sewer line under Bee Slough. The 108-inch diameter sewer will carry sewer overflow from the slough's' starting point as paved side ditch under Veterans Memorial Parkway to the wetlands pumping station.
Actual construction on the wetlands is scheduled to begin in 2023. Water from the slough will use natural, sustainable processes to filter wastewater from the slough. On its way out of the wetland, the water will pass through a final disinfection system to eliminate any remaining E. coli bacteria, Labitzke said. The treated water will return to Bee Slough and then the Ohio River.
"It was a creative, green solution, plus it was the most cost effective," said Allen Mounts, director of the Evansville Water and Sewer Utility. "Aesthetically, it was a better fit."
Convincing the EPA to sign off on the wetlands component of the Bee Slough plan wasn't easy, Mounts said.
EPA officials in Washington, D.C., were on board with it but Mounts said officials in the EPA's Region 5 office which oversees regulatory programs in Indiana and five other Great Lakes states were not initially convinced.
"Typically, the EPA has been more about brick and mortar type solutions," he said. "This is a whole different world."
The wetland would be what Mark Harrison, chief engineer for the Lochmueller Group, called a "fill and draw" type. The Lochmueller Group has been overseeing implementation of Evansville's long-term plan to address the combined sewer overflow problem.
The engineering firm has some experience with the concept, having already designed a constructed wetlands for Washington, Indiana, to address its problem with combined sewer overflows into a local creek.
Washington Mayor Joe Wellman said the wetlands cost $26 million to build. It also requires maintenance to keep invasive plant species and weeds out, but he said it has been worth it.
"It has definitely helped us. We are still having some overflows but we have been able to drastically, hugely reduce the number of them," he said. "It may happen six or seven times a year now versus 60 or 70 times before. I don't think we have ever had a noncompliance issue since."
Added to that, Wellman said, fish have returned to Hawkins Creek.
Wetlands have been used for filtering and cleaning water in ancient civilizations in China, the Middle East and elsewhere, Harrison said. In modern times, wetlands were a cost-effective way of treating waste water during the rebuilding of post-World War II Europe.
"These systems have been used to treat just about every type of pollution problem there is," Harrison said.
However, Harrison said in the United States there are only four documented constructed wetlands three of which are in Indiana. They include one in Elkhart, Indiana, as well two in Akron and Washington, Indiana, which Harrison designed. A fourth constructed wetland in New York state is a test project.
"This will be probably the biggest in the United States, if not the world," Harrison said.
A mix of bulrushes, sedges and prairie grasses are used in the wetlands where natural processes create an oxygen-rich environment for "good bacteria" to thrive and break down harmful bacteria in the waste, Harrison said, as well as filtering out metals.
Harrison said the project still needs to go through some intensive "geotechnical" analysis and planning.
Labitzke cautioned that the wetlands still needs the blessing of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
However, he is excited about the entire project's transformative potential for remaking a key approach Evansville and its Downtown.
"Eventually, in the long term, this will turn back Bee Slough to its original condition and change what the entry way to Evansville looks like," Labitzke said. "I envision it being a green corridor. It has the real opportunity to be an amenity."
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By Sarah Loesch of the Courier and Press
The Vanderburgh County Sheriff's office announced a new safety program Friday afternoon.
Through a program funded by the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute, the sheriff's office will incorporate three bicycle officers to work on trails and paths in the county.
Sheriff Dave Wedding said they submitted the proposal for a bicycle program to the justice institute after researching crash data.
"Over the years we've had multiple people that are struck on bicycles," Wedding said. "Multiple people struck as they were walking across the street."
The justice institute will pay for the bikes and the resultant overtime for the deputies, but Wedding some additional funds from his budget may be added.
He said about $10-12,000 dollars may be added to the overtime fund.
Wedding said some of the focus areas will be the Burdette trail, trailer parks, Angel Mounds and other areas that might be harder to cover in a sheriff's vehicle.
He said deputies will be able to interact with people, and perhaps deter criminal activity and promote safety.
"We're going to try and do it in a positive interaction type of way," Wedding said.
Deputy Andy Norris said he is looking forward to interacting with the public through the bike program.
"It's more personal," he said. "People are more likely to approach me on a bicycle than they are in a patrol car."
Norris said deputies won't be out in the rain or the snow, but he said they can dress accordingly for some mild winter days. Part of the grant included the stipulation that everything bought had to be made, manufactured and assembled in the U.S.
Norris said that was a challenge, but they were able to have bikes made that fulfilled all of their needs.
The bikes are equipped with emergency lights, headlights, a rear LED light, siren and a horn.
"It's almost like a hybrid bike. The tires aren't real aggressive," he said. "It's just a real nice quality bike."
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Carnival Corporation today announced that it has finalized contracts with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri S.p.A. to build five new cruise ships as part of a memorandum of agreement announced in 2015.
The five new ships include two that will be built for Costa Asia for deployment in China, two ships for Princess Cruises and one designated for P&O Cruises Australia, with deliveries expected in 2019 and 2020.
The contracts were formalized during a signing ceremony held today as part of the official handover ceremony for Holland America Line's ms Koningsdam at Fincantieri's shipyard in Marghera, Italy, attended by Italian Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Graziano Delrio, Carnival Corporation Chairman Micky Arison, Carnival Corporation CEO Arnold Donald and Fincantieri CEO Giuseppe Bono.
Also in attendance were Stein Kruse, CEO of Holland America Group, which includes the company's Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises Australia and Seabourn brands; Michael Thamm, CEO of Costa Group, which includes AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises and Costa Asia; Neil Palomba, president of Costa Cruises; and Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America Line.
The new ships for both Costa Asia and P&O Cruises Australia are expected to be 135,500-ton vessels with the capacity to carry 4,200 passengers. The 143,700-ton, 3,560-passenger ships for Princess Cruises will be the brand's fourth and fifth Royal-class vessels, featuring the design platform used on Royal Princess, Regal Princess and the new Majestic Princess coming in 2017.
"Today has been especially exciting for our company, our partners and our guests, as we celebrated the arrival of our amazing ms Koningsdam ship and officially signed agreements with Fincantieri to build five new cruise ships for the future," said Arnold Donald. "Supporting our goal to exceed guest expectations on every cruise, these new ships will create a whole new level of excitement and opportunity to deliver experiences that our guests will not only remember for the rest of their lives, but will also share with others. Using our strategic fleet enhancement plan to delight our guests is an important part of our measured growth strategy, which includes replacing less efficient ships with newer, larger and more efficient vessels over a very specific period of time."
"We are extremely proud of the strong commitment between Carnival Corporation and Fincantieri over the years, which signifies our dedication to excellence in product diversification and quality," said Giuseppe Bono. "Today, we further strengthen the relationship with our friends at Carnival Corporation, a partnership that has enabled both groups to grow over the years and which is further reinforced by an unprecedented strategic agreement. Thanks to our strategic partnership, we look forward to the future, and the potential to develop new projects while working together to meet the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities that the market will present us."
Some things are true signs of the season, like snow on the daffodils in the front lawn.
The annual JF deadline of the Judiciary Committee each spring might be my favorite afternoon of the legislative session. The letters signify joint favorable and no, it doesnt mean theyre going to legalize recreational marijuana. A raft of bills are up for votes, with their next stops the House, the Senate, or Palookaville.
And just like daffs in the front yard, nearly every year for at least 25 years, the Judiciary Committee has continued a tradition of protecting Connecticut citizens from the secret machinations of state-level grand juries and investigative subpoenas.
Every winter, whoever is the chief states attorney asks for the expanded powers and every April or May, the committee rejects it, one way or another.
Beating down the latest version became a bipartisan affair last week, at the hands of Rep. Cecilia Buck-Taylor, R-New Milford, Rep. Richard A. Smith, R-New Milford, Rep. Pat Dillon, D-New Haven and Rep. Bob Godfrey, D-Danbury, among others, who affirmed faith in something larger than the General Assembly: namely, the Constitution of the Constitution State.
The scene was the largest meeting room in the Legislative Office Building, with maybe 200 spectators, a dozen staffers and the 45 committee members. Supreme Court Justice Andrew McDonald of Stamford, a former chairman of the committee, even trotted over this years batch of law clerks to check out the action, although he stayed out of the room and waited in the hall.
The Judiciary Committee, after the budget-setting Appropriations Committee and tax-writing Finance Committee, is the most-important panel in the Legislature. Its where the states civil-unions bill originated, eventually morphing into court-ordered same-sex marriage. Its where gun bills galvanize advocates. Its where criminal statutes are tinkered and tweaked.
Co-chairman Rep. William Tong, D-Stamford, at the end of a large agenda, introduced the perennially controversial bill at 4 p.m. With a hard 5 p.m. deadline, there was a full hour to debate and vote. The committee had already plowed through more than 30 bills that afternoon, including some they barely discussed, agreeing to put them on a list for unanimous consent.
Maybe 2016 was the year, I wondered, that law writers would relax their guard and finally throw a bone to Chief States Attorney Kevin Kane.
Tong, who was up for the post of U.S. Attorney for Connecticut back in 2009, said An Act Concerning the Investigation of Fraud and Corruption was aimed at state and municipal offenses, including corruption in the business community and the elections process.
Its an attempt to address a very real problem that affects all of us every day, Tong said. People in this state, unfortunately, have been victims of political corruption in this state that has happened more than a few times, and all of us pay for it. These crimes happen on paper. They happen in documents. They happen behind closed doors and email and scribbled notes and accounting records.
He noted that Connecticuts high-profile corruption cases have primarily been in federal court, where prosecutors have grand juries and investigative subpoenas.
This isnt theoretical crime and this isnt just an attempt to aggrandize the states power, Tong said. This is an effort to protect all of us from crime that happens every day, more and more, and that technology enables.
Smith, one of many lawyers on the committee, pounced. We have probable cause in this state for a reason: to protect our civil liberties, he said. And I think overlooking that is a detriment to all of us. And I think thats what this bill intends to do. As I read the language of the bill and Ill ask you as the proponent of the bill, is there any need for probable cause to issue a subpoena?
No, Tong replied.
As Im looking at this bill, Im thinking about other crimes that dont have to do with documents, Buck-Taylor said. We wouldnt be able to say to somebody Produce the knife that you used, the coke that you sold. Im worried about self-incrimination here, said Buck-Taylor. I feel that this is an overstepping.
This creates a court of Star Chamber, warned Godfrey, the longest-serving lawmaker on the committee. Our state constitutional right to an open court is definitely abridged in this as well as the constitutional right to have the advice of an attorney. The States Attorney has plenty of tools to be able to conduct an investigation. Its just a very bad bill.
It was 4:30 and I wondered if enough committee members would talk about the issue to assure its death, without a vote, at 5. That was when Tong saw the writing on the clock. Seeing that the time is getting short, Im going to pass this bill temporarily, he said.
Temporarily, in this case, means until at least next year, about daffodil time.
Ken Dixons Capitol View appears Sundays in the Hearst Connecticut Newspapers. You may reach him in the Capitol at 860-549-4670 or at kdixon@ctpost.com. Find him at twitter.com/KenDixonCT. His Facebook address is kendixonct.hearst. Dixons Connecticut Blog-o-rama can be seen at blog.ctnews.com/dixon/
With the county facing some harsh weather through the weekend some cities and towns are advising their residents to hunker down and keep a wary eye out for risky driving conditions.
The Town of Greenwich issued an urgent storm advisory Saturday afternoon, warning of one to three inches of snow along the coast with more inland and winds gusting up to 60 miles per hour.
Residents are encouraged to stay off the roads tonight and tomorrow morning as travel may be hazardous with fallen trees and treacherous roadway conditions. Downed power lines may result in the loss of power. Please plan accordingly for needed medications and special medical requirements such as oxygen, wrote First Selectman Peter Tesei. The town has assembled extra public safety, public works and parks and recreation crews to deal with any isseus and we have requested standby crews from Eversource, our electricity provider. The police lobby will be open as a warming station if needed.
The Norwalk Office of Emergency Management also advised those making outdoor plans this weekend that strong gusts of wind should be expected and that unseasonably cold air will follow.
And in Monroe the volunteer fire service posted a warning on its Facebook pate.
Buckle up, it appears were headed toward a wild night of weather where everything is on the table including rain, thunder and lightning, snow and dangerous winds that are likely to produce power outages in Connecticut, the firefighters warned.
The National Weather Service, meanwhile, has issued a high wind warning for southern Connecticut.
There is also a chance of some light snow Sunday and Monday mornings.
Low pressure accompanied by an Arctic cold front will sweep southeast of the area Sunday morning, the NWS says. Strong winds will be accompanied by snow showers and snow squalls; white out conditions may briefly occur in squalls. The snow is expected late Saturday night and early Sunday morning.
There is the potential for a quick 1 to 2 inches of snow in southern Connecticut.
The high wind warning that kicks in at midnight and continues through 2 p.m. Sunday. forecasts sustained wind speeds of at least 40 mph or gusts of 58 mph - or more - can lead to downed trees, power lines and property damage.
Eversource tweeted Saturday Our crews are ready for the weather expected this weekend. Report any outages to http://eversource.com or 1-800-286-2000.
The NWS has also issued an number of warnings and advisories including:
Since sub-freezing temperatures are forecast across most suburban and rural locations sensitive plants should be protected and brought indoors.
The low tonight will be below freezing in most locations, especially interior Connecticut.
The low temperatures and strong winds will create a wind chill temperature of 20 to 25 degrees late Saturday night and 15 and 25 degrees on Sunday.
Sunday night will be colder with a low of 24 forecast for interior Connecticut and around 31 degrees on the coast.
A storm warning has been posted for Long Island Sound with strong winds, low visibility and wave heights between 3 and 7 feet.
Another chance of snow is forecast Sunday night, Monday morning and Monday night.
Heres the forecast:
Tonight: Rain showers before 5 a.m., then rain and snow showers. Low around 31. Southwest wind 7 to 11 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
Sunday: Snow showers, mainly before 8 a.m. Steady temperature around 34. Wind chill values between 20 and 25. Windy, with a northwest wind 25 to 29 mph, with gusts as high as 55 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80 percent. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
Sunday night: Increasing clouds, with a low around 24. Northwest wind 8 to 13 mph becoming light and variable after midnight.
Monday: Snow likely before 11 a.m, then rain likely. Cloudy, with a high near 39. Northeast wind 6 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70 percent. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.
Monday night: A chance of rain and snow before 8 p.m., then a chance of snow. Cloudy, then gradually becoming partly cloudy, with a low around 19. Chance of precipitation is 30 percent.
Somerset jury finds two of three defendants guilty of murder
Now in its fifth day of testimony and seventh day overall, the double murder trial taking place in Somerset County is now over. The jury decided.
Lifestyle | Daily Life | News | The Sydney Morning Herald
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Nigella Lawson wore a burkini on a beach in Australia five years ago
As purveyor of the nations knickers, sensible shoes and cosy knits, Marks & Spencer is just about the very last organisation Id expect to make me hot with indignation.
A bastion of everything thats comfortingly British, its also an unlikely institution to make a political statement. Yet, with the arrival of the burkini in its stores and on its UK website, it has managed to achieve both these feats.
For those who have yet to encounter the burkini, its a two-piece swimsuit that comprises full-length loose-fitting bottoms and a top that covers the torso, arms and also the hair. The M&S version will set you back 49.50.
While Nigella Lawson wore a burkini on a beach in Australia five years ago, the garment is more usually associated with Muslim women who want to cover their bodies to be modest.
In fact, my first reaction to M&Ss latest launch was: I hate the way I look in a swimsuit, Id love to cover up. But my second thought was that this is exactly why its wrong. Why? Like it or not, female clothes carry messages.
When companies sell overly revealing clothes to girls, they are colluding with the poisonous idea that womens bodies are there purely to attract the sexual attention of men. Ironically, the same message is given when women and girls accept that they must veil parts of their bodies or disappear under full veils. These are two sides of the same coin.
French minister Laurence Rossignol attracted controversy earlier this week for accusing shops such as M&S of being irresponsible for selling clothing such as burkinis.
I, too, think M&S is wrong. Unfortunately, Miss Rossignol has a history of using inflammatory language that provokes confrontations which are exactly what stops Muslim women from speaking out. The issues are also much more complex than her words suggested.
M&S is only one of an increasing number of fashion companies which have seen a gap in the market for modest fashion. And no wonder. This market is estimated to be worth around 200 billion worldwide.
John Lewis sells a hijab for girls (a scarf that covers the head and shoulders) as part of its school uniform range; House of Fraser stocks parrot print and pink versions for grown-ups.
Meanwhile, Uniqlo and Mango offer special collections of floor-length party dresses with high necks and long sleeves that women can wear for the traditional parties that mark the end of Ramadan.
At the luxury end, Dolce & Gabbanas range of hijabs and abayas (full-length robes similar to kaftans) sell for more than 3,000.
Oscar de la Renta produces an abaya embroidered with gold thread, while Givenchys couture hijab is crafted in delicate black chiffon.
These companies might not think they are encouraging fanaticism, but they are. Theyre complicit in a version of Islam that believes women must be subjugated in public.
Many Muslim women like me fight this pernicious belief system. Now these big businesses, by normalising veiling, make it harder for us to reclaim freedoms we once had and that are now being taken away.
Growing up as a Muslim in Uganda, nobody ever wore the veil. On trips to the beach in Mombasa, I would see women in conventional, modest swimming costumes .
M&S is only one of an increasing number of fashion companies which have seen a gap in the market for modest fashion (file image)
When I arrived in Britain in the early Seventies, you hardly ever saw a woman covering her hair. Muslim women would wear a scarf lightly draped over the head to go to Mosque, in much the same way that Roman Catholic women would cover their heads in church. Hair then was not seen as haram sinful if exposed.
I taught English to women whod come from countries like Iran, Lebanon, Egypt and Bangladesh. Many wore saris or shalwar kameez (trousers and a tunic-length top), but their hair was uncovered, their necks too, and their arms would be on display. It was normal.
These women werent vamps or flirts. They just hadnt been brainwashed into thinking such clothes were un-Islamic. Often they had taken jobs in factories, and discovered that wearing trousers and jumpers was preferable to a sari, which was dangerous when you were working with machinery.
But nobody criticised them for their dress. No men told them they were immodest, or that they couldnt leave the house unless they covered up. No women said to them as they regularly say to me now Sister, you shouldnt show your hair. Sister, you are wearing clothes that are forbidden in the Koran.
There wasnt the shaming of womens bodies by other women as there is now, that both divides and isolates communities, or this toxic idea that women have to cover up or men wont be able to control themselves. None of those women felt that.
To see young women now with drab grey or black head and neck coverings which mean they cant wear necklaces or earrings makes me incredibly sad. Humans have used ornaments to decorate themselves since weve been on the planet, yet now its denied to an increasing number of females.
Now these big businesses, by normalising veiling, make it harder for us to reclaim freedoms we once had and that are now being taken away (file image)
Yet while the insidious subjugation of women by controlling what they wear is justified on religious grounds, nowhere does it say in the Koran that you should cover your hair. The Koran simply says to women and men lower your gaze, dress modestly. For women, additionally, theres one verse cover your bosoms, and something that translates as cover your sexual parts. Many choose to ignore that the Koran also exhorts people to live your life here in this world.
Those who claim covering your body increases your spirituality are fibbing to themselves and others. This is not about spirituality, but religious one-upmanship. Its about: Im more Muslim than you, a better Muslim than you. But faith should never be a competition.
Secretly, many women would love to be able to wear Western clothes. Ive had young women come to my house to tell me how they hate wearing the hijab or veil, but say that its a condition of their parents letting them go to university or even out to the shops. This isnt a choice. This is domination.
More alarmingly Ive seen baby girls as young as six months in hijabs. Their mothers say they are training them to make this choice. But once youve been trained to do something, you are unlikely to question it. And then it will be no choice at all. Other women say they cover up as a reaction to the nakedness of British society.
But shrouding yourself is not the way to challenge this. Instead, we need to question a society that makes young women believe the only way they can get male attention is by showing every bit of flesh.
By covering up entirely, the message youre sending is: I wont show them anything because my flesh is dangerous.
Surely, both extremes feed into the view that women are meat?
Fifteen years ago I wrote a piece, very controversial at the time, about why I rejected the idea that the headscarf was an innocent garment. I said it started with the headscarf but would end with the full veil.
People criticised me for being intolerant and a Muslim hater. How that was possible for a practising Muslim I dont know. But it was indeed the start of a journey that led to full shrouds now seen everywhere.
I talk as someone who is completely for the faith I believe in and wholly supportive of the Muslim people. And I never want racism to be directed at anyone.
But more Muslim men and women especially those Muslims in the Houses of Lords and Commons should be speaking out against what I see as the pernicious creep of Wahhabism. This is the extreme branch of Islam, state-funded in Saudi Arabia, that promotes a hideously joyless form of the religion thats anti-woman and anti-Western and is now infiltrating the West.
That is why companies who seek to make money by exploiting the modest clothing market must think very carefully whether they want to be complicit in sending out messages that, no matter how subtle, ultimately reinforce this skewed view of the world.
The fact that its happening in mainstream chains such as M&S, John Lewis, Uniqlo and Mango, is particularly alarming.
Does a woman ever wear a burkini out of choice? Ironically, even Nigella Lawson later admitted she had covered up because her then husband Charles Saatchi preferred her with pale skin. Her burkini, then, was not a free choice after all.
In around 1988, I went to Carnaby Street after I heard there were Asian shopkeepers selling T-shirts with fascist slogans. I asked them: How can you be doing this? They replied: Its business.
Yes! It's a strategic national asset vital for Britain's future security, says ALEX BRUMMER
Britains trading partners can only look on with bemusement at the fumbling way in which David Camerons Government has handled the crisis in one of the nations most strategically important industries.
The fact that the last Labour government allowed a profitable and competitive steel industry to fall into the hands of foreign ownership in the shape of the Indian conglomerate Tata in 2007, with the purchase of Anglo-Dutch Corus Steel, without scrutiny or guarantees for future steel production, was bad enough.
That its Tory successors should even consider the possibility of allowing Tatas biggest UK steel-producing site to close would be folly on a grand scale.
Alex Brummer argues it is essential for Britain's security that we maintain a steel industry
The companys planned sell-off would blight areas from Port Talbot to Teesside for generations. More worryingly, it could leave the UK wholly dependent on foreign supplies of steel, at a time of grave geopolitical uncertainty with China and Japan at loggerheads and the Middle East in turmoil.
Our steel once forged the warships and tanks that helped us defeat the threat of Nazism. And if history teaches us anything, it is to expect the unexpected.
Whenever business issues of strategic importance to the nations economy have come up, this Government and its Coalition predecessor have shown themselves to be hopelessly naive. The problem is that the decision-makers in Downing Street are professional politicians with virtually no significant commercial experience at all.
We shouldn't be reliant on a foreign power
It was only with the help of a campaign by this paper in 2012 that an ill-conceived plan to sell our biggest defence contractor, BAE Systems (the former British Aerospace), to Airbus-owner EADS a company dominated by the French and German governments was averted.
Those who do have financial know-how, such as beleaguered Business Secretary Sajid Javid, earned their spurs in investment banking and private equity.
In both these lines of work, short-term thinking and the size of the next bonus are the prime drivers for decision-making.
As a result of this inexperience at the highest level, the country has ended up in the appalling position of having decisions about the future of British industrial infrastructure made in Mumbai for steel, and in Paris and Beijing when it comes to the next generation of nuclear power stations now dependent on French government-controlled EDF and Chinese finance.
All of this has terrifying implications for the future security of this nation.
But we should also remember that far removed from the lives of British workers, foreign owners are able to dictate vital decisions about our economic future without any checks and balances from shareholders, employees or communities who are central to the nations manufacturing future.
Workers wait to speak to Business Secretary Sajid Javid as he leaves Tata Steel in Port Talbot yesterday
According to Tata and the Government, the fate of Port Talbot is the result of prevailing global conditions. In other words, Chancellor George Osbornes new friends in China are flooding the global market with cheap steel because their own economy is faltering, and they can no longer consume the quantities made at home.
But Chinas slowdown should be no surprise to anyone. Nor should the current glut of steel. Any government with an understanding of global industrial conditions would have contingency plans.
Only last December, a Select Committee of MPs accused the Government of failing to be alert and washing its hands of the closure of the Redcar steel plant on Teesside by Thai owner Sahaviriya Steel Industries (SSI) two months earlier.
That should have been enough to forewarn policymakers of the potential for a similar catastrophe at Port Talbot.
Steel is vital to the UKs economic and national security. As one of the worlds largest military powers and exporters, steel is a fundamental component of our own defences, as well as the equipment we sell to the rest of the world.
It may prove disastrous for our country
Specialist steels, produced in the UK, provide the metal and armour that goes into frigates, submarines and Land Rovers. It is also used in the manufacture of heavy weapons.
There is not much point in spending 2 per cent of national income on defence unless it is supported by a manufacturing supply chain.
It is unthinkable at a time when the Government is seeking to drive a major modernisation of the nations infrastructure that we should be dependent on foreign suppliers.
Among the projects being developed are the transport links for the Northern Powerhouse, hundreds of miles of new track for the 43 billion HS2 rail link, Londons Thames Tideway super-sewer project, and the Crossrail tunnels and stations across the capital.
Some people will argue that with Chinese steel plants operating at full tilt and providing half of global needs, it makes no economic sense to be making our own, more expensive, steel. But the demand for, and value of, steel goes in cycles.
There may be surplus, cheap production now, but as the world economy picks up momentum, that may not be the case.
If we abandon Port Talbot and let the steel industry die, not only will the UK become dependent on the whims of foreign suppliers (who are likely to put their own needs first), but it opens the door for China to charge ever-higher prices.
No responsible government wants to find themselves reliant on a foreign power.
This explains why the Obama administration in Washington has been so forceful in imposing a 256 per cent import tariff on corrosion-resistant steel imports from China.
David Cameron with other world leaders today at the Buclear Security Summit in Washington yesterday
It is possible to believe in the benefits of free trade and globalisation. But, at the same time, we must accept we have to maintain some domestic steel production for reasons of national and economic security.
The very possibility that China could strangle global steel supplies if, for instance, there was a conflict in the South China Sea against Japan and America, would be seen as an act of gross negligence at the Pentagon.
Contrast Americas defence of its strategic interests with Britains craven behaviour.
Trade officials from two large EU steel producers, France and Italy, have been complaining bitterly that Britain has been blocking efforts by Brussels to reform trade policies so it, like the U.S., can impose higher import tariffs against cheap Chinese steel. Which brings us back to Port Talbot and the question of what can be done to save it.
This Government and its Coalition predecessor have shown themselves to be hopelessly naive
As we learned from the closure last year of the blast furnaces and coke ovens at Redcar, once these facilities are shut down they become pieces of industrial archaeology.
The cost of recommissioning them would run to billions of pounds, and would simply not be economic. That is why its vital for the Government to make a massive effort to keep Port Talbot open, even if it does come at a temporary cost to the Exchequer.
Former Prime Minister Ted Heaths Tory Government ensured Britains capacity as a world-class maker of aero-engines was preserved when it temporarily took Rolls-Royce into public ownership in 1971.
Similarly, in 2002 Tony Blairs administration saved our nuclear power generator, British Energy, from bankruptcy by excusing it from payment of a climate change levy, picking up the bill for decommissioning older facilities and offering it state-subsidised loans.
When the energy price recovered in 2006, the whole caboodle was sold back to the private sector for 12.5 billion.
The capacity to produce steel is an essential component of the manufacturing infrastructure of any nation that seeks to preserve military and economic independence.
Which is why David Camerons failure to think long-term about Britains steel manufacturing, and the nations strategic future, could prove disastrous for this country.
Nonsense! It's a dying industry that no amount of taxpayer cash can revive, says DOMINIC SANDBROOK
The fate of Port Talbot is a tragedy. No decent person should feel anything other than deep sympathy for the steel workers abandoned by the Indian giant Tata.
But should the Government step in to save the steel industry, spending millions to keep the Port Talbot works alive?
Should they, perhaps, heed Jeremy Corbyns calls to take the industry back into public ownership, at a cost of some 1.5 billion a year? Is it time to open the Whitehall chequebook, throw up protectionist trade barriers and defend our remaining heavy industries, whatever the cost?
The Government shouldn't heed Jeremy Corbyns calls to take the industry back into public ownership, at a cost of some 1.5 billion a year
The answer is simple. No. The truth is, like so many heavy industries before it, Britains steel industry has been in deep decline for years.
Thanks to a combination of high energy costs, low EU-regulated import tariffs, plunging international demand and a glut of cheap Chinese steel, Tatas British business has been losing a staggering 1 million a day.
If the Government stepped in, it would effectively be committing itself to day after day of million-pound losses.
That might make sense if there was a clear path to recovery and future growth, and if our politicians believed Britains economic future lay in an expanding steel industry.
But no sane person genuinely thinks that in a few decades time, new steelworks will be flourishing across the country. To put it bluntly, the steel industry belongs to Britains past, not its future.
And although it is certainly the Governments job to mitigate the pain by luring new employers in other industries to South Wales through tax breaks and enterprise zones, recent history offers some tough lessons in the folly of trying to stem the tide of global economic change.
There is, I agree, a role for the state in supporting British industry. Where markets are expanding, or where technology is in its infancy, government money can play a vital role in building up our businesses to take on foreign competitors.
The truth is, like so many heavy industries before it, Britains steel industry has been in deep decline for years
But the case of the steel industry could hardly be more different. It reminds me of the Seventies, when successive governments wasted millions trying to save industries that were no longer viable.
The rhetoric back then was exactly the same. Every coal mine, every car factory, every steelworks was indispensable to the national economy. Every projected closure was unthinkable, a tragedy and a disaster.
And every failing business was a world-beater in waiting, a vital national interest that could not be allowed to disappear.
So IT was that in the course of that decade, we spent hundreds of millions propping up the Clydeside shipbuilding industry, despite the fact every serious economic observer agreed that it was doomed.
When Chrysler threatened to pull out of British car-making in 1975, with the loss of 27,000 jobs, the Government wasted a whopping 163 million keeping alive a business that actually competed with its own state-owned car giant, British Leyland and which then went bust anyway.
The figures make truly mind-boggling reading. And as it happens, the steel industry offers a very revealing example.
Once, Britain was the worlds largest producer of steel. But by the late-Seventies, thanks to chronic over-manning and appalling labour relations, a typical British steel worker produced a third less than a French worker and 40 per cent less than a German one. To the Labour Government of the day, however, any talk of reform was anathema.
As Tony Benn (then Secretary of State for Industry) told astonished colleagues, even a single lost job was an unimaginable tragedy.
So, every year, more money was pumped into the steel industry, despite the fact that British steel was patently uncompetitive.
In the fiscal year 1978-79, British Steel lost a staggering 309 million, rising to 545 million a year later. By 1981, British Steels losses had risen to 1 billion underwritten, as ever, by the taxpayer.
And steel was, of course, only part of the story. Under Benns much-derided National Enterprise Board, billions were thrown at the sclerotic British Leyland, home of the reviled Austin Allegro and Morris Marina, despite the fact the Governments own consultants had advised them to pull the plug.
Business secretary Sajid Javid visited Tata steel works yesterday and met a very hostile crowd
Perhaps it was no coincidence that, in 1976, just a year after the Government had approved a massive 1.2 billion British Leyland bailout, Britain was forced to take its begging bowl to the International Monetary Fund.
Not surprisingly, the IMF was distinctly unimpressed to find the Treasury was planning to borrow a then-record 12 billion to cover its vast obligations, and promptly demanded some 2.5 billion in cuts in return for a loan.
Had all these subsidies, handouts and bailouts done the trick, perhaps there might have been something to be said for them.
Britains steel industry has been in deep decline for years
But all they did was delay the inevitable, costing tens of billions.
Whatever you may think of the late Margaret Thatcher, one of her qualities was to recognise the stark reality of the balance sheet. Her critics claim she killed off the steel, car and coal industries, and that she simply turned off the tap to British industry.
Nonsense. Mrs Thatcher gave millions to booming young industries such as computers, which clearly represented the future. I believe she was right to accept the challenging reality that our economic future lay with high-tech products and services, not heavy industries of the past.
Mr Cameron ought today to heed the lessons of the Seventies and Eighties: we should not be seduced by the false promise of protectionist import tariffs, which would do untold damage to successful British manufacturers who rely on foreign markets.
Our history, after all, is that of a proud manufacturing nation that has always embraced change and encouraged free trade. During our Victorian heyday, we were the greatest industrial powerhouse, developing new products and technologies that left the rest of the planet struggling to keep up.
Miner's Strike 1985, when Thatcher closed the mines, refusing to subsidise the loss-making industry
But now, like it or not, we simply cannot compete with the flow of cheap steel from China.
None of this, of course, will come as much consolation to Port Talbots workers and their families just as it came as no consolation to the miners who lost their jobs in the Eighties or the car workers whose jobs disappeared a decade later.
And the Government certainly must do its best to ease their distress, helping them find new jobs, attracting new businesses to boost employment.
It reminds me of the Seventies, when successive governments wasted millions trying to save industries that were no longer viable
But imagine if the Government did as Mr Corbyn suggests, and threw millions billions, even at the steel industry. Would British steel become more competitive overnight? Would cheap Chinese steel suddenly disappear? Would the ruinously high energy costs imposed by green levies courtesy of Ed Milibands 2008 Climate Change Act fall?
Would global demand for steel miraculously recover?
Not a bit of it. Instead, the State would be responsible for a loss-making industry. Eventually, some future Chancellor would seek to pull the plug. And the fallout would be even more bitter.
Yes, I know, the Government bailed out the banks. But the banking system was, and is, absolutely vital to our national life. Had the financial system fallen, taking savers money with it, the results could have been apocalyptic.
Distressing though it may be for the people of Port Talbot, the fall of the steel industry is not on the same scale.
As the future of steelmaking hangs in the balance in the land of its invention, profound questions arise over what kind of country we are and wish to be.
This paper cannot overstress how firmly we believe in free markets. Indeed, as Dominic Sandbrook argues on these pages, the UK has a proud history of encouraging free trade, the most effective engine of global prosperity.
It is also true that industries rise and fall, with coal giving way to cleaner sources of energy, steam to electricity and postal communication to the internet.
As the future of steelmaking hangs in the balance in the land of its invention, profound questions arise over what kind of country we are and wish to be
Meanwhile, some countries will always produce goods or services more cheaply than others. In the main, it is best for buyers and sellers alike that free competition should prevail.
But then some industries are so strategically vital to a nations defence and independence that they stand apart from the normal run of commerce.
Steelmaking is surely among them. For until other materials with superior properties emerge (and there is little sign of that yet) steel will remain crucial to swathes of the economy construction, engineering and manufacturing.
Nor can it be said that the 7,000 steelworkers jobs in Port Talbot, or the tens of thousands more that depend on them, are victims of free competition.
On the contrary, they are saddled with monstrous handicaps first, the crippling green taxes imposed by Ed Milibands Climate Change Act in 2008, and now Chinas cynical dumping of surplus steel at well below production costs.
So, yes, the world may be awash with cheap steel. But when the upturn comes, the ruthless Chinese could just as easily force prices up, strangling supplies to the West, as they force them down today.
The steelworkers are the victims of monstrous handicaps placed in the industry such as green taxes and China's dumping
With recommissioning prohibitively expensive, where will this leave Britain if we let our steelmaking capacity die?
Indeed, ministers shameless kow-towing to Beijing opposing punitive tariffs on dumping, while holding more meetings to promote Chinese trade than to save British steel looks like a shocking sell-out of our national interest.
But the plight of Port Talbots steelworkers raises a question more disturbing still: how have we reached a point where the future of such a vital industry is dictated not from Westminster, but from Tatas boardroom in Mumbai?
This goes far beyond steel. One after another, we have surrendered control of equally important national assets to the highest foreign bidders.
While other nations cling to their crown jewels, weve let ports, airports, railways, water companies, energy and nuclear generating firms slip overseas, leaving crucial decisions to be made by directors with other nations interests at heart.
Even the London Stock Exchange, that potent symbol of the Citys global dominance, is facing a German takeover.
Meanwhile, just two British companies Rolls-Royce aero engines and defence contractor BAE Systems are legally protected from foreign predators (the latter, only after a Mail campaign).
Ask yourself this. If, God forbid, this country should again face invasion, where will we stand without the capacity to produce steel, and with vast areas of our economy under foreign control?
But of course were now ruled by a generation of politicians brought up in the historically ignorant belief that war in the West is unthinkable.
Yes, free markets are hugely important. But true Toryism which has never been about economic dogma accepts that some institutions and industries are too precious to be put under the hammer.
THOUGHT OF THE DAY Oh, to be in England, now that Aprils there, And whoever wakes in England Sees, some morning, unaware, That the lowest boughs and the brushwood sheaf, Round the elm tree bole are in tiny leaf, While the chaffinch sings on the orchard bough In England now! Robert Browning (English poet, 1812-1889) Advertisement
DEAR BEL
I have been married for 20 years. My husband has slept with three other women in that time the first occasion was when we hadnt even been married two years. The second time was seven years ago and the third just last year.
On my 45th birthday, he rolled in at 5am, stinking of perfume. He had not even bothered to buy me a birthday card.
He didnt deny cheating on me, but he lied about the person involved.
He named one work colleague, but I later found out it was a different one and it was the second time hed slept with her.
Each time he has begged for my forgiveness, and I feel like a mug for taking him back.
I also had a brief affair 12 years ago because I felt neglected and unloved and was also still stinging from his first affair in our second year of marriage.
He says we dont have enough sex which is right. Im 4st overweight and have no body confidence.
I suffer from hypothyroidism and lack energy. Sometimes all I want to do is pull the duvet over my head and go back to sleep.
Ive been on different prescription antidepressants for the past 15 years, but dont know if they help.
I rarely feel happy and avoid social situations. Ive lost touch with my close friends and rarely see my family, even though my mum and dad only live a mile away.
We have two sons, age 16 and 17, who are both doing well at school and college they are probably the main reason that their father and I are still married.
My husband is my best friend I love him deeply and I know he loves me, too but I feel so very hurt by his betrayals. But again, Ive managed to move on from the last one.
We also have financial problems. His business failed and weve worked hard over the past three years to pay off huge debts.
We should be more financially stable by January 2017.
I look after the family finances because my husband had his accounts closed.
I love my stressful job, but I was recently turned down for promotion and my friend and colleague of 16 years got the job.
I feel: Whats the point?
Theres no fun in my life, I rarely laugh and feel I drag my familys mood down with me, so I end up isolating myself.
I neglect myself and everyone around me.
I know we only have one life, but I feel like Ive been living a half-life for a long time.
MAUREEN
At the heart of this extremely sad and hopeless letter is a colossal lie. Who would enter a dark forest blindfolded? Unless you start to be honest with yourself, you simply will not find it possible to unpick this mess.
For a start, you tell me that you have managed to move on from the last infidelity which is clearly not true. Your letter screams out pain, hurt, despair.
Then in the middle comes the Big Delusion: My husband is my best friend. I love him deeply and I know he loves me.
How can a man who has sex with another woman on his neglected wifes birthday be described as any sort of a friend?
I have great compassion for your need to deceive yourself, but it is a knife in your own chest.
This man is neither a husband, nor a friend, nor a kind human being. You probably do love him and perhaps in his way he loves you (yes, I know how complicated love can be), but neither of you knows how to take care of each other.
And it is only by learning how to do so that there will be any chance of your life improving. Be honest about him and about yourself. This is the beginning.
You are being prescribed antidepressants and I assume that your GP is also treating your hypothyroidism which is known to be one cause of depression.
Therefore, the obvious, instinctive advice to go to your GP is not relevant here although I reckon it would be wise (after 15 years) to seek a second opinion on your medical and mental problems.
Your weight affects your health as well as your confidence, so it is crucial that you talk to someone about all these issues. Even a small weight loss can have a really beneficial effect on a persons well-being. I suggest a new look at your health, rather than carrying on with the same old drugs.
You love your two sons very much, suggesting that they are the glue in the marriage.
But you also realise that your depression is likely to have an adverse effect on them at the very time in their development when they need maximum support.
Focus on this thought and let it motivate you.
If only for their sakes, I believe you and your husband urgently need couple counselling (see relate.org.uk to follow through with this) because with this history of infidelity, sexual issues and your ongoing misery, the problem is far too big to be solved by you or by me.
You require (preferably) face-to-face intervention by a trained person. This could be the time for you to rouse yourself and get tough with your husband telling him that the future of the marriage depends on this action.
That should be the next thing on your list.
I think you have to be gentle with yourself and realise that the accumulation of personal and financial problems will have taken its toll. Therefore it is hardly surprising that your work has suffered.
You like your job; therefore try to see the current situation as a temporary setback in the knowledge that if you tackle the other issues here, then youll soon be back to form in work, too.
It always helps to break down what looks like an impenetrable tangle into different threads.
So be honest, acknowledge the need, follow through in health, marriage and work with your sons stability as the chief goal.
Is it safe to pursue my old flame
DEAR BEL
I cant talk this through with anyone I know because of familiarity with the people involved I dont want to cause hurt to anyone.
I had two great loves in my life Ill call them A and B both in my late teens/early 20s. They both broke my heart. But A and I got back together after a couple of years, and I think we have a lovely life and family.
Of course, there are challenges, as there always are with two young children and what life throws at you. But we work things through together, and I can honestly say I am in love with my wife a love that grows daily.
My old sweetheart, B, recently made contact with me after 20 years, via a couple of forms of social media, and we have corresponded a few times just updates as to where life is now. I am unsure whether to continue with this friendship because I know it will upset my wife (they were aware of each other back at that time, and I suppose I could have been called a cad in those days), but I also dont want this to be the only reason for not staying in touch with her.
B and I did have a good friendship following our break-up, and I do believe it would only be a platonic relationship. I am happy and B appears to be happy, and it would be nice to stay connected, even if only through social media.
I admit that I hoped writing this would prove cathartic. But the question still remains: do I rekindle this friendship or not? Do I say thanks but no thanks and leave the past in the past? I dont want to appear rude or resentful, and I havent a clue how to manage this.
MARTIN
Can you see the red flags waving? Hear the smoke alarm going off? I can! Here we have a letter from a decent man who was actually lucky enough to marry one of the two loves of his life, but is now hankering after the one that got away.
Its the greener grass in the field of dreams, and so on.
This is a very old story, although dangerously new to you, confused chap.
You throw off a phrase like broke my heart without much thought. But neither girlfriend committed such a heinous act. Whats the real story?
It sounds to me as though you were stringing both girls along, and possibly they each got fed up with it and ditched you.
So perhaps not so much a case of a broken heart as the wounded pride of a sexy young man (I havent read the word cad for years!) who couldnt make up his mind. Would that be about right?
Id like to examine your letter very carefully. You state you dont want to cause hurt to anyone, then say you know your wife will be upset if she finds out about the contact. But you dont want this to be the only reason for not staying in touch.
TROUBLED? WRITE TO BEL Bel answers readers questions on emotional and relationship problems each week. Write to: Bel Mooney, Daily Mail, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT, or e-mail bel.mooney@dailymail.co.uk. A pseudonym will be used if you wish. Bel reads all letters, but regrets she cannot enter into personal correspondence. Advertisement
Excuse me? What other reason is there? If you dont want to hurt anyone who else are you talking about but your wife? The only things that matter here are her feelings and the frightening possibility that you could destroy the lovely life you have built together if you continue to hanker after B.
And dont tell me youre not hankering. I know how quickly someones sweet fantasies can lead to damage.
No harm in a quick drink . . . but, of course, you wouldnt tell your wife about it, would you? And so it starts.
If you hadnt written I do believe it would only be a platonic relationship, then I might just might have been casual and liberal and said that its OK to stick to social media contact. But once I read that, the argument was over.
The single word of good advice I can offer is: NO. Whats more, you know perfectly well that is what all your chums would say which is why you cant talk to them about your predicament.
If you are a foolish man, you will continue making contact with your lost love behind your wifes back and that will lead where it may.
But the wise (and loving and faithful) husband and father will write to B and say how great it was to catch up and hear her news . . . but the past is certainly another country and we behaved there in a way that we will reject now.
AND FINALLY, I've been saved by a dog...again
Naturally, it delighted me to read the news that people become more trusting, relaxed and nicer after they have interacted with a dog. This has been scientifically proved, so you cant accuse us dog-lovers of wishful thinking.
The latest research found that taking a dog to work can improve productivity and profits. Well, of course! Since dogs are invaluable in helping all sorts of people with physical and mental problems, it is no surprise that they can help to alleviate stress at work.
Just now, I glance down to the right of my desk where a tiny tan-and-black doglet is snoozing. This is Sophie my new pet rescue. And by that I mean she is rescuing me!
Many of you will remember that I was distraught when my beloved Maltese Bonnie died last November as she approached her 14th birthday.
My office felt so empty without her small, white presence. I always used to quip that I needed her input to write, but it wasnt entirely a joke. I really needed Bonnie and I found it hard to cope without her.
So now little Sophie (above) is filling the dog-shaped hole in our life. Like Bonnie, shes a rescue pooch: a two-year-old Chihuahua/Yorkie cross (a Chorkie) who came from a chaotic, dysfunctional home.
My husband and I met her through a marvellous small animal sanctuary in Somerset called Happy Landings (happy-landings.org.uk) currently trying to raise money for essential improvements. Since I know every penny is used for animal welfare, I was more than happy to give a large donation in return for having another small dog to brighten my life.
Thousands of Britons with an eye condition that can cause sudden blindness could be saved by a common type of lens replacement surgery usually used to correct cataracts.
The treatment could be used for a rare type of glaucoma called primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG), or acute glaucoma, which can lead to a sudden attack that destroys vision in as little as 24 hours.
It occurs when the lens which sits in the front of the eye and is responsible for visual focus grows too thick, blocking the natural drainage of aqueous fluid in the eye.
Jane Fallon (right), partner of comedian Ricky Gervais (left), underwent the operation last summer, after her alarming condition was flagged up during a routine ophthalmic examination
This also leads to damaging high pressure within the eyeball, and can only be treated with surgery.
Most patients are offered a type of laser surgery that makes a hole in the front of the eye, allowing the fluid to circulate, so reducing pressure. But now a major international study comparing eye implants with other possible surgical options is expected to show that artificial lenses provide a better outcome.
The final results will be reported later this year, but we expect that it will show more favourable results for those patients who have lens replacement, said leading consultant ophthalmologist Vik Sharma, of the London Ophthalmology Centre.
Patients who undergo lens replacement will typically no longer need glasses, and will also never develop cataracts, which affect 60 per cent of those over 60.
One PACG patient already to have benefited from lens replacement is Jane Fallon, partner of comedian Ricky Gervais.
The former television producer and bestselling author, 55, underwent the operation last summer, after her alarming condition was flagged up during a routine ophthalmic examination.
Jane said: After my eye test I was told I was showing symptoms of glaucoma. I realised but only in retrospect that pains in my eyes and the feeling of pressure that I had been experiencing must have been because of that. Id assumed they were symptoms of migraines.
Open-angle glaucoma typically causes no symptoms unless the outer field of vision starts to deteriorate. By contrast, PACG often produces severe symptoms including intense pain, redness of the eye, headache, seeing halos or rainbow-like rings around lights and misty vision.
These are often a prelude to an attack that can lead to blindness.
A diagram showing how the lens is replaced. The treatment could be used for a rare type of glaucoma called primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG), or acute glaucoma, which can lead to a sudden attack that destroys vision in as little as 24 hours
Jane was told by Mr Sharma, who was her surgeon, that an immediate lens implant operation was needed to prevent sight loss. A chronic glaucoma attack is possible at any time, he said. PACG can cause irreversible blindness within 24 hours.
Jane, who has been Gervaiss partner for 34 years, added: I had to try to do something rather than just wait and risk blindness.
Jane had an intraocular lens or IOL implanted in each eye. During the ten-minute procedure, a laser breaks up the natural lens. This is then sucked out via a tiny tube. The artificial lens is inserted through the same tiny incision in the front of the eye.
Jane had her eyes treated separately, two months apart. Both eyes can be done at once the choice is the patients. She had a multifocal IOL fitted in her right eye, and an accommodative IOL in her left.
Mr Sharma said: Multifocal IOLs are graduated, much like multifocal spectacle lenses. They typically give excellent close-up vision. Accommodative IOLs have tiny hinges that allow the lens to move forward and back with the muscles and ligament inside the eye responsible for focusing. These give better intermediate and night time vision.
He added: We always offer patients a combination, depending on their lifestyle and what they want the final results to achieve. To have both eyes treated costs 6,000.
Jane admitted: I was terribly nervous in the run-up. But in fact, it wasnt uncomfortable at all.
And today she is passionate that people should get regular eye checks.
I hadnt had an eye-check in eight years, she admitted. Its awful to think that if I hadnt gone for that test, I may have ended up losing my sight.
Shes terrified of heights, spiders and Donald Trump. And dont go on a long journey with the Blue Peter star turned novelist... unless you want to hear her sing
Which living person do you most dislike? 'Im terrified of Donald Trump and Im sure Im not the first person to say so. I really have a problem with people who are unkind,' said Janet Ellis
What is your earliest memory?
Seeing all my teddy bears hanging up on a washing line across the kitchen. Thered been some flooding in my house I think it might have been caused by the washing machine breaking. I just remember seeing all my beloved bears bedraggled on the line, looking very sorry for themselves. I still have them.
What sort of child were you?
I would say obedient, others might say prissy; I was quite the goody-two-shoes. Plus a show-off, of course. I loved taking centre stage at family gatherings, reciting poems Id learnt to a semi-circle of people. I liked it when my voice was heard, nobody elses.
Who or what do you dream about?
The other night I dreamed that I was with Madonna, and she was speaking with an English accent. She kept sniffing my neck and saying: You smell amazing. I kept saying, Its Molecule, which is the scent I wear, but she refused to accept my answer. Perhaps I need to talk to my therapist about this.
What phobias do you have?
Spiders, heights and knives. So a spider standing on a ledge armed with a knife would be my idea of hell. Im sure the producers on Blue Peter used to deliberately send me on assignments that forced me to confront my fears. In 1983 I broke the womens freefall parachute record and in 1985 I was made to hold a tarantula. No doubt they were planning a stunt involving knives, but I left the show before they could foist it upon me.
'During my time at Blue Peter, this woman came up to me with her little boy and said: My sons just said you look like Janet Ellis from Blue Peter. I said to him, Thats not much of a compliment, is it?,' said Janet
Who would be your dream dinner date?
As long as shes a really greedy eater like I am, it would have to be Dame Judi Dench. Everyone I know whos worked with her says shes really naughty and has a great sense of humour. When shes doing theatre shes notorious for trying to make her co-stars laugh by shoving secret notes into their hands and generally behaving badly.
Whats your biggest regret?
I saw some gorgeous Miu Miu shoes in a sale recently, which I should have bought but they were really expensive. Though I think on a cost-per-wear scale they would have worked out. On a more serious note, I would have kept my middle child Jack, whos an August baby, out of primary school until the springtime.
Which living person do you most dislike?
Im terrified of Donald Trump and Im sure Im not the first person to say so. I really have a problem with people who are unkind.
What is your most treasured possession?
My mothers nursing badge. She gave up being a nurse when she met my father. A few years after my mother died, my dad was clearing out the house and he dropped some things round. He handed me a box, which contained the badge, and on the back of it was that days date. I dont believe in an afterlife but I do believe in connections.
Describe the best night of your life: 'My 60th birthday party last September at a local working mens club... After we ate, my daughter Sophie [Ellis Bextor] sang. And my husband made a very nice speech,' said Janet
What has been your most embarrassing moment?
During his time in the Army, my dad won a shooting competition and I accompanied him to the prize-giving. I was about ten. As he was receiving his prize on stage, he made a beckoning gesture and I got up to join him but then I realised he was signalling to his colleagues behind me. I was mortified.
Who would you like to say sorry to?
The poor woman I once soaked when I was out driving. I didnt realise I was so close to the puddle and I drenched her.
Tell us a secret about yourself
I can harmonise to anything I hear. I did a car journey with a friend recently and I was singing along to everything on the radio. At the end she said, Gosh, you really can harmonise to everything, cant you? in a that-was- a-long-journey kind of way.
Which law would you change if you could?
I would ban those dreadful extending dog leads. Because to a dog they are a mixed message: am I on a lead or off a lead? Whats the poor dog supposed to think?
Describe the best night of your life
My 60th birthday party last September at a local working mens club. I wanted an Italian wedding feel with long tables and all 180 guests eating at the same time. After we ate, my daughter Sophie [Ellis Bextor] sang. And my husband made a very nice speech, which was good because he somehow neglected to mention me in his speech at our wedding.
Who would play you in a film of your life?
I cant think of anyone better than Kathy Burke.
What is your most unappealing habit?
Eating an apple in its entirety, pips and all. That, and biting bones to get the marrow in the middle. I love to do that, especially on chicken bones.
What is your guiltiest pleasure?
I dont think you should feel guilty about anything that gives you pleasure unless it breaks the law or harms someone.
Whats the worst thing anyone has said to you?
During my time at Blue Peter, this woman came up to me with her little boy and said: My sons just said you look like Janet Ellis from Blue Peter. I said to him, Thats not much of a compliment, is it?
1971 Never A Dull Moment: Rocks Golden Year David Hepworth
Bantam Press 20
Rating:
Every music fan has at some point indulged in the ultimate bar-room brain-teaser: which is the greatest year in rock history? Writers are quite keen on it, too.
In the past 12 months alone we have had densely woven explorations of 1966 and 1967 from Jon Savage and Stuart Cosgrove respectively.
Now the former Smash Hits editor, Whistle Test presenter and founder of MOJO magazine sets out the case for 1971; or as David Hepworth puts it, the busiest, most creative, most innovative, most interesting and longest-resounding year of [the rock] era.
The Who, Cat Stevens, Stevie Wonder, George Harrison, Marc Bolan et al were at their peak in 1971 which according to David Hepworth was 'the most interesting and longest-resounding year of [the rock] era
Whew. Its testament to the quality of the book that you almost end up believing him.
Any treatise of this nature inevitably becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Like a good legal argument, inconvenient truths are omitted, persuasive points emphasised.
Hepworth was 21 in 1971, and I suspect that the most significant year in music for many of us would also coincide with our being aged between 16 and 23.
Wisely, Hepworth swats away our scepticism with good-humoured assertiveness Im right and simply gets on with it. In the end, the validity of the premise matters less than the quality of the thinking.
The book picks apart the year month by month, each chapter offering a fresh parade of riches. We visit Glastonbury in its sylvan beginnings, and find David Bowie undergoing rapid evolution between Hunky Dory and Ziggy Stardust.
The Rolling Stones record Sticky Fingers, Marvin Gaye makes Whats Going On and Carole King releases Tapestry, an album which resonates so vibrantly that, 45 years later, her performing it in London this summer is a major event.
The Rolling Stones recorded Sticky Fingers, Marvin Gaye made Whats Going On and Carole King released Tapestry (pictured: a Rolling Stones tour poster)
The Who, Cat Stevens, Stevie Wonder, George Harrison, Marc Bolan et al are at their peak, and Hepworth casts a scrutinising eye over their collective pomp, taking nothing at face value and bringing each alive in vivid character sketches.
The young Rod Stewart was dressed like a disreputable clerk out of Dickens; Mick Jagger and his louche entourage appeared to the rest of the workaday world like avatars of a blithe new species.
Stripping away the myths that have attached themselves to these albums and artists, Hepworth identifies several keynote moments from 1971 which rerouted the direction of the music industry: the rise of the album artist; the emergence of rock as big business; an increasing awareness of image; the growing power of the female voice as both creator and consumer; and, most significantly, the creeping notion of rock posterity and the power of nostalgia.
The book ends with the release of Don McLeans hymn to lost innocence, American Pie, and Elvis Presley playing Las Vegas with a show described by one critic as middle-aged kind of fun.
Squint a little and you can almost see 2016.
There are a few blind spots and Hepworth certainly overplays the significance of certain events, but on the whole 1971 is an engaging and thought-provoking read.
Its a dry-eyed but deeply felt love note to the days when rock was still busy inventing itself.
Hepworth points out more than once that at the time he had no idea how lucky he was.
All Saints Red Flag AS Recordings/London, out Friday
Rating:
Befitting a girl group named after one of west Londons liveliest thoroughfares, in the late Nineties All Saints made smart chart pop with a generous garnish of street suss: a pinch of R&B here, a dollop of hip-hop there, served up with the take-it-or-leave-it air of a particularly demotivated waitress.
The surly big sister act of Shaznay Lewis, Melanie Blatt and Nicole and Natalie Appleton provided a neat contrast to the Spice Girls cheerily hyperactive pop rush.
At times it seemed as though All Saints music was a mere adjunct to a 24/7 whirl of partying, arguing and falling in and out of love with unsuitable men.
Which, as the ensuing tabloid feeding frenzy made clear, wasnt all that far off the mark.
Befitting a girl group named after one of west Londons liveliest thoroughfares, in the late Nineties All Saints made smart chart pop with a generous garnish of street suss
Their pomp was suitably brief. Between 1997 and 2000, All Saints released two hit albums and had five No 1 singles including Never Ever and Pure Shores before splitting up.
They re-formed in 2006 to make the lacklustre Studio 1, before reuniting again in 2014 for a series of live shows.
Now comes Red Flag, their fourth album, released almost two decades after the first and ten years after the last. On the cover, the foursome appear fundamentally unchanged.
Sleek and cool in black and white, they meet the camera with the kind of appraising looks which suggest incomers should proceed with due caution.
Some of that attitude seeps into the music, though not quite often enough.
Most of Red Flag is sultry, mid-tempo dance-pop which only occasionally attempts to go somewhere a little more interesting.
The bulk of it wouldnt have sounded out of place in the late Nineties, on prime-time Radio 1 or performed on the original incarnation of TFI Friday.
Lyrically, at least, there has been an attempt presumably by Lewis, the quartets only songwriter to reflect the passing of time.
All four members are mothers, in their 40s, and carrying a few scars. A recurring motif of domestic discord is set loose on the opening track, One Strike.
Most of Red Flag is sultry, mid-tempo dance-pop which only occasionally attempts to go somewhere a little more interesting
While doing all the things All Saints do well its moody, satisfyingly rhythmic, with an instantly memorable chorus it also rakes over the messy end of Nicole Appletons relationship with her misbehaving ex, Liam Gallagher: Pieces of your words take aim/ Your poisoned tongue.
One Woman Man roomy, bass-heavy, buoyed up by an atmospheric Greek chorus of breathy vocal effects explores the same subject matter.
The theme peaks on the excellent This Is War, a big, symphonic pop beast that brazenly goes to town with its love-as-a-battlefield metaphors, and finally runs its course on Who Hurt Who, a sappy but effective piano ballad that glides over the aftermath of the end of hostilities.
Evocatively scored with strings, it falls somewhere between Kate Bushs This Womans Work and the Spice Girls Two Become One.
Though a handful of tracks blur into a generic sonic soup, theyre counter-balanced by odd moments of stylistic flair.
Summer Rain uses a looped acoustic guitar riff, rapped vocal interjections and a Balearic sway to engaging effect.
The title track and Tribal stretch the albums boundaries into drifting, ambient dance, while the Eighties electro-pop of Puppet On A String is compact and punchy.
When it attempts contemporary modes, however, Red Flag is less sure-footed. On Ratchet Behaviour, a jerky dancehall diss to a young female interloper, the promise to take it to the streets sounds less like a cutting-edge war cry and more like a gang of hungover mums getting shirty on the school run.
The album may struggle to capture the restless eyes and ears of millennials, but theres plenty for those who remember All Saints fondly from their first spin on the pop carousel, and more than enough to suggest their autumn tour could be a hoot.
Red Flag earns a mid-table placing in the hierarchy of Nineties pin-ups back on the nostalgia trail. Lets say a few rungs below Take That, but well above Boyzlife.
THIS WEEK'S CD RELEASES
By Adam Woods
Pet Shop Boys Super x2, out now
Rating:
Lately, the Pet Shop Boys have been ageing in reverse, heading for the dancefloor on 2013s Electric with the sort of abandon they only intermittently showed as serious younger men. Super goes heavy on the dance-pop again, though for this cerebral duo, danceable never means stupid. Over throbbing, nocturnal beats, Neil Tennant turns his sharp eye on music fandom (The Pop Kids), the mixed blessings of youth (Twenty-something) and tortured despots (The Dictator Decides), though its the simple, Moroder-ish thrills of Undertow and Burn that arguably hit the hardest
Frightened Rabbit Painting Of A Panic Attack Atlantic, out Fri
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Selkirk indie-rockers Frightened Rabbit are a mighty proposition, whipping up authentic hurricanes of woe and redemption without ever sounding even faintly contrived. They do it with a lighter touch than most, too their songs are elemental things that swell and roll, but theyre subtle. On this fifth album, electronic textures mingle with ringing pianos, chiming guitars and Scott Hutchisons soul-cleansing confessions, many of them inspired by a displeasing move to Los Angeles. Closer Die Like A Rich Boy, meanwhile, finds him generating the same poetic power with little more than an acoustic guitar
The Lumineers Cleopatra Decca, out Fri
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The rustic, foot-stomping folk-pop of Ho Hey (from their eponymous debut album) made stars of The Lumineers in 2012 and got them pegged, not always favourably, as an American Mumford & Sons. After three years touring, they get around to the follow-up, and while Mumford are now leather-jacketed rockers, The Lumineers are still bashing them out on the front porch, all unplugged instruments and stark arrangements. But behind the backwoods trappings, Cleopatra feels like stadium rock presented make-up-free: Ophelia uses dramatic Coldplay chords; Angela might be an early-Eighties Springsteen demo. Its canny, but charming
M83 Junk Mute, out Fri
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John Williams: The Guitarist Sony (58 CDs and one DVD), out now
The Complete Columbia Album Collection
Rating:
One of the outstanding classical guitarists of our time, John Williams (not to be confused with the film composer, John Towner Williams) is 75 this month.
And Sony is celebrating in style, with a lavish box of 58 CDs containing all the recordings he made for them over more than four decades from 1964.
Theres also a charming bonus in the form of a DVD recorded for Melvyn Braggs South Bank Show back in 1993 at Sevilles historic Alcazar Palace. And all for a whisper under 100.
Moon River, which famously featured in the film Breakfast At Tiffany's is just one of the tracks on Sony's outstanding 58 CD tribute to the guitarist John Williams, released to coincide with his 75th birthday
Williams unwittingly played a part in my journey across the threshold from pop to the classics when, after a bout of teenage drinking, we retired to a friends house in my home town of Wareham, Dorset, and she put on Rodrigos Concierto De Aranjuez, completely new to me at the time.
I was knocked out by it, rushed out and bought the recording the following day, and it has remained a constant friend ever since.
And its CD 3 in this collection, the original LP sleeve beautifully reproduced, and still with its typically sophisticated coupling, Castelnuovo-Tedescos neglected concerto.
As well as the Cavatina from the 1978 film The Deer Hunter, there are the usual Spanish guitar favourites, contemporary music commissioned by John and lots of concertos
John Williams has great musical taste and judgement, as well as being a terrific guitarist.
I hope you love Rodrigos Concerto, because there are two other complete recordings here, plus the Adagio, recorded on that same visit to Seville, though sadly not on the DVD.
But whos complaining when theres so much else.
There are all the usual Spanish guitar favourites as well as Cavatina from the 1978 film The Deer Hunter and Moon River, which famously featured in Breakfast At Tiffanys plus a lot of stuff you will not have heard before, including contemporary music commissioned by John, and things he and others have arranged for guitar.
Williams unwittingly played a part in my journey across the threshold from pop to the classics when, after a bout of teenage drinking, a friend put on Rodrigos Concierto De Aranjuez , completely new to me at the time
My favourite is an enchanting version for guitar and strings of Schuberts masterly Arpeggione Sonata, which again has been regular listening for me since its release 20 years ago.
All in all, 150 composers are represented here, either in compositions for the guitar, or arrangements.
No more remarkable collection of guitar music has ever appeared.
IT'S A FACT Williams enrolled for his degree at London's Royal College of Music in 1959... only to discover it had no guitar department. So he studied piano and composition for three years instead. Advertisement
For me it shares top billing with the equally distinguished discography of his friend Julian Bream.
And the three albums they made together, also included, are among the highlights of this set, especially an arrangement for two guitars of a suite by the English composer William Lawes, who was killed at the Siege of Chester, fighting for the royalists in the English Civil War.
There are lots of not-so-well-known guitar concertos here worth exploring, especially those by Mauro Giuliani, Malcolm Arnold (which has a stunning first movement), Heitor Villa-Lobos, Andre Previn, and not forgetting Rodrigos beautiful Fantasia Para Un Gentilhombre.
The acoustic guitar is a charming, unthreatening companion, whether listened to at home or in the car. Unmissable.
ALBUM OF THE WEEK
The Truly Unforgettable Voice Of Florence Foster Jenkins Sony, out April 29
Stars: Truly Beyond Classification
Mystic Mellor confidently predicts that an American soprano called Florence Foster Jenkins will become an overnight success next month.
Always a remarkable achievement, but especially so here, because Madame Jenkins has been dead for 71 years.
So why this Lazarus-like revival? Well, courtesy of Meryl Streep and director Stephen Frears, Jenkins is about to fill the silver screen with carefully coiffed hair, generous embonpoint and a voice the like of which I swear you will have never experienced before.
Although Florence Foster Jenkins has been dead for 71 1/2 years, Mystic Mellor predicts that she will become an overnight success following the release next month of a film about the soprano starring Meryl Streep
Their film called, simply, Florence Foster Jenkins is released here on May 6.
FFJ was born to wealth but not to music. She arrived at opera courtesy of Dads money, a divorce from an unsuitable husband (who, the movie advises, kindly infected her with syphilis on their wedding night, when she was 18) and an unquenchable enthusiasm for life, opera and generosity to friends, whether deserving or not.
As the movie brilliantly portrays, she frequented the playgrounds of the rich from New York to Newport, Rhode Island, and would several times a season gather her most loyal admirers and there were a lot, plus, of course, cynical freeloaders to listen to her sing favourite arias and songs.
Thankfully, towards the end of her life she recorded eight items, which later this month will reappear at bargain price on Sony.
The earlier issue I have treasured for 25 years was oddly titled The Glory (????) Of The Human Voice.
On the cover, grimacing at the camera, is Madame Jenkins, heavily corseted, in a flowing silk gown, with a large pair of angel wings attached.
Foster Jenkins was born to wealth but not to music and had a voice like you have never heard before
They say every picture tells a story this one is worth 10,000 words from anyone in describing the FFJ experience.
As for the singing, well, suffice to say her version of Adeles Laughing Song from Die Fledermaus is no laughing matter.
Victims of axe murderers have gone more quietly than Madame Jenkins does at the end of the song here, such are her shrieks and squawks.
And the only way I can attempt to describe her ending of the Bell Song from Delibes Lakme is to say that if I happened upon a cage of gerbils having sex, they might have sounded like this at the height of their passion.
Courtesy of Ms Streep, I predict you will fall for Florence Foster Jenkins big time.
Long Day's Journey Into Night
Bristol Old Vic Until April 23 3hrs 15mins
Rating:
The walls and ceiling of the Tyrone familys Connecticut beach house look as if they have been painted with wood varnish (doubtless James Tyrone senior, the old skinflint, got it cheap).
It creates glimmering reflections and inescapable ghostly presences.
As the fog thickens and the darkness falls and drugs, drink, illness and despair overwhelm the reflections close in, reflections of one character in another, reflections of these peoples younger selves (real and imagined) and reflections of past generations.
Jeremy Irons has tremendous presence as Tyrone but he is more than matched by Lesley Manville's Mary, a frighteningly real addict in Eugene O'Neill's semi-autobiographical play
As Mary Tyrone, mother and morphine addict, says: The past is the present. Its the future too.
As surely as in Ibsen and Aeschylus, Eugene ONeills mighty masterpiece describes the fatal stranglehold of the past on one family, trapped in a cycle of blame and recrimination.
Richard Eyre brings an astonishing pace to his intense, electrifying production, with characters talking fast and frantically, as if to stop speaking or drinking for one second would allow them to start thinking and open up new chasms of grief, fear and regret.
Jeremy Irons has tremendous presence as Tyrone. All battered bluster, his slurred and yet soulful smatterings of Shakespeare suggest a shadow of the great classical actor he might have been, had not greed, vanity and drink turned this impoverished Irish immigrant into a matinee idol.
IT'S A FACT When O'Neill finished his semi-autobiographical play in 1942 he demanded that it not be published until 25 years after his death. But thanks to his third wife, it came out three months after he died in 1956. Advertisement
Even now, in the dark and without an audience, he cant stop himself combing his hair and moustache any more than he can stop himself being stingy about paying for treatment for his consumptive son Edmund (brilliantly rasping Billy Howle) or buying a drink for Edmunds sweaty, alcoholic brother Jamie (Hadley Fraser).
And when Irons loses his lines, or repeats one of Tyrones great whiskey-sodden arias of how things might have been, he remains compelling.
He is more than matched by Lesley Manvilles Mary, a frighteningly real addict.
Scarily on the slide from the start, she clutches at her neck, scratching her itchy arms, jerky and twitchy, switching between denial, defiance and lying, failing to convince anyone but the simple Irish maid that her medication is to treat her reddened, swollen finger joints.
Its in sharp contrast to the deranged, blank-faced ghost who comes in trailing her wedding gown when shes adrift on morphine.
This definitive production packs a profound, shattering, physical and emotional punch.
What better way to celebrate Bristol Old Vics 250th birthday?
People, Places & Things
Wyndham's Theatre, London Until June 18 2hrs 30mins
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I need to be fixed, says twitchy, prickly, hollow-eyed and angry addict Emma, the second but not the last name she calls herself since checking in to rehab.
The problem she encounters is that recovery is not a quick fix, or a slow one. Its a never-ending process.
Overcoming her frustration and resistance to the shame, boredom and orange squash of sobriety, and surrendering to the higher power that is essential to AAs 12-step programme, is the sobering subject of Duncan Macmillans potent play.
It is Denise Gough - in a mesmerising, agonising, raw and unflinching performance of a woman stripping herself of all excuses and delusions, as if peeling off her own skin - that makes this a must-see
Losing her way in her role as Nina, the aspiring actress whose dreams have turned to dust in Chekhovs The Seagull, is what gets actress Emma to rehab in the first place.
And the play is ingeniously stuffed with references to plays about deluded, damaged heroines (Hedda Gabler and Blanche DuBois) and to the artificial highs and lows of performance that all actors use to escape their own identity and find a new one exactly like drink and drugs.
But it is Denise Gough in a mesmerising, agonising, raw and unflinching performance of a woman stripping herself of all excuses and delusions, as if peeling off her own skin who won rave reviews at the National Theatre last year, and that makes this a must-see.
Her interaction with other, underwritten patients has little charge but her scenes with the therapist Lydia (excellent Barbara Marten) have a savage intensity.
Emma is irritated by her because she reminds her of her mum, has dozens of qualifications, is a recovering addict of 31 years and wears a crucifix.
In other words, she is a person with wisdom and convictions but unable to offer any guarantees.
Jeremy Herrins imaginative co-production with Headlong powerfully suggests the trippy mental agony of withdrawal as tiles ping off the wall of Emmas clinical bedroom, and several crazed Emma clones scrabble out of the mattress, itching and vomiting.
Wit sparks though the bleakness but it is Goughs portrayal of a woman, like Munchs The Scream, that leaves an indelible impression.
Reasons To Be Happy
Hampstead Theatre, London Until April 23 2hrs 15mins
Rating:
Neil LaButes latest piece returns to the quartet of characters that featured in his Reasons To Be Pretty from 2011, in which he held up a mirror to societys preoccupation with looks.
And once again, the play begins with explosive Steph (Lauren ONeil), who has bumped into her ex, Greg (Tom Burke as her gentle, inert opposite) in the parking lot of a grocery store.
Hes dating one of her oldest, best friends, Carly, but even though Steph has now married someone else, she evidently wants Greg back. Li
Like so many sequels, Reasons To Be Happy has none of the flair, the whiplash wit or the drama of the Neil LaBute's original play from 2011
As it improbably turns out, the feeling is mutual.
Like so many sequels, this play has none of the flair, the whiplash wit or the drama of the original, and its impossible to believe that Greg, a teacher, would want to spend one second with any of these redneck friends: squawking, one-dimensional Steph, who rants relentlessly; characterless single-mum Carly, who still works in the factory where they all met; and Carlys ex, the moronic, macho Kent.
Michael Attenboroughs production is deftly staged in a mobile trailer, which revolves and opens up like a suitcase to create authentic tiny spaces, all too successfully reflecting the squeezed, static lives of these dreary, stuck, tedious people going nowhere.
Reasons to be bored.
Jackie The Musical
Churchill Theatre, Bromley On tour until July 20 2hrs 20mins
Rating:
This latest compilation musical is a rather sweet celebration of Jackie magazine the teen bible for girls in the Seventies that sold in huge numbers, especially when Davids Cassidy or Essex were on the cover.
This is about a 54-year-old divorcee called Jackie (an embattled Janet Dibley) who, in her lonesome misery, takes advice from her teenage self (Daisy Steere).
All the numbers in this sweet celebration of Jackie magazine are played live to Arlene Phillips's glorious choreography, but Mike Jamess deeply unambitious script has the feel of a soppy Seventies sitcom
She goes on a blind date, her ex-hubby (Graham Bickley) resurfaces nurturing doubts about his brassy new girlfriend, and no opportunity is lost to cue up the next number, of which there are tons.
Oddly, theres no Elton or Rod Stewart but expect 10cc, T. Rex and decade-defining numbers such as Love Is In The Air, Tiger Feet and Puppy Love. Gary Glitter is, not surprisingly, banned.
The evenings teen spirit is lapped up by the nostalgic middle-aged female audience who remember the angst, the dungarees and Jackies tips on snogging
All the numbers are played live to Arlene Phillipss glorious Seventies disco choreography, which is a true joy, but Mike Jamess deeply unambitious script has the feel of a soppy Seventies sitcom.
However, the evenings teen spirit is lapped up by the nostalgic middle-aged female audience who remember the angst, the dungarees and Jackies tips on snogging.
jackiethemusical.com
Robert Gore-Langton
Bug
Found111, London Until May 1hr 50mins
Rating:
Oh for a tube of Savlon! This is set in an Oklahoma City motel room and its about insect bites.
Agnes is a lonely mum a heartbreaking Kate Fleetwood with a fondness for cocaine and solitude.
You realise why when you meet her slimebag, parole-violating husband (Alec Newman).
Agnes is a lonely mum a heartbreaking Kate Fleetwood with a fondness for cocaine and solitude. Into her life comes Peter, a mild-mannered war veteran played by James Norton the creepy psycho in Happy Valley
Into her life comes Peter, a mild-mannered war veteran played by James Norton the creepy psycho in Happy Valley.
He has an obsession with bedbugs, believing that the military planted insect eggs under his skin.
Tracy Lettss drama is all about the mutual contagion of madness and the two spend a lot of time in their pants, slapping their skin and freaking out at any knock at the door.
Expect a scary soundscape (by Edward Lewis), revolting skin sores and some totally unwatchable DIY dentistry.
Daisy Lewis is excellent as Agness sane friend but by the second half youd rather wish the bug fetishists would shut up and give us a break from the relentless Theyre out there vibe.
Well acted and horribly itchy, this is staged in a tiny venue thats appropriately a fleapit.
Actor Mamta Kulkarn has resurfaced in news after disappearing from the limelight a decade ago
Actor Mamta Kulkarni, who was a Bollywood siren in the Nineties, has resurfaced in news after disappearing from the limelight a decade ago.
Mamta was last seen in Dev Anands Censor which released in 2001.
According to the latest reports, the actress who is now in her early 40s, has converted to Islam and shifted to Nairobi after leading an anonymous life in Dubai for a while.
She has also been managing a leading real-estate and hotel business in Dubai.
Mamta, now grey-haired and bespectacled, came into the spotlight when a Dubai-based newspaper spotted her in Dubai jail.
Earlier reports about Mamta suggested that she had shifted to Dubai with her boyfriend and international drug kingpin Vijay Vicky Goswami.
In 1997, Vicky was arrested in Dubai for trafficking 11.5 tonne of mandrax and was sentenced for life for 25 years, as per Dubai laws.
Sources said Mamta was spotted in Dubai jail when she went to visit Vicky.
The 52-year-old dons sentence was reduced to 15 years owing to his good conduct, and Vicky was released November 15 last year.
According to a Mumbai tabloid, Vicky converted to Islam while in prison and married Mamta, who now manages his business.
After his release, the couple has shifted to Nairobi where Vicky spent several years of his initial life.
Bollywood new relationship drama Ki & Ka borrows a pinch of Honey Singh to define gender role reversal.
Removed from the familiar adage of who's wearing the pants in a relationship, a funky item number sees hero Arjun Kapoor traipsing about in High heels.
Arjun's jig is meant to underline his role of a homemaker, even as co-star Kareena Kapoor essays his wife, a talented career woman.
Arjun Kapoor plays a man who stays at home while his talented wife, played by Kareena Kapoor, pursues her career in new film Ki & Ka
'The film says that if a man is secure enough to allow his partner to go out and express herself and if he does not feel as ambitious as her, he can be a homemaker too,' Arjun told the media recently during the promotional run-up prior to the film's release.
In Bollywood scripts, where the presence of women protagonists normally range from playing a glam doll to a moping second fiddle, gender role reversal would indeed come across as an alien concept.
In itself, the idea of a woman being more successful than her partner is rare in Bollywood.
Very few films have tapped that notion since the seventies when Hrishikesh Mukherjee made the Amitabh Bachchan-Jaya Bhaduri starrer Abhimaan.
Sudhur Mishra takes a leading role in Sarat CHandra Chattopadhyay's novel Devdas
Ki & Ka tries pushing the envelope on that front. Here, the hero willfully lets go of a career option and chooses to be a homemaker because his partner is incredibly talented at what she does.
If women-centric releases are gradually becoming regular fare at Bollywood's urban multiplex-propped box-office, unusual plots within the genre is the obvious next level.
Ki & Ka director R. Balki can perhaps keep his fingers crossed noting that the recent Hollywood rom-com The Intern did sufficiently well at the Indian box-office, casting Anne Hathaway as a successful entrepreneur opposite Anders Holm's stay-at-home dad.
If Balki's film is accepted, it would perhaps set off a pattern. The notion would become clear that women-centric films need not merely be about allotting a large footage to its heroines.
Bollywood's new lot of films toasting girl power is also trying to imagine a few unconventional twists for its female protagonists.
An interesting concept should be Aamir Khan's Dangal, slated for release later this year. While it is a known fact that Aamir essays wrestler Mahavir Phogat in the film, the actor piqued curiosity recently by declaring the film 'is about women's empowerment'.
He added the film was an emotional journey of a father and his two daughters, played by newcomers Fatima Sana Shaikh and Sanya Malhotra, and it talks of empowering girls.
Unconfirmed reports state that idea actually is meant to be the secret trumpcard of the film, which focuses as much on the wrestler protagonist's life as it does on his dream to create a champion out of his daughters, the roles being based on Mahavir's daughter Geeta Phogat, who went on to become India's first female wrestler to win a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.
Dangal defines the travails of a woman sportsperson in India in a sport traditionally associated with men. Although it will primarily remain Aamir's film, the subtext of the daughters should add a novel spin to the film.
Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan plays Sarabjit;s sister Dalbir Kaur, who took up the campaign to free Sarbjit from his Pakistani captivity
The unconventional trait seems to be revealing itself in the imagination of the anti-heroine, too. When CityLights debutant Patralekha returns in Vikram Bhatt's Love Games next month, she will essay a role far removed from the miserable exploited woman she played in her first film.
Love Games will see Patralekha go for a drastic makeover. She turns into a seductress who thrives in drawing men into dangerous games of love, invariably at their peril.
Patralekha plays a seductress who is driven to destroy men, not out of love or revenge but sheer insane pleasure in Love Games
The Bollywood heroine as a seductress who spells doom for men is not a new phenomenon in Bollywood. Only, such characters have either been projected as pure vamps, or being driven to evil owing to a reason.
Patralekha's character in Love Games is said to derive a novel edge from the fact that hers is a protagonist who does what she does mainly for insane pleasure.
NIl Battey Sannata casts Swara Bhaskar as an uneducated single mother who, in order to understand her daughter's world better, enrols in the same school as her daughter
The role thrives on a psychotic edge, and is not necessarily driven by commonplace Bollywood reasons as love or revenge.
There is, of course, always the scope to reinvent what has already worked. In Karan Johar's Diwali release, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, for instance, Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan plays a woman who develops a soft corner for a much-younger man, played by Ranbir Kapoor.
The theme is said to be inspired by Ramesh Talwar's 1977 romantic drama Doosra Aadmi, that incidentally starred Ranbir's dad Rishi Kapoor in more or less the same set-up.
Lopsided age equations in love have never been priority for bigtime mainstream filmmakers in Bollywood, and Doosra Aadmi, even though it was way before its time, was regarded middle-of-the- road, medium-budget fare.
Shraddha Kapoor is a girl from an orthodox upper-class family who walks out of her marriage to pursue her musical dreams in New York in film Half Girlfriend
Johar on the other hand has chosen to adapt that concept for a big-budget commercial release on Diwali. This is, in fact, Aishwarya's season of experimentation.
On a comeback spree since Jazbaa, Sanjay Gupta's botched-up thriller that mixed emotions with thrills to set up drama, the actor is now readying to play Dalbir Kaur in Omung Kumar's Sarbjit, the biopic of the Indian peasant Sarabjit Singh who lived in a borderside Punjab village and unwittingly crossed over into Pakistan, following which he was arrested on charges of being a spy.
Sarabjit died in a Pakistani prison reportedly after a brutal attack by fellow jail inmates.
In real life, Sarabjit's sister Dalbir Kaur is a woman of rare resilience. She was a villager with next to nothing going for herself who took up the campaign to free Sarbjit from his Pakistani captivity to levels of extreme vehemence.
Director Kumar's casting of Aishwarya a bigger box-office draw than Randeep Hooda, who will essay Sarabjit as the sister of the protagonist says it all.
There are other upcoming films too, pushing the envelope on how Bollywood projects women.
Half Girlfriend, based on Chetan Bhagat's bestseller, will see Shraddha Kapoor playing a Delhi girl from an orthodox upper class family who breaks free of an abusive husband to chase musical dreams in New York.
The idea may not seem wholly novel, but it imagines women's empowerment afresh on the Bollywood screen.
Sudhir Mishra's Aur Devdas, Bollywood's umpteenth revision of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel Devdas, imagines Richa Chadha as Paro with a twist.
Mishra's Paro is not the silent sufferer. Set in a smalltown in Hindi heartland and imagined as a political thriller, his version of Devdas gives Paro certain ambitious and self-seeking traits.
'There are layers in the way our version of the story explores the contemporary socio-political backdrop in which Paro, a smalltown girl, lives,' said Richa.
Richa belongs to the group of Bollywood actors you expect will do things differently every time, just as Swara Bhaskar. In her upcoming starring role in the Anand L.
Rai-produced Nil Battey Sannata, Swara plays what would seem the most unusual screen mother in Hindi cinema.
Her protagonist is a single mother who, in order to understand her daughter's world better, enrols in the same school as her child.
Adele added another bizarre revelation during her recent gig in Glasgow: she once grew a beard!
Adele's between-song monologues and interludes on her current world tour are grabbing even more headlines than her music recently, and she added another bizarre revelation during her recent gig in Glasgow: she once grew a beard!
As a result of the hormonal changes her body underwent when she was pregnant with her son Angelo.
Actually, its a symptom thats more common than it sounds, with Drew Barrymore revealing back in 2013 that she grew a wonderful little goatee when expecting her second child.
Back in Glasgow, Adele told the crowd: When I got pregnant I had so much testosterone in me that I grew a beard, to more than a few sniggers of astonishment.
'I only cropped it last night. It's actually true. I'm not telling a joke. I actually have a beard. Im proud of it, she continued, I call it Larry.
Adele got herself onto the strange topic of conversation after she told the crowd about her partner Simon Koneckis facial hair.
-contactmusic.com
Jay Z sues former Tidals owner
Jay Z is believed to be seeking roughly $15 million in compensation from Aspiro, who owned the streaming service now known as Tidal.
About a year after he bought and re-launched the then little-known streaming service Tidal, Jay Z seems to be gearing up to sue its former owners for misleading him about the services performance and subscription numbers.
Legal representatives for the rapper have reportedly written to venture capital firm Verdane and Scandinavian media conglomerate Schibsted this week, accusing them of inflating the services subscriber numbers in the run-up to the conclusion of the $57 million deal.
contactmusic.com
Rocky exo-planet has a lava world
An international team of astronomers, led by the University of Cambridge, has obtained the most detailed fingerprint of a rocky planet outside our solar system to date, and found a planet of two halves: one that is almost completely molten, and the other which is almost completely solid.
According to the researchers, conditions on the hot side of the planet are so extreme that it may have caused the atmosphere to evaporate, with the result that conditions on the two sides of the planet vary widely: temperatures on the hot side can reach 2500 degrees Celsius, while temperatures on the cool side are around 1100 degrees.
Many cacophonous voices of protest have been heard over the visit of a Pakistani Joint Investigation Team (JIT) which was taken on a guided tour of the relevant spots related to the terrorist attack on the Indian Air Force base at Pathankot on January 2 this year.
Accompanying the Pakistani team were senior officials of India's National Investigation Agency (NIA). The five members of the JIT were later briefed by NIA officials, shown evidence of the involvement of the Jaish-e- Mohammed, its leader Azhar Masood and his brother Rauf.
They were given DNA samples of the terrorists who sneaked into the airbase and were neutralised.
THe Pakistani Joint Investigation Team returning after their investigation inside Pathankot IAF base
They were allowed to meet witnesses in the case and record their statements. The raucous protests primarily came from three political parties.
There was the Aam Aadmi Party which berated Prime Minister Narendra Modi for 'bending his knees' before Pakistan. Such spurious concern for national pride and national interest sits uneasy on the stalwarts of AAP.
Their utterances, like those of the Shiv Sena, on other issues that impinge on our sovereign interest give the lie to their fake rage over the JIT's visit.
The Congress, spurred by the belief that hyper-nationalism would fetch the party votes in the Assam elections, chose to gloss over its own record in power while lashing out at Modi.
If co-opting Pakistan, even if without any expectations, in combating cross-border terrorism is a sin, then the original sinner was Modi's predecessor, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
If straws in the wind are any indication, the Pakistani establishment has begun turning the screws, not necessarily to kill the monster of terrorism (as both Islamabad and Rawalpindi would want the world to believe) but to keep the rabid dog on a leash
After all it was Singh who, during his meeting with Gen Pervez Musharraf at Havana in 2006, had accorded Pakistan, the acknowledged perpetrator of terrorism, the status of 'victim of terrorism'.
The joint statement issued after the meeting had announced the setting up of a 'Joint Anti- Terror Mechanism' at the institutional level.
That 'Joint Anti-Terror Mechanism' met at least on three occasions. Expectedly, nothing came of the exercise as Pakistan kept promoting cross-border terrorism in India as well as in Afghanistan, targeting Indian missions in that country.
A look-back would also inform us that a team of Pakistani prosecutors had visited Mumbai in connection with Pakistan's 'investigations' into the 26/11 attacks. Although Pakistan has not formally closed its inquiry and prosecution of those guilty of plotting the carnage that left 166 people dead, the prime accused remain untouched and unaffected.
Zaki-ur Rehman Lakhvi is back to rallying and leading the Lashkar-e- Taiba while Hafiz Saeed spends his time spewing venom and calling for the destruction of India.
Similarly, the Jaish-e- Mohammed has been a valued asset of the ISI to implement Pakistan's policy of inflicting a 'thousand cuts' on India. Azhar Masood may have kept a low profile but that did not make him a lesser evil.
There is some evidence to suggest that both the civilian government, headed by Nawaz Sharif, and the Army are trying to tame the monster that was created in pursuance of Pakistan's policy of hurting India and seeking 'strategic depth' in Afghanistan.
This is likely more out of compulsion than a change of heart and ideology. In Mary Shelley's book Frankenstein ultimately turns on his creator. In Pakistan, too, the hand that nurtured jihadis is in danger of being bitten off.
Pakistani civilians are being blown up and shot dead on an unimaginable scale. Every day brings its story of horror and grief. But is there any remorse?
If straws in the wind are any indication, the Pakistani establishment has begun turning the screws, not necessarily to kill the monster of terrorism (as both Islamabad and Rawalpindi would want the world to believe) but to keep the rabid dog on a leash.
The execution of Salman Taseer's murderer is no evidence of a putsch for tolerance. It is at best a demonstration of who wields power in that benighted country.
The Easter Sunday carnage at the Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park is a counter-move to demonstrate that the Pakistani state is helpless in the face of rising jihadism, and that it is too effete to protect its own people.
The Easter Sunday carnage at the Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park is a counter-move to demonstrate that the Pakistani state is helpless in the face of rising jihadism. Pictured, Pakistan's PM Nawaz Sharif comforts a victim.
It's immaterial that the victims of Easter Sunday's suicide-bombing were Christians.
In the past, Sunnis, Shias and Ahmediyas have been similarly slaughtered.
Given this scenario, there really is no reason for India to be either hopeful of restraining Pakistan or expect investigators in that country to determine guilt and punish the guilty to bring cross-border terror attacks to a closure through justice.
At the same time there are other realities that cannot be ignored. This is the first time that the Pakistani government has set up a JIT which includes representatives from the Army and the ISI, apart from civilian agencies, to inquire into India's claims.
In the past, our claims were invariably brushed aside as 'fiction'. We have seen this happen with the numerous dossiers handed over to Pakistan detailing Pakistani involvement in the 26/11 attacks.
Clearly Pakistan would want its benefactors, especially the US and China, to believe it is serious about fixing accountability and punishing the guilty.
Such calculated gestures are designed to convince Washington, DC and Beijing where policymakers are more than willing to be convinced by the most insincere gestures of Pakistan. In this situation, India cannot but play along.
Indeed, it has to stay a step ahead so that it is New Delhi, and not Islamabad, that gets to call out treachery and violation of trust.
Unfortunately, that is how it is going to be for the foreseeable future. And for that, the Government of India will have to constantly think out of the box and take both Pakistan and its benefactors by surprise.
A casual reading of Manmohan Singh's statements between 2004 and 2014 would show that he repeatedly called for out-ofthe- box ideas to deal with a recalcitrant Pakistan. Unfortunately, the UPA's best ideas allowed Pakistan to stay ahead of India.
It's only now that we are getting to see New Delhi taking Islamabad by surprise and stumping Rawalpindi.
Modi knows what he is doing. It is debatable whether Sharif does. As for the Americans and the Chinese, they would be equally clueless.
Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar is proving to be the best strategist India has had in recent decades. It's an entirely different ball game India is playing these days. The newfound chutzpah is awesome.
A day after the Kolkatas flyover collapse incident, West Bengal TMCs Lok Sabha MP Sudip Bandopadhyay on Friday admitted that the design plan of the under-construction bridge was flawed and it needed to undergo a thorough remodelling.
"There was problem in the entire design of the flyover. I have been an elected representative from this area. I know that local people had a lot of complaints about its construction plan, said Bandopadhyay.
At one point of time the state government also thought to remodel the flyover involving an expert agency. But it had to be dropped as about 50 of the construction work was already completed by that time, Bandopadhyay told reporters while paying a visit to the accident site.
Rescue workers at the site where the flyover collapsed. West Bengal TMCs Lok Sabha MP Sudip Bandopadhyay said the design plan of the under-construction bridge was flawed.
The TMC MP said that he had raised the issue in the right forum but it could not be possible to dismantle the existing structure and remodel it owing to the issue of huge monetary loss.
Bandopadhyays statement came at a time when CM Mamata Banerjee was facing flak for the mishap.
I am a peoples representative. I can BJP, Cong take TMC to task only raise the issue. It is also matter of huge monetary loss on the part of the state government. But I feel it would have been better it the entire flyover was remodeled so I had given a proposal, he said.
When asked why the state government allowed a black-listed construction company like IVRCL to undertake the project, he said: The question has to be answered by the concerned state urban development minister, not me.
Death toll in the flyover collapse climbed to 25 with the recovery of two more bodies from under the debris. Meanwhile, the Kolkata Police on Friday detained at least five Hyderabad-based construction firm IVRCL officials for interrogation.
The police also sealed the companys three offices here, police sources said.
Initially, an FIR was lodged under IPC sections 304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide) and 407 (criminal breach of trust by carrier, etc) but later it was changed and a fresh complaint was registered under IPC 302 (Punishment for murder).
While rescue work went on full swing, Kolkata prayed for those who died
A Kolkata Police team has also gone to Hyderabad to investigate the matter. As the rescue operation is still underway even after 24-hours of the incident, a forensic team arrived at the spot on Friday afternoon for inspection.
We have collected all the samples and will carry out thorough texts in the laboratory to find out if there was any construction or design failure or not, an expert from the forensic team said, brushing aside any sabotage allegation.
A PIL was filed in Calcutta High Court on the mishap asking for quality certificate of the company and its financial stability to undertake the project work. It also raised questions about the quality control engineer, grade of materials used, maintained and the overloading capacity etc in the planning of the bridge produced by IVCRL to the KMDA.
It also demanded a committee be constituted for enquiry under the observation of the high court with the help of an expert team from IIT-Kharagpur.
Engineers suspended
By Mail Today Reporter
West Bengal government suspended two engineers of KMDA who were involved in the construction of the flyover which collapsed on Thursday.
The concerned chief engineer and the concerned executive engineer of KMDA have been placed under suspension pending completion of the probe, a statement from the state secretariat Nabanna said.
WB cops to quiz IVCRL
By Mail Today Reporter
A four-member police team from West Bengal arrived in the city on Friday as part of its probe to question officials of Hyderabad-based IVRCL after the flyover it was constructing collapsed in Kolkata.
A new political front is being firmed up in Uttar Pradesh where five regional parties, including Bihars ruling Janata Dal (United), will seek to make an impact in the assembly election.
Nitish Kumars JD(U) will join hands with Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) of Ajit Singh and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha.
Two smaller parties will also become part of the new outfit which will kick-start its campaign from Varanasi.
The formal announcement of launch of the new party will be made in the coming days as Nitish Kumars JD(U) joins forces with Rashtriya Lok Dal
The formal announcement of launch of the new party will be made in the coming days.
While JD (U) has strong presence in Bihar, RLD hopes to dominate in western UP and JVM is led by Babu Lal Marandi who is former CM of Jharkhand.
Kerala-based Socialist Janata (Democratic) headed by former Union minister MP Veerendra Kumar has already merged with JD(U). In UP, the new party has also joined hands with Peace Party and Krishna Patel of Apna Dal.
A senior leader of the JD(U) said the Congress might also join the new front. Speaking about the upcoming rallies by the new party, senior JD(U) leader KC Tyagi said that at least six places have already been identified where public meetings will be held.
Places like Varanasi, Meerut, Lakhimpur, Basti , Bundelkhand, Barabanki have already been marked. All the big leaders including Nitish Kumar, Sharad Yadav, Ajit Singh and others will address these rallies, said Yadav.
Sources said that the new party hopes to win over Muslims.
This time Muslims might not go with the BSP because they understand that Mayawati can go with the BJP if the situation arises, said a leader.
The RLD, which in the past called the shots in western UP with its Jat-Muslim combina tion, is a considerably weakened political entity following a rupture in its support base after the Muzaffarnagar riots in 2013.
RLD hopes Nitish Kumar, with his pro-Muslim image, could help undo some of the damage. JD(U) feels it can rejuvenate its moribund unit in Uttar Pradesh in alliance with RLD and other smaller parties. For this, JD(U) has also roped in Peace Party, which has some presence in eastern UP.
The alliance will project former RLD MP Jayant Chaudhary as its face in western UP. Jayant Chaudhary, son of Chaudhary Ajit Singh, has been touring villages in western UP to win back jats and has succeeded to a certain extent.
The JD(U), led by Nitish Kumar, will focus on eastern UP because of its geographical proximity with Bihar while the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha will focus on scheduled tribes who have remained neglected. Sharad Yadav will focus on weaning away Yadav voters from the Samajwadi Party.
The two major parties in UP BSP and SP have already ruled out the possibility of alliance with any party.
PM Narendra Modi will visit Jharkhand to launch a model stretch of Ganga for cleaning-up operation of the river and its surroundings.
Union Water Resources, River Development minister Uma Bharati said that Modi will launch the model 80-km stretch of the river on May 19.
Claiming that Ganga is most polluted in Sahebganj district of Jharkhand, having the shortest stretch of 80 km, Bharati said the cleaning of this stretch has been taken up on priority basis as part of the larger plan.
AYUSH contest open till April 10
Eager to get the best entry, the AYUSH Ministry, preparing hard for the International Day of Yoga on June 21, has extended the submission date for Yog Geet by 10 days, to April 10.
They had recently announced an open contest to make Yoga Song/Yog Geet in Hindi. Contestants can send maximum two entries of three to five minutess each, in MP3 format, not exceeding 5MB of space.
Expansion plans for RSS
Sangh patriarch Mohan Bhagwat instructed all state heads to draft a plan to increase RSS footprints in the coming years
The RSS wants to consolidate its network across the length and breadth of the country in the coming years.
At the recent meeting Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS), the apex decision making body of the organisation, the issue of expansion was discussed prominently.
Sangh patriarch Mohan Bhagwat instructed all state heads to draft a plan to increase RSS footprints in the coming years.
We will soon submit our proposals and plans for going further deep among the people, a state head told Mail Today.
Yadav and Bhushantake PIL route
Swaraj Abhiyan, the political outfit launched by Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav, is attempting to make an all-India impact through PILs in the Supreme Court. The latest PIL seeks relief and compensation to drought-affected farmers.
Yadav is personally attending the proceedings and the petition is being argued by Bhushan. SC told Bhushan that it is a reality that low compensation had lead some farmers to commit suicide.
Uttarakhand issue affects SC
Political turmoil in Uttarakhand is beginning to indirectly affect the Centres cases in Supreme Court.
A Romanian hacker known as 'Guccifer' who posted unofficial emails sent to then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the Internet was extradited from Romania and made his first court appearance in the United States on Friday.
Marcel Lehel, 44, is charged in a nine-count indictment that includes three counts of gaining unauthorized access to protected computers, the U.S. Justice Department said in a statement.
According to the indictment, Lehel 'hacked into the email and social media accounts of high-profile victims, including a family member of two former U.S. presidents, a former U.S. Cabinet member, a former member of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff and a former presidential advisor,' the statement said.
Marcel Lehel, 44, a Romanian hacker known as 'Guccifer' who posted unofficial emails sent to then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the Internet was extradited from Romania and made his first court appearance in the United States on Friday (file photo from 2014)
He shot to fame in 2013 after he claimed responsibility for hacking into George W. Bush family emails and posted artwork by the former president (right)
It did not name the victims, but in 2013 news websites published hacked emails sent to Clinton by her former adviser Sidney Blumenthal, offering the first public clues about Clinton's unconventional email arrangements and attributing the hack to Guccifer.
Clinton, the front-runner in the race for the Democratic 2016 presidential nomination, has apologized for using a private email server for official business while secretary of state from 2009 to 2013.
The FBI is conducting an inquiry into the arrangement.
Guccifer shot to fame in 2013 after he claimed responsibility for hacking into George W. Bush's family emails and posted artwork by the former U.S. president, including self-portraits in the bathtub.
He also distributed emails exchanged by former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and Corina Cretu, a Romanian member of the European Parliament, prompting Powell to deny the two had had an affair.
A Romanian hacker known as 'Guccifer' who posted unofficial emails sent to then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the Internet was extradited from Romania and made his first court appearance in the United States on Friday.
Lehel, a cab driver by trade, was arrested in Bucharest in January 2014.
He was serving a combined seven-year sentence in Romania, including a four-year term handed down in 2014 for illegally accessing email accounts of public figures.
Last month, a source with Romania's DIICOT anti-organized crime and terrorism unit told Reuters that the country's top court had 'approved an 18-month temporary extradition to America for the hacker.'
According to the U.S. indictment, Lehel 'publicly released his victims' private email correspondence, medical and financial information and personal photographs,' the Justice Department statement said.
Lehel appeared in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia.
The other charges in the indictment are three counts of wire fraud, and one count each of aggravated identity theft, cyberstalking and obstruction of justice, it said.
The statement did not say what punishment the charges carried.
Instead, the leaders came to an agreement to share income tax revenue
It was rejected by state premiers at the Council of Australian Governments
Comes as the prime minister has proposed a state levy of income tax
Former prime minister Paul Keating has criticised Malcolm Turnbull at a Labor event in New South Wales, describing him as 'the cherry on top of a compost heap'.
Mr Keating was speaking at a fundraising event on Thursday in Leura, 100km west of Sydney, for Labor candidate Susan Templeman reported Buzzfeed.
'This is a very, very ordinary government, with people falling out of it, ministers being lost, resigning, having to leave,' Mr Keating said.
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Former prime minister Paul Keating has criticised Malcolm Turnbull, describing the government as 'very, very ordinary'
'The great risk for Malcolm is that he doesnt remain a cherry but turns into a sultana.'
His comments come as Malcolm Turnbull has abandoned his plan for the states to levy income tax after most premiers refused the idea.
The state leaders failed to come to an agreement with the prime minister at Friday's Council of Australian Governments held in Canberra, where it was proposed the states would get control of $14 billion income tax, but lose an equivalent amount in federal government grants.
States would be forced to raise the rate if more money for services was necessary under the proposal.
Pictured at the Lodge ahead of the COAG dinner event, Malcolm Turnbull has abandoned his plan for the states to levy income tax after most premiers refused the idea
The state leaders failed to come to an agreement with the prime minister at Friday's Council of Australian Governments held in Canberra
'There is simply not anything like a consensus on the part of COAG ... so that proposal has been withdrawn,' Mr Turnbull (pictured middle) said during the meeting
Instead the leaders agreed to look at sharing the pool of income tax revenue in exchange for the states losing some tied grants from the commonwealth.
'There is simply not anything like a consensus on the part of COAG ... so that proposal has been withdrawn,' Mr Turnbull said.
'There will be no state or territory involvement in levying income tax and we are certainly not proposing to increase income tax ourselves.'
Mr Turnbull said the deal would award greater freedom to the states as to how to spend their money, but the extra money would not be immediately available.
He said the federal government is responsible for creating enormous duplication and waste through management of selected state duties.
South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill, who proposed the income tax sharing idea, said Australia fails to raise enough taxation and suggested the GST be extended to financial services, which would raise about $4 billion a year.
The leaders agreed to look at sharing the pool of income tax revenue in exchange for the states losing some tied grants from the commonwealth
Mr Turnbull (picured) said the deal would award greater freedom to the states as to how to spend their money, but the extra money would not be immediately available
The states agreed to look at their own taxes in a bid to make them better support economic growth.
New South Wales Premier Mike Baird said the states should look toward tax reform and raised concern for a massive funding gap forecasted for the 2020s.
'I don't want anyone to think that there has been any white flags raised in relation to tax reform,' he said.
'We have to be prepared to do it because funding that gap, ensuring the economy is growing, remains a challenge.'
New South Wales Premier Mike Baird (pictured) said the states should look toward tax reform and raised concern for a massive funding gap forecasted for the 2020s
Tasmanian Premier Will Hodgman said allowing the states to levy income tax would have put his state at risk.
But sharing the income tax base would provide greater certainty and more autonomy and responsibility.
'(No) white flags raised in relation to tax reform' - NSW Premier Mike Baird (pictured right) pushed for state tax reform
President Barack Obama took a shot at Donald Trump on Friday, saying suggestions from people like the GOP frontrunner that South Korea and Japan should develop nuclear weapons show a lack of understanding of the world.
He said that they show a lack of knowledge about foreign policy, nuclear policy and the Korean Peninsula.
Obama was asked about the issue Friday night after Trump said Japan and South Korea should develop nuclear weapons as a deterrent to North Korea.
President Barack Obama said suggestions from people like Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump that Japan and South Korea show a lack of knowledge about foreign policy, nuclear policy and the Korean Peninsula
Trump said earlier this week that Japan and South Korea should develop nuclear weapons as a deterrent to North Korea
The president said the United States doesn't want someone in the Oval Office who doesn't recognize the potential trouble in such a development.
'[The statements] tell us that the person who made the statements doesn't know much about foreign policy, nuclear policy, the Korean peninsula or the world generally,' Obama said at the press conference. 'I said before, people pay attention to American elections.'
Obama noted that Trump's comments came up during discussions with leaders at the nuclear summit in Washington.
He said that even countries that are used to a 'carnival atmosphere' in their politics want 'sobriety and clarity' in US elections.
Trump has made several remarks about nuclear weapons lately, even claiming he would not rule out using nuclear bombs in Europe.
Obama's comments come just a day after White House Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes said that Trump's proposal for Japan and South Korea to have nuclear weapons would be 'catastrophic' for US policy.
'The entire premise of American foreign policy as it relates to nuclear weapons for the last 70 years has been focused on preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons to additional states,' Rhodes said on Thursday. 'That's been the position of bipartisan administrations, everybody who has occupied the Oval Office.'
Trump said at a CNN town hall on Tuesday that the United States 'can't afford' to protect countries like Japan.
'Frankly it would be catastrophic were the United States to shift its position and indicate that we support somehow the proliferation of nuclear weapons to additional countries,' Rhodes said, according to ABC.
Obama discussed Trump's proposal at a press conference on Friday at the conclusion of a nuclear security summit, where he met with more than 50 leaders to discuss nuclear security.
He also said at the press conference that the United States and Russia are unlikely to further reduce their stockpiles of nuclear weapons during the remainder of his presidency.
He did say, however, that he believes the two countries have put systems in place that will allow for more reductions in the future.
At the close of a nuclear security summit, Obama said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has emphasized 'military might' instead of disarmament, but Obama believes there are still possibilities for progress.
In the meantime, Obama said the world must guard against the proliferation of new, deadlier nuclear weapons.
The president is crediting the United States and Russia with abiding by a bilateral arms reduction treaty.
He said he's tried to strike the right balance between arms reduction and preserving US nuclear weapons capabilities.
Obama noted that Trump's comments came up during discussions with leaders at the nuclear summit in Washington
Obama discussed Trump's proposal at a press conference on Friday at the conclusion of a nuclear security summit, where he met with more than 50 leaders to discuss nuclear security
During the press conference Obama also discussed Russia, drones killing civilians, repression in Turkey and doing business in Iran
As for the world's work to prevent nuclear attacks, Obama said the task is 'by no means finished'.
He said world leaders have made 'significant, meaningful progress' in securing nuclear materials so terrorists can't get them.
But, he said, there is still a large amount of nuclear and radioactive material that must be secured, adding that in some countries, the nuclear arsenal is expanding.
Obama said the dozens of leaders attending the summit agreed to keep strengthening nuclear facilities against cyber-attacks and to bolster defenses against nuclear smuggling.
The work has just begun, Obama said, adding that the vision of preventing the spread of nuclear weapons may not happen in his lifetime.
Also at the press conference, Obama mentioned drones, Turkey and doing business in Iran.
Obama acknowledged that 'civilians have been killed that shouldn't have been' in past US drone strikes, but says the administration is now 'very cautious' about taking strikes where women or children are present.
Asked at the news conference about an increase in the number of people targeted in several drone strikes against extremist targets in Libya, Syria and Somalia, Obama said the 'legal architecture' around the use of drone strikes in the past hasn't been precise.
But in the last several years, he said, the administration has worked hard to prevent civilian deaths.
He added that the United States has to take responsibility when it is not acting appropriately.
The president moved on to Turkey, and said he has been troubled by the country's repression of the press and democratic debate under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Still, he says Turkey is a NATO ally and an important partner in fighting terrorism. Further, Obama said he has a productive partnership with Erdogan.
Obama has, however, spoken openly with Erdogan about trends in Turkey that he calls troubling, particularly in regard to freedom of the press, religion and democracy.
Erdogan was among the 50-some world leaders who joined Obama at a nuclear security summit in Washington.
As for Iran, Obama said the country has to convince international companies that it is safe to do business there as it gains relief from sanctions by complying with the nuclear deal.
The press conference came after Obama hosted the two-day Nuclear Secruity Summit in Washington, DC this week
US President Barack Obama (center) speaks as (L-R) Finland's President Sauli Niinisto, Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari, Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron, Lithuania's President Dalia Grybauskaite, and Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau look on during the closing session of the Nuclear Security Summit at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center
Obama he said that the United States and its partners in the nuclear deal need to clarify what business transactions are allowed as the sanctions are lifted.
He added that the Iranians thus far have adhered to the letter of the nuclear agreement.
Iran is, however, flouting the agreement's spirit, Obama said, by doing things like testing ballistic missiles marked with slogans calling for the destruction of Israel, which shakes the confidence of international companies that might otherwise want to do business with the nation.
Earlier on Friday, Obama spoke of the threat of nuclear weapons falling into the wrong hands, such as those of ISIS terrorists.
The President said no terrorist group had succeeded in getting hold of making a dirty bomb, but said al-Qaeda wanted to and ISIS had already used chemical weapons in the Middle East.
He said there was no doubt that if ISIS 'mad men' got a nuclear bomb, they would use it to kill as many people as possible. Obama gave a chilling warning that such a catastrophic disaster would 'change our world'.
'We have measurably reduced the risk,' Obama said. But he added: 'The threat of nuclear terrorism persists and continues to evolve.'
And he warned that as ISIS comes under greater pressure it will likely carry out more attacks elsewhere.
'As ISIL is squeezed in Syria and Iraq, we can anticipate it lashing out elsewhere, as we've seen most recently and tragically in countries from Turkey to Brussels,' Obama said - using another acronym for ISIS.
Despite Obama's warnings - and his hi-jinks during the photograph with other world leaders - Donald Trump's earlier comments on nuclear weapons cast a shadow over the summit.
The Republican presidential candidate said this week that allowing Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Japan to develop their own nuclear programs would ease strains on US budgets, given the spiraling costs of maintaining America's nuclear umbrella and foreign troop deployments.
'Japan is better if it protects itself against this maniac of North Korea,' Trump said on Tuesday.
'We are better off frankly if South Korea is going to start protecting itself ... they have to protect themselves or they have to pay us.'
A suburban Philadelphia woman charged with kidnapping a newborn from a shopping mall told police she had given birth in February to a child who died within hours, and that she just wanted to hold a baby again.
Police said they were not immediately sure if Cherie Amoore, 32, had actually been pregnant or given birth recently. But her family thought she was pregnant, she was thrown a baby shower, and she was named on several baby registries for gifts including a $62 silver frame engraved with a boy's name.
'I didn't go there to steal a baby,' Amoore told police after her arrest, according to court papers filed Friday. 'I just wanted my baby. It felt like I was holding my son again. It felt so good.'
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Seven-week-old Ahsir Simmons was kidnapped from the King of Prussia mall on Thursday, but returned to his mother several hours later. 32-year-old Cherie Amoore is accused of kidnapping the boy
Amoore was charged with kidnapping, child concealment and other offenses. She was being held on $500,000 bail pending an April 15 preliminary hearing.
According to police, she struck up a conversation with the baby's mother Thursday at the King of Prussia Mall by saying she had a boy the same age. She followed the woman and her family to several stores and joined them at the food court. When the newborn became fussy, she asked if she could hold him while the mother took a phone call and tended to another child. Amoore then walked off with the boy.
The mother, Malika Turner, tried to chase her but had to keep an eye on her other toddler, the affidavit said. She instead asked people to call 911.
Mall security video, combined with tips that poured in and help from the suspect's family, led police to find the baby unharmed at Amoore's apartment in Tredyffrin Township.
'I took the baby and I am sorry,' she told police when they arrived, according to the police affidavit.
The woman who stole the baby boy befriended the boy's mother and then kidnapped the infant when the mother let her hold the boy
Police tracked down the suspect to a barbershop on Thursday. The boy was reunited with his mother at the police station Thursday night
The child's family was on hand at the police station, and celebrated his return with a prayer
The infant, Ahsir Simmons, was found shortly after 10 p.m., more than four hours after he went missing.
Online store registries for Amoore sought gifts for a baby shower set for December 19. At least some of the items had been purchased. Messages left with Amoore's family were not returned on Friday.
She told police she gave birth on February 11, but said the birth did not take place in a hospital, according to Upper Merion Sgt. Jay Johnson. Detectives were trying to determine if that is true.
Court records for Amoore show only a handful of traffic violations.
Deputy Montgomery County Public Defender Gregory Nester, appointed to represent Amoore, said he did not yet know enough about the case to comment Friday.
Police were quick to respond to the kidnapping, releasing CCTV footage of the woman leaving the mall with the baby in her arms and issuing an Amber Alert around 9:30pm.
Tips started flowing in after the surveillance footage was released, and police were able to identify the woman in the video, tracking her down to a barbershop in Treddyffrin Township.
Police confronted the woman who then turned the baby over to authorities.
The woman had reportedly been showing the baby off to friends and family.
'We were able to go to a number of locations tonight in both Upper Merion Township, Malvern and eventually into Tredyffrin Township, Chester County, where we did locate the woman, who was seen on video leaving with the baby,' said Upper Merion Township Police Chief Tom Nolan. 'The baby is safe and sound, but is getting checked.'
The boy was reunited with his mother at the police station Thursday night, and his whole family gathered nearby to celebrate his return with a prayer.
'I would like to thank God for allowing my baby to come back. And, I want to thank the Upper Merion Police Department, and everybody on social media that helped me get my baby back. I want to thank you so much,' Simmons' mother told the media.
Simmons' grandfather Burdette Lewis also spoke to the press.
David Cameron was last night accused of 'taking Project Fear international' after using a US terror summit to drum up support for Britain remaining inside the EU.
The Prime Minister said he had used a meeting of world leaders on nuclear security to canvass support for the case for Britain staying in.
It led to at least one international leader the New Zealand prime minister making a public declaration that Britain is 'stronger' inside the EU.
Mr Cameron said yesterday: 'Obviously being here is also an opportunity to talk to friendly nations about the European referendum issue. I had very good discussions yesterday with John Key, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, who made a very clear statement about New Zealand believing that Britain was better off in the EU, that it is good for New Zealand and good for Britain.
'What I find is it's very hard to find a leader of a friendly nation that wishes Britain well that believes we would be better off outside a reformed EU.'
The Prime Minister said he had used a meeting of world leaders on nuclear security to canvass support for the case for Britain staying in
David Cameron was last night accused of 'taking Project Fear international' after using a US terror summit to drum up support for Britain remaining inside the EU
As he left the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, Mr Key told the TV cameras: 'It's up to the British people to decide, but we certainly think it's a stronger position for Britain to be in Europe.
'We see Europe as an extremely important continent that needs strong leadership and Britain provides that leadership. We're currently going through the process of wanting to sign a free trade agreement with Europe.
'As someone who's lived in the U.K. for a long period, I guess all I'd say is if we had the equivalent of Europe on our doorstep, New Zealand as a country would be looking to join that, we certainly wouldn't be looking to leave it.'
Last night Tory MP Liam Fox, a former Cabinet minister, hit back at Mr Cameron's approach.
He said: 'It seems Project Fear has gone international. When will it dawn on the Remain campaign that the British people don't like being lectured by foreign leaders. They would be better off making the positive case for the EU, which they seem terrified of doing.'
Other Out campaigners last night dismissed Mr Key's argument.
The Prime Minister has been accused of 'taking Project Fear international', according to his critics
Matthew Elliott, chief executive of Vote Leave, said: 'Britain doesn't have a free trade deal with New Zealand, one of its closest allies, because we've handed control of trade policy to the EU.
'Even if the EU managed to eventually negotiate a deal with New Zealand, John Key has been clear that his country would keep the deal in place after we Vote Leave, torpedoing one of the Remain campaign's key scare stories.
Frisco, Texas has been shocked by the death of local mom Christine Thi Woo, who was found dead in her car Thursday after going missing for three days. Her body was found alongside her three children who were severely dehydrated.
She vanished on Monday, along with her children Lauren Woo, 5, Nathan Woo, 3, and Leah Woo, 1. Her husband Brandon said she had disappeared on an ordinary day and described her as a 'rock' and a 'lioness'.
But locals who knew the woman say she seemed 'overwhelmed' and 'depressed'.
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Mystery: Christine Thi Woo (pictured, left) was found dead in her SUV in a SuperTarget parking lot at about 6:30 pm Thursday. Her children Lauren Woo, 5, Nathan Woo, 3, and Leah Woo, 1, were found alive by her side
Discovery: Pictured here is the SUV where Woo was discovered with her children. Her cause of death is unknown at this time but her body had no signs of trauma
Quynh Chau, who runs a nonprofit called The Source of Hope, told WFAA 8 that Christine Woo had recently contacted her and seemed depressed. She said the mother had promised to attend an event to help the homeless but didnt show up.
'She cried out to us and I could hear that in the sense of her voice,' Chau told News 8 hours before SUV was found. 'I wish so much that I could do something to reach out to her.'
And an employee of Frisco music school 7 Notes said to The Dallas Morning News that she seemed 'overwhelmed'.
The Woos took their kids to 7 Notes each Saturday, where Christine would take Lauren for piano lessons while Brandon would accompany Nathan and Leah to baby and toddler classes.
'She just loved her kids,' 7 Notes director Eileen Tan said. 'The whole family was into it.'
Tan described Christine Woo's enthusiasm for Lauren's piano lessons as 'gung ho' in an interview with CBS DFW Friday.
But Tan's executive assistant, Charde Carbonell, said that Christine Woo's enthusiasm had waned dramatically since the kids enrolled in December.
She said the mom had talked to her on the phone for weeks gathering information before enrolling the children, but the parents' visits became inconsistent, and they would ask to 'take a break' or skip lessons.
'She seemed overwhelmed,' Carbonell said.
Medical check: The three children were taken to the hospital for extreme dehydration after being found in this car. Leah was in critical condition Friday; all three children also had rashes from sitting in their own waste
But husband Brandon Woo, speaking to CBS DFW on Thursday while his wife was still missing, insisted there were no problems with their marriage and that she had no reason to run away from home.
'Shes a loving mother, a great wife. Shes the most stable person you could ever meet,' he said.
He also told WFAA, 'She's like a lioness, she would fight for her kids, she would never hurt her kids at all.'
And in another conversation with the station, he said: 'Shes the rock of the family. Shes the most level head. Im the one who gets emotional, always worried about finances or this and that. Shes the one that says, "Well figure it out."'
He also said that she was in 'good spirits and good health' when he saw her Monday morning and that he didn't know anything was wrong until he got home from work.
'I kissed them goodbye as I always do, went out the door like I always do, come home that day and they were gone. Not there,' he told Fox.
'Got to the house, no kids, no wife, so Im thinking, "OK they may be out at the playground, shopping, somewhere," so I give her a call, call her cellphone. Cellphone rings in the other room,' he told NBC5.
He told WFAA that Christine had left the house secured, without packing suitcases or even taking a bottle for their baby. 'She had every reason to come home,' he told the station.
'Lioness': 'Husband Brandon Woo described his wife as a 'rock' and a 'lioness' who was fiercely protective of her children. He also said she was 'the most stable person you could ever meet'
Christine Woo's body was found in her SUV in the parking lot of a SuperTarget department store in the Dallas suburb of McKinney about 6:30 pm on Thursday.
Police spokesman Jeff Inmon says an autopsy will be conducted to determine how the woman died, though there were no signs of trauma on her body, according to the Dallas News.
Information is expected to be released by the Collin County Medical Examiner next week.
Her three children were alive but suffering from extreme dehydration, and also a severe body rash from sitting in their own filth for days, CBS DFW said Friday.
The station also said one-year-old Leah was in critical condition. All three were taken to the Childrens Medical Center in Plano.
Brandon Woo had reported his wife and children missing on Tuesday afternoon, mistakenly believing that missing persons could not be reported for 24 hours.
He had received text messages saying that Christine Woo had used her credit card at a Walgreens near her home.
She was also seen on security footage at Walgreen's, and she and her children were later spotted on video at a McDonald's just across the road from the lot where her body was found.
Police said earlier in the week that the family does not have a history of problems nor did Woo have any known medical or mental issues.
CCTV: Woo and her children were seen in surveillance at a Walgreens, pictured, near her home. They were later spotted at a McDonald's across the road from where her body was found
The Dallas Morning News spoke to friends and neighbors of the family, who said Brandon Woo is a quiet man and the 'breadwinner' of the home.
Conversely, Christine Woo was described as an outgoing woman who would help out people in the community, and had recently started attending a women's Bible study at Stonebriar Community Church.
'She was a very lovely person and a sweet soul,' Elle Bonner, who lives next door to the family, told the paper.
The death of Woo hit the Frisco community hard. 'We are doing all we know how to do right now - a lot of prayer, tons of prayer,' Carol Spencer of Stonebriar told CBS DFW.
She added that the church had sent Sunday school teachers to the hospital to be available for the children and their father. 'Were doing all we can for this family. Such a sad situation for all of us. Our hearts are just broken.'
Brandon Woo released a statement through the Plano Childrens Medical Center that read, 'Thank you for your thoughts and concern for the well-being of my family.
'We request that everyone please respect our privacy as we focus on healing.'
The Dallas News reported that Christine Woo, nee Nguyen, was a Vietnamese-American from San Antonio who graduated from Texas A&M University in 1999 with a business degree.
She and her husband owned a home in the city for eight years until they sold it in 2014 and moved into a 3,350-square-foot home in a family-friendly neighborhood near McSpedden Elementary School in Frisco.
The European Union is a threat to patient safety because it will soon prevent hospitals from making vital checks on doctors, a former health minister warns today.
Unless Britain votes to leave the EU, the NHS will have to employ European doctors without being able to check their qualifications in as little as two years, MP Gisela Stuart said.
This is because of the planned introduction of European Professional Cards, due to come into force for doctors in 2018. These will allow medics to work in the NHS without having their qualifications checked.
Mrs Stuart also said that without a Brexit, the UK will never be able to carry out systematic language tests on all doctors currently working in the country.
Unless Britain votes to leave the EU, the NHS will have to employ European doctors without being able to check their qualifications in as little as two years, MP Gisela Stuart said (file image)
Under European rules, hospitals are only allowed to test those who moved to Britain after 2014.
New figures show that in the past two years, 900 doctors from the continent have been turned down for work in UK hospitals or GP practices because their English is not good enough.
The Vote Leave campaign group says this suggests that hundreds of doctors from the continent may already be working in the UK without sufficient English skills because they came before language tests began.
Almost 11 per cent of doctors working in the UK were first registered in another European country.
The issue of doctors being able to speak English to a high standard has been prominent since the case of Dr Daniel Ubani, a German citizen who in his first GP locum posting in the UK unlawfully killed a 70-year-old man with a lethal dose of diamorphine.
He was allowed to treat patients despite having a poor grasp of English, leading to the death of pensioner David Gray in 2008.
Mrs Stuart, a health minister between 1999 and 2001, said she was particularly concerned about European Professional Cards for doctors, agreed at an EU level.
They mean UK regulators will have to give applicants licences to practise without first checking they have the necessary qualifications and have not lied on forms or been suspended.
Dr Daniel Ubani, a German citizen who in his first GP locum posting in the UK unlawfully killed a 70-year-old man with a lethal dose of diamorphine
The General Medical Council, Britains regulator, has warned that the cards could put patient safety at risk because the NHS will have to rely on European regulators to do the checks on its behalf.
Mrs Stuart, one of the few Labour MPs to support the Vote Leave campaign, told the Mail: This is not about being anti-immigration. We know the health service relies on a lot of doctors trained abroad, but this is about delivering proper healthcare and our ability to insist on proper standards which the professional bodies deem to be important.
The GMC has stood us in good stead for years, and if they are worried, then so should we be.
Almost 11,000 European doctors and nurses were granted permission to work in the NHS in 2014, and numbers are rising because of under-staffing.
Niall Dickson, chief executive of the GMC, urged David Cameron to include the issue of patient safety in his EU renegotiation, but the Prime Minister ignored him.
Mrs Stuart said: This is not something dreamt up by politicians. A seriously respected person at the GMC is worried about this. They say it is a problem and is likely to become more of a problem.
This extension of the professional cards to doctors is something the European Commission will do. However much concern we have, it is they who will decide.
She added: The current debate is all about scaremongering. This isnt doing that it is stating the facts.
What were moving towards is this European Professional Card that recognises their qualifications without checking them.
The GMC said last year that the cards would mean it would be unable to test the language skills of temporary doctors. However, yesterday it said its concerns had been addressed, meaning it is only worried about qualifications and safety checks.
Mrs Stuart said: It is vital the doctors and nurses have the language skills to take a patients history and communicate with them to find out their care needs. The doctor-patient relationship is more important than almost anything else.
When the Government is talking about how physical and mental health are of equal status, surely language is important there. And it puts pressure on other professionals if some of the staff cannot speak English well.
The cards are already in force for nurses, and while the European Commission has not yet made a final decision on their introduction for doctors, it is expected to happen in 2018.
A Department of Health source said: No decision has been taken on whether this will actually be introduced for doctors.
In 2010, after an inquest found that Mr Gray, of Manea, Cambridgeshire, had been unlawfully killed, an arrest warrant was issued for Ubani.
But he had returned to Germany and a deal was reached under which he was sentenced there. He got a nine-month suspended jail term and a fine for a lesser charge of causing death by medical negligence.
One is a favorite childhood pet and the other is a kitchen staple, but can you tell the difference between the two when a potato is hidden in a crowd of hamsters?
That's what Mashable's Watercooler wanted to find out in the latest image to join the Where's Waldo-esque craze of drawings with hidden images currently sweeping the internet.
The illustration, created by Max Knoblauch, features a number of hamsters in various states of happiness, with a few dressed up in wacky costumes to throw off guesses.
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The illustration, created by Max Knoblauch, features a number of hamsters in various states of happiness, with a few dressed up in wacky costumes to throw off guesses
There's bridal hamster, complete with a veil and a smile, a rodent in a red clown nose, and one even wearing a Mets jersey.
But nestled behind two hamsters that aren't dressed up at all is the potato in the fourth row from the bottom and four spots from the right.
In another Knoblauch illustration, the reader is challenged to find Doc Brown, Christopher Lloyd's character in the Back to the Future films, amid dozens of Bernie Sanders.
But nestled behind two hamsters that aren't dressed up at all is the potato in the fourth row from the bottom and four spots from the right
In another Max Knoblauch illustration, the reader is challenged to find Doc Brown, Christopher Lloyd's character in the Back to the Future films, amid dozens of Bernie Sanders
But people may find this one a little easier, as Doc Brown's circular glasses are a dead giveaway in the sea of Sanders.
Hungarian cartoonist Gergely Dudas is to credit for the surging trend of sweet and silly illustrations sweeping the internet and asking people to find the likes of eggs, pandas and owls.
Dudas most recently released an Easter-themed image that disguised an egg among a cluster of bunnies.
The image was shared more than 7,000 times after Dudas posted it on his Facebook page last week.
People may find this one easier, as Doc Brown's circular glasses are a dead giveaway in the sea of Bernies
Hungarian cartoonist Gergely Dudas challenged fans to find the Easter egg hidden in this group of bunnies
As it typical with his drawings the cartoonist, who goes by the name of Dudolf, has thrown in a few red herrings to keep those trying to solve the puzzle distracted.
One of the rabbits wears a top hat, two others hold a tin of paint while a fourth munches on a carrot, drawing the eye away from the real prize - the elusive egg.
The peach-colored egg is actually located towards the left hand edge of the drawing, two rows up from the bottom, hiding behind a white rabbit's head.
Since being posted on hid Facebook page on Friday morning the image has attracted almost 4,000 likes and has been shared more than 2,000 times
Dudas, or Dudolf as he is known when drawing, spawned the Where's waldo-style internet puzzle craze back in December last year when he asked fans to find the panda hidden in these snowmen
Jan Josleyn wrote: 'I am always very good at these but ... I sure can't say that NOW. this one almost got the best of me!'
Meanwhile Peggy Prawdzik praised the artist, saying: 'Dudolf - You're the smile this world needs. Thanks for your posts!'
Dudolf first found fame in December last year with his drawing of a crowd of snowmen with a panda hiding in their midst that was shared hundreds of thousands of times.
The image of the panda was shared hundreds of thousands of times as it captivated internet users who eventually found him here
Capitalizing on his new-found fame, Dudolf quickly followed up with this image of wide-eyed owls, this time challenging people to find the cat concealed among them
The Where's Waldo-style cartoon was quickly followed up by another featuring cats and owls, before several imitators added their contributions.
Reddit user Oneste stuck with the panda theme, but this time drew the fuzzy creature hiding among a group of Stormtroopers to mark the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
There amongst Imperial troops including Stormtroopers, Speeder Biker riders and Snowtroopers, is a single panda with the same black and white colouring as the other figures.
Then, in February this year to mark Oscar season, illustrator Michael Rogalski hid a golden statuette among a group of C3PO droids from the Star Wars films and drove the internet mad looking for it.
The key to tracking the elusive feline down proved to be the difference between the owls' beaks and the cat's Y-shaped mouth (pictured)
The popularity of Dudolf's illustrations quickly spawned imitators, including illustrator Michael Rogalski who tasked people with finding the Oscar among these C3POs
Reddit user Oneste also got in on the act by hiding another panda in among this group of Stormtroopers
The statuette's different facial expression turned out to be the key to finding him in this drawing
A Gold Coast 'bikie' has been charged with torturing a man who fell six stories onto a strip club.
Marcus Lopez was left in a critical condition after he plunged from the balcony of a Surfer's Paradise unit onto the roof of Hollywood Showgirls last year.
Self-proclaimed Bandido Trent Bevin, 39, was charged with assault occasioning bodily harm over the incident.
Trent Bevin, 39, has been charged with the assault and torture of Marcus Lopez who fell six stories from an apartment
Witnesses say Bevin tortured Mr Lopez before he fell from Gold Coast unit
On Friday, Bevin appeared at Southport Magistrates Court to face an additional charge of torture.
A new version of events has been provided by witnesses, contradicting Bevin's account, and alleging he tortured Mr Lopez, The Gold Coast Bulletin reported.
Prosecutor Senior Constable Donna Minns said police were seeking medical evidence to show that Mr Lopez's injuries, particularly to his eye, were not all a result of the fall.
Bevin claims to be a member of the Bandido bikie gang, but legal aid solicitor Lauren Heaney told the court there was no evidence to prove Bevin was a member of the Bandidos.
One of the witnesses who witnessed the alleged torture said she called members of the Bandidos to help the victim, Ms Heaney said.
'They've confirmed via forensic and phone examinations the defendant was actually being threatened by one of the witnesses that they were going to set members of criminal organisations on him,' she was quoted as saying by the Gold Coast Bulletin.
Mr Bevin's Facebook page has numerous posts about the Bandidos, but other people who appear to be connected to the gang frequently dispute the claim in comments.
Universities are failing in their legal duty to combat campus extremism following rising numbers of events involving radical speakers, it has been claimed.
Twenty-seven lectures featuring guests with extremist views took place at London institutions between September 2015 and January this year a rise of seven in 12 months.
The majority went ahead with no one else on the platform to 'provide any kind of balance', according to the Henry Jackson Society's Student Rights project.
One speaker was invited to address students at King's College London despite having claimed that homosexuality was 'evil', an 'abomination' and a 'criminal act'.
A speaker at the Institute of Education included Moazzam Begg, director of outreach at CAGE, an organisation with a long history of defending convicted terrorists
The report said this event was originally cancelled last September and 'rescheduled', eventually taking place in January this year.
Another speaker was invited to London South Bank University even though they had previously claimed 'Jews are evil'.
The disturbing findings come despite the introduction last year of new legislation requiring universities to comply with the Government's 'Prevent' programme for tackling extremism.
The legislation was prompted by the terror activities of ex-London students including Mohammed Emwazi, dubbed 'Jihadi John', who was killed in a US air strike and 'underpants bomber' Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.
The report says: 'Too many institutions are still allowing events featuring extreme or intolerant speakers to go ahead without ensuring adequate challenge.
'While it is important that universities ensure compliance with their statutory responsibility to protect freedom of expression, it is not enough to state... that the 'events were legal', or that they do not believe any of the recorded content from the events was extreme.'
Universities named in the report include University College London, the Institute of Education, King's College, Kingston University and London's School of Oriental and African Studies.
Claims by some speakers included assertions the 'Prevent' policy was part of a 'racist white supremacist agenda' and that terrorist atrocities had been fabricated, the report warned.
An event at Kingston University included former student Bashir Ibrahim who claimed the security services' 'modus operandi' was harassing Muslims, using the cases of Emwazi and Lee Rigby's killer, Michael Adebolajo, to support his allegations.
One speaker was invited to address students at King's College London despite having claimed that homosexuality was 'evil', an 'abomination' and a 'criminal act'
A speaker at the Institute of Education included Moazzam Begg, director of outreach at CAGE, an organisation with a long history of defending convicted terrorists.
A terrorism case against Begg collapsed in October 2014 but he accepted he had been in Syria training fighters, the report claimed.
Another speaker at the School of Oriental and African Studies was south African politician Julius Malema convicted of 'hate speech' in South Africa for saying a rape victim must have had a 'nice time' and for his campaign song 'Shoot the Boer'.
Campus chiefs yesterday said they comply with the new law and are committed to protecting students from radicalisation while maintaining open debate.
But Student Rights director, Rupert Sutton, said: 'Given the history of UK campus radicalisation, university action hasn't been good enough.
'Institutions must ensure at minimum that any extreme speakers invited there face balanced platforms and robust challenge.'
The Higher Education Funding Council for England is responsible for monitoring universities' compliance with their new legal duty to prevent extremism.
Institutions had until yesterday to submit the policies and procedures they will use to achieve this.
Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio may be banned from returning to Indonesia over his criticisms that palm oil plantations are destroying the country's rainforests and endangering wildlife, an immigration official said Saturday.
The Oscar-winning actor and passionate environmentalist visited various local wildlife organisations during his visit last weekend and shared a number of impassioned posts to his combined 36 million followers, claiming the palm oil industry was 'destroying' the Indonesian ecosystems.
Heru Santoso, the spokesman for the Directorate General for Immigration at the Law and Human Rights Ministry, said that DiCaprio used his visit to discredit the palm oil industry and the Indonesian government.
'We support his concern to save the Leuser ecosystem,' Santoso said. 'But we can blacklist him from returning to Indonesia at any time if he keeps posting incitement or provocative statements in his social media.'
Oscar-winning actor and passionate environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio (pictured) has come under fire by the Indonesian government for criticising palm oil plantations
DiCaprio visited various local wildlife organisations during his visit last weekend and shared a number of impassioned posts to his combined 36 million followers
Santoso said companies and organizations that objected to DiCaprio's comments have the right to request that immigration authorities bar him from reentering Indonesia, though none have done so yet.
He said DiCaprio entered and left Indonesia legally with a proper visa and immigration documentation.
DiCaprio and his entourage arrived on a private jet at Kualanamu Airport on the island of Sumatra on March 26, and the group took a helicopter to the protected park, and left the island a day later.
The celebrated director uploaded multiple pictures to his Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages, most with the hashtag #SaveLeuserEcosystem.
'Palm Oil expansion is destroying this unique place. Now is the time to save the Leuser Ecosystem. We must develop a permanent solution to protect and restore this valuable natural asset,' he wrote beneath a photo with several volunteers.
His criticism caused Indonesian officials to accuse the actor of participating in a 'black campaign' and announced they have the authority to 'deport foreigners that violate their visa terms'
DiCaprio also uploaded a picture of himself holding hands with a Sumatran Orangutan, saying the species are on the brink of extinction due to the widespread deforestation.
In a few of his posts, the 41-year-old linked to a Change.org petition titled 'Save The Leuser Ecosystem, Save Our Planet!'
The petition, addressed to Indonesian president Joko Widodo, urged for action to be taken on ensuring the Leuser Ecosystem was protected for future generations. It has garnered more than 50,000 signatures.
The celebrated director uploaded multiple pictures to his Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages, most with the hashtag #SaveLeuserEcosystem
'Palm Oil expansion is destroying this unique place. Now is the time to save the Leuser Ecosystem. We must develop a permanent solution to protect and restore this valuable natural asset,' he wrote beneath a photo with several volunteers
Along with fellow actors Adrien Brody and Fisher Stevens, DiCaprio toured Gunung Leuser National Park in Aceh as part of his visit.
DiCaprio is not the first Hollywood actor to come under fire from the Indonesian government over deforestation campaigning.
WHAT IS PALM OIL? Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil that comes from the fruit of the oil palm. The trees grow in tropical areas high in humidity and with suitable rainfall. It takes between three and four years for the fruit to develop on each tree. Palm oil is high in saturated fats and is a common ingredient in margarine, biscuits, breads, cereals, shampoos, detergents, chocolates and ice creams, according to the World Wide Fund (WWF). It is the most widely used vegetable oil in the world. Due to its profitability, oil palm plantations has led to deforestation across Indonesia and Malaysia - which make up for 87 per cent of the world production of palm oil. Advertisement
In September 2013, Harrison Ford was accused of 'harassing state institutions' after he travelled to Indonesia to film an episode for a climate change documentary called Years of Living Dangerously.
After an interview about deforestation became heated, forestry minister Zulkifi Hasan threatened to have Ford deported 'if necessary'.
According to the Palm Oil Investigations website, 10 per cent of the world's rainforests are located in Indonesia and in the last decade deforestation has resulted has eradicated 34 per cent of the forest.
The oil palm grows in tropical areas high in humidity and with suitable rainfall. It takes between three and four years for the fruit to develop on each tree.
More than 50 orangutans are killed each week due to large areas of rainforest being cleared to make room for oil palm crops, according to the website.
DiCaprio is not the first Hollywood actor to come under fire from the Indonesian government over deforestation campaigning after Harrison Ford (right) was accused of 'harassing state institutions' in 2013 while filming climate change documentary
In a few of his posts, the 41-year-old linked to a Change.org petition titled 'Save The Leuser Ecosystem, Save Our Planet!' addressed to Indonesian president Joko Widodo (pictured)
According to the Palm Oil Investigations website, 10 per cent of the world's rainforests are located in Indonesia and in the last decade deforestation has resulted has eradicated 34 per cent of the forest
Palm Oil Investigations say the animals are often run over by excavation equipment, doused in petrol and burnt alive or shot with air guns.
'When [poachers] find an adult female orangutan with her baby, they will usually kill the 'mother' and take away the baby for pet or sale,' a spokesperson from the Centre For Orangutan Protection (COP) said.
More than 87 per cent of the world production of palm oil comes from Indonesia and Malaysia.
The Leuser Ecosystem, in the provinces of Aceh and North Sumatra on the island of Indonesia, covers 6.5 million acres and is threatened by the industrial development for palm oil.
Palm oil is high in saturated fats and is a common ingredient in margarine, biscuits, breads, cereals, shampoos, detergents, chocolates and ice creams, according to the World Wide Fund (WWF).
Palm oil is high in saturated fats and is a common ingredient in margarine, biscuits, breads, cereals, shampoos, detergents, chocolates and ice creams
A grandfather who spent years hoarding vintage Rawlplugs has sold the lot for 1,500 to the boss of the company.
Peter Barnard, 67, decided to pull the plug on his collection, featuring hundreds of the wall fixings as well as magazines, promotional items, display cabinets and tools dating back as far as the 1920s.
It was bought at a Leicester auction by David Harvey, the managing director of Rawlplug Ltd. He plans to put the plugs on display at the firm's base in Glasgow.
He faced stiff opposition from a representative from an American-based wall fixing company who was bidding on the lot.
Peter Barnard (pictured with his wife Jane), 67, sold his collection, featuring hundreds of the wall fixings as well as magazines, promotional items, display cabinets and tools dating back as far as the 1920s
The collection was bought at a Leicester auction by David Harvey, the managing director of Rawlplug Ltd. He plans to put the plugs on display at the firm's base in Glasgow. Pictured, pre-war boxes
Mr Harvey said the sale was a great opportunity to buy some of its past back and will be putting it on display at the company's base in Glasgow.
'The company has been sold many times over the years and its heritage has been lost,' he said.
'When we saw these items come up for sale we saw it as an opportunity to secure some important pieces from our heritage and put them on display.
'There are lots of little things in the collection that are of little value but are quite important as far as we are concerned.
'But the main item was a wooden display box that would have been used as a sales aid at a hardware store before the 1940s.
'It would have been on the counter and filled with plugs of different shapes and sizes to help the customer decide which type they needed.
Mr Harvey faced stiff opposition from a representative from an American-based wall fixing company who was bidding on the lot. Pictured, some of Mr Barnard's oldest tins
Rawlplug even branched out into soldering irons in the 1930s. Pictured, one of the firm's soldering irons
Founder John Rawlings invented the Rawlplug in 1911 to attach fittings to the British Museum's walls without damaging the masonry. Pictured, Rawlplug 'How to guides'
They are now sold in roughly 50 countries around the world. In the UK Rawlplug Ltd supplies via distributors B&Q, Jewsons, Screwfix and Travis Perkins. Pictured, Rawlplug 'How to guides'
'The display case is still reasonably complete.'
Mr Barnard, from Gillingham in Dorset, said he now planned to take a break from hoarding, adding: 'I don't think my wife will be too happy if I start collecting anything else.'
He continued: 'I just hope whoever bought it likes Rawlplugs as much as me and hopefully it'll be put on display for everyone to enjoy.'
Founder John Rawlings invented the Rawlplug in 1911 to attach fittings to the British Museum's walls without damaging the masonry.
The ringleader of a trafficking gang that smuggled more than 1,000 migrants into the UK is wanted in Europe over a murder, a court heard yesterday.
Ukrainian Marjan Skirko allegedly ran a gang which illegally transported his fellow countrymen in lorries across Europe to Britain for more than a year.
The 33-year-old, who lives in the UK, is accused of murdering a Lithuanian lorry driver in Belgium last year.
The driver, who was one of the smugglers, was found stabbed and strangled in a motorway rest area on a popular trafficking route.
Ukrainian Marjan Skirko, 33, appeared at an extradition hearing at Westminster Magistrates Court, pictured, on murder and smuggling charges (file picture)
Skirko, who has been linked to the murder through telephone records, appeared at an extradition hearing at Westminster Magistrates Court yesterday.
Belgian officials are seeking to extradite him on murder and smuggling charges.
From 2014, his gang allegedly charged Ukrainians up 3,200 to obtain temporary visas to visit passport-free Schengen Zone countries, such as Belgium.
They were then taken to a safe house and provided with fake or stolen passports usually Polish so they could get into the UK via France, it was said.
The gang told the migrants to change their hairstyles to appear more European.
Hannah Hinton, a lawyer acting for the Belgian authorities, told the court: The request for extradition relates to the requested persons alleged involvement in the murder of a Lithuanian lorry driver on May 7, 2015.
A body was found with several stab wounds and chest marks around his neck indicating strangulation.
The victim was discovered in a parking lot on a route on a motorway that route is used by people smugglers to smuggle Ukrainians via Belgium.
She added that the gang had been active since August 2014 and smuggled Ukrainians into Britain at a rate of up to three a day.
Skirko is accused of murdering a Lithuanian lorry driver and is currently being held at Wandsworth Prison, pictured, while fighting attempts to extradite him to Belgium (file picture)
Miss Hinton said other men suspected of involvement in the gang have also been arrested, adding: It is Mr Skirkos alleged role in this organisation which is the reason for the request for extradition.
Skirko who was arrested in Battersea, south London, and has been held in Wandsworth Prison since January is challenging the attempt to extradite him.
David Rhodes, defending, said his client should be released because Belgian authorities have not decided if they are going to pursue charges against him.
If there is no decision to prosecute this man then we must discharge him. Extradition cannot be used as a way of detaining a man in custody, he said.
Its not suggested that this man has been to Belgium. He is alleged to be the man pulling the strings from this country and giving certain orders by a telephone.
She is the first of the three to be
A 15-year-old girl has been found guilty of the first-degree kidnapping of an 86-year-old great-grandmother last November.
KateLynn Kenfield is the first of teen to be tried and convicted in the abduction of Hazel Abel, the elderly great-grandmother of 16-year-old Dyllan Martin, who is charged in the kidnapping.
Abel was allegedly kidnapped by her own teenage great-grandson and driven for more than 200 miles in the trunk of her own car.
I dont know how he could do that to me, Able said.
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KateLynn Kenfield (right), 15, is the first teen charged in the kidnapping of 86-year-old Hazel Abel last November
Kenfield was found guilty of first-degree kidnapping in juvenile court and faces the sentencing phase of her trial next
Abel, of Kennewick, Washington, did not know who her kidnappers were during her six-hour ordeal after she was grabbed from her doorstep on November 2.
The teens are believed to have discussed killing Abel and using her vehicle as a getaway car, police and prosecutors allege.
Kenfield, who was 14 at the time of abduction, was charged and convicted in juvenile court.
The 15-year-old also was found guilty of second-degree theft of a vehicle.
In delivering the verdict, Kenfield's attorneys asked for the decision to be written rather than read aloud so the lawyer could explain the court's judgment to his young client.
The court eventually decided to read the verdict out loud.
Abel (pictured), was thrown in the trunk of her car by Kenfield, Billy Underwood and Abel's own great-grandson Dyllan Martin, 16
Hazel Abel spoke out after police told her it was her own great-grandson Dyllan Martin (right) who kidnapped her with his friends Billy Underwood (left) and KateLynn Kenfield
'This is part of why this country is going to hell in a hand basket. We Kardashianize everything,' he attorney said, apparently angered by the court's decision, according to the Tri-City Herald.
The teens used one of Abel's aprons to cover her head before shoved her and her dog Tessa into the trunk and drove to the Portland area.
Abel spoke out to say she doesnt know if she will ever be able to forgive the boy.
I dont know how he could that to me, she tearfully told KPTV. This is family.
She added: I had told Dyllan that I love him and things but I guess that doesnt matter.
Abel said she had been praying her assailants would run out of gas because she was convinced they were plotting to kill her.
I had no idea where I was, where they were going to take me and what they were going to do once they got me there, because I felt they would kill me, she added.
Chillingly, the teenagers had taken a butcher knife from her own kitchen with them.
According to authorities, they drove her all the way to Wood Village, near Portland, Oregon.
But she was able to escape when they stopped at a Walmart at which point, Abel managed to untie her hands, pull a cord to pop the trunk and ran inside for help.
The 86-year-old, of Kennewick, Washington, says she doesnt know if she will ever be able to forgive her great-grandson after her terrifying ordeal on November 2
Abel said she had been praying her assailants would run out of gas because she was convinced they were plotting to kill her
The great-grandmother was stuffed into the trunk of her own car along with her dog Tessa (pictured)
Although she was not physically injured in the incident, Martin and his friends will be tried as adults due to the serious nature of the crimes.
And Abel is still not sure why she was targeted, but told KOIN: I just cannot understand why and the only reason I can give for it that they wanted money and they wanted my car.
Martin, 16, along with his friend Billy Underwood, 15, appeared in court last week on suspicion of first and second-degree kidnapping, robbery, joy riding and reckless endangering.
Investigators heard chilling confessions from Martin and Underwood who said they had even considered killing Abel and setting fire to the car with her body still inside.
According to authorities, they drove her all the way to Wood Village, near Portland, Oregon, but she was able to escape when they stopped at a Walmart
She was kidnapped from her own Kennewick, Washington home (pictured) on November 2 at 8pm
An affidavit revealed they had also considered releasing her three miles into a canyon or knocking her unconscious, before she was able to free herself and escape.
Kenfield told police the friends had wanted to run away to Portland so Martin had suggested they stole his great-grandmother's car.
She claimed the boys had kidnapped Abel while she waited outside. She added that she had opened the trunk slightly during the trip to check she was still breathing.
Underwood - the Kenfield's boyfriend - later claimed he had helped put the apron over their victim's head and tied her hands after Martin threw dirt in her face.
They then put her in the trunk so there would not be witnesses.
Martin said he had stolen some cash from his great-grandmother the week before.
Abels ordeal began at around 8pm on November 2, when she heard a knock at the door of her home as she was getting ready to watch Dancing with the Stars.
Abel was blindfolded, tied up and stuffed into her own trunk along with her dog before she was driven 200 miles from Kennewick to Wood Village, Oregon
Court documents state that as soon as the octogenarian opened the door, someone threw dirt in her face, covered her eyes and mouth with their hands and pushed her to the ground.
She felt her hands being taped together and something being stuffed in her mouth before her head was covered with an apron.
The great-grandmother was walked out to her own car in her garage before she was lifted up and forced into the trunk of her own car and driven for more than five hours.
She said she had not recognized the voices of her kidnappers.
When she got escaped, she ran into the Walmart store in Wood Village, near Portland - 200 miles away - and told staff to call the police.
There, she was given clothes and food by employees.
The teenagers, who were buying toiletries in the store, fled when they saw Abel had escaped and was talking to a store employee.
But police recognized them from the store's surveillance footage and they were tracked down at a garage across the street.
Abel's neighbors said later they had become concerned about her after they noticed her garage door was open and her car was missing.
She typically only left home to go to the local store or hair salon.
He is about to become public enemy number one for the health and safety brigade, the curse of council jobsworths up and down the land.
No doubt a few sanctimonious tree-huggers will join in, shaking their heads at the mere mention of his name.
But for anyone who has ever felt a little overwhelmed in a big city, or wanted to step out of the rat race for an hour or two, Jack Cooke will be something of an inspiration.
For he is the author of one of the publishing sensations of the year: a book on the joys of climbing a tree in the urban jungle.
For anyone who has ever felt a little overwhelmed in a big city, or wanted to step out of the rat race for an hour or two, Jack Cooke will be something of an inspiration. Pictured, Robert Hardman and Jack Cooke up a tree in Battersea Park, London
Jack Cooke (pictured) is the author of one of the publishing sensations of the year: a book on the joys of climbing a tree in the urban jungle
Aimed squarely at grown-ups, it is not a manual for adrenaline junkies. Rather, it is a celebration of the simple pleasure of exploring just about the only place the modern city-dweller can find solitude these days up a tree. After climbing hundreds of them across London, Jack, 30, has written a guide to 80 of his favourites.
Some are like old friends and all have names The Crows Nest, The Black Horse and so on. Once youve climbed a tree, you do feel a certain sense of ownership, says Jack.
He has even spent a night sleeping in one, a hefty beech tree in Green Park (he strapped himself to the trunk with a harness, just in case he rolled off his perch).
Along the way, hes been chased by dogs which have assumed anything scuttling out of a tree is a squirrel and by squirrels themselves. He once found himself marooned above a graveyard at dusk, like a stranded cat. And he has found evidence of like-minded souls, in the form of graffiti in the most inaccessible reaches of some of Londons tallest trees.
Having followed him up an octopus of a tree, a wonderfully gnarled, straggly Oriental plane called The Corkscrew in Londons Battersea Park, I start to see his point. Its not so much that the city looks different when you are up a tree. Its that it doesnt notice you at all.
Everyone down below will look in every direction except one: up. Every now and then, its good to step back from the city and take some time out, says Jack, whose only advice for would-be Tarzans is to keep things simple.
It is a celebration of the simple pleasure of exploring just about the only place the modern city-dweller can find solitude these days up a tree
Along the way, hes been chased by dogs which have assumed anything scuttling out of a tree is a squirrel and by squirrels themselves
All you need is a book, a sandwich and something to hang up your bag, he explains. He takes a strap or piece of string a briefcase or bag left at ground level is not only vulnerable to thieves, but at greater risk from the cocked leg of a passing dog.
Jack rolls his eyes when I ask about safety equipment. Theres nothing more uncomfortable than climbing in a harness and helmet, he says.
When it comes to kit, nothing beats bare feet: Rubber soles can slip and, wearing something like brogues, you could damage the tree.
Grapple, grope, claw and haul your way up. No true tree climber gives a damn about their dignity. Jack Cooke
His only other basic advice is to remember the way you went up its always harder getting down. The first and greatest challenge is reaching the lowest branch of any given tree, he writes in The Tree Climbers Guide. This is the key that opens the trap door to the attic.
Anything goes, he says. Grapple, grope, claw and haul your way up. No true tree climber gives a damn about their dignity. Its all about conquering the bole, the stretch of trunk that leads up to the crown, where the first branch opens out.
I admit defeat attempting a mighty turkey oak in another part of the park. The bole is at least 15 ft high, with a few nobbly bits to cling to. Jack whizzes up to the crown with relative ease. I cant get a foothold.
Its frustrating, as the whole tree opens up thereafter and Jack is soon in the upper branches. In summer, when the foliage is fully grown, hed be invisible up there.
What about the law? In recent years, there have been absurd cases of community support officers slapping penalty notices on primary schoolchildren found in trees.
Jack once found himself marooned above a graveyard at dusk, like a stranded cat. And he has found evidence of like-minded souls, in the form of graffiti in the most inaccessible reaches of some of Londons tallest trees
Jack's only other basic advice is to remember the way you went up because its always harder getting down
The rules are ambiguous; it seems to depend on local by-laws, says Jack. No ones tried to stop me. His only run-in with police was after a climb in Brompton Cemetery, West London. Id been up a Monterey pine it had a great view of Chelseas stadium and was brushing needles out of my hair when a police car came screaming through the gate.
This cop said: Youve been up a tree. It sounded a bit heavy-handed, until it turned out that someone had reported a suicide attempt. They thought I was going to hang myself.
But no one interrupts us in the course of a mornings ape-like behaviour in Battersea Park. This is a council-run park and a council spokesman says he has no idea what the policy is on tree-climbing.
The Royal Parks, custodian of the capitals best-known open spaces, says it doesnt permit tree-climbing due to the risk to the climber, those below and the tree itself.
The rules are ambiguous; it seems to depend on local by-laws. No ones tried to stop me. Jack Cooke
But enforcement is left to the police, who generally issue a verbal warning, though repeat offenders risk a summons for breach of Royal Parks regulation number 4.4.
For centuries, all this was governed by the oldest law in existence: common sense. Children have been shinning up trees since time immemorial and, with 7.5 million trees in London, I cant see why a few shouldnt enjoy human company.
As adults, few of us have ever considered heaving ourselves into their branches as a means of relaxation. Nor had Jack until a couple of years ago, when he was working in London on the upper floors of an office overlooking Regents Park.
One day, the caretaker left a rooftop skylight open and a curious Jack climbed through it. There was this sea of green below. It just looked different from up there, he says.
During his lunch hour, he went into the park, hopped into a pine and started taking photos on his phone. From then on, I wanted to climb as many trees as I could.
Some were in parks, some in churchyards, some in the middle of roundabouts. He received a few funny looks some people think if an adult is in a tree, he must be some sort of pervert but most people were simply unaware he was there.
Then he had the idea of a book. He wrote a sample chapter and crossed his fingers, only to find five publishing houses were fighting over him.
No one interrupts us in the course of a mornings ape-like behaviour in Battersea Park. This is a council-run park and a council spokesman says he has no idea what the policy is on tree-climbing
Books that help us reconnect with our youth are all the rage. Hence the demand for grown-up colouring-in pads and Ladybirds new books for adults, which use artwork from the classic childrens series in titles such as The Husband and The Hangover.
The originality of Jacks idea, along with his lyrical style, secured him a whopping advance reported to be in the region of 75,000 from HarperCollins.
I was reading my book and suddenly, I started getting hit. It was a squirrel bombarding me with nut shells. He thought it was his tree. And I suppose it was. Jack Cooke
So was he a keen tree-climber in his youth? Not particularly. I grew up on a potato farm in Suffolk and most of the big trees had been blown down in the 1987 hurricane.
Packed off to prep school in Oxfordshire, followed by Harrow, he actually had a fear of heights. I got terrible vertigo doing rock-climbing on some cliffs. After university in York and a course in Japanese history in London, he was working for an Anglo-Japanese charity when the tree-climbing began.
From the outset, he has stuck to a general rule not to climb any protected trees: I leave the old and venerable to their retirement.
There are delightful sketches throughout the book by illustrator Jennifer Pitchers. She is Jacks wife, and was pregnant with their son during most of his research. She remains happier on terra firma.
His climbing can be alarming for those on the ground not least for the two men sharing a reefer below a tree in Regents Park one evening. I had been up there for a while, and I waited and waited. But they carried on smoking so, in the end, I dropped down to the ground. There was this terrible scream and they ran off.
Many will love this enchanting book without going near a tree. There will be those who argue that it is the height of irresponsibility
He had a bit of a shock himself when a tree he climbed in Lincolns Inn Fields was already occupied by a middle-aged man in a suit. He was on his lunch break and had decided to get away from it all. Since he was there first, I decided to take a subordinate branch.
Many will love this enchanting book without going near a tree. There will be those who argue that it is the height of irresponsibility.
But none will be as angry as the resident of the maple tree Jack was enjoying in St Johns Wood one day. I was reading my book and suddenly, I started getting hit, he says.
It was a squirrel bombarding me with nut shells. He thought it was his tree. And I suppose it was.
Banner was held up by Collingwood fans and read 'STOP THE MOSQUES'
An anti-Islam banner was also displayed at Friday's game
Richmond player Bachar Houli was allegedly racially abused during Friday night's Collingwood-Richmond AFL game.
The AFL is investigating the alleged vilification of Houli, a Muslim, after it was made aware of it this morning, The Herald Sun reported.
Officials from Richmond have been contacted by the AFL and game officials will be spoken to about the alleged incident.
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The AFL is investigating claims that Richmond player Bachar Houli, a Muslim, was racially abused on Friday
The banner reads 'GO PIES, STOP THE MOSQUES' and features two logos of the extreme far-right political group United Patriots Front
Friday's game has already been marred by the unfurling of a banner during the second quarter of the match at the MCG in Melbourne that read 'GO PIES! STOP THE MOSQUES' with a prominent logo of the extreme far-right political group United Patriots Front.
Collingwood president Eddie McGuire is calling for those responsible to be banned from attending games.
Both the AFL and Collingwood condemned the banner and said the patrons responsible were evicted by security.
Collingwood president Eddie McGuire said the club would help police with an investigation, according to the AFL website.
'If they have anything to do with our club, they'll be banned,' he said.
'Get these people and make an example of them, they should be banned for life,' he told The Age.
'Get these people and make an example of them, they should be banned for life' - Eddie McGuire condemned the banner
Benjamin Solah posted an image of the banner to Twitter and wrote 'Disgusting that this banner was displayed at #AFLPiesTigers. Are @CollingwoodFC going to come out and condemn it?'
The post was met with a barrage of tweets condemning the banner, labeling it 'disgusting'.
A video taken at the match and posted to the UPF Facebook page with the caption 'Rise Without Fear' shows the banner being hoisted up below one of the MCG's large LED screens.
'If they have anything to do with our club, they'll be banned' - Collingwood president Eddie McGuire said the club would help police with an investigation
Last month UPF chairman Blair Cottrell (pictured) was photographed eating halal food at a Melbourne shopping centre
Others called on the AFL and Collingwood to act and issue life bans from matches to those involved in displaying the banner
Others called on the AFL and Collingwood to act and issue life bans from matches to those involved in displaying the banner.
'Don't promote these clowns. They're a handful of cretins with no power unless you give it to them,' one person wrote.
'Not to mention how the afl can let this be displayed below their scoreboard #AFLPiesTigers' another person wrote.
The AFL issued a statement saying the actions 'no place in society' and the league would also work with police.
'The AFL is aware that an offensive banner was displayed at the MCG during tonight's round two game between Richmond and Collingwood,' a League spokesperson said.
'Match-day security removed the banner when they became aware of it and evicted the patrons responsible.
The group regularly post videos and images to their Facebook page to promote their slogans and messages that primarily discriminates Muslims
'The AFL condemns the behaviour in the strongest terms and such actions have no place in society, and not in our game.'
An MCG spokesperson said the offensive nature of the banner breached conditions of entry.
The UPF campaign heavily against Islamic immigration, proposed mosques and halal food.
Last month chairman Blair Cottrell was photographed eating halal food at a Melbourne shopping centre.
The group regularly post videos and images to their Facebook page to promote their slogans and messages that primarily discriminates against Muslims.
Oregon health officials say they've discovered a small, statistically significant cluster of bladder cancer diagnoses in two North Portland neighborhoods near a glassmaking business.
The state has found 22 cases of bladder cancers in the two regions surrounding Uroboros Glass between 1999 and 2013, about 50per cent more than the expected number.
But not everyone is convinced that the cancers are a direct result of the arsenic Uroboros once used in manufacturing glass, with state officials warning the numbers are drawn from too small a pool.
Oregon health officials say they've discovered a small, statistically significant cluster of bladder cancer diagnoses in two North Portland neighborhoods near Uroboros Glass
According to state figures, 12 people were diagnosed with bladder cancers between 1999 and 2003, more than double the expected figure. But state epidemiologist Katrina Hedberg said the cancers could be a result of any number of things
According to state figures, 12 people were diagnosed with bladder cancers between 1999 and 2003, more than double the expected figure.
These numbers eventually fell to seven cases between 2004 to 2008, and three between 2009 and 2013.
Uroboros owner Eric Lovell became a target after Portland residents blamed the glass manufacturer for emitting harmful pollutants
Only the figures between 1999 and 2003 were found to be statistically significant, and no elevated figures for lung cancer were found, the Oregonian reported.
Katrina Hedberg, the state epidemiologist, said the analysis was too detailed.
She told The Oregonian there were too many other factors in play, and with just 5,300 people in the two neighboring regions of Uroboros, the diagnoses could come down to any number of things.
She said: 'Even if we call them, we can't identify what caused their specific cancer.'
The news comes after a study by the Department of Environmental Quality found high levels of cadmium and arsenic in both the air and moss growing near Uroboros and a second glass manufacturer, Bullseye.
Cadmium can increase the risk of lung cancer, while arsenic can cause bladder, skin and lung cancers.
The finding set off a series of protests, as residents feared for their health, especially after incidents like the Flint water crisis in Michigan.
U.S. Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, who lives near one of the hot spots, described the situation as a public health emergency.
The pollution scare set off a string of protests, but the Oregon Health Authority ran a soil analysis which revealed residents were at low risk of health problems
Residents and clean air activists protest in front of the state's Department of Environmental Quality office in Portland, Oregon, in early March
But a later finding released by the Oregon Health Authority read: 'Results from analysis of soil samples, cancer rates and urine tests indicate Southeast and North Portland residents are at low risk of health problems from exposure to heavy metals in emissions from two glass manufacturing companies.'
Oregon officials previously said rates of metals-related cancers were not elevated among residents living near Bullseye and Uroboros.
Elevated levels of heavy metals in the air prompted a class-action lawsuit against Bullseye and a protest march by concerned residents.
The companies operated within the regulations of the DEQ and the Environmental Protection Agency, but they came under fire after pollutants were detected in nearby regions, sparking a soil test along with other investigations.
Uroboros owner Eric Lovell told KOIN6: 'The real frustrating part for us is that the media has turned it into a "guilty until proven innocent" sensationalism, and so the public has become unnecessarily frightened as a result of that.
Doctors are celebrating the end of a Tennessee law that called for addicted women to face prison time if they were caught using drugs while pregnant.
The Fetal Assault Law stated that women could be charged with aggravated assault, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, if their child was born addicted or harmed by narcotic drugs.
Women who were enrolled and completed an addiction recovery program before birth could avoid jail time or have their convictions removed - even if their newborn child experienced health issues from their drug use.
The Tennessee law deterred Brittany Hudson (pictured|) from seeking help. She ended up delivering her baby in the back of a car, and said the law demonized addicts who desperately wanted help
But doctors who treat addicts said the law, the first and only in the country with an explicit criminal offense for addicted mothers, only put unborn children in more danger.
Expectant mothers feared arrest and avoided prenatal care, exposing their babies to more risks.
'As soon as the law was passed, very quickly I started to see women with drug addictions seeking prenatal care later and later in their pregnancies and seeking treatment for their addiction later in pregnancy,' said Dr. Jessica Young, who runs an outpatient program for pregnant addicts at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
'And what they would tell me is that they would attempt to self-detox at home, attempt to stop at home without any treatment because they were afraid of what would happen if they admitted they had a problem.'
It's not clear how many women have been arrested, in large part because the law created no new reporting obligations on the part of doctors, police or prosecutors, nor did it fund efforts to study the impact.
Neither did the law provide for expanding the programs needed to keep these mothers in treatment and out of jail.
Tennessee does track its number of afflicted newborns - which has not decreased.
Roughly 1,000 babies suffering from drug dependence have been born every year since 2013, when the state began requiring all hospitals to report them to the health department.
Only two-thirds of Tennessee's district attorneys responded to state's Department of Safety and Homeland Security's survey, reporting 97 prosecutions initiated under the law as of last fall.
This means prosecutors responding to the survey may have initiated cases against less than a tenth of these women, on average.
In the Memphis area, that's because prosecutors invoked the law very selectively, only pursuing cases when the babies tested positive and the mothers refused treatment, said Larry Buser, a spokesman for Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich.
The Fetal Assault Law stated that women could be charged with aggravated assault, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, if their child was born addicted or harmed by narcotic drugs
Farah Diaz-Tello, a staff attorney with Advocates for Pregnant Women, said her organization received numerous reports of women avoiding treatment and prenatal care for fear of arrest.
'We've been confident from the beginning that good sense and good medical practice would prevail here, and I hope that this will send a message to other states that are contemplating similar laws that this is the wrong way,' she said.
While the number of babies born dependent on drugs stayed the same, the law did not create more of the treatment centers it required addicted women to seek out.
'It punished women for not finding treatment when there wasn't treatment to be found,' said Mary Linden Salter, executive director of the Tennessee Association of Alcohol, Drug and other Addiction Services.
The Tennessee law deterred Brittany Hudson from seeking help. She ended up delivering her baby in the back of the car on the side of the road in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains.
'I have two kids, and with my first one I went to every (obstetrician) appointment, and this law was not on the books,' Hudson said.
'I can safely say that the reason I did not get OB care was because I was scared. I know from other women as well, because I work in a treatment center, that people are not going to their OBs.'
Hudson's newborn daughter tested positive for opiates in the neonatal intensive care unit.
She became one of the first women to be punished under the law, and her newborn was placed in protective custody.
Hudson spent two weeks behind bars, but even after her release she struggled to find anyone who could help.
She had sought treatment from three different centers after she went to jail, but none would accept payment from TennCare, the state's Medicaid program.
Hudson is now clean and her 17-month-old girl is healthy. Many authorities would credit the threat of jail for making that possible.
But Hudson says her sobriety wasn't achieved because of this law. She believes pregnant addicts desperately want treatment - and should not be demonized.
Nassau County police say 20-year-old Sharon Seudat was arrested Friday
A Long Island, New York, woman has been arrested on a murder charge after police say she suffocated her newborn baby and then stuffed the child's body in a plastic bag.
Nassau County police say 20-year-old Sharon Seudat was arrested Friday.
Detective Capt. John Azzata says officers had been called to her home in Glen Head Thursday morning and found Seudat bleeding profusely.
He says a doctor later realized she had given birth.
Azzata was filmed by CBS New York saying: 'Upon their arrival they found approximately 20-year-old female with excessive vaginal bleeding.
'That female was transported to a local hospital.'
He was filmed saying: 'The ER doctor determined there was a pregnancy involved.'
Police say Seudat, who hid the pregnancy from her parents, initially denied giving birth.
Investigators found the baby's lifeless body in black plastic bag at the home.
Azzata says the child was born alive and was suffocated.
Seudat was expected to be arraigned Saturday.
Police told NBC New York that Seudat's a Nassau Community College student.
Authorities told the TV station the baby's father wasn't in touch with Seudat for some time - and that he didn't know about the pregnancy.
It wasn't immediately clear if she had an attorney who could comment on the allegations.
The parents of a woman who died in January 2012 spoke of their outrage after their son-in-law was acquitted of her murder yesterday.
Ashley Fallis' died from a gunshot wound to the head after the couple hosted a New Year's Eve party with family and friends at their home in Evans, Colorado. Her death was initially ruled a suicide.
But the case was reopened when a neighbor said he heard her husband Tom Fallis confessing to her murder. He was charged with second degree murder but a jury found him not guilty after deliberating for less than four hours on Thursday.
Both her parents expressed their disappointment with the ruling, and Ashley's father Joel Raguindin told ABC's 20/20: 'Part of what I know to be the truth, which is Tom Fallis murdered her, and he is walking free.'
Ashley Fallis died on January 1, 2012 from a gunshot wound in the head that was initially ruled a suicide. Her parents, Jenna Fox (left) and Joel Raguindin (right) told ABC's 20/20 of their shock and disappointment after their son-in-law was acquitted for her murder yesterday
Tom Fallis hugged a member of his defense team after being found not guilty at the Weld District Court in Greeley, Colorado
Tom and Ashley Fallis hosted a New Year's Eve party at their house on December 31, 2011. Guests left after Tom became 'enraged' that Ashley wanted to smoke marijuana and she was found dead hours alter
Tom Fallis, 38, an ex-prison guard, was charged with second-degree murder in 2014 after wife Ashley Fallis was found dead at their home following a heated argument in 2012. Authorities initially said Ashley had committed suicide.
During the trial Chief District Attorney Anthea Carrasco pointed to the blood found in both the couples' bedroom and on Tom's shirt as key evidence of her murder.
Prosecutors said Tom Fallis became 'enraged' when his 28-year-old wife wanted to smoke marijuana during the New Year's Even party they hosted, the Denver Post reported.
But the defendant argued Ashley Fallis had written a suicide note months before, and was unbalanced after failing to take her mental health medication and suffering a miscarriage.
The jury deliberated for less than four hours before the verdict was reached at the Weld District Court and Tom hugged both members of his defense team.
Attorney Iris Eytan then wiped tears from her eyes and thanked the jury, reported ABC News.
Ashley's family fled the courtroom looking upset and angry after the verdict, according to the news channel.
In their first interview after the ruling, Ashley's mother Jenna Fox told 20/20: 'I just cant believe with all the forensic evidence that they had and all the witnesses who heard what they heard that this jury flippantly came up with what they did.'
She described her daughter as 'vivacious' and 'fun', adding Ashley would never have committed suicide.
Her father expressed his shock and told the TV program: 'After all that we have been through over the past four years and this shot at justice, my heart sunk. Even as we left that courtroom, it was like a blur.'
Tom's defense attorney Eytan (left) argued that her client loved his wife and that she took her own life. Chief District Attorney Anthea Carrasco (right) pointed to the blood found in both the couples' bedroom and on Tom's shirt as key evidence she had been murdered
According to the Denver Post, family members said the couple had thrown a New Year's party, but guests left when Tom began yelling at Ashley after she wanted to smoke marijuana.
Discussing the evening in question, Ashley's mom said: 'At the very end of the night, I think that his behavior towards her was very threatening and very volatile and very scary.'
Tom Fallis (mug shot picture above) was arrested in Bloomington, Indiana, in November 2014
Nick Glover, who lived next door to the family, was 15 years old at the time of the shooting and provided a new witness statement during the trial.
He testified that he was '100 per cent' sure he had heard Tom confessing to the crime while listening through an open window.
He said: 'What I heard him saying was, 'Oh my God, what have I done? Oh my God, what have I done?'' before adding: 'He proceeded to say, 'I shot my wife.''
Glover told the court that what he heard was something he was not likely to forget and something that will be embedded in his mind for years to come.
Tom's parents Jim and Anna Fallis also testified to dismiss the claims that their son had confessed to them and said that they came rushing back to the party after he had called them for assistance.
Anna said that she comforted her distraught son following the shooting.
On the night of the incident Tom, who was working as a Weld County corrections officer, called 911 in screaming hysterics to say his wife had committed suicide.
He angrily denied that he had anything to do with his wife's death and Evans Police quickly ruled that Ashley had died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Tom was later shown in a police interview denying scratches across his chest and neck had anything to do with her death - and insisted they were a result of shaving.
Tom was shown in a police interview denying scratches across his chest and neck had anything to do with her death - and insisted they were a result of shaving
'I didn't shoot my wife,' he insisted in the interview, which was recorded.
But Ashley's family never believed she had killed herself and they campaigned for three years for police in Evans, Colorado, to reopen the case.
Tom was arrested in Bloomington, Indiana, in November 2014 and made his first appearance in front of a judge in March 2016.
Ashley's mom testified that her daughter's death was never pursued as a homicide and claimed Tom used his friends in the police department to help him.
Evans Police publicly deny wrongdoing and claim that a thorough investigation took place in 2012.
On the night of the incident Tom, who was working as a Weld County corrections officer, called 911 in screaming hysterics to say his wife had committed suicide
As his situation worsened they put him on the back of a truck to seek help
Gary Peters left the pub to urinate in a nearby bush when he was bitten
Former Gaddafi bodyguard was bitten by a venomous snake in the outback
An Australian bartender bitten in the outback while urinating in a bush is a former bodyguard to Saadi Gaddafi, the infamous bisexual playboy son of late Libyan dictator Muamar Gaddafi.
Gary Peters was enjoying a few beers at the only pub in Gregory, in Queensland's northwest on Wednesday night when he walked outside to 'take a leak,' reported the BBC.
The 52-year-old returned back to the pub with his leg wrapped in a tea-towel after he was struck on his ankle by a poisonous Mulga snake.
A former Gaddafi bodyguard was bitten by a venomous snake on his ankle while urinating in a bush outside a pub in outback Queensland
Fellow pub worker Peta Warden said she 'thought nothing of it' when Mr Peters asked for a shoelace to use as a tourniquet.
'He came back in with a tea towel wrapped around his leg and then told everyone he'd been bitten by a snake,' told AAP.
Although the venom of a Mulga snake is not as dangerous as other Australian snakes it is produced in large quantities.
It was after Mr Peters saw the venom dripping down his foot that he got worried.
An Australian bartender bitten in the outback while urinating in a bush is a former bodyguard to Saadi Gaddafi (pictured), the infamous bisexual playboy son of late Libyan dictator Muamar Gaddafi
'I only got a small dosage [of venom], enough to make me crook. If I had more I would have been in a body bag, I would have been dead,' said Mr Peters.
His workmates immediately began to make a splint and bandage the leg in a bid to reduce the blood flow.
'It was hard to tell just how he was, he'd had a bit to drink, so it was a mixture of alcohol and venom,' Ms Warden told AAP.
But when Mr Peters started to fall in and out of consciousness, friends immediately hoisted him onto the back of of a utility truck tray to drive him to an airstrip 2km away.
Gary Peters workmates immediately administered first aid before placing him on he back of a utility truck and driving him 2km to nearby paramedics
On arrival, Mr Peters was treated by RACQ Careflight paramedics who praised the locals for correctly administering first aid.
Mr Peters was flown 300km to Mt Isa Hospital in a stable condition.
Injured in a town with a population of just 40 people, Mr Peters had a lucky escape.
'I'd only just started working at the pub 10 months prior, it's the first time I'd seen anything like it,' said Ms Warden.
The 52-year-old was then flown to a nearby hospital in a stable condition
Mr Peters was a member of the Australian army protecting visiting dignitaries at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 when he met Saadi Gaddafi.
The 52-year-old continued working as a bodyguard for the dictator's son during the Libyan uprising in 2011.
He also helped Gaddafi defy a United Nations travel ban and flee his besieged compound for Niger.
In 2013 Mr Peters was deported from Canada after a judge ruled found the former bodyguard to be complicit in war crimes and a 'member of the [Libyan] government apparatus'.
Mr Peters was a member of the Australian army protecting visiting dignitaries at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 when he met Saadi Gaddafi (pictured)
Saadi Gaddafi, the bisexual playboy son of the late Libyan dictator Muammar, is now held at a Tripoli jail charged with the murder of a Libyan footballer and coach with Tripolis Al-Ittihad football club in 2005.
The 42-year-old is also under investigation for aiding the 2011 uprising by distributing land mines and weapons and bringing foreign mercenaries to fight.
In August 2015 a video emerged of the third son of the deposed president being tortured by guards but the videos authenticity couldn't be independently verified.
In the clip Gaddafi is seen being hit in the face and on the soles of his feet while blindfolded.
Authorities said Sisk is with her boyfriend Joseph Smith and they fear for the childrens' safety
The children, ages five, six and seven, are believed to be in a stolen 2001 red Ford Focus headed for South Carolina, according to police
Kimberly Sisk, of Norcross, Georgia, is believed to have kidnapped her three children, of whom she does not currently have
A mother is suspected of taking her three children, who she does not have custody of, from their home in Norcross, Georgia.
Police are urgently searching for Kimberly Sisk and her boyfriend Joseph Smith, who are believed to have taken the children from a relative who has custody of the children.
Sisk and Smith are allegedly driving the children to South Carolina in a stolen 2001 red Ford Focus with Georgia license plate PXW 6650.
Kimberly Sisk (right) and her boyfriend Joseph Smith (left) are believed to have abducted Sisk's three children from their guardian in Georgia and fled to South Carolina. Sisk does not have custody of her children
Authorities fear the children, Selena Sisk, five, Kayden Waters, six, and Justin Sisk, seven, are in danger.
They were taken by Sisk and Smith around 2pm on Friday.
Kayden, six, is described as 4'1 and weighs 40lbs, has blond hair and blue eyes.
She was last seen wearing a t-shirt that is pink in the front, black in the back and has silver on both sides. She was also wearing pink tights.
Selena, the five-year-old, is two-feet tall and weighs 21 lbs. She has brown hair and hazel eyes.
Kayden Sisk (left), five, Selena Waters (center), six, and Justin Sisk (right), seven, are believed to have been kidnapped by their mother
She was last seen wearing a white blouse with flowers in pastel colors and green, short leggings.
Sisk's son Justin is four feet tall and weighs 38lbs, has brown hair and blue eyes.
It is not known what he was last wearing but he is missing his front teeth, except for one, and currently has road rash on both arms.
'Based on the information we have at this point about the people involved, that's what leads us to believe the children are in danger,' said Lieutenant Randa Hafez with Norcross Police.
Investigators said Sisk left with one child two days ago, and the guardian believed the child would be returned.
Police urge anyone with information to call 911.
A neighbor says the pair had been arguing in previous months
Prosecutors say Issa threatened his son in the past because he was gay
Amir's mother was also dead on the scene when cops arrived
An LA father shot and killed his son in an act of premeditated murder because of the youth's sexual orientation, prosecutors alleged Friday.
Shehada Khalil Issa, 69, was arrested Tuesday after police arrived at his North Hills home to find the bodies of his son Amir, 29, and his wife, who has not been named, dead.
The Los Angeles County district attorney's office claimed that Issa had threatened to kill his son in the past because of his sexual orientation.
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Arrested: Shehada Khalil Issa of North Hills was arrested Tuesday after allegedly shooting his own son. Prosecutors claim he shot the 29-year-old because he had come out as gay
Police arrived at his North Hills home to find the bodies of his son Amir, 29, (pictured) and his wife, who has not been named, dead
'The murder was committed because of the victim's sexual orientation and because of the defendant's perception of that status and the victim's association with a person and a group of that status,' prosecutors alleged in a statement.
They said that Issa, who has been charged with one count of premeditated murder, used a shotgun in the attack.
Issa is being held without bail and his arraignment is scheduled for April 11; if convicted he may face life in jail.
On his Facebook page Amir spoke about wanting to be called 'Prince Christ' and how the friction within his family
Before Christmas Amir posted an expletive-filled video to his Facebook in which he had a heated debate with two people he identifies as his parents about their sex life. At one point the man, thought to be his father, calls him a pervert and says he should be castrated
Last month Amir ranted about his family on Facebook, writing: 'Every day I wake up feeling like my sister or brother or mother or father is literally controlling me in my sleep. I have no free will.the moment I lose consciousness it feels like they tell people to rape and molest me and make it seem like I enjoy that.
'I was earning over $100k by age 26 and this has negatively impacted my life made ,me live in pain and become unemployed. If there is a devil or evil spirit, I truly believe it manifests itself in my family. My name is Prince Christ.
He added: 'Does it make you feel better abiut yourself to call me names and control me? I dont want to be related to any of these people..nor their relatives watching and advocating this inhumane treatment. They have literally robbed my bank account, lied to courts and doctor to try and label me as mentally ill and failed in their attempts to have me falsely imprisoned and evicted.
'My doctors certified that i have no mental illness and the courts have cleared my good name and I do not have a criminal record. I successfully passed a background check. If there are any good people on this earth, please help free me from this inhumane slavery.'
He spoke about religion and said he had changed his life insurance and work retirement investments to go to 'the church I was born in, the Seventh day adventist church of glendale.'
Before Christmas Amir posted an expletive-filled video to his Facebook in which he had a heated debate with two people he identifies as his parents about their sex life.
At one point the man, thought to be his father, calls him a pervert and says he should be castrated.
'Weapon': Prosecutors claim that a shotgun like the one pictured here, at the scene, was used in the crime
Mother: Amir's mother was also dead when police arrived, although how she died has not been announced by authorities. At present Issa has only been charged with one count of premeditated murder
The investigation is ongoing and prosecutors did not give details about the death of Amir's mother, The LA Times wrote. However, early reports on the attack by
The Daily News Tuesday quote police as saying that she had been stabbed to death.
According to that article, Issa told police that he had found his wife's body, then encountered his son who threatened him with a knife. 'A shooting then took place,' it claimed.
But Operations-Valley Bureau Homicide Detective John Doerbecker, quoted in the article, denied that account. 'The suspect made incriminating statements implicating himself in the death of [the son] and was arrested for murder,' he told the paper.
'He claimed [the son] was armed with a knife, and there was no knife to be found [there]. It was a horrible family tragedy.'
A report by The Daily News on Friday quoted neighbor Maria Gomez as saying she'd heard Issa and his son frequently shouting at one another in recent months.
'Its very difficult to think that something like this can happen in a moment,' she said.
Guidelines have been introduced by meaning that school children are now required to 'take' tests or assessments instead of 'sitting' them.
Taking political correctness to a new level, the unwritten instructions are being used in the annual NAPLAN (National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy) tests.
The changes are based on the fact that not every child may do exams in a seated position.
School are banning the phrase 'sitting a test' and are introducing the term 'taking' instead, to allow for the fact not all students may be seated during tests and examinations
One educator said that there might be children who couldn't sit down for assessments, reported The Daily Telegraph.
'It could be a disabled child or one that has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder who has to answer the questions while standing up.'
The words 'maths' and 'numbers' must also now be referred to as 'mathematics'.
The schools however, have not gone as far as the University of New South Wales, who introduced language guidelines advising students to describe British explorer James Cook's arrival in Sydney as an 'invasion' rather than a 'settlement'.
The university defended their actions, denying it was rewriting history to be politically correct.
'The guide does not mandate what language can be used,' UNSW said in a statement, adding that it offered a range of examples of more and less appropriate language.
'For example the guide suggests referring to Captain Cook as the first Englishman to map the continent's East Coast is 'more appropriate' than referring to his 'discovery' of Australia.'
The words 'maths' and 'numbers' must also now be referred to as 'mathematics' under the new system
The guide notes that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were in Australia long before Captain Cook arrived, making it impossible for him to 'discover' the country.
'Most Aboriginal people find the use of the word 'discovery' offensive,' it added.
The guide likewise says it is more appropriate to describe the arrival of British ships in Australia using terms other than 'settlement'.
The guidelines were blasted by The Daily Telegraph tabloid as a 'whitewash', a reaction that indigenous historian Jackie Huggins said was disappointing.
'We know this country has a colonial history and that certainly has been characterised by a devastating land dispossession, violence and unapologetic racism as well,' she told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
'We cannot deny our history. It's a history that's never fully been taught to us in our country.'
The terms, used during the annual NAPLAN examinations, are being introduced to accommodate disabled children or those that have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
He heard the call come over the radio and raced home but Sam was dead
The paramedic was on an emergency call out of town when his son died
Paramedic Pete Keach, 36, was attending an emergency an hour away from home when an emergency call came through the system that would change his life forever.
Mr Keach's wife Georgie, 37, had called for an ambulance after their little boy Sam was found lifeless in his cot.
Mr Keach knew the call had come in on the emergency line and that it was from a home in his area, but at that stage he did not know the details.
'I heard the call come over the radio and I knew that if it wasn't Sam it would be one of the kids from the mother's group,' Mr Keach, from Rye, Victoria, told Daily Mail Australia.
Pete and Georgie Keach with their son Sam before he died from SIDS in his cot at home
'I tried to call Georgie but the home phone wasn't answering.
'So I tried to call the mobile, it was engaged so I just hoped Georgie was talking to her sister.
'But I found out later she was on the phone to the 000 call centre.'
When he couldn't get on to his wife he contacted despatch who told him the call had been made from his address.
He had only been away from home for 45 minutes and his whole world had changed. His little boy had died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
He immediately arranged to meet another ambulance so the paramedic on board could take over the care of the patient in his care, so he could get home to his family.
The baby boy died when his dad was on an emergency call-out an hour away in the small town's local ambulance
By 10pm he was pulling in to his street.
'It sounds a bit cliche but it was a dark, windy, rainy night,' Mr Keach said.
'I turned the corner and saw three ambulances; their lights lighting up my street like a Christmas tree.
'My ambulance made a total of four.
'I saw my neighbour and father in-law on the deck, by this time I knew the outcome and I could tell they did too.
'When I went into the house I walked past three of my colleagues who had attempted to resuscitate Sam.
'I found Georgie in Sam's room with her mother. We sat there and cuddled him and kissed him.
'He never liked kisses and cuddles much but when he was dead we could give him as many as we wanted and he couldn't squirm away from us.'
Mrs Keach had been sure Sam was dead before she called the ambulance, but wanted to make sure she did everything in her power not to let her first and only child die.
This tragic series of events occurred in June 2012.
Since then the couple have had two girls, Lucy, 1 and Anna, 2 and have learnt a lot about how to prevent SIDS, only relaxing a little when Anna passed the 21-month-mark.
Since Sam's death Georgie, pictured, and Pete have had two more children, Anna, 2, pictured left and Lucy, 1 pictured right
In the past year the paramedic attended his first SIDS call-out since Sam's death.
Attending that incident finally helped Mr Keach see what had happened the night of his own baby's death.
'The way the mother reacted and presented put the whole picture together for me,' he said.
'The family was in shock it was literally like they were having a bad dream and thought they would wake up soon only to realise they were already awake.
He says he wasn't affected by the call-out until he was able to reflect on it when he left the hospital.
'You are in clinical mode when you are on the scene but after I left the hospital I could see parts of the story which were similar,' he said.
Since that call out the couple have decided to be vocal about the SIDS charity.
An organisation which works to save the lives of infants by providing education to parents and funding to SIDS research.
On Friday, April 8, Pete will take part in the Sydney to CAMberra ride which raises money for the charity. Mrs Keach will be the support crew on the ride.
Pete, right, and Sam, left used to go for rides together. Now Pete is embarking on a ride to raise money for the SIDS charity
So far the proud parents have raised more than $19,000 for the charity ride.
'We started off with a goal of $1000.
'But now we don't have a goal, we are happy for every extra cent.'
The dad has been training hard for the event, riding 200kms a week to get ready for the grueling ride.
'One morning I got up at 1am and rode 177kms to Melbourne and back before breakfast,' he said.
'It has been difficult juggling training around being a dad and shift work so I had to get up early to do it.'
Sam loved riding with his dad and even had a balance bike of his own.
'I rode around with him in the baby carrier, it was painful at time because he would pull my hair and at my ears but they're good memories.
'I always imagined him growing up and having the same hobbies as me.'
The couple consider the mum's and dad's involved in Sam's playgroup as a child as some of their best friends but admit it is hard seeing their children grow up.
'We couldn't wait to send Sam to school, not to get rid of him, but to see him with the backpack and the uniform walking down the street and making new friends.
'We won't be able to see that, he would have been going to school this year which is really hard for us.
'My dream was to be in the playground and over hear someone say "gee that Sam Keach is a well-mannered boy".'
SIDS charity also helps parents of stillborn babies.
Mr Keach says he still considers himself to be the father of three children when people ask.
You can donate to the Keach's appeal here.
An infamous sex trafficker known as the 'vampire' who beat, humiliated and pimped women in Australia, the Middle East and America has suffered a major loss in a US court.
A three-judge panel in the District Court in Florida not only tossed out Damion Baston's appeal and confirmed a 27-year jail sentence handed down in Miami in 2014, but awarded Gold Coast victim Katie Lang $521,615 in extra restitution.
Ms Lang, 27, was 'psychologically enslaved' by Damion St Patrick Baston and forced to work as a prostitute in Queensland, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and in the United States.
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Katie Lang (pictured above) was one of three women lured from Australian into global sex trafficking
Damion Baston is serving 27 years in jail after being found guilty on 21 sex trafficking charges
She recalls one chilling moment when she refused Baston and he stuck a burning hot blade against her neck.
'I felt like he was going to slit my throat so I jumped up and he just threw me back down and he kept strangling me,' Katie recalls in an interview with 60 Minutes.
Judge William Pryor slammed Baston, a powerfully-built pimp from Jamaica who forced his female sex slaves to inject him with steroids to help maintain his physique.
Judge Pryor also detailed how Baston had 'Transylvanian tendencies' and physically transformed himself to look like a vampire 'complete with yellow contact lenses and gold-plated fangs'.
'Baston forced numerous women to prostitute for him by beating them, humiliating them and threatening to kill them, and he pimped them around the world, from Florida to Australia to the United Arab Emirates,' the judge wrote.
Ms Lang was awarded was awarded $101,715 in restitution at his US trial and after dismissing Baston's appeal application, judges added more than $500,000 to her restitution.
Katie Lang was lured from the Gold Coast and forced into prostitution by Baston - her testimony was crucial in the trial against the convicted sex trafficker
Six women gave evidence against Damion Baston's international sex trafficking business at his trial in 2014 including two Australians and a New Zealand woman who'd been living on the Gold Coast
The figure is the amount of money Baston kept from what Ms Lang made from working as a prostitute in Australia.
'Baston argues that he does not owe restitution to KL for her prostitution in Australia because the jury did not convict him of that conduct, but that argument is baffling,' Judge Pryor wrote.
Baston learned how to be a pimp from the book Pimpology, written by Pimpin' Ken, which preached recruiting women who were sexually abused as children and for the victims to refer to the pimp as 'Daddy'.
'But Baston was not always faithful to the laws of Pimpology,' the judge noted.
'Unlike Pimpin' Ken who rejected the use of violence, Baston punched, slapped, choked, and threatened to kill his victims whenever they got 'out of line'.'
Ms Lang also prostituted for Baston in the United Arab Emirates, Florida and Texas.
'One night, Baston suspected that KL was cheating on him,' the judge wrote.
'He woke her up, punched her hard in the pelvis, threw her to the ground and strangled her.
'He heated up kitchen knives over an open flame and threatened to slit her throat.'
She eventually escaped Baston's control after her family contacted the American embassy in Australia, which refused to let her return to Baston in the US.
Images obtained by Daily Mail Australia from US authorities show Baston is a series of bizarre poses including this black and white photo showing him wearing gold fangs
Katie Lang recalls the regular beatings at the hands of Baston and how he would threaten to hurt members of her family back in Australia
Baston (left) seen holding wads of $100 bills while wearing a fox fur and toting a machine gun (right)
Baston, 39, a former male stripper, was arrested in December 2013 by the US Department of Homeland Security.
Florida District Court documents obtained by Daily Mail Australia show Baston toting high-powered semi-automatic weapons, lying in bed covered in Australian bank notes, posing in a fox fur with a fistful of $100 bills, and wearing a bizarre pair of gold fangs.
Six young women, including Ms Lang, another Australian and a New Zealander, gave evidence into the life of prostitution and stripping for money Baston made them take part in.
In the interview, Ms Lang revealed how Baston used violence and threats against the women and their families to get them to do his bidding.
'I was so fearful of him not only hurting me but also hurting my family, he always used to say 'I know where your grandma lives',' she said.
'I could put up with what I was going through but not knowing my family would be hurt.
'I basically just let go of myself and just let go of my soul and let him control me.'
Photographs obtained from the Florida District Court show him lying in bed covered in Australian bank notes
US Homeland Security officers tracked Baston down in the Bronx, living with his mother and a new pregnant girlfriend in New York - he has four children to different women
Katie Lang, 27, was forced into sex trade by Jamaican pimp Damion St Patrick Baston, who operated a global sex trafficking network. He prostituted girls from Australia to Dubai and through United States
The 60 Minutes report paints Baston as a charismatic, imposing manipulator who showered women with expensive gifts and told them he loved them to lure them into his world.
Ms Lang fell for Baston's story and they began a relationship. As his influence on her grew, she quit her university studies and work with the crisis support service Lifeline, and became increasingly isolated from her family.
Baston is believed to have first set up a brothel on the Gold Coast in 2009.
Ms Lang was forced to leave Australia and fly with him to Dubai amid threats that he would have 'his gang' harm her relatives if she didn't leave.
Demand for a disgracefully big burger cooked up for an April Fools' joke has been so large that a Sydney restaurant has decided to put it on the menu.
Soul Burger, a vegan burger joint in Randwick, in the city's east, will start selling 'The Plant-based Disgrace' to customers from Monday - a $35 burger that has 16 ingredients, including a syringe each of mustard and ketchup.
Pictures of the burger show an enormous tower of 'plant-based' meat between two buns, all resting precariously on a coconut thick shake with syringes jammed in the top.
The 'Plant-based Disgrace' is on sale from Monday - a $35 burger that has 16 ingredients, including a syringe each of mustard and ketchup.
The burger originally started out as an April Fool's prank, but demand was so great Soul Burger owner Amit Tewari decided to put it on the menu
Soul Burger owner Amit Tewari said the prank started out as a 'piss take' on hipster burgers - and a bit of a dig at people that were dismissive of vegan food - but the response was so 'crazy' he decided to add it to the menu.
'We had groups coming in trying to get an early taste,' he said.
The restaurant, which is Australia's first wholly plant-based burger restaurant, was also inundated with calls.
The burger comes with three types of plant-based meats, fish, mushrooms, roasted peppers, falafel, salad and cheese. Then there's a coconut shake, too.
The burger comes with three types of plant-based meats, fish, mushrooms, roasted peppers, falafel, salad and cheese. There's a coconut thick shake that comes with it too.
While the calories are bound to concern some people, judging by the social media response there's a big appetite for the burger.
Close to 150 people have commented on the announcement, the overwhelming number of which can be described as drooling.
Judging by the social media response there's a big appetite for the burger
'This is the greatest thing in existence. I want it now! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!' one person commented.
Another person wrote: 'That looks AMAZE-BALLS! Nom nom nom'.
And people that are still skeptical about the authenticity of the burger can rest assured, Tewari says it will be on the menu come Monday.
'It's definitely real. We've got people texting saying they're booking tickets [from interstate].'
The burger is available until the end of April.
Bernie Sanders has demanded Hillary Clinton apologize after she claimed his campaign was lying about her contributions from the fossil fuel industry.
Clinton called out of the Vermont senator's campaign during a heated exchange between Greenpeace activist Eva Resnick-Day that was captured on camera.
Resnick-Day asked whether Clinton would forego contributions from the fossil fuel industry, to which she responded: 'I have money from people who work for fossil fuel companies.'
Bernie Sanders has demanded Hillary Clinton apologize after she claimed his campaign was lying about her contributions from the fossil fuel industry
Clinton called out of the Vermont senator's campaign during a heated exchange between Greenpeace activist Eva Resnick-Day that was captured on camera
'I'm so sick!' Clinton told her. 'I'm so sick of the Sanders' campaign lying about this, I'm sick of it'
'I'm so sick!' she then shot back. 'I'm so sick of the Sanders' campaign lying about this, I'm sick of it.'
During a stump speech in Wisconsin on Friday, Sanders said Clinton owed him and his campaign an apology, according to CNN.
'We were not lying,' he said. 'We were telling the truth.'
'The truth is that Secretary Clinton has relied heavily on funds from lobbyists working for the oil, gas and coal industry,' he continued.
'According to an analysis done by Greenpeace, Hillary Clinton's campaign and her super PAC have received more than $4.5million from the fossil fuel industry.'
Resnick-Day asked whether Clinton would forego contributions from the fossil fuel industry, to which she responded: 'I have money from people who work for fossil fuel companies'
Sanders went on to claim that 57 coal industry lobbyists directly contributed to the former Secretary of State's campaign, nothing 43 of them had contributed 'the maximum allowed for the primary'.
'These are not just workers in the fossil fuel industry,' he said. 'These are paid, registered lobbyists.'
Greenpeace claims Clinton's campaign has taken more than $300,000 from contributors who work in fossil fuel industries.
On Thursday Clinton noted that Sanders has taken more than $50,000 from the same individuals and said it had never accused the senator of 'being beholden to the oil and gas industry'.
'Nor should he say that of Hillary Clinton', Brian Fallon, Clinton's press secretary, added.
The Sanders campaign said it's not individual employees who raise concern - it's 'lobbyists and bundlers for the industry'.
At the same event on Thursday where Clinton and Resnick-Day shared a heated exchange, about 20 Sanders supporters shouted, 'If she wins, we lose,' and then began walking out.
Clinton responded sharply, 'The Bernie people came to say that. We're very sorry you're leaving,' as the crowd chanted, 'I'm with her!'
The former New York senator holds a formidable lead among delegates but Sanders hopes a series of recent victories out West might turn into a springboard for a win in Wisconsin.
The spats at Purchase College offered a vivid example of Clinton's gulf with some young Democrats, who have brought energy to the Vermont senator's upstart bid.
Greenpeace activist Eva Resnick-Day is pictured right during a demo outside the White House
Clinton said she regretted that young Bernie Sanders supporters 'won't listen to anybody else' and won't look at her record to contrast it with his
Clinton said she regretted that the young Sanders supporters 'won't listen to anybody else' and didn't want to hear 'the contrast between my experience, my plans, my vision, what I know I can get done and what my opponent is promising.'
Sanders spoke at a news conference with union leaders before a campaign stop today in Pittsburgh
Sanders 'goes around telling young people that he's going to give them free college. Well, I wish it were so,' Clinton said.
She said the 'fine print' of his plan would require governors to pay a significant share of the cost, an unlikely outcome in a state like Wisconsin, which is led by Republican Gov. Scott Walker.
'I just wish that there were an opportunity to actually talk and listen to each other because we've got to unite when this primary contest is over,' Clinton said.
'We've got to unite and make sure we have a Democrat in the White House.'
Sanders campaigned in Pittsburgh, ahead of Pennsylvania's April 26 primary, joining activists with the United Steelworkers union and the letter carrier's union to criticize Clinton's past support of certain trade deals.
He called for 'a moral economy, not an economy based on greed and selfishness,' a message that he has used in manufacturing states such as Michigan and Wisconsin.
Sanders campaign said he had raised more than $40million in March and was aiming to surpass $43.5million for the month. Both campaigns face monthly fundraising deadlines at the end of the day.
In New York, Clinton reiterated her critique of Sanders' 'Medicare for all' plan, saying it would force Congress to 'start all over again' on health care reform.
She also rebuked Republican Donald Trump for saying that women should be 'punished' for having an abortion, comments he quickly backtracked from.
Clinton also noted an MSNBC interview in which Sanders suggested Trump's comments were a distraction from serious issues.
United says it was only due to concerns about their child's booster seat
The plane's crew said that they had to leave because of a 'safety issue'
She says that it was a case of 'profiling' and 'discrimination'
An Arab-American family are furious at United Airlines after its staff removed them from a flight in an incident that they claim was 'profiling' and 'discrimination at its finest.'
On March 20 Eaman-Amy Saad Shebley and her children were asked to leave a Spring Break flight from Chicago to Washington, DC by air crew in what was described by them at the time as a 'safety of flight' issue.
In videos posted on Facebook, Shebley claimed that the air crew were 'profiling my family and me for no reason other than how we look.' United Airlines has denied the claims.
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Unhappy family: Eaman-Amy Saad Shebley (pictured, top-left) says she and her family were unfairly removed from a United Airlines flight on March 20, and believes it was due to 'profiling' and 'discrimination'
The two short videos show two air crew members talking to Shebley and her husband. In the first, a woman says that they're going to 'ask that she step off the aircraft.'
Shebley's husband enquires why, but the video cuts off before a response is heard.
In the second video, the captain of the plane is asked why they must leave and says 'Because it's my decision.' When asked to elaborate he says, 'It is a safety of flight issue.'
In an earlier post, Shebley wrote, 'United is kicking me and my kids off of the plane! For no reason! Captain said for the safety of the flight! ... Discrimination at its finest! I have everything recorded! We didn't say or do anything!'
The family then went to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), an advocacy group, seeking 'corrective actions'.
ABC News contacted Renner Larson, the CAIR representative for the family, who said the incident occurred after Shebley asked for an extra strap for a child's booster seat.
Crew: Video uploaded by Shebley to Facebook shows both the plane's pilot (left) and an air stewardess (right) asking them to leave. United says this was not profiling, but a safety concern about a child's booster seat
That led to a discussion in which she was asked to remove the booster seat, which she did, Larson said in a statement. But afterward the crew member returned and asked them to leave the plane due to 'safety concerns.'
'They felt singled-out and helpless,' Larson told the channel. 'We are tired of more and more of these instances: of Muslims being taken off flights for flimsy reasons.'
The Chicago chapter of CAIR demanded a formal apology to the family, disciplinary measures for the crewmembers involved and sensitivity training for employees.
In a statement on its website, United said: 'We reached out to the family following their flight on March 20 to discuss their concerns.
'They were originally scheduled to fly on SkyWest 5811, operating as United Express from Chicago O'Hare to Washington, DC, but we rebooked them on a later flight because of concerns about their child's safety seat, which did not comply with federal safety regulations.
An Australian model has been crowned Miss Grand International 2016 after the original winner was dethroned as she was considered too 'demanding' by the beauty contest's organisers.
Anea Garcia resigned her crown to first runner-up Claire Elizabeth Parker on Thursday after winning the Thailand-based pageant last year representing the Dominican Republic.
The 21-year-old American-Dominican model and beauty queen from Rhode Island was deemed too insistent and always asked for things that were outside of the scope of her contract, Fairfax Media reported.
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Australian model Claire Elizabeth Parker (left) has officially been crowned Miss Grand International 2016
The original Miss Grand International winner Anea Garcia (pictured) stepped down on Thursday
Ms Parker at the Miss Grand International official crowning ceremony with the trophy, sash and tiara
Ms Garcia resigned her crown to first runner-up Ms Parker on Thursday after winning the Thailand-based pageant last year representing the Dominican Republic
Miss Grand International vice-president Teresa Chaivisut said that although they believed Ms Garcia was the deserving winner, she had failed to fulfil her obligations as the reigning queen.
'First, her studies were in the way, making it very hard for us to schedule her activities. At several times we had to reschedule, cancel events, change or lose international flights. Miss Grand International should be ready and focused on her job and charitable work,' Ms Chaivisut told Fairfax Media.
'In addition, she has also become very demanding, always asking for things which were not promised or part of the contract she signed, including bringing her grandmother to Bangkok to live with her. She demanded for additional services which truly made no sense.'
Miss Grand International posted a statement in regards to the change on their social media accounts.
Ms Garcia was dethroned and replaced by Australian model and actress Claire Parker (pictured) after she was considered 'demanding' by the beauty contest's organisers
Ms Parker was the first runner-up and is pictured posing with her statue and the Australian flag
'With immediate effect, Miss Anea Garcia will step down from her position as Miss Grand International 2015 due to unable to fulfil and follow the contractual agreement with Miss Grand International Organisation.'
'We are pleased to welcome Miss Claire Elizabeth Parker to take over this honourable position and continue the honourable duty as Miss Grand International 2015.'
Ms Parker, 24, is a Sydney-based model and actress who has been living in Tokyo but recently returned home to partake in the annual Mardi Gras parade alongside beauty queens from other local contests.
Ms Garcia posing in a behind-the-scenes Snapchat which she later posted on Instagram captioned 'game over'
Miss Grand Dominican Republic 2015 Anea Garcia appears onstage during the Miss Republica Dominicana US 2015 presentation
The 24-year-old model and actress lives in Sydney but will relocate to Thailand to fulfil her new duties
'I am utterly shocked and thrilled to have had this opportunity presented to me, as a first runner-up in any pageant it is your duty to support the winner and step in if she is no longer able to fulfil her responsibilities, however it is incredibly rare for such a situation to occur and I am so grateful that it is written in the stars for me,' Ms Parker told Fairfax Media.
Founded by Thai TV star Nawat Itsaragrisil in 2013, Miss Grand International is an annual international beauty contest searching for potential women to encourage and run the campaign Stop the War and Violence to help acknowledge people to avoid the conflict and violence that may lead to war in any form, their website states.
The contest aims 'to become the world's leading international beauty contest under sponsorship from governments and organisations that will make a stand for the betterment of humanity.'
Miss Rhode Island Anea Garcia poses onstage at the 2015 Miss USA Pageant
Ms Garcia celebrating Christmas in 2015
The 21-year-old American-Dominican model and beauty queen (centre) from Rhode Island was deemed too insistent and always asked for things that were outside of the scope of her contract
Ms Parker's new beauty queen duties require her to move to Thailand and reign for six months.
Her crowning is Australia's second international crown since model Jennifer Hawkins won Miss Universe in 2004.
Ms Parker's win comes after Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez was mistakenly announced as Miss Universe by host Steve Harvey last year in a controversial upheaval which saw Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach replace her on live television.
The contest aims 'to become the world's leading international beauty contest under sponsorship from governments and organisations that will make a stand for the betterment of humanity'
Ms Garcia reveals her new, shorter locks in Tokyo, Japan
Ms Parker has been living in Tokyo, Japan but recently returned home to partake in the annual Mardi Gras parade alongside beauty queens from other local competitions
took four hours to prepare under the noses of customers
A gang of bungling robbers posed as workmen and tried to drill their way into a petrol station cash machine as customers walked by.
Undercover police watched in amazement as the gang, dressed in hard hats and hi-vis jackets, mounted an audacious bid to drill through the floor of the petrol station shop and into a cash machine even though customers were still coming and going on a busy Saturday afternoon.
Acting on a tip-off, officers mounted a surveillance operation and saw members of the gang pretend to be measuring out the plot of land at the rear of the Harvest Energy petrol station on Cheetham Hill Road in Manchester on September 15.
Fancy dress: Acting on a tip-off, officers mounted a surveillance operation and saw members of the gang pretend to be measuring out the plot of land at the rear of the Harvest Energy petrol station d in Manchester
Carefully thought through: Police footage shows gang members arrive in a van and heave a huge generator underneath the rear of the shop, which was mounted on concrete columns on a grassy embankment
In fact, the gang was after the 45,000 in the cash machine.
Police footage shows gang members - who referred to the raid as 'The Italian Job' in text messages - arrive in a van and heave a huge generator underneath the rear of the shop, which was mounted on concrete columns on a grassy embankment.
They also brought an industrial drill and huge bottles of water to cool it.
After nearly four hours of preparation, the gang started drilling - only for police to immediately move in.
The hilarious sped-up footage filmed by the police shows one of the gang pop his head over a fence only to spot officers and flee.
The gang had started their operation at around 4pm and the police eventually moved in at 7.48pm.
The six gang members scattered but officers managed to catch all but one.
Four of the captured gang members were finally brought to justice after they pleaded guilty to their part in the crime. The fifth failed to show up and is on the run.
Father-of-two Osman Yirticisahin, 33, from Manchester, a man of Turkish heritage who served in the British Army in Afghanistan and Iraq and who worked as a translator for the UN, was jailed for three years.
Damien Green, 35, also from Manchester, a father who claimed got involved to repay a debt, was also imprisoned for three years.
No easy feat: After nearly four hours of preparation, the gang started drilling - only for police to immediately move in
Plotting: Four of the captured gang members were finally brought to justice after they pleaded guilty to their part in the crime. The fifth failed to show up and is on the run
Omar Syed Iqbal, 33, from Rochdale, was caged for three years and nine months. He was on license at the time of the raid for long jail sentences for wounding with intent and conspiracy to supply drugs.
The three had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to burgle.
Asghar Ahmed, 22, from Rochdale, who had no previous convictions, admitted assisting an offender. He has resigned from his job a Manchester Airport ground handling agent Swissport. He was jailed for one year and eight months.
The judge issued a warrant for the arrest of the mastermind Simon McDonagh, 30, of Victoria Street, Manchester, after he failed to show up for the sentencing hearing. He had also admitted conspiracy to burgle at a previous hearing
Police are still looking for the sixth member of the gang.
Yirticisahin drove the van which ferried the equipment as well as Green, McDonagh and an unidentified third man to the scene. McDonagh needed hospital treatment after he was snared by a police dog.
Iqbal was parked up on the petrol station forecourt in a VW Polo acting as the gang's look-out with the youngest member of the gang Ahmed in the passenger seat.
Almost farcical: The hilarious sped-up footage filmed by the police shows one of the gang pop his head over a fence only to spot officers and flee
The gang had carried out a stake-out at the petrol station the day before the strike and, in text messages which were found by police, had referred to the raid as 'The Italian Job'.
Prosecutor Michael Brady told Manchester Crown Court: 'They were hiding in plain sight and there was somewhat of a charade as McDonagh had a tape measure and was seen to be taping out the area.'
His Honour Judge David Hernandez described the crime as 'pretty audacious'.
He said: 'It was an audacious plan to drill through the concrete floor to steal the contents of the cash machine inside. The intention was to gain access to the building. It was a well planned operation. The crime was intercepted before it was completed by the police. But the drilling had started although there was no significant damage.'
Guilty: Asghar Ahmed, 22, (left) from Rochdalee was jailed for one year and eight months. Damien Green, 35, also from Manchester was imprisoned for three years
After the hearing, Detective Constable Nicholas Kershaw said: 'The successful conviction of this gang is the result of a meticulous police investigation into a carefully planned criminal enterprise.
'The evidence points towards the fact that these men had been planning this audacious raid for some time.
'There is no doubt that these men were brazen in their attempt to steal the tens of thousands of pounds contained within the cash machine, carrying out their plan in broad daylight and in front of anyone who happened to be walking past or living in the apartment buildings nearby.
'They trusted in their disguises to hide their heist, what they did not count on was the excellent policing operation that was out to foil their best laid plans.
'The surveillance operation was superbly carried out by our officers and resulted in these men being given prison terms that reflect the severity of their crimes.'
Paris terrorist Salah Abdeslam (pictured) has agreed to turn supergrass for French police
The brother of Salah Abdeslam, the only surviving ISIS member of the Paris attackers, has claimed that his sibling refused to blow himself up at the Stade de France because he wanted to save lives.
Mohamed Abdeslam claims that his brother Salah, who was sensationally captured on 18 March, told him that he 'couldn't go through with it.'
An undetonated suicide belt, thought to have belonged to Abdeslam, was found dumped close to the Stade de France, where Bilal Hadfi and two unidentified Iraqi nationals, blew themselves up.
'There would have been more victims had I done it. Luckily, I couldn't go through with it,' Salah Abdeslam reportedly told his brother.
Captured in Molenbeek, Salah Abdeslam is thought to have started to co-operate with the authorities following the Brussels attacks.
The terror suspect is thought to have mainly served as a logistics operator, driving members of the cell over the border from eastern Europe.
His brother told a French broadcasting channel that Salah Abdeslam 'voluntarily chose not to blow himself up.'
In subsequent interviews, Salah Abdeslam has continually tried to blame the killing on other ISIS operatives, saying that he simply provided hire cars and other logistics.
There were fears before his capture that he may have tried to flee to Syria, while numerous false sightings of him were reported to authorities across Europe.
He may have been fearful of becoming a target himself in the ISIS heartland - having pulled out of his suicide mission.
Friends reunite outside the Bataclan concert hall on the night of the terror attacks in Paris, France
Emergency services desperately try to help several badly wounded members of the public who were caught up in the massacre at the Bataclan theatre
Following his dramatic capture last month, in which Abdeslam was shot in the leg and bundled into a car in the Molenbeek neighbourhood of Brussels, the 26-year-old will now be extradited from Belgium to France.
'He wants to cooperate with the French authorities,' lawyer Cedric Moisse said, as a prosecutor was set to travel to the prison in the city of Bruges where Abdeslam has been held since March 18 for an extradition hearing, which was granted today.
Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders said that Abdeslam had also been planning to target Brussels.
Another of his lawyers, Sven Mary, said last week that Abdeslam did not have prior knowledge of the March 22 attacks in the Belgian capital.
Policemen arriving near the Stade de France stadium following suicide bomb attack at the friendly football match between France and Germany
130 people were murdered on night of the Paris attacks, when gunmen and suicide bombers targeted the Stade de France, Bataclan concert hall and bars and cafes in Paris
Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders said that Abdeslam had also been planning to target Brussels
Salah Abdeslam has been linked to at least two of the Brussels attack bombers.
Khalid El Bakraoui, who blew himself up at the metro, rented a flat in Brussels where Abdeslam's fingerprints were found following a raid.
It is hoped the lessons will educate children to use and not abuse alcohol
Italian primary school children as young as six may soon receive weekly lessons about the history and culture of wine and be taught how to drink it responsibly.
The lessons are part of a new parliamentary bill and will teach children to use and not abuse wine as well as the way in which it is central to Italian culture.
The bill follows an initiative already in place in Brescia, Northern Italy, where school children are being taught about the role of wine in the country.
Children wIll not be tasting the wine but instead learning about its history and how it plays a central role in Italian culture
This particularly initiative was launched by growers and tasters and now local politicians in Puglia hope to also be educating children by autumn, reported The Times.
Dario Stefano, the senator behind the unusual parliamentary bill, explained the importance of children in Italy leaning about wine and how it is made.
He said: 'Italy is now the biggest wine producer in the world, it is our history, and we should be happy and proud to teach our children about it.'
He added that as every region in the country makes wine it is a topic that unites the people of Italy.
Stefano also explained how the lessons would work and ensured that children would not be tasting the wine but instead learning about its history.
The lessons are part of a new parliamentary bill and will teach Italian school children to use and not abuse wine (file photo)
Vito Intini, a wine-taster who is behind the initiative in Brescia, agreed with this notion.
He said: 'There will be no tastings, since we believe the body can't metabolise alcohol before 17 years of age,' reported the paper.
Intini also spoke about the way in which he hopes to link wine and culture in the minds of the school children and not promote wine sales.
He added that the increasing number of Muslim school children in Brescia had not imposed the lesson and had instead been fascinated with the history of wine.
The bill follows an initiative already in place in Brescia, pictured, where school children are being taught about the role of wine in the country
The bill, which will see children aged between six and 13 being educated, has been supported by Attilio Scienza, a professor of wine culture at the University of Milan.
He voiced his fears regarding an increasing amount of Italian youths drinking excessively and claims that families have lost the habit of drinking together socially.
Scienza, who explained 'you don't drink to get drunk', hopes the scheme will introduce wine back into homes around the country.
He added that similar initiatives in France had been successful in cutting down on young people abusing alcohol.
Comments: Author Ian McEwan said there was a sense of 'victimhood' regarding transgender issues
Acclaimed author Ian McEwan has waded into the transgender row after warning of a 'troubling wave' of political correctness.
McEwan, 67, was speaking at a student society lecture at the Royal Institution in London, when he was invited to ponder on how the notion of self has evolved throughout history.
The writer of Atonement, and winner of the Man Booker prize for Amsterdam, upset some when he said that a person's identity was constrained by biology and social norms.
However, he claimed that now people are treating the idea of identity like a commodity.
He said: 'The self, like a consumer desirable, may be plucked from the shelves of a personal identity supermarket, a ready-to-wear little black number.'
McEwan is not the first high profile personality to offer controversial views on transgenderism.
Feminist Germaine Greer and writer Julie Bindel have also caused upset in the last 18 months.
Greer in particular said: 'I don't believe a woman is a man without a c***.'
Arguably the issue of body or gender dysmorphia was thrust into the spotlight when former US Olympian and star of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, Bruce Jenner, revealed that he had undergone sex reassignment surgery.
The former Olympic gold medal-winning decathlete was featured on the front page of Vanity Fair after his transformation and has spoken numerous times on the issue since, with many supporting her courage and style.
McEwan said that the identity crisis people with gender dysmorphia suffer is a 'bitter conflict' but warned that there was a sense of 'victimhood' sweeping through American universities and, to a lesser extent, on British campuses.
His speech was said to be well received by the audience, however one woman said his comments were 'offensive' and asked him to be more specific, reports the Times.
Views: Germaine Greer has courted controversy with her comments on transgender issues and Caitlyn Jenner arguably pushed the issue into the spotlight after undergoing her transformation from Bruce
He replied: 'Call me old-fashioned, but I tend to think of people with penises as men.
'But I know they enter a difficult world when they become transsexuals and they tell us they are women, they become women, but it's interesting when you hear the conflict between feminists now and people in this group.'
Not all have been impressed with McEwan's comments, Stonewall, the gay and transgender rights charity, has urged the writer to apologise for a speech it calls 'hurtful and dangerous'.
While human rights activist Peter Tatchell, said the author should not comment on how people wish to determine their gender.
However, he did say that the 'holier-than-thou rivalry' at universities was unhelpful.
He said: 'There seems to be a league table of oppression, where some people fight other people to claim the title of most oppressed.'
Following the publication of a number of articles that reported Mr McEwan's comments, he made the following statement:
'I'm surprised that a couple of sentences of mine during a short q&a session at the end of my lecture should have caused a stir. My subject was the literary representation of the self in the work of Montaigne, Shakespeare, Pepys, Boswell and others.
In response to a question, I proposed that the possession of a penis or, more fundamentally, the inheritance of the xy chromosome, is inalienably connected to maleness. As a statement, this seems to me biologically unexceptional. However, biology is not always destiny.
That the transgender community should want or need to abandon their birth gender or radically redefine it is their right, which should be respected and celebrated. It adds to the richness and diversity of life. It's an extension of freedom and the possibilities of selfhood.
Everyone should deplore the discrimination that transgender communities have suffered around the world. That the community should sometimes find itself in conflict with feminists (over changing rooms, trans beauty pageants, access to women's colleges) - well, that's a conversation on which I can shed no useful light.
As for 'victimhood', my remarks concerned the charged atmosphere at many US campuses, where students are seeking 'safe spaces', 'trigger warnings' and the 'no-platforming' of speakers with views contrary to their own.
Some have not been paid for up to 7 months due to firm's $billion debt
Construction workers at the Saudi building firm founded by Osama bin Laden's father are demanding compensation for working up to seven months without pay.
The aggrieved workers, who are mainly migrant labourers, gathered at the company's offices in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh this week to demand payment.
The once-mighty Saudi Binladin Group is also said to be suffering under the weight of about $30billion (21billion) worth of debt,The Times reported.
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Construction workers at the Saudi building firm founded by Osama bin Laden's father (pictured left, with Osama right) are demanding compensation for working up to seven months without pay
The Saudi Binladen Group was founded by Osama Bin Laden's billionaire father Mohammed in 1931, and the sprawling construction conglomerate runs a large amount of major building contracts in the Sunni kingdom.
In 2011, the firm was given the contract to build the world's biggest tower - a 3,280ft-high Kingdom Tower north of the Red Sea city of Jeddah.
The sprawling mega project, first announced in 2008, will cover two square miles at its base.
It will stand a kilometre high and is the first in a sprawling mega project for a plan called 'Kingdom City'.
In 2011, the firm was given the contract to build the world's biggest tower - a 3,280ft-high Kingdom Tower north of the Red Sea city of Jeddah
Eclipsed: The new Kingdom Tower will be taller than the Burj Khalifa in neighbouring Dubai (left) and also New York's Freedom Tower (right)
The tower will stand a kilometre high and is the first in a sprawling mega project for a plan called 'Kingdom City' (computer generated image)
However, the Binladin group is suffering as public spending has been reduced dramatically over the past years while the Saudi government struggles to counter a budget deficit of almost $100billion (70billion).
A source told The Times that the government has failed to meet payment to the firm for several projects.
The company has also been affected by the decision of King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud to not award it any new public contracts since the collapse of one of the companys cranes killed 107 people in Mecca on September 21 2015.
The giant Saudi Arabian mosque was full of people preparing for the 6.30pm Friday evening prayer session, which is one of the busiest times of the week, when the crane toppled in the heavy rain.
Photos posted on social media at the time showed the polished tiled floor of the mosque covered in rubble, bodies and pools of blood, and people fleeing the area bleeding and covered in soot.
High winds were blamed for the accident, but the Binladen Group was found to have been at fault for wrongly positioning the crane.
In a business which is ultimately all tied to the government, construction projects have been 'slowed down' and cash 'is not coming in on time,' the contractor said.
Photos posted on social media at the time showed the polished tiled floor of the mosque covered in rubble, bodies and pools of blood, and people fleeing the area bleeding and covered in soot
People with knowledge of the matter told Reuters last November that the group planned to cut about 15,000 staff in one wave in an attempt to sort its debts.
The current crisis is the biggest the company has faced since the terrorist attacks on 9/11 by al-Qaeda, which was led by Osama bin Laden.
A British jihadi terrorist browsed online for prostitutes and adult films while making plans to secretly travel to Syria with his nephew, who plotting a Lee-Rigby style attack at an airbase in East Anglia.
Shazib Ahmed Khan, 23, viewed adult movies titled Killer Sex and Secrets of a Chambermaid just fifteen minutes after chatting about jihad with an ISIS fighter in Syria, according to The Sun.
He is also understood to have accessed sites which advertised the services of prostitutes.
Within a few days after messaging the jihadi via an ecrypted app, Shazib Khan was arrested by counter-terrorism police. He was convicted yesterday of preparing to travel to Syria to join ISIS.
His delivery driver nephew Junead Khan, 25, was also found guilty of the same offence as well as plotting to behead a US serviceman in Britain.
Shazib Khan (left), has also been found guilty of planning to travel to Syria. His nephew Junead Khan (right), from Luton, was found guilty of the same offence and was also convicted of plotting to behead a US serviceman in Britain
Junead Khan, from Luton, was convicted yesterday of plotting to carry out the atrocity outside RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, where US Air Force personnel are stationed.
His trial revealed that he had also posted a video on Youtube called 'ISIS drives around Westminster', which featured music praising ISIS.
The video was made by Shazib and featured an extremist chant praising Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS.
The investigation into the pair also uncovered a worrying message which suggests ISIS fighters in Syria have obtained the UK addresses of British servicemen.
The investigation into the pair also uncovered a worrying message which suggests ISIS fighters in Syria have obtained the UK addresses of British servicemen. Pictured, a court sketch of the pair
The pair filmed a video of Parliament and posted it on YouTube with the title 'ISIS drives around Westminster'
Schizophrenic Khan, 25, got the idea for the attack on an American airman after driving past RAF Mildenhall as he delivered goods to a Lloyds pharmacy.
Khan wanted to a buy a knife similar to that used by Jihadi John and an ISIS flag was found at his home, which it is believed he wanted to unfurl at the scene.
Khan was found guilty of preparing for an act of terrorism in the UK between May and July 2015 after a trial at Kingston Crown Court in London.
He was also convicted alongside his uncle, Shazib, 23, of preparing to go to Syria to join IS.
Both men had denied engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts between August 1 2014 and July 15 2015.
They showed no emotion as the jury returned its verdicts after deliberating for almost 24 hours following a six-and-a-half week trial.
The 'ISIS in Westminster' footage was filmed before September last year, and Shazib sent the footage to Khan on September 24.
The soundtrack had a man singing: 'Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the dread of our enemies, maids of paradise are calling, record me for my martyrdom, our swords are flashing, our tones are artillery.'
Junead Khan had looked into buying a hunting knife like this one because he wanted to look like Jihadi John
An ISIS flag was found at his home. It is believed he planned to unfurl it at the scene of his atrocity
After he was sent the video, Khan complained: 'U messed up. Should've held the phone sideways. I'm uploading it anyway. Going live right now lol.'
He later sent a link to the video on Youtube, adding: 'Don't mention it's recorded by us.'
'Lol, looks good,' Shazib replied.
But 12 days later, Junead took the video down, telling his uncle: 'I've taken that video off Youtube lol. Didn't wanna bait my life out jus incase.'
Shazib later admitted making the video while Junead was driving, explaining in court: 'We would meet up two or three times a week. Every time we would meet up, we would go cruising, that's the only thing we knew how to do.
'We would get food on Edgware Road and go to that mosque, Regents Park, get take away, we could eat there quietly, away from the traffic.
Khan (right, with an ISIS flag) plotted the attack with Junaid Hussain (left), an British ISIS recruit in Syria.
A photo found on Khan's phone showed Downing Street with Islamic flags superimposed outside
Shazib said of the video in court: 'There was no particular reason behind it We were messing around.'
The plot of which Khan was convicted was to emulate the killing of Lee Rigby. Khan was researching hunting knives of the type used by ISIS executioner Jihadi John.
He was directed by Junaid Hussain, a computer hacker from Birmingham who became one of ISIS's chief recruiters before he was killed by a US drone.
POLICE TRAWLED THROUGH 66,000 MESSAGES IN TERROR PROBE Scotland Yard said its SO15 counter-terrorism unit had trawled through around 66,000 texts, social media messages and emails after arresting the men. Among the material they shared was graphic jihadi propaganda material showing executions. They also compiled a list of equipment they would need in Syria. Commander Dean Haydon, the head of SO15, said: 'Junead Khan faces years in prison for the atrocious acts he planned. 'Around a year before his arrest, local officers reached out to him. They offered to help him follow a positive life path. Junead Khan's refusal spiralled into extremism and plotting acts of terrorism. 'Counter-terrorism officers will take every step to stop and prosecute those who plan such acts of terrorism in the UK to keep the public safe.' Advertisement
Khan had refused to engage with the Prevent counter-extremism programme and was investigated because he was attending radical talks in Luton.
He delivered medical supplies to Boots, Superdrug, Morrisons Supermarket and Co-Op along with hospitals and surgeries on behalf of Alliance Healthcare. He worked for a firm called TRG Logistics, which was based in Luton.
His routes took him to East Anglia and to two Lloyd's pharmacies in the village of Mildenhall, Suffolk, close to two US airbases.
RAF Mildenhall and neighbouring RAF Lakenheath were re-opened after the second World War to host B-29 Superfortresses and have hosted US airmen ever since.
Lakenheath is currently home to the 48th 'Liberty' Fighter Wing and Mildenhall to the 100th Air Refueling Wing.
On July 5 2015, Khan wrote to Junaid Hussain on an encrypted app: 'When I saw these US soldiers on road, it just looked simple, but I had nothing on me or wouldve got into an accident with them and made them get out the car.'
'That's what the brother done with Lee Rigby,' Hussain said.
'Yes brother Mujahid style, accident and then attack,' Khan agreed, referring to Michael Adebolajo, one of the killers of Fusilier Lee Rigby in Woolwich.
Hussain suggested it was 'best to have at least pipe bombs or pressure cooker bomb in a backpack incase something happens, so u can do isthishadi bomb [suicide bomb] incase they try to arrest u.'
Khan got the idea of the attack after seeing US servicemen as he drove past RAF Mildenhall as part of his job
Junead Khan (right) and his uncle, pictured in court. They were both convicted of terror charges today
In one worrying message, Hussain told Khan: 'I can get you addresses of British soldiers.' The message suggests the ISIS fighter, who spent his time hacking computers from Syria, had obtained the personal details of British servicemen.
After Khan attempted to buy a knife online, two flags, the Union Jack and the Stars and Stripes were stolen from outside the New York Diner in Luton.
When Khan was arrested on July 14, he shouted, kicked out at the arresting officers, and yelled 'cowards' and 'Allahu akbar' [god is great].
The US and British flags were later found in Khan's bedroom along with an Islamic flag in the loft and a balaclava in the kitchen which had crudely cut eyeholes.
When police examined Khan's mobile phone, they discovered it contained photos including one of his ISIS flag being waved outside the US Embassy in London.
He also had another mobile phone which included gruesome images of beheadings, beatings and dead bodies, as well as Mohammed Emwazi, the British ISIS executioner known as Jihadi John.
ONLINE TERROR SCHEME: HOW THEY PLOTTED ON SECRET MESSAGE APP Junead Khan used an encrypted internet message service called Surespot to swap messages with Junaid Hussain in July last year. Here is part of the conversation: Hussain: 'I can get you addresses of British soldiers.' Khan: 'That could also be possible inshallah.' Hussain: 'Inshallah, but most soldiers live in bases which are protected. Hmm, I suppose on the road is the best idea, or I can tell u how to make a bomb Khan: 'When I saw these US soldiers on road, it just looked simple, but I had nothing on me or [I] would've got into an accident with them and made them get out of the car.' Hussain: 'That's what the brother done with Lee Rigby - with basic ingredients, and not too hard to make inshallah.' Khan: 'I have pictures and basic instructions on pipe bombs, but send them to me again if they are clearer.' Hussain: 'I have a manual for pressure cooker bomb.' Khan: 'Yes brother Mujahid (jihad) style, accident and then attack.' Hussain: 'It's best to have at least pipe bombs or pressure cooker bomb in a backpack in case something happens. So you can do isthishadi (suicide) bomb in case they try to arrest you. Advertisement
Police found a British and US flag at Khan's home, which it is believed he planned to burn at the scene
The flags were stolen from an American diner in Luton shortly before he was arrested
Superdrug employee Shazib was detained on the same day as Khan. Max Hill, QC, prosecuting, said: 'The fact that he [Shazib] did not actually go before being arrested last July makes no difference to this charge.
'However tempting it might be for some people to allow those who wish to leave the UK to do so, upon the basis that at least they would no longer be in the UK, that provides no solution to the terrorism perpetrated by the likes of ISIL.'
He claimed fascinated by the conflict, but had no intention of joining ISIS. He said he wanted to help by providing money and food.
Judge Mr Justice Edis remanded the men in custody ahead of sentencing on May 13.
Junead was found guilty of preparing to travel to Syria to fight with ISIS by a 10-2 majority verdict and of preparing to attack UK military personnel by a unanimous verdict. Shazib was convicted on unanimous verdicts.
HOW ISIS WAS TARGETING THE MENTALLY ILL AT THE TIME SCHIZOPHRENIC DELIVERY DRIVER AND HIS CONSPIRACY THEORIST UNCLE WERE RECRUITED ISIS's communication with schizophrenic Junead Khan and his conspiracy theorist uncle Shazib came weeks after a top police chief warned that terrorists were targeting the mentally ill. In April last year, Met Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, warned that Islamists were trying to add 'the vulnerable, people with violent backgrounds, very young people and those with mental health issues' to their network. Less than a few months later, Junead Khan was swapping messages with ISIS's British recruiter-in-chief Junaid Hussain and discussing the plan to behead a US serviceman. Nicky Reilly (left), who had a mental age of 10, and Brustholm Ziamani (right), who was targeted by extremists after being kicked out of his family home, have been involved in previous plots Junead suffers from schizophrenia for which he is prescribed the drug Risperidone. His mother was registered as his carer and he claimed Disability Living Allowance and Employment Support Allowance. His uncle Shazib meanwhile told Kingston Crown Court the BBC and Sky were part of a 'Zionist conspiracy' along with Marks and Spencer, Sainsbury and Tesco. The Free Masons and Illuminati an anti-religious group from the 18th century said to be seeking world power were also part of the plan to take over the world, he said. Today's case follows that of London teenager Brustholm Ziamani, who was jailed last February for plotting a similar attack on a British soldier or policeman. He fell under the spell of extremists after being made homeless in London. In 2008, 22-year-old Nicky Reilly - who had a mental age of 10 - attempted to carry out a suicide bombing in Exeter after he was contacted by extremists online. Advertisement
Terrorists joked about Government's anti-extremism programme after police went to their home and left a card
Two British jihadis were on the radar of the Government's anti-extremism programme a year before they were arrested - but joked about it.
Junead and Shazib Khan mocked the Prevent programme after a police officer visited Junead's Luton home in 2014, their trial heard.
The pair used the WhatsApp instant messenger to discuss a May 14 visit from Bedfordshire Police, in which an officer left a card asking for Junead to call him.
Junead wrote to Shazib: 'They trying to stop me from becoming a (sic) extremist or terrorist. Lool. Left a card. They want me to call them on Monday.' Shazib replied 'that crack me up'
Junead Khan, pictured with an ISIS flag, joked about the Government's anti-extremism programme. He and his uncle are believed to have daubed messages mocking democracy around Luton
Junead later wrote: 'I ain't gonna fone them like they want me to. I think they suspect I might be wanting to travel to Syria, even though I don't want to right now.'
Shazib replied: 'lool', slang for 'laughing outrageously out loud'.
Kingston Crown Court heard that Junead then spoke with an officer from Prevent almost a week later, on May 20.
Afterwards Shazib sent him a message saying: 'What's pigs saying?'
Junead replied: 'Police are sayin nothin jus came to my house today sat down for 20 minutes ask me some propa off key questions... Hopefully the last I hear from them.'
Prevent is one of four strands of Contest, the acronym given to the long-standing counter-terrorism strategy, and has previously been at the centre of controversy.
A photo which appears to show an ISIS flag being waved outside the US Embassy was found on his phone
At the beginning of March, David Anderson QC, the independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, said the programme was 'not transparent' and should be independently reviewed.
He said the programme had become a 'lightning conductor for a lot of dissatisfaction', saying: 'Nobody really knows what is going on under Prevent. There all sorts of myths swirling round about training materials being biased against Muslims, for example.'
Last year new measures were introduced to place a legal requirement on public bodies, including schools and councils, to stop people being drawn into terrorism, as part of efforts to counter the capacity of groups such as Islamic State (IS) to recruit young Britons.
One of Vladimir Putin's most prominent rivals has been filmed in a sex sting with a British woman who is also a leading opposition campaigner.
Grainy bedroom footage purports to show former Kremlin prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov, 58, with playwright and activist Natalya Pelevine, 39, in a Moscow apartment.
The release by Kremlin-friendly television channel NTV is apparently aimed at destroying one of the few opposition leaders seen as remotely capable of being an alternative president to Putin.
One of Vladimir Putin's most prominent rivals has been filmed in a sex sting with a British woman who is also a leading opposition campaigner
Grainy bedroom footage purports to show former Kremlin prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov, 58, with playwright and activist Natalya Pelevine, 39, in a Moscow apartment
But it also attacks and humiliates UK citizen Pelevine, who has been a constant critic of the Russian leadership, especially over its actions in Chechnya and lack of democracy.
The pair were filmed naked or scantily clad, their faces fully visible.
Married Kasyanov was shown with his secret lover - an activist in his RPR Parnas party who also had a role as his aide - with partially-pixelated scenes of nudity and intimacy.
The black and while footage did not show explicit sex acts.
The release by Kremlin-friendly television channel NTV is apparently aimed at destroying one of the few opposition leaders seen as remotely capable of being an alternative president to Putin
The video also attacks and humiliates UK citizen Pelevine, pictured right, who has been a constant critic of the Russian leadership, especially over its actions in Chechnya and lack of democracy
It appeared to have been filmed by a hidden camera in a dressing table in the bedroom of a Moscow flat apparently used for covert liaisons between the couple.
Who was behind the filming is unclear, but the purpose was evidently to embarrass the opposition figures who are also heard savaging other so-called allies in an anti-Putin front ahead of upcoming elections.
Pelevine has been active in the Russian opposition for around a decade. Soviet-born, her parents emigrated to Britain before the collapse of the USSR when she was a child.
After moving to England she attended a private school, Southbank International, before undertaking a BA in Art History from a London university.
Married Kasyanov is purportedly with his secret lover - an activist in his RPR Parnas party who also had a role as his aide - with partially-pixelated scenes of nudity and intimacy
A naked man, thought to be former Kremlin prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov, stands naked next to a woman laying on the bed
Pelevine, thought to be pictured standing up. has been active in the Russian opposition for around a decade. Soviet-born, her parents emigrated to Britain before the collapse of the USSR when she was a child
After obtaining her degree she performed in a number of theatre productions, including a stint in Hamlet at the Edinburgh Festival.
Pelevine has appeared as a political commentator on several TV and radio channels, including the BBC, in which she has oppposed the current Russian government.
The NTV screening claimed she regularly travelled to the United States and was in contact with Senator John McCain and investment banker William Browder, who has become a leading Western critic of Putin's government.
Former presidential candidate McCain chairs the National Endowment for Democracy, which Russia has declared an undesirable organisation.
Browder was the employer of Sergei Magnitsky, a lawyer whose death in custody led to the USA imposing the Magnitsky sanctions against selected Russian officials.
Contracts were shown which claimed to show she was in their pay.
Kasyanov is thought to be one of the few of Putin's rivals who could seriously challenge the current President
She was also said to have contacts with associates of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, now seeking the Democrat nomination for the US presidential election.
The film claimed she had been charged last month with a possession of a 'spy pen' with a hidden camera for covert filming.
There was no immediate comment from Kasyanov on the footage while Pelevine was reported as saying she would take legal action against NTV.
The 40 minute broadcast recalled another infamous sex tape from the chaotic years of crisis and calamity under former president Boris Yeltsin.
In 1999 prosecutor general Yuri Skuratov was pushed aside after being filmed in a Moscow flat with two prostitutes.
Dog owners should ignore new microchipping laws as the procedure can cause serious health problems for puppies and small dogs, even leading to death, a leading vet has warned.
Senior vet Richard Allport believes puppies are 'far too young' to be chipped at eight weeks, and says they could have 'serious adverse reactions' when having the sterile chip inserted between the shoulder blades.
New laws, which come into force on April 6, require all dogs in the UK aged eight weeks and over to be microchipped. Dogs must already wear a collar and tag with the owner's details when in public.
But, Mr Allport, who is also owns the Natural Medicine Centre, Hertfordshire, has urged dog owners to avoid having their pets chipped so young, instead encouraging them to 'sit tight and do nothing'.
Senior vet Richard Allport, from Hertfordshire, believes puppies are 'far too young' to be chipped at eight weeks, and says they could have 'serious adverse reactions' when having the sterile chip inserted (file photo)
Those who follow his advice risk facing fines of 500 from Wednesday, as the Government continues to crack down on the country's 8.5million dogs which are still not registered.
Outlining how he believes the government's law is putting pets at risk, Mr Allport told specialist magazine Dogs Today: 'I think the age by which puppies must be microchipped eight weeks is far too young.
'Most of the serious adverse reactions (including death) have been in puppies and small breeds.
'My advice to people who don't want their dog's microchipped is to sit tight and do nothing.'
The microchipping procedure involves a sterile chip, the size of a grain of rice, being injected between the shoulder blades. The chips have a unique 15-digit code that can be read by a scanner.
It is a more permanent way of recording the animal's ownership as collars and tags can be removed or fall off.
While 83 per cent of dog owners have so far complied, around one in five 1.45million have not done so, according to the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs.
Pete Wedderburn, a veterinary surgeon, said the benefits of reducing the numbers of stray dogs and illegal puppy farms 'massively outweigh the risks' of animals going through the microchip procedure.
He said: 'It's a big needle and big injection so naturally there's going to be a reaction.
'But what you have to bear in mind is that this is looking at just one side this is going to help with stray dogs and lives will be saved.'
New laws, which come into force on April 6, require all dogs in the UK aged eight weeks and over to be microchipped. Dogs must already wear a collar and tag with the owner's details when in public (file picture)
There have been a number of cases where animals have died after being microchipped.
In 2009, a Yorkshire terrier named Scotty developed epitheliotropic lymphoma at the site of his microchip implant, and died at just six years old.
In the same year, a Chihuahua named Charlie Brown died within hours of being chipped. Charlie died from 'an extreme amount of bleeding' from the 'little hole in the skin where the (microchip implant) needle went in,' according to D. Reid Loken, the vet who performed the procedure.
Lori Ginsberg, Charlie's owner, said at the time: 'I wasn't in favour of getting Charlie chipped, but it was the law. This technology is supposedly so great until it's your animal that dies.'
My advice to people who don't want their dog's microchipped is to sit tight and do nothing Senior vet Richard Allport
And in October 2010, a lawsuit was filed in the U.S. by Andrea Rutherford against Merck Sharp & Dohme and Digital Angel Inc. because her cat, Bulkin, developed cancer at the site of his microchip.
There are currently more than 102,000 stray or stolen dogs found in Britain every year. The law will help local authorities and charities that look after lost dogs, whose care currently costs 33m a year.
Owners whose dogs have been found by police or local authorities, if they are identified, will be given a short time to comply with the law. If they do not, they could be fined up to 500 on conviction.
Paula Boyden, veterinary director of the Dogs Trust, said: 'Losing a dog is an extremely upsetting time for both dog and dog owner and microchipping increases the likelihood that a dog will be reunited with its owner... making it an essential part of animal welfare law in England.
'It is vital that the microchip details are kept up to date. Last year 47,596 unclaimed and unwanted dogs were left in council kennels across the UK as these dogs could not be reunited with their owners.'
The dog welfare charity is currently looking after 1,546 stray, unwanted and abandoned dogs who need a home.
Microchipping a dog costs between 10 and 30, but many charities and animal shelters offer the service for free.
Dr Huw Stacey, director of clinical services at Vets4Pets, said: 'Pet owners shouldn't worry. It is a simple procedure. A microchip is about the size of a grain of rice and is injected under the skin at the scruff of a dog's neck.'
He added: 'By adding a traceable element to all dogs it will help lost or stolen pets be reunited with their owner.
'It is also vital that all owners keep their contact details up to date on a microchip database.'
Owners may have to pay a fee to update their details with organisations offering the microchip service.
The move to introduce compulsory microchipping fills the gap left after dog licences were abolished in the United Kingdom in 1988.
He claims other fans then applauded him, but he said they should have acted earlier
User said he reported the man to security, who threw him out of the MCG
laims he stood up to man who called Houli a 'terrorist'
A Richmond fan has claimed fellow supporters did nothing while Tigers player Bachar Houli was allegedly racially abused during Friday night's AFL game against Collingwood.
League officials are investigating an alleged incident involving abuse of 27-year-old Houli, who is a Muslim, although they claimed there was no evidence it was racially motivated.
But one supporter, known as Quibley, took to Reddit to accuse another Richmond follower of calling Houli a "terrorist" and insisted he felt the abuse was racist.
Quibley wrote: 'The person chucked was a fellow Richmond supporter, he kept calling Bachar Houli "terrorist". I politely asked him to stop. He didn't.
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The AFL is investigating claims that Richmond player Bachar Houli, a Muslim, was racially abused on Friday
'I asked him how Muslims were supposed to integrate in the country when the best examples of integration like Houli were still called terrorists. He called me a leftie f***wit.'
After 45 minutes, the abusive fan was allegedly reported to security and then ejected.
But Quigley was furious and claimed no other Richmond supporter did anything to intervene while the incident was ongoing.
He says they cheered when the 'abusive' fan was ejected, but then told them: 'Next time someone is on the receiving end of 45 minutes of abuse for stepping up to racists, you might grow some f**ing balls and help out.'
Quigley added on his Reddit post: 'So many people tolerate s*** which is not even close to acceptable because they are happy to do the sideways glance. THERE ARE RACISTS SUPPORTING THE AFL AND IT IS YOUR DUTY TO STOP THEM. They support your team it's not someone else.
'The standard you walk past is the standard you accept.' Grow some f***ing balls and help out.'
AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan said Houli himself revealed he'd not heard any racial abuse from the stands.
'I have spoken with our security team, who interviewed officials who were nearby, and they've spoken to Bachar," McLachlan told AFL.com.au
The banner reads 'GO PIES, STOP THE MOSQUES' and features two logos of the extreme far-right political group United Patriots Front
'I've actually spoken to Bachar myself. He did not hear, and there were no officials in the vicinity, who heard any racist abuse.
"There was a level of abuse. That's something that goes on in our game. I'm not condoning it but it was a level of abuse that is suffered by players at certain times in our game, as distinct from racial abuse.'
Friday's game was also marred by the unfurling of a banner during the second quarter of the match at the MCG in Melbourne that read 'GO PIES! STOP THE MOSQUES' with a prominent logo of the extreme far-right political group United Patriots Front.
Collingwood president Eddie McGuire is calling for those responsible to be banned from attending games.
Both the AFL and Collingwood condemned the banner and said the patrons responsible were evicted by security.
Collingwood president Eddie McGuire said the club would help police with an investigation, according to the AFL website.
'If they have anything to do with our club, they'll be banned,' he said.
'Get these people and make an example of them, they should be banned for life,' he told The Age.
'Get these people and make an example of them, they should be banned for life' - Eddie McGuire condemned the banner
Benjamin Solah posted an image of the banner to Twitter and wrote 'Disgusting that this banner was displayed at #AFLPiesTigers. Are @CollingwoodFC going to come out and condemn it?'
The post was met with a barrage of tweets condemning the banner, labeling it 'disgusting'.
A video taken at the match and posted to the UPF Facebook page with the caption 'Rise Without Fear' shows the banner being hoisted up below one of the MCG's large LED screens.
'If they have anything to do with our club, they'll be banned' - Collingwood president Eddie McGuire said the club would help police with an investigation
Last month UPF chairman Blair Cottrell (pictured) was photographed eating halal food at a Melbourne shopping centre
Others called on the AFL and Collingwood to act and issue life bans from matches to those involved in displaying the banner
Others called on the AFL and Collingwood to act and issue life bans from matches to those involved in displaying the banner.
'Don't promote these clowns. They're a handful of cretins with no power unless you give it to them,' one person wrote.
'Not to mention how the afl can let this be displayed below their scoreboard #AFLPiesTigers' another person wrote.
The AFL issued a statement saying the actions 'no place in society' and the league would also work with police.
'The AFL is aware that an offensive banner was displayed at the MCG during tonight's round two game between Richmond and Collingwood,' a League spokesperson said.
'Match-day security removed the banner when they became aware of it and evicted the patrons responsible.
The group regularly post videos and images to their Facebook page to promote their slogans and messages that primarily discriminates Muslims
'The AFL condemns the behaviour in the strongest terms and such actions have no place in society, and not in our game.'
An MCG spokesperson said the offensive nature of the banner breached conditions of entry.
The UPF campaign heavily against Islamic immigration, proposed mosques and halal food.
Last month chairman Blair Cottrell was photographed eating halal food at a Melbourne shopping centre.
The group regularly post videos and images to their Facebook page to promote their slogans and messages that primarily discriminates against Muslims.
But MoD said the islands were 'well-protected' by RAF Typhoon fighter jets
It is the first time British residents have been without protection since 1982
But no major HMS warship has been patrolling the islands since
The Falkland Islands have been left without the protection of a major British warship for the first time since the conflict broke out in 1982
The Royal Navy is committed to providing a permanent presence in the South Atlantic to 'reassure islanders and maintain a sovereign presence' in the area.
But according to the Independent, the islands have been left without the protection of a British frigate or destroyer for the first time since the war in 1982.
State of the art warship, HMS Dauntless, is serving as a 'training ship' but the MoD said it was not 'mothballed'
HMS Lancaster is docked in Portsmouth but remains 'very much part of the fleet', according to the MoD
The newspaper reports that a manpower crisis, engine problems with the Royal Navy's Type 45 destroyers, and the deployment of ships to monitor Russian naval movements elsewhere, has left the territory without the same protection.
No vessel has been sent to the South Atlantic since a frigate left the region in November 2015, according to the newspaper.
It comes as relations in the region faced fresh strains after a UN commission ruled to expand Argentina's maritime territory in the South Atlantic Ocean by more than a third to include the Falklands.
Shadow defence secretary Emily Thornberry told the Independent the situation is 'unacceptable' and the Ministry of Defence should 'immediately' dispatch a warship to the region.
She said: 'In one area after another we have seen the impact of the savage cuts made to our armed forces since David Cameron came to office but, even by those low standards, it is unacceptable that the Government is failing to provide the protection for the Falkland Islands that has been promised, and that the islanders have a right to expect as British citizens.
'The Ministry of Defence must rectify the situation immediately.'
An aerial view of San Carlos, Falkland Islands - the Royal Navy hasn't provided a major warship for the islands since November last year
Her statement follows controversial comments made this week in which she refused to rule out giving up the islands to Argentina.
Several warships have been forced to be stationed at ports because of manpower shortages and technical problems with the latest advanced destroyers, the newspaper claimed.
These include the destroyer HMS Dauntless, which now serves as a training ship, and the frigate HMS Lancaster, which are both docked in Portsmouth, the newspaper said.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: 'HMS Dauntless and HMS Lancaster are not mothballed and remain very much part of the fleet.
'The Navy is meeting its commitments from the Baltic Sea to the Gulf, and the Falklands remains well-protected via the patrol warship HMS Clyde, a Royal Fleet Auxiliary support ship and around 1,200 personnel operating RAF Typhoons and ground defences.'
The Falklands conflict began 34 years ago when Argentinian forces invaded and occupied the British islands in the South Atlantic on April 2, 1982.
He was described as '
Predator: Shaun Purcell was jailed for 16 years after admitting a string of rapes and sexual assaults
A 'controlling, jealous and paranoid' rapist repeatedly attacked three women he met on dating sites.
Shaun Purcell, 24,from Heywood, in Greater Manchester, formed relationships with each of his victims, who were aged 18, 20 and 43 at the time of the attacks, before subjecting them to a catalogue of rapes.
Purcell, said to have a 'voracious sexual appetite', had consensual sex with the women but would rape them if they rejected his demands for intercourse.
He was sentenced to 16 years in prison after admitting four counts of rape and five counts of sexual assault between 2012 and 2015, at Manchester Crown Court.
The court heard how on one occasion, he put his 43-year-old victim through a painful two-hour ordeal and 'slammed her back down' if she tried to escape.
He also committed one attack in the presence of a friend and humiliated two of the women by using objects to assault them despite their protests.
Alaric Bassano QC, prosecuting, told the court that all three women have been seriously affected by his vile crimes.
He described how 'the smallest of events' can trigger unpleasant memories for his now 23-year-old victim, who still suffers sleeplessness and nightmares.
Handing down the sentence - at least two-thirds of which must be served in custody - Judge Stuart Driver QC said: 'I find that he is a dangerous offender because there is a significant risk that he will commit further specified offences and by doing so will cause serious physical or psychological harm to one or more people.
'I find that an extended sentence is necessary to protect members of the public from that significant risk of serious harm.
Attacks: Manchester Crown Court, pictured, heard how predator Purcell had a 'voracious sexual appetite'
'I base that finding largely on the offences themselves. They amount to at least 45 crimes, on three separate victims over a two-and-a-half year period, including multiple rapes and assaults.'
He added that although he had taken into account Purcell's 'low intelligence', he was also mindful of a pre-sentence report which described him as 'a predatory and manipulative individual, posing a significant risk of serious harm to females and a very high risk of sexual re-conviction'.
A lion nicknamed Lemek has been speared to death by Maasai tribesmen after straying out of a Kenyan national park just a day after gamekeepers shot and killed another lion for the same reason.
Maasai leaders said residents killed the two-and-a-half-year-old lion after it ventured out of Nairobi National Park and began roaming community land. Another lion was also attacked and wounded.
Michael Mbithi, a lion researcher, said he heard about the lions being on the loose from sources and alerted the public that they were out of the park.
Maasai leaders said residents killed the two-and-a-half-year-old lion, called Lemek, after it ventured out of Nairobi National Park in Kenya and began roaming community land. Pictured: A ranger from the Kenya Wildlife Service shoots dead another male lion that had strayed from the South African wildlife park on Wednesday
A wildlife tracking team recovered the speared carcass of Lemek 'under a large thicket beside a dry riverbed' near Old Kitengela township, 12 miles south of Nairobi. The area is about two miles south of the park's southern tip.
Lemek's killing is prohibited under the Wildlife and Conservation Management Act of 2013.
However, Paul Gathitu, a spokesman for the Kenya Wildlife Service, said: 'We will hold a meeting with the community to know why they speared the lion.'
The spearing occurred one day after wildlife officials shot and killed another lion known as 'Mohawk'- because of the shape of its mane - that had wandered out of the same park and injured a man who was part of a large crowd that gathered around it.
Some people protested against the killing with a social media campaign called 'Justice for Mohawk.'
They said the lion should have been captured, but wildlife officials said they had to kill the lion after it became too agitated because of the crowd.
Mbithi said the Kenya Wildlife Service had set a bad precedence by killing Mohawk instead of capturing the lion - giving locals the impression it was acceptable to kill wildlife instead of protect it.
Nairobi National Park, on the outskirts of the Kenyan capital, is under growing pressure as the city expands. Just two weeks ago, a lion mauled a pedestrian in Nairobi before being captured.
After that incident, a leading Kenyan wildlife expert, Paula Kahumbu, said the noise from nearby road construction was scaring lions out of the park and could lead to the deaths of people or lions.
Other conservationists also agreed that construction work on the transport projects was affecting animal behaviour and leading more big cats to try to escape in search of quieter hunting grounds.
The spearing occurred one day after wildlife officials shot and killed another lion known as 'Mohawk'- because of the shape of its mane - that had wandered out of the same park and injured a man who was part of a crowd
Robert Ndetei, species conservation manager at World Wildlife Fund's Nairobi office, said.'Before construction started in the park, the lions were not escaping, so there are indications that the noise and blasting is affecting their movements,' said
'If you don't plan properly, if you don't do proper environmental-impact assessments, then you are doomed to fail, and at the Nairobi National Park this could lead to more lions and other animals coming into contact with a growing human presence.'
Nairobi National Park is home to about 35 lions. There are about 2,000 left in the whole of Kenya.
Kitili Mbathi, director general of Kenya Wildlife Service, agreed that the construction work was to blame for the increasing number of lions straying from the park.
'Yes, it has been disruptive but we are trying and they (the contractors) are trying to minimize the disruption,' he told Reuters.
He said the road was nearly complete, while the main construction work on the railway should be finished in June, restoring some calm.
'We have a temporary fence in certain places there, so now we will be able to put in a permanent electric fence,' he said. 'Eventually, when all the construction is finished, from that side of the park, we don't expect any more disruptions.'
Experts say construction work on nearby transport projects is causing lions to try and escape in search of quieter hunting grounds. Pictured: A stray lion runs during a chase by Kenya Wildlife Services this week
Mbathi said the wildlife service had increased patrols along the perimeter of the park.
'A key concern is that the developer is not taking proper care to ensure there is less disturbance of the habitat while also not securing the perimeter fencing,' said Lucy Waruingi, acting secretary of the Conservation Alliance of Kenya.
Human settlements and activity have long been encroaching on the Nairobi National Park, which was established in 1946 and gives visitors the chance to see lions, giraffes, zebras and other wildlife against a backdrop of high-rise buildings.
The road under construction will link Nairobi airport with the city centre, while the new railway line will connect the capital with port city Mombasa.
Kenya's economy is expected to grow by 5.9 per cent this year and by six per cent in 2017, increasing pressure on the environment and exacerbating conflicts between humans and wildlife.
A man who killed his friend then hid the body and used fake social media accounts to fool people into thinking his victim was alive, before exhuming the corpse and smashing its skull to pieces has been denied parole.
James Cooper, 28, was convicted in 2011 of the manslaughter of Javed Mills two years earlier after a bizarre series of events led to the discovery of the slaying.
Mr Mills' death at age 25 had been a mystery until a skeleton missing its head was found in the garage of an Auckland, New Zealand property, in 2011 Stuff.co.nz reported.
New Zealand man Javed Mills was an avid guitarist and musician, and was killed by James Cooper in 2009
James Cooper (pictured) is serving a seven year, three month sentence for Mr Mills' manslaughter and perverting the course of justice. He was found not guilty of Mr Mills' murder
Cooper, 28, was denied parole in March because he was deemed and 'undue risk to the safety of the community'.
He is currently serving a seven year, three month sentence for Mr Mills' manslaughter and perverting the course of justice after being found not guilty of murdering Mr Mills while on trial in 2013.
During that trial, he said he'd hit Mr Mills in the head during an argument in a large dolls house dubbed 'the den' where the pair smoked marijuana and listened to heavy metal music, Stuff reported.
Photos of Mr Mills show him to be an avid guitarist and music fan.
Cooper buried Mr Mills' body and later removed it to dispose of it. During that time, he pretended to be Mr Mills on social media to hide the fact his victim was dead
Mills' mother Lichelle has previously requested Cooper remain in prison and be denied parole, and called him a 'pathological liar'
Cooper struck his victim after an argument in which he 'lost his marbles'.
Upon realising Mr Mills was dead, he wrapped him in a blanket and left him beneath the den for two days, when his body began to decompose and smell.
He buried the body in a shallow grave for a year, Stuff reported.
During that time, he set up fake social media accounts in Mr Mills' name in a bid to hide his death and communicated with his victim's family, according to Stuff.
He also used his eftpos card and withdrew his regular benefits.
At that point, intending to move the body, he exhumed the remains, but the head fell off.
Cooper used a mallet to smash the skull to pieces and scattered what was left in the neighbour's property.
Stuff reported last year that parts of Mr Mills' skull were still being found in the garden.
The rest of the bones were put inside a recycling bin in a garage marked for demolition, where they were later found.
Cooper will reappear before the parole board later this year.
He has appeared before the board - and been denied - before.
Mills' mother Lichelle has previously requested Cooper remain in prison and called him a 'pathological liar', saying he'd never spoken the truth or admitted to what he had done, Stuff reported.
She said he needed help.
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A Melbourne photographer has added nine tonnes of sand to a dilapidated house and transformed it into an eerie desert.
Emma McEvoy captured the stunning pictures to reflect her experience in the southern Namibian town of Kolmanskop, once home to hundreds of German miners desperately seeking their fortune in the Namibian desert.
But almost 100 years after Kolmanskop peaked as a thriving and bustling oasis, it is now a dilapidated ghost town slowly being reclaimed by the sand.
Ms McEvoy's photography installation 'Sand Castles' is showcasing her images this weekend in Melbourne's inner northern suburb of Fitzroy.
The exhibition, aimed at recreating the rooms in the pictures, has nine tonnes of sand spread across four rooms, a bathroom and kitchen, Ms McEvoy told Daily Mail Australia.
Ms McEvoy was provided the house used in the display by development company Milieu. It will be demolished on Tuesday.
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A Melbourne photographer has added nine tonnes of sand to a dilapidated house and transformed it into an eerie desert
Emma McEvoy's images of a house in southern Namibian ghost town of Kolmanskop filled with sand are displayed on the walls in her exhibition 'Sand Castles' at 3 Hertford St, Fitzroy in Melbourne, Australia
A model in a white lace dress poses in the middle of a deserted Kolmanskop house filled with sand
Emma McEvoy captured the stunning pictures to reflect her experience in the southern Namibian town of Kolmanskop, once home to hundreds of German miners desperately seeking their fortune in the Namibian desert.
But almost 100 years after Kolmanskop peaked as a thriving and bustling oasis, it is now a dilapidated ghost town slowly being reclaimed by the sand
Ms McEvoy's photography installation is showcasing her images this weekend in Melbourne's inner northern suburb of Fitzroy
The exhibition, aimed at recreating the rooms in the pictures, has nine tonnes of sand spread across four rooms, a bathroom and kitchen, Ms McEvoy told Daily Mail Australia
The Melbourne house which Ms McEvoy was provided access to from the development company Milieu, who are demolishing the house on Tuesday
Entry to the Sand Castles installation at 3 Hertford St, Fitzroy, is free and ends on Sunday
The ripped ceilings and walls of the derelict house show the aging and damage done to the property over the century
British police pulled off a clever undercover operation to obtain vital evidence from the phone of a terrorist who had been secretly plotting to carry out a Lee Rigby-style attack in East Anglia.
Delivery driver Junead Khan was convicted yesterday of planning to murder a US soldier at a military base after police were able to use evidence from his unlocked phone.
Several undercover police officers disguised themselves as company managers and tricked Khan at his workplace into handing over his unlocked phone.
The officers arrested him and with only 30 seconds before the phone locked itself, they quickly managed to change the password so they could re-access the phone later, according to CNN.
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The investigation into the pair also uncovered a worrying message which suggests ISIS fighters in Syria have obtained the UK addresses of British servicemen. Pictured, a court sketch of the pair
Shazib Khan (left), has also been found guilty of planning to travel to Syria. His nephew Junead Khan (right), from Luton, was found guilty of the same offence and was also convicted of plotting to behead a US serviceman in Britain
Khan was arrested in mid-July after officers, pretending to be company managers, turned up at Junead Khan's workplace and demanded to check his employment paperwork.
The officers quizzed Khan about his whereabouts on certain work days, leading the 25-year-old to pull out his iPhone to consult his records.
The moment he had unlocked his phone and handed it to the officers, Khan was quicked arrested on the spot and the officers accessed his phone to avoid being locked out by its encryption software.
Investigators later examined 66,000 encrypted messages, texts and emails from the 25-year-old's phone which contained extremist material and a list of military equipment for travelling to Syria.
'It was very important we actually took possession of that phone. A lot of evidence presented at court was held on that phone,' Dean Haydon, the head of Counter Terrorism Command of the British Metropolitan Police, told CNN.
'Via that phone we knew that they'd been in contact with Daesh fighters in Syria via text message, via emails but also using social media applications,' he said.
Junead Khan had looked into buying a hunting knife like this one because he wanted to look like Jihadi John
An ISIS flag was found at his home. It is believed he planned to unfurl it at the scene of his atrocity
The police avoided the four months of difficulty faced by the FBI when they were unable to unlock the encrypted login of the San Bernardino terrorist couple. The FBI was engaged in a legal case with Apple over access to gunman Syed Farook's locked iPhone 5C
'There was a vast amount of extremist and terrorist material on there in relation to how to make a bomb, for instance, but also material that related to atrocities overseas.'
The police avoided the four months of difficulty faced by the FBI when they were unable to unlock the encrypted login of the San Bernardino terrorist couple.
The FBI was engaged in a legal case with Apple over access to gunman Syed Farook's locked iPhone 5C before the FBI managed to gain entrance through the help of a third party.
Khan's phone revealed he had been using an encrypted app to exchange dozens of secret messages with key British ISIS fighter Abu Hussain al-Britani.
Abu Hussain was identified as British-born militant Junaid Hussain, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike in the IS stronghold of Raqqa last year.
They discussed attacking military personnel after faking a road accident, similar to the way Lee Rigby was targeted in Woolwich in May 2013.
In one exchange, Khan told Hussain he had seen some soldiers driving, 'but I had nothing on me or wouldve (sic) got into an accident with them and made them get out the car.'
Khan (right, with an ISIS flag) plotted the attack with Junaid Hussain (left), an British ISIS recruit in Syria.
A photo found on Khan's phone showed Downing Street with Islamic flags superimposed outside
When police raided Khan's home, they also found an IS-style black flag and a laptop containing an article from an al-Qaida magazine entitled 'Make a bomb in the kitchen of your mom.'
Khan and his 23-year-old uncle, Shazib Khan, were also convicted of preparing to join IS militants in Syria.
Both men will be sentenced May 13. Junead Khan faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
After the verdict, police revealed that officers had visited Junead Khan four times in 2014 'to try and encourage him away from extremism.'
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Britain is set to enjoy the hottest day of the year so far this weekend as temperatures soar to 18C and forecasters claim the strongest El Nino for 500 years could bring a three-month summer heatwave.
The Met Office said the mercury will widely reach 16C and 17C across southern England today before creeping up towards 18C in the Cambridge and London areas tomorrow - making the UK hotter than Venice, Marbella, and Madrid.
It means Britain could be in for the hottest weekend of the year so far, with the previous warmest day being recorded in Braemar, Scotland on March 17 when the mercury hit 18.7C.
The warmer spell is a welcome relief to many up and down the country who experienced a washout Easter thanks to Storm Katie and forecasters predict the next three months could bring 'above-average temperatures' with highs of up to 27C possible.
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Forecasters say Britain could see the hottest day of the year so far this weekend with the mercury set to reach 16C and 17C across the south today before creeping up towards 18C in the Cambridge and London areas tomorrow. Pictured: Punting on the River Cam, Cambridge
Elle Moore, 26, Nikki Slaghekke, 26, Michelle Allen, 27, and Laura Tott, 23, enjoy the warm weather with a picnic in Hyde Park, London today
Rita Sousa, 19, enjoys the warm weather by relaxing with a good book in Hyde Park, London, today as the mercury soars to the mid teens
Two women take a selfie as they relax in the bright sunshine in London's Hyde Park today with forecasters promising more sun tomorrow
Watch out! Two-year-old Wiktoria Suszynska appeared apprehensive as she fed a swan at the Serpentine in London's Hyde Park today
People were enjoying the warm April sunshine on Brighton Beach in Sussex this afternoon as temperatures in southern England hit 18C
Hotter than Spain! Brighton Beach looked glorious in the spring sunshine today and scores of people turned out to make the most of it
Kicking back in the sunshine: Scores of people flocked to Brighton Beach today to soak up the sunshine following the Easter washout
The three-month forecast is a boost for the Queen's 90th birthday celebrations, the May Bank Holidays and half-term, and early summer music festivals.
Thousands were already making the most of the sunshine today, with families flocking to parks and beaches to soak up the glorious conditions.
The warmer climate is due to tropical continental air being brought into the UK through a change in wind direction and is likely to last until Monday.
However, it will then be cut short early next week when a band of heavy rain sweeps in across the country, bringing widespread downpours to much of England.
John Lee, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, said: 'It will be a few degrees above average this weekend. For April you are looking at highs of 13C (55.4F) or 14C (57.2F), so reaching 18C or 19C is fairly good.'
Chris Page, a Met Office forecaster, added that the weekend would be 'rather pleasant' for most.
He said: 'It's going to feel pleasant in the sunshine especially in the south east where we see those blue skies.
'However, it will go downhill next week. It turns unsettled from Monday and we have outbreaks of patchy rain pushing across the country. Into Tuesday, we see a few more sunny spells and a few isolated showers but another band of rain will begin pushing across all areas on Wednesday.'
The warmer climate this weekend is due to tropical continental air being brought into the UK through a change in wind direction. Pictured: Punters enjoyed a spot of fun on the River Cam in Cambridge today as the sunnier weather replaced the recent misery of Storm Katie
Cambridge student Ellen Mathess relaxing on the River Cam in Cambridge (left) as the first warm day of spring arrives with temperatures rising towards 18C. Meanwhile, hundreds of people used the warmer weather as an opportunity to take a stroll along Brighton promenade
Youngsters enjoyed making sandcastles and taking selfies on Weston-super-Mare beach today as southern England basked in sunshine
Families across the south, including in Weston-super-Mare (above), flocked to beaches and parks to make the most of the warmer weather
Brighton seafront was packed this afternoon as people made the most of a warm April afternoon by kicking back with a drink and a snack
A man enjoys a spot of roller-skiing through a very sunny Hyde Park today as Londoners make the most of the spring-like conditions
Topping up the tan? One man took off his shirt as he soaked up the sun's rays at London's Hyde Park in temperatures of up to 18C today
Britain could bask in the warmest weather of the year this weekend as temperatures soar to 18C. Pictured: Horses in Hyde Park, London
A woman walks past daffodils in full bloom on a sunny spring day in St James Park in London as the capital basks in temperatures of 18C
THE GREAT EL NINO EFFECT El Nino is caused by a shift in the distribution of warm water in the Pacific Ocean around the equator. Usually the wind blows strongly from east to west, due to the rotation of the Earth, causing water to pile up in the western part of the Pacific. This pulls up colder water from the deep ocean in the eastern Pacific. However, in an El Nino, the winds pushing the water get weaker and cause the warmer water to shift back towards the east. This causes the eastern Pacific to get warmer. But as the ocean temperature is linked to the wind currents, this causes the winds to grow weaker still and so the ocean grows warmer, meaning the El Nino grows. This change in air and ocean currents around the equator can have a major impact on the weather patterns around the globe by creating pressure anomalies in the atmosphere. Advertisement
Forecasters also warned that the UK will not enjoy 'wall-to-wall sunshine' today, with a band of rain in northern areas spreading to the south east later this evening.
Sunday will be warmer and will see rain in the north and drier weather further south, though with a risk of showers later on.
Mr Lee said: 'People having barbecues could see them get spoilt as the evening wears on.'
However, if the Met Office's three-month forecast is anything to go by, there may be plenty more opportunities for barbecues over the coming months.
The three-month forecast, being briefed to councils, the Cabinet Office and transport bosses, says the UK is likely to experience 'above-average temperatures' for April, May and June.
It says: 'The probability the UK average temperature will fall into the warmest of our five categories is 30 per cent. The probability of the coldest of our five categories is 15 per cent.
'El Nino is a significant feature and is still expected to have wide-reaching global impacts.
'Connections between El Nino and UK weather are less clear. It will continue to weaken as we enter summer.'
However, despite the warmer conditions, more showers than normal are expected. The Met Office forecast warns of above-average rainfall from April to June.
The strongest El Nino for 500 years is still pumping warm air north, beefing up weather patterns bringing tropical air to Britain. The current 'Godzilla El Nino' event is warming the eastern Pacific Ocean.
No El Ninos since modern records began in 1950 have been stronger than the current event, the US government National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's data showed.
Older records show the strongest El Nino between 1800 and 1948 was in 1877-78 - but it was weaker than 1982-83 and 1997-98's El Ninos, thereby making the current more powerful El Nino the strongest, NOAA data showed.
Youngsters enjoyed an old-fashioned donkey ride on the sandy Weston-super-Mare beach in Somerset this afternoon in glorious sunshine
Donkey rides were in full swing in Weston-super-Mare (left), while one runner made the most of the warm weather in Brighton (right) today
One member of Brighton Swimming club used the warmer weather as an opportunity to cool off and dives into the chilly sea water
Families were enjoying a spot of fun on Worthing Beach, Sussex, today as much of southern England enjoyed clear, blue skies
Families enjoy a sunny morning on Worthing Beach in Sussex today as forecasters predict warmer air and bright sunshine for the weekend
Forecasters say the mercury will widely reach 16C and 17C across southern England today before creeping up towards 18C in the Cambridge and London areas tomorrow. Pictured: There was a stunning and colourful sunrise in the New Forest in Hampshire this morning
Britain could be in for the hottest weekend of the year so far, with the previous warmest day being recorded in Braemar, Scotland on March 17 when the mercury hit 18.7C. However, a band of rain is set to sweep across the country next week. Pictured: The New Forest, Hampshire
The current El Nino is the strongest since 1500, studies by the late El Nino expert William Quinn show.
The major El Ninos in 1578, 1728 and 1791 were all weaker than the 1982-83 event, Quinn's book 'El Nino Occurrences Over the Past Four and a Half Centuries' showed.
The Met Office, referring to modern US Government records which began in 1948, said: 'This El Nino ranks among the strongest on record.'
Bookmakers are now predicting the hottest day of the year this weekend, but seem sceptical that this April will be the hottest on record.
Coral slashed odds on the warmest day of the year occurring this weekend from 5/1 to even money.
Bets on temperatures reaching 18C are placed at 5/1, with the odds of 9/4 offered on warm weather hitting 16C.
The bookmakers also seem sceptical that this April will be the hottest on record, with odds of 100/1.
Nicola McGeady, spokeswoman for Coral, said: 'The odds indicate that the winter woollies will finally be ditched this weekend as temperatures are set to soar and judging by the bets, punters are banking on sunny start to April.'
The Russian Armed Forces have rolled into the historic city of Palmyra, to aid in the clearing process following the retaking of the city last Sunday.
ISIS had controlled the ancient site and its UNESCO-listed ruins since May 2015, but the Syrian army, backed by Russian forces, has finally reclaimed it.
Photographs showed a convoy of Russian tanks and military equipment moving into the city today, after leaving from the Hmeimim airbase - a Russian airbase south-east of the city of Latakia in Latakia Governorate, Syria.
But a chilling new discovery has cast light on the brutal regime with which the jihadists controlled the city.
Specialists with the Russian Armed Forces' International Mine Action Center prepare their equipment for entering the Syrian city of Palmyra from the Hmeimim airbase
Syrian army soldiers stand on the ruins of the Temple of Bel in the historic city of Palmyra, in Homs Governorate
A convoy of the Russian Armed Forces' International Mine Action Center heading to the Syrian city of Palmyra from the Hmeimim airbase
Russian mine clearance specialists clear approach routes to the ancient city of Palmyra of mines
Syrian troops uncovered a shocking mass grave containing dozens of bodies, including children.
The mutilated bodies of 42 civilians and soldiers executed by ISIS were found close to the city, a military source confirmed.
The victims were officers, soldiers, members of the 'popular committees (pro-regime militia)' and their relatives, according to AFP. 24 of the victims were civilians, including three children.
'They were executed either by beheading or by shooting,' the source said, before they were buried in the desert.
The bodies have been transferred to a military hospital in the provincial capital Homs and some have been identified, he added.
New photos show the Syrian army, backed by Russian forces, assessing the damage and keeping guard to the historic site.
Specialists and military equipment of the Russian Armed Forces' International Mine Action Center prepared to be sent to the Syrian city of Palmyra from the Hmeimim airbase
New photos show the Syrian army, backed by Russian forces, assessing the damage and keeping guard to the historic site
Palmyra and its UNESCO-listed ruins, which IS had overrun in May 2015, was re-captured last Sunday and has been widely celebrated by supporters of the Assad regime
A convoy of the Russian Armed Forces' International Mine Action Center heading to the Syrian city of Palmyra from the Hmeimim airbase
During their nearly 10-month occupation of Palmyra, the jihadists executed at least 280 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
A convoy of the Russian Armed Forces' International Mine Action Center heading to the Syrian city of Palmyra from the Hmeimim airbase
Russian mine clearance specialists clear approach routes to the ancient city of Palmyra of mines
The news comes as the Syrian opposition revealed they were not optimistic about upcoming peace talks in Geneva because there is no international will for a political transition
Assad has said he thinks the Geneva talks can produce a new Syrian government that includes opposition, independents and loyalists, but has explicitly rejected the idea of a transitional authority
Palmyra and its UNESCO-listed ruins, which IS had overrun in May 2015, was re-captured last Sunday and has been widely celebrated by supporters of the Assad regime.
During their nearly 10-month occupation of Palmyra, the jihadists executed at least 280 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor which confirmed the discovery of the mass grave.
The news comes as the Syrian opposition revealed they were not optimistic about upcoming peace talks in Geneva because there is no international will for a political transition, opposition member Riad Hijab told Al Araby Al Jadid television late on Friday.
The Syrian opposition has consistently said that it wants a halt in attacks on civilians and for the Geneva talks to result in a transitional governing body for Syria that does not include President Bashar al-Assad.
The bodies of 42 civilians and soldiers executed by ISIS have been found in a mass grave close to the city, a military source confirmed
The Syrian army, backed by Russian forces, have been assessing the damage and keeping guard to the historic site
'There is no international will, especially from the U.S. side, and I do not expect anything to come of the negotiations,' said Hijab, the coordinator for the Saudi-backed Higher Negotiation Committee (HNC), the main opposition bloc.
The HNC will attend the next round of talks, scheduled to start around April 9 in Geneva, Hijab said, but 'I will be clear to our people: we have no optimism concerning the negotiations process.'
Assad has said he thinks the Geneva talks can produce a new Syrian government that includes opposition, independents and loyalists, but has explicitly rejected the idea of a transitional authority.
Russia and the United States disagree on Assad's future but have jointly pressed the Syrian government and the opposition to attend the indirect peace talks in Geneva, which are being mediated by a United Nations envoy.
Palmyra and its UNESCO-listed ruins, which IS had overrun in May 2015, was re-captured last Sunday and has been widely celebrated by supporters of the Assad regime
Ruins of the Monumental Arch destroyed by ISIS militants in Palmyra, a UNESCO world heritage site
A substantial number of statues, temples and other structures were destroyed by militants of the so called Islamic State (ISIS) after they took Palmyra under control in 2015
Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad walk with their weapons in Palmyra city after recapturing it towards the end of March
Activists have warned that the month-old ceasefire could collapse as fierce fighting erupted near the city of Aleppo.
The al-Qaeda affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra and other insurgents captured a strategic overlook from government forces south of Aleppo after weeks of government air raids.
The militant group along with other jihadis as well as more moderate factions, captured the village of Tel el-Ais early today.
The village overlooks a vital highway connecting Aleppo with the capital, Damascus.
The Nusra Front boasted of its offensive on social media, posting videos showing mortars and tanks firing on what is said to be government positions. Syria's state news agency acknowledged fierce clashes in the area.
New Jersey Gov Chris Christie returned to The Tonight Show and attempted to explain his 'hostage' expression behind Donald Trump and his method of eating M&Ms.
The former Republican presidential candidate joked with host Jimmy Fallon on Friday night's show about his much mocked appearance with Trump.
'I saw you standing behind Trump on Super Tuesday and you looked like you were having a blast,' Fallon said. 'Were you being held hostage at the time?'
As Fallon grabbed a cardboard cutout of Christie and set it up behind the real Christie he asked him to relive the moment he looked like a hostage while standing behind Trump during his Super Tuesday victory speech.
'This is what you would look like if you were standing behind Jay Leno during his monologue,' Christie said. 'If you're used to talking, it's awkward not to talk.'
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New Jersey Gov Chris Christie returned to The Tonight Show and attempted to explain his 'hostage' expression behind Donald Trump as host Jimmy Fallon brought out a cardboard version of Christie (left)
#FreeChrisChristie: Social media users seized Christie's 'hostage' moment (pictured) with dozens of tweets and memes that joked about him looking like he was being held hostage
Fallon (right) also brought out a confused-looking cardboard version of himself as he asked Christie about his decision to endorse Trump over the billionaire's rivals
The Republican governor had a confused and at times troubled expression on his face as he stood behind Trump at the Florida news event.
Despite the strong performance from Trump, it was Christie who stole the show, with dozens of tweets and memes that joked about him looking like he was being held hostage.
The Christie 'hostage' moment led to a social media frenzy as users mocked him with the hashtag #FreeChrisChristie.
Fallon also brought out his own cutout for the show as he asked Christie about his decision to endorse Trump over rivals Sen Ted Cruz and Gov John Kasich.
Christie said the billionaire businessman is simply better than his opponents.
'I think he's better than them. It's not really hard. It was my judgement that I thought he was better than the other two.'
In the interview Christie also defended his method of eating M&Ms at an NCAA tournament game last weekend and whether he would consider being Trump's running mate.
Christie said the vice president position is no different than the cardboard cutout of the governor on stage.
In the interview Christie talked about whether he would consider being Trump's running mate. He said the vice president position is no different than the cardboard cutout of the governor on stage.
'This is not hard to understand': Christie told Fallon that there was an easy explanation for his method of M&M eating: the bag came inside the box
'I have a hard time believing that anyone would ask me to be vice president,' he said, pointing to the cardboard version of himself.
'When you're vice president, that's basically what you do, right?' Christie said, adding that when his second term as governor is over, he'd like to play tambourine with The Roots.
Fallon also asked Christie about a recent incident in Philadelphia involving M&Ms during the Notre Dame versus Wisconsin NCAA tournament game.
A photo of Christie pouring a bag of M&Ms into a larger box of M&Ms quickly went viral and led to days of jokes on social media.
But the governor told Fallon there was an easy explanation: the bag came inside the box.
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Wendi Deng has been seen frolicking in the tropical waves of St Barts amid claims that she is in a 'serious' relationship with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
The 47-year-old showed off her impressive figure in a skimpy red bikini as she splashed about on the Caribbean coast with friends.
Deng has been enjoying a holiday on St Barts aboard the $400 million yacht of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, a close friend of Putin.
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Frolic: Wendi Deng runs through the clear water off the coast of St Barts while she takes a holiday on the Caribbean island
Figure: Deng, 47, showed off her impressive physique while enjoying herself on the beach, wearing just a skimpy red bikini
Holiday: It is believed that Chinese businesswoman Deng is staying aboard the $400 million yacht of billionaire Roman Abramovich
Stroll: Wendi shows off her long legs while striding out of the sea, where she spent the day relaxing with a group of friends
Body: Boasting a svelte figure most women would be proud of, Wendi runs out of the sea as the waves crash against the coast of St Barts
Style: Wendi adjusts her long dark hair as she makes her way out of the water during the day at the beach with her friends
The Chinese businesswoman is close to Abramovich's wife Dasha Zhukova, who is not with her on the yacht this week and is instead with friends in South Carolina.
On Thursday Deng was seen standing on the sidewalk in a yellow dress and sandals alongside her daughter Chloe Murdoch and a group of friends.
US Weekly reported that Deng and Putin, 63, were dating after speaking to an insider close to the Russian leader, who said the relationship between the two had become 'serious.'
Pal: Wendi is close to the Abramovich family through the tycoon's wife Dasha Zhukova, who is currently not on the Caribbean island
Happy Days: Deng smiles as she splashes about just days after it was reported she was in a 'serious relationship' with Vladimir Putin
Grace: Even after jumping around in the sea Deng still retains an air of elegance as she plays with younger members of the group
Youngsters: Deng was seen playing in the water with two children, a girl and a boy, but it is not known if the girl was one of her daughters
Laugh: Wendi smiles as she jokes around with the children among the beach party, enjoying themselves in St Barts
Nuptials: Deng was having fun on her beach retreat just weeks after ex-husband Rupert Murdoch married Jerry Hall in a London ceremony
Getaway: Wendi stands aboard a small boat as she is transported to Abramovich's yacht, Eclipse, which was once the largest in the world
Luxury: Wendi Deng is staying aboard Abramovich's opulent yacht 'Eclipse', pictured, which has two swimming pools and a crew of 70
Night out: Wendi Deng was seen out at dinner Thursday night in St. Barts with her daughters and friends (above)
Family outing: Deng was seen with her daughter Chloe (above) on the street outside the restaurant
Big rumor: A report emerged earlier that day claiming Deng was in a 'serious' relationship with Russian president Vladimir Putin
They are both divorced, with Deng and husband Rupert Murdoch splitting in 2013 and Putin separating a year later from his wife of 30 years Lyudmila Putina.
Deng and her ex have two daughters,Grace, 14, and Chloe, 12, while Putin and his wife also have two daughters, Maria, 30, and Yekaterina, 29.
Putin was linked to Russian gymnast Alina Kabaeva after his split, and there have been claims that he fathered two children with her, but the Kremlin and Kabayeva have strongly denied these accusations.
There were also allegations the two had been together since as early as 2008, but those claims were also strongly denied.
Murdoch filed for divorce from Deng after 14 years of marriage citing irreconcilable differences, with some reports at the time claiming he had grown suspicious of his wife's relationship with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who is the godfather of their daughter Grace.
Emails from Deng were uncovered around this time that suggested a close relationship with Blair - which were shown to Mr Murdoch by one of his sons.
In one memo to herself, Deng had written: 'Oh s***, oh s***. Whatever why I'm so so missing Tony. Because he is so charming and his clothes are so good.
'He has such a good body and he had his really, really good legs Butt [sic] . . . and he is slim tall and good skin. Pierce blue eyes which I love. Love his eyes. Also I love his power on the stage . . . and what else what else what else . . .'
Other messages suggested that Blair had met Deng in New York, London and Beijing.
Keeping quiet: Deng (left in 2012) and Putin (right in 2013) have never been spotted together and neither has commented on their rumored relationship
Moving on: Deng's ex-husband Rupert Murdoch married for the fourth time last month, walking down the aisle with former model Jerry Hall. Deng is close to Abramovich's wife Dasha Zhukova (pictured together right), who is not with her on the yacht this week and instead with friends in South Carolina
Hours after the divorce was announced, Blair telephoned Murdoch, insisting he was innocent. But, after a brief conversation, the tycoon refused to take any more of his calls.
Deng was also recently linked to 30-year-old violinist Charlie Siem after the two attended the Giambatista Valli show during Paris fashion week earlier this year.
Deng's vacation comes just a few weeks after her ex walked down the aisle for the fourth time, with Murdoch, 85, saying 'I do' to former American model and Mick Jagger ex Jerry Hall, 59, last month in London.
Putin's ex-wife also remarried earlier this year according to reports that claim she wed a man 21 years her junior in January, 37-year-old businessman Arthur Ocheretny.
Deng and Putin meanwhile have never been spotted together and neither has commented on their rumored relationship.
Canny surgeons have used a clever technique to save a Brazilian man's hand from being amputated by putting it inside a pocket in his belly.
Doctors decided to bury Carlos Mariotti's left hand inside his abdomen and cover it with a flap of protective skin after the machine production operator suffered a horrific work accident that ripped off all the skin on his hand.
The 42-year-old, who lives in Orleans in the south of Brazil, must now keep his damaged mitt tucked deep in the soft tissue pouch for six weeks.
Doctors decided to bury Carlos Mariotti's left hand inside his abdomen and cover it with a flap of protective skin after the machine production operator suffered a horrific work accident that ripped off all the skin on his hand
Orthopaedic and traumatology doctor Boris Brandao, who performed the rare operation, explained: 'Mr Marriott suffered a de-gloving injury which left him with very little skin on the palm and back of his hand, exposing the bones and tendons inside.
'This was a very large and delicate injury and the only place we could fit the whole hand was in the abdomen.
'Without this procedure, there would be a high risk of infection and the tissue and tendons would rot away.'
Mr Mariotti, who remains hospitalised in the Santa Otilia Hospital, said he is a very lucky man.
'I still get very emotional when I think about the accident. But it was only when doctors told me I could lose my hand that I realised the gravity of the situation.
The 42-year-old, who lives in Orleans in the south of Brazil, must now keep his damaged mitt tucked deep in the soft tissue pouch for six weeks
'When I woke up from the operation I didn't know whether it was still there. I couldn't believe it when they said they had tucked my hand inside me.'
Heavy bandages around the mid-size man's midriff keeps his arm firmly in place. But doctors have warned that he must move his mangled extremity 'gently around to avoid the hand becoming stiff.'
Cringing slightly, he said: 'It's a really weird feeling trying to wiggle my fingers inside my body and creepy seeing my tummy protrude slightly as I prod around.'
The right-handed factory worker lost two fingers - his index and middle fingers - in the accident but said: 'I am just so grateful because at least I will still be able to hold a fork, grip a steering wheel and dress myself without any help.'
Mr Mariotti was operating a machine that manufactures coils at the Zettapack Plastic factory, close to where he lives, when his hand was dragged into the heavy duty equipment.
He was alone on the factory floor at the time and recalls feeling an 'indescribable pain' as the machine chewed up his limb.
The experienced factory worker, who recently re-joined the company after leaving in 2001 said: 'It was like watching a movie play out in front of me. I saw the machine pulling my hand in and couldn't do anything about it.'
When colleagues failed to respond to his screams, the desperate worker took drastic action, wrenching his hand out of the machine himself.
Workmates came running seconds later and tried to save the bloodied and tattered appendage by wrapping it tightly in bandages.
Dr Brandao said medics decided to perform an immediate 'salvaging' procedure because 'if we can save a hand we always try to find a way to do so'.
He explained: 'In order to keep the wounded hand alive, we opened the abdomen, took off the skin and put it inside the cavity to protect it.
'The patient's hand must stay in the pocket for about 42 days to ensure it develops new tissue and tendon material which is capable of receiving a replanted skin graft.'
This is not the first time doctors have implanted or attached body parts in odd places. American medics at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Maryland, successfully grew Sherrie Walter's ear on her arm after she developed bassal cell carcinoma in 2008
Weekly check-ups will monitor the progress of the treatment and whether the hand is on the mend.
However, the doctor warned: 'Mr Mariotti will suffer impaired function as he will not get all the movement back in his hand.
'But he will have a working hand and will be able to do the pincer movement. At least this is a better quality of life compared to having an amputated hand,' he observed.
Celebrating the fact, he can move his fingers inside his body, Mr Mariotti laughed: 'Now I just have to remember to keep my hand in 'my pocket'.
'Doctors have already drummed it in to me that pulling it out would be catastrophic and I'm making sure I don't do that,' he said.
This is not the first time doctors have implanted or attached body parts in odd places.
In 2009, former Idaho beauty queen, Jamie Hilton had part of her skull sewn into her abdomen to keep it sterile and nourished while brain swelling from a head injury subsided
American medics at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Maryland, successfully grew Sherrie Walter's ear on her arm after she developed bassal cell carcinoma in 2008.
In 2009, former Idaho beauty queen, Jamie Hilton had part of her skull sewn into her abdomen to keep it sterile and nourished while brain swelling from a head injury subsided.
And in 2010 Chinese surgeons planted nine-year-old Ming Li's severed hand onto her right leg as it was too badly damaged to put back on her arm after it was run over in a tractor accident.
Three months later the child's hand was successfully reattached.
A weightlifter and Marine Corps veteran from California may be all muscle but he's convinced that his 12-year-old friend battling an illness is much stronger than him.
David 'The Beast' Douglas says he gets his strength from a little girl from Detroit, Michigan named Lindsay who is suffering from a rare disease called progeria that causes her to age 8-10 times faster than a normal little girl, according to Fox.
A photo of the two walking hand in hand at an event in Minnesota in 2014 expresses David's unshakable respect for Lindsay and her spirit.
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Strength: A photo of the two walking hand in hand at an event in Minnesota expresses David's respect for Lindsay and her spirit. The photo was taken in 2014 but is now gaining attention
Best friends: David calls Lindsey his 'little sis' and recently graced her with a surprise visit to Detroit, Michigan
The two are pictured walking away and written on David's shirt are the words 'strong' and 'stronger.' Next to the word stronger is an arrow pointing at Lindsay. The photo quickly circulated the web after it was shared on David's Facebook.
'People looked at me as strong when everything about her was stronger. Instead of putting those words off to the side, I decided to put it right on me to make the point even louder,' David wrote along with the touching image.
David calls Lindsay his 'little sis,' according to Fox.
The dynamic duo met at an event called Relentless sponsored by an organization called HopeKids that pairs body builders with children fighting disease.
In a touching video, David documents a surprise trip to Detroit, Michigan to see Lindsay at a Progeria fundraising event.
The dynamic duo met at an event called Relentless sponsored by an organization called HopeKids that pairs body builders with children fighting disease
In a touching video, David documents a surprise trip to Detroit, Michigan to see Lindsay at a progeria fundraising event. The pair are pictured here with Lindsay's father on a separate occasion
Champs: Lindsay and David look like twins in these matching blue robes. David says he gets his strength for weightlifting from people like Lindsay
At first he tells Lindsay that he is in California and that he'll see her in November because he can't make it out to a fundraising event.
But then to Lindsays surprise, he shows up in Detroit and gives Lindsay a big hug. Lindsay and her father Joey Ratcliffe both cry tears of joy after seeing David.
Most children with progeria which affects just one in every 4million births worldwide dont live past the age of 13.
It is caused by a single mistake in a particular gene, which causes it to make abnormal protein. When cells use this protein, called progerin, they break down more easily.
Progerin builds up in many cells of children with progeria, thereby causing them to age more quickly.
Although most children with the condition appear healthy when they are born, they start to show signs of the disease during their first year.
Initial symptoms include a bigger head, large eyes, a small lower jaw, a thin nose with a beaked tip, ears that stick out, visible veins, slow and abnormal tooth growth and hair loss.
Even though Lindsay suffers from the condition, friends like David give her the power to play and have fun like any other little girl. Those who wish to help Lindsay and others like her can donate here.
Blessed: Even though Lindsay suffers from the condition, friends like David give her the power to play and have fun like any other little girl. Lindsay gives strength to David who feels 'blessed by her presence'
Conversationalist: The pair enjoy chatting frequently and even when they aren't in the same city they can talk on Skype
Family: Lindsay, pictured here with her parents, feels lucky to know people like David
This is the incredible moment a secret service agent was filmed scolding one of the Turkish president's bodyguards after clashes with protesters and reporters in Washington D.C. on Thursday.
Turkey's leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan was in the capital for this week's nuclear summit with other world leaders when scuffles broke out outside the Brookings Institution.
Bystanders captured video of the president's security detail tearing anti-Erdogan banners from protesters' hands, while journalists claimed they were also pushed and kicked.
Seeming to echo the concerns of many onlookers, one secret service agent was filmed telling the Turkish security detail: 'This is America!'
This is the moment a secret service agent was caught on film scolding a member of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan's security detail after he clashed with protesters and journalists in Washington D.C.
Erdogan's security detail (pictured) were accused of ripping banners from the hands of protesters and kicking journalists ahead of a speech by the Turkish premiere at Brookings Institute on Thursday
Erdogan has been sharply criticized in recent years for a crackdown on the press and opponents of his regime in his home country, with journalists arrested and threatened
In footage filmed by Cenk Sidar, a Turkish columnist, the agent is heard saying: 'Stay on this side [of the road.] Do you understand? You tell him to calm down, this is America.
'Act like an adult, stay on this side of the road. End of story. By going over there and flipping the bird you're causing more problems for me, and for your protection.'
Erdogan's regime has been accused of a heavy crackdown on the press and freedom on speech in recent years.
Journalists critical of Erdogan have protested over arrests, foreign reporters say they have been harassed for their coverage, and one of the country's largest opposition publications was recently handed over to the state in a court decision in which no explanation was given.
On Thursday, as Erdogan arrived at the Brookings Institute to give a speech, protesters waving banners branding him a 'fascist' and a 'murderer' gathered outside.
Dozens of anti-Erdogan protesters, largely from the Kurdish ethnic group who have been helping fight ISIS in northern Syria, gathered outside Brookings on Thursday (pictured)
Clashes broke out between the Kurdish protesters and a smaller but vocal group of pro-Erdogan demonstrators thanking him for taking in Syrian refugees fleeing the conflict there
Many appeared to be representing the Kurds, an ethnic group from southern Turkey and northern Syria who have been attempting to establish their own state along Turkey's border after fighting off ISIS, while also carrying out suicide attacks inside Turkey itself.
They were joined by a smaller, but very vocal, group of pro-Erdogan supporters which prompted clashes between the two groups.
Things turned ugly with the arrival of Erdogan's security detail, as Turkish journalist Emre Uslu claims he was kicked in the leg by one of the guards.
The same journalist then said he was barred from getting inside to cover the event, while officials also tried to remove journalist Adem Yavuz Arslan from inside the building, before being forced to leave themselves.
Another journalist, Amberin Zaman, a former Turkey correspondent for The Economist, said the Turkish security detail called her a 'PKK whore' as she was standing outside the event.
Following clashes outside Brookings, journalists attending the event claimed Erdogan's security (pictured) tried to evict them from inside the event before the guards themselves were ejected
The PKK, or Kurdistan Worker's Party, is a Kurdish militant group that Turkey and the United States classifies as a terrorist organization.
Brookings said in a statement that its staff had sought to ensure that journalists on its guest list were allowed in.
In his speech, Erdogan addressed a wide array of foreign policy issues. He expressed optimism about improving relations with Israel and holding talks to reunify Cyprus.
He also criticized Western support of Kurdish rebels in Syria whom Turkey considers part of a terrorist group, and called for more Western funding to help Syrian refugees.
A father-of-two construction firm boss was killed when his vintage car slammed into a tree in the driveway of his own 500,000 home.
Nicholas Bajorinas, 64, had been driving along the private country lane leading from his house when he lost control of his powerful Cobra Dart car and ploughed into the tree.
He was understood to have been found by his wife before later being pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.
Nicholas Bajorinas, 64, had been driving along the private country lane leading from his house when he lost control of his powerful Cobra Dart car and ploughed into the tree
He was understood to have been found by his wife Susan (pictured) before later being pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics
Mr Bajorinas was the owner of Badger Construction - a family run business which has provided landscaping and home improvement services for more than 50 years.
He took over the business from his father in 1983 and ran it from the family's detached country home, which is located up a private gravel track in Edenbridge on the borders of Surrey, Kent and Sussex.
Mr Bajorinas is survived by his son Thomas, 22, who is an employee at his firm, his daughter Charlotte, 31, and his wife Susan, 61.
The family was mourning the loss at home and a spokesman for the family declined to comment on the tragedy.
An employee, who asked not to be named, working for the nearby firm Telescope House said: 'One of the guys on the farm mentioned to us that their neighbour up at the house had been killed.
'We were closed all weekend so none of us was here to see what had happened, but it happened on the driveway from what we understand.
'We have been here for about seven years so they must have been here before that. I believe the family are Italian.'
Mr Bajorinas is survived by his son Thomas, 22, who is an employee at his firm, his daughter Charlotte (pictured), 31, and his wife Susan, 61
Police confirmed there had been a fatal accident on the private road.
A spokesman for Surrey Police said: 'A man has died following a collision in Tandridge near Edenbridge on Easter Sunday.
'The incident, involving a blue Cobra Dart which collided with a tree, occurred on a private driveway in Starborough Road, Edenbridge, around 5.40pm.
'The driver, a man in his 60s, was sadly pronounced dead at the scene. A passenger in the car is believed to have suffered a fractured right collar bone.
'Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident. Anyone with any information is asked to contact Surrey Police on 101.'
The circumstances surrounding the crash and the death are being investigated following the incident, but police have confirmed Mr Bajorinas had been driving the Cobra - a classic style of convertible car.
Mr Bajorinas is described on the Badger Construction website as a man with 'over 30 years experience' and 'in-depth knowledge of all aspects of building'.
It says: 'Nick prefers a "hands-on" style, working closely with his team of employees - all of whom have vast experience within the construction sector.'
The number of migrants arriving in Germany from Austria dropped by more than 33,000 in a month after the introduction of border controls along the Balkan route.
Just 5,000 people arrived in Germany in March, compared to 38,570 migrants in February - which was already down sharply from 64,700 in January.
The huge drop in numbers will no doubt be welcome news for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is under increasing pressure to reduce the number of migrants and refugees arriving in the country after more than 1.1million crossed into Germany last year.
The number of migrants arriving in Germany from Austria has dropped from more than 38,000 in February to just 5,000 in March, following the introduction of border controls in the latter country. Pictured: A refugee girl stranded in a camp in Greece
The border controls have created a domino effect, with some 50,000 people now trapped in Greece (pictured)
Austria has been the main point of entry for people seeking a new life in Germany over the past year, ever since Merkel announced the country would welcome all refugees from Syria.
However, other countries along the route from Greece to Germany - including Austria, Hungary and Macedonia - have struggled to cope with the influx making their way along what has become known as the Balkan route.
It led many to try to close their borders, and when Austria did so in February it caused a domino effect in Europe that left thousands of people stranded in Greece.
Merkel has been critical of these tighter border controls, and is banking on a controversial EU-Turkey deal which will see the first 500 migrants deported back across the Aegean from Greece on Monday being enough to dissuade people from making the crossing and block the route for good.
Under the deal, all irregular migrants face being sent back from the Greek islands to Turkey - although the deal calls for each case to be examined individually.
For every Syrian refugee sent back, another Syrian refugee will be resettled from Turkey to the EU, with the numbers capped at 72,000.
But the deal has sparked criticism internationally. Peter Sutherland, the UN secretary general's special representative for international migration and development, said collective deportation 'without having regard to the individual rights of those who claim to be refugees are illegal,' according to the Guardian.
The drop in numbers will no doubt be welcome news to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is under pressure to reduce the numbers arriving in the country. Pictured: Idomeni camp in Greece
Merkel is not in favour of the border controls, but is in favour of a deal struck with Turkey to deport people back across the Aegean. Pictured: Migrants and refugees block the highway during a protest near the Greek-Macedonian border
Under the agreement, Germany is obliged to initially take 1,600 migrants and make available 13,500 places, with the first 40 people possibly arriving as early as Monday.
Many politicians expect new routes to open up as Mediterranean crossings to Italy from Libya resume.
Although Merkel's popularity has bounced back in the last month or so, her conservative party is still suffering in opinion polls while the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) made big gains in state elections last month.
The number of people entering Germany has fallen so sharply that some of the homes built by local authorities for migrants, for example in the eastern state of Thuringia, are empty.
Brussels Airport will partially reopen tomorrow the first time since two jihadi suicide bombers blew themselves up at a check-in desk, killing 14 innocent people and injuring scores more.
Chief executive Arnaud Feist confirmed today that the airport would allow three commercial flights to depart tomorrow following one of the 'darkest days in the history of Belgian aviation'.
Flights, operated by Belgium's leading carrier, Brussels Airlines, will depart for Faro in Portugal, Turin in Italy and Athens in Greece. The first service will leave the country tomorrow afternoon.
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Chief executive Arnaud Feist confirmed that Brussels Airport would allow three commercial flights to depart tomorrow following the terror attacks which was one of the 'darkest days in the history of Belgian aviation'
The airport will only be accessible by car or taxi and strict security measures will be in place for all passengers and crew, Mr Feist said in a news conference at a Belgian hotel this afternoon.
The airport has been closed since the March 22 suicide bombings that killed 16 at the terminal and another 16 on the Brussels Metro.
Suicide bombers Ibrahim El Bakraoui and Najim Laachraoui were seen on CCTV calmly wheeling their explosives-packed suitcases through the airport before detonating them in the check-in area.
They were accompanied by a mystery 'Man in White' who remains on the run after apparently abandoning his suicide mission and fleeing the airport when his bomb failed to detonate.
Just 79 minutes after the airport bombing, Karim El Bakraoui blew himself up on a Metro train at Maelbeek station in Brussels, killing another 16 people and injuring more than 270 more.
ISIS has since claimed responsibility for the twin terror attacks which rocked Europe.
Mr Feist said today that despite the airport becoming 'partially operational' again, the country will 'never forget this black day'.
He said the restart of services was 'a signal of hope that shows our desire and strength to overcome this challenge and not to give in.'
He added that he hoped to have the airport back 'fully-functioning' by June or July just in time for the school holidays rush.
'This is a sign of hope and we must push forward and not let ourselves be pushed down by what has happened,' he said.
The airport has been closed since the March 22 suicide bombings that killed 16. Pictured: Suicide bombers Ibrahim El Bakraoui (centre) and Najim Laachraoui (left) before they detonated their suitcases bombs
Announcing that Brussels Airport would 'partially reopen' tomorrow in a news conference this afternoon, CEO Arnaud Feist said it gave the country 'hope' and 'shows our desire and strength to overcome' the attacks
'From tomorrow, Brussels Airport will be partially reopened. Today, we should receive the official authorisation to [do so].
'We are designing a special area for check-in for all airlines so following the security search [passengers] will head towards a special area for check-in. Hand luggage will be checked and from there they will be checked in and join the commercial area of the airport. Those arriving will be led to an exit quite soon after landing. This area of the airport has not been as affected.
'We have had over 800 volunteers working on this and we are going to try and make sure these additional measures don't effect the comfort of passengers travelling through the airport.'
Police spokesman Michael Jonniaux added that the new security measures will include spot checks of vehicles arriving at the airport, and new controls on people and baggage before they are allowed to enter the airport terminal.
He said both people and baggage will be scanned before they can go into the building. He also said travellers' IDs and travel documents will also be checked to make sure they match.
A senior leader of the al Qaeda-linked militant group Al-Shabaab has been reportedly killed in a US drone strike in Somalia.
The target of the operation, Hassan Ali Dhoore, played a direct role in Al-Shabaab's Christmas Day 2014 attack on the Mogadishu airport in which one American was among those killed and an attack on a Mogadishu hotel in 2015 that killed 15 people, including a Somali-American.
The results of the air strike, which was carried out on Thursday, are still being assessed, according to the Pentagon.
Hassan Ali Dhoore was a senior leader of the al Qaeda-linked militant group Al-Shabaab in Somalia (file image)
'Removing Dhoore from the battlefield would be a significant blow to al-Shabaab's operational planning and ability to conduct attacks against the government.' the Pentagon said in a statement.
The strike came weeks after the United States targeted an Al-Shabaab training camp in Somalia in an air strike that the Pentagon says killed more than 150 fighters.
That operation, using both manned aircraft and unmanned MQ-9 Reaper drones, targeted Al-Shabaab's 'Raso' training camp, a facility about 120 miles (190 km) north of the capital Mogadishu.
Al-Shabaab was pushed out of Mogadishu by African Union peacekeeping forces in 2011 but has remained a potent antagonist in Somalia, launching frequent attacks in its bid to overthrow the Western-backed government.
The strike came weeks after the United States targeted an al Shabaab training camp in Somalia in an air strike that the Pentagon says killed more than 150 fighters
'Removing Dhoore from the battlefield would be a significant blow to Al-Shabaab's operational planning and ability to conduct attacks against the government.' the Pentagon said in a statement
The group, whose name means 'The Youth,' seeks to impose its strict version of sharia law in Somalia.
It frequently unleashes attacks targeting security and government targets, as well as hotels and restaurants in the capital.
A bake sale at a university feminist week has caused outrage due to its plans to price items based upon the pay gap between men and women.
The University of Queensland Union is holding Feminist Week from April 4-8 and at the associated Gender Pay Gap Bake Sale on Tuesday, items will cost a proportion of a dollar compared to men who will pay $1 for each item.
A website for the event states: 'For example, if you are a woman of colour in the legal profession, a baked good at the stall will only cost you 0.55 cents!'.
A bake sale at the University of Queensland Feminist Week has caused outrage due to its plans to price items based upon the pay gap between men and women
Facebook user Ashley Millsteed wrote this post about the bake sale, sparking a debate about the concept
Despite it being advertised on the site as a bake sale with a difference, some have objected to the concept.
An outraged post about the bake sale on the UQ Stalkerspace Facebook page by Ashley Millsteed on Friday has received 1200 reactions and hundreds of comments.
Many of the responses are infuriated by the proposal, claiming it is discriminatory, however, there are also are a large number defending the idea.
Ashley Millsteed, whose Facebook profile identifies him as male, said in his post that the idea was discriminatory and under both Queensland and Federal Anti-Discrimination law.
Other factors were being taken into account in the pricing, such as gender, disability, race, sexual identity and ethnicity
'I doubt anybodys going to make formal complaints or seek remedy over something this minor, but nevertheless UQU, which is meant to represent all students is engaging in conduct thats blatantly discriminatory against men to try and make some asinine political point,' the post read.
UQ School of Education associate professor and gender studies co-convenor Liz MacKinlay told The Brisbane Times it was an intelligent way to shed light on the issue, and that labelling it discriminatory annoyed her.
'I get pretty frustrated when I hear people saying 'What about the men, isn't that discriminatory, isn't it reverse-sexism?,' she said.
'Many men generally speaking have the extra pay as an unearned privilege while women are disadvantaged and people of colour are disadvantaged and minority groups and people who don't conform to binary genders are disadvantaged.'
UQU women's officer Madeline Price helped organise the Feminist Week and said the about of anger about the issue was interesting.
She pointed out that other factors were being taken into account in the pricing, such as gender, disability, race, sexual identity and ethnicity.
In March, the gender pay gap sat at 17.3 per cent, the Brisbane Times reported.
UQU women's officer Madeline Price helped organise the Feminist wWek and said the about of anger about the issue was interesting. Pictured is a part of the university's campus in Brisbane (stock image)
Hundreds turned out for the funeral of the Muslim shopkeeper who was stabbed to death after posting a 'Happy Easter' message.
Family and friends paid their respects to Asad Shah, 40, at the Bait-Ur-Rahman Mosque in Glasgow earlier today.
The newsagent was murdered at his shop on Good Friday, hours after wishing a happy Easter 'to my beloved Christian nation' in a Facebook post.
Hundreds turned out for the funeral of Asad Shah who was murdered after posting a 'Happy Easter' message
The service was attended by family, local politicians and friends of the 40-year-old shopkeeper. Written on the walls of the Bait-Ur-Rahman Mosque were the words: 'Love for all, hatred for none'
Mr Shah's family described him as a 'brilliant man' and 'a beloved husband, son, brother and everyone's friend'
He was stabbed and had his head stamped upon in what police described as a 'religiously prejudiced' killing.
Tanveer Ahmed, 32, from Bradford in West Yorkshire, has appeared in court charged with murder.
Local politicians including MPs Alison Thewliss and Carol Monaghan and MSP Sandra White were among those who attended the hour-long service.
Mr Shah's coffin was carried into the mosque by relatives and by friends from the Armadiyya Muslim community.
Written on the walls of the mosque were the words: 'Love for all, hatred for none'.
His family stood at the coffin to greet mourners and well-wishers in accordance with Muslim custom.
After the prayers, the coffin was carried into a waiting black hearse to be driven to Glasgow's Cardonald Cemetery, where Mr Shah was buried.
Abdul Abid, president of the Ahmadiyya community in Scotland, said after the service: 'We are sad that a very popular man of our community is not with us any more.
Local politicians including SNP MP Alison Thewliss and MSP Sandra White attended the funeral earlier today
His family stood at the coffin to greet mourners and well-wishers in accordance with Muslim custom
Mr Shah's coffin was carried into the mosque by relatives and by friends from the Armadiyya community
'I don't know how we will survive without him. He was a polite, gentle person.
'Today's service is in his memory and we are proud to have had such a wonderful person amongst our community.'
The funeral came three days after Mr Shah's devastated family paid tribute to him as a 'brilliant man'.
They said he had been taken away by an 'incomprehensible act'.
The family's statement said: 'On Thursday evening a beloved husband, son, brother and everyone's friend, Asad Shah, was taken away from us. We are devastated by this loss.
'A person's religion, ethnicity, race, gender or socioeconomic background never mattered to Asad.
'He met everyone with the utmost kindness and respect because those are just some of the many common threads that exist across every faith in our world.
'He was a brilliant man, recognising that the differences between people are vastly outweighed by our similarities.'
After the killing it emerged that Mr Shah had been the subject of online death threats but had never reported them.
The funeral came three days after Mr Shah's devastated family paid tribute to him as a 'brilliant man'
They said that the popular newsagent had 'met everyone with the utmost kindness and respect'
The family added he had been taken away from them in an 'incomprehensible act'. It emerged earlier this week that Mr Shah had been the subject of online death threats but had never reported them
Greece looks set to send hundreds of Syrian refugees back to Turkey despite warnings that it would be illegal.
Peter Sutherland, the UN secretary general's special representative for international migration and development, said collective deportation 'without having regard to the individual rights of those who claim to be refugees are illegal,' according to the Guardian.
Turkey is racing to set up reception centres to meet the expected influx of returnees under a controversial EU migrant deal.
'Planning is in progress,' Yiorgos Kyritsis, spokesman for Greece's refugee coordination unit, told AFP as some 750 migrants are expected sent back from Lesbos this week.
The migrants will be sent back from the island of Lesbos to the Turkish port of Dikili.
The migrants would be sent back from the island of Lesbos to the Turkish port of Dikili, adding that EU border agency Frontex had chartered two Turkish leisure vessels for the operation
'Planning is in progress,' Yiorgos Kyritsis, spokesman for Greece's refugee coordination unit, told AFP as some 750 migrants are expected sent back from Lesbos this week
On the other side of the Aegean, work is underway on a centre in the Turkish tourist resort of Cesme to host those sent back, the town's mayor Muhittin Dalgic said.
Water pipes and electricity cables are being laid for the 500 square-metre area by the Ulusoy harbour in Cesme, a popular hopping-off point for migrants setting sail in flimsy boats to the Greek island of Chios.
Another readmission centre is being created in Dikili opposite Lesbos, which like neighbouring islands has seen a massive influx of refugees and migrants fleeing conflict and poverty in the Middle East and elsewhere.
Greek government officials have been tight-lipped on the EU-Turkey deal, which has attracted strong criticism on ethical grounds from the United Nations refugee agency and aid groups.
Refugee children watch a movie inside a volunteer tent at the refugee camp of Idomeni
Under the deal, all irregular migrants face being sent back from the Greek islands to Turkey - although the deal calls for each case to be examined individually
For every Syrian refugee sent back, another Syrian refugee will be resettled from Turkey to the EU, with the numbers capped at 72,000
On the other side of the Aegean, work is underway on a centre in the Turkish tourist resort of Cesme to host those sent back, the town's mayor Muhittin Dalgic said
Charities say Greek registration sites will become de facto detention centres for people slated to be sent back to Turkey after risking their lives and spending a small fortune just to reach Europe.
Under the deal, all irregular migrants face being sent back from the Greek islands to Turkey - although the deal calls for each case to be examined individually.
For every Syrian refugee sent back, another Syrian refugee will be resettled from Turkey to the EU, with the numbers capped at 72,000.
Turkey and the EU agreed the deal last month as the continent struggles with its worst migration crisis since World War II.
'If they make me go back to Turkey I'll throw myself and my family into the sea,' said Mustafa, a Syrian waiting with his wife and children at the port of Chios island.
'We went from hell to hell,' he said.
A Greek government source told AFP this week that some 400 Frontex police officers were expected to arrive over the weekend to participate in the operation.
Fifty French riot police were arriving on Lesbos Saturday to help with the operation, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said, with asylum experts to follow later in this week.
A boy stands in front of his tent in the makeshift refugee camp at the northern Greek border point of Idomeni
Over 52,000 refugees and migrants seeking to reach northern Europe are already stuck in Greece after Balkan states sealed their borders to stop the influx
German interior ministry spokesman Tobias Plate this week said that most of the arrivals expected Monday would be families with children, putting the number in the 'double-digit range'.
Parallel to this operation, Turkey - which is hosting some 2.7 million refugees from neighbouring Syria - will on Monday begin sending a first batch of refugees directly to Germany.
German interior ministry spokesman Tobias Plate this week said that most of the arrivals expected Monday would be families with children, putting the number in the 'double-digit range'.
Debt-hit Greece has struggled to manage the influx, while hundreds of migrants have drowned trying to reach its islands from Turkey.
Clashes among migrants have broken out at Greek facilities, dissuading those with families from staying there. On Friday, hundreds of migrants walked out of a registration centre on Chios following fresh violence, prompting a leading medical charity to pull out its staff.
Many of them headed to the port hoping to reach ships to the Greek mainland, but authorities rerouted the island ferry to another local harbour to prevent unauthorised boardings.
Over 52,000 refugees and migrants seeking to reach northern Europe are already stuck in Greece after Balkan states sealed their borders to stop the influx.
Hundreds more continue to land on the Greek islands on a daily basis despite the EU deal, which was approved by the Greek parliament in a vote Friday.
Amnesty International said this week that there were 'fatal flaws' in the deal.
The rights group said its suggested Turkey was forcing around a hundred Syrians including women and children to return home on a daily basis, proving that it was not a 'safe country' for refugees.
The family of a 12-year-old Muslim student is demanding that a teacher be fired after she allegedly called him a 'terrorist' in front of his class.
Waleed Abushaaban was watching a movie with his class at First Colony Middle School in Houston, Texas, when it is claimed his teacher called him the offensive term.
Waleed explained to KHOU that he was laughing at the comedy, Bend It Like Beckham, when the teacher said, 'I wouldn't be laughing if I was you'.
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The family of 12-year-old honor student, Waleed Abushaaban (pictured), is demanding that a teacher be fired after she allegedly called him a 'terrorist'
His father Malek Abushaaban (pictured) said his son is just as 'American as anybody else' as he calls for the permanent dismissal of the teacher
When he asked her why, she said 'because we all think you're a terrorist'.
The teacher's name has not been released.
The class, who had been watching the film after their STAAR tests, started making fun of Waleed after the alleged nasty comment, according to ABC 13.
Waleed said the students made jokes with some saying 'oh I see a bomb'.
The 7th grade student said: 'I was upset and I felt like I was put in the corner and like everybody was just looking at me.'
The English and Language Arts teacher was removed from the classroom while school officials investigate but community activist, Quanell X, and Waleed's family want her permanently dismissed.
Quanell X told KHOU that 'no religion should be targeted by and disrespected by any administrator on any school campus'.
Waleed explained that he was laughing at the comedy, Bend It Like Beckham, when the teacher said, 'I wouldn't be laughing if I was you'. Pictured are the main characters from the film, Parminder Nagra (right) and Keira Knightley (left)
Community activist, Quanell X (center) also demanded for the teacher's removal and said, 'no religion should be targeted by and disrespected by any administrator on any school campus'
The First Colony Middle School (pictured) teacher was showing a movie to her class when she called Waleed the derogatory name. The District released a statement saying the teacher is on probation as school officials continue to investigate
Waleed's family said they will keep him enrolled at First Colony Middle School and in addition to firing the teacher in question, would like religious sensitivity training for both students and teachers.
'Just because my son is a Muslim doesn't mean he is a terrorist,' Malek Abushaaban told KHOU.
'He's an American. He's as American as anybody else. He was born here that's all he knows is how to be an American.'
The Fort Bend ISD school district released a statement that said the 'District does not support the teacher's actions'.
Vice president of academic affairs, Imogen Wilson, who was told off for raising her hand in a student council session
A student was almost kicked out of a meeting after she violated a 'safe space' by raising her arm at Edinburgh University.
Imogen Wilson wanted to make a point at Thursday's student council session when she was told off by officials.
The vice-president for academic affairs at the university's Student Association was accused of failing disabled students by not responding to an open letter.
She immediately raised her arm to disagree but was made the subject of a 'ludicrous' complaint and told not to make the gesture again.
Imogen was also warned for shaking her head during the meeting as it again breached the 'safe space' which is part of the university's Student Association rules.
She told The Huffington Post: '...I raised my arms in disagreement, as we had contacted the writers of the letter and tried hard to organise a meeting. It was for that reason that a safe space complaint was made.'
Student Association policy says that council members should be respectful and considerate.
Section 6c of the safe space policy is defined as: 'Refraining from hand gestures which denote disagreement or in any other way indicating disagreement with a point or points being made. Disagreements should only be evident through the normal course of debate.'
A vote took place to decide whether Imogen should be removed from the meeting after she was accused of breaking the rules.
The vote was in her favour: with 18 people for removal and 33 supporting her staying.
Imogen added: 'I completely understand the importance of our safe space policy, and will defend it to the ground, but I did not think that was fair, and had it gone further I would have either left or argued against it.'
One student, a fourth-year, who wished to remain anonymous, said the complaint was 'ludicrous' and was an 'abuse of the entire intent of safe space'.
'We were having one of the most emotionally tense councils of the year, with the vote on the BDS [The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions] movement and people speaking who live in Palestine or are Israeli on both sides of the issue.
Student Charlie Peters said it was 'pathetic' that Imogen had been told off for raising her hand in the meeting
The university's student newspaper reported on the controversial meeting with this tweet
The Student Association at the Edinburgh University (pictured) has been contacted for comment
'There was ample risk of there being an actual safe space issue taking placean anti-semitic or Islamophobic comment for instancebut the whole debate was actually remarkably civil despite how emotional it was.'
First-year Edinburgh student Charlie Peters tweeted against the safe space policy and set up a petition against it. By yesterday afternoon it had 1,000 signatures.
'Safe spaces now censor "inappropriate hand gestures" - my university is becoming pathetic,' he told his Twitter followers.
Dixon, who now faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted, recently rejected a plea offer of 12 years in prison in exchange for a guilt admission
He told cops he experienced 'blind fury' when he attacked Nettles and said he didn't realize the damage
with 21-year-old Islan Nettles before the attack and he said he was unaware that she was transgender
He told police he 'didn't want to be fooled' after his friends
A Brooklyn man charged with beating a woman to death in Harlem told police he 'didn't want to be fooled' after he realized he had been flirting with a transgender woman.
James Dixon, 25, told prosecutors that he had been flirting with 21-year-old Islan Nettles moments before the attack and was unaware that she was transgender.
Dixon at first denied he was trying to 'holler' at Nettles before the fatal encounter until NYPD Detective Thaddeus Hall called his bluff during a 2013 interrogation, according to the New York Daily News.
'There's something that leads up to the altercation. 'Did you try to holler at her?' Hall said.
Dixon said in the interview that he became enraged when one of his friends taunted him, saying, 'That's a guy'.
James Dixon (left), 25, told prosecutors that he had been flirting with 21-year-old Islan Nettles (right) moments before the attack and was unaware that she was transgender
In his confession Dixon said he pushed himself away from Nettles (pictured) and started to walk away, but she then shoved him from behind, forcing him to trip. After getting back to his feet, he said he hit her and knocked her to the sidewalk and then punched her a second time as she lay on the ground
'I just remember lashing out,' he said.
Dixon agreed that he felt his 'manhood' was threatened by his streak of unknowingly hitting on transgender women, according to the Daily News.
He is charged with manslaughter and assault in the August 17, 2013 death of Nettles, who was attacked just after midnight outside a police station at 147th Street and Frederick Douglass Boulevard.
A videotape of Dixon's confession was played during a pretrial hearing Friday to determine if his confession could be used as evidence at his trial next week, according to The New York Times.
Prosecutors say Nettles died of head injuries she sustained when her head hit the pavement as Dixon hit her. She was taken off life support after a week in a coma.
In his confession Dixon said he pushed himself away from Nettles, and started to walk away, but she then shoved him from behind, forcing him to trip.
After getting back to his feet, he said he hit her and knocked her to the sidewalk. He then punched her a second time as she lay on the ground, according to The Times.
Justice Daniel P Conviser ruled the statements admissible.
Nettles, who was an assistant at a fashion company, was walking with two transgender friends when the attack occurred.
Nettles, who was an assistant at a fashion company, was walking with two transgender friends when the attack occurred just after midnight outside a police station (pictured) at 147th Street and Frederick Douglass Boulevard
Dixon crossed the street and began chatting with Nettles. 'I remember asking her what is her name, where are you from,' he said. 'That's how I roll up.'
His friends started 'clowning' him as he was talking to Nettles, according to The Times.
Dixon said he had no hatred toward transgender people he just 'didn't want to be fooled' as he had been ridiculed by his friends days earlier when two transgender women approached him.
Again, he didn't realize they were transgender so he flirted with them and he was teased badly by his friends.
Three days after the assault Dixon turned himself in to the police and confessed.
He told cops he experienced 'blind fury' when he attacked Nettles and said he didn't realize the damage he caused until hearing the gossip in his neighborhood, according to the Daily News.
Otto Hillig is said to have hidden a Nazi treasure near the town of Liberty, New York
According to local lore, there is a stash of Nazi cash tucked away inside a safety deposit box in a bank in the town of Liberty, New York - a treasure waiting to be collected by whoever can solve a set of mysterious clues left behind by its original owner.
The legend of the Nazi treasure has puzzled the townspeople of Liberty since a local paper first wrote about it over two decades ago, but so far no one has been able to recover the money.
Legend has it that the treasure was arranged to be hidden by a local eccentric, Otto Hillig, who came into possession of the money by stealing it from a German spy in 1942.
Fifty years later, the local paper Sullivan County Democrat first wrote about the treasure in a series of articles that ran during the summer of 1992, setting off a brief scavenger hunting-craze.
'All of a sudden people were running around Sullivan County looking for a treasure with shovels in hand,' remembered Robert Dadras, president of the Liberty Museum and Arts Center.
The key to recovering the money is to find a bronze coin engraved with Otto Hillig's initials and rumored to be buried somewhere in the Catskill Mountains, Dadras told Daily Mail Online.
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Otto Hillig and the Danish pilot Holger Hoiriis were some of the first people to cross the Atlantic Ocean in an airplane (pictured). Legend has it the two were hijacked by German spies in 1942. Hillig was said to have killed the spies and stolen a large sum of cash, which he later hid near the town of Liberty, New York
Otto Hillig, far left, is said to have hidden a load of cash that he stole from a Nazi spy in 1942. Pictured with his pilot, captain Holger Hoiriis, second from right, in an undated photograph
Supposedly, the coin can be located by following a set of 25 clues left behind by Hillig, but so far no one seems to have been successful, Dadras said.
THE CLUES TO HILLIG'S TREASURE The arch if the roots is by your boots. She is as beautiful as her closest sister, who once left Skeetersburg. William Ayers mourned Liberty's first death. The fish won't bite at the Western part but begin the hunt, its OK to start. 'Foul wrinkled witch, what makes thou in my sight?' Blue Mountain Cemetery looks over Otto's treasure. Broadhead Points to. Dr. Blake Wales knew it as two log houses. Lucky me, I'm in the Queen's back yard. If you can't find me, you haven't looked hard. The Lennon Building holds a clue. Grady's horse kicked the spot. The coin is in the open. Liberty Public Service was there in my time. From the inside of Manion's Store the Mongaup will roar. Mr. Manion's home plate. Ugly Acer rubrum on the rade, then 30 paces and you will have in made. Turn to the right if going at, turn to the left if walking back. The municipal corner is basically nutty. What once was Hortonville, now is not. You are very close at number one, the plague is a spot which you should plot, go in and eat, and count the feet, from there to here, let's have a beer. The lens of my camera has revealed the spot. Now in its place is a restaurant which has food that is fine. Descramble the words on the bar and you will be one step closer to being the star. As you pass by behold and see in a restaurant across from the old 'Big G.' My works live on and hold a clue to find the coin now known to you. Enjoy the food and have a ball, examine all the pictures on the wall. O Tsuga Canadensis, protect me! This is it, you have all the clues. If you do find me call the news. Fred will know what to do, he the treasure to give to you. Note: The page containing Hillig's 25th clue appears to be missing from the online version of the Liberty guide book Advertisement
If the legend is true, the coin is still out there - waiting to be found by whoever possesses the right combination of patience and wit necessary to decipher the 25 clues.
Hillig was a German immigrant who moved to Liberty 1895, where he opened a photography studio, built a castle, and became an early aviation enthusiast, according to the Sullivan County Historical Society.
Together with the Danish pilot Holger Hoiriis, Hillig became one of the first people to cross the Atlantic Ocean in an airplane in 1931.
A little over a decade later, according to the 1992 Democrat newspaper story, Hillig and Hoiriis were hijacked by two German saboteurs during a flight.
The Germans were planning to blow up the railroad trestle in Liberty as part of a covert operation to boost the Nazi war effort, and carried a large sum of cash, which Hillig stole after a mid-air struggle that left both of the foreign agents dead, according to the legend.
While Hillig reported the hijacking to the federal government, he never told anyone about the stolen money until his death in 1954, when he entrusted an assistant with the task to publish the story of the cash.
The unnamed assistant was told to hand over the 25 clues to the local paper when 50 years had passed since the hijacking - and apparently, he completed the task by tipping off the Democrat in 1992.
The story has it that the government suppressed the news of the 1942 hijacking for security reasons, which, conveniently enough for legend believers, makes it difficult to fact check.
But there's no doubt German spies were operating in the United States during World War II - in fact, the FBI has admitted that a group of Nazi saboteurs arrived in New York via submarine in the summer of 1942.
The Democrat newspaper's online archive doesn't stretch back to 1992, but fortunately for those interested in treasure hunts, the clues were also published in a 1996 guide to Liberty issued by the local chamber of commerce.
One clue, hidden on page eight of the guide book, reads: 'Blue Mountain Cemetery looks over Otto's treasure.'
Another one, on page 26, reads: 'The coin is in the open.'
The final clue reads: 'This is it, you have all the clues. If you do find me call the news. Fred will know what to do, he the treasure to give to you.'
'Fred' seems to refer to Fred Stabbert Sr., the publisher of the Sullivan County Democrat, who passed ownership of the paper to his son Fred Stabbert Jr. when he died in 1963.
Stabbert Jr. passed the responsibility of the newspaper over to his son, Fred Stabbert III, upon his death in 2008. Daily Mail Online was unable to reach Stabbert for a comment.
These clues were sprinkled across the pages of a 1996 guide to the town of Liberty, New York
Two examples of clues found in the pages of a 1996 guide to the town of Liberty, New York
As for the safety deposit box, it might be difficult to access: the Sullivan County National Bank, where the cash is supposed to be located, has changed owners at least four times, most recently in 2008, when the Liberty branch was sold by Bank of America to the National Bank of Delaware County.
Even if the coin were to be found, it is likely the treasure would have already been seized by authorities if Hillig's descendants or trustees failed to keep up with rent payments for the safety deposit box.
In New York State, safety deposit boxes are generally considered dormant after three years of non-payment.
Practical issues aside - is there any truth to the legend?
Robert Dadras, the Liberty museum president, said he is suspicious, but he doesn't rule out the possibility that Hillig hid a treasure somewhere.
'It's curious that such a reputable newspaper as the Democrat would publish the story. I don't want to perpetuate an urban legend, but I think there could be something to it,' Dadras said.
'If the treasure is real, Otto Hillig would be exactly the type of person to hide it.'
Endlessly evocative, Evelyn Waugh's hymn to a vanished age of aristocracy has delighted and entranced generations.
Now, as the 50th anniversary of Waugh's death approaches, a powerful new biography uncovers the reality behind Brideshead Revisited - and the shockingly intimate truth that inspired a masterpiece of nostalgia.
Brideshead Revisited is about very rich, beautiful, high-born people who live in palaces and have no troubles except what they make themselves and those are mainly the demons sex and drink which after all are easy to bear as troubles go nowadays, Evelyn Waugh wrote to a friend.
Alastair Graham, far left, with Evelyn Waugh and Elizabeth Harman in Ireland in 1930
Suffused with nostalgia for a disappearing aristocratic way of life, the novel draws heavily upon Evelyns bohemian lifestyle at Oxford University far more heavily than many might suspect. Indeed his intense relationship with a fellow student inspired the most colourful and perhaps most famous character in the book: the charismatic and unmistakably homosexual Lord Sebastian Flyte, recognisable to millions through his portrayal on screen by Anthony Andrews.
Evelyn, who also wrote the 1938 classic Scoop, regarded the novel, published in 1945, as his magnum opus and he revealed more of himself in it than in any of his previous books. It is still hugely popular today and the iconic 1981 Granada TV series is regarded as a classic.
Brideshead Revisited begins in 1923 with the narrator Charles Ryder, a history student at Oxford University, befriending Sebastian, the son of The Marquis of Marchmain. Sebastian takes Charles to Brideshead, his magnificent family home, introduces him to his eccentric friends, and the two young men develop a very close relationship.
Everyone was queer at Oxford in those days
Evelyn himself had gone up to Hertford College, Oxford, on a history scholarship in January 1922 and quickly set about gathering new experiences.
He learned to smoke a pipe and to ride a bicycle. He got drunk for the first time, discovered a zeal for alcohol and soon developed a reputation for riotous roistering.
By Evelyns own account, most of his Oxford friendships were forged while drunk.
Many of these friendships had a pronounced homosexual flavour. As John Betjeman later remembered: Everyone was queer at Oxford in those days!
Evelyns friend Tom Driberg, later a Labour MP, recalled that he and Evelyn enjoyed some lively and drunken revels orgies were they? mainly homosexual in character.
And, in the spring of 1923, the 19-year-old Evelyn took up with the friend of my heart, as he described him, a handsome 18-year-old at Brasenose called Alastair Graham.
Eight months younger than Evelyn, well-born, rich and dreamy, Alastair became one of the great loves of Evelyns early life. As a muse, he made the most obvious contribution to the character of Sebastian in Brideshead, which in manuscript twice has Alastair in place of Sebastian.
Brideshead Revisited: Jeremy Irons (left) pictured as Charles Ryder, with Anthony Andrews as Sebastian Flyte
Alastair was seen by Evelyns contemporaries as a catch. Novelist Anthony Powell remembered him as frightfully good-looking, with rather Dresden china shepherdess sort of looks a lot of people were undoubtedly in love with him.
Among the queue of admirers was Evelyns friend Harold Acton, the writer and scholar, who gushed in a letter jointly addressed to Evelyn and Alastair: I had erections to think of you two angels in an atmosphere salinated with choir boys and sacerdotal sensuality!
He later described Alastair as a Pre-Raphaelite beauty and said that he had the same sort of features as Evelyn liked in girls the pixie look.
When, at the end of the summer term in 1923, Alastair failed his history exams and was removed from the university by his mother, Evelyn asked his father if he, too, might be taken away from Oxford and sent to Paris to live as a bohemian artist. Not surprisingly, his father did not like this idea.
But though Alastair had left the university, he and Evelyn remained inseparable, or, as Evelyn later recalled, if separated, in almost daily communication. Alastair continued to haunt Oxford, driving down regularly from his home in Warwickshire in his two-seater car, whereupon he and Evelyn would zoom off into the Oxfordshire countryside.
In advance of one such visit, Alastair wrote a letter enclosing a photograph of himself naked, posing like some alluring wood nymph beneath an overhanging rock face, his backside pointing seductively towards the camera.
In the letter, he wondered will you come and drink with me somewhere on Saturday? If it is a nice day we might carry some bottles into a wood or some bucolic place.
Alastair enclosed a naked picture of himself
Brideshead also drew heavily on Evelyns friendship with the Lygon family at Madresfield in Worcestershire in the 1930s. But while the disgrace of Lord Beauchamp who was hounded into exile on account of his homosexual affairs provided the idea for Lord Marchmains story in the novel, Alastair Graham remains the most convincing model for Sebastian.
Evelyn had often visited Alastairs home, Barford House, near Stratford-upon-Avon, which was presided over by Alastairs widowed mother Jessie. Barford is nothing like the size of Brideshead or its television alter ego, Castle Howard, yet beneath its handsome, peeling, white-stucco facade can be glimpsed the same gold-coloured stone that Charles Ryder sees on his first visit to Brideshead.
Its front is embellished with a similar, albeit far less grand, row of Ionic half-columns; and there is even a dome and lantern on the roof, though again on a considerably more modest scale than in the book.
Alastairs mother was a wealthy American. His father, Hugh Graham, was a bona fide scion of the British landed aristocracy the younger son of a baronet and grandson of the 12th Duke of Somerset.
His sisters, Alastairs aunts, were the Duchess of Montrose, the Marchioness of Crewe, the Countess of Verulam and Lady Wittenham. It was while staying at Barford (which he was to do on countless occasions, sometimes for weeks at a stretch) that Evelyn gained his first meaningful entree into the upper-class world he eventually came to inhabit.
A Penguin edition of Brideshead Revisited: The novel begins in 1923 with the narrator Charles Ryder, a history student at Oxford University, befriending Sebastian, the son of The Marquis of Marchmain
In his third term, Evelyn moved to rooms on the ground floor of Hertfords front quad, which soon became the epicentre of the self-elected Hertford underworld.
Evelyn and his set of louche friends gathered there most lunchtimes. Starting with a glass or two of Sandemans Brown Bang, a heavy, glutinous sherry, Evelyn would then go on to beer and would often be completely sozzled by five oclock. Not infrequently he would carry on drinking throughout the evening.
In Brideshead, Charless first encounter with Sebastian recalls an evening when members of the Bullingdon Club came roaring across the quad, and one of them staggered over to Evelyns room and was sick through the window.
Because of the amount of time he spent with Alastair at Barford, Evelyn, never the most industrious of students, neglected his studies and in 1924 was only able to achieve a dispiriting third-class degree.
That autumn, Alastair went to Africa to spend the winter with his sister in Kenya. In Alastairs absence, Evelyn continued to visit Barford, although whenever he went into Leamington with Mrs Graham he felt a little sad to pass all the public houses where Alastair and I have drunk.
However, Evelyn and Alastair were together a lot in August 1925 and a resumption of intimacy is hinted at in Evelyns record of their having dined in high-necked jumpers at Barford and done much that could not have been done if Mrs Graham had been here.
A polo-neck jumper was most convenient for lechery, according to Evelyn, because it dispenses with all unromantic gadgets like studs and ties.
Alastair wrote to him after this visit: I feel very lonely now. But you have made me so happy. Please come back again soon. Write to me a lot, because I am all by myself, and I want to know what you are doing My love to you, Evelyn; I want you back again so much.
Barford House, Alastair's family home, which was an inspiration for the fictional Brideshead
Barford House was represented by Castle Howard (pictured) in the 1981 television series starring Jeremy Irons
There is a sense here of Alastair beginning to lose his hold over Evelyn, who appears to have been turning his attention more towards girls in general.
He had confided to friends that he wanted to find a wife and was, at this time, fruitlessly pursuing 18-year-old Olivia Plunket Greene, the sister of an Oxford friend.
He remained close enough to Alastair, however, to invite himself to accompany him and his mother to Scotland for three weeks in the summer of 1926. The men then went on to France, where Evelyn reflected: I think I have seen too much of Alastair lately.
Alastair took up a diplomatic posting in Athens, as honorary attache to the British Minister, Sir Percy Loraine, who was rumoured to have had an affair with the young Francis Bacon.
When Evelyn visited him that Christmas, Alastair seemed to be seizing every opportunity to explore his sexuality away from the restrictive laws of England; as Evelyn recorded, the flat he shared with another diplomat was usually full of dreadful Dago youths who sleep with the English colony for 25 drachmas a night.
Meanwhile, Olivia continued to reject his advances and, one day, when the message finally got through to him that she would never sleep with him, Evelyn took hold of her hand and very deliberately burnt the back of her wrist with his cigarette.
He carried on seeing Alastair intermittently. He took him with him when he went to stay with the Longfords in Ireland in the autumn of 1930. Evelyn had been invited by his friend Frank Pakenham, later Lord Longford.
As Evelyn cheerfully wrote in the Daily Mail: No one has a keener appreciation than myself of the high spiritual and moral qualities of the very rich. I delight in their company whenever I get the chance.
By this time he had achieved success with his first novel, Decline And Fall, and had been married to, and separated from, his first wife, Evelyn Gardner.
Evelyn camped it up when they were together
He was assumed by some of the Longfords other guests to have resumed his love affair with Alastair, a suspicion scarcely allayed by Evelyns tendency to camp it up and put on a high-pitched voice whenever they were together, which was most of the time.
The following year he went to stay at Barford when he was trying to start his third novel, Black Mischief, but found it impossible to work with Alastair around.
We just sit about sipping sloe gin all day, he complained to a friend. I am reading all the case histories in Havelock Ellis [a doctor who studied human sexuality] and frigging too much.
The last appearance of Evelyns name in the Barford visitors book was in 1932, by which time he had stayed there on more than 20 occasions. (He had also, by then, surprised his family and friends by becoming a Roman Catholic.)
After that Evelyn and Alastair disappeared from each others lives.
Years later, when Alastairs niece asked him why their friendship had ended, he replied vaguely: Oh, you know, Evelyn became such a bore, such a snob.
Evelyns relationship with Alastair had not been his only dalliance with a man. Richard Pares had been his first homosexual love, he later told Nancy Mitford.
Pares had come up to Oxford from Winchester the term before him. He was widely admired among Oxford undergraduates for his bright blue eyes, flax-gold hair and, as historian A. L. Rowse, an Oxford contemporary, wistfully remembered, red kissable lips.
Pares and Evelyn were, wrote Rowse, inseparable in Evelyns first year.
In 1936, Alastair bought a house just outside New Quay, a remote fishing port on the west coast of Wales. Occasionally he threw parties for his neighbours, who at one time included Dylan Thomas. The poet used Alastair as the model for Lord Cut-Glass in Under Milk Wood.
Neither Thomas nor anyone else in New Quay appeared to know that Alastair had also been the model for Sebastian Flyte in Brideshead.
He remained more or less incognito in this respect until the late 1970s, when he was encountered in a local pub by Duncan Fallowell, as the writer recounted in his book How To Disappear.
Not knowing who he was, Fallowell chanced to fall into conversation with him about Evelyn Waugh, about how well-endowed he was as a writer, at which point the stranger at the bar suddenly interjected: He wasnt well-endowed in the other sense, Im afraid.
It was never established whether he was referring to Evelyns private parts or to the fact that he never had any money and Alastair was always having to bail him out.
When the television series Brideshead Revisited aired, Fallowell returned to New Quay, knocked on Alastairs door and asked him out to dinner. Alastair replied that hed had a stroke and was not fit to be seen!
He could not remember anything, he said, it was all so long ago, then remarked, somewhat cryptically: He was older than me, you know.
Alastair Graham died the next year, taking his secrets with him.
Philip Eade 2016
A nun who had allegations of historical sexual abuse made against her by two women wants to become a 'voice for the voiceless' after a police probe left her in limbo.
Sister Frances Dominica, who was awarded an OBE for her hospice work, never went to trial and so was never able to fully clear her name of the accusations.
A police investigation found that there was insufficient evidence against her, but the allegations proved enough for the Society of All Saints Sisters of the Poor (ASSP) to launch their own probe to assess how much - if any - a risk the Anglican nun posed.
Sister Frances Dominica (pictured) was banned from the twin Oxford hospices that she founded and dedicated her life to for more than 30 years, after she was accused of historic sex abuse
The nun was then instructed to stay away from the twin Oxford care centres - Helen House and Douglas House - she had founded and dedicated her life to for more than 30 years.
'I think, without meaning to be arrogant, I think I want to be a voice for the voiceless,' Sister Frances told The Guardian.
'Because I have been... I was going to say I have been a victim.'
Sister Frances has joined a growing list of people accused of historic sex abuse, never able to clear their name in front of a jury but who have a lingering sense of doubt over their names.
Following last month's collapse of the Metropolitan police's Operation Midland, former MP Harvey Proctor, DJ Paul Gambaccini, former armed forces chief Lord Bramall and TV personalities Jim Davidson, Freddie Starr and Jimmy Tarbuck are all also on the list.
'In this country you are supposed to be innocent until you are proven guilty, but in any kind of safeguarding issue, it feels as if you are guilty until proven innocent,' she continued.
Sister Frances' name was only made public two years after the original accusations were made, after it was leaked to the Daily Telegraph in 2015.
The nun has joined the call for a law change to keep the names of those accused under wraps until they are proven guilty. Pictured, Sister Frances Dominica poses with her Woman of the Year award in 2007
She joins Gambaccini, among others, in calling for a change of the law, to ensure that the names of those accused of sexual abuse are kept under wraps until they are proved to be guilty.
It is only after the trial, and after the person has been proven guilty, she argues, that the name should be made public.
'Ninety per cent of the time, though, I think we should have anonymity just as the alleged victims have anonymity,' she said.
I suppose I just have to carry on, knowing in my heart that I am innocent and doing my best.
Although she has been excluded from Helen House and Douglas House, Sister Frances has been given the 'full support' of another charity of which she is a patron, Sebastian's Action Trust.
It said it had found 'absolutely no reason to exclude Sister Frances from our activities'.
Following the investigation, in July 2015, trustees of the hospices said in a joint statement: 'The Trustees of Helen and Douglas House decided to implement the recommendations of an independent risk assessment report, after careful discussion and analysis.
'We wish to reiterate that no allegations contained within the report relate in any way to activity at Helen and Douglas House and that, as soon as the allegations were raised in July 2013, Sister Frances agreed at our request to step away from all activity at Helen and Douglas House.
'We have written to families informing them of our decision and will now continue to focus on what is and has always been our priority: providing the specialist care and support to children, young adults and their families.'
The 73-year-old Inverness born pioneer's hospice work has earned her a number of prestigious accolades, including becoming an honorary fellow of two royal colleges, patron of several charities and Deputy Lieutenant of her home county of Oxfordshire.
She trained as a nurse before joining a convent in the 1960s, going on to be made Mother Superior in Oxford. Her children's hospice innovation came after her own harrowing experience caring for the family of a sick child, and saw her being voted Britain's 2007 Woman of the Year.
Sister Jean Raphael, leader of Sister Frances's order, said last year: 'An independent risk assessment has recently been completed and the conclusions are being considered carefully by the Sisters.
'The Sisters take the issue of safeguarding very seriously.'
According to Sister Frances' solicitor Lee Fisher, his client 'wholly refuted' the allegations made against her.
Debris believed to have come from missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 has washed up on an island east of Mauritius.
Guests staying at a hotel on Rodrigues Island found what is thought to be wreckage from the plane that disappeared two years ago with 239 people on board while flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
The discovery comes after the Australian government confirmed debris found on a Mozambique beach is 'highly likely' to have come from the missing flight.
Debris: Guests staying at a hotel on Rodrigues Island found what is thought to be wreckage from the plane
Wreckage: A member of staff at Mourouk Ebony Hotel, said hotel guests found the debris on the beach
The debris is believed to have come from the plane that disappeared two years ago with 239 people on board
Jean Josie Milazare, who works at Mourouk Ebony Hotel on the island, told CNN that guests Jean Dominique and Suzy Vitry, from France's Reunion Island, found the debris on the beach. It has now been handed over to police.
Just last week, Australian Transport Minister Darren Chester confirmed two pieces of debris on a Mozambique beach were consistent with panels from a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 aircraft.
'The analysis has concluded the debris is almost certainly from MH370,' Mr Chester said.
Mr Chester said the location of the debris on the east coast of Africa was consistent with drift modelling performed by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and affirmed search efforts being conducted in the southern Indian Ocean.
The two pieces of debris were discovered in Mozambique by South African teen Liam Lotter and American Blaine Gibson.
Mr Lotter, 18, found the piece of debris on a beach in Mozambique while on holiday in December.
East of Mauritius: Hotel guests staying on Rodrigues Island found what is thought to be debris from the plane
Jean Josie Milazare, who works at Mourouk Ebony Hotel (pictured), said hotel guests found the debris
They family took it home to South Africa and only realised the significance of their find after another piece of debris was found by Mr Gibson on a sandbank off Mozambique about three months later.
And last week, an archaeologist found a piece of debris stamped with a Rolls Royce logo on a beach on South Africa's southern coast.
Malaysia's transport minister said authorities will examine the object to see if it is from the plane.
'Based on early reports, there is a possibility of the piece originating from an inlet cowling of an aircraft engine,' said Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai, adding further examination and analysis was needed.
Neels Kruger was walking along a lagoon on March 28 near the town of Mossel Bay on South Africa's southern coast when he spotted something that did not seem to suit the natural surroundings.
'Being an archaeologist I'm always looking for things with my nose to the ground,' said the 35-year-old.
He recognised the brown honeycomb structure from photos of other pieces of debris believed to be part of the missing aircraft.
The Australian government has confirmed debris found in Mozambique by Liam Lotter (pictured) and American man Blaine Gibson is 'highly likely' to be from Malaysian Airlines flight MH370
Discovery: The Lotter family came forward three months after finding it on holiday in Mozambique
'When I flipped it around, I didn't know immediately what it was but just thought, "Oh my word!" he said.
On the other side, Kruger said he recognised what remained of a black Rolls Royce logo, the manufacturer of aircraft engines.
The piece is about 70 centimetres by 70 centimetres 'with chunks gone from the side', said Kruger.
The white surface, with the partial logo, has peeled away to reveal a dark metallic grey covering.
Mr Kruger took photos and sent them to a friend who is a pilot, who passed it on to other pilots. They quickly became convinced this was part of an plane's engine.
Mr Kruger alerted the South African Civil Aviation Authority, who told him to sit tight until further instruction.
Wondering what to do next, he sent a message via Facebook to Mr Lotter, the South African teenager.
Mr Lotter gave him the contact details of the Australian authorities tasked with leading the investigation into the missing plane.
Another piece of debris, which is suspected to be from MH370, was found by Neels Kruger in South Africa
Neels Kruger was walking along a lagoon on March 28 near the town of Mossel Bay on South Africa's southern coast when he spotted something that did not seem to suit the natural surroundings
'They said it was a very interesting piece and they need it sent to them,' said Kruger, adding that the Australian aviation authorities would not confirm if it was a piece of the missing plane.
Kruger was instructed to bubble-wrap the piece and keep it safe until aviation authorities collect it.
The disappearance of the Malaysia Airlines jet remains one of the biggest mysteries in modern aviation.
A piece from one of the plane's wings was found washed ashore on Reunion Island last July.
Flight 370 disappeared on March 8 2014 and is believed to have crashed somewhere in a remote stretch of the southern Indian Ocean about 3,700 miles east of Mozambique.
An Australian-led underwater search in the southern Indian Ocean, where the plane is believed to have crashed, has found no trace of it so far.
Authorities had predicted that any debris from the plane that isn't on the ocean floor would eventually be carried by currents to the east coast of Africa.
Given the vast distances involved, the variability of winds and the time that has elapsed, it is impossible for experts to retrace the parts' path back to where they first entered the water. And chances the debris itself could offer any fresh clues into precisely where the plane crashed are slim.
This piece of aircraft wing was found washed ashore on Reunion Island, a French enclave located on the east coast of Africa, in July 2015
Authorities believe the wing came from the plane, though it has not shed any light on why the plane went down
What investigators really need to find is the main underwater wreckage, which would hold the plane's coveted flight data recorders, or black boxes.
The data recorder should reveal details related to the plane's controls, including whether aircraft systems that might have helped track the plane were deliberately turned off, as some investigators believe.
The 1million Olympic bell will never toll again due to concerns it is so loud that it will disturb residents living nearby.
The bell has the lowest tone in the world - a sound that can be heard for miles around - and was first rung by Sir Bradley Wiggins during the 27million Olympics Opening Ceremony in 2012.
The London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) has confirmed the 23-ton bell will be hung from a bell tower near Olympic Stadium, east London, from this summer for all for admire.
The bell has the lowest tone in the world - a sound that can be heard for miles around - and was first rung by Sir Bradley Wiggins during the 27million Olympics Opening Ceremony in 2012
It is due to be hung near Olympic Park, west London, but it will never be rung over fears it is so loud that it will disturb residents living nearby
However, it will be purely ornamental as it is feared that the sound would be so loud that it would be totally unbearable for anyone living in the area.
The decision has sparked fury among bell-ringing enthusiasts, who have called for it to at least be tolled to announce important national events.
Robert Lewis, the editor of The Ringing World magazine, said told that otherwise, 'one has to ask, what is the point? Bells are there to be rung,' reports The Telegraph.
The 11ft bell was made by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry, which dates back to at least 1570 and cast Big Ben, was considered an obvious choice by the Olympic organiser Locog.
The firm sparked controversy when it announced that the while the bell Europes biggest would be manufactured by a Dutch company.
It was shipped back to Britain and erected in the Olympic Stadium in time for the opening ceremony on July 27, 2012, marking the start of a show viewed 900million worldwide.
The Olympic bell will be a foot wider than the largest in Britain, the Great Paul at St Pauls Cathedral, which was cast by Taylors in 1881.
Gaffe-prone Emily Thornberry shocked aides by asking: Can someone explain Defcon One and Two to me? Ive only ever seen it in films.
Jeremy Corbyns defence spokesman sparked a row last night over claims that she did not know the meaning of Defcon One the term for imminent nuclear war.
Gaffe-prone Emily Thornberry shocked aides by asking: Can someone explain Defcon One and Two to me? Ive only ever seen it in films.
She made the remark at a meeting of a group set up to review the Labour leaders pledge to scrap the UKs Trident nuclear submarines.
A nuclear weapons expert present pointed out that Defcon stands for defence readiness condition.
The term was coined by US defence chiefs to signal degrees of military threat, ranging from Defcon Five to Defcon One, which means nuclear attack is imminent. The highest alert the US has used was Defcon Two, which it reached in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.
The levels date back to 1959, the height of the Cold War, and were little-known outside military circles until the 1983 movie WarGames, about a computer hacker who almost sparked World War Three by accessing US military computers.
A witness who heard Ms Thornberrys comment said: The room went quiet. Everyone was silently asking themselves, Has our candidate to be the next Labour Defence Secretary just said she doesnt know the code for a nuclear war?
Ms Thornberry provoked more controversy later that day when she was accused of snubbing former Admiral of the Fleet Lord Boyce.
After Labour foreign affairs spokesman Hilary Benn suggested asking Lord Boyce for advice on nuclear policy, witnesses say Ms Thornberry replied: He has been out of it for too long. We need someone who can talk about the future. How about getting a physicist?
It led to a clash with Blairite MP John Woodcock, head of Labours defence committee, who was at the meeting of Labours international policy commission.
Mr Woodcock, who supports keeping nuclear weapons, told Ms Thornberry: If you wont listen to someone who was a submarine commander, head of the Royal Navy and Chief of the Defence Staff, our defence policy will have no credibility.
Lord Boyce, 73, was First Sea Lord from 1998 to 2001 under Tony Blairs government and Chief of the Defence Staff from 2001 to 2003.
Ms Thornberry, a leading supporter of Mr Corbyn, had previously suggested Britains nuclear submarines could become as outdated as Spitfires. She was also branded a snob for tweeting a photograph of a home draped with England flags and a white van on the driveway during the Rochester by-election in 2014. Such was the outcry that she was forced to resign from her front-bench post. This latest dispute is part of a wider Labour Party battle over Mr Corbyns attempts to adopt more Left-wing policies.
Defcon stands for defence readiness condition. The term was coined by US defence chiefs in 1959 to signal degrees of military threat, ranging from Defcon Five to Defcon One
A source close to Ms Thornberry confirmed she had referred to Defcon and films, but denied that she did not know what it meant. The source said that, in relation to Lord Boyce, Ms Thornberry had been stressing the need to look forward to nuclear capability in 20 or 30 years time not back to the point when Lord Boyce was in command.
However, in an apparent U-turn, he said that the ex-defence chief would be invited to give evidence to Labours review.
In a statement, Ms Thornberrys spokesman said it was vital that Labour held a proper debate before the country spent billions on a new nuclear deterrent. He said: Emily is leading the debate in an atmosphere of mutual respect for all views.
A New Jersey police sergeant retired after 28 years on the job as his own son gave him an emotional sign-off.
Douglas Hogate Sr, 50, said goodbye to the Salem City Police Department on Thursday.
His son, Doug Hogate Jr, who has been a dispatcher for nine years according to Fox 29, paid tribute to him from the other end of the line.
And his daughter Jenna Keen filmed the entire moment, which has since become a hit on Salem County's 911 center's Facebook page.
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Douglas Hogate Sr (pictured), 50, retired from the Salem City Police Department on Thursday. His son, a dispatcher, gave him an emotional send-off
Hogate's daughter Jenna Keen filmed Hogate as his son paid tribute to him. The video (pictured) has received more than 21,000 likes and 2,400 comments on Facebook
The video of Hogate's send-off has received more than 21,000 likes and 2,400 comments, most of them from viewers saying how much the footage moved them.
Hogate can be seen in the clip placing his final call as his son responds.
'It is a great pleasure to announce that at as of 1800 hours on this date, after 28 years of service my father Salem City Police Sergeant, badge number 612 is retiring and giving his final code three,' Hogate's son can be heard saying.
'It is my honor to acknowledge his code three to the greatest man I know.'
Meanwhile, Hogate removes his glasses and brings his hands to his face upon hearing his son's words.
At the end of the message, he replies: 'Thank you, Sir' as one of his colleagues comes in for a friendly handshake.
During the call, Hogate (pictured) removes his glasses and brings his hands to his face as he hears his son's words. He smiles as one of his colleagues comes in for a friendly handshake
'It was simply something for us to have a memory,' Hogate's son told NJ.com. 'Throughout the years growing up, my dad raised us.
'He put everything off to the side to focus on his career. It's something that is amazing for someone to do he is the greatest man.'
Keen told the website: 'My dad did one final ride through Salem and it was cool because it was like just us kids again.
'We grew up at the police station and he's been an officer all of our lives. It was an emotional time.'
Hogate said he would still feel connected with the police department, even as a retired man.
'It feels like home,' he told NJ.com. 'It's just odd right now that I'm not going to wear a uniform anymore or be on patrol. I'll still listen to what goes on.'
See more of the latest California news at www.dailymail.co.uk/california
A former major league catcher says he once owned the plane involved in a fatal crash on a Southern California freeway, and he had safely landed it on the same highway 16 years ago.
Matt Nokes said that he sold the plane years ago, but he knew the current owner who crashed Saturday on Interstate 15.
Authorities say pilot Dennis Hogge was seriously injured when his plane landed and slammed into a car on the side of the road.
One woman in the car was killed and five others, including Hogge and a female passenger, were injured.
Nokes says Hogge is an outstanding pilot and plane builder.
Nokes was piloting the Lancair IV on its second flight in February 2000 when the engine quit and he safely landed on the busy freeway.
A small plane (left) crashed into the rear of a black car (right) on a Southern California freeway, killing a woman and injuring five other people
The incident happened about 9:15 a.m. about a mile north of state Route 76. The plane, a single-engine blue and white Lancair IV, landed in the slow lane then slid to the shoulder
The wreckage is not expected to be moved until investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration can get on scene. The crash will also be investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board
Matt Nokes (seen left and right) said he was piloting the Lancair IV on its second flight in February 2000 when the engine quit and he safely landed on the busy freeway
California Highway Patrol Officer Chris Parent said the driver was stopped on the shoulder trying to sync his Bluetooth with his vehicle when the car was struck by the plane from behind, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Witnesses told dispatchers that the plane landed on a vehicle on Interstate 15, about 50 miles north of San Diego.
A Twitter user shared photos of the white and blue plane that skidded along the slow lane of the freeway for about 150 feet before crashing into the rear of the car, crushing the woman in the back seat.
A woman in her 20s, who was seated in the right rear of the car was killed, said North County Fire Protection District spokesman John Buchanan.
Three others from the vehicle were taken to a hospital, California Highway Patrol Officer Tony Polizzi said.
It took firefighters about 25 minutes to extricate a 45-year-old woman who was riding in the front passenger seat of the car, according to ABC 10.
The 42-year-old male driver and 36-year-old male passenger in the left rear seat did not require extrication, according to Buchanan.
Unlucky: The driver was stopped on the shoulder trying to sync his Bluetooth with his vehicle when the car was struck from behind
A woman in her 20s, who was seated in the right rear of the car (left and right) was killed, said North County Fire Protection District spokesman John Buchanan
It took firefighters about 25 minutes to extricate a 45-year-old woman who was riding in the front passenger seat of the car (left)
Firefighters were also able to contain a fuel leak before it caught fire when they arrived on the scene.
The 60-year-old pilot was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries described as severe trauma to his head, according to ABC 10.
The 50-year-old woman who was his passenger was hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries.
Witnesses told investigators that the plane appeared to have mechanical problems.
John Marshall was driving when he saw the plane go down.
He pulled over, got out of his car and ran to help those injured.
Firefighters were also able to contain a fuel leak before the plane caught fire when they arrived on the scene
The 60-year-old pilot of the blue and white plane (pictured) was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries described as severe trauma to his head
Marshall said there was a pilot and female passenger inside the plane and he and a couple of other people tried to get the plane door open, but it was jammed, according to ABC 10.
He then got a hammer from his tool box in his car and 'busted out the window' to help the pilot.
The plane was a single-engine Lancair IV, according to Ian Gregor of the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.
The crash blocked two lanes and caused backups on the freeway that runs to Las Vegas.
Dozens of people have been killed in clashes between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The fighting was the worst outbreak since a full-scale war over the separatist region ended in 1994.
At least 30 soldiers and a young boy were killed, as each side blamed the other for today's escalation in violence.
Since the end of the war, mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh - officially part of Azerbaijan - has been under the control of local ethnic Armenian forces and the Armenian military.
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At least 30 soldiers and a young boy have been killed in clashes between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Pictured, a car riddled with bullet holes after today's conflict
A car lays destroyed with blood showing in the aftermath of heavy fighting in Terter, Azerbaijan, between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh
Armenian forces also occupy several areas outside of Nagorno-Karabakh. The sides are separated by a demilitarised buffer zone, but small clashes are a frequent occurrence in the area.
Azerbaijan's Defence Ministry said in a statement that 12 of its soldiers 'became shahids' - Muslim martyrs - and said one of its helicopters was shot down.
The statement also claimed that more than 100 Armenian forces were killed or wounded and that six tanks and 15 artillery positions were destroyed.
But Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told his national security council that only 18 Armenian soldiers were killed and 35 wounded.
Armenia earlier claimed to have inflicted heavy damage on Azerbaijani forces, but did not immediately give figures.
This is the most wide-scale military action that Azerbaijan has tried to carry out since the establishment of the 1994 cease-fire regime. Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan
A statement from the Nagorno-Karabakh defence ministry claimed more than 200 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed, but the figure was unconfirmed.
'This is the most wide-scale military action that Azerbaijan has tried to carry out since the establishment of the 1994 cease-fire regime,' President Sargsyan said.
David Babayan, a spokesman for Nagorno-Karabakh's separatist president, said a boy of about 12 was killed and two other children were wounded in a Grad missile barrage by Azerbaijani forces.
Russian President Vladimir Putin urged all sides to cease firing and 'show restraint,' Russian news agencies quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying.
Russia's foreign and defence ministers contacted their Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts in hopes of stabilising the situation, the ministries said.
Armenian forces also occupy several areas outside of Nagorno-Karabakh. The sides are separated by a demilitarised buffer zone, but small clashes are a frequent occurrence in the area
Since the end of the war in 1994, mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh - officially part of Azerbaijan - has been under the control of local ethnic Armenian forces and the Armenian military
'The situation along the entire length of the line of opposition between Karabakhi and Azerbaijani armed forces continues to be extremely difficult,' Armenian defence ministry spokesman Artsrun Hovhannisyan told The Associated Press.
Years of negotiations under the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe have brought little progress in resolving the territorial dispute.
The negotiation efforts are led by a troika of envoys from the United States, Russia and France. On Saturday, the envoys jointly issued a statement calling on the sides 'to stop shooting and take all necessary means to stabilise the situation on the ground.'
Wreckage, including weaponry, of an Azerbaijani attack helicopter shot down during clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijani over disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region
Years of negotiations under the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe have brought little progress in resolving the territorial dispute
The Azerbaijani Defence Ministry said the fighting began when Armenian forces fired mortars and large-calibre artillery shells across the front line
Armenian forces also occupy several areas outside Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Armenian Defence Ministry said Azerbaijan used aircraft, tanks and artillery to try to make inroads into Nagorno-Karabkh and that 'Azerbaijani authorities bear all responsibility for the unprecedentedly supercharged situation.'
The Azerbaijani Defence Ministry said the fighting began when Armenian forces fired mortars and large-calibre artillery shells across the front line.
Barriers in a park near a Massachusetts bridge which were largely paid for by taxpayer's dollars were closed off after they were deemed unsafe.
That's because the structures, which are a part of Westfield's state and federally funded $80 million Great River Bridge project, are merely meant to be 'decorative,' according to contractor JF White.
White, who is the general contractor for the project, told MassLive that the barriers were not meant to be guardrails and that they were designed and built using materials which were dictated by the state.
Closed: Barriers in a park near a Massachusetts bridge which were largely paid for by taxpayer's dollars were closed off after they were deemed unsafe
Baffling: That's because the structures, which are a part of Westfield's state and federally funded $80 million Great River Bridge project, are merely meant to be 'decorative,' according to contractor JF White
Unsafe: White, who is the general contractor for the project, said that the barriers were not meant to be guardrails and that they were designed and built using materials which were dictated by the state
Despite being decoration only, people visiting the park have confused the barriers for guardrails since they are a barrier between the land and the Westfield River.
Some chose to sit or lean against the rails which were not designed to carry a heavy load.
'If they're meant to be decorative railings, who did that?' Public Works director David Billlips told Mass Live.
'On the south side of the river, that's probably a 30 foot drop.'
Billips said on Thursday that he believes the barriers can be fixed. He says that workers will need to disassemble the unsafe barriers and built them out of a more structurally sound material.
'Part of the problem is the epoxy they used to put them together was the wrong material,' Billips said. 'I think the design also called to use rebar for the studs, but they didn't use rebar.'
While the barriers are not safe, the bridges are, Billips told MassLive.
Don't sit: Despite being decoration only, people visiting the park have confused the barriers for guardrails since they are a barrier between the land and the Westfield River
'If they're meant to be decorative railings, who did that?' Public Works director David Billlips said
'I can't stress this enough: there is absolutely nothing wrong with the bridges,' he said.
City officials first discovered problems with the barriers in February when they discovered missing and lose pieces, according to MassLive.
And just last month, Mayor Brian Sullivan issued an offiial statement calling the structures unsafe.
'The Department of Public Works, who oversees the parks, has engaged a structural engineering firm to evaluate the extent of damage. The engineers performed a site visit in early March and determined the balusters are unstable and should remain closed until restoration of the existing structure is complete or a new guardrail is installed,' said the statement.
'A second phase of the consultation will include evaluation of alternatives and estimates for constructing a permanent solution. That report will be completed in the coming month and city officials will determine the most effective course of action.'
The project is managed by the state's Department of Transportation and the bridges and parks offer a new access point to downtown Westfield. It was made open to visitors in 2012 and will be closed until further notice.
Last month pedestrians complained that there were no signs to warn them of the danger.
'I wish they told people because what if it were to collapse? What if there was something to happen? Someone could get hurt. They could warn people more something like this is happening,' Nicholas Galcenski of Westfield told WWLP.
No warning: Last month pedestrians complained that there were no signs to warn them of the danger. The barrier is closed off for the time being
A heroic New York nanny ended up in a coma Thursday after taking the hit of an oncoming car in order to save an infant, police said.
Witnesses saw Loretta Penn, 62, push away the stroller that carried the infant in her care before getting struck by a silver SUV in Rockville Centre, Long Island, police told Daily Mail Online.
The crash happened at 2:48pm at the intersection of Hempstead and North Village Avenues.
The infant boy, who is just shy of five months old, was unhurt in the crash thanks to Penn's brave action, police said.
Police and bystanders collaborate to lift the car that struck and pinned Loretta Penn, 62, after she saved an infant boy
The infant was unhurt but Penn was injured and put in a medically induced coma, police said
The boy's father was nearby and arrived at the scene shortly after the incident.
After Penn saved the boy's life and got pinned under the car, it was her turn to be heroically rescued.
A group of officers and bystanders together managed to lift the vehicle and drag Penn out from underneath it, at which point she had already started turning blue from asphyxiation, Rockville Centre police said.
'I ran outside to help everybody lift up the car, by that time it was too late because when we were trying to lift up the car it looked like we were hurting her more,' neighbor Alex Antigua told ABC7.
Penn, a resident of Baldwin, Long Island, was transported to hospital where she was put in a medically induced coma in order to be treated for injuries to her abdomen, police said.
As of Saturday afternoon Penn was in a stable condition, but still comatose.
Police said the female driver of the SUV had a green light, but was supposed to have yielded to Penn, who had the right of way.
The driver, who is in her 70s, will not be charged, police said.
After the FBI managed to unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino shooters, the agency has now pledged to assist local police departments in doing the same.
In a letter obtained by CBS News, the Federal Bureau of Investigation offers its help to local law enforcement agencies.
'We know that the absence of lawful, critical investigative tools due to the 'Going Dark' problem is a substantial state and local law enforcement challenge that you face daily,' the letter reads.
'As has been our longstanding policy, the FBI will of course consider any tool that might be helpful to our partners. Please know that we will continue to do everything we can to help you consistent with our legal and policy constraints. You have our commitment that we will maintain an open dialogue with you. We are in this together.'
Police departments like the NYPD could get help from FBI in unlocking suspects' smartphones
The FBI's announcement it cracked Farook's iPhone came as a public setback for Apple, as consumers suddenly discovered they can't keep their most personal information safe. Pictured: Apple CEO Tim Cook
Previously, the FBI had sought a court order to get Apple to unlock the San Bernardino shooter Syed Farrok's phone, but the technology giant refused to help.
However, it was revealed last week that the FBI have now cracked the device without the help of Apple, with reports suggesting intelligence firm Israeli Cellebrite helped the process.
Now, according to a report in the Los Angeles Times, Apple is desperate to seek answers on how the iPhone was hacked, and are considering legal action.
It is thought that the company are now contemplating launching the action to force the government to disclose how they hacked into the phone and will argue that other devices could now be left vulnerable.
Justin Olsson, product counsel at security software maker AVG Technologies told the paper: 'The responsible thing for the government to do is privately disclose the vulnerability to Apple so they can continue hardening security on their devices.'
'Apple's best chance is to make a compelling case that the disclosure of this exploit is in the interest of national security, as in, if it remains undisclosed and undiscovered, it potentially puts innocent users at risk of data breach.'
San Bernardino shooters Tashfeen Malik and Syed Farook, pictured as they passed through O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, America in 2014
A protestor holds a piece of paper protesting the FBI's recent court order against Apple outside of the the Apple store on 5th Avenue on February 23
The FBI's announcement it cracked Farook's iPhone came as a public setback for Apple, as consumers suddenly discovered they can't keep their most personal information safe.
Apple software engineers and outside experts are puzzled about how the FBI broke the digital locks on the phone without their help.
A few clues have emerged on how the device was cracked but a senior law enforcement official said the FBI managed to defeat an Apple security feature that threatened to delete the phone's contents if the they failed to enter the correct pass code combination after 10 tries.
The FBI's announcement that it had hacked the iPhone was at odds with the government's firm recommendations for nearly two decades that security researchers always work cooperatively and confidentially with software manufacturers before revealing that a product might be susceptible to hackers.
On Tuesday a judge agreed to postpone the trial of two suspected killers in Arkansas, due next week, to July so prosecutors could ask the FBI for help in unlocking the suspects' phones.
The Mail On Sunday managed to unlock an iPhone using a 120 device bought on the internet
Tens of millions of bestselling smartphones can easily be hacked by criminals using a 120 device that cracks their four-digit passcode.
An investigation by The Mail on Sunday found the gadget, sold openly on the internet, could be used to gain access to private and confidential details stored on Apple iPhones, including photographs, emails, contact details and call histories.
Using the device called an IP Box this newspaper was able to break the passcode of an Apple iPhone 5C, the model that Americas Federal Bureau of Investigation had been fighting to access in order to gain information about a terrorist massacre.
The FBI entered a high-stakes legal battle with Apple over the handset belonging to Syed Farook, who died with his wife in a gun battle with police after the couple killed 14 people in December in San Bernardino, California.
Apple had refused to help investigators find the code to unlock the murderers phone, saying it feared it would set a legal precedent and allow law enforcement officials to probe the contents of millions of its phones in future investigations.
After a two-month stalemate, the FBI last week announced it had finally broken the four-digit code, finding the right sequence out of a possible 10,000 numeric combinations. But what took the FBI weeks can apparently be done in a matter of hours with devices like the IP Box, which launch a brute force attack on the password by going through all the possible combinations until it finds the right one.
Normally, iPhones are disabled once five wrong attempts are entered but the IP Box is able to keep trying codes.
Other devices such as iPads and mini iPads are also susceptible to the attack.
The FBI entered a high-stakes legal battle with Apple over the handset belonging to Syed Farook (right), who died with his wife (left) in a gun battle with police after the couple killed 14 people in December in San Bernardino, California
This newspaper purchased an IP Box from the online store Fone Fun Shop, which has a retail premises in Sheffield. The device can also be bought on eBay.
Our device arrived the following day and we tested it by setting a random four-digit number as the passcode on an iPhone 5C.
We plugged the device in to the phone and watched as it tried codes starting from 0000 upwards.
FBI director James Comey asked Apple to create software to unlock Farook's phone but the company refused
After nearly six hours, the device cracked the code 3298 and started beeping and lighting up the iPhone screen to signify a successful hack. With the code we were able to access all the data on the device, as well as change its passcode to one of our choosing. As each entry takes six seconds to input, an iPhone can be cracked within seconds ranging up to 17 hours.
iPhones run on computer programs called operating systems which are updated over time to increase security and make other features more efficient. While the phone tested by the MoS was the same model as the San Bernardino one, it was running an older operating system iOS 7. The San Bernardino one was on iOS 9. That said, experts claim similar devices can also now hack this system. Company director of Fone Fun Shop Mark Strachan, 45, said: We discovered the device via our Hong Kong office and were sceptical as to whether it would work but after testing we discovered it worked perfectly.
We already supply forensic tools to law enforcement within the UK and worldwide and decided to introduce it into our line of products. There are certain scenarios where this kind of technology is needed to help people for the right reasons, its not all bad.
It took just six hours for the IP Box to unlock the test iPhone in the Mail on Sunday's investigation
We have helped many families who had a family member die suddenly get sentimental photos off their locked device.
We have also helped many people get access to all their phone book contacts, especially people in business, who put everything in their iPhones such as suppliers and customer contact details that would be totally lost unless they cracked the passcode to their phone.
Mr Strachan added that this month they will start selling a new device that can crack into the latest Apple iPhone software the iOS 9 system that was on the San Bernardino phone. This means hundreds of millions of iPhones even the ones with the latest software could be vulnerable to attack.
He said: It is the same technology the FBI got access to crack the passcode on the San Bernardino device.
The IP Box is not illegal but if it were to be used to hack someones iPhone then it would be a crime under section 55 of the Data Protection Act 1998
Director of the Cyber Security Centre at The University of Warwick, Professor Tim Watson, said: Phones are incredibly useful devices but the problem is there are thieves who are constantly seeking access to them. The answer is you should always make sure you have your phone updated to the latest piece of software. A spokesman for the FBI refused to comment but a source close to the US intelligence agency said: The FBI is well aware of IP Boxes and have highly sophisticated versions of the product.
An Apple spokesman refused to comment. The IP Box is not illegal but if it were to be used to hack someones iPhone then it would be a crime under section 55 of the Data Protection Act 1998.
New phone case could help terrorists
The Vysk device clips to the phone and, with the flick of a switch, can be put into stealth mode
Terrorists could carry out a Paris or Brussels-style attack in Britain using a mobile phone case that can encrypt iPhone calls and texts, a security expert has warned.
The Vysk device clips to the phone and, with the flick of a switch, can be put into stealth mode to stop hackers from gaining access to its data. All calls and text messages are diverted via an encrypted server.
And its cover stops the camera and microphone from being hacked to gain remote access for eavesdropping. But Professor Anthony Glees, director of the University of Buckinghams Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies, said terrorists could make use of the features to evade the security services and bring terror to Britains streets.
He said: I do not think there should be any form of communication that cannot be decrypted or intercepted.
The great success that Bletchley Park had in shortening the war relied on intercepting messages transmitted by wireless and cable.
Any device that cannot be used for intercept intelligence is a device in my book that we do not need.
By mining big data our people are able to prevent the sort of things in Britain which happened in Paris and Brussels. Anybody that claims to make something that means a terrorist attack is more likely to succeed will have a very heavy burden on their conscience.
Vysk CEO Victor Cocchia said he has sold the device to major British accountants, banks and law firms.
He said: These devices are intended for people who need to have private, sensitive conversations and cannot risk them being listened in on.
If we are told by any intelligence services that they suspect the device is being used by a terrorist then we have the ability to turn it off remotely.
Police say the marking of political names on the drugs is likely just a form of branding
A similar marking happened in 2013 when bags of heroin were marked with the words 'Obama care'
when she was taken back into custody
Hall was already on probation for a 2014 cocaine
Darcie Hall (pictured), 36, of Troy, New Hampshire, was arrested for allegedly selling bags of heroin stamped with Donald Trump's name
A New Hampshire woman suspected of being a drug dealer was taken into custody for allegedly selling bags of heroin stamped with the Republican front-runner's name.
Darcie Hall, 36, of Troy, New Hampshire, was stopped while driving and arrested for selling bags of heroin with Donald Trump's name stamped on them.
Hall was taken into custody while police searched her vehicle and home and charged with selling a controlled substance.
The 'Trump heroin' was found dispensed into dosage-sized bags.
Hall is already on probation for a 2014 conviction of possessing of cocaine.
A family member told the Boston Globe he was 'disgusted' with Hall's behavior.
He added that he has no idea why she named her drug after Trump.
This isn't the first time a drug dealer has tried to capitalize on political momentum to sell illegal substances.
Four people were arrested for having 1,250 bags of heroin labeled 'Obama Care' in Massachusetts in December 2013.
Police said as far as they know, the political names are a type of 'branding'.
Two Palestinian terrorists who repeatedly stabbed a British woman in a brutal attack and killed her friend are now each receiving at least 9,000 in blood money every year with the help of UK aid.
Kay Wilson was left for dead in an orgy of violence in Jerusalem in which Kristine Luken, an American, was killed.
The attackers were eventually caught and, after admitting their crimes, were sent to prison.
Kay Wilson was left for dead in an orgy of violence in Jerusalem by two Palestinian terrorists who now are receiving 9,000 in 'blood money' eveyr year with the help of British aid
But Ms Wilson was horrified to learn from news reports that her assailants were being paid a monthly stipend equivalent to 750 each effectively from the Palestinian Authority (PA).
Last week The Mail on Sunday exposed how reward payments are going via the PA to thousands of terrorists and to hundreds of other prisoners in Israeli jails.
Ms Wilson, 51, and her friend were hiking in the Judean Hills in 2010 when the two men pounced on them, believing both women to be Jewish, although Miss Luken was Christian. After tying the women up the terrorists launched a savage attack.
Miss Luken died from her stab wounds. Miss Wilson still bears a seven-inch scar on her stomach and, more than five years on, breathing still causes her pain.
Ms Wilson said: We were held for 30 minutes at knife point then gagged and bound before being butchered with machetes.
I watched my friend chopped up before my eyes, and only survived because I played dead, despite being stabbed 13 times and having over 30 bones broken by the sheer force of the blows.
Each time he plunged his machete into me I could hear my bones crunch, and also my flesh ripping from the serrated blade.
They left, only to return moments later and roll me over, and I watched him plunge the knife into my chest, just missing my heart.
Kristine Luken, an American, was killed as she and Ms Wilson hiked in the Judean Hills in 2010
Remarkably, she managed to get to her feet and begin walking after her attackers left again.
She said: I could hear my lungs filling with blood and I was aware that each step might be my last.
Somehow, she struggled almost a mile to the car park where shes left her vehicle and raised the alarm. Her life was saved by a Muslim Arab-Israeli surgeon.
The attackers Aiad Fatfata and Kifah Ghanimat were later arrested, tried and given lengthy life sentences in 2011 and are still in prison.
But months after the convictions Miss Wilson discovered the mens families were being paid. She said: I call it their execution stipends. In court, I learned from their own mouths, that Kristine, a Christian, was murdered because they assumed she was Jewish.
That is outrageous in itself. But when I, as a proud British citizen, discover that my homeland is paying their families a monthly income, the absolute unfairness of it all is just devastating.
I thank God for all the people who have signed The Mail on Sundays petition to Parliament because that proves to me that the British do still care and they have a huge sense of fairness.
How can two men hold machetes and hack at two innocent women without even blinking an eye? They were actually yawning and smirking in court. No wonder if they knew there was a cash incentive from the British Government.
Ms Wilson was horrified to learn from news reports that her assailants - one of whom as Kifah Ghanimat, pictured, were being paid a monthly stipend equivalent to 750 each effectively from the Palestinian Authority
Im pro-peace. I have spoken out many times since this happened. Jewish, Christian or Muslim, we all have to learn to live together.
But if we want a viable peace we must stop these payments.
Miss Wilson, who was born in London but moved to Israel 30 years ago, works for an non-governmental organisation called Standwithus which seeks to promote religious tolerance and understanding.
She contacted The Mail on Sunday after we reported last week how, in the West Bank and Gaza, despite promises by the PA to end the practice of paying aid money to convicted terrorists, they simply duped the West by allowing the Palestine Liberation Organisation to hand out the cash instead. Britain gives 72 million a year to Palestine, more than one-third of which goes straight to the PA.
It openly admits supporting terrorists, whom it hails as heroes for fighting illegal occupation, awarding lifetime payments that rise depending on time spent in jail and the seriousness of crimes. Extra amounts are added for dependants, according to the Israeli NGO, Palestinian Media Watch.
Miss Wilsons lawyer, Gavi Mairone, said: These two men were part of a terrorist cell and they are aligned with Fatah, the armed wing of the PLO. In prison they are with the Fatah group and are paid money by the Palestinian Authority, like the others.
The UK gives the Palestinian Authority some 24million each year. Pictured: Ms Wilson's injuries
The Department for International Development (DFID) denies that any British cash reaches terrorists and says its payments to the PA are ring-fenced for specific projects.
Critics point out that the money from the UK and other Western countries frees up other funds to be passed on to the terrorists. Our investigation found Britain funded the PLO until last year.
Former prisoners and the families of terrorists we spoke to confirmed receiving cash from both the PA and the PLO.
Miss Wilson believes that while the blood money issue has been aired in Israel it is only now being taken seriously in the West. This is why your investigation is so important, she said.
The Mail on Sunday tried to contact the PA but our messages were not responded to.
The United States has deployed 12 F-15C Eagle fighter jets and and approximately 350 airmen to Iceland and the Netherlands.
The Air Force announced that the U.S. aircraft came from the 131st Fighter Squadron at Barnes Air National Guard Base in Massachusetts and the 194th Fighter Squadron at Fresno Air National Guard Base in California.
Their mission will be support NATO air surveillance missions in Iceland and conduct flying training in the Netherlands.
Team America: A small group of U.S. F-15 fighter jets (pictured) have travelled to Icland and The Netherlands to carry out military exercises
According to CNN, the F-15 fighter jets are part of several deployments of American fighters being sent to Europe in an effort to deter further Russian aggression in the region.
In February, the U.S. said it will send six F-15s to Finland as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, which the United States initiated in 2014 to reassure NATO allies after Russian military intervention in Ukraine. These aircraft are scheduled to deploy next month.
Although it maintains a small coast guard force, Iceland is the only country in NATO that does not have a military.
The U.S. used to have an air base in Iceland during the Cold War when Iceland sat at a key strategic location in the middle of the Atlantic, but the base was closed in 2006.
Mission: Units will conduct training alongside NATO allies and partners as part of the U.S. commitment to a Europe that is whole, free, at peace, secure, and prosperous and to deter further Russian aggression
While NATO has maintained air control over Iceland since 2008, their defenses have been unable to stop Russia from reportedly making air incursions into Icelandic airspace.
In the case of Finland, the country remains a 'neutral', although it has edged closer to the NATO defence alliance in recent years, alarming Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Between 70 and 100 members of the Oregon Air National Guard will spent two weeks undertaking the exercises, which could yet include Norway and Sweden, Yle.fi reported.
Mika Varvikko, an official at the Finnish Department of Defence, said: 'Co-operation with the U.S. is close and our co-operation on a practical level has been and will continue to remain tight.'
Tensions with Russia have grown in recent years following Putin's aggressive power plays in eastern Europe and the Middle East.
Relations remain at a low following its annexation of Crimea in 2014, its clandestine support for rebel forces in eastern Ukraine, and its bombing of Syria in support of Bashar al-Assad.
Finland's announcement also comes a day after it was revealed Putin was scrambling 8,500 troops, 200 warplanes and 50 battleships from his military reserves in the south-west.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said yesterday the country's large military manoeuvres will feature airborne troops and military transport aviation, as well as the navy.
He noted that the drills are intended to check the troops' ability to respond to extremist threats and other challenges.
The manoeuvres will test the troops' mobility, with some being deployed to areas up to 1,800 miles away, the military said.
Russia's military drills come as tensions with the West continue to worsen as it flexes its military might on the international stage
Vladimir Putin has demonstrated his country's resurgent military might with an air campaign in Syria in support of president Bashar al-Assad
Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov said in a statement that up to 8,500 troops, 900 ground weapons, 200 warplanes and about 50 warships will be involved in the drills.
Russia has demonstrated its resurgent military might with its air campaign in Syria, which helped President Bashar Assad's military win a series of victories in recent weeks.
The military used the Syrian operation to test new types of weapons in actual combat for the first time, including long-range air-and-sea-launched cruise missiles.
A New York cop who claims he was sleepwalking when he broke into a woman's apartment and beat her just hours after he received one of the police force's top honors has been caught on a surveillance camera making a confused exit from the apartment building in his underwear.
Officer Eugene Donnelly, 28, can be seen scrambling out of the building around 5.43am in a pair of black boxer briefs before circling back two times and making his way inside again in a video obtained by the NY Post.
He faces the camera at one point when he tries to buzz his way back into the building and appears to be wide awake, although his lawyers stood by the sleepwalking defense and said Donnelly had 'obviously awakened' by the time he was seen on camera.
Eugene Donnelly, 28, an NYPD cop charged with beating a 30-year-old woman hours after receiving a bravery award (pictured) now claims he carried out the attack while sleepwalking
Donnelly appeared in the Bronx Superior Court Tuesday where his lawyers denied claims he was drunk during the attack, and insisted he was sleepwalking instead.
Lawyer Michael Marinaccio said a team of experts had analyzed Donnelly and concluded he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and various sleeping issues.
Marinaccio said: 'Our report shows that it wasn't an alcoholic blackout. It was sleepwalking.
'On the best day of this guy's life, he does something so out of character. Can we at least consider the possibility that something else is going on here?'
On June 10, 2014, Donnelly had received the Combat Cross, the second highest departmental award given to officers for 'extraordinary acts of heroism'.
According to the Post, sources say Donnelly had been drinking later that night and slept at a fellow officer's apartment in the same Woodlawn building as the alleged victim.
The 32-year-old woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, said Donnelly kicked her door while she was in bed.
When she rushed to the entrance of her apartment, he reportedly punched her in the face, knocked her to the ground, and continued to 'pummel' her.
She told the paper: 'He was screaming: "Shut the fk up, you ACS bitch! I know there are kids in here! I know there are guns!"
'I had no idea what he was talking about . . . I thought I was going to die.'
The 32-year-old woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, said Donnelly kicked her door while she was in bed and reportedly punched her more than 20 times. Donnelly left the building after the attack wearing just his underwear (pictured)
In the surveillance footage, Donnelly walks out of the building at 5.43am on June 11, 2014 (left) before doubling back (right)
He unsuccessfully tugged at a set of doors that closed behind him (left) before buzzing his way back into the building (right)
His lawyers stood by the sleepwalking defense and but acknowledged Donnelly had 'obviously awakened' by the time he was seen on camera. Pictured, Donnelly entering the building again
The alleged victim claims Donnelly punched her more than 20 times before she managed to flee.
Donnelly eventually left but not before taking a swig of milk from the woman's refrigerator.
In the surveillance video, he exits the first time at 5.43am on June 11, 2014, and makes it a few steps out of the building before he abruptly turning around and tugging at a second set of doors which closed behind him on the way out.
He can be seen heading out towards the street again but makes it just a few yards before he heads back to building a second time.
After tugging at the closed doors to no avail, he appears to press on the apartment buzzers and is let into the building seconds later.
His lawyers agreed Donnelly appears to be awake in the video, but they stood by the defense that he had been sleepwalking when he attacked the woman earlier.
But the 32-year-old woman told the Daily News: 'It took them over a year to come up with this defense. He's grasping at straws.'
Police used the surveillance images for wanted pictures before realizing the suspect was one of their own.
Donnelly, who has been stripped of his gun and badge since his arrest, faces misdemeanor assault and burglary charges.
He will be tested for sleepwalking by doctors found by the prosecutors.
Prosecutors say that Donnelly got drunk at a friend's house following the ceremony (pictured), left the apartment, broke into a neighbor's property, then hit her 20 times before leaving
But lawyers for Donnelly say he has been suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and sleep disorders and was actually sleepwalking at the time of the attack
Donnelly was awarded the Combat Cross by Police Commissioner Bill Bratton.
According to the New York Daily News, Donnelly was off-duty in 2012 while driving with a friend to meet his partner when several men ran from a park while being chased by a gun-wielding Javon Julien.
Julien, 19, fired a shot at the men while running past Donnellys car. The cop shouted at Julien to stop, but the teen instead shot out Donnellys drivers side mirror.
The officer fired back, striking Julien four times before chasing down and arresting him. Julien was given eight years in prison for his shooting spree.
Following a drop in female supporters after saying women should be punished for getting abortions if they're ever banned and attacking rival Ted Cruz's wife Heidi Cruz on Twitter, Republican presidential candidate has taken a step back.
He said on Friday that it was 'a mistake' to attack Heidi Cruz and his campaign quickly reversed his claims on abortion.
His comments raised concerns in the Republican Party about whether his unpopularity with women as measured in preference polling would make him unelectable in a general election match-up against Democrat Hillary Clinton.
In an apparent effort to address that concern, Trump said his wife, Melania, will be campaigning with him Monday. His daughter Ivanka, who just had a baby, will also be returning to campaign with him in another week or so, he said.
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Republican candidate Donald Trump called the Twitter attack on rival Ted Cruz's wife, Heidi Cruz, 'a mistake'
On Wednesday, he told MSNBC women should be punished for getting abortions if they're ever banned - a position the notoriously unapologetic campaign quickly reversed.
During a taping of 'Face The Nation' on Friday, Trump said he believed that, when it comes to abortion: 'The laws are set. And I think we have to leave it that way'.
His spokeswoman, Hope Hicks, quickly issued a clarification that Trump meant that laws won't change until he's president and appoints judges who can interpret them differently.
Trump told the audience on Saturday that his words had been repeatedly taken out of context, and complained that he was being held to a different standard than his rivals. He called his comments on 'Face the Nation' ''perfect' and 'so good.'
'They took words out that I said,' Trump told the rally, implying CBS had edited his answer about keeping abortion laws as they are. But the video made clear there was no editing in the exchange about abortion and his response was given in full.
'It's a tough question,' he added of abortion. 'You know, 50 per cent of the people hate you. Fifty per cent of the people love you, very simple.'
New York Times' Maureen Dowd asked Trump in an interview on about his initial response to the abortion question on MSNBC, to which Trump said it 'was not real life'.
'This was a hypothetical, so I thought in terms of a hypothetical. So that's where that answer came from, hypothetically,' he said.
When Dowd further tried to press further, asking if Trump had ever been involved with anyone who had an abortion while he was 'a swinging bachelor in Manhattan'.
'Such an interesting question. ... So what's your next question?' Trump responded.
Last month Trump retweeted an unflattering photo of Heidi Cruz next to a glamor shot of his own supermodel wife, Melania Trump. The social media post was captioned 'A picture with worth a thousand words'
As for attacking Heidi Cruz, he claims he wouldn't do it if he had a chance to re-do the moment last month.
'Yeah, it was a mistake,' Trump told Dowd. 'If I had to do it again, I wouldn't have sent it.'
Last month Trump retweeted an unflattering photo of Heidi Cruz next to a glamor shot of his own supermodel wife, Melania Trump. The social media post was captioned 'A picture with worth a thousand words'.
Trump was confronted about the tweet after his support from female voters declined following the incident.
Dowd said in a New York Times article that the GOP frontrunner stood firmly by his believe that he didn't view the Heidi Cruz photo 'necessarily as negative'.
Trump also told Dowd that Cruz 'did it first' and 'that wasn't nice', insisting that his rival started the attack and claimed he wrote the words on an anti-Trump group's ad aimed at Utah Mormons showing Melania Trump in a 2000 British GQ shot posing provocatively suggesting she wasn't First Lady material.
Cruz has denied all involvement in the anti-Trump ad.
Trump's Cruz attack is just one of several moments thus far in his campaign that have cost him female supporters.
Trump was on defense Saturday as he kicked off a three-day sprint to Wisconsin's primary.
Trump began the afternoon with a rally in the Milwaukee suburb of Racine, where he defended a series of controversial comments in recent days on NATO, abortion and his remark that Japan and South Korea should perhaps be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons.
Trump said that Cruz 'did it first' and 'that wasn't nice', referring to an anti-Trump group's ad aimed at Utah Mormons. Cruz has denied all involvement in the anti-Trump ad (pictured)
'This politics is a tough business,' said Trump, whose performance in Tuesday's contest will help determine whether he can seize the Republican nomination without a fight at the convention. 'Because you can say things one way and the press will criticize you horribly. You say it another way and the press will criticize you horribly.'
Trump's recent comments on abortion were among his biggest missteps, which have managed to unite both abortion rights activists and opponents in their criticism.
Trump responded at length to criticism from both of his rivals as well as from President Barack Obama over his call to consider allowing South Korea and Japan to acquire nuclear weapons - a position the president said betrayed an ignorance of foreign policy and the world.
'Now I didn't say anything about letting Japan nuke,' Trump said. 'But I did say, perhaps if we can't do the right deal, we'll have to let them take care of themselves.'
Trump said, 'if that means they'll have to someday get nuclear weapons, in all fairness folks, I know the way life works, eventually they're going to probably want to do it anyway.' And he later claimed that his much-panned assertion that NATO was irrelevant was suddenly being embraced by people who had 'studied the organization for 30 years.'
Recent polls suggest Ted Cruz is favored in Wisconsin. Trump appeared aware of the struggle he faces.
While he said he's popular in some areas, 'in certain areas, the city areas, I'm not doing well. And I'm not doing well because nobody knows my message'.
He said people were given misinformation, and partly blamed 'crazy talk show hosts' including Charlie Sykes, with whom he had a contentious radio interview.
Hundreds of cannabis activists flocked to an Easter Sunday party where they drank from a Willy Wonka-style chocolate fountain laced with the illegal drug then openly boasted on social media about their exploits.
The party, hosted by the so-called Birmingham City Cannabis Club, saw brazen activists travelling from as far as Brighton and Scotland to pay 25 each to gorge on edible cannabis products.
About 200 people tucked into an array of nibbles such as strawberries, bananas and grapes that they had dipped into the chocolate and mango-flavoured cannabis fountains. They also devoured a cannabis cake complete with icing sugar.
Cannabis activist Greg De Hoedt drank from a cannabis fountain at the Birmingham City Cannabis Club Easter Sunday party
Other pictures posted on social media show the partygoers smoking what appear to be joints.
In one snap posted on Instagram, Greg De Hoedt, president of United Kingdom Cannabis Social Clubs which campaigns to legalise the drug in Britain is seen posing with his mouth open underneath a mango flavoured cannabis fountain.
Last night, West Midlands Police who were unaware of the event launched an investigation after being tipped off by The Mail on Sunday.
The party, called Sunday Sessions Vol 2.0, was held at the PST private members club, a reggae venue in Digbeth, Birmingham. It follows a similar event held at the end of last year.
Ellie Milner posted a picture of herself wearing the club's T-shirt after the event
The gathering was openly advertised on social media, with the Birmingham City Cannabis Clubs Instagram account boasting: Right folks get your tickets go the next #b3c event being held on the 27th March from 3 till 10pm theres gonna be jokes, foods and laughs and a few nice surprises. Dont miss out peeps its gonna be a good Easter smoke out. Cannabis clubs especially welcome.
The text was peppered with emojis images used to express an emotion such as a smiley face.
The event was apparently sponsored by Medi Monkey, a brand of cannabis products that contain THC, the primary psychoactive chemical. The products which come in colourful packaging with a Union Jack include bottled cannabis syrup, cannabis chocolate and concentrated cannabis.
Though not openly sold on the internet, the products appear to have been distributed among cannabis activists in Britain, with many praising their effects on Instagram.
The creator of Medi Monkey is understood to be a man from Birmingham now living in Spain who goes by the alias of Andy McDabbin dabbing is a way of consuming cannabis where users vaporise and inhale the drug.
Mr McDabbins Instagram and Facebook pages contain numerous pictures and posts about the products. When this newspaper contacted him, he did not respond. At a Birmingham address believed to be the home of his wife, she denied her husband had any involvement with Medi Monkey. Asked about the strong smell of cannabis from the house, she said: Really! So half the population dont smoke it?
One partygoer at the Easter event, Ellie Milner, 23, from Birmingham, praised Mr McDabbins products. Posting a picture of herself on Instagram wearing a Birmingham City Cannabis Club T-shirt and holding what appears to be a joint, she wrote: Had such a good day yesterday at the @birminghamcitycannabisclub meet. thank you to everyone who made it so epic. if only I wasnt so high then I might of actually mingled more. She added that Andy McDabbin absolutely smashed the spread.
A ticket to the event cost 25 and was advertised as being 'members only' but police were unaware of the event until tipped off by the Mail on Sunday
Mr McDabbin replied: Big up you and your lot mate great to see groups of stoner chicks you all boss it.
Ms Milner praised the organisers of the event in an Instagram post peppered with emojis
Cannabis is a Class B drug in the UK
Inspector Will OConnor of Birmingham Police said: It has been brought to our attention that this event took place in Digbeth last weekend and we are looking into the information we have been given.
Asked about his exploits, Mr De Hoedt, who suffers from Crohns disease and claims he uses cannabis to help treat it, said: Private membership cannabis social clubs break the links to the black market by educating members about the supply chain ethically sourcing, meaning funds are directed away from organised crime.
There are many risks to buying cannabis on the black market. These range from being sold contaminated products to being robbed at knifepoint. Events are attended by patients suffering mild to very debilitating medical conditions from Crohns to MS, serious spinal injuries, to those who require intensive pain-management.
At Ms Milners family home, her mother said: She doesnt drink. She doesnt do any other drugs.
This is the SASs deadly new weapon in the war against Islamic State terrorists threatening to bring murder and bloodshed to the streets of Britain.
In the event of an attack, the UKs elite fighting force will swoop into action on a 43 million heli-plane nicknamed the Transformer.
The Mail on Sunday can reveal that SAS troops on high alert to respond to a Paris-style strike in this country are training to use the V22 Osprey at Stirling Lines, their regimental headquarters at Credenhill, near Hereford.
The Osprey is almost twice as fast as the SASs current fleet of transport helicopters and can carry at least 24 fully equipped personnel. With a top speed of 360mph it can deploy soldiers from Hereford to London in 30 minutes to bolster the SASs anti-terror squad which is permanently based in the capital, and to Manchester in about the same time.
The Osprey has machineguns installed in the nose and on the rear ramp. Its range is also much greater than transport helicopters currently in service. It can fly for up to 1,000 miles or eight hours without refuelling, meaning that if terrorists launch strikes across the UK, the same aircraft could fly troops to several locations.
Because British forces have never flown the Osprey, UK pilots are being trained by the US Air Force.
An SAS source said last night: This is an essential new piece of equipment for us which will make it much easier and faster for us to respond in the event of an attack. With its vertical take-off and landing capability we could fly directly from Hereford and land in any city, even in a confined space.
While critics of the Osprey point to the aircrafts poor safety record 36 military personnel have been killed since its first test flight in the United States it has performed well in trials with the SAS. Soldiers have also parachuted from the Osprey and abseiled from it on to a building as part of a hostage rescue exercise.
The Ospreys ability to perform as a helicopter and as a fixed-wing aircraft is due to proprotors the name given to the three 19ft-long rotors attached to each wing.
It takes off like a conventional helicopter then the proprotors and engines rotate through 90 degrees to turn it into a fixed-wing aircraft.
SAS troops on high alert to respond to a Paris-style strike in this country are training to use the V22 Osprey (pictured) at Stirling Lines, their regimental headquarters at Credenhill, near Hereford
The aircrafts Rolls-Royce engines generate enough horsepower for the Osprey to climb at an impressive 36ft per second, making it a faster, more elusive target than a helicopter.
It can also fly at up to 26,000ft, thereby avoiding enemy missiles, while its carbon-fibre fuselage reduces the impact of bullets and rockets.
In November last year a Ministry of Defence blueprint for military spending priorities promised to upgrade the UKs helicopter and aircraft fleet.
Then in January, the commander of the UKs Joint Helicopter Command, Major General Richard Felton, said he wanted to acquire hi-tech helicopters for specific operations and missions a phrase widely interpreted as a reference to Britains Special Forces.
Boeing, which manufactures the Osprey, has also confirmed UK interest in the aircraft but it was unclear last night whether the SASs Ospreys have been purchased, or leased from the US Air Force.
On Friday, David Cameron announced that 1,000 extra armed police are to be deployed across the country. On the same day, a chilling IS plot to behead soldiers emerged after a British jihadi was convicted of planning an attack at RAF bases.
Hundreds of millions of pounds in British aid are being poured into education in Pakistan where corrupt officials have creamed off vast amounts of cash by creating thousands of fake teaching jobs and pocketing the salaries.
A judicial inquiry in one province, Sindh, uncovered how the money was being siphoned off to as many as 5,000 schools and 40,000 teachers which exist only on paper.
The fraud is just one of the scandals in education across Pakistan, to which Britains Department for International Development (DFID) has committed 700 million, supposedly to help the countrys impoverished children.
Continuing support: Justine Greening meets Rana Mashhood last year. Britain gives more aid than Australia, Canada, Holland, Italy and Spain combined. We give 0.7% of our wealth - the average for richer nations is 0.29%...the US gives 0.19%.
Hundreds of millions of pounds in British aid are given to education in Pakistan. In one province, Sindh, a judicial inquiry found it was being siphoned off by 5,000 schools and 40,000 teachers. File image
In the state of Punjab, where school projects have been allotted 383 million of UK aid, Pakistans auditor general uncovered corruption on a huge scale. The investigation revealed that 35 million had disappeared from the regions higher-education budget, including 25 million on bad investments and hundreds of thousands in fraudulent advances to teachers.
Although Britain does not fund higher education in the region, the damning findings confirm DFIDs own assessment of its complex support programme in Punjab, where it rated the risk of fraud as substantial.
The Punjab schools minister is Rana Mashhood, who was pictured shaking hands with Justine Greening, the International Development Secretary, during a meeting in London at the end of last year. Mr Mashhood has been under investigation since September by Pakistans National Accountability Bureau for corruption allegations unrelated to UK aid. He denies any wrongdoing. Last week, with the inquiry still ongoing, he quit as minister for higher education, sport and tourism saying that he wanted to concentrate on his schools portfolio.
And yet another scandal has arisen after DFID, in an attempt to avoid some of the problems involved in working with state governments, turned to giving money to private companies running non-government schools. DFID has since found that women teachers in low-cost private schools are paid sweatshop wages of just 70p a day less than a quarter the legal minimum.
SUPERSONIC CAR IS A CASH-GUZZLER: 1MILLION LAND SPEED RECORD HOPEFUL BUILT IN THE UK WAS PAID FOR BY FOREIGN OFFICE MONEY The project, led by entrepeneur Richard Noble Gleaming, sleek and designed to be supersonic, this is the incredible car which it is hoped will break the land speed record. But whats even more incredible is that the futuristic Bloodhound project has been the recipient of British aid cash, which taxpayers might have imagined was going to combat disease or poverty. An astonishing 1million has been given by the UK in a grant for schemes involving the super car. Last night the TaxPayers Alliance said: It is stupefying that funding a world record attempt in a supersonic car can apparently be regarded in any way as foreign aid. The project, led by entrepeneur Richard Noble, above, is listed as a science and education initiative and receives funding from the Foreign Office, the MoD and the British Council. A record attempt is planned for later year in South Africa. A Government spokesman said last night: The UK has provided the funding to promote British companies and to support educational projects. The futuristic Bloodhound project, which it is hoped will break the land speed record, is funded by money from the British Council Advertisement
WHY THEY MUST ALL LAUGH AT US IN MOLDOVA: FOREIGN OFFICE PAYS FOR BRITISH COMIC TO TELL BUSINESS LEADERS 'CAPITALISM ISN'T WORKING' Comedian Tony Hawk, who went to Moldova Did you hear the one about the taxpayers money used to send stand-up comic Tony Hawks to a business conference in Moldova? The trip was funded by the Foreign Office under a programme to promote economic development. But Mr Hawks used the 2013 event to issue a rallying cry for his anti- capitalist campaign Make Billionaires History. Mr Hawks, 55, told business leaders: Capitalism in its current form isnt working. People are being encouraged to consume more and more, the planet cannot cope. The Foreign office contributed more than 600 to the trip. A spokesman said: The British Embassy paid for Tony Hawkss flight and accommodation only. His speech supported the UKs objectives of boosting economic prosperity. Advertisement
Civil servants at Ms Greenings department warned two years ago that there was a high risk of damage to the Governments reputation if news of the illegal wages leaked out. But the project was allowed to go ahead because it was judged good value for money and officials wanted to be able to claim quick successes to justify the huge aid budget.
A review in February 2014 warned that pay to teachers in LCPS [low-cost private schools] is often significantly below the official minimum wage and in many cases below a dollar a day.
In Punjab, these schools are funded through the Punjab Education Foundation (PEF), which receives 68.7 million in UK aid. It costs about 40 a year to put a child through a PEF school. But an academic study of the programme co-authored by Professor Roy Carr-Hill, from University College London, and his Pakistan-based colleague Ali Murtaza found that the way areas were selected to receive UK help almost certainly means the very poor are excluded.They concluded that private sector involvement increased the likelihood of corruption.
DO YOU KNOW OF A SCANDAL OVER FOREIGN AID? Email your stories to aidmadness@mailonsunday.co.uk or call 0203 7938 7040 Advertisement
Critics say Pakistan is dependent on UK support partly because only 0.5 per cent of its population pay tax.
A DFID spokesman said: Providing education in Pakistan is inevitably challenging, but that is why we need to be there. Our support is getting millions of children into school and weve worked with the education department in Punjab to tackle this issue, helping to save 10 million. The challenge of delivering education in Pakistan is huge but thanks to UK support, 6.3 million children are getting a decent schooling who otherwise wouldnt.
In large parts of Pakistan low-cost private schools, many employing part-time teachers, are the only means of providing education for thousands of those children, so it makes sense to work with them.
Let's all learn Foreign Aid-ese! FUNGABILITY - noun : When a nation given vast amounts of our cash can then afford to divert its own resources to buy private jets, weapons and fabulous residences
BY GLEN OWEN, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT FOR THE MAIL ON SUNDAY
It is not a word that trips easily off the tongue but it goes right to the heart of the scandal of wasted foreign aid.
When British taxpayers money ends up effectively paying for an African presidents fleet of private jets, it is described as fungibility.
In the same way that the practice of flipping came to symbolise the abuse of MPs expenses when politicians would flip the designation of their main residence between two homes to maximise their allowances fungibility is used by aid experts as a synonym for corruption.
Laughing all the way to the bank: We gave South Africa 17m - its President Jacob Zuma (pictured) splurged 17.5m on doing up his rural retreat
The lap of luxury: This is the sprawling palace that is enjoyed by the President of South Africa
The term, which derives from the medieval Latin term fungor, meaning I perform, stands for something that is capable of being substituted.
In the context of Britains 12 billion foreign aid budget, it means that the money we give to other countries to be spent on good works often ends up being spent on warplanes or Paris mansions.
A recent investigation by the House of Lords Select Committee on Economic Affairs into the effectiveness of aid heard devastating testimony about fungibility, including the claim in The Lancet magazine that more than 60 per cent of all aid to Africa is diverted to other objectives.
An estimated 40 per cent of Africas military spending is believed to be inadvertently financed by aid.
One expert told the select committee: Aid encourages military spending. Since aid is fungible, it helps some recipient governments free up resources for military purchases that would otherwise be spent on roads and education.
Ugandan dictator Yoweri Museveni has been accused of diverting the 70 million he received in aid from Gordon Browns government in 2008 to fund a top-of-the-range personal Gulfstream jet. Two years later he bought six Russian fighter jets for nearly 500 million.
Time to stop the madness: We gave Rwanda 90m - its President Paul Kagame (pictured, right) has two private jets and a penchant for Rolexes (left, his 45k watch)
Flying high: One of Rwanda's 30million jets (pictured), a country that gets tens of millions from Britain
Often, clear fungible links with improper spending cannot be established, only that extravagant spending by Governments appears to have been made possible because of a guaranteed flow of aid money into the country.
President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, who receives 90 million a year in aid from the UK, found the spare cash to fund two 30 million private jets and enjoys splashing out on Rolex watches and 12,000-a-night hotel stays.
Congos president, Denis Sassou Nguesso, receives more than 100 million in UK aid every year.Anti-corruption groups examined the fungibility of his finances and discovered that it had helped him build up a multi-million-pound property portfolio in Paris. In 2012 it emerged that South African President Jacob Zuma had spent 17.5 million upgrading his rural home to a luxury mansion almost exactly the amount Britain gave South Africa in aid in 2011. Zuma was said to have spent only 700,000 of his own money on the project.
Sometimes the expropriation is so stark as to go beyond fungibility. In Sierra Leone in 2009, the countrys top officials stole 1.2 million given by Britain to support peacekeeping and used it to splash out on consumer goods such as plasma televisions.
The row over Britains aid budget is a political time bomb that has been waiting to explode for years.
Devised in David Camerons early days as Tory leader primarily to get rid of its nasty Party image, even his belief in it has wavered at times.
A recent biography of the Prime Minister by Anthony Seldon said he and Chancellor George Osborne considered abandoning the 0.7 per cent target in 2012 but decided against to avoid war with charities and popular figures like Bob Geldof as well as a desire not to break promises.
A biography of the Prime Minister said he and Chancellor George Osborne considered abandoning the 0.7 per cent target in 2012 but decided against to avoid war with charities and popular figures like Bob Geldof'
Seldons claims are echoed in the memoirs of ex-Lib Dem Coalition Minister David Laws. He writes that Osborne argued there was a strong case for delaying the 0.7 per cent target by five years because of the huge savings it would produce.
Laws says the Chancellor was overruled by Cameron, partly through fear of a backlash against a U-turn. Laws says Cameron protested vehemently when the Lib Dems insisted on a Commons vote to enshrine the aid target in law.
He writes that the PM said: Look, I just cant get the 0.7 per cent thing past my backbenchers. It would be even worse than gay marriage. It would unite all the people who hate spending money on foreigners with all the people who have a Treasury mindset and dont believe in passing laws for these matters .7 per cent is just un-doable for me.
The reluctant Cameron ordered Tory MPs to back the law despite a revolt.
FOREIGN AID MADNESS During David Camerons expected term of office, our Foreign Aid bill will have DOUBLED: from about 8bn in 2010 to 16n in 2020. Advertisement
Cameron faced another revolt when he asked Justine Greening to become International Development Secretary in 2012.
She reportedly told Cameron: I did not bloody well come into politics to distribute money to people in poor countries!
Greening who has more reason than most Ministers to feel sorry for the Port Talbot steel workers as her father and grandfather were Yorkshire steel workers insists she is 100 per cent behind the rise in aid spending.
But you cant help wondering that if someone had handed her The Mail on Sundays overseas aid petition when she walked out of No 10 after having the job foisted on her, she would have been tempted to sign it.
This summer, The Mail on Sunday will be supporting the Chalke Valley History Festival, Britains premier history event, sponsored by the Daily Mail.
And as an exclusive preview, Mail on Sunday readers are today offered the chance to join a private evening celebrating the importance of history in modern Britain.
Here, one of our evenings eminent speakers explains the neglected legacy of the most successful Royal house in British history
Revival: There is a renewed interest in Plantagenets, such as Henry V, played by Tom Hiddleston in 2012
William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, was about 70 years old and by his own reckoning still the greatest knight in England. As he sat astride his horse outside the walls of Lincoln on Saturday, May 20, 1217, he faced the biggest test of his glorious career a battle that would secure Englands future as an independent realm rather than a mere province of France.
Lincoln was one of the great cities of a medieval England ripped in two by civil war. Behind its stone walls lay an enemy army made up of traitors and Frenchmen attacking its castle. Marshal, regent to the child king, Henry III, was there to drive them out with an outnumbered army.
It was a fight to the death and Marshal commanded his knights to be ready to kill their horses and use the corpses to build barricades. And they won a stunning victory, relieving the besieged loyalists in Lincoln castle. The highest-ranking Frenchman, the Count of Perche, was killed by a sword thrust through the visor-hole of his helmet. Lincoln was saved and so was England.
Had things gone differently, the Battle of Lincoln would have ranked alongside the Battle of Hastings. Had Marshal lost, the son of the king of France, a warrior known as Louis the Lion, would have been our King Louis I. It is astonishing how close he came. Louis had crossed the Channel in 1216 to take the crown from King John, the tyrant who had been forced to grant Magna Carta but refused to stick to its terms.
His enemies a coalition of English barons and bishops asked Louis to replace him. Had he succeeded, Louis, who duly inherited the French crown as Louis VIII, would have been king of England and France.
Thats why the Battle of Lincoln was so important. It was the first step towards keeping the crowns of England and France separate. It also guaranteed the survival of the Plantagenet dynasty, the most long-reigning and arguably the most important royal house in English history.
The Plantagenets were originally from Anjou a French county. But their 331-year rule over England, from 1154 to 1485, lay the foundations of modern England and had a profound effect on the rest of what we now call the United Kingdom. The Plantagenets gave us the basis for the English legal system. Henry II made sweeping legal reforms, effectively creating the common law. Magna Carta, granted by his son John in 1215, guaranteed the principle that kings should govern according to their own laws.
Under the Plantagenets, trial by ordeal and torture were abandoned in favour of a jury still one of our most cherished principles. Later, during the reign of Edward III, justices of the peace were introduced who remain as our magistrates.
By the 1370s, Parliament was a powerful institution with the authority to impeach corrupt royal ministers. In 1399, it was the forum in which Richard II was deposed and his cousin Henry IV took the throne. They changed the physical landscape of Britain, too, building huge fortresses such as the Tower of London, Dover Castle and the massive fortresses of North Wales. Cathedrals soared in Lincoln, Salisbury, Winchester, York and Hereford. London boomed and new towns including Liverpool and Portsmouth were founded.
The Battle of Lincoln was the original Brexit
Meanwhile, English relations with her neighbours were set. Edward I, known as Longshanks, conquered the Welsh and hammered the Scots, who have never forgotten it.
In the 1150s, Henry II claimed the right to conquer Ireland the echoes of which we still feel and the historical rivalry between England and France was born. The Hundred Years War, which produced famous victories such as the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, established the English and French as natural enemies with profoundly different and incompatible cultures.
Partly as a result, the modern English language developed. In the 12th Century, English was considered a peasant tongue: the upper classes spoke French and churchmen used Latin.
By the 1390s, English had become the language of literature, which the Plantagenets had made a respectable tongue.
When I started writing history books, the Plantagenets were deeply uncool. Now they are roaring back into fashion, not least due to the producers of Game Of Thrones, which is based on the Wars Of The Roses.
All this could have been different if William Marshal had not triumphed at the battle of Lincoln. It was, in a sense, the original Brexit: the moment we began our journey to modern nationhood.
Kam Hing Wong, 63, is accused of stabbing the woman over 20 times as she was in the shower
Police nabbed a Monterey Park, California, man this week who allegedly attacked his wife on Thursday night.
Kam Hing Wong, 63, is accused of stabbing the woman over 20 times as she was in the shower, KABC reported.
The 56-year-old woman fled the home naked, according to the TV station.
Resident Ernesto Naval told KABC: 'For this gentleman to stab his wife, he has mental problems.
'For someone to go to that extreme and stab a lady - something is wrong.'
The woman was discovered outside by authorities, who 'followed a trail of blood back to the victim's house,' KABC reported.
Authorities nabbed Wong outside the residence, according to the TV station.
CBS Los Angeles reported Wong's wife suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Resident Caira Hernandez told CBS Los Angeles: 'She had like a nice clean cut in her chest and her back.
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Police followed a blood trail to the house and nabbed Wong, according to local media
Wong, who is facing domestic violence and attempted murder charges, is held without bail
'And then like, she had some cuts on her head.
'She was covered all in blood.'
The TV station reported the woman does not speak English and had been in the country for a few days.
Comes as study in The Lancet predicts one in four Brits obese by 2025
The obesity crisis sweeping Britain is now so acute that dozens of shops are selling XXXXXXXXL size clothes.
A huge 8XL T-shirt would fit an incredible 80in chest and 80in waist the equivalent of almost seven feet in circumference.
Demand for supersize clothes has increased so much in recent years that one in ten items now sold in plus size stores is 8XL
Mark Simonelli, left, co-owner of Big Clobber in Essex, pictured with staff Matt Punt, right, and Jordan Wagg, holding an 8XL shirt and trousers combination
Most of the shoppers buying the maximum-size clothing are in their 40s and 50s, but some stores have reported purchases from teenagers as young as 14.
The 8XL clothing lines, which are eight sizes above an average large size, are currently only available in specialist shops.
Major High Street retailers said there were no immediate plans to stock 8XL clothing in their stores, but many have expanded their plus size ranges in response to consumer demand.
Last year the UK spent 2.1 billion on extra-large garments a rise of 200 million from four years ago, according to a report by retail analyst Columino.
Debenhams said demand for its plus size menswear had increased by 170 per cent in the past two years and in March it launched a 5XL male clothing range.
Mr Simonelli pictured with some of his super-large stock at his store in Benfleet, Essex
Sales of womens XL clothing have also grown rapidly in recent years with spending in the UK reaching 3.1 billion in 2014, according to the report.
Marks and Spencer, whose clothing sizes for women go up to 28, is the leading High Street brand with a 10.6 per cent share of the female plus size market.
Last week, experts warned that Britons will be the fattest people in Europe within a decade.
A study in medical journal The Lancet predicted that by 2025 almost one in four adults in the UK will be obese overtaking the current fattest nation in Europe, Malta.
The average man in the UK now has a 42in chest and 37in waist equivalent to a regular large size.
Mark Simonelli, who owns Essex-based chain Sizedwell, claims he was the first to introduce size 8XL to the UK in 2000 after convincing his suppliers to invest in bigger equipment to accommodate the vast quantities of cloth needed.
Mr Simonelli said his bigger customers are getting younger, with teens aged 14 or 15 needing 6XL mens clothing.
It is mainly middle-aged people who are size 6, 7 or 8XL but you see lots of kids around who are growing into those sizes, he said.
The shop, pictured, offers a large range of plus-size clothing from 2XL to 8XL with medical journal The Lancet predicting that by 2025 almost one in four adults in the UK will be obese
Theres a growth of youngsters coming in. Some of them are very tall as well. People are just getting so much bigger than they used to be.
Carol Learmouth, of mail order firm Mighty Man, said she had increased her maximum size from a 4XL to 6XL in response to demand.
It is good news for business, she said, but it cant be good news for the NHS.
Tam Fry, of the National Obesity Forum, said it was staggering that clothes were being sold in such big sizes.
Clothing sales are one of the best yardsticks to show how awful the problem is getting, Mr Fry said.
But unit hasn't made a single prosecution, it has been revealed today
A taxpayer-funded food crime unit launched in the wake of the horse-meat scandal has failed to secure even a single prosecution.
The unit, established just over a year ago by Environment Secretary Liz Truss to crack down on food fraudsters, cost 579,000 last year with a further 1.2 million expected to be ploughed into the initiative next year.
The National Food Crime Unit, which is run by the Food Standards Agency, was launched on the recommendation of food security expert professor Chris Elliott, who was commissioned to write a report following the horse-meat scandal.
A butcher during the horse-meat scandal. A taxpayer-funded food crime unit launched in the wake of the scandal has failed to secure even a single prosecution, it has been revealed
But, according to a written response to a parliamentary question by MP Nick Smith, Shadow Minister for Food, Farming and Rural Affairs, the unit appears to have fallen short in cracking down on fraudsters.
Asked how many prosecutions the unit has secured, Health Minister Jane Ellison could only answer: The NFCU receives reports of suspicions of food fraud from a number of sources via many different routes
Information received is analysed and, where appropriate, entered on to the units intelligence database. Between 1 January 2015 and 18 March 2016, 793 such records were created.
A report suggests food fraud in the UK costs 1.17 billion a year.
Sir Bob Geldof has criticised the leaders of the 1916 Irish Easter Rising for using tactics similar to those of jihadi suicide bombers.
The star argues the ringleaders of the insurrection who seized the Post Office building in Dublin martyred themselves in a bid to inspire others to take up arms.
His comments, in an exclusive interview in Event magazine with today's Mail on Sunday, will prove controversial in the Irish Republic, which is commemorating the 100th anniversary of the six-day rising against British rule.
Sir Bob Geldof has criticised the leaders of the 1916 Irish Easter Rising for using tactics similar to those of jihadi suicide bombers
Dublin-born Geldof claims there is little difference between the rebels' mindset and the warped ideology behind atrocities such as last week's massacre of 73 civilians in Pakistan.
He says: 'They [the Irish rebels] started writing these letters [to be read afterwards] which show clearly they knew "The only thing that will come out of this is that we get shot, we get to be martyrs, that'll spur another generation". What's admirable about that, if you also don't admire the guy who's just walked into Pakistan and blown up 73 people at a Christian carnival in Lahore? What's the difference?
'People say, 'That's outrageous, it's not the same thing.' Excuse me?'
Asked if the modern Islamic suicide bomber morally resembles the Irish rebel in the Post Office, he agrees, saying: 'It does.'
Although the Irish insurrection which led to the death of almost 500 was successfully crushed, it is widely seen as a pivotal moment in the battle for Irish independence. But Geldof says there has been a tendency to mythologise those whose actions would subsequently inspire The Troubles.
He says: 'You dignify it by saying it was martyrdom. If it's grievous mortal sin to commit suicide, why is it a lesser sin to hurl yourself upon a willing bayonet? Why is that a martyrdom? So much rests on this myth. How many murders have been sanctioned in its name? F*** off!'
Geldof says the real hero of the struggle for independence was the Irish poet W. B. Yeats whose words fostered the dream of a free Ireland.
The star (pictured with George Osborne in 2015) argues the ringleaders of the insurrection who seized the Post Office building in Dublin martyred themselves in a bid to inspire others to take up arms
Geldof, who has made a BBC4 documentary about Yeats, says: 'Every place has a creation myth. Yeats said to the Irish, 'This is who you are. You are noble.' The man sang the nation into being.'
Geldof says organisations such as IS and Al Qaeda are the 'McDonald's of terrorism' because they use a franchise system, and that he has never known the world to be so on the brink of 'something terrible'.
He says he is passionately in favour of staying in the EU because it is one of the best guarantees of peace.
More than 20 people were stung and one hospitalized when a swarm of up to 20,000 killer bees invaded a Phoenix mosque Friday afternoon.
The incident occurred at the Muslim Community Mosque near 32nd Street and McDowell Road, ABC 15 reported.
The road outside the mosque was shut down and fire crews dispatched to spray the building with foam in order to quell the swarms of angry bees.
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Attacked: Covered by blankets, worshipers at the Muslim Community Mosque in Phoenix flee the swarm of up to 20,000 killer bees that attacked them Friday afternoon. The bees' nest was located in the mosque's eaves
Foam: Firefighters coated the mosque with a foam to quell the bees. Killer bees, officially known as Africanized bees, are a particularly aggressive strain of bee
The bees had formed a nest under the eaves of the mosque. One mosque worker there toldAzfamily.com that a man had already been booked for Saturday to remove the nest but the bees attacked earlier than expected.
Nearby residents were told to stay in their homes. John Chavarria, one such local, told ABC 15 that he witnessed the attack from his house.
'I don't know, it was just crazy how everyone was running everywhere,' he said.
Miming swatting at bees around his head, he continued: 'They were making some movements like that ... some people would even fall in the grass over there and then they'd get up and start running.
'I cant believe they had the whole street blocked off for the bees.'
Some worshipers used blankets to protect themselves from the swarm, but more than 20 were stung 'multiple times' and one 24-year-old man hospitalized, although everyone was said to be in stable condition.
One man told Azfamily.com that he was stung on the face in five different places.
The bees are believed to have been disturbed by the mosque's speakers, which are located next to their nest.
Nest: The nest, in the building's eaves, is thought to have been disturbed by the building's speaker system. Bees build new nests around this time of year, and it is suggested people check their homes once a week
Stung: This man told Azfamily.com that he was stung five times on his face. Experts warn that trying to swat away bees will only make them angrier, and that instead people should hide in enclosed spaces such as cars
Killer bees, officially known as Africanized bees, are a particularly aggressive species. They are created by breeding European and African bees.
Joseph Mikesell with Truly Nolen Pest Control told Fox 10: 'It's always a bad situation when you're talking about Africanized bees, because once one bee creates a pheromone which sends off the other bees to attack.'
'What people just need to understand is they cannot outrun them, they're not going to sink under water and stay away from them, they're not going to just knock them off, they need to stay away from them.
'If you see bee activity, get inside - don't try and take care of it yourself, contact a professional and let us take care of the situation.'
Emily Brown, a beekeeper, told Azfamily.com that bees are likely to be especially aggressive now, as this is when new queens split off to form their own hives in stable locations such as eaves and composting bins.
She suggests checking places that might prove attractive to bees once a week.
And as the weather gets warmer, bees will become more productive - and therefore more protective of their homes.
Firefighters told the channel that bee attacks are most likely between now and June, and that if attacked it is important to get into an enclosed space such as a building or car - and don't swat the bees as it will make them madder.
A woman who was caught in a Kremlin-inspired hotel sex sting has claimed the Russian state was behind the leaking of grainy monochrome footage showing her with lover Mikhail Kasyanov, 58, a leading opposition politician.
Natalya Pelevine, 39, has vowed to take legal action after she was filmed in bed with married Kasyanov, Vladimir Putins former prime minister.
Ms Pelevine, who came to the UK as a child and who has an art history degree from the University of East London, said that the broadcasting of the intimate images by pro-Kremlin television channel NTV appeared to be an attempt to discredit the former premier and finance minister, who is seen as one of the few credible potential challengers to President Putin.
One of Vladimir Putin's most prominent rivals has been filmed in a sex sting with a British woman who is also a leading opposition campaigner
Grainy bedroom footage purports to show former Kremlin prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov, 58, with playwright and activist Natalya Pelevine, 39, in a Moscow apartment
The tape also heaped humiliation on Ms Pelevine, who emigrated from the Soviet Union to Britain with her parents when she was 12 years old.
She said last night: It is completely outrageous. I have no doubt the Russian secret service was in on the whole thing. It would not have been done without Putin giving the go-ahead.
The playwright and political campaigner, who has UK residency rights, was accused in the 40-minute broadcast of acting as a link between the Russian opposition and prominent figures in Western Europe and America.
The couple were filmed naked and although the images were partially pixelated, their faces were visible.
Footage was also posted anonymously on a specially created website which featured explicit sex scenes involving the pair, as well as recorded conversations which included inflammatory attacks on other Russian opposition campaigners.
The release by Kremlin-friendly television channel NTV is apparently aimed at destroying one of the few opposition leaders seen as remotely capable of being an alternative president to Putin
The video also attacks and humiliates UK citizen Pelevine, pictured right, who has been a constant critic of the Russian leadership, especially over its actions in Chechnya and lack of democracy
Ms Pelevine was known to be close politically to Mr Kasyanov, but their romantic relationship had not been disclosed.
Last night she condemned the sting as a criminal offence and said she would take legal action against NTV.
The footage appeared to have been filmed by a camera hidden in a dressing table in a Moscow flat.
Ms Pelevine also known as Natalya Pelevina attended Southbank International School, an independent school in London, and lived in Muswell Hill.
Married Kasyanov is purportedly with his secret lover - an activist in his RPR Parnas party who also had a role as his aide - with partially-pixelated scenes of nudity and intimacy
She has appeared in several British theatre productions and written a play about the 2002 Moscow theatre siege.
In the broadcast, NTV claimed Ms Pelevine travelled regularly to the US for meetings with former presidential candidate Senator John McCain and investment banker William Browder.
He has been charged with driving with a suspended license resulting in a serious injury, but those charges could be upgraded now that Ava has died
license and was reaching for a cigarette when he hit the family
William Cameron Perkins, 26, (pictured) who was driving with a suspended license, plowed his car into a mother and two of her three children. Ava Thomas, three, died from her injures on Saturday
A Florida man is behind bars after driving into three children and their mother, killing the family's youngest daughter.
Lacey Thomas, 35, and her children Ava, three, Spencer, one, and Tana, six, were walking in Tampa, Florida, when all but Tana were struck by a car.
William Cameron Perkins, 26, the driver of the car - who had a suspended license - was reaching for a cigarette when he swerved off the road and into the family on Friday.
Ava died at 7am at St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, Florida, on Saturday, WFLA reported.
Lacey was listed in stable condition on Saturday at St Joseph's and one-year-old Spencer is in 'very critical' condition.
Perkins, who works as an electrician, was arrested and charged with driving with a suspended license resulting in a serious injury.
The charges could be upgraded now that Ava has died, Florida Highway Patrol Sergeant Steve Gaskins told the Tampa Bay Times.
'We're still hoping the other child will pull through,' Gaskins told the paper.
Perkins was driving when he dropped his cigarette and reached for it, becoming distracted from the road.
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Tana Thomas, six, (left) witness her mother Lacey Thomas (center, right), sister Ava, three, (center, left) and brother Spencer, one, (right) get hit by Perkins' car as he reached for a cigarette
One-year-old Spencer is listed in 'very critical' condition at St Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, Florida, where his sister Ava (pictured, right) died on Saturday
As he swerved into the family, six-year-old Tana witnessed her siblings and mother being struck by Perkins' 2002 Jaguar.
Perkins' wife Jackie told ABC Action News she and her husband are devastated and that Perkins was test driving the car when he hit the Thomas family members.
For somebody just to drop a cigarette and worry about a cigarette more than worrying about what's on the road or by the road.it's devastating, neighbor Mark Schmidt told ABC Action News.
William Cameron Perkins'(left) wife Jackie Perkins (right) said she and her husband are devastated by the accident
Officers do not believe alcohol was a factor in the crash, which is still being investigated.
A GoFundMe page was set up for the family, which has raised more than $4,000.
'My deepest condolences to Rick and his family. I hope Lacey and their son recover. The loss of Ava is just heartbreaking,' Sherry Tew wrote on the page.
Donor Kip Goulder wrote: 'May the Ava's memory be a blessing, and may Lacey and Spencer make a full and speedy recovery. Prayers are with you.'
Perkins' smashed into the family in this 2002 Jaguar. The window was shattered by the impact of hitting the family
Shattered: Jackie Perkins told ABC Action News her husband was test driving the car when the accident happened
A political row erupted last night after it emerged that Britain overspent its foreign aid budget by nearly 200 million last year.
The extraordinary figure was part of a massive 513 million rise in foreign aid in 2015 following the Governments decision to set a controversial new target.
Overseas aid spending has now risen to a highest-ever 12.2 billion. But shock figures from the Department for International Development (DFID) show the Government overshot its own target by 172 million.
Facing closure: A worker at Port Talbot steelworks, which could be kept alive for another six months with the money the Government overspent on for foreign aid last year
The news came as a Mail on Sunday campaign launched last week to scrap David Camerons pledge to spend a set percentage of the national income on overseas aid won overwhelming support, as an astonishing 150,000 people signed our petition on a Parliamentary website.
The Mail on Sunday is calling on the Government to drop the target, which critics say encourages spending by necessity rather than need, and invites waste and corruption.
It is the biggest newspaper e-petition ever, with the number of signatures on our petition already enough to force MPs to consider a debate.
The Prime Minister has pledged to spend 0.7 per cent of the UKs Gross National Income (GNI) on developing countries.
But new statistics quietly released on the DFIDs website show that the Government not only met the target, it exceeded it by 172 million money that could have been spent on jobs, homes, schools or hospitals in Britain.
Although the excess spend is only 0.01 per cent of GNI, the sheer scale of our national income means it is a vast amount.
Last night, Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg said: There can be no more graphic example of the idiocy of setting such a fixed target. This overspend will anger taxpayers who do not want their money frittered away on politicians vanity.
Pressure: The new figures increase pressure on Business Secretary Sajid Javid, who has refused to use public funds to bail out the crisis-hit steel industry.
Spending on overseas aid by Mr Javids department more than doubled to 194 million last year. Meanwhile, Mr Javid has announced a new buy British bid to help UK steelmakers beat off foreign competition
The new figures increase pressure on Business Secretary Sajid Javid, who has refused to use public funds to bail out the crisis-hit steel industry.
Yesterday, despite the huge foreign aid overspend, Mr Javid announced a new buy British bid to help UK steelmakers beat off foreign competition, saying the NHS, town halls and other public sector projects must consider buying UK steel.
Spending on overseas aid by Mr Javids department more than doubled to 194 million last year. And it has risen dramatically in other departments as the rush to spend more on aid has spread throughout Whitehall.
A Mail on Sunday investigation has found fresh examples of how taxpayers money is being spent abroad, including:
More than 700 million spent on education in Pakistan where officials have creamed off enormous sums by creating fake teaching jobs and being paid for them.
Up to 90 million spent on reviving the Nigerian leather tanning industry.
Around 9,000 a year each going to two jailed Palestinian terrorists who brutally stabbed a British woman and murdered her friend. The money comes indirectly from British aid.
The political controversy intensified as politicians from former Tory Chancellor Nigel Lawson to anti-child poverty campaigner and ex-Labour Minister Frank Field spoke out against the 0.7 per cent target.
The Mail on Sunday can also disclose that Mr Cameron turned down calls to delay the 0.7 per cent target to avoid upsetting Bob Geldof.
International Development Secretary Justine Greening last night refused to answer ten questions put to her by The Mail on Sunday on the aid crisis.
Instead, she issued a statement defending the target and said: Britain faces a simple choice: either we wait for the problems of the world to arrive on our doorstep, or we take action to tackle them at source.
Special relationship: The Global Center For Development was given 5.9million. The US-based think-tank has a 12million HQ (pictured)
Ms Greening said she had carried out a review of aid spending to make sure taxpayers money is being spent in the right way.
Foreign Aid spend is calculated according to GNI which reached 1.7 trillion last year meaning the Government is obliged to try to increase spending until it reaches 0.7 per cent of this figure. Last year MPs voted to enshrine this target in law, turning on its head the usual Whitehall approach of keeping budgets down to curb the deficit.
The first shocking aid figures published since the new law took effect show how spending has boomed since the decision.
While more than 98 per cent is spent in the worlds poorest countries in Africa and Asia, other beneficiaries of the spending bonanza were European countries such as Turkey, Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, which received 1 million each, while Ukraine received 16 million in the wake of the invasion of Crimea by Russia.
STOP THE FOREIGN AID MADNESS NOW: AS ANOTHER 12BN OF YOUR TAXES ARE SPLURGED ON HAND-OUTS FOR TERRORISTS AND KILLERS, IF YOU CARE ABOUT SPENDING ON FOREIGN AID BUDGET, SIGN OUR PETITION NOW The Mail on Sunday has launched a petition on the official Parliamentary website calling on the Government to scrap the law requiring us to spend a fixed 0.7 per cent of national wealth on foreign aid. The figure is currently 12 billion and will rise to 16 billion by 2020. Rather than helping people who desperately need it, much of this money is wasted and the Great British Giveaway fuels corruption, funds despots and corrodes democracy in developing nations. If you want to stop this madness and see that our money is better spent, click here: Yes, I want to make a difference and sign the petition The link will take you to the Parliamentary petitions web site where our petition is displayed. Once you have signed it, please share it with your family and friends using social media. You must be a UK resident or citizen to sign. Please note that signing the petition will entail you clicking on a link sent to your email inbox. 100,000 people have signed the petition, which will force politicians to at least consider a parliamentary debate on the issue. But more signatures will give the argument to reconsider that aid budget even more weight. If you want to end the madness, sign our petition here Advertisement
And the amount of UK taxpayers money given by the Government to the European Union to spend on aid rose by 147 million, to reach 963 million.
Although most of Britains foreign aid budget is controlled by DFID, an increasing proportion 2.4 billion is now distributed by other Government departments, not traditionally associated with giving aid to the poorest countries, such as the Business Department.
While DFID spending on aid has gone down by 318 million, foreign aid spending by the rest of Whitehall has rocketed by 830 million, resulting in a 513 million overall increase.
Asked to explain why the 0.7 per cent target was exceeded, a Government spokesman said: These are provisional statistics that will fluctuate.
Foreign Aid: A nation roars 'end the 12billion madness'
The Mail on Sundays shocking investigation into how Britain wastes billions of pounds on dubious foreign aid projects has unleashed an incredible wave of anger, and sparked massive support for our campaign to bring about change.
The overwhelming response means our online petition on the official Government website is the biggest newspaper e-petition ever, and the fastest to reach the 100,000-signature milestone.
It comes after a Mail on Sunday investigation revealed the shocking ways in which the money was spent, including on this 8million palace built by Palestine, which has received 72million of foreign aid
It took less than 24 hours to reach the crucial target, which means MPs are now forced to consider holding a debate on the call to abolish Britains commitment to spending 0.7 per cent of national income on aid every year.
At peak times our e-petition, on the official Government website, was attracting more than 150 signatures every minute.
Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg said: It is an indication that high-quality journalism strikes a chord with the British people.
FOREIGN AID MADNESS Ironically, against the backdrop of the Port Talbot steel crisis, one of the biggest rises in UK foreign aid spending last year was in Sajid Javids Business department it sent an extra 115m abroad compared to 2014. Advertisement
New figures reveal that the 0.7 dogma meant spending 12.2 billion on aid in 2015 and the projection is that by 2020 the bill will have swelled to a staggering 16 billion.
Last night the total figure for signatures stood at well over 150,000, and that will no doubt be boosted hugely today with our further revelations of waste in the foreign aid sector. As well as signing the petition many readers emailed us and wrote to us to express their anger.
The comments of Jean Broadbent were typical. She said: We should not be sending so much money to other countries while we could and should be spending it in areas where we could benefit. Our steel industry could do with that money.
Our campaign has also resulted in leading figures from the governments of Margaret Thatcher, John Major, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and David Cameron uniting in their opposition to the Prime Ministers vow to spend 0.7 per cent of the UKs annual wealth on aid.
The politicians ranged from Mr Blairs Welfare Minister Frank Field, to Sir Malcolm Rifkind, Foreign Secretary in Mr Majors administration.
Here is what some of them had to say:
Sir Malcolm Rifkind, left, described the target as 'foolish', while Frank Field, right, said Parliament must now review the spend in the wake of the Mail on Sunday's investigation
SIr Malcolm Rifkind
A member of the Thatcher and Major Cabinets and Foreign Secretary from 1995 to 1997.
It was extremely foolish to set the 0.7 per cent target in law to be hit, regardless of the countrys circumstances. Very few parts of the economy are protected in this way: the amounts devoted to aid should go up and down like other areas. I have no problem with giving foreign aid, but I fear they may be running out of good things to spend it on.
Frank Field
Welfare Minister in Tony Blairs Government, ran the Child Poverty Action Group charity before entering politics.
Thanks to The Mail on Sundays campaign, Parliament must now review the overseas aid budget. It should be concentrated on combating the humanitarian fallout from the wars in Iraq and Syria. Justice demands we transform these refugee camps; and self-interest demands we reduce the movement of migrants across Europe and give them a chance to live decently near their own country so they can return when circumstances improve.
Lord Nigel Lawson, left, said part of the problem was the EU and UN, while Tory MP Nigel Evans (right) said British taxpayers' money is being 'squandered on overseas aid vanity projects'
Lord Nigel Lawson of Blaby
Chancellor to Margaret Thatcher from 1983 to 1989.
Part of the problem is that so much of the overseas aid goes through multi-lateral agencies such as the EU and the UN. We have no control at all.
Nigel Evans
Former Commons Deputy Speaker, Tory MP for Ribble Valley and member of the Commons International Development Select Committee.
The Mail on Sundays brilliant exposure of the waste of hundreds of millions of pounds of aid has convinced me the 0.7 per cent target must be looked at again. British taxpayers money is being squandered on overseas aid vanity projects when there are road potholes the size of craters in my constituency.
UKIP MP Douglas Carswell (left) said Cameron increased foreign aid to 'appear virtuous', while Lord David Lipsey (right) said impoverished people deserved our help, but disagreed with the idea of an 'artificial target'
Douglas Carswell
The Ukip MP lived in Uganda until his teens under dictator Idi Amin. His surgeon father Wilson played a key role fighting the Aids pandemic.
David Cameron massively increased overseas aid to try to appear virtuous. But he did it so quickly no one stopped to consider what it was being spent on. The sort of people who have dinner parties in Notting Hill think theres something unseemly about wanting to cut foreign aid. The success of The Mail on Sunday petition shows it matters to ordinary taxpayers.
Lord David Lipsey
Top economist and Downing St adviser during 1970s Labour Government. Member of 2012 Lords inquiry into aid.
Poor people in poor countries need and deserve our help. But a wholly artificial target which means all that matters is how much is spent on aid, not how it is spent, makes waste inevitable.
Kate Hoey (left) said voters could now see that large sums of money were being wasted, while Lord Lewis Moonie (right) said 'every penny must represent good value'
Kate Hoey
Labour Sports Minister from 1999 to 2001. Born in Ulster.
Many people were content to go along with the 0.7 per cent figure because it seemed a worthy aim, but now voters can see how large sums of money are being wasted, a review is long overdue.
Lord Lewis Moonie
Defence Minister from 2000-2003. Close political and personal ally of Gordon Brown. Member of 2012 Lords inquiry into aid.
I strongly believe in overseas aid but every penny must represent good value. The 0.7 per cent figure must be re-examined because, whatever its merits when it was first introduced, it is clear it now prioritises the amount spent rather than the result achieved.
Tory MP Anne Main said it was 'ridiculous to simplu go round looking for things to spend money on'
Anne Main
Conservative MP for St Albans and a member of the Commons International Development Committee.
I investigated aid in Bangladesh and found a project for water wells was turned down because it was not deemed innovative; but a project to give mobile phone apps to slum dwellers was approved because it was deemed innovative. It is ridiculous simply to go round looking for things to spend money on.
Sir Gerald Howarth
Defence Minister in the Coalition Government. The Aldershot Tory MP has campaigned for years to end the 0.7 per cent target.
This arbitrary target makes absolutely no sense in a time of austerity, when social care is unravelling and our Armed Forces are being cut so severely we can only hit Natos two per cent annual target for increased defence spending by fiddling the books.
Charles Walker, left, said the target 'should never have been enshrined into law', while Jacob Rees-Mogg, right, said the Government had an 'absolute duty' to spend taxpayers' money 'wisely'
Charles Walker
Conservative MP for Broxbourne and chairman of the influential Commons Procedure Committee.
This target should never have been enshrined in law. It was an abuse of procedure to use a Private Members Bill to commit the Government to billions of pounds of expenditure.
Adam Holloway
Gravesham Conservative MP, ex-Grenadier Guards captain and TV newsman who won an award for his expose of the London homelessness crisis.
It is wrong to spend ever more on overseas aid at the expense of other important budgets such as defence. The first duty of any government is the defence of the people.
Jacob Rees-Mogg
North East Somerset Conservative MP.
I congratulate The Mail on Sunday for exposing the wastefulness of the 0.7 per cent target. With austerity at home there is an absolute duty on the Government to spend the taxpayers money wisely.
Philip Davies, MP for Shipley, said the response to the petition showed how angry people were, while Andrew Brigden, MP for North West Leicestershire, said the current system led to 'a rush of gratuitous spending'
Philip Davies
Conservative MP for Shipley.
The amazing response to The Mail on Sundays petition shows how angry people are at the way the Government spends more and more on aid while making cuts at home. I look forward to the Commons debate which will show ministers the depth of feeling that exists all across the country.
Andrew Bridgen
Conservative MP for North West Leicestershire.
The current foreign aid system leads to a rush of gratuitous spending at the end of the financial year just to clear the budget, regardless of the worth of the projects.
Despair for steel workers... so why ARE we giving 9million to Nigeria to help its leather tanning industry?
A steel worker at the doomed Port Talbot plant says it beggars belief that David Cameron is spending hundreds of millions of pounds supporting industries abroad, when families in Britain are facing devastation.
Father-of-two Paul Stanton, one of 150,000 people to have signed The Mail on Sundays petition demanding a Commons debate on aid, called for the Government to strictly police overseas spending and get home-grown industry on a level playing field with foreign competitors.
Britain spends close to 250 million supporting industry in developing countries 3.5 per cent of the soaring aid budget.
Angry: Port Talbot steel worker Paul Stanton, with his wife Mary, said the foreign aid spend 'beggars belief'
Major recipients of aid for industry include Nigeria where a scheme designed to encourage business called Growth and Empowerment in States (GEMS) gets 91 million from British taxpayers, with another 112.5 million coming from the World Bank also heavily subsidised by Britain.
And an investigation uncovered questionable practices among Nigerian leather exporters who receive tens of millions of pounds each year from the Department for International Development (DFID).
Mr Stanton, 52, who lives just a mile from the plant in Wales, said: Some of the things that have been going on are madness it beggars belief. And it is happening while the steel industry here is being cut adrift the Government should have intervened a long time ago.
Mr Stanton is the third generation of his family to work at the Port Talbot plant. His grandfather Tom had nine children and eight of them were employed at the steelworks, now owned by Indian firm Tata.
Beneficiary: One 9million GEMS programme promotes the local meat and leather industry in Nigeria
About 4,000 jobs will be lost at Port Talbot if Tata pull out. A further 10,000 jobs are at risk at the companys other British plants and unions estimate up to 60,000 jobs could be lost in the supply chain.
The crisis has arisen because China has dumped cheap steel on world markets sending prices crashing. The Government voted against the EU imposing higher tariffs on the Chinese imports.
Mr Stanton, who returned to work in the coke ovens six years ago despite suffering a heart attack, said: The steelworks is all Ive ever known, all this community has ever known.
Im not against foreign aid but if we are sending billions of pounds abroad it has to be policed. We should be put on a level playing field with our competitors abroad and then there should be inward investment into the industry. This is about the future of the steel communities and the future of the country what if there was a war?
One 9 million GEMS programme in Nigeria promotes the meat and leather industry, but an investigation revealed a 700 per cent rise in leather exports largely to Italy was exaggerated by filling containers with rocks to collect cash coming from huge subsidies. A whistleblower told the BBC that the Department for International Development was warned about the 1.4 billion fraud but officials were not interested.
Another source at GEMS said the schemes, which are run by private contractors, were nonsense and a waste of money.
The source revealed: I remember going to the office and the only Nigerians there were cleaners, drivers or making coffee. The rest were white Europeans like me who had flown in at great cost to hold workshops. Last night a DFID spokesman said: It is wrong to suggest that simply because DFID operates in the leather sector our funds have been misused.
We have a zero tolerance approach to misuse of DFIDs funds and, where there are concerns or programmes are not performing, we take swift and robust action.
Business Secretary Sajid Javid cut short a controversial trip to Australia to visit Port Talbot on Friday.
The Mail on Sundays shocking investigation into how Britain wastes billions of pounds on dubious foreign aid projects has unleashed an incredible wave of anger, and sparked massive support for our campaign to bring about change.
The overwhelming response means our online petition on the official Government website is the biggest newspaper e-petition ever, and the fastest newspaper petition to reach the 100,000-signature milestone.
It took less than 24 hours to reach the crucial target, which means MPs are now forced to consider holding a debate on the call to abolish Britains commitment to spending 0.7 per cent of national income on aid every year.
The petition was set up after a Mail on Sunday investigation revealed the shocking ways in which the money was spent, including on this 8million palace built by Palestine, which has received 72million of foreign aid
The Global Center For Development was given 5.9million. The US-based think-tank has a 12million HQ (pictured)
At peak times our e-petition, on the official Government website, was attracting more than 150 signatures every minute.
Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg said: It is an indication that high-quality journalism strikes a chord with the British people.
New figures reveal that the 0.7 dogma meant spending 12.2 billion on aid in 2015 and the projection is that by 2020 the bill will have swelled to a staggering 16 billion.
Last night the total figure for signatures stood at well over 150,000, and that will no doubt be boosted hugely today with our further revelations of waste in the foreign aid sector. As well as signing the petition many readers emailed us and wrote to us to express their anger.
FOREIGN AID MADNESS Ironically, against the backdrop of the Port Talbot steel crisis, one of the biggest rises in UK foreign aid spending last year was in Sajid Javids Business department it sent an extra 115m abroad compared to 2014. Advertisement
The comments of Jean Broadbent were typical. She said: We should not be sending so much money to other countries while we could and should be spending it in areas where we could benefit. Our steel industry could do with that money.
Our campaign has also resulted in leading figures from the governments of Margaret Thatcher, John Major, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and David Cameron uniting in their opposition to the Prime Ministers vow to spend 0.7 per cent of the UKs annual wealth on aid.
The politicians ranged from Mr Blairs Welfare Minister Frank Field, to Sir Malcolm Rifkind, Foreign Secretary in Mr Majors administration.
Here is what some of them had to say:
Sir Malcolm Rifkind, left, described the target as 'foolish', while Frank Field, right, said Parliament must now review the spend in the wake of the Mail on Sunday's investigation
SIr Malcolm Rifkind
A member of the Thatcher and Major Cabinets and Foreign Secretary from 1995 to 1997.
It was extremely foolish to set the 0.7 per cent target in law to be hit, regardless of the countrys circumstances. Very few parts of the economy are protected in this way: the amounts devoted to aid should go up and down like other areas. I have no problem with giving foreign aid, but I fear they may be running out of good things to spend it on.
Frank Field
Welfare Minister in Tony Blairs Government, ran the Child Poverty Action Group charity before entering politics.
Thanks to The Mail on Sundays campaign, Parliament must now review the overseas aid budget. It should be concentrated on combating the humanitarian fallout from the wars in Iraq and Syria. Justice demands we transform these refugee camps; and self-interest demands we reduce the movement of migrants across Europe and give them a chance to live decently near their own country so they can return when circumstances improve.
Lord Nigel Lawson, left, said part of the problem was the EU and UN, while Tory MP Nigel Evans (right) said British taxpayers' money is being 'squandered on overseas aid vanity projects'
Lord Nigel Lawson of Blaby
Chancellor to Margaret Thatcher from 1983 to 1989.
Part of the problem is that so much of the overseas aid goes through multi-lateral agencies such as the EU and the UN. We have no control at all.
Nigel Evans
Former Commons Deputy Speaker, Tory MP for Ribble Valley and member of the Commons International Development Select Committee.
The Mail on Sundays brilliant exposure of the waste of hundreds of millions of pounds of aid has convinced me the 0.7 per cent target must be looked at again. British taxpayers money is being squandered on overseas aid vanity projects when there are road potholes the size of craters in my constituency.
UKIP MP Douglas Carswell (left) said Cameron increased foreign aid to 'appear virtuous', while Lord David Lipsey (right) said impoverished people deserved our help, but disagreed with the idea of an 'artificial target'
Douglas Carswell
The Ukip MP lived in Uganda until his teens under dictator Idi Amin. His surgeon father Wilson played a key role fighting the Aids pandemic.
David Cameron massively increased overseas aid to try to appear virtuous. But he did it so quickly no one stopped to consider what it was being spent on. The sort of people who have dinner parties in Notting Hill think theres something unseemly about wanting to cut foreign aid. The success of The Mail on Sunday petition shows it matters to ordinary taxpayers.
Lord David Lipsey
Top economist and Downing St adviser during 1970s Labour Government. Member of 2012 Lords inquiry into aid.
Poor people in poor countries need and deserve our help. But a wholly artificial target which means all that matters is how much is spent on aid, not how it is spent, makes waste inevitable.
Kate Hoey (left) said voters could now see that large sums of money were being wasted, while Lord Lewis Moonie (right) said 'every penny must represent good value'
Kate Hoey
Labour Sports Minister from 1999 to 2001. Born in Ulster.
Many people were content to go along with the 0.7 per cent figure because it seemed a worthy aim, but now voters can see how large sums of money are being wasted, a review is long overdue.
Lord Lewis Moonie
Defence Minister from 2000-2003. Close political and personal ally of Gordon Brown. Member of 2012 Lords inquiry into aid.
I strongly believe in overseas aid but every penny must represent good value. The 0.7 per cent figure must be re-examined because, whatever its merits when it was first introduced, it is clear it now prioritises the amount spent rather than the result achieved.
Tory MP Anne Main said it was 'ridiculous to simplu go round looking for things to spend money on'
Anne Main
Conservative MP for St Albans and a member of the Commons International Development Committee.
I investigated aid in Bangladesh and found a project for water wells was turned down because it was not deemed innovative; but a project to give mobile phone apps to slum dwellers was approved because it was deemed innovative. It is ridiculous simply to go round looking for things to spend money on.
Sir Gerald Howarth
Defence Minister in the Coalition Government. The Aldershot Tory MP has campaigned for years to end the 0.7 per cent target.
This arbitrary target makes absolutely no sense in a time of austerity, when social care is unravelling and our Armed Forces are being cut so severely we can only hit Natos two per cent annual target for increased defence spending by fiddling the books.
Charles Walker, left, said the target 'should never have been enshrined into law', while Jacob Rees-Mogg, right, said the Government had an 'absolute duty' to spend taxpayers' money 'wisely'
Charles Walker
Conservative MP for Broxbourne and chairman of the influential Commons Procedure Committee.
This target should never have been enshrined in law. It was an abuse of procedure to use a Private Members Bill to commit the Government to billions of pounds of expenditure.
Adam Holloway
Gravesham Conservative MP, ex-Grenadier Guards captain and TV newsman who won an award for his expose of the London homelessness crisis.
It is wrong to spend ever more on overseas aid at the expense of other important budgets such as defence. The first duty of any government is the defence of the people.
Jacob Rees-Mogg
North East Somerset Conservative MP.
I congratulate The Mail on Sunday for exposing the wastefulness of the 0.7 per cent target. With austerity at home there is an absolute duty on the Government to spend the taxpayers money wisely.
Philip Davies, MP for Shipley, said the response to the petition showed how angry people were, while Andrew Brigden, MP for North West Leicestershire, said the current system led to 'a rush of gratuitous spending'
Philip Davies
Conservative MP for Shipley.
The amazing response to The Mail on Sundays petition shows how angry people are at the way the Government spends more and more on aid while making cuts at home. I look forward to the Commons debate which will show ministers the depth of feeling that exists all across the country.
Andrew Bridgen
Conservative MP for North West Leicestershire.
The current foreign aid system leads to a rush of gratuitous spending at the end of the financial year just to clear the budget, regardless of the worth of the projects.
The price of farmland in Britain has risen faster in the past decade than gold, shares and even some London properties. An acre is worth as much as 15,000, three times what it was in 2006.
Part of the reason for this extraordinary increase is the trend for city dwellers leaving the rat race in search of the good life, running a smallholding, keeping livestock and growing their own fruit and vegetables.
This all makes sense to Allan Flexman, a retired police sergeant in the Sussex town of Midhurst, who bought a smallholding in 1986.
Rural charm: Vencroft Farm, in Somerset, is priced at 2.2million with Knight Frank
Originally, he had planned to start a business supplying specialist wood to the craft trade, but on holiday in Wales, he and his wife, Joyce, were smitten by a farm called Caeglas.
We didnt buy it at first, but when we got home Joyce showed me an advert in our local paper for a City & Guilds course in sheep husbandry, says Allan, who decided to give it a go. I took to it. If I had studied as hard for my police exams, Id have been chief constable by the time I was 35.
Caeglas is a three-bedroom house with ten acres of pasture in Pentrebach, near Lampeter, Mid-Wales, where the Flexmans have kept a flock of Dartmoor sheep, pigs, cows, chickens, ducks and turkeys.
Allan has become a sheep inspector and judge at agricultural shows. Running a farm is not a walk in the field. Allan, 80, and Joyce, 77, toil from dawn until dusk and while it might be rewarding, it is not always financially profitable.
Allan says: I wake up on the farm every morning and think: I dont have to go to work today.
To supplement their income, the couple work on a free-range egg farm and Allan drives a minibus bringing students with special needs from a nearby agricultural college to tour his farm.
They fitted solar panels, providing them with free electricity. They grow fruit and vegetables and a local slaughterman comes to the farm to kill livestock for their table.
The Flexmans are selling Caeglas for 395,000 and heading to Herefordshire to live nearer their grandchildren.
Animal magic: Allan Flexman has become a sheep inspector and judge at agricultural shows
A typical smallholding buyer is in their mid-40s, moving from the Home Counties, says Martyn Buck, of The Smallholding Centre, a specialist estate agent based in South West Wales. Often they are couples whove been divorced, they usually have a dog, but no children still at home, and many want land for a pony or horse.
They want between one and five acres and to cultivate their own fruit and vegetables. They tend to be environmentally conscious and aware of green miles - the distance that food travels.
They will have sold the family home in the South and, though prices in South-West Wales are lower, they will often be working in a job from home a few days a week or they set up a business. Its a lifestyle, not a livelihood.
While most people want to get away from it all, many hope to do so within reach of London. The Wye Valley and Cotswolds offer the good life while being connected, says James Prewett, of Knight Frank. Most smallholders stay for ten or 15 years, then move.
Dr Roy Hill, a former professor of agricultural marketing at Cranfield University in Bedfordshire, carried on working when he and his wife, Margaret, bought a smallholding more than 20 years ago.
Widdale Foot, a six-bedroom house with 18 acres, near the pretty North Yorkshire town of Hawes, had been a pig farm. They converted one building into a self-catering holiday cottage, which they let for 20 weeks of the year for 350 a week, and ran a B&B from the main house.
Roy has a keen interest in conservation and has helped to save a rare Hebridean breed of sheep.
The sheep have been a useful marketing tool for the self-catering business, says Roy, 80.
Margaret died last year and now Roy has put the smallholding on the market for 750,000.
ON THE MARKET...WITH SPACE TO GRAZE
On the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park near Skipton, five-bedroom Stock Green Farm comes with four acres and a separate cottage and barn.hunters.com, 950,000.
A slice of the Scottish Borders - seven-bedroom Irvine House has almost 30 acres and fishing along a stretch of the Esk. knightfrank.co.uk, 825,000.
Japan's space agency Jaxa lost contact with its X-ray 'Hitomi' satellite amid fears it had broken into pieces.
But the satellite then successfully sent two signals over the course of a three-hour period overnight on 28 March that suggested it was not as damaged as first thought.
Now, a senior Jaxa official says he still believes its possible to restore control of the Hitomi astronomy satellite - but claims the recovery efforts could take several months.
Earlier this week, Japan's space agency Jaxa admitted it had lost contact with its X-ray 'Hitomi' satellite amid fears it had broken into pieces. But the satellite then sent two signals that suggested it was not as damaged as first thought. Scientists are now continuing to hunt radar images as well as monitor ground stations in Japan
Masaki Fujimoto, director of international strategy and coordination at Jaxa, made the comments while speaking on a panel about space cooperation at National Academies in Washington.
'There's hope for recovery unless the spacecraft is severely damaged,' he said. 'We haven't given up recovery of the spacecraft.'
Scientists are now continuing to hunt radar images for the probe, officially known as Astro-H, as well as monitor ground stations in Japan in overseas.
The satellite, developed in collaboration with Nasa, the US space agency, and various other groups, was launched on 17 February and was designed to observe X-rays emanating from black holes and galaxy clusters.
Space scientists are desperately scouring the skies after losing track of the quarter-of-a-billion-dollar Japanese satellite that was sent to study black holes. The ultra-high-tech 'Hitomi' satellite (pictured in January) was supposed to have been communicating from orbit by now, but no-one can say where it is
Black holes have never been directly observed, but scientists believe they are huge collapsed stars whose enormous gravitational pull is so strong that nothing can escape.
The announcement last month that gravitational waves had been detected for the first time added to evidence of their existence after scientists found the waves had been caused by two enormous black holes colliding.
THE ASTRO-H SPACE MISSION The X-ray astronomy satellite (Astro-H), which the agency named 'Hitomi', is a joint collaboration between Jaxa, Nasa, and other groups, including the European Space Agency. It was set to enter Earth's orbit at an estimated altitude 360 miles (580 km) - far above the International Space Station's orbit of around 250 miles (400 km). Over the course of the satellite's expected three-year mission, it was hoped it would capture data on black holes and other 'high energy' bodies, including supernovas, by detecting the radiation they churn out into the cosmos. Black holes have never been directly observed, but scientists believe they are huge collapsed stars whose enormous gravitational pull is so strong that nothing can escape. Advertisement
The ultra-high-tech 'Hitomi' - or eye - satellite, which cost 31 billion yen ($273 million), was supposed to have been communicating from orbit by now.
In a statement, Jaxa said it had received signals from the satellite at around 10:00pm on 28 March at the Uchinoura Ground Station, and at around 0:30 am on 29 March at the Santiago Tracking Station in Chile.
The agency added it 'has not been able to figure out the state of its health, as the time frames for receiving the signals were very short.'
According to the US Joint Space Operations Center (JSpOC), it is believed that Hitomi separated to five pieces at about 10:42am on 26 March.
In order to investigate the situation, Jaxa is observing the objects, using a radar located at the Kamisaibara Space Guard Center (KSGC) and telescopes at the Bisei Space Guard Center (BSGC) owned by the Japan Space Forum.
Up to now, the telescopes at BSGC detected two objects around the satellite's original orbit, while the radar at KSGC identified one of them.
It is confirmed that the signal received at the Santiago Tracking Station came from the orbital direction of the object identified at KSGC.
The spokesman added: 'Jaxa continues to investigate the relationship between the information from JSpOC and the communication anomaly.
The 'Hitomi', or Astro-H satellite, was launched aboard the H-IIA rocket (pictured) along with three smaller satellites - Horyu-4 and ChubuSat 2 and 3 in February. It was set to enter Earth's orbit at an estimated altitude 360 miles (580 km) - far above the International Space Station's orbit of around 250 miles (400 km)
'[It] will do its best to recover communications with Hitomi and investigate the cause of the anomaly.'
'We're taking the situation seriously,' Saku Tsuneta, director of the agency's Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, told a news conference on Sunday.
Jaxa has around 40 technicians on the case, trying to locate the spacecraft.
'We know approximately where it is,' the spokesman added, but scientists were still trying to work out its precise location.
Japan has a massive space programme and the country has achieved successes in both scientific and commercial satellite launches.
It has sent astronauts on space shuttle and International Space Station missions.
Jaxa has had some bad luck with its space launches.
At the end of 2015, its Akatsuki probe entered into orbit around Venus, after its initial failure in 2010.
The agency reported that a valve broke due to a build-up of salt and the craft spiralled away from the planet, becoming stranded in an orbit around the sun.
Jaxa decided to send the probe into 'hibernation mode', and devised a plan to try again as soon as the craft journeyed by Venus again.
As the main engine was beyond repair, Akatsuki dumped 143lbs (65 kilograms) of fuel in 2011.
This made the probe lighter and easier to steer into position with less propulsion.
Many call in sick to catch up while others have been caught dozing at work
Only 16 percent of workers get the
Does worrying about your job keep you up at night?
If so, youre not alone a new study has found that roughly half of American full-timers are losing sleep at night because theyre thinking about work.
A recent survey from CareerBuilder reveals that the majority of workers say they feel sleep deprived, and its caused many to become less productive, and even doze off at work.
A new study has found that roughly half of American full-timers are losing sleep at night because theyre thinking about work. A recent survey from CareerBuilder reveals that the majority of workers say they feel sleep deprived, and its caused many to become less productive, and even doze off at work
IS WORK HAUNTING YOUR DREAMS? According to the study, a large number of people are unable to escape thoughts of work, even when they're asleep. Sixty percent of the participants reported that they have dreamed about work, and more than 1 in 10 of this group say it happens frequently. But, what are they dreaming about? 14 percent have dreamed about hooking up with a co-worker
10 percent have dreamed about telling off the boss
10 percent have dreamed about getting in a fight with a co-worker
9 percent have dreamed about showing up to work in pajamas or with little or no clothing on Advertisement
The survey was conducted online by Harris Poll, which collected the responses of more than 3,200 workers in the US.
Almost half of the participants reported that they were kept up at night thinking about work, with 44 percent indicating this, and an even larger group of people say they dont get enough sleep.
More than half of those surveyed 58 percent said they feel sleep deprived, and 61 percent of the participants say this is having a negative impact on their work.
Less than a quarter of workers reported to getting the recommended eight hours of sleep each night, while most, 63 percent, said they get between six and seven hours.
More than those who get eight hours of sleep are those who get minimal amounts, with 21 percent of participants reporting that they sleep five hours or less on average.
Rest is an undervalued necessity these days, says Rosemary Haefner, chief human resources officer at CareerBuilder.
We see more and more workers check into the office at all hours of the day, give up vacation time and work even when theyre sick.
Yet its not necessarily making us more productive, and companies are starting to recognize that.
As sleep is hard to come by at night, people are trying to make up for this in various ways, with one in five workers saying theyve called in sick just to catch up on sleep.
Some have dozed off at the office; nearly half of those surveyed said theyve caught someone else sleeping at work.
This has a negative impact on both employees and businesses.
Participants in the survey said lack of sleep can make them feel as though the day is going by more slowly, along with reducing motivation and productivity, and affecting memory.
As sleep is hard to come by at night, people are trying to make up for this in various ways, with one in five workers saying theyve called in sick just to catch up on sleep. Some have dozed off at the office; nearly half of those surveyed said theyve caught someone else sleeping at work
Some said sleep deprivation causes them to make mistakes at work, or makes tasks take longer to complete.
And, others say it just makes them crabby.
As shifts evolve, straying from the traditional 9-5, many employers are beginning to take action to make sure their workers are rested and working at their full potential.
Some employers have begun to offer nap rooms to give their workers a mid-day break to catch up on sleep.
If this were available, 39 percent of workers said theyd take advantage of it, the survey found.
Private space firm, Blue Origin, will try to launch and land its reusable rocket for a third time tomorrow.
CEO Jeff Bezos tweeted today that the company will fly the same vehicle that successfully went into space and returned on two other occasions.
It's not yet known at what time the flight will occur in Van Horn, Texas, but Bezos said Blue Origin will attempt a few new manoeuvres with this launch.
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Private space firm, Blue Origin, will try to launch and land its reusable rocket for a third time tomorrow. CEO Jeff Bezos tweeted today that the company will fly the same vehicle that successfully went into space and returned on two other occasions. It's not yet known at what time the flight will occur
One change will be a restart the New Shephard rocket engines 'fast at high thrust' just 3,600 feet from the ground, just before landing.
Bezos said if the engine doesn't restart, then the rocket will hit the ground in six seconds.
The company will also trial new software that controls one of the capsule's control systems.
Bezos added there will be drones present to capture the view.
Blue Origin successfully launched the New Shepard rocket for the first time in November, and repeated the take-off successfully just two months later.
The rocket hit an altitude of 333,582 feet (63 miles) before 'gently' returning to Earth in west Texas.
One change will be a restart to the New Shephard rocket engines 'fast at high thrust' just 3,600 feet from the ground, just before landing. Bezos said if the engine doesn't restart, then the rocket will hit the ground in six seconds. The company will also trial new software that controls one of the crew capsule's control systems
Blue Origin, the company created by Mr Bezos, successfully launched the New Shepard rocket for the first time in November, and repeated the take-off successfully just two months later
A video released by Blue Origin showed the launch and landing from the Texas site on January 22, with the rocket slowed to three miles per hour (five km per hour) on its descent with the assistance of parachutes
Earlier this year, the firm revealed what it looked like from cameras on the rocket.
A video released by Blue Origin showed the launch and landing from the Texas site on January 22, with the rocket slowed to three miles per hour (five kilometres per hour) on its descent with the assistance of parachutes.
Although designed to carry six passengers, the test launches have been carried out with no one on board.
BLUE ORIGIN AIMS FOR PASSENGER FLIGHTS IN 2018 Jeff Bezos' space company Blue Origin expects to begin crewed test flights of its reusable suborbital New Shepard vehicle next year and begin flying paying passengers in 2018, Bezos told reporters on Tuesday. Bezos' remarks, made during the first ever media tour of the Blue Origin manufacturing facility, marked the first time the billionaire founder of Amazon.com had put a target date on the start of the commercial space flights Blue Origin is developing. 'We'll probably fly test pilots in 2017, and if we're successful then I'd imagine putting paying astronauts on in 2018,' Bezos said at the sprawling plant south of Seattle The company expects to build six New Shepard vehicles, which are designed to autonomously fly six passengers to more than 62 miles (100 km) above Earth, high enough to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and see the planet set against the blackness of space. Advertisement
The breakthroughs by Blue Origin and parallel efforts by rival Internet mogul Elon Musk's SpaceX open up the potential for cutting costs for space travel and making rockets as reusable as airplanes.
Bezos called the accomplishment a 'game changer' in November, which opens the door to lower costs in space travel and his vision of people living and working in space.
'I'm a huge fan of rocket-powered vertical landing,' he wrote on the Blue Origin website.
'Why? Because to achieve our vision of millions of people living and working in space we will need to build very large rocket boosters. And the vertical landing architecture scales extraordinarily well.
Mastermind: Blue Origin - created by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (left) - has taken a giant step forward in the development of cheaper space travel. Re-usable rockets could be used like planes, and therefore dramatically slash the cost of space travel
During an earlier flight, the rocket - which is designed to carry six passengers about 62 miles (110km) above Earth - successfully hit an altitude of 333,000 feet
A camera attached to the New Shepard rocket traced its journey and captured remarkable views from its altitude of 63 miles
'When you do a vertical landing, you're solving the classic inverted pendulum problem, and the inverted pendulum problem gets a bit easier as the pendulum gets a bit bigger.'
Bezos, who founded online giant Amazon and also owns The Washington Post newspaper, said on Saturday that Blue Origin has solved the problem of balancing to keep the rocket in an upright position as it lands.
Elon Musk's SpaceX in December managed a similar feat for the first time with its Falcon 9 rocket in Florida, after it blasted off on a satellite-delivery mission.
The company has also tried to land a rocket on a floating platform in the Pacific Ocean a number of times, but has yet to be successful.
Although currently only launching suborbital rockets which are not fast enough to put into orbit around Earth Blue Origin is developing a more powerful rocket engine.
It is expected to begin testing the more powerful engine this year.
'We're already more than three years into development of our first orbital vehicle,' said Mr Bezos.
'Though it will be the small vehicle in our orbital family, it's still many times larger than New Shepard.'
While no men were on-board during the trial, the capsule separated and descended as planned (pictured) and the booster also flew back to the landing pad
Home ground: Blue Origin was created by internet entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, who also created Amazon. Pictured, the part of Texas where Blue Origin is based (marked on the map)
Future: The breakthroughs by Blue Origin and parallel efforts by rival Internet mogul Elon Musk's SpaceX open up the potential for cutting costs for space travel and making rockets as reusable as airplanes
A deadly plant disease is threatening to wipe out bananas.
Scientists are desperately trying to find a remedy for Panama Disease before bananas as we know them become extinct.
And studies of a new virulent strain of the disease - Tropical Race 4 - suggest there may not be a cure.
A new strain of Panama Disease is threatening to wipe out the popular Cavendish banana
Panama Disease devastated banana crops in South-east Asia in the 1950s, wiping out the world's most popular banana, the Gros Michel.
Now there are fears that the new strain will destroy Cavendish bananas, which accounts for 47% of bananas across the globe, reported The Daily Express
About five billion bananas are eaten every year in the UK.,
Panama Disease has spread to parts of Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Australia and Central America and there are fears it could strike South America, where the majority of exported bananas are grown.
Dr Gert Kema, expert in global plant production at the Wageningen University in the Netherlands, said: 'Cavendish is now collapsing and there is nothing to replace it. On top of that many local cultivars - or varieties - are equally susceptible.'
One expert's proposed solution to the disease is to create a new variety of banana that would be resistant to it.
Professor Altus Viljoen also said that stopping bananas from being exported from affected countries could be another way of helping to curb the spread of disease.
Cavendish bananas are named for the family of the house they were first grown in - Chatsworth House in Derbyshire.
Cavendish bananas were created at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire in the 1830s
Alistair Smith, international co-ordinator for Norwich-based Banana Link, a co-operative that works with growers and farmers around the world, said the disease needed to be urgently contained.
It is more or less possible to contain with very strict measures but there is nothing to say [Panama disease] is not going to arrive somewhere else, for example from contaminated soil on boots or via an infected plant. There is no way to salvage your production once you have got the disease.
Its a huge issue for growers who have already been affected in places like the Philippines but awareness is only now growing in the Americas who are yet to be hit.
Hurricane season is a few months away, but the winds of change in Cuba blow stronger every day. First, Barack Obama popped over (the first visit by an American president in 88 years) and challenged Cubas one-party rule.
Then, last weekend, the Rolling Stones performed an unprecedented free concert in front of hundreds of thousands of fans, with Sir Mick Jagger telling the crowd: I think the times are changing.
It was something of an understatement. These are heady days for both the countrys creaking authorities and its bemused 11 million inhabitants. For the rest of us, Cuba makes for one of the most fascinating holidays and one that should be taken sooner rather than later.
Glorious: The beach at Varadero is a 12-mile peninsula of sugary sand two hours drive to the east of Havana
My wife, Montserrat, who is Spanish, and I were determined to venture first beyond the capital, Havana, to see part of the island visited only by those brave or foolhardy enough to endure a two-and-a-half hour journey, during which vast potholes and wandering chickens are just two hazards.
We were heading for Vinales, a small town in a national park 113 miles west of Havana, known for its limestone mogote hills that look like huge haystacks.
Nothing prepared me for this prehistoric landscape. I half expected a Tyrannosaurus rex to come charging round the corner. Luckily, the only giant creature we encountered was a hutia, a massive rodent so tame it happily nibbled on leaves we offered.
The Vinales region is a twitchers delight, and we saw hummingbirds, mockingbirds and tiny Cuban todies, with their pink flanks and red throats singing a distinctive, soft call of pprreeee-pprreeee.
We were staying in a red-roofed cabin at the state-owned Los Jazmines hotel. The cabin was made of concrete after its wooden predecessor was destroyed by Hurricane Gustav in 2008.
Los Jazmines offers five-star views, but serves Cold War-era food. Indeed, we didnt eat anything in Cuba that matched Virgin Atlantics in-flight meal on the way over. Strangely, thats part of the charm.
We were here to celebrate Montserrats 40th birthday, a milestone shed long dreaded. But as she opened our cabins curtains the next morning and saw the mist rising from the valley below, middle age seemed a breeze.
We visited one of the tobacco fields that produce the crop for the finest cigars in the world. Winston Churchill favoured the Romeo y Julieta brand.
Leading grower Ivan Hernandez talked us through the process and showed us how to roll a perfect puro. Its said the finest should be rolled on the thighs of a virgin woman. Thankfully, Ivan kept his trousers on.
Go west, young man: Vinales, in the west of Cuba, is a green oasis compared to busy Havana
Heritage: Tourists are flocking to see the iconic pastel-coloured houses and classic cars found in old Havana
Before President Kennedy imposed a trade embargo on Cuba in 1962, he is said to have asked an aide how long it would take Castro to cave in. One year, the aide replied. Well then, said JFK, I want 364 cigars to keep me going.
Until the revolution, Cuba was a tropical playground for American gangsters. Al Capone had a holiday home in Varadero, which is where we went next a 12-mile peninsula of sugary sand two hours drive to the east of Havana.
There, we stayed at the all-inclusive Grand Memories hotel, full of friendly holidaymakers from Canada, which normalised relations with Cuba in the Seventies.
Forsaking the hotel buffet, we hopped in a taxi to La Casa de Al, a restaurant in a villa that once belonged to Capone, immortalised in The Untouchables.
The waiter made me an offer I couldnt refuse of paella, Cuban-style. It was indifferent, but, given that this hoodlum hangout was decorated with photos of Capone and his henchmen, I didnt kick up a fuss.
Varaderos beaches are beautiful, but the only Cubans were hotel workers and the resort felt detached from the rest of the country. We sunbathed, swam and danced to salsa until it was time to move on to Havana.
Our man in Havana: Richard samples a cigar
The capitals old quarter was being given a lick of paint ahead of Obamas visit, but we were more interested in following the movements of another American, the Nobel Prize-winning novelist Ernest Hemingway, who became indelibly associated with Cuba. Hard-drinking Hemingway is said to have sunk 12 mojitos in one hour at the tiny La Bodeguita del Medio bar, but we enjoyed just one or two, to the sounds of a Latin band, before moving on to Hotel Ambos Mundos.
There, Room 511 has been preserved as an atmospheric museum to the author who lived there for seven years, complete with his typewriter and fishing rods.
En route, I was suddenly approached by two comely women in colourful dresses who planted their luminously painted lips on my cheeks. Their kisses did not come cheap, as they promptly demanded two pesos (1.40) each for the privilege.
For a taxi back to our hotel, what better than one of the 60,000 or so classic American cars that survive from before the embargo? Ours was a 1958 cherry-red Dodge Regent, whose driver, Carlos, was old enough to remember life before the revolution. People were so poor in the countryside, he told us. Castro improved their lives.
For 20 pesos (14), he took us on an idiosyncratic tour of some of Havanas lesser-known attractions, including John Lennon Park, where an elderly lady is employed to give tourists a pair of metal-rimmed glasses to put on the bronze statue of the late Beatle. The government gave her the job after fans kept pinching the Lennon specs.
What struck me most during our week was that people seemed determined the place wouldnt lose its unique character.
Dont think this visit means we are going to have Cuba filled with McDonalds and Kentucky Fried Chicken in a years time, said our guide, earnestly. We will never let that happen.
However, as thousands of free-spending Americans begin to descend on ten antiquated airports, the pressure to change will be overwhelming. All the more reason to go now.
Its a kingdom whose own young royals are dubbed the Wills and Kate of the Orient so what can the real Duke and Duchess of Cambridge expect when they visit magical Bhutan later this month?
Ive been fortunate enough to have met three generations of Bhutanese kings and queens, travelled the breadth of this Himalayan wonderland as a guest of the royals, gone hiking with regional governors and taken tea with incarnate lamas. All because I was at school with the previous king.
I met his son, the 35-year-old King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and his glamorous wife Jetsun Pema, shortly after their marriage.
Just flying into Paro, Bhutans only international airport, is spectacular. You pass the worlds tallest mountains, Everest and Kanchenjunga. Pictured is Tigers Nest monastery, so called because the Buddhist saint Padmasambhava is said to have flown on a tigresss back to reach so inaccessible a spot
Himalayan Dynasty: The King and Queen with baby son are dubbed the Wills and Kate of the Orient
Like Kate, the queen has become a style icon, her outfits combining modern design with radiantly coloured Bhutanese silks and embroidery.
And there has just been an addition to the family. Their first child, the son and heir, was born on February 5 amid nationwide rejoicing. The celebrations underlined Bhutans reputation as probably the most royal- friendly country in the world for most Bhutanese, monarchy is deeply woven into their sense of national identity and wellbeing.
Just flying into Paro, Bhutans only international airport, is spectacular. You pass the worlds tallest mountains, Everest and Kanchenjunga. Then the plane drops fast into the narrow Paro valley, where the pilot loops around a mountainside for the final approach.
As you step off the aircraft, one of the first sights is Buddhist prayer flags fluttering in the breeze beyond the airport perimeter. Then the visitor notices, towering above the valley, Paro Dzong part fortress and royal residence, part monastery and beyond this pine-covered slopes and cliffs dotted with smaller monasteries and hermitages.
The most sacred of these is the Tigers Nest, so called because the Buddhist saint Padmasambhava is said to have flown on a tigresss back to reach so inaccessible a spot. Prince Charles has been to the Tigers Nest and William and Kate are scheduled to visit too.
The Royal couple will probably be whisked off from the airport to the capital, Thimphu. More than an hours drive to the east of Paro, it has grown hugely since I first visited it 30 years ago. But even new buildings follow traditional style, with brightly painted, intricately carved windows.
Most people will turn out to greet the Duke and Duchess in Bhutanese national dress. For men, this is the gho, a wrap-around gown of striped cotton or woollen check, while women wear a long, apron-like dress of striped, embroidered material, called a kira, over a cotton or silk blouse. The crowd will be a sea of colour.
A Cham dancer (left) and old friends Jonathan Gregson and the Elder King (right)
Kate and William could meet the Bhutanese royals informally at Lingkana Palace, though formal audiences normally take place at Tashicchodzong, a fortress or dzong that is both monastery and traditional seat of government. The royal audience chamber is reached by a wooden stairway resembling a ladder. I once climbed it for my own audience. At almost 8,000ft the air is thin, so I felt quite breathless even before being ushered into the royal presence. My old school friend, now the Elder King, greeted me with a bear hug.
William and Kate are likely to be treated to Cham dances, usually performed in the dzongs central courtyard. The first European visitors called them devil dances, but to the Bhutanese the monk-dancers represent benevolent guardians whose ferocious appearance scares away evil spirits.
Hopefully there will be time for the Duke and Duchess to visit Punakha, formerly the winter capital. Its magnificent dzong is where coronations and royal marriages are held.
Further east lie Trongsa, whose commanding fortress formed the power-base of the Wangchuck dynasty; Bumthang with its lovely orchards and houses covered in phallic symbols; and Tashigang with its 600-year-old chain suspension bridge.
Bhutan is a small country, but the terrain is so mountainous that it took me four days to drive from west to east. Theres just one lateral road, which climbs through fields and forest up to high passes offering views of the entire eastern Himalayas before winding down again.
Along the way I talked with farmers, teachers and lamas. I discovered that this is a country where Western-educated technocrats have no problem in accepting the miraculous, where astrology still determines auspicious days for anything from the date of a royal wedding to when is best to travel, and where traditional healing complements modern medicine.
Bhutan is a magical kingdom. And something of that is sure to rub off on its visitors, even Royal ones.
My daughter, Lesley, and I first fell in love with Miffy (or Nijntje in Dutch), the little rabbit drawn and written by Dick Bruna, when Lesley was a toddler in the early 1980s. The first Miffy book was published in 1955, 31 others have followed and in total more than 85 million copies have been sold. And we love her to this day.
So what do you give the bunny who has everything for her 60th birthday? Well, a new museum dedicated to all things Miffy in her home town of Utrecht, a 30-minute train ride from Amsterdam. Miffy already had a square named after her, the Nijntje Pleintje (Little Nijntje Square), and, in 2006, the Centraal Museum opened a permanent exhibition. But now, quite rightly, she has her own museum.
The first leg of our Miffy pilgrimage was last October when we attended the auction at Amsterdams Rijksmuseum of 45 of the 60 lifesize statues of Miffy that had been decorated by well-known artists and placed around Utrecht to celebrate her milestone birthday.
Fun with Miffy at the exhibition to celebrate her 60th birthday
The auction raised more than 390,000 for Unicef; the statues were well over our budget but we did bring back some gorgeous smaller versions from the dedicated gift shop at the airport.
We stayed at the delightful JL76 boutique hotel, conveniently situated on Jan Luijkenstraat, a short walk from both the museum district and fashionable shops.
The old city is a ten-minute bike ride away and you can rent bikes from the hotel. Rooms are small but spotless and well-appointed with Nespresso machines for early- morning coffee fixes.
Roll forward to February of this year and we were invited to the opening of the Miffy Museum.
We took a direct train from Amsterdam Schipol the train station is directly under airport arrivals and 30 mins later we disembarked at Utrecht Centraal.
The Miffy Museum is conveniently located directly opposite the Centraal Museum and we were met by the knowledgeable curator, Yolanda Van Den Berg. Resisting the lure of going to the gift shop first, Yolanda showed us round the exhibits.
Each of the ten rooms at the museum is dedicated to an everyday activity; theres a doctors surgery, a zoo, and you start off in Miffys house, climbing into her bed and inspecting her kitchen.
Miffys creator Dick Bruna (pictured) came up with the child-friendly character 60 years ago
An art gallery allows children to curate their own exhibition and an interactive mini town centre complete with cars, trains and traffic lights teaches kids all about road safety.
Its one of the most child-friendly places weve been and the museum has thought of everything there is a picnic area, a breastfeeding room and even bespoke mini-loos and basins and smaller stair banisters for the most important visitors.
We left Miffys world behind and travelled across the road to Brunas studio, now housed on the top floor of the Centraal Museum.
Thanks to the now retired Brunas donations of his own desk, writing materials and so on, the layout is practically identical to his own workspace.
Our whistle-stop Miffy excursion ended with a lovely home-made soup and salad lunch in the museum cafe and a visit to the excellent gift shop where, despite a warning from my Miffy-fatigued husband, we stocked up on a few more souvenirs before heading back to the airport.
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Driving from A to B can sometimes be a monotonous task - but occasionally there is a road that makes the journey much more exciting than the destination.
Take the nail-biting, aply-named Death Road in Bolivia, for example, which has no guard rails and steep cliffs of up to 1,968 feet high. Or the world's longest road tunnel, the Laerdal Tunnel in Norway, which sees drivers plunged underground for a whopping 15.2 miles.
Here MailOnline Travel rounds up some of the world's most striking and unusual roads, sure to make travellers either channel their inner Jeremy Clarkson or set their sat navs to avoid these stretches at all costs.
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The world's steepest road - Baldwin Street, Dunedin, New Zealand
The perilous Baldwin Street is recognised by the Guinness World Records as being the steepest road in the world, and many tourists attempt to race or journey up its punishing 1,148ft stretch
At the base of the short street, the road is 98ft above sea level and this steeply rises to 330ft at its upper end, meaning that for every 9.38 feet the elevation rises three feet
Although it may resemble your average suburban road, Baldwin Street in Dunedin, New Zealand, is anything but ordinary.
The perilous street is recognised by the Guinness World Records as being the steepest road in the world, and many tourists attempt to race or journey up its punishing 1,148ft stretch.
At the base of the short street, the road is 98ft above sea level and this steeply rises to 330ft at its upper end, meaning that for every 9.38 feet the elevation rises three feet.
For safety, the higher stretch of the road is surfaced in concrete, which is particularly important during frosty winters.
The world's longest road tunnel - Laerdal Tunnel, Norway
Those who have a phobia of being underground should probably find an alternative route to the Laerdal Tunnel in Norway, which remains covered for a whopping 15.2 miles
The vast tunnel was not cheap to build and cost around $113.1million (78.5million) to bring to fruition
Those who have a phobia of being underground should probably find an alternative route to the Laerdal Tunnel in Norway, which remains covered for a whopping 15.2 miles.
The road connects Lrdal and Aurland, and travels through mountains that reach nearly 6,000ft in height.
The vast tunnel was not cheap to build and cost around $113.1million (78.5million) to bring to fruition, but sought to address the issues heavy snowfalls caused to Norwegian commuters.
The world's most dangerous road, D915 Bayburt Road, Turkey
There are numerous roads around the world that should be approached with caution, but the most dangerous road in the world - a true highway to hell that has taken a toll of numerous lives in recent years - is in Turkey
The Bayburt D915 Road is 66 miles long with 29 hairpin bends. Located in the foothills of the 6,000-foot-high Soganli Mountain, it is described as a difficult route where you cannot turn at some of the bends in a single manoeuvre
There are numerous roads around the world that should be approached with caution, but the most dangerous road in the world - a true highway to hell that has taken a toll of numerous lives in recent years - is in Turkey.
Website dangerousroads.org, which searches for the world's most risky routes, chose the D915 Bayburt Road as their number one over the infamous 'Death Road' in Bolivia for its dangerous twists and turns.
The Bayburt D915 Road is 66 miles long with 29 hairpin bends and is located in the foothills of the 6,000-foot-high Soganli Mountain.
There are no railings at the road's edge to prevent vehicles from plunging to their doom in an accident and parts of the road are routinely closed in wintertime due to snow blizzards and ice.
The world's tallest bridge structure- Millau Viaduct, France
If you are afraid of heights, you may want to give the Millau Viaduct in France a miss. The bridge is taller than the Eiffel Tower at its highest point at a nail-biting 1,125ft high
Since it opened in 2004, the bridge has made a number of appearances on TV and in film, including on Top Gear, which featured the hosts driving across the bridge during the seventh series, and in the movie Mr Bean's Holiday
When construction began on the 400million (314million) cable-stayed bridge that spans the River Tarn, special engineering was required to tackle the 95 mph winds that swept through the valley
If you are afraid of heights, you may want to give the Millau Viaduct in France a miss.
The bridge is taller than the Eiffel Tower at its highest point, at a nail-biting 1,125ft high.
When construction began on the 400million (314million) cable-stayed bridge that spans the River Tarn, special engineering was required to tackle the 95 mph winds that swept through the valley.
Since it opened in 2004, it has made a number of appearances on TV and in film, including on Top Gear, which featured the hosts driving across the bridge during the seventh series, and in the movie Mr Bean's Holiday.
A road in the snow - Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route, Japan
Walled wonder! The Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route opens during select times of the year, with tourists marvelling at the 65ft high walls
The snowy phenomenon can be seen on the winding track of Murodo in Japan from April until it melts in the summer
Tourists photograph the impressive walls. Over a million people visit the walls every year, although this dropped to 910,000 in 2014
Nestled between a 65ft high snow cavern, the winding Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route looks like a track that could be on Mario Kart.
The steep-walled phenomena is located in Japan and attracts visits from millions of tourists annually.
Since the impressive snowy road opened in 1971, tourists can view the spectacular snow-walled passageway along a winding 1000ft section.
The fatal Death Road in La Paz, Bolivia
The Death Road in Bolivia connects the Amazon rainforest region of northern Bolivia, or Yungas, to its capital city. The mainly single-lane road has no guard rails and cliffs of up to 1,968ft high, resulting in about 300 deaths every year
Downhill from here: Although an important transport route for locals, travelling the Death Road on a bicycle is among Bolivia's most popular tourist attractions
It begins at 15,400 feet and for an estimated 300 people a year ends in the loss of their life, yet Bolivia's North Yungus Road - better known as The Death Road - is among the nation's biggest drawcards for thrill-seeking tourists.
Dubbed 'El Camino de la Muerte' (The Death Road) by locals, for obvious reasons, and considered by many the most dangerous stretch of road in the world, the 40-mile journey from its summit entices in excess of 25,000 mountain bike riders annually.
The ride takes in the stunning views among the rolling hills of the Amazon rainforest, but come with the somewhat distracting - and for some terrifying -sheer drop into the canopy as two rubber tyres separate the rider from a narrow single-lane road with very little in the way of railings.
The optical illusion road - The Storseisundet Bridge Atlantic Road, Norway
It's enough to make even the most fool-hardy of motorists turn their car around. But this apparent road to nowhere is merely an optical illusion dubbed 'the drunken bridge'
Situated on the west coast of Norway on the Atlantic Road, the Storseisundet Bridge is so dramatically shaped it has featured in television adverts
It's enough to make even the most fool-hardy of motorists turn their car around. But this apparent road to nowhere is merely an optical illusion dubbed 'the drunken bridge'.
Situated on the west coast of Norway on the Atlantic Road, the Storseisundet Bridge is so dramatically shaped it has featured in television adverts.
It sits on the five-mile long road which was constructed in 2005 and has become hugely popular with tourists.
The wooden bridge over a lake - Kuandinsky Bridge, Russia
The dilapidated Trans-Baikal Region Kuandinsky Bridge was originally built to be part of the BaikalAmur Mainline railway
To make matters worse, the old metal structure is covered with wooden railway planks, which can be slippery in frequent snow and ice
You need to have nerves of steel to drive along this adrenaline-inducing rickety bridge in Russia.
To cross the dilapidated Kuandinsky Bridge in the Trans-Baikal Region drivers must navigate a tiny 6ft-wide path - with no railing or safety features to save them from toppling into the frozen water below.
To make matters worse, the old metal structure is covered with wooden planks, which can be slippery due to the frequent snow and ice.
The winding Stelvio Pass, Italy
With 180 degree bends, 48 hairpin turns and low barriers, Stelvio Pass in Italy is not one of the easiest drives
The Stelvio Pass might be one of the most scenic driving roads, as the winding route is located 9,045ft up in the Alps
With 180 degree bends and low barriers, Stelvio Pass in Italy is not one of the easiest drives.
But it might be one of the most scenic, as the winding route is located 9,045ft up in the Alps, offering breathtaking views.
In icy conditions you may want to drive carefully around its 48 hairpin turns, and road trippers are advised to tackle it midweek and outside of July and August.
The longest road in the world - Pan-American Highway
If you are looking for a long road trip idea, look no further than the Pan-American Highway which is the longest road in the world
The 18,641-mile road goes through 15 countries in total, running from Alaska down to the tip of South America and traverses through jungles, mountains, glaciers, and deserts as it streams through two continents
If you are looking for a long road trip idea, look no further than the Pan-American Highway which is the longest route in the world.
The 18,641-mile road goes through 15 countries in total, running from Alaska down to the tip of South America. The idea for the route was originally conceived in 1923 and traverses through jungles, mountains, glaciers, and deserts as it streams through two continents.
There are a range of risks along sections of the highway, including steep drop-offs, landslides and impassable sections during the wet season.
The world's 'crookedest' street - Lombard Street, San Francisco
Nestled between buildings in San Francisco is a winding road that has been dubbed the world's 'crookedest' street
About 2,000 vehicles travel each weekend day on the world famous scenic, hilly street in the city's Russian Hill neighbourhood during the busy tourist period
Nestled between buildings in San Francisco is a winding road that has been dubbed the world's 'crookedest' street.
About 2,000 vehicles travel each weekend day on the world famous scenic, hilly street in the city's Russian Hill neighbourhood during the busy tourist period.
It is known for its one-block stretch of winding red-brick road that consists of eight sharp, hairpin turns and has been featured on TV, in movies and even video games.
The zig-zag road has a speed limit of just 5mph so drivers have to take the winding road at a snail pace.
Australia's longest straight road - Eyre Highway, Australia
While many of the most spectacular roads feature numerous twists and turns, there is a road in Australia which stretches out for miles in a straight line
The Eyre Highway across the Nullarbor Plain is the longest straight road in Australia where towns are dotted two hundred miles apart
While many of the most spectacular roads feature numerous twists and turns, there is a road in Australia which stretches out for miles in a straight line.
The Eyre Highway across the Nullarbor Plain is the longest straight road in Australia, where towns are dotted two hundred miles apart.
The 1040-mile road takes approximately two days to cross and can get extremely hot and dusty in summer.
The highway on water - Overwater Highway, China
Last year a stunning new route opened in Hubei province, central China with drivers literally travelling over water
The 6.8-mile motorway is built in the middle of a river valley and users are treated to breathtaking views of the surrounding hills as well as the river and nearby villages
The spectacular road connects Xingshan County in Hubei to G42, a high-speed route that connects Shanghai in eastern China to Chengdu in south west China
Last year a stunning new route opened in Hubei province, central China with drivers literally travelling over water.
The 6.8-mile motorway is built in the middle of a river valley and users are treated to breathtaking views of the surrounding hills as well as the nearby villages.
The spectacular road connects Xingshan County in Hubei to G42, a high-speed route that connects Shanghai in eastern China to Chengdu in south west China.
Alarming new figures reveal that the number of British holidaymakers being scammed online has quintupled in the space of 12 months.
Almost 12million was lost to fake travel websites by British tourists in 2015 - 8.8million more than the 2.2million lost in 2014 - after a sharp increase in the number of holidays being booked online.
An average amount of 3,000 was lost per victim, and many of whom reported a 'significant impact' on their health, as well as their bank balance, due to shock.
Almost 12 million was lost by British tourists in 2015 - 8.8 million more than the 2.2 million lost in 2014 - after a sharp increase in the number of holidays being booked online
According to The Times, experts claim that the increase in online bookings was partially down to websites including AirBnb, where homeowners can advertise their properties for short term lettings.
However, in some cases, scam artists have been known to list lettings that do not exist - and others have hacked into legitimate homeowner accounts and taken cash from travellers under their name.
Other scams include con artists setting up fake airline ticket websites that offer 'cheap' fares - some of which are linked to by legitimate websites including Sky Scanner.
In a new report from the City of London police's national fraud intelligence bureau, figures revealed that a total of 11.5 million worth of fraud was reported in 2015.
ActionFraud reveal that 4,212 cases of theft online had been reported, and the average tourist had been conned out of 2,730 each.
In a new report from the City of London police's national fraud intelligence bureau, figures revealed that a total of 11.5 million worth of fraud was reported in 2015
The figures, also highlighted that the most common victims are tourists between the ages of 30 and 49 as well as families with young children.
Next week the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) is set to launch a campaign designed to protect travellers who make online bookings, with the help of the police and Get Safe Online.
Speaking to The Times, Mark Tanzer, the ABTA chief executive, said: 'The costs to these people are not just financial.
'The also have to deal with the severe disappointment of holidays or trips to visit loved ones being cancelled at short notice.
The lot of an NHS doctor or nurse isn't a happy one at the moment, but compared to the life of a soap one it's a picnic. A soap medic must be an expert in every field, work across all departments in a hospital and treat all their neighbours on their day off. On top of that they must contend with patients turning up with their entire extended family and network of friends in tow.
When Coronation Street's Sarah-Louise Platt went into labour recently her whole family were there, as was Freddie - the widowed husband of Kylie's former nail client.
But even worse is that no matter how clearly a doctor or nurse explains a condition, no soap character will ever understand them. The character will, instead, look totally bewildered by the simple information they've been given before becoming abusive and accusing the medic of being incompetent - as we witnessed recently with EastEnders' Mick Carter.
At one stage the doctor treating baby Ollie was speaking to Mick and Linda like a couple of six-year-olds, and still their response was, 'But what does that mean, doctor?'
CORONATION STREET: Tracy's stirring at the bistro
Given there can't be a single person in Weatherfield whose life hasn't been made a misery by Tracy Barlow, it's baffling that anyone still gives her the time of day. When she catches Robert and Carla chatting at the bistro she sees red and reveals she knows about their one-night stand and has been using the information to blackmail Carla. Appalled, Robert says he wants nothing more to do with his lunatic girlfriend but later he takes her back. Why? Have all those cooking fumes addled his brain?
Michelle Connor is left mortified next week as she's caught lying over her old flame Will by mother-in-law Liz
Realising she's attracted to her client Will, and her mother-in-law Liz has clocked the situation, Michelle tells him she can no longer be his wedding planner. Bearing in mind every wedding Michelle has ever organised has ended in complete disaster, it's probably for the best.
In other wedding news, Kate gets cold feet about her upcoming nuptials to Caz and calls the whole thing off. And guess who's on hand to comfort her? Sophie Webster, of course, in a clumsy storyline that's been simmering for months.
Liz is rarely single for long and she meets a new love interest called Chris at her granddaughter Amy's music class. Chris seems smitten and takes Liz for a coffee where it becomes clear he thinks she's Amy's mum, not her granny - and Liz plays along. Just how dim is the lighting in that cafe?
EASTENDERS: Who's planning Ronnie's funeral?
Ian is worried that his mum Kathy is starting to falfor Phiagain, especially after he makes a drunken pass at her in The Vic. She's never had the best taste in men but even psycho Gavin is Mr Perfect compared to Phil Mitchell.
A falling out between Abi and Babe prompts an incensed Babe to write a letter to Ben telling him that Abi faked her pregnancy. But meddling Louise Mitchell intercepts the letter and delights in taunting Abi about her secret.
Meddling Louise Mitchell (centre) intercepts a letter Aunt Babe, right, wrote exposing Abi, left's secret
After learning of Nancy's plans to leave the Square for Italy, Tamwar decides to fight for his ex-love. Can he convince her to stay?
Jack returns to the Square to begin his new life with Ronnie but, typically, it's anything but plain sailing. Things take a sinister turn when Les Coker reveals he's been sent an email saying Ronnie is dead and he needs to arrange her funeral (rather Les than Billy, at least there's a chance of things running smoothly). Ronnie's determined to find out who is harassing her but when she turns detective her life is in danger. Can Jack rescue her from peril? If he's got any sense he'lget on the Eurostar back to France and leave her to it.
Meanwhile, Stacey is allowed to return home from the psychiatric unit. As we know, nobody is allowed to leave or return to Walford without somebody throwing them a party and in this case it's Kyle who does the honours. As we also know, Walford parties never go according to plan - and this one is no exception.
EMMERDALE: A week of punch-ups and proposals
For a man who offered his wife an open marriage, Lawrence certainly has a jealous streak. He assumes that it's Bernice, not Chrissie, that Andy is having a fling with, and arranges for him to be beaten up. Lawrence gets his comeuppance though when Robert confronts him about the attack and he collapses with a heart attack.
Lawrence isn't the only one consumed by jealousy. Zak punches Rishi (above) for getting too close to Joanie, who, in turn, tells Zak that it's high time he put a ring on her finger. With a dad like Zak is it any wonder that Belle ends up throwing herself into the arms of the married Dr Bailey?
He's been wowing British audiences with his performance in The Night Manager.
But Tom Hiddleston reprised one of his most famous roles to date when he paid a visit to the Fox 32 Chicago News studios on Thursday and took it upon himself to deliver the weather report in the style of Thor villain Loki.
The 35-year-old actor gave a whole new meaning to the phrase every cloud has a silver lining as he took over from meteorologist Mike Caplan to give the weather his own theatrical spin.
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Man of many talents: Tom Hiddleston reprised one of his most famous roles when he paid a visit to the Fox 32 Chicago News studios on Thursday where he delivered the weather report in the style of Thor villain Loki
After being introduced by the weatherman, who had been speaking about a tornado in Oklahoma, by the name of his Thor character, Tom quipped: 'Well, my brother from another mother has been misbehaving...'
'The God of Thunder has brought his skill set to bear on the local weather, shall I say, so there is this huge storm front coming in and all that means is that Chris Hemsworth has taken his hammer and smashed it on the surface of the sky and it's going to rain a hell of a lot.
Rounding up the report, he conceded: 'So good luck with that and back to you, sir...'
He's a hit; After being introduced by the weatherman, who had been speaking about a tornado in Oklahoma, by the name of his Thor character, Tom quipped: 'Well, my brother from another mother has been misbehaving...'
Leaving the studio in fits of laughter, the British actor signed off with a polite 'thank you,' before saluting the camera.
Meanwhile, it's thought Tom is the front-runner to land a role that could blow all of his previous parts out of the water as fans continue to urge for the heartthrob to take over from Daniel Craig as the next James Bond.
When the final episode of The Night Manager aired on Sunday night, Tom's adorers dashed to Twitter where they called for the hunk to play 007.
It's his fault: Tom blamed Chris Hemsworth for the weather, quipping that his Thor co-star had 'taken his hammer and smashed it on the surface of the sky and it's going to rain a hell of a lot'
And Tom did nothing to quell rumours that he could be in line to fill Craig's shoes, after his character ordered the secret agent's signature drink in the concluding episode.
The Eton-educated star has been playing the lead role of Jonathan Pine in the John Le Carre adaptation, and last week he sent fans into meltdown after uttering the words: 'Excuse me, sir? Can I have a vodka martini please?'
Along with Tom, Luther stand-out Idris Elba, Homeland's Damian Lewis and even Poldark's Aidan Turner have all been in the running.
Suave: The Brit actor has been wowing audiences in recent weeks in his BBC drama The Night Manager
Doting mum Megan Gale posts frequent updates of her 22-month-old son on her social media, and Friday was no different for the Australian model.
The 40-year-old Perth native took to Instagram to share a sweet black-and-white snap of herself enjoying arts and crafts with her little lad, River.
Stretched out along a chequered mat, the former David Jones ambassador is pictured relishing in the moment as she scrawled across a large piece of paper with what appears to be a crayon.
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Monkeying around! Megan Gale shared a photo to Instagram on Friday as she spent the afternoon enjoying arts and crafts with her son River, as he climed on her back
Her cherubic tot is seen climb on his famous mother's back, watching on intently to his mother's creative work.
Letting the picture do all the talking, Megan simple captioned the post with three love heart emoticons.
Days earlier, the model mum took to Instagram to share a photo of the fun and games she had planned for River during the four-day Easter weekend.
'Get your craft on': The 40-year-old confessed she had a love of crafts and planed to create Easter themed artworks with her 22-month-old son River
'Turns out, I'm that parent that's really into arts and craft': The model mum recently spoke about her love for arts and crafts with her son and the bonding experience it brings
'One thing I love about becoming a parent is that as the journey advances, you start to learn a LOT about yourself along the way and what kind of parent you really are,' the brunette beauty started off the long-winded post.
The accompanying image featured a photo of arts and crafts neatly laid out across a bright pink table cloth.
'Turns out, I'm that parent that's really into arts and craft which is guided by the fact my son LOVES it (albeit within the standard toddler attention span - so maybe I love it more),' she added.
'The fact I've bought pipe cleaners and a protective table cloth says a lot.
Fun in the sun! The brunette beauty posted a photo as she cuddled her cherubic tot during a recent family holiday
Famous mother: Megan is one of Australia's prominent model exports, having walked in Milan Fashion Week
'The thing I do love is that you get to re-experience lots of things you found fun as a kid that you haven't done in years and see the joy it brings your child.
'All of that said I have no idea what exactly we're going to do with all of this stuff yet and my skills are rusty but I've stocked up and we're hoping for the best,' she concluded.
The pictured featured pipe cleaners, a carton of eggs, textas, glitter sticks, cotton buds, food die and paper cutouts.
Megan and her long-term partner Shaun Hampson welcomed their son River May, 2014.
The model and the AFL player began dating in late 2010.
She's spent the past couple of weeks in her favourite holiday destination with her loved ones.
But on Friday it was time to jet back to reality for mum of three Coleen Rooney as she was seen heading to the airport in Barbados for her flight home.
As well as plenty of luggage, the doting mum managed to get her three boys, Kai, six, Klay, two and two-month-old Kit into the airport, with some help from her parents Colette and Tony.
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Leaving on a jet plane: On Friday it was time to jet back to reality for mum of three Coleen Rooney as she was seen heading to the airport in Barbados for her flight home with her sons and parents
Coleen, 29, who has been showing off her curves in a string of bikinis during her beach break, flaunted her glowing holiday tan in a chic cream vest top for her flight home.
The gorgeous star added skinny fit jeans which highlighted her svelte post-baby figure, while she kept comfy in flat metallic sandals.
She added a pretty pink print scarf around her neck, while her long locks were tied back into an effortless up do.
Holiday glow: Coleen, 29, flaunted her glowing holiday tan in a chic cream vest top as she carried her two-month-old son Kit into the airport
Mum on a mission! The star juggled her children's luggage as she headed into departures
Coleen was seen carrying her youngest son Kit in his carrier, while her parents took charge of her older boys, with a laughing Tony hoisting little Klay onto his shoulders.
Both older boys were still in their holiday wardrobes, with Klay in a white print tee and shorts, while Kai sported red and blue.
As well as her sons, Coleen helped carry the family's huge collection of suitcases and hand luggage, with the assistance of several porters, into the airport, making sure everyone and everything was checked in.
They've got baggage! The family's huge pile of suitcases was loaded onto a trolley by airport staff
Helping hands: Coleen's parents Colette and Tony were on hand to help with the airport scramble
Heading home: Coleen's mum took charge of Kit in his buggy
Mini me: Six-year-old Kai was no doubt looking forward to seeing his dad Wayne again, after the footballer stayed at home
Jet set chic: The gorgeous star's skinny fit jeans highlighted her svelte post-baby figure, while she kept comfy in flat metallic sandals
Coleen and her family have enjoyed a blissful couple of weeks in their favourite holiday destination, while her husband Wayne is kept busy with his football career back home in the UK.
The Rooneys often frequent Barbados as Coleen and Wayne have owned a holiday home on the island since 2010.
Their stunning whitewashed villa is situated on the island's 750-acre development, which is already home to several famous personalities and stars.
Finishing touches: She added a pretty pink print scarf around her neck, while her long locks were tied back into an effortless up do
Taking charge: Six-year-old Kai wheeled his own suitcase into Barbados airport
Super mum: Coleen flashed a smile despite the no doubt stressful experience of getting her family onto their flight home
Checking in: The star made sure the family had everything as they waited in line
Located in the exclusive and celebrity favourite holiday estate, Royal Westmoreland, the lavish villa was furnished by Coleen when it was built six years ago.
Coleen and Wayne tied the knot in June 2008; the pair have been an item since the age of 16.
The glamorous star previously opened up about family life in an interview with MailOnline, revealing that it was important to make time for each other as a couple as well as spending time with the children.
Mummy and me: Coleen's son Klay was dressed for the sun in his cute t-shirt and short combo
Perfectly coordinated: Kai meanwhile was in red and blue
Favourite spot: Coleen and her family have enjoyed a blissful couple of weeks in their favourite holiday destination
Frequent visitor: The Rooneys often frequent Barbados as Coleen and Wayne have owned a holiday home on the island since 2010
Family trip: Coleen is often joined by her parents on her luxury holidays to the isle
Back to school! Kai has been seen enjoying watersports and fun-packed days on the beach during the break
She explained: 'There is no secret. We've had our ups and downs and it's been tough at times but we've had so many happy ones too.
'It's just about being as strong individually as we are together and that's all that can happen in a relationship. Also now that we have kids, we make sure that we have time together.
'We make sure that one night a week we go out for dinner or go to the cinema or something so that we have time for each other.'
Home away from home: Coleen and Wayne's stunning whitewashed villa is situated on the island's 750-acre development, which is already home to several famous personalities and stars
Good to be home: The star was no doubt looking forward to seeing her husband Wayne again
Helping out: Coleen followed her mum through the airport, with both ladies flaunting a holiday glow
Sad to go? The family looked a little glum as they waited to check in
What a trip! Coleen and her family frequent Barbados at least once a year so will likely be back soon
As movie stars tour the world to promote a new film, they agree to take part in quirky radio stunts to mix things up a little.
And that's exactly what happened to Chris Hemsworth on Thursday when he visited Nick Grimshaw's BBC Radio 1 breakfast show in London to talk about The Huntsman: Winter's War.
While talking to the radio and TV identity, Chris read out loud the lyrics to the chorus from Rihanna's R&B song Work, fumbling over the words at times and struggling to keep a straight face.
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'Makes you just want to get to work really': Chris Hemsworth took part in a radio stunt when he visited BBC Radio 1's Nick Grimshaw on Thursday, reading aloud the lyrics to Rihanna's song Work
'It was like I was at the Globe [theatre] watching Shakespeare,' Nick commented.
'I just lost myself in that,' Chris replied, adding in a mocking tone: 'It just drummed up a whole lot of feelings, emotions and past experiences'.
'Makes you just want to get to work really,' the 32-year-old actor added.
LYRICS TO RIHANNA'S WORK: Work, work, work, work, work, work He said me haffi Work, work, work, work, work, work! He see me do mi Dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt! So me put in Work, work, work, work, work, work Advertisement
Good Work! Rihanna collaboration with Drake hit the top of the charts this year in Australia, the UK and US
As the Australian hunk continues to travel the world to promote the action-filled prequel to 2012's Snow White and The Huntsman, he's been showing off his softer side.
And during an appearance on Thursdays Good Morning Britain, Hollywood star Chris Hemsworth was more than happy to gush about wedded life with his beloved wife, Elsa Pataky.
It did happen quick and it just felt right, it made sense, the 32-year-old confessed when discussing how fast their relationship progressed.
'It just felt right': Showing off his softer side as he promotes the action-packed movie, Chris gushed about wedded life with his beloved wife, Elsa Pataky, during an appearance on Thursdays Good Morning Britain
Smitten: The former Home And Away actor started dating Spanish actress Elsa in early 2010, and they tied the knot in low-key ceremony in December that year
The former Home And Away actor started dating Spanish actress Elsa in early 2010, and they tied the knot in low-key ceremony in December that year.
There was no great plan to any of it to be honest, he added. We were on holiday and we said why don't we get married too? And then the next minute... There probably should have been some planning but it all worked out.
Honestly, we had both our families on holiday at the same time, just randomly, and we said this is a good opportunity with everyone together so we just did it.
Mike Smith, the man behind the cult character Bubbles from resurrected comedy Trailer Park Boys, was arrested early Friday morning.
TMZ reports that the 43-year-old actor was taken into custody after a verbal altercation with a woman allegedly turned violent.
The Canadian actor - whose show's tenth season was released on Netflix just days earlier - was detained by Hollywood Police at 1.15am after witnesses reported a man and woman fighting in a bathroom at the Roosevelt Hotel.
Arrested: The man behind the cult character Bubbles from Trailer Park Boys, Mike Smith (pictured centre with co-stars Robb Wells and John Paul Tremblay) was arrested in Hollywood on Friday for domestic battery
The actor was charged with misdemeanor domestic battery but released just after 5am Friday morning on $20,000 bail, the Dailymail.com has confirmed.
Witnesses told TMZ that the Trailer Park Boys star and the woman were arguing in the restrooms near the hotel's iconic pool and bar reportedly over who the actor was texting.
Alleged scene: Witnesses claim the actor was arguing with the woman in the bathrooms of the Roosevelt Hotel
Witnesses claim they then heard the woman yell, 'You're chocking me', and when they ran to help they say Mike pinning the woman against the bathroom wall.
The actor - whose rep did not respond to requests for comment by TMZ - then reportedly ran away but was detained a short time later by LAPD officers.
Earlier in the evening the star had been at performance by English funnyman Noel Fielding before heading to the Hollywood Boulevard hotel.
Mike has previously spoken out against violence against women supporting his fellow Trailer Park Boys star Lucy DeCoutere after she accused Canadian radio personality Jian Ghomeshi of choking and raping her.
Last month, Jian was found not guilty of raping the actress and two other women who also said they were attacked by him.
Back in 2014, Mike wrote on Twitter: 'I am incredibly proud of my friend @lucydecoutere for having the courage to come forward against #JianGhomeshi Way to go Luce! #IBelieveLucy.'
Mike became the breakout star of TV mockumentary Trailer Park Boys when it first aired in Canada in the early 2000s playing trailer park inhabitant Bubbles.
The cult show has been resurrected after old episodes found a large international following thanks to Netflix.
The streaming service has since commissioned new episodes and a number of specials with its tenth season released March 28, just days before Mike's arrest.
Cult character: Mike became the breakout star of TV mockumentary Trailer Park Boys when it first aired in Canada in the early 2000s playing trailer park inhabitant Bubbles
He was forced to watch as his girlfriend cheated on him with another man on Celebrity Big Brother, watched by the whole nation.
But despite the controversy surrounding Stephanie Davis and Jeremy McConnell's love affair, Sam Reece had remained silent - until now.
Speaking to the Daily Star, the model explained that rather than hold any ill-feelings towards the former Hollyoaks actress, he has 'accepted' her actions and is focused on moving on.
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'What she did, she did and I've accepted it': Sam Reece broke his silence on Stephanie Davis and Jeremy McConnell's love - saying he's 'accepted' what's happened
Speaking about Stephanie's amorous actions in the house - while she was still officially going out with Sam - the former footballer explained he has learned to live with what happened.
'It was really good before she went into the house,' he said of their relationship. 'But what she did, she did and I've accepted it.'
The pair had been dating for just over a year when the 23-year-old actress entered the Celebrity Big Brother house, where she and Jeremy began their rollercoaster romance.
And while he has maintained a dignified silence on the whole affair, the model explained that he is enjoying the single life.
Over it: Speaking to the Daily Star, the model explained that rather than hold any ill-feelings towards the former Hollyoaks actress he said he's the 'happiest' he's ever been following the split
'What's happened has happened, but good luck to them both': Holding no ill feeling towards the couple, the model wished his 23-year-old ex the best of luck with Jeremy, 25
He candidly confessed that he's prefers his new single status, explaining that he's the 'happiest' he's ever been following his split with the soap actress.
However, he also explained that he holds no ill-will towards his ex and her on/off boyfriend, saying: 'What's happened has happened, but good luck to them both.'
And while Sam's modelling career may have received a boost thanks to the furor surrounding his split with Stephanie, he hinted that a move into TV could be coming soon.
Dropping the biggest hint yet that he's signing on for MTV's Ex On The Beach, Sam confirmed he'd been in talks with the show's producers.
'Yes there have been phone calls flying back and forth about different things so we will see what happens,' he explained.
When approached by the MailOnline a representative of Stephanie's declined to comment.
Happier time: Dropping the biggest hint yet that he's signing on for MTV's Ex On The Beach, Sam (pcitured with Stephanie in 2015) confirmed he'd been in talks with the show's producers
Moving on and up: Jeremy recently unveiled the latest development in his shocking romance with Stephanie Davis as he blasted 'sick people' who intervened in their love
Meanwhile Jeremy and Stephanie's romance appears to have be back on following their latest split, as the model blasted 'sick people' who intervened in their relationship.
The 25-year-old Irish model spoke to Mirror about false messages sent to the former Hollyoaks actress claiming he had cheated, which ultimately led to their latest break-up.
Jeremy and Stephanie, who have split up three times in the space of their two-month-romance, were most recently torn apart when Stephanie was sent messages purportedly sent from her hunky beau to another girl.
The Dublin-born model told the publication: 'There are some sick people out there' - after the duo insisted that the messages were falsified.
In a series of emotional posts on Twitter on Tuesday afternoon, Stephanie, who claimed to go on a double date on Monday night, revealed she had to 'follow my heart'.
The soap star had publicly dumped the Irish model on Saturday after discovering messages between him and another woman.
Kiss, kiss: The 25-year-old Irish model spoke to Mirror about false messages sent to the former Hollyoaks actress, 23, claiming he had cheated, which ultimately led to their latest break-up
However, it appears she's had a change of heart and now declares the messages 'aren't true'.
She wrote on Tuesday: 'I can confirm the messages supposedly sent from Jeremy aren't true. Everyone can hate and say what they like, but at the end of the day I met a boy who I fell in love with.
'It's been hard with all the press and tweets, have all you not experienced heartache. It's been so hard for us. And if you could all see the pain I've been in and him you would understand.
Emotional: Stephanie's tweets on Tuesday suggested she may be giving Jeremy another chance
'Yes you're right and I won't be posting my life on social media. But when you meet someone you love and can't live without, you know its real.
'This week has been the worst week of my life and I just want to be happy. Against me or not I'll do what I have to do and follow my heart. Where sets what will be will be.
'There's a lot u don't know only by what papers say. It's my life and my choice, I might be wrong I might be right... I can only follow my heart & I hope.'
A furious Stephanie posted screenshots over the weekend of the apparent conversation between the tattooed model and another women, writing: 'I believed him ... And they were all true! Absolute joke! Liar.'
Can you keep up? The pair appeared on Loose Women last month after cancelling an earlier appearance after a very brief split
Although Jeremy previously admitted to sleeping with women during the week between leaving CBB and when he officially started dating Stephanie, this time the soap star claimed he was messaging another woman while they were together.
She fumed: 'He was not single we were 2gether. He lied swore on his mum's life and said they were edited & made up.. there 100 per cent proof.
'Think that's... 5 girls now lols. What don't kill you makes you stronger I'm actually laughing [sic].'
Jeremy vehemently denied Stephanie's accusations, telling the Mirror Online: 'I'm saddened and feel sick the lies and slander she's caused.
'We broke up last week down to other issues which I won't go into. But bringing all this up again which is months old, and bring my dead mam into it like she did was low, but it probably is her way to deflect on what really broke us up.'
Raging: Stephanie posted screenshots of an apparent conversation between Jeremy and another woman on Saturday morning
Their latest break-up comes nearly a month after their last split, when Stephanie found out about the women Jeremy had slept with while she was still in the Celebrity Big Brother house.
Stephanie entered the CBB house on January 5 while dating male model Sam Reece, but found her head turned by Jeremy.
The Irish model was evicted from the show on 29 February, before he was reunited with Stephanie upon her exit from CBB a week later.
During their week apart before they officially started dating on 5 February, it appears Jeremy was enjoying many women's company during his various nightclub appearances.
The pair also briefly split just two weeks into their romance after a drunken misunderstanding over text messages.
MailOnline has contacted the couple's rep for comment.
Rebecca Judd and her mini-me daughter Billie have proved style certainly runs in the family.
Taking to her social media sites on Saturday, the 33-year-old model shared a sweet snap of the duo looking very cute in matching floral raincoats.
The Australian beauty dressed her lean and slender frame in a chic trench with knee-high leather boots, while her two-year-old tot wore a coordinated jacket with printed leggings.
Just like mummy! Rebecca Judd and daughter Billie looked stylish in matching floral coats as they shared tender kiss in cute Instagram snap, posted on Saturday
The candid picture saw the mother and daughter share a tender moment as they enjoyed a kiss on the lips, while kicking back beside a glamorous pool.
Yes we are totes matching in our @paqme_australia raincoats. Ca-yute, the mother-of-two captioned the shot.
The post comes one day after Rebecca revealed that she and husband Chris are now proud owners of a beautiful Burmese cat named Cherry.
'Welcome to the family Cherry': The post comes one day after Rebecca revealed that she and husband Chris are now proud owners of a beautiful Burmese cat
Happy couple: The lovebirds are parents to four-year-old son Oscar and daughter Billie, aged two
Welcome to the family Cherry, she said alongside the image, later explaining how the couple's four-year-old son helped with the name choosing.
Oscar named her this after his first name preference, "pussy" was vetoed by his parents, she explained.
For everyone asking, she's a lilac Burmese. Ive always had cats but never a Burmese but chose her as apparently they are great with kids. One hour in and she is obsessed with them and they love her too.
It's been a busy few weeks for the Judd clan who have just returned home from a whirlwind trip to South Africa.
Helping herself: The striking model and presenter recently shared a video with her fans on Instagram as she hilariously caught her daughter stealing Easter eggs from the kitchen
During their time away doting mum Bec snapped a selfie with her lookalike daughter as they cuddled up together.
'Judd girls do Cape Town', the doting mother wrote in the caption before adding, 'Next stop @madinatjumeirah (again!)'
Rebecca, Chris, Oscar and Billie have been holidaying during the time of the year usually set aside for the AFL pre-season.
Former Carlton player Chris, 32, retired from the game in 2015 following a serious knee injury.
She surprised fans by candidly confessing she didn't get on with fellow A-lister Tom Hardy while filming Mad Max: Fury Road.
And following her intriguing revelation, Charlize Theron was spotted jetting out of Milan's Malpensa's airport on Friday, cradling her cute daughter August in her arms.
The Hollywood beauty was seen fussing over the little girl - who she adopted in her namesake month, August, last year - as she arrived at the terminal, cooing over the toddler.
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Doting mum: Charlize Theron was cradling her cute daughter August in her arms as she jetted out of Milan's Malpensa's airport on Friday after promoting her latest movie, The Huntsman: Winter's Tale
Charlize looked every inch the protective mother as she wrapped the little girl up in a grey blanket upon exiting her vehicle.
The 40-year-old actress was dressed down in a pair of blue jeans, a stripy shirt and a fitted navy jumper.
The star looked pleased to be heading home to the US after promoting her latest movie, The Huntsman: Winter's Tale.
Reports first surfaced that Charlize had adopted a second child, in October.
Family oriented: Charlize is said to have adopted the little girl last summer after working with with a US adoption agency for six months
According to TMZ, the award-winner - who also adopted her four-year-old son Jackson from South Africa in 2012 - took custody of the African-American tot after working with with a US adoption agency for six months.
Charlize's appearance at the airport comes just after she admitted things weren't easy between her and British actor Tom during filming of Mad Max: Fury Road.
The South African beauty spent nine months making the hit film and the relationship with her co-star was clearly difficult.
'From what I hear, hes not like that on every movie,' she told the Wall Street Journal Magazine. 'I hear hes had good experiences.'
Tensions: Charlize and Tom Hardy appeared cool with each other while promoting Mad Max: Fury Road last year, but the actress has admitted the two didn't get along on set. They're pictured at Cannes in May
The actress went on: 'Maybe the movie is what it is because we struggled so much with each other, and those characters had to struggle so much with each other. If we were chum-chum, maybe the movie would have been 10 times worse.'
Theron has spoken previously about the on set clashes with Hardy, who remained in character between takes.
She told Esquire magazine back in April 2015 that they 'drove each other crazy.'
And when filming finally ended, her co-star presented her with a self-portrait and the note: 'You are an absolute nightmare, BUT you are also f***ing awesome. I'll kind of miss you. Love, Tommy.'
Not a happy experience: The South African star clashed with the British actor during the nine month shoot in Australia and Namibia - something that mimicked the reluctant relationship between their on-screen characters
Mad Max director George Miller described how the relationship between his two lead actors mimicked their on-screen characters.
'Im not saying that they were seething right through, but the trajectory of the characters cant help but seep into the work,' he told WSJ.
'When they first meet each other, theyre trying to kill each other. As the two characters come together out of necessity and rather reluctantly, they have to find a degree of trust. And to some extent that was the trajectory of their relationship as well,' he explained.
Method in the madness: Theron, pictured on Italian TV this week, has acknowledged that if she and Hardy had been friends, the movie might not have been as good or as big a hit
The apocalyptic action-packed adventure pulled in a global take of more than 377 million when it was released last year.
It was also nominated for 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won six.
Theron will next be seen on the big screen in The Huntsman: Winter's War with Chris Hemsworth and Jessica Chastain, which opens in North America on April 22.
She's been aiding her estranged husband's recovery from a near-fatal drug and alcohol binge at a Nevada brothel back in October.
But Khloe Kardashian, 31, is allegedly wracked with worry after Lamar Odom, 36, was spotted drinking alcohol in an Irish bar last Saturday night.
According to TMZ, Khloe has postponed filming this week's Kocktails with Khloe after falling ill with stress due to the former basketball star's behaviour.
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Concerned: Khloe Kardashian, 31, is reportedly wracked with worry after Lamar Odom, 36, was pictured drinking in an Irish bar last Saturday night
The celebrity gossip site claims the pair have been arguing all week as the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star attempts to persuade Lamar to get treatment.
MailOnline has contacted representatives for Khloe and is awaiting comment.
The former LA Lakers star spent the holiday with Khloe and her family, but the reality star did not appear in the festive spirit.
See more of the latest Khloe Kardashian updates as she 'stresses over Lamar's drinking'
Not in the festive spirits: Khloe and her estranged husband Lamar headed to church with her family on Easter Sunday after the former NBA star spent a night out drinking
'Khloe is very worried about Lamar and his behavior,' an inside source told People. 'But Lamar refuses to listen to her.'
Due to the fragile state of his kidneys because of the overdose, alcohol consumption carries considerable danger.
Lamar even responded to Khloe's pleas by stating: 'Nothing will happen to me. Look how I survived the last time.'
See Khloe Kardashian upates as she is very worried about ex Lamar Odom's risky behavior
'Nothing will happen': An inside source told People that Khloe is 'very worried' about Lamar's risky behavior but the former Los Angeles Lakers star 'refuses to listen'
And although the E! star filed for divorce from Odom in 2013, she put things on hold in order to continue making medical decisions for him and her family.
After recuperating at Cedars-Sinai hospital for nearly three months, Khloe, 31, moved him to a $3 million Calabasas home where she pays the rent.
'Khloe supports Lamar financially in every way,' the source added, including that she also paid off his entire hospital bill.
Lamar was pictured hitting a bar in Los Angeles just hours before attending an Easter church service.
'Refuses to deal': According to TMZ, Odom's drinking has reached crisis levels, but Lamar is not so keen to receive treatment
According to TMZ, his drinking has reached crisis levels, but Lamar is not so keen to receive treatment.
Sources told the site: 'Khloe's doing everything she can to convince him to get treatment for addiction. We're told he's happy to go to physical rehab, but refuses to deal with his drug demons.'
Adding: 'She's even suggested an outpatient program, but Odom remains defiant.'
The site also reported that Khloe's 'telling friends and family there will come a point when she has to stop trying to save Lamar.'
Nostalgic: Lamar caught his first Los Angeles Lakers game on Wednesday as he sat courtside at the Staples Center
Odom allegedly bought multiple glasses of brandy, according to the gossip site.
The sports star is reported to have arrived at the establishment just before midnight on Saturday with two male friends. He didn't leave until around 1:00 am on Sunday.
TMZ added on Tuesday that those in Lamar's inner circle are worried because the former athlete thinks he can 'drink whenever he wants.' The source also commented that he is heading down a 'dark path' once more.
He's cared for his beloved Bengal cat Prince ever since he acquired the rare breed in 2014 when it was just eight weeks old.
But poor Joey Essex, 25, was spotted desperately searching for the stunning feline after it went missing for the second time on Friday.
The reality star begged his 3.51 million Twitter followers to help him track down Prince with a heartfelt post.
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Missing! Joey Essex, 25, desperately searched for his beloved Bengal cat Prince after it went missing for the second time on Friday
Attached: Joey has cared for Prince ever since he acquired the rare breed in 2014 when it was just eight weeks old
Posting a picture of himself cradling his cat, he wrote: 'My cat @PrinceEssex has got lost again or stolen. I have been looking for him all morning. Please help find him <3'.
Yesterday, Joey was spotted looking worried while out on the street searching for the cat.
He lifted his hand up in a frustrated manner while talking on his mobile, no doubt desperately trying to ascertain Prince's whereabouts.
Desperate! The reality star even scaled a wall surrounding a residential building to peer over some railings and search the bushes below
He even scaled a wall surrounding a residential building to peer over some railings and search the bushes below.
MailOnline has contacted a representative for Joey for comment and is awaiting comment.
The lovable Essex lad dressed in trendy streetwear, covering his peroxide locks with a black Nike cap which he teamed with some matching jogging bottoms.
He kept things co-ordinated with a black jacket worn open to reveal a grey T-shirt underneath.
Help! The reality star begged his 3.51 million Twitter followers to help him track down Prince with a heartfelt post
The latest update was posted on Saturday afternoon and read: 'My cat @PrinceEssex has been lost for 2 days now... Please help #helpfindPrinceEssex'.
However, Joey has reason to be hopeful. When Prince went missing last year the handsome feline returned unharmed.
The cat is hugely popular in its own right, boasting an impressive 23,100 followers on its own Twitter account.
Bengal cats are bred to look like jungle cats and can retail for thousands of pounds.
Concerned Joey looked worlds away from the carefree character who holidayed with pals in Dubai midway through March.
He was joined in the popular tourist destination by pals Jake Taylor and Danny Walia, and the trio looked to be having a blast as they drank Jack Daniels and coke by the pool and soaked up the sun.
Come home soon: Joey has reason to be hopeful. When Prince went missing last year he returned unharmed
Gwyneth Paltrow flew down to South America with her children to help support ex Chris Martin during his tour.
The 43-year-old actress' trip was off to rolling start as she shared pictures from the Peruvian countryside on Saturday.
Gwyneth and her kids Apple, 11, and Moses, nine, toured a village and got meet a friendly llama.
Local culture: Gwyneth Paltrow treated her children Apple and Moses to a fun-filled day in the mountains of Peru while on holiday
'How is the back of an 11 year old prettier...': The youngsters got a pet a llama during their excursion and Gwyneth shared the encounter on Instagram on Saturday
Gwyneth was the picture of maternal bliss as she posed with her youngsters beside a stone-built dwelling, the mountains rising in the background.
Then the proud mom shared a photo of Apple and Moses petting a llama.
Gwyneth wasn't bashful either as she raved about her mini-me daughter looking 'prettier' with those waist-length locks and Bohemian-style clothes.
'How is the back of an 11 year old prettier than the both of us combined,' Gwyneth mused to a friend in the photo caption.
The snap showed Apple and Moses reaching out to pet the llama who calmly stood among the wild green grasses.
Out in the open: The 43-year-old actress shared a make-up free selfie from an outdoor market in Peru
Breathtaking view: Gwyneth shared a gorgeous snap of Peru's Sacred Valley
Gwyneth also traveled to an open air market set high amidst the green mountainous countryside of Peru.
'Local market #pisac #goopgo,' the actress captioned a selfie among the rustic stands in the Valle Sagrado, which means 'sacred valley.'
Gwyneth appeared make-up free with no trace of mascara, rouge or lip gloss.
Friendly exes: Gwyneth (pictured in Buenos Aires on March 31) flew down to South America with her children to support ex Chris Martin (also pictured in Buenos Aires on March 31) during his Coldplay tour
She wore a white fedora hat to partially shade her fair complexion from the strong rays of the sun, while her long yellow-blonde locks flowed freely past her shoulders.
In the background could be seen the various wares on display such as brightly woven rugs, blankets and tote bags.
Gwyneth's trip down south came just a week after she and Chris Martin finalized their divorce, two whole years after announcing their split.
The willowy actress was seen arriving in Buenos Aires, Argentina on March 29 and strolling through the hotel two days later.
The Coldplay frontman was spotted greeting fans in front of the hotel where the couple was staying in separate rooms.
Obviously, the couple is getting along just fine despite the break.
Security Council set to vote on UN police presence in Burundi
The UN Security Council is expected to unanimously adopt a French draft resolution Friday that would lay the groundwork for a UN police presence to help quell violence in Burundi, diplomats said.
The council will meet at 2300 GMT for the vote that caps days of tough negotiations between France and the United States over the wording of the measure.
The draft resolution would request that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon report back to the council in 15 days with options for the deployment of the police presence.
Burundi has been in turmoil since President Pierre Nkurunziza announced plans in April to run for a third term, which he went on to win
Diplomats said they expected unanimous backing for the draft resolution after agreement was reached on a final text that addressed US objections to some provisions.
The final revised text dropped a reference to UN support for "disarmament" in Burundi -- a term that the United States saw as a potential source of problems after the Burundian government launched a crackdown to disarm opposition activists.
The draft resolution provides for the "deployment of a United Nations police contribution to increase the United Nations capacity to monitor the security situation, promote the respect of human rights and advance rule of law" in Burundi.
The text does not specify the size of the proposed police force but Russia has said that it would support a small deployment of fewer than 100 officers who could help Burundi ensure its security forces respect human rights.
The UN Security Council is under pressure to take action in Burundi where the recent slide into violence has raised fears of mass atrocities, similar to those that convulsed neighboring Rwanda.
Burundi has been in turmoil since President Pierre Nkurunziza announced plans in April to run for a third term, which he went on to win.
Violence has left more than 400 dead and driven more than 250,000 people across the border.
At a council meeting last week, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said reports of torture were on the rise since the beginning of the year and that Burundians "live in terror."
A recent visit by UN rights officials to detention centers in the capital Bujumbura found that almost half of detainees had been tortured or ill-treated, some seriously, he said.
The draft resolution calls for beefing up the UN team of envoy Jamal Benomar, but the mandate of the enhanced political mission was not spelled out.
US military training 'dozens' of moderate Syrian rebels
The US military is currently working with "dozens" of Syrian rebels under a revamped train-and-equip program implemented after a much-criticized initiative collapsed last year, an official said Friday.
The Pentagon drew heavy fire last October after admitting its $500-million efforts to train entire units of "moderate" Syrians to fight Islamic State jihadists had floundered, with numbers of trainees falling massively short of the planned 5,000 or so.
Recruitment was slow, in particular because the rebels had to pass stringent background checks to weed out extremists and many objected to being forced to pledge to fight only the IS group and not President Bashar al-Assad's regime.
Rebel fighters walk in Tal al-Aswan in the area of the eastern Ghouta rebel bastion east of the Syrian capital, Damascus, during clashes with government forces on February 9, 2016 Amer Almohibany (AFP/File)
One group even handed over ammunition and other gear to a local Al-Qaeda affiliate, known as the Al-Nusra Front.
The Pentagon created a new program to replace the failed effort.
Instead of trying to pull entire rebel units from the front lines, train them and send them back again, the US military is now working with just a handful of members from each group.
"If you have a highly trained individual here, well, the man on his left and right are going to benefit from his great training," Baghdad-based US military spokesman Colonel Steve Warren told Pentagon reporters.
"For the price of training one, you've got three who are better, and maybe even more than that. So, that's kind of what we're looking at doing here."
Warren declined to say how many Syrians had been trained, saying only that it was "dozens."
Since October, the US military has also sent about 50 special operations forces into Syria to work with local militias fighting the IS group.
Much of the attention is being focused on the Syrian Democratic Forces, a largely Kurdish coalition that has scored some significant gains against IS jihadists.
The CIA has also been involved in training Syrian rebels, though the secretive agency has not officially provided any details of its efforts.
More than 270,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011 and millions more have fled their homes.
Castroneves grabs pole as IndyCar returns to Phoenix
Brazil's Helio Castroneves set a track lap record en route to winning pole position on Friday for the IndyCar Phoenix Grand Prix.
Castroneves posted a two-lap average speed of 192.324 mph (309.52 Km/h) in his Team Penske Chevrolet to top the qualifying times.
His first lap of 19.0997 seconds (192.631 mph, 310.01 Km/h) was the sixth and final lap of the day that improved on the track record set 20 years ago by Dutchman Arie Luyendyk.
Helio Castroneves, driver of the #3 Team Penske Chevrolet IndyCar, practices for the Phoenix Grand Prix at Phoenix International Raceway on April 1, 2016 in Avondale, Arizona Christian Petersen (Getty/AFP)
Brazilian Tony Kanaan was second-fastest in a Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet, with a two-lap average of 191.511 mph.
Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya, will start third after qualifying at 191.366 mph.
The pole position is the 46th of Castroneves' career, fourth most in IndyCar history.
It is his second top qualifying performance at Phoenix, which last hosted open-wheel racing in 2005.
The 1.022-mile oval in the Arizona desert was a victim of the feud between Indy and the old Champ Car series, with only a few thousand fans turning up in 2005.
Since then it has regularly hosted popular NASCAR stock car races.
Japan's Takuma Sato and Canadian James Hinchcliffe both were unable to qualify as their cars continued undergoing repairs following separate crashes in morning practice.
Both lost control of their cars entering turn one and spun back first into the barrier between turns one and two.
Neither was seriously hurt, but their teams couldn't get their cars ready for qualifying and they will start Saturday night's race at the back of the grid.
Andretti Autosports Carlos Munoz of Colombia became the third driver of the weekend to hit the wall in nearly the same fashion, on his second qualifying lap.
Obama says he would like to reduce US nuke arsenal
President Barack Obama said Friday he would like to further cut the US nuclear arsenal, admitting he has concerns about efforts to modernize America's most deadly weapons.
"My preference would be to bring down further our nuclear arsenal," he told reporters at the end of a Nuclear Security Summit he hosted in Washington.
Obama, who won a Nobel Peace Prize in his first year in office for his commitment to non-proliferation, was responding to a question about updates to the US arsenal.
US President Barack Obama speaks during a press conference at the conclusion of the 2016 Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, DC, April 1, 2016 Mandel Ngan (AFP)
He was asked if there was a risk that US rivals like Russia and China would feel compelled to expand their stockpiles if America improves the lethality of its own.
"I think it's a legitimate question, and I am concerned," Obama said.
"Here's the balance that we've had to strike. We have a nuclear stockpile that we have to make sure is safe and make sure is reliable."
UN backs move to deploy police presence in Burundi
The UN Security Council on Friday unanimously backed a resolution that lays the groundwork for deploying a UN police presence in Burundi to help quell nearly a year of violence.
Drafted by France, the resolution tasks UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon with drawing up within 15 days a list of options for the proposed police force, in consultation with the Burundian government and the African Union.
The council is under pressure to take action in Burundi where the descent into violence has raised fears of mass atrocities, similar to those that convulsed neighboring Rwanda in 1994.
Burundi has been in turmoil since President Pierre Nkurunziza announced plans in April to run for a third term, which he went on to win Griff Tapper (AFP/File)
"This resolution is a first step towards a strengthened UN presence in Burundi to help ensure the respect for human rights and alert the international community on the reality of the situation on the ground," French Ambassador Francois Delattre said.
The vote capped days of tough negotiations between France and the United States over the wording of the resolution, the second measure adopted by the council over the Burundi crisis.
The resolution provides for the "deployment of a United Nations police contribution to increase the United Nations capacity to monitor the security situation, promote the respect of human rights and advance rule of law" in Burundi.
The text does not specify the size of the proposed police force but Burundi's UN Ambassador Albert Shingiro said he expected between 20 and 30 police to be deployed as unarmed "experts and observers."
"For the government, it is very important to have an international presence in Bujumbura in order to work in transparency," Shingiro told reporters ahead of the vote.
Under an agreement with the African Union, some 200 human rights observers and military monitors are to be deployed in Burundi, but fewer than 50 have in fact arrived, US Deputy Ambassador David Pressman told the council.
- French-US negotiations -
Burundi has been in turmoil since President Pierre Nkurunziza announced plans in April to run for a third term, which he went on to win.
Violence has left more than 400 dead and driven more than 250,000 people across the border.
After France pushed for a quick vote on the resolution, the United States complained that the text was being rushed through and raised objections to some of the language.
The final revised text dropped a reference to UN support for "disarmament" in Burundi -- a term that the United States saw as a potential source of problems after the Burundian government launched a crackdown to disarm opposition activists.
At a council meeting last week, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said reports of torture were on the rise since the beginning of the year and that Burundians "live in terror."
A recent visit by UN rights officials to detention centers in the capital Bujumbura found that almost half of detainees had been tortured or ill-treated, some seriously, he said.
The resolution calls for beefing up the UN team of envoy Jamal Benomar, but the mandate of the enhanced political mission was not spelled out.
Violence has left more than 400 dead and driven more than 250,000 people across the border
China blocks India's UN request to blacklist Pakistani militant
China has blocked a request from India to add the head of the Pakistani militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad to a UN sanctions blacklist, UN diplomats said.
India accuses Masood Azhar of involvement in an attack on the Pathankot air base in the northern state of Punjab in January.
Chinese Ambassador Liu Jieyi on Friday said that the request to add the militant leader to the UN Al-Qaeda/Islamic State sanctions list did not meet certain requirements, but did not elaborate.
Activists carry placards of the chief of Jaish-e-Mohammad, Masood Azhar, during a protest in Mumbai on January 4, 2016, against the attack on the air force base in Pathankot, India's northern state of Punjab Indranil Mukherjee (AFP/File)
"Any listing would have to meet the necessary requirements," said Liu. "It is the responsibility of all members of the council to make sure that these requirements are followed."
UN diplomats said the request would be discussed by the sanctions committee on April 20 and that China would then provide an update on its decision to oppose the request.
The Pakistani extremist Islamist group, which is fighting Indian control of Kashmir, has already been blacklisted by the UN Security Council, but not Azhar.
Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan by a heavily militarized Line of Control since the end of British colonial rule in 1947.
Fiat used by Pope in New York fetches $300,000
A four-door hatchback Pope Francis used while visiting New York in September has fetched $300,000 at auction, said the website that held the sale.
The black Fiat 500 Lounge was one of two such mini Popemobiles that ferried the pontiff around the Big Apple.
At more than 12 times its base price, it was snapped up by millionaire businessman Miles Nadal, who already owns more than 130 cars and motorbikes, according to the Charitybuzz auction website.
The black Fiat 500 Lounge was one of two such mini Popemobiles that ferried the pontiff around the Big Apple John Moore (Getty Images/AFP/File)
Proceeds will go to Catholic schools and charities in the New York diocese, as well as two international agencies: Catholic Relief Services and the Catholic Near East Welfare Association.
"In a couple of occasions, (Pope Francis) was in the Popemobile. For the rest of his time, when he was not in the Popemobile, this is how he traveled around in the motorcade," New York Archdiocese spokesman Joseph Zwilling told AFP earlier this week.
The second Fiat will also be used to raise money for charitable causes, although plans have not been set, he said.
Charitybuzz had valued the practically new vehicle, featuring a fixed glass roof and premium seats, at $82,000.
That's how much a Fiat used by the Pope in Philadelphia -- another stop on his September 22-27 US trip -- was sold for at a gala in late January.
The Fiat 500 Lounge base price is $24,695, Charitybuzz said.
US, Philippines hold war games as China flexes muscles
Thousands of US and Filipino soldiers will on Monday launch annual war games that this year are being seen as a show of strength in the face of China's increasing assertiveness in the region.
The 11-day Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) exercises are expected to show how the Philippines, though severely outgunned, can counter China with the help of the United States, its longest-standing ally.
China has in recent months built massive structures including radar systems and an airstrip over reefs and outcrops in the contested South China Sea, sparking international concern.
Philippine soldiers and a US soldier (C) take positions after disembarking from a C-47 Chinook helicopter during an air assault exercise inside the military training camp of Fort Magsaysay, north of Manila, in 2015 Ted Aljibe (AFP/File)
Beijing lays claim to almost all of the waters, which are important for international shipping and believed to hold valuable mineral and energy deposits, and neighbouring countries fear China could impose military controls over the entire sea.
The joint manoeuvres come ahead of a decision this year by a United Nations-backed tribunal on a legal challenge by Manila to China's territorial claims.
Adding to the tensions, the Philippines is preparing to host US troops in five bases under a defence pact born out of US President Barack Obama's plan to reassert American influence in the Pacific.
Balikatan has evolved from counter-terrorism manoeuvres against Islamic extremists like the Philippines' Abu Sayyaf, to simulations of retaking and protecting territory as disputes with Beijing have escalated.
However, Filipino and US officials insist the exercises are not explicitly aimed at China.
Balikatan spokesman Captain Celeste Frank Sayson said 55 US aircraft would take part in the drills, while the Philippines will deploy fighter jets it has recently acquired.
While no specific staging areas have been disclosed, the two allies have in recent years held war games at air bases just 230 kilometres (140 miles) from the disputed areas in the South China Sea.
Rene de Castro, an international studies professor at the De La Salle University in Manila, told AFP the drills appeared to have China's expansion in the South China Sea in mind.
"Looking at the features of Balikatan -- the mobile missile-launchers, the fighter planes -- that is an indication that the alliance is being geared for territorial defence," he said.
Richard Javad Heydarian, a political science professor at the De La Salle University in Manila, added that the exercises "aim to enhance interoperability among allies nations and signal their preparedness to confront China if necessary".
- Manila courts US, Japan -
The Philippine military said the US High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), designed to shoot down aircraft, will be sent to Palawan, the Philippines' westernmost island on the South China Sea, during the war games.
The Philippines operates one airstrip in the South China Sea, on Thitu island, where there are around 350 civilian residents.
It also keeps small military contingents in smaller outcrops, including Second Thomas Shoal, where Marines are stationed on a decaying World War II ship.
The Philippines, which has one of the weakest militaries in the region, has sought to counter China's overwhelming military advantage by improving ties with the United States and Japan.
While it has acquired new fighter jets and surplus US naval ships, the Southeast Asian nation still has far to go, De Castro warned.
China's defence budget dwarfs that of the Philippines and Beijing is this year set to outspend its smaller neighbour by a factor of around 60.
The Philippines is also increasing its military engagements with the US with the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement, which took effect in January.
Under the deal, US troops will rotate through five military camps including two air bases that are strategically positioned near the South China Sea.
"It is very apparent that the thrust of (the agreement) is air power," said former national security adviser Roilo Golez.
Australia, which recently criticised China's assertiveness in the disputed waters, is sending 80 troops to join parachute drills as part of the manoeuvres, Sayson said.
Obama this week confronted Chinese President Xi Jinping over Beijing's actions in the disputed seas.
Tensions have flared between the superpowers since the US sent warships close to disputed islands twice in the past six months.
Turkey detains 'perpetrator of Diyarbakir car bombing': report
Turkish authorities on Saturday detained the suspected perpetrator of a car bomb attack in its main Kurdish-majority city that killed seven police, as a new bombing hit the troubled southeast.
The suspect, named as A.C., was detained in the Kocakoy district of Diyarbakir, where the seven police were killed and 27 others wounded by Thursday's massive car bomb attack on a police bus, the Dogan news agency reported.
The attack was claimed on Friday by the military wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which had been battling the security forces since a truce broke down last summer.
The site of a bomb attack in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, on March 31, 2016 where seven police officers were killed Ilyas Akengin (AFP/File)
The bombing -- unlike previous recent attacks in Turkey -- was not a suicide attack but remotely detonated, officials said at the time.
Dogan said A.C. is believed to be the man recorded on security camera footage walking away just before the attack from a parked white car which would later explode when the police bus passed.
The Dogan report said nine others suspected of links to the attacks had been detained on Friday prior to A.C.'s arrest.
In new violence blamed on the PKK overnight, one civilian was killed and 18 people wounded in an attack on a military sub-station in the Kiziltepe district of the southeastern Mardin province, the army said.
The civilian killed was reportedly a Syrian who had been working on a building site project.
The PKK formally took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984 in an insurgency that initially sought an independent Kurdish state for Turkey's largest ethnic minority but which now focuses on autonomy and greater rights.
It declared a truce in March 2013 but it collapsed last summer and the government has since moved to eradicate the group's presence in urban centres in a relentless military campaign.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier this week that 355 members of the security forces had been killed in the fighting since then.
He also claimed 5,359 members of the PKK had been killed but it was not possible to confirm that toll.
Turkey has been shaken this year by two attacks in the capital Ankara claimed by Kurdish rebels that killed dozens and two deadly bombings in Istanbul blamed on jihadists that targeted foreigners.
US issues travel alert for southeastern Tunisia
The US government is warning its citizens to avoid visiting southeastern Tunisia near the Libyan border as well as the country's mountainous western areas due to "the threat of terrorism."
In a travel warning out Friday, the State Department warns that Islamic State group jihadists have targeted Tunisian security officials, tourists and civilians in the regions.
The warning urges US citizens to "exercise caution" in Tunisia "when frequenting public venues," especially tourist sites, and to avoid political gatherings, "rallies, large crowds and demonstrations, as even demonstrations that are meant to be peaceful can be unpredictable."
Tunisia has suffered from jihadist violence since the 2011 revolution that ousted longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali Fathi Nasri (AFP/File)
Tunisia, the birthplace of the Arab Spring, has suffered from jihadist violence since the 2011 revolution that ousted longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
A raid on the Libyan frontier town of Ben Guerdane, blamed on the IS group, killed 20 people in March.
Last year IS claimed responsibility for attacks on the Bardo museum in Tunis and a popular resort hotel, killing 59 tourists in total, as well as a suicide bombing that killed 12 presidential guards.
UN opens probe into Congo sex abuse claims
The United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo said Saturday it had opened an investigation into claims of sexual abuse against Tanzanian peacekeepers.
The allegations "centre on UN personnel from the Tanzanian contingent" of the mission's Force Intervention Brigade serving at Mavivi, a village near Beni in the eastern province of Nord-Kivu, MONUSCO said in a statement.
MONUSCO said it "immediately sent a team to the area... to check on the facts" on March 23 after it received the allegations.
Blue helmet members of MONUSCO, the UN's peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, pictured in 2014 in Beni Alain Wandimoyi (AFP/File)
"Initial results suggest that there is converging evidence relating to transactional sex and sexual relations with minors," the mission said, adding that "paternity claims" had also been made. It did not give other details.
"If the cases are proven, punishment will follow," MONUSCO promised.
The allegations follow a spate of similar claims against French and other EU troops earlier this year against the UN's MINUSCA mission in Central African Republic (CAR).
MONUSCO was put in place following a five-year civil war which ended in 2003 and with its 20,000 troops is the world's largest peacekeeping operation.
Claims of sexual misconduct have long cast a shadow on several peacekeeping missions, in Africa and beyond.
US weighs more special forces troops for Syria: official
US officials are weighing sending more special forces troops to Syria, where the contingent of American fighters currently numbers around 50, a senior military official told AFP on Saturday.
A US official speaking on the condition of anonymity said the additional troops would be used to bolster US special forces sent to Syria several months ago.
"Presumably they would do more of what they're already doing," said the official, who said the mission would be expected to take on "no new capabilities but an increase of the current capabilities."
Rebel fighters walk in Tal al-Aswan in the area of the eastern Ghouta rebel bastion east of the Syrian capital, Damascus, during clashes with government forces on February 9, 2016 Amer Almohibany (AFP/File)
The official said no determination has been made about the number of troops who could be sent or whether they will be sent at all.
"Nothing has been decided yet," the official said.
The Pentagon last year said it was sending about 50 special operations troops to work with anti-IS fighters in Syria, although officials have said next to nothing about their whereabouts or progress since, and have worked hard to ensure no information about the commandos' presence is released, citing security reasons.
US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has said the American forces are directly engaged in pinpointing targets in Syria.
Some were involved in helping identify targets during coalition air strikes in late February to liberate the Syrian town of Shaddadi from IS control.
Washington has led an international coalition against the IS group in Iraq and Syria since August 2014.
The United States, which has ruled out large-scale troop deployments on the ground, has stressed the importance of special operations commandos working with sympathetic local forces and helping to advise and equip them to fight IS.
US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Joe Dunford recently said that the White House and Pentagon had discussed providing troop reinforcements in Iraq, where some 3,900 US forces are currently on the ground.
Russia acknowledged last week that it also has dispatched special forces to Syria, in support of troops fighting to bolster the regime of Syrian President Basher al-Assad.
Moscow has also been flying a bombing campaign in Syria since September 30, also launching cruise missiles from ships and submarines.
India's Modi begins visit to oil-rich Saudi
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday started a visit to Saudi Arabia where he will discuss energy, security and trade cooperation with leaders of the world's largest crude exporter.
India, which imports around 80 percent of its oil needs, is keen to take advantage of low crude prices by signing overseas deals that will help secure supplies to meet its growing demand.
"Almost 20 percent of our crude supplies come from Saudi Arabia," Indian foreign ministry official Shri Mridul Kumar said ahead of the visit.
A picture provided by the Saudi Press Agency on April 2, 2016 shows Saudi Governer of Riyadh province Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz (R) meeting with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) upon his arrival in Riyadh
"We have to make sure that this supply continues. And this is one of the key agenda points that the prime minister will be discussing with King Salman," he added.
Kumar said Modi was also expected to discuss means "to ensure the well being" of 2.96 million Indian expatriates in Saudi Arabia who send home over $10 billion in remittances every year.
Later on Saturday, he met with members of the Indian community, whom he assured that the "Indian economy was rapidly progressing," according to his website.
"The reason for India's growth was the political stability in the country," he said.
He also visited a the residential complex of workers employed by Indian engineering and construction firm Larsen & Toubro (L&T) in Riyadh, where he announced the opening of a worker resource centre, his website said.
L&T is constructing key facilities for the Riyadh metro lines.
Indian officials will also discuss the Muslim hajj to ensure it takes place smoothly, after a stampede at the annual pilgrimage last September killed more than 2,000 pilgrims, including 116 Indians.
Muslim pilgrims have blamed the stampede on police road closures and poor Saudi management of the flow of hundreds of thousands of people, who found escape routes blocked when the crush occurred.
Security cooperation is also expected to be on the agenda of the talks, Kumar said, describing the two-day visit as "very important".
Saudi Arabia and the US Treasury this week announced joint sanctions on four individuals and two organisations with alleged links to Al-Qaeda, the Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) -- which India blames for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.
Among those sanctioned was Saudi-based Muhammad Ijaz Safarash, who allegedly provided financial, material or technological support for the Pakistan-based militant group LeT.
Modi will also meet Saudi business leaders on Sunday to discuss bilateral investment.
"Saudi Arabia is our fourth largest trading partner" with exports to the kingdom exceeding $11 billion, said Kumar.
Modi's right-wing nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) swept to power in 2014 promising to revive India's economy and create much-needed jobs.
Modi has bolstered ties with the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
He visited the UAE in August, the first such trip by an Indian premier in more than three decades.
Syria regime deadly strikes could 'torpedo' ceasefire: Qatar
Qatar warned Saturday that Syrian regime air strikes that killed more than 30 people including children in a rebel-held town near Damascus could "torpedo" a fragile ceasefire in the country.
Saudi Arabia also accused the regime of violating the ceasefire and said President Bashar al-Assad was "insisting on foiling all ongoing international efforts to politically resolve the Syrian crisis".
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group, reported that 33 people, including 12 children, died in air strikes Thursday on Deir al-Assafir, a town in the opposition stronghold of Eastern Ghouta.
Syrians walk past a heavily damaged building, following Syrian government air strikes, on March 31, 2016, in Deir Al-Assafir, a town in the opposition stronghold of Eastern Ghouta Amer Almohibany (AFP/File)
"Qatar expresses its strong condemnation and concern over the massacre by Syrian regime forces targeting civilians in Deir al-Assafir... in a violation of the cessation of hostilities agreement and related UN Security Council resolutions," the foreign ministry in Doha said in a statement.
Eastern Ghouta is among the areas in Syria where a fragile ceasefire brokered by the United States and Russia has been in place since February 27.
"This criminal shelling... reflects the regime's policy in killing civilians... and threatens to torpedo" the ceasefire and "international efforts to reach a political solution" to end the country's five-year war, said the statement, carried by the official Qatar News Agency.
In a statement on Saudi state news agency SPA, a foreign ministry source said the kingdom condemned "in the strongest terms" the "ugly massacre by forces of Bashar al-Assad, the criminal",
The attacks were a "continuation of his (Assad's) crimes against the Syrian people and his violation of the cessation of hostilities".
Qatar and Saudi Arabia support Syrian rebels fighting Assad's Russian- and Iranian-backed regime.
The United States said Thursday it was "appalled" by the Syrian government air strikes and France accused Assad's regime of violating the ceasefire and trying to undermine efforts by the international community to resolve the conflict.
Qatar urged the Security Council to "assume its responsibilities to end these crimes, protect the Syrian people, and prevent (attempts to) undermine chances of reaching a political settlement to the Syrian crisis."
Iraq forces free prisoners from underground IS jail: officials
Iraqi forces freed a large number of prisoners from an underground Islamic State group jail during a battle to retake a western town from the jihadists, officials said on Saturday.
Security forces have recaptured parts of Heet, which was one of the largest population centres in Anbar province still held by IS, but other areas remain under jihadist control.
"During their advance to liberate and clear the town of Heet from the (IS) organisation, security forces were able to discover a large prison," police Colonel Fadhel al-Nimrawi.
Smoke billows as a member of the Iraqi government forces stands guard next to his vehicle after they retook an area from the Islamic State group on April 2, 2016 in the village of Al-Mamoura Moadh Al-Dulaimi (AFP)
"The prison was underground" and held 1,500 people, who were freed by security forces, Nimrawi said.
Malallah al-Obeidi, a local official in Anbar, also put the number of freed prisoners at around 1,500, saying most of them were civilians.
Muhannad al-Dulaimi, the official responsible for the Heet area, also confirmed the discovery of a "large prison" in the town, but did not say how many people it held.
IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but security forces have since regained significant ground from the jihadists.
After the recapture of Anbar provincial capital Ramadi, Heet and the city of Fallujah were two of the largest population centres still held by jihadists in Anbar.
Ex-furniture company exec pleads guilty in $18M loan fraud
NEW YORK (AP) A former chief financial officer of a New Jersey-based maker of children's furniture and an affiliated Indiana company pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy charges, admitting that he faked his companies' financial conditions to score $18 million in business loans.
Norman D'Souza, 50, of Monmouth Junction, New Jersey, conspired to get $17 million in loans illegally from a Manhattan bank and $1 million in municipal loans from Gas City, Indiana, prosecutors said.
He told U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams that the owner of Munire Furniture Inc. told him beginning in 2011 to inflate sales and revenue numbers so the company could borrow more money to survive a difficult period. The company distributed baby cribs, dressers and other furniture to stores such as Babies R Us and Burlington Coat Factory.
In 2010, Munire Furniture and Indiana politicians announced that the company would open an Echelon Furniture manufacturing facility in Gas City that would employ up to 350 people.
D'Souza said Munire's owner told him to inflate sales numbers in financial statements he provided Gas City.
"The owner of the company said if I gave the real numbers, he would be very upset," D'Souza told Abrams.
In a release, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said the $18 million was never repaid.
Diego Rodriguez, head of the FBI's New York office, said the D'Souza prosecution shows that accounting frauds can lead to large financial losses for banks.
"Financial fraudsters believe their schemes, whether complex or unsophisticated, will persist undetected. However, when the numbers don't add up, the FBI will unravel the scheme and root out who is responsible," he said.
Abrams set sentencing for July 22.
A plea agreement calls for him to be sentenced to about four or five years in prison. Without it, his plea to charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud could have resulted in up to 50 years in prison.
D'Souza, who is free on $100,000 bail, agreed as part of his plea that he will owe $12 million in restitution and must return any assets he obtained as a result of the crimes.
Federal officials monitoring sewage spill in Tennessee creek
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) A broken sewage line is dumping up to 50 million gallons of untreated wastewater per day into a Mississippi River tributary in Tennessee, and federal environmental officials say they are monitoring the situation.
Local and state officials said the spill poses no immediate risk to the public, but they also said people should avoid touching or fishing in an affected creek and lake.
Shelby County Health Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Hart said the department is working with Memphis officials to determine if the spill into Cypress Creek causes long-term health and environmental effects.
The creek is near McKellar Lake, which flows into the Mississippi. Hart says the creek is not a drinking water source.
Munoz injured after car hits wall during Phoenix qualifying
AVONDALE, Ariz. (AP) IndyCar driver Carlos Munoz had to be lifted from his car and was placed on a stretcher after crashing during qualifying at Phoenix International Raceway on Friday.
Munoz lost control of his car in Turn 1, spinning it up the banking into the wall. The back end of Munoz's No. 26 Andretti Autosport car slammed hard into the wall.
Munoz was alert when medical personnel arrived, but the Colombian appeared to be in considerable pain as he was lifted out of the car onto a stretcher and taken to the infield medical center.
Q&A: A look at violent crime statistics in Chicago
CHICAGO (AP) Homicides and shootings were up in Chicago during the first three months of the year compared to the same period in 2015, a spike the city's police department blames primarily on gang violence and illegal guns on the city's south and west sides.
The figures were released Friday as a disturbing video made the rounds on social media that may have recorded one of the final shootings of March. Detectives were waiting to speak with a victim to determine if he was videoing himself when he was shot multiple times on Thursday. The victim is hospitalized in critical condition.
Grasping for signs of hope, police officials said that this week's appointment of Interim Superintendent Eddie Johnson by Mayor Rahm Emanuel has built up morale and renewed the department's efforts to combat street violence. But some neighborhood advocates said they are bracing for a particularly violent summer.
IIn this Wednesday, March 30, 2016 photo, family members and friends watch as Chicago Police investigate at the scene where a 31-year-old man was shot to death in the city's South Shore neighborhood. New Chicago crime statistics show an increase in homicides and shootings for the first three months of the year compared to the same period last year. (Ashlee Rezin/Chicago Sun-Times via AP) CHICAGO TRIBUNE OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, MAGS OUT, NO SALES
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HOW MUCH IS VIOLENCE INCREASING?
The Chicago Police Department's figures released Friday show 141 homicides from January through March. That compares to 82 homicides for the first quarter of 2015, a 72 percent increase. In March alone, there were 45 homicides, compared to 34 in March of last year.
The figures show 677 shootings from January through March, compared to 359 for the same period last year, an 88 percent increase. There were 271 shootings in March, compared to 179 shootings in March of last year.
Most of the increased violence is occurring in five districts on the south and west sides of the city, police said.
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WHAT ARE POLICE DOING ABOUT IT?
The nation's third-largest city has been roiled by concerns that officers, fearful of attracting negative attention, may be pulling back and becoming more passive following a police shooting video released last fall and the launch of a U.S. Department of Justice civil rights probe of the police force.
But police said Friday that several metrics show an increase in police activity in late March including an increase of gun arrests by nearly 10 percent and investigative stops are up by 30 percent. Johnson's appointment was good for officer morale, the department said.
While the department "will remain tireless in its efforts to hold criminals accountable for their actions, we all have a part to play in creating a safer Chicago," Johnson said Friday in a statement. "In the coming weeks and months, I plan on meeting with and listening to a range of Chicagoans from activists and elected officials to ministers and parents to find ways that we can come together to build mutual trust and lasting partnerships that will make our streets safer for everyone."
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HOW DOES CHICAGO COMPARE TO OTHER CITIES?
Compared to last year for the same period, first-quarter homicides and shootings were down in some major cities, such as New York and Houston, and up in others, such as Los Angeles and Philadelphia.
Aaron Chalfin, a researcher with the University of Chicago Crime Lab, said the "year over year changes we're seeing in Chicago are certainly concerning, especially given that last year also saw a large increase in homicides and shootings." But "it is really hard to say at this point what is going on in Chicago right now."
Violent crime doesn't always increase when police change their level of response, he said, but the theory that Chicago police may be restrained by public backlash to police shootings is "entirely plausible."
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WHY ARE ANTI-VIOLENCE GROUPS WORRIED?
Summer youth employment programs are threatened by the legislative impasse that has left Illinois without a budget since July, which frightens neighborhood activists.
"We are praying against this but we are bracing for an increase in shootings this summer because so many youth will not be working because of the state budget," said Autry Phillips, executive director of Target Area Development, a nonprofit agency on Chicago's South Side that had to end its CeaseFire program.
The Latest: Obama voices concern over crackdowns in Turkey
WASHINGTON (AP) The Latest on President Barack Obama's remarks at a press conference Friday at the conclusion of a nuclear security summit.
6:55 p.m.
President Barack Obama says he has been troubled by Turkey's repression of the press and democratic debate under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
President Barack Obama speaks during a news conference at the Nuclear Security Summit, Friday, April 1, 2016, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Still, Obama says Turkey is a NATO ally and an important partner in fighting terrorism. Further, the president says he has a productive partnership with Erdogan.
But Obama says he has spoken openly with Erdogan about trends in Turkey that Obama calls troubling, particularly in regard to freedom of the press, religion and democracy.
Erdogan was among the 50-some world leaders who joined Obama at a nuclear security summit in Washington.
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6:40 p.m.
President Barack Obama says suggestions from people like Donald Trump that South Korea and Japan should develop nuclear weapons show a lack of understanding of the world.
He says they show a lack of knowledge about foreign policy, nuclear policy and the Korean Peninsula.
Obama was asked about the issue Friday night after Trump said Japan and South Korea should develop nuclear weapons as a deterrent to North Korea. The president says the U.S. doesn't want someone in the Oval Office who doesn't recognize the potential trouble in such a development.
5 taken to a hospital after ammonia leak at Phoenix dairy
PHOENIX (AP) Authorities say five people have been taken to a hospital after an ammonia leak at a west Phoenix dairy.
Officials of the Shamrock Farms Dairy say there was a leak in an ammonia holding tank at the company's processing plant Friday afternoon, but it now has been contained.
Phoenix Fire Department officials say multiple people at the scene complained about burning eyes and five people were transported for further evaluation at medical facilities.
All were men between the ages of 35-65.
Gunman said he'd die to stay out of jail, ex-girlfriend says
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) An ex-girlfriend of the gunman at a Virginia bus station said Friday he frequently expressed his hatred toward police and once nearly choked her to death after she broke up with him.
James Brown III of Aurora, Illinois, was killed Thursday by two Virginia state troopers after authorities say he fatally shot Trooper Chad P. Dermyer at a Richmond Greyhound station.
Brown, 34, who had a lengthy criminal record, previously said he would rather die fighting police than return to prison, the ex-girlfriend said.
In this November 2014 photo provided by the Virginia State Police, trooper Chad P. Dermyer poses for a photo as he receives his graduation diploma from Superintendent Col. W. Steven Flaherty. Virginia State Police Superintendent Col. Steven Flaherty says Dermyer, died Thursday, March 31, 2016 after being shot multiple times responding to a call at a Greyhound bus station in Richmond. The gunman was shot dead by two other troopers. (Virginia State Police via AP)
"He wanted to be one of those guys that just died killing police officers because they are not taking him back to jail," she said.
She spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because she said she fears for her safety.
Authorities said Friday they're still trying to piece together what exactly happened at the busy bus terminal and what Brown's motive was.
Dermyer had been participating in a counterterrorism training exercise at the bus station with about a dozen other troopers, special agents and supervisors when he was shot. Two women were also shot but were expected to recover.
State Police Superintendent Col. Steven Flaherty said surveillance footage from the bus station helped authorities pull together what happened moments before the shooting. Brown, at the terminal for a stop on his way to Chicago, was seated in a restaurant. He walked toward his bags near the front entrance of the station and encountered Dermyer, who may have made some small talk, and Brown pulled a handgun and started firing.
Flaherty said the gun was legally purchased more than a year ago, but not by Brown. He had more than 140 rounds with him.
Brown had an extensive criminal record in his home state, including charges of attempted murder, unlawful possession of a firearm and body armor as a felon and threatening to kill someone by phone. He often pleaded guilty to lesser charges or a single charge after being charged with several crimes.
Brown's most recent conviction there was from 2012, when he pleaded guilty to domestic battery and aggravated battery of a pregnant woman and was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison.
The injured women's names haven't been released, but a spokesman for Binghamton University in New York said that one of them was a member of the school's track team. The team was headed Thursday to a meet at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, about 50 miles from Richmond.
The Binghamton student was released from the hospital Friday, spokesman Ryan Yarosh said.
The police identified the student as a 21-year-old woman from Wingdale, New York. The other woman hurt was a 47-year-old from Jacksonville, North Carolina, who was also passing through. Her injuries were not life-threatening.
The slain trooper is survived by his wife and two children. He was a former Marine who previously served on police forces in Jackson, Michigan, and Newport News, Virginia.
Friends and family fondly recalled Dermyer as a devoted family man and consummate professional. More than a 100 supporters gathered Friday evening at the Siegel Center at Virginia Commonwealth University to honor Dermyer with a prayer vigil.
"He was a gentle, outgoing person who would do anything for anyone," his brother John Dermyer Jr. said in an email.
Earlier this year, Dermyer and another trooper became mini celebrities when they helped rescue a lost dog running through interstate traffic in Hampton.
He also made one of the department's most high-profile recent arrests after he pulled over woman over last year on Interstate 64 for expired license plates.
Dermyer called a former partner and said the driver was acting normal but he couldn't shake a strange feeling. Dermyer eventually searched the trunk and found the remains of the driver's long-missing son, authorities said. The driver has since been charged with murder.
It was the kind of career-making stop that friends and colleagues said highlighted his natural gift for police work.
"That was him: He dug; he didn't give up," said Cyndi Grace, who partnered with Dermyer for four years at the Newport News Police Department. "He was exceptional in every sense of the word."
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Associated Press writers Larry O'Dell and Steve Szkotak in Richmond, Kasey Jones in Baltimore, and David Mercer from Champaign, Illinois contributed to this report.
Police and rescue officials mingle with bus patrons outside the Greyhound Bus Station Thursday, March 31, 2016, in Richmond, Va. Virginia State Police say two troopers responding to a shooting at the Richmond bus station and a civilian have been taken to a hospital. A police spokeswoman says the shooting suspect was in custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Richmond SWAT team members leave a Greyhound bus station Thursday, March 31, 2016 in Richmond, Va. Virginia State Police say one trooper responding to a shooting at the Richmond bus station and two civilians have been taken to a hospital. Police say the suspect in a shooting at the bus station has died. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
A law enforcement official stows his weapon after responding outside the Greyhound Bus Station Thursday, March 31, 2016 Richmond, VA. Virginia State Police said at least two troopers responding to a shooting at the Richmond bus station and civilian have been taken to a hospital. A police spokeswoman says the shooting suspect was in custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
A group of bus patrons are escorted by a police officer outside the Greyhound Bus Station on Thursday, March 31, 2016, in Richmond, Va. Virginia State Police said at least two troopers responding to a shooting at the Richmond bus station and civilian have been taken to a hospital. A police spokeswoman says the shooting suspect was in custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Police and rescue officials mingle with bus patrons outside the Greyhound Bus Station on Thursday, March 31, 2016, in Richmond, Va. Virginia State Police said at least two troopers responding to a shooting at the Richmond bus station and civilian have been taken to a hospital. A police spokeswoman says the shooting suspect was in custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
A police officer talks with bus patrons outside the Greyhound Bus Station on Thursday, March 31, 2016, in Richmond, Va. Virginia State Police said at least two troopers responding to a shooting at the Richmond bus station and civilian have been taken to a hospital. A police spokeswoman says the shooting suspect was in custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Colonel W. Steven Flaherty talks to the media outside a Greyhound bus terminal Thursday, March 31, 2016, in Richmond, Va. Flaherty announced that the trooper shot in the incident had died. The trooper was participating in a training exercise when shot. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Members of the Richmond Police Dept. SWAT team head to their vehicles after a state trooper and two civilians were shot at the Greyhound Bus Station in Richmond, Va., Thursday, March 31, 2016. Thursday, March 31, 2016. Virginia State Police say one trooper responding to a shooting at the Richmond bus station and two civilians have been taken to a hospital. Police say the suspect in a shooting at the bus station has died. (Alexa Welch Edlund/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)
Stranded passengers wait to board buses at a bus maintenance facility near the main bus station where a shooting took place Thursday, March 31, 2016, in Richmond, Va. Virginia State Police say one trooper responding to a shooting at a Richmond bus station and two civilians have been taken to a hospital. A police spokeswoman says the shooting suspect is dead. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Police vehicles line the northbound lane of N. Boulevard, near the Greyhound bus terminal where a shooting occurred Thursday, March 31, 2016. Virginia State Police say one trooper responding to a shooting at the Richmond bus station and two civilians have been taken to a hospital. Police say the suspect in a shooting at the bus station has died. (P.Kevin Morley/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)
A stranded bus passenger eats crackers as she waits to board a buss at a bus maintenance facility near the main bus station where a shooting took place Thursday, March 31, 2016, in Richmond, Va. Virginia State Police said several have been taken to a hospital. A police spokeswoman said the shooting suspect is dead. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Azerbaijan says 12 of its soldiers killed in fighting
BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) At least 30 soldiers and a boy were reported killed as heavy fighting erupted Saturday between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The fighting was the worst outbreak since a full-scale war over the region ended in 1994. Since then, mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh officially part of Azerbaijan has been under the control of local ethnic Armenian forces and the Armenian military.
Armenian forces also occupy several areas outside Nagorno-Karabakh proper. The sides are separated by a demilitarized buffer zone, but small clashes have broken out frequently.
Doctors render aid to 12-year-old Gevorg Grigoryan, who was wounded in a missile barrage by Azerbaijani forces, in a hospital in Stepanakert, in the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region, Armenia, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Heavy fighting has broken out between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces along the front lines of the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region, reportedly killing at least one child in what one official called the worst clashes since 1994. (Areg Balayan/PAN Photo via AP)
Each side blamed the other for Saturday's escalation.
In a statement, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry said 12 of its soldiers "became shahids" Muslim martyrs and said one of its helicopters was shot down.
The statement also claimed that more than 100 Armenian forces were killed or wounded and that six tanks and 15 artillery positions were destroyed.
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told his national security council that 18 Armenian soldiers were killed and 35 wounded.
Armenia earlier claimed to have inflicted heavy damage on Azerbaijani forces, but did not immediately give figures. A statement from the Nagorno-Karabakh defense ministry claimed more than 200 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed, but there was no corroboration for that figure.
"This is the most wide-scale military action that Azerbaijan has tried to carry out since the establishment of the 1994 cease-fire regime," Sargsyan said.
David Babayan, a spokesman for Nagorno-Karabakh's separatist president, said a boy of about 12 was killed and two other children were wounded in a Grad missile barrage by Azerbaijani forces.
Russian President Vladimir Putin urged all sides to cease firing and "show restraint," Russian news agencies quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying. Russia's foreign and defense ministers contacted their Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts in hopes of stabilizing the situation, the ministries said.
"The situation along the entire length of the line of opposition between Karabakhi and Azerbaijani armed forces continues to be extremely difficult," Armenian defense ministry spokesman Artsrun Hovhannisyan told The Associated Press.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry issued a statement saying that the United States "condemns in the strongest terms the large scale ceasefire violations" along the Nagorno-Karabakh buffer zone.
"We urge the sides to show restraint, avoid further escalation, and strictly adhere to the ceasefire," Kerry said. He called on both sides to enter into "immediate negotiations" on a comprehensive settlement of the conflict under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Years of negotiations under the OSCE have brought little progress in resolving the territorial dispute.
The negotiation efforts are led by a troika of envoys from the United States, Russia and France. On Saturday, the envoys jointly issued a statement calling on the sides "to stop shooting and take all necessary means to stabilize the situation on the ground."
Armenian forces also occupy several areas outside Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Armenian Defense Ministry said Azerbaijan used aircraft, tanks and artillery to try to make inroads into Nagorno-Karabkh and that "Azerbaijani authorities bear all responsibility for the unprecedentedly supercharged situation."
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said the fighting began when Armenian forces fired mortars and large-caliber artillery shells across the front line. Ministry spokesman Vagif Dargyakhly told The Associated Press that more than 120 shots were fired, some of which hit civilian residential areas.
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Associated Press writers Avet Demourian in Yerevan, Armenia, and Jim Heintz in Moscow contributed to this story.
12-year-old Gevorg Grigoryan's mother pulls a blanket up for her son who was wounded in a missile barrage by Azerbaijani forces, in a hospital in Stepanakert, in the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region, Armenia, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Heavy fighting has broken out between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces along the front lines of the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region, reportedly killing at least one child in what one official called the worst clashes since 1994. (Areg Balayan/PAN Photo via AP)
In this image from TV, a car destroyed with blood showing in the aftermath after heavy fighting erupted in Terter, Azerbaijan, Saturday April 2, 2016, between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Russia expressed grave concern on Saturday over the recent military conflict along the Azerbaijan-Armenia border, calling on all parties involved to stop fighting and exercise restraint. Officials from each of the former Soviet republics blamed the other on Saturday for the fighting which began overnight. (Kanal S TV via AP) TV OUT
In this image from TV, a car lays destroyed with blood showing in the aftermath after heavy fighting erupted in Terter, Azerbaijan, Saturday April 2, 2016, between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Russia expressed grave concern on Saturday over the recent military conflict along the Azerbaijan-Armenia border, calling on all parties involved to stop fighting and exercise restraint. Officials from each of the former Soviet republics blamed the other on Saturday for the fighting which began overnight. (Kanal S TV via AP) TV OUT
Obama, world leaders urge action on nuclear security, terror
WASHINGTON (AP) World leaders declared progress in safeguarding nuclear materials sought by terrorists and wayward nations, even as President Barack Obama acknowledged the task was far from finished.
Closing out a nuclear security summit on Friday, Obama warned of a persistent and harrowing threat: terrorists getting their hands on a nuclear bomb. He urged fellow leaders not to be complacent about the risk of catastrophe, saying that such an attack by the Islamic State or a similar group would "change our world."
"I'm the first to acknowledge the great deal of work that remains," Obama said, adding that the vision of disarmament he laid out at the start of his presidency may not be realized during his lifetime. "But we've begun."
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau talks with President Barack Obama during the afternoon plenary session of the Nuclear Security Summit, Friday, April 1, 2016, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Despite their calls for further action, the roughly 50 leaders assembled announced that this year's gathering would be the last of this kind. This year, deep concerns about terrorism were the commanding focus, as leaders grappled with the notion that the next Paris or Brussels could involve an attack with a nuclear weapon or dirty bomb.
Obama said of the terrorists, "There is no doubt that if these madmen ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material they most certainly would use it to kill as many innocent people as possible."
So far, no terrorists have obtained a nuclear weapon or a dirty bomb, Obama said, crediting global efforts to secure nuclear material. But he said it wasn't for lack of the terrorists trying: Al-Qaida has sought nuclear materials, IS has deployed chemical weapons and extremists linked to the Brussels and Paris attacks were found to have spied on a top Belgian nuclear official.
Throughout the two-day summit, growing fears about nuclear terrorism tempered other, more positive signs of the world coming together to confront the broader nuclear threat.
The U.N. Security Council members who brokered a sweeping nuclear deal with Iran held up that agreement as a model for preventing nuclear proliferation, as they gathered on the summit's sidelines to review implementation of the deal.
Obama also spent part of the summit huddling with the leaders of South Korea and Japan about deterring nuclear-tinged provocations from North Korea, in a powerful show of diplomatic unity with two U.S. treaty allies. Similarly, Obama's sit-down with Chinese President Xi Jinping offered the two strategic rivals a chance to illustrate mutual concern about the North, a traditional Chinese ally.
Undeterred, North Korea only hours later fired a short-range missile into the sea and tried to jam GPS navigation signals in South Korea precisely the kind of act that South Korean President Park Geun-hye had warned would trigger even tougher sanctions and more isolation.
Aiming to show concrete action, leaders came to the nuclear summit with commitments in hand, known in diplomatic-speak as "gift baskets."
Latin America and the Caribbean are now free of highly enriched uranium, the White House said, praising Argentina by name for converting its remaining stockpile into a less dangerous form. Fissile materials like highly enriched uranium and separated plutonium are necessary ingredients to make nuclear bombs.
The United States, in newly declassified statistics, said its own national inventory of highly enriched uranium has dropped from 741 metric tons two decades ago to 586 metric tons as of 2013. And the U.S. and Japan announced they'd finished removing hundreds of kilograms of weapons-grade material from a Japanese research reactor, and pledged to do the same at another.
On the global front, a strengthened nuclear security agreement was finally poised to take force, extending safeguards for nuclear materials being used, stored and transported while requiring criminal penalties for nuclear smuggling. Those tweaks were approved in 2005, but have sat dormant awaiting ratification from a critical mass of nations, reached only in the past few days.
Still, frustration over the slow pace of reducing nuclear stockpiles shadowed the summit. The absence of key players especially Russia further underscored the lack of unanimity confronting global efforts to deter nuclear attacks.
After six years of prodding by Obama and others before him, the global stockpile of fissile material remains in the thousands of metric tons. What's more, security officials warn that the ingredients for a "dirty bomb," such as cesium and cobalt, are alarmingly insecure in many parts of the globe.
Ahead of the summit, fewer than half of the countries participating had agreed to secure their sources of radioactive substances, which are widely present in hospital, industrial and academic settings. Obama said as the Islamic State is squeezed in Syria and Iraq, the world must anticipate it will lash out elsewhere, citing recent attacks in Belgium and Turkey as examples.
Obama has held four such summits in hopes of advancing the disarmament goals he set at the start of his presidency, when he declared in Prague that nuclear weapons were "the most dangerous legacy of the Cold War."
"This summit is not the end of our quest to make the world safe from nuclear terrorism," Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the Netherlands said. He said the assembled leaders were passing the baton to international organizations. "Should the need arise, I know that everybody here will be ready to return."
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Associated Press writers Bradley Klapper, Matthew Lee and Matthew Pennington contributed to this report.
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Reach Josh Lederman on Twitter at http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP and Darlene Superville at http://www.twitter.com/dsupervilleap.
President Barack Obama and other world leaders meet during the opening plenary session of the Nuclear Security Summit, Friday, April 1, 2016, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Barack Obama gestures as he speaks during a news conference at the conclusion of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, Friday, April 1, 2016. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
India considers possible murder charges in overpass collapse
KOLKATA, India (AP) Indian police said Saturday that they are investigating possible murder charges against 10 construction company employees who have been either arrested or detained in connection with the collapse of an unfinished overpass in Kolkata that killed at least 26 people.
Rescuers continued clearing rubble from the scene of Thursday's accident. Sixty-nine people have been pulled out alive, but authorities said they doubted more survivors would be found.
Judge Sanchita Sarkar of the Kolkata city court on Saturday remanded three arrested employees of IVRCL Infrastructure Co., which was contracted to build the overpass, to police custody for nine days for questioning and investigation.
K Panduranga Rao, left, group head of human resources and administration, and Sita, legal head of IVRCL, the company that was constructing the underpass in Kolkata, that collapsed partially on Thursday, March 31, address the media at their office in Hyderabad, India, Friday, April 1, 2016. Police detained five officials from IVRCL, contracted in 2007 to build the overpass, and sealed its Kolkata office. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar)
Seven other company employees have been detained for questioning, police said.
The employees were being questioned regarding possible charges of murder and culpable homicide, which are punishable by death or life imprisonment, and criminal breach of trust, which carries a prison sentence of up to seven years, police said.
Rescue workers pulled out two more bodies from under the rubble on Saturday, raising the death toll to 26, said police inspector Debashish Chakraborty. The bodies were pinned under concrete slabs and were recovered by emergency workers at the crash site.
Police believe there may be more bodies under the debris.
While most of the injured have been discharged from the hospital, 18 were still undergoing treatment, Chakraborty said.
IVRCL Infrastructure, based in the southern city of Hyderabad, was contracted in 2007 to build the overpass, a project that was expected to take two years. But construction was far behind schedule.
The overpass had spanned nearly the width of the street and was designed to ease traffic through Kolkata's densely crowded Bara Bazaar neighborhood. The structure fell within hours of concrete being poured into a framework of steel girders on Thursday.
"We completed nearly 70 percent of the construction work without any mishap," IVRCL official K.P. Rao said Thursday. "We have to go into the details to find out whether the collapse was due to any technical or quality issue." Rao was not among those detained on Friday.
Two West Bengal state engineers overseeing the construction of the overpass were suspended from jobs pending an inquiry into the disaster, a state government statement said.
Around 100 residents of several buildings located close to the collapsed overpass have been ordered to vacate the buildings, where some of them have been living for generations. Government engineers said the buildings have been weakened from the impact of the overpass collapse and it would be risky for them to stay in the nearly 100-year-old tenement buildings.
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Associated Press writers Ashok Sharma in New Delhi and Manik Banerjee in Kolkata contributed to this report.
K Panduranga Rao, center left, group head of,human resources and administration, and Sita, center right, legal head of IVRCL, the company that was constructing the underpass in Kolkata, that collapsed partially on Thursday, March 31, address the media at their office in Hyderabad, India, Friday, April 1, 2016. Police detained five officials from IVRCL, contracted in 2007 to build the overpass, and sealed its Kolkata office. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar)
General view shows a partially collapsed overpass in Kolkata, India, Friday, April 1, 2016. The overpass spanned nearly the width of the street and was designed to ease traffic through the densely crowded Bara Bazaar neighborhood in the capital of the east Indian state of West Bengal. About 100 meters (300 feet) of the overpass fell, while other sections remained standing. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
K Panduranga Rao, center left, group head of,human resources and administration, and Sita, center right, legal head of IVRCL, the company that was constructing the underpass in Kolkata, that collapsed partially on Thursday, March 31, address the media at their office in Hyderabad, India, Friday, April 1, 2016. Police detained five officials from IVRCL, contracted in 2007 to build the overpass, and sealed its Kolkata office. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar)
Excavator machines remove debris of a partially collapsed overpass in Kolkata, India, Friday, April 1, 2016. The overpass spanned nearly the width of the street and was designed to ease traffic through the densely crowded Bara Bazaar neighborhood in the capital of the east Indian state of West Bengal. About 100 meters (300 feet) of the overpass fell, while other sections remained standing. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
A damaged three-wheeled vehicle is taken out from the rubble of a collapsed overpass in Kolkata, India, Friday, April 1, 2016. The overpass spanned nearly the width of the street and was designed to ease traffic through the densely crowded Bara Bazaar neighborhood in the capital of the east Indian state of West Bengal. About 100 meters (300 feet) of the overpass fell, while other sections remained standing. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
Security officers work on the area of a collapsed overpass in Kolkata, India, Friday, April 1, 2016. The overpass spanned nearly the width of the street and was designed to ease traffic through the densely crowded Bara Bazaar neighborhood in the capital of the east Indian state of West Bengal. About 100 meters (300 feet) of the overpass fell, while other sections remained standing. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
Force India deputy says no fear over F1 team's future
SAKHIR, Bahrain (AP) Force India's deputy team principal Bob Fernley says there are no concerns about the future of the Formula One team despite the legal and financial troubles surrounding co-owners Vijay Mallya and Roy Sahara.
Fernley, speaking from the Bahrain Grand Prix, said: "I don't think there are any concerns for Force India" regardless of the ownership uncertainty.
Mallya, being pursued by creditors who have taken action through Indian courts, has been unable to attend the opening two races of this season while Sahara remains in jail over unpaid debts.
FILE - In this Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2011 file photo, Kingfisher Airlines Chairman Vijay Mallya speaks during a media conference in Mumbai, India. Force Indias deputy team principal Bob Fernley says there are no concerns about the future of the Formula One team despite the legal and financial troubles surrounding co-owners Vijay Mallya and Roy Sahara. Mallya, being pursued by creditors who have taken action through Indian courts, has been unable to attend the opening two races of this season while Sahara remains in jail over unpaid debts. Companies controlled by Mallya and Sahara own 85 percent of the Force India team, which is among their few remaining realizable assets. Fernley said Friday, Apirl 1, 2016 that I dont think theres any concerns for Force India.(AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade, file)
Companies controlled by Mallya and Sahara own 85 percent of the Force India team, which is among their few remaining realizable assets.
"Vijay's issues are well-publicized but, like all things, there's been a bit of media over-reaction," Fernley said Friday.
"Force India is blessed with a very good technical team and that technical team has progressively moved Force India up the constructors' table and today we are realizing some of the best returns the team has ever had from the payments side of things.
"We also have a very good commercial team. And the commercial team is allowing Force India pretty well now to stand on its own feet."
The remaining 15 percent of Force India is mostly owned by companies associated with Michael Mols, one of the team's directors who headed the Spyker F1 team that was the forerunner of Force India.
Magazine apologizes to Clooney for 'fabricated' interview
LONDON (AP) Celebrity magazine Hello! has apologized to George Clooney for running an interview that the star says was "completely fabricated."
Quotes from the article in which the actor supposedly talked about his marriage to British lawyer Amal Clooney were picked up by other publications around the world.
But Clooney said in a statement "I have not given an interview to Hello! magazine and the quotes attributed to me are not accurate."
FILE - In this Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016 file photo, actor George Clooney attends a press conference for the film 'Hail Caesar' at the 2016 Berlinale Film Festival in Berlin, Germany. Celebrity magazine Hello! has apologized to George Clooney for running an interview that the star says was "completely fabricated." Quotes from the article - in which the actor supposedly talked about his marriage to lawyer Amal Clooney - were picked up by other publications around the world. In a statement Friday, April 1, 2016 it apologized unreservedly to Mr. Clooney and his wife Amal for any distress that publication of this piece may have caused them. (AP Photo/Axel Schmidt, file)
He said "to have an 'exclusive interview' completely fabricated is something new, and a very disturbing trend."
Justices asked to rule that racial bias trumps jury secrecy
WASHINGTON (AP) The American jury room is a bit like Las Vegas: What happens there is supposed to stay there.
But a Supreme Court appeal from a Hispanic defendant in Colorado raises the prospect that a juror's comments during deliberations can be so offensive that they deprive a defendant of a fair trial.
The justices could say as early as Monday whether they will take up a case in the fall involving competing tenets of the legal system: a defendant's constitutional right to trial by an impartial jury, and the need for secrecy in jury deliberations.
FILE - The Supreme Court in this Feb. 17, 2016 file photo. The Supreme Court is weighing whether to hear a case involving claims of racial bias by a Colorado juror that features competing tenets of the legal system: the right to trial by an impartial jury versus the secrecy of jury deliberations. The court could say Monday whether it will take up the case in the fall. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
After a jury convicted Miguel Angel Pena Rodriguez of attempted sexual assault involving teenage sisters at a Denver-area horse race track, two jurors provided his lawyer with sworn statements claiming that a third juror made derogatory remarks about Mexican men before voting guilty.
"I think he did it because he's Mexican and Mexican men take whatever they want," is one of several racially tinged statements attributed to the juror identified in court records by the initials H.C. In another comment, the juror is said to have cast doubt on an alibi provided by a Hispanic witness for Pena Rodriguez because the witness was "an illegal." The witness testified that he was in the country legally.
But three separate courts in Colorado said those statements could not be used to upend Pena Rodriguez's conviction because of a long-standing rule that prohibits jurors from testifying about what happens during deliberations. The rule, found in both federal and state law, is intended to promote the finality of verdicts and to shield jurors from outside influences.
The Supreme Court also has been unwilling to intrude on deliberations.
In a 5-4 ruling in 1987, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor wrote the majority opinion that rejected calls for a hearing to explore allegations made by jurors of drug and alcohol use by jurors during a criminal fraud trial.
"There is little doubt that post-verdict investigation into juror misconduct would in some instances lead to the invalidation of verdicts reached after irresponsible or improper juror behavior. It is not at all clear, however, that the jury system could survive such efforts to perfect it," O'Connor wrote.
In dissent, Justice Thurgood Marshall said the right to an impartial jury was more important. "If, as is charged, members of petitioners' jury were intoxicated as a result of their use of drugs and alcohol to the point of sleeping through material portions of the trial, the verdict in this case must be set aside," he wrote.
In 2014, justices unanimously reaffirmed the sanctity of jury deliberations. The court rejected a challenge to a jury verdict in a civil case brought by a motorcycle rider who had his left leg amputated as a result of a traffic accident. He sought a new trial based on one juror's report that a second juror said during deliberations that her daughter had been at fault in a similar case and a lawsuit against the daughter would have "ruined her life."
Justice Sonia Sotomayor's opinion in that case left open the possibility that some comments might go too far.
"There may be cases of juror bias so extreme that, almost by definition, the jury trial right has been abridged," Sotomayor wrote in a footnote to her opinion.
Pena Rodriguez's case is one such example, his lawyers wrote in their Supreme Court filing, because the juror "injected racial animus into the deliberations."
His legal team also said that the justices should resolve a split among federal and state courts "on this manifestly important question" of whether juror testimony can be used to demonstrate racial bias in deliberations.
The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the National Congress of American Indians are among the groups backing Pena Rodriguez, cataloguing examples of trials in which jurors uttered slurs or made derogatory remarks about Native American, African-American and Hispanic defendants.
Opposing the high court's involvement in this case, Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman wrote that the verdict was based on overwhelming evidence and that no juror suggested that the offensive comments affected or persuaded anyone else. Coffman also said Pena Rodriguez's lawyer might have picked up on the juror's alleged bias during jury selection, but failed to ask any questions about race or ethnicity.
Protests against migrants' presence in Greece and Turkey
IDOMENI, Greece (AP) A plan to send back migrants from Greece to Turkey sparked demonstrations by local residents in both countries Saturday, two days before the deal brokered by the European Union is set to be implemented.
At the same time, migrants stranded at a makeshift camp in this small town on Greece's border with Macedonia staged a protest demanding that the border be opened and that they be allowed to continue their journeys to central and northern Europe.
The migrants' continued presence led several dozen local residents to stage a protest Saturday morning. They blocked a road for about an hour to demand the evacuation of more than 11,000 stranded migrants to "transit centers" across the Greek mainland.
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near to Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
"The police know what they must do ... they must be issued orders," said Georgios Georgantas, a lawmaker with the conservative opposition New Democracy party, who joined the protesters. He called for the "immediate" evacuation of the Idomeni camp "using violence, if necessary."
Idomeni residents alleged that some migrants had broken into empty homes in the town and said they no longer felt safe.
In the coastal Turkish town of Dikili, hundreds demonstrated against the prospect of hosting people expelled from the nearby Greek islands, especially Chios and Lesbos, where there were over 5,000 migrants on Saturday morning.
Turkey is due to receive the first batch of returned migrants and asylum seekers on Monday. A plan to build a reception center in Dikili is unpopular with locals.
"We definitely don't want a refugee camp in Dikili," said the town's mayor, Mustafa Tosun.
Demonstrators expressed concern over the impact the EU deal could have on the economy, tourism and security in their town.
The EU-Turkey deal stipulates that those who reach the shores of Greece unlawfully will be returned to Turkey unless they qualify for asylum. The deal aims to break the lucrative smuggling operations that now operate out Turkey.
In Idomeni, more than 200 refugees and migrants staged a protest on a highway linking Greece and Macedonia, demanding that Macedonia open its borders. The protesters blocked trucks from crossing into Macedonia, but not passenger vehicles. In a counter-protest, the truckers blocked the road to other vehicles as well.
Near the camp itself, some migrants have camped on the rail tracks, blocking passenger and cargo traffic for the 13th day in a row.
Quite a few migrants, including war refugees from Syria and Iraq, are still hoping that Macedonia, and other Balkan countries to its north, will open their borders. There are rumors circulating in the camp that a "European summit" on Monday will decide to open the borders, but no such summit is scheduled.
But many others are giving up hope. Among them is Muthanna al Hashemy, 36, a refugee from Iraq, who has been waiting for 43 days, along with his wife and two boys, aged 4 and 6. He is getting desperate.
"I do not know what to do. The only solution is to return to my country. Here, the situation is worse than the war...They want us to go to the (transit centers) where it is worse than here. I no longer have any money," he says, adding that he spent "over 2,500 euros" ($2,800) to get to Idomeni. Still, a glimmer of hope persists.
"I will wait until Monday, see what happens and then return to my country," he said.
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Dominique Soguel, in Turkey and Demetris Nellas in Athens, Greece contributed to this report.
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Follow Kantouris on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CostasKantouris
Residents wave national flags as they protest against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Under the new deal refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The banner reads: " We don't want a refugee camp in Dikili! "(AP Photo)
Residents wave national flags as they protest against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal, in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Under the new deal, refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The banner reads: 'Candarli Environmental Platform' (AP Photo/Mehmet Guzel)
Residents wave national flags as they protest against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal, in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016, Under the new deal, refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The banner reads: " We don't want a refugee camp in Dikili! "(AP Photo/Mehmet Guzel)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near to Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near to Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near the Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
A child raises his arm as pigeons fly over at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
Men carry their belongings to a bus as they and other refugees and migrants are transferred to an organized camp, at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman speaks on the phone as she sits at a promenade of the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman sits between tents at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A man looks out from a bus as he and other refugees and migrants are transferred to an organized camp, at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A man puts his belongings onto a bus as he and other refugees and migrants are transferred to an organized camp, at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman fixes the hair of a girl inside a terminal of the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A man sits in front of tents at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman feeds pigeons at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman sits in front of tents at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A dog walks next to the banner that reads: "Immediate transport of refugees and migrants from Idomeni to hospitality centers", during farmers protest against migrants near the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Farmers protest against migrants, blocking a road near the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Farmers protest against migrants, blocking a road near the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
A migrant walks along railway tracks at the railway station near the makeshift refugee camp at the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Residents gather to protest against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Under the new deal refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The placards read: " No to a refugee camp! " and " Don't touch my Dikili! "(AP Photo/Mehmet Guzel)
Residents wave national flags as they protest against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Under the new deal refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on upcoming Monday.(AP Photo)
Mayor Mustafa Tosun addresses residents who are protesting against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Under the new deal refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The banners read: " We don't want a refugee camp in Dikili! "(AP Photo/Mehmet Guzel)
Mayor Mustafa Tosun addresses residents who are protesting against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Under the new deal refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The banner reads: " We don't want a refugee camp in Dikili! "(AP Photo/Mehmet Guzel)
Residents wave national flags as they protest against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Under the new deal refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The banner reads: " We don't want a refugee camp in Dikili! "(AP Photo)
Residents wave national flags as they protest against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal, in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Under the new deal, refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The banner reads: 'Candarli Environmental Platform' (AP Photo/Mehmet Guzel)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near to Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Residents wave national flags as they protest against plans to build a refugee camp under the new EU-Turkey deal, in Aegean resort of Dikili, Izmir, Turkey, Saturday, April 2, 2016, Under the new deal, refugees and migrants who arrived on Greek islands after March 20 will be sent back to Turkey starting on Monday. The banner reads: " We don't want a refugee camp in Dikili! "(AP Photo/Mehmet Guzel)
Migrants block the main road to Macedonia near Kilikis, northern Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
The Latest: Austria to deploy soldiers to block Alpine pass
IDOMENI, Greece (AP) The Latest on the migrant and refugee influx in Europe (all times local):
4:20 p.m.
Austria's defense minister says his country will deploy soldiers at a key Alpine pass to stop migrants arriving from Italy.
A man sits in front of tents at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
Hans Peter Doskozil told German daily Die Welt that the move anticipates a shift in migrant flows from the Turkey-Greece route to the central Mediterranean.
In an interview published Saturday, the newspaper quotes Doskozil saying that the military can provide "considerable support to border security" at the Brenner pass.
He also proposed that the European Union should deploy a civilian-military mission to support the bloc's border agency Frontex.
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4:10 p.m.
Hundreds of people are demonstrating in a coastal Turkish town against a deal to send back migrants from Greece to Turkey.
The EU-Turkey deal stipulates that those who reach the shores of Greece unlawfully will be turned back to Turkey unless they qualify for asylum. The deal aims to break the lucrative smuggling operations now in Turkey. In exchange for its help, the EU has offered Turkey financial aid and political concessions, including faster EU membership talks.
Turkey is due to receive the first batch of returned migrants on Monday. Plans are underway to build a reception center in Dikili, a move unpopular with locals.
The major of the town, Mustafa Tosun, says "we definitely don't want a refugee camp in Dikili."
Demonstrators expressed concern over the impact the EU deal could have on the economy, tourism and security in their town.
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3:40 p.m.
The Turkish coast guard has intercepted dozens of migrants as they tried to reach the Greek island of Lesbos.
A coast guard official in Izmir Province said 63 people were caught in the Aegean Sea and brought to the Turkish town of Dikili.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, did not disclose their nationalities but at least some were Syrians.
The intervention comes two days before a deal to curb the flow of illegal migrants goes into effect.
Under the EU-Turkey deal, migrants who arrive illegally in Greece from Turkey will be turned back unless they apply for asylum and that claim is accepted. Dikili is one of the designated registration points for migrants who are sent back to Turkey.
-By Dominique Soguel
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3:35 p.m.
More than 200 refugees and migrants are staging a protest on a highway linking Greece and Macedonia, demanding that Macedonia open its borders and allow them to continue their journeys to central and northern Europe.
The protest is being staged about 17 kilometers (10 miles) from the makeshift camp at the border town of Idomeni, where about 11,000 people have been stranded since Macedonia and other Balkan countries further north shut down the busiest migrant route. The protesters are blocking trucks from crossing into Macedonia, but not passenger vehicles.
Earlier Saturday, several dozen local people staged a protest at another location further from their town, demanding that the government shut down the camp and relocate migrants to transit centers across Greece.
Farmers protest against migrants, blocking a road near the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
A boy walks through the makeshift refugee camp at the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Men carry their belongings to a bus as they and other refugees and migrants are transferred to an organized camp, at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman fixes the hair of a girl inside a terminal of the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman holds a baby in the makeshift refugee camp at the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Two woman walk through the makeshift refugee camp at the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
A man puts his belongings onto a bus as he and other refugees and migrants are transferred to an organized camp, at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman feeds pigeons at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A man looks out from a bus as he and other refugees and migrants are transferred to an organized camp, at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A woman sits between tents at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A boy walks through the makeshift refugee camp at the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
A woman speaks on the phone as she sits at a promenade of the port of Piraeus, near Athens, on Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
Farmers block a road during a protest against migrants, near the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
A woman holds a baby in the makeshift refugee camp at the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Children play in the makeshift refugee camp at the northern Greek border point of Idomeni, Greece, Saturday, April 2, 2016. Greece is pressing ahead with plans to start deporting migrants and refugees back to Turkey next week, despite mounting concern from the United Nations and human rights organizations that Syrians could be denied proper protection while some are allegedly even being forced back into their war-torn country. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Foreign fighters are evading Europe's security net
BRUSSELS (AP) When Ibrahim El Bakraoui blew himself up in the Brussels Airport check-in area, killing and maiming scores of travelers, it was at least the third time he had passed unimpeded through an airport terminal in recent months.
Suspected by Turkey of being a "foreign terrorist fighter" and known at home in Belgium as an ex-con wanted for parole violations, Bakraoui was still allowed to board a commercial airliner unaccompanied last summer, flying freely from Istanbul to the Netherlands and disappearing without a trace.
The ease with which he did so raises questions about how much governments know about the movements of returnees among the 5,000 home-grown jihadis who have trained and fought in places like Syria or Iraq. Many now pose a "serious threat," according to the police agency Europol. Some, like Bakraoui, have already used their deadly skills in cities like Brussels or Paris.
FILE - In this file image originally made available Thursday, March 24, 2016, by Haberturk newspaper, showing Ibrahim El Bakraoui pictured in July 2015 by Gaziantep police. When Ibrahim El Bakraoui blew himself up in the Brussels airport check-in area, killing and maiming scores of travelers, it was at least the third time he had passed unimpeded through an airport terminal in recent months. But according to reports Saturday April 2, 2016, including testimony from government ministers, extracts of documents and conversations with police, as well as border and aviation officials, a series of security gaps, misunderstandings and procedural red-tape allowed Bakraoui to travel unimpeded, and he may be just one case among many. (Haberturk newspaper via AP, FILE)
Testimony from government ministers, extracts of documents and conversations with police, border and aviation officials reveal a series of security gaps, misunderstandings and procedural red-tape that surrounded the deportation last July of this future suicide bomber.
Even those who take some responsibility for missing the threat Bakraoui posed find it hard to understand why his capture raised no alarms. This was a man picked up by Turkish authorities in Gaziantep near Syria, who had done jail time in Belgium for armed robbery, including shooting at police with a Kalashnikov.
"We are talking about someone with a 10-year conviction, who spent a few years in prison, then traveled via Turkey to the Syrian border," Belgian Interior Minister Jan Jambon said on March 25, as lawmakers probed for security shortfalls three days after the Brussels attacks left 32 people dead.
"You don't have to have worked long on terrorism to conclude from all this that there is a very high probability 90 percent, 99 percent, take your pick that we are dealing with a foreign fighter," he said.
Bakraoui may be just one case among many. Turkey has deported around 3,250 suspected "foreign terrorist fighters" since 2011 a number that does not include those turned back before making it to Syria, according to its foreign ministry.
Turkey's government says Belgium made no extradition request for Bakraoui when it learned on June 26 that he was in Turkey, leaving him free to travel anywhere in Europe.
"It was obvious that he was affiliated and involved in the conflict zones, and he was wounded. That is the reason why he was deported. And this is the information that was communicated to Belgium," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told CNN in an interview aired Thursday.
Bakraoui is not the only case to fall through the communications gap. In September 2014, just over a year before Bakraoui's trip to Amsterdam, three French jihadis who said they were defecting from the Islamic State group were able to buy tickets to Marseille, fly together unescorted and walk out of customs as free men, one of their lawyers, Pierre Dunac, said.
According to France's interior ministry, they were detained in Turkey for visa violations although they were wanted men back home. Before setting out for Syria, two of them were associated with Mohamed Merah, the Islamic extremist who killed seven people in the south of France in 2012.
Amid a government uproar, the three turned themselves in to French police and have been behind bars ever since, facing terrorism charges.
As for Bakraoui, what he did while in Turkey and what he would go on to do in Brussels would remain a mystery to Belgian authorities for quite some time.
He disappeared off their radar last May and only popped back up on June 26, when Turkey notified Belgium that he had been picked up two weeks earlier near the Syrian border. More than two weeks would go by without a Belgian response.
Then, on the morning of July 14, Turkey's foreign ministry sent an advisory to Belgian and Dutch authorities that Bakraoui was booked on a 10:40 a.m. Pegasus Airlines flight in Istanbul, bound for Amsterdam.
The Dutch justice ministry said the deportation warning was sent to a Turkish-language electronic drop box that is normally checked twice a day. The message was prioritized as urgent, but the subject line read simply "Itinerary." It gave no reason for Bakraoui's expulsion.
A separate communique was sent to a Belgian police liaison officer in Turkey. When he requested details of the allegations against Bakraoui, he was told to make a written request, which he did the following day. A reply arrived on July 20, according to Jambon's testimony, almost a week after Bakraoui walked out of Amsterdam's Schiphol airport.
Turkish officials, including Erdogan, maintain they did their job by warning Belgium that Bakraoui could be a "foreign terrorist fighter." The Belgian government says the warning failed to include that crucial detail.
"Turkey only explained to us in January 2016 exactly why this man was stopped," Belgian Justice Minister Koen Geens told lawmakers, though he conceded "we should have guessed, based on the place he had been to."
For their part, the Dutch said the Bakraoui case was not handled according to the usual protocol. There was no direct exchange between police in the two countries, or any indication of terror links in the notification.
In five other cases with Dutch nationals all but one involving suspected travel to Syria Turkish authorities followed up the electronic notification by contacting Dutch police. The foreign ministry said Bakraoui's case seemed to be the only slip-up of its kind.
Still, a history of violent crime and a probation violation, as was the case for Bakraoui, would not necessarily raise alarms, the ministry said. Certainly he was not flagged in either the Interpol or European databases.
"It is clear the procedure is vulnerable," the Dutch justice ministry said.
Security officials say sometimes their hands are tied. It's hard to prove whether suspects have even set foot in Syria, where swathes of the country are virtually lawless, let alone establish if they have committed any crimes there.
Without proof, "we can go to the airport and say, 'We have reason to believe you have been to Syria. Would you like to talk about that?' And if he says, 'No, I've been visiting friends in Turkey,' we have to let him go," a European security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.
Deportation is not just a one-way street. More than 82,000 people were expelled from EU countries in 2012, mostly migrants, and the procedures involved were similar to those followed in Turkey, according to aviation officials.
Indeed what's most surprising is that little of this is out of the ordinary.
There are no enforceable international laws governing deportations, only guidelines and standards. Intelligence sharing is virtually non-existent. European Union agencies are reluctant to share information among themselves let alone with an outsider like Turkey, even if it is a candidate to join the 28-nation bloc.
And when no crime has been committed on Turkish soil, let alone a trial held, all must respect the right to the presumption of innocence and confidentiality.
Airlines are not informed of the reasons for any deportation, whether from Turkey or continental Europe. A risk assessment of the danger a passenger might pose is supposed to be made available to carriers 24 hours in advance, but it's unclear whether this happens routinely or in time.
"Authorities can book tickets on an airline and as far as I know most airlines accept expulsions," said Association of European Airlines spokesman Geert Sciot. "Commercial airlines do not get information about the reason or justification of expulsion because that is part of privacy and security."
In Europe, police are tasked with getting a deportee to the aircraft door but they are routinely following orders from immigration officials.
"We just do what we're told," one European police official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to speak publicly about the procedure.
Under the Convention on International Civil Aviation the non-binding charter for the industry signatory countries should first aim to take people back to their point of departure. Option B is the person's country of residence or nationality.
This could explain why Bakraoui was returned to Amsterdam rather than Brussels, where his arrival might have been flagged.
At European Union headquarters in Brussels, meanwhile, new measures to tackle the issue of returning foreign fighters are near completion. These include the IDs of returning EU citizens to be cross checked with police databases and a Passenger Name Record system giving authorities access to travelers' personal information.
It's an open question, though, as to how effective they will be when solid information already in the hands of officials now is not put to good use.
"When Turkey gives us the identity of a jihadi, there's no need for any system. We have the information, but we are not doing anything with it," Belgian leftist opposition lawmaker Marco Van Hees told government ministers.
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Associated Press writers Lori Hinnant and Raf Casert in Brussels, Mike Corder in The Hague and Karl Ritter in Stockholm contributed to this report.
Belgian police and soldiers secure the area outside Zaventem Airport in Brussels, Tuesday, March 29, 2016. Tuesday, Airport authorities inspected the construction and fire safety of the temporary constructions and airport staff tested the temporary arrangements and infrastructure for the check-in procedure. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
This copy of a document released to the Associated Press by the Netherlands Government and photographed Wednesday, March 30, 2016 in Brussels, shows the notice given to the Dutch government by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affair, giving notice of the return of two people on an air flight back to Amsterdam on July 14, 2015. When Ibrahim El Bakraoui blew himself up in the Brussels airport check-in area on Tuesday, March 22, 2016, killing and maiming scores of travelers, it was at least the third time he had passed unimpeded through an airport terminal in recent months. Suspected by Turkey of being a foreign terrorist fighter and a known ex-con who was wanted for parole violations back home in Belgium, Bakraoui was nonetheless allowed to board a commercial airliner unaccompanied last summer, fly freely from Istanbul to the Netherlands and disappear without a trace.(AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Clinton's frustration grows, as primary race drags on
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) Hillary Clinton snapped at a Greenpeace protester. She linked Bernie Sanders and tea party Republicans. And she bristled with anger when nearly two dozen Sanders supporters marched out of an event near her home outside New York City, shouting "if she wins, we lose."
"They don't want to listen to anyone else," she shot back. "We actually have to do something. Not just complain about what is happening."
After a year of campaigning, months of debates and 35 primary elections, Sanders is finally getting under Clinton's skin in the Democratic presidential race.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks during a rally in Syracuse, N.Y., Friday, April 1, 2016. After months of campaigning, Bernie Sanders is finally getting under Hillary Clinton's skin. While her attacks on her primary rival once seems carefully calculated, the Democratic front-runner is now showing flashes of real angry with Sanders _ irritation that could undermine her efforts to unite the party to take on Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)
Clinton has spent weeks largely ignoring Sanders and trying to focus on Republican front-runner Donald Trump. Now, after several primary losses and with a tough fight in New York on the horizon, Clinton is showing flashes of frustration with the Vermont senator irritation that could undermine her efforts to unite the party around her candidacy.
According to Democrats close to Hillary and former President Bill Clinton, both are frustrated by Sanders' ability to cast himself as above politics-as-usual even while firing off what they consider to be misleading attacks. The Clintons are even more annoyed that Sanders' approach seems to be rallying and keeping young voters by his side.
While Hillary Clinton's team contends her lock on the nomination as "nearly insurmountable," the campaign frequently grumbles that Sanders hasn't faced the same level of scrutiny as the former secretary of state, New York senator and first lady. Her aides complain about Sanders' rhetoric, claiming he's broken his pledge to avoid character attacks by going after her paid speeches and ties to Wall Street, and they point to scenes of Sanders supporters booing Clinton's name at his rallies.
Actress Rosario Dawson's 15-minute speech at a New York City rally on Thursday, in which she rallied the crowd by crying "shame on you, Hillary" and noted that Clinton could soon face an FBI interview over the email controversy while at the State Department, underscored the growing tensions between the campaigns.
On Saturday, the bickering was about a possible debate before the New York primary April 19. Clinton's campaign accused Sanders' of playing "political games" by rejecting three specific dates; the Sanders team was hopeful of an agreement soon.
Clinton hopes that big victories in New York on April 19 and five Northeastern states a week later will allow her to wrap up the nomination by the end of the month.
But aides acknowledge that Sanders, who's raised $109 million this year and has pledged to take his campaign to the party convention in July, is unlikely to feel significant political or financial pressure to drop out of the race, even if it becomes clear he cannot win the nomination.
Clinton stayed in the 2008 contest against Barack Obama until the bitter end, though her initial advantage with superdelegates, who later flipped to the Illinois senator, gave her a stronger case for the nomination.
Unlike eight years ago, when California Sen. Dianne Feinstein brought Clinton and Obama together for a meeting, few Democrats are in position to broker peace between Clinton and Sanders. For most of his political career, Sanders identified as an independent not a Democrat leaving him with far weaker ties to party powerbrokers.
According to an Associated Press analysis, Sanders must win 67 percent of the remaining delegates and uncommitted superdelegates party leaders and officials who can support any candidate through June to be able to clinch the Democratic nomination. So far he's only winning 37 percent.
Joel Benenson, Clinton's chief strategist, said: "We're going to get to a point at the end of April where there just isn't enough real estate for him to overcome the lead that we've built."
Still, any kind of truce is probably weeks, if not months, away.
For now, Sanders is costing Clinton significant time, money and political capital. His victories in recent Western caucuses underscored her weaknesses among younger and white working-class voters, important elements of the Democratic coalition. He's favored in the Wisconsin primary Tuesday.
Sanders is drawing sizable crowds in New York, attracting 18,500 to rally in the South Bronx on Thursday. A victory in that state, which Clinton represented for two terms in the Senate, would deal a significant psychological blow to her campaign, rattling Democrats already worried about her high national disapproval ratings.
Clinton is more reliant on traditional fundraising than is Sanders, who's raised the bulk of his money online. Even as she prepares for New York's primary, she has scheduled fundraisers before then in Denver, Virginia, Miami and Los Angeles at the home of actor George Clooney.
She needs to continue raising primary dollars because June contests in California and New Jersey will be expensive. Sanders faces fewer financial anxieties.
Sanders adviser Tad Devine said the senator was not encouraging his supporters to disrupt Clinton's events and was focused on his own message. But he also said the campaign would respond when Clinton mischaracterizes Sanders' records and positions.
Her attacks, he said, only help Sanders.
"When your attacks against your opponent feed the biggest weakness that you have, you are undermining yourself," said Devine.
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Thomas reported from New York.
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This story has been corrected to show that actress Rosario Dawson spoke at a Bernie Sanders rally on Thursday, not Friday.
Suspected Filipino militants kidnap 4 Malaysian boat crewmen
MANILA, Philippines (AP) Suspected Filipino Muslim militants seized four Malaysian crewmen of a tugboat in the second such attack at sea in recent weeks, sparking a new security alarm, officials said Saturday.
Eight gunmen on board a speed boat took the Malaysians from the MV Massive 6 Friday night but left behind five other crewmen from Myanmar and Indonesia as the tugboat sailed to Tawau island in Malaysia's eastern state of Sabah from the Philippines, Malaysian officials said.
The tugboat owner managed to establish contact with the remaining crewmen, who reported that they had been robbed and that four Malaysian colleagues had been kidnapped. The tugboat continued its voyage to Tawau with a security vessel escorting it after the attack, the officials said.
Philippine military officials said they had received sketchy reports about the new kidnappings and added that Philippine authorities were coordinating with their Malaysian counterparts.
Philippine forces "remain on alert and have taken appropriate action to address the situation," said Maj. Filemon Tan, who speaks for the military command in charge of securing southern provinces where Abu Sayyaf militants have an active presence.
Ten Indonesian crewmen of a tugboat and barge were kidnapped recently by suspected Abu Sayyaf militants while en route to the Philippines from Indonesia's Kalimantan region, Indonesian and Philippine officials said.
The Indonesian foreign ministry said the owner of the hijacked tug boat and coal barge has received two telephone calls, purportedly from the Abu Sayyaf, demanding a ransom.
Following Friday's attack, Royal Malaysian Navy ships and forces have been ordered to step up security and increase vigilance due to what appears to be a new tactic by the kidnappers, Malaysian officials said.
Abu Sayyaf gunmen from the southern Philippines have previously assaulted and staged kidnappings in Malaysia's coastal resorts in Sabah.
The two latest kidnappings targeted slow-moving tugboats that were relatively easy to board in the Sulu Sea, Malaysian officials said.
Debut goal for Pato as Chelsea thrashes Villa
BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) Alexandre Pato scored in his debut as Chelsea defeated 10-man, managerless Aston Villa 4-0 in a dominant display Saturday in the English Premier League.
The on-loan Brazilian struck soon after coming on as a substitute, converting a fine penalty after he was brought down by Aly Cissokho. Two goals from Pedro and a neat Ruben Loftus-Cheek finish sealed what was an easy victory for Guus Hiddink's side. Villa defender Alan Hutton was sent off late in the second half for a second yellow card.
The result provisionally moves Chelsea into ninth on 44 points, with the defending champion even beginning to dream of a European spot after its disastrous start to the season.
Chelsea's Alexandre Pato, left, and Aston Villa's Joleon Lescott battle for the ball during their English Premier League soccer match at Villa Park, Birmingham, England, Saturday, April 2, 2016. (Nick Potts/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT - NO SALES - NO ARCHIVES
Aston Villa remains adrift at the bottom with only 16 points and could be relegated next weekend.
Villa, which parted company with manager Remi Garde on Tuesday following a disastrous four-month spell in charge, gave no sign of a late-season revival under caretaker manager Eric Black. A highly unimpressive display, in the midst of angry fan protests, was capped by Hutton's sending off in the 85th minute.
"I can understand the disconnect with the supporters," Black said. "We have to give the supporters something, not the other way round. It's been a hard season for them."
Loftus-Cheek scored Chelsea's first goal in the 26th, slotting home at the front post from Cesar Azpilicueta's cross.
Coming on for the injured Loic Remy in the 23rd, Pato made an instant impact in what was an impressive debut. His movement caused the Villa defense endless problems, with his first-half stoppage time goal coming from a penalty after he was fouled by Cissokho. Pato continued to impress throughout the second half, and played an integral part in both of Pedro's goals.
"I'm so happy today," said Pato. "During the game it was very easy to play alongside the guys. I'm tired but happy."
There was also a debut for defender Matt Miazga. The 20-year-old American defender, bought from MLS side New York Red Bulls in January for $5 million, made a solid start to his Chelsea career, dealing well with the few chances Villa created.
Chelsea's Alexandre Pato celebrates scoring his side's second goal of the game during their English Premier League soccer match against Aston Villa at Villa Park, Birmingham, England, Saturday, April 2, 2016. (Nick Potts/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT - NO SALES - NO ARCHIVES
Chelsea's Pedro celebrates scoring his side's fourth goal of the game during their English Premier League soccer match against Aston Villa at Villa Park, Birmingham, England, Saturday, April 2, 2016. (Nick Potts/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT - NO SALES - NO ARCHIVES
Aston Villa's Ashley Westwood, left, and Chelsea's Cesc Fabregas battle for the ball during their English Premier League soccer match at Villa Park, Birmingham, England, Saturday, April 2, 2016. (Nick Potts/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT - NO SALES - NO ARCHIVES
Parrot species in US cities may rival that in native Mexico
SAN DIEGO (AP) U.S. researchers are launching studies on Mexico's red-crowned parrot a species that has been adapting so well to living in cities in California and Texas after escaping from the pet trade that the population may now rival that in its native country.
The research comes amid debate over whether some of the birds flew across the border into Texas and should be listed under the Endangered Species Act.
Parrots in U.S. urban areas are just starting to draw attention from scientists because of their intelligence, resourcefulness and ability to adapt. There is also a growing realization that the city dwellers may offer a population that could help save certain species from extinction.
In this Wednesday, March 30, 2016 photo, parrots interact at SoCal Parrot, a parrot-rescue center, in Jamul, Calif. U.S. researchers are launching studies on Mexicos red crowned parrot - a species that has been adapting so well to living in cities in California and Texas after escaping from the pet trade that the population may now rival that in its native country. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Parrots are thriving today in cities from Los Angeles to Brownsville, Texas, while in the tropics and subtropics, a third of all parrot species are at risk of going extinct because of habitat loss and the pet trade.
Most are believed to have escaped from importers or smugglers over the past half-century, when tens of thousands of parrots were brought into the United States from Latin America.
Scientists only now are starting to study them.
After doing most of his research in places like Peru, Donald Brightsmith is concentrating on the squawking birds nesting in Washingtonian palms lining avenues and roosting in the oak trees in front lawns in South Texas.
"Parrots in urban settings are of great interest to me," the Texas A&M University biologist said. "I see these as kind of future insurance policies."
Brightsmith has received a two-year grant from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to get an official count on the state's red-crowned parrot population and determine whether threats against them are increasing.
The loud, raucous birds have been shot at by angry homeowners and their young poached from nests.
In San Diego, a $5,000 reward is being offered for information on the killings of about a half-dozen parrots found shot this year.
The research could help drive ways to maintain the population that prefers the cities and suburbs.
"It's more of an urban planning, landscape, ecology issue and not so much how do we protect an area of pristine nature," he said. Brightsmith would like to team up with scientists in California.
Researchers want to someday study the gene pool to determine whether there are still genetically pure red-crowned parrots that could replenish the flocks in their native habitat.
"We could have a free backup stock in the US," Brightsmith said.
In Mexico, biologists are working on getting an updated count. The last study in 1994 estimated the population at 3,000 to 6,500 birds, declining from more than 100,000 in the 1950s because of deforestation and raids on the nesting young to feed the pet trade.
"We suspect the population in South Texas could rival the number found in the wild in Mexico," said Karl Berg, a biologist at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley who received a grant to study the red-crowned parrot in Brownsville.
Biologists estimate the population at close to 1,000 birds in Texas and more than 2,500 in California, where they are the most common of more than a dozen parrot species.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in 2011 listed it as an indigenous species because it is thought the parrots flew north across the border as lowland areas in Mexico were cleared in the 1980s for ranching and agriculture, though ornithologists debate that.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that same year announced that the red-crowned parrot warranted federal protection because of habitat loss and poaching for the pet trade. It remains a candidate, and the agency reviews it annually.
Some in the pet trade fear that a listing under the Endangered Species Act could prevent them from breeding the birds and moving them across state lines.
Conservationists question whether any of the birds are native to Texas and should be listed when there are so many species in need of protection in the United States.
"It seems odd to me," said Kimball Garrett, a parrot expert at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. "I don't know that there is enough evidence to show the birds flew for hundreds of miles from their native range and went across the border."
Brooke Durham said the birds need more protection. Durham runs a parrot rescue center called SoCal Parrot in the town of Jamul, east of San Diego, and treats up to 100 birds a year.
Recently at her sprawling home-turned-sanctuary, dozens of birds were being nursed for broken bones and pellet gun wounds. Most were red-crowned parrots.
Animal cruelty laws offer about the only protection for the birds in California, because they are not native to the state or migratory.
"People complain about the noise, but they're just not educated about the birds," she said. "They don't realize these birds are endangered."
In this Wednesday, March 30, 2016 photo, a parrot flies from a palm tree in a San Diego neighborhood. U.S. researchers are launching studies on Mexicos red crowned parrot - a species that has been adapting so well to living in cities in California and Texas after escaping from the pet trade that the population may now rival that in its native country. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
In this Wednesday, March 30, 2016 photo, Brooke Durham, who runs a parrot-rescue center, called SoCal Parrot, holds a parrot at her home turned parrot sanctuary, in Jamul, Calif. U.S. researchers are launching studies on Mexicos red crowned parrot - a species that has been adapting so well to living in cities in California and Texas after escaping from the pet trade that the population may now rival that in its native country. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
In this Wednesday, March 30, 2016 photo, a parrot sits on an apartment roof in San Diego. U.S. researchers are launching studies on Mexicos red crowned parrot - a species that has been adapting so well to living in cities in California and Texas after escaping from the pet trade that the population may now rival that in its native country. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
In this Wednesday, March 30, 2016 photo, a parrot sits inside the home of Brooke Durham, who runs a parrot-rescue center, called SoCal Parrot, in Jamul, Calif. U.S. researchers are launching studies on Mexicos red crowned parrot - a species that has been adapting so well to living in cities in California and Texas after escaping from the pet trade that the population may now rival that in its native country. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
In this Wednesday, March 30, 2016 photo, Brooke Durham, who runs a parrot-rescue center, called SoCal Parrot, gives a treat to a parrot at her home turned parrot sanctuary, in Jamul, Calif. U.S. researchers are launching studies on Mexicos red crowned parrot - a species that has been adapting so well to living in cities in California and Texas after escaping from the pet trade that the population may now rival that in its native country. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
In this Wednesday, March 30, 2016 photo, Brooke Durham, who runs a parrot-rescue center, called SoCal Parrot, right, stands inside a rehabilitation area alongside her husband Joshua Bridwell, in Jamul, Calif. U.S. researchers are launching studies on Mexicos red crowned parrot - a species that has been adapting so well to living in cities in California and Texas after escaping from the pet trade that the population may now rival that in its native country. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Refugee chefs bring their recipes to NYC food company
NEW YORK (AP) The kitchen hums with activity. Rachana Rimal is at one table, making momos, the traditional dumplings from her native Nepal. Next to her, Iraqi immigrant Dhuha Jasif mixes some pureed eggplant for baba ghanouj. Containers of adas, a lentil stew from the East African nation of Eritrea, sit on a counter.
The unusual mix of cuisines is how it works at Eat Offbeat, a Queens-based food delivery service. All seven employees are refugees or asylum seekers who fled their home countries.
None had any professional cooking experience before coming to work for the startup, which launched in November.
Rachana Rimel, left, and Dhuha Jasim package Adas, a lentil dish from Eritrea, in New York, Tuesday, March 29, 2016. A food delivery service is offering New Yorkers the chance to try some food cooked by some unusual chefs. All seven employees at Eat Offbeat are either refugees or asylum-seekers who fled their home countries. Theyre cooking foods from those places, including Iraq and Nepal. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
The company has committed to hiring refugees and teaching them culinary skills, partly for altruistic reasons and partly as a business strategy. In a city filled with good ethnic food, it is a way for the cuisine to stand out.
"We are really focusing on these new and off-the-beaten-path cuisines," said Manal Kahi, who founded the company with her brother, Wissam Kahi. "Refugees are coming from countries that have cuisines we don't really know. ... It's not cuisines that you find at every corner."
A Lebanese immigrant who came to New York for graduate school, Manal Kahi started thinking about a food business in 2014 after getting rave reviews from friends for the hummus she made from her grandmother's recipe.
At the time refugees were also on her mind, since many Syrians had started fleeing their war-torn home for next-door Lebanon.
"I was feeling very hopeless about it," Kahi said. "When I got this idea of making hummus, I thought maybe Syrian refugees could be making" it.
As the idea for the scope of the company grew, the thought of employing refugees stuck.
"We thought they were more in need than any other immigrants," she said.
She and her brother partnered with Juan Suarez de Lezo, a chef who has worked in high-profile restaurants around the world, and contacted the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian organization that helps resettle refugees and asylees.
Rimal was one of their first hires. The 52-year-old was granted asylum after coming to the U.S. in 2006, at the time leaving behind her husband and two of her three children. She was reunited with most of her family in recent years, but her son is still in Nepal, making her reluctant to talk about what drove her to seek asylum. When she left, an armed conflict between the Nepal government and the Communist Party of Nepal had been going on for 10 years, leaving at least 13,000 dead.
She's been a cooking aficionado her entire life, having learned from her mother and grandmother. When the opportunity came from Eat Offbeat, she jumped at it. Since then, momos have become a standard offering on the company's menu, and she's taught the other women how to make them. Another favorite is her cauliflower Manchurian, which comes in a spicy sauce.
Rimal has had to change her recipes somewhat to accommodate an American palate, and she's often tired from the work, but "I'm so happy to be here," she said.
Kahi said the company is making close to 200 meals per week now out of the professional kitchen they rent in Queens.
They offer food delivery to groups of at least five people, with hopes of growing to the point where individual meal delivery becomes economically feasible.
If someone leaves, as the Eritrean refugee who brought the recipe for adas to the company did, Eat Offbeat is likely to take their dish out of circulation even though the other employees would have learned how to make it, Kahi said.
That's because it's not just about the food, but also the people making it, she said. "We want to keep it tied to them."
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Follow Deepti Hajela at www.twitter.com/dhajela. Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/deepti-hajela
Rachana Rimel, right, and Dhuha Jasim transfer food they recently made in New York, Tuesday, March 29, 2016. A food delivery service is offering New Yorkers the chance to try some food cooked by some unusual chefs. All seven employees at Eat Offbeat are either refugees or asylum-seekers who fled their home countries. Theyre cooking foods from those places, including Iraq and Nepal. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Rachana Rimel, a Nepalese refugee, left, talks with head chef Juan Suarez de Lezo while they cook in New York, Tuesday, March 29, 2016. A food delivery service is offering New Yorkers the chance to try some food cooked by some unusual chefs. All seven employees at Eat Offbeat are either refugees or asylum-seekers who fled their home countries. Theyre cooking foods from those places, including Iraq and Nepal. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Spices from around world are stocked in the Eat Offbeat pantry in New York, Tuesday, March 29, 2016. A food delivery service is offering New Yorkers the chance to try some food cooked by some unusual chefs. All seven employees at Eat Offbeat are either refugees or asylum-seekers who fled their home countries. Theyre cooking foods from those places, including Iraq and Nepal. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Coast Guard stops migrant boat in Mona Passage
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) The U.S. Coast Guard says it's gone to the rescue of disabled vessel overloaded with 20 migrants on an attempted illegal voyage to Puerto Rico.
Coast Guard officials say a cutter and helicopter crew and Puerto Rico police marine unit responded after receiving a call from the 23-foot vessel.
They say 14 Dominican would-be migrants were transferred at sea to a Dominican Navy patrol vessel.
Three other men facing potential prosecution for attempted illegal re-entry into the United States were taken into federal custody in Puerto Rico, as were three Indian men who are undergoing removal proceedings.
Trump hopes message appeals to Democrats, independents too
RACINE, Wis. (AP) Donald Trump wants voters to know his message to the disaffected isn't meant for Republicans alone.
The party's presidential front-runner told supporters Saturday that he's out to bring independents and Democrats behind his cause even though "right now I'm catering to the Republicans."
Contenders in both parties bid for an edge ahead of Wisconsin's primaries Tuesday, none more actively than Trump, who's had a rough week and faces a likely struggle against Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in the state.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event, Saturday, April 2, 2016, in Racine, Wisc. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
The Republican race is overshadowed by a persistent effort by Trump's rivals in the campaign and the party to force the nomination fight into the July convention and by his equivocations on whether he will be loyal to the GOP or bolt for an independent candidacy if he feels mistreated.
In Racine, in the first of his three rallies Saturday, Trump said little to suggest his allegiance with the GOP is cast in stone. He offered the critique that the Republican Party had a "falling-asleep reputation" until his campaign caught fire and brought millions of new voters out to primaries and caucuses.
And he sharply challenged Cruz, who appears to have the advantage in the Wisconsin race. "There's such deception and lying," he said of his rival.
The outcome in Wisconsin will help determine whether Trump can seize the Republican nomination without a fight at the convention.
The Democratic race has grown increasingly bitter, too, though it has not matched the GOP contest for raw hostility. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders both attended a Wisconsin Democratic Party dinner Saturday night. Their attention will quickly turn to an even more consequential contest, in New York on April 19, where the Democratic front-runner dearly hopes to avoid an upset in the state she served as senator.
Sanders urged Wisconsin rally-goers to come out in droves Tuesday.
"Here is the political reality," he told a young, pumped-up crowd on the University of Wisconsin's Eau Claire campus. "If there is a large voter turnout if working people, many of whom have given up on the political process, if young people come, perhaps for the first time ... we will win on Tuesday."
Bundled up in winter jackets and gloves, Sanders supporters waited for hours to hear him.
Sophomore Joseph Lehto said he probably will vote for an independent if Sanders doesn't get the nomination. "Hillary Clinton is a conservative disguised by mildly social policies," he said. "She is a more of warmonger than just about anyone."
Trump held two afternoon rallies Saturday and one in the evening, in Racine, Wausau and Eau Claire. In Janesville, Wisconsin, earlier in the week, a man pepper-sprayed a 15-year-old girl as Trump opponents and supporters clashed outside his rally. But Saturday's events went off without such disturbances.
Wisconsin has emerged as a proving ground for anti-Trump forces as the front-runner's campaign hit a rough patch. Trump defended his campaign manager after he was charged with battery against a reporter, backtracked from comments that women should be punished for having abortions, encountered a buzz saw of hostile interviews by conservative Wisconsin talk radio hosts and watched Cruz rise in some preference polls in the state.
In an interview Friday, to be broadcast on "Fox News Sunday," Trump left open the question of an independent candidacy when asked about it. "I want to run as a Republican," Trump said. But if he doesn't get the nomination? "I'm going to have to see how I was treated. Very simple."
Cruz has little chance to overtake Trump in the delegate hunt before the convention; Ohio Gov. John Kasich has none. Both hope to deny Trump a delegate majority in what's left of the primary season, forcing the nomination to be settled at a contested convention at which one of them might emerge.
Kasich proposed a novel approach to strengthening Social Security at a town-hall gathering with a few hundred people in Burlington, Wisconsin, on Saturday morning. "Set up a tent city" in Washington, he said, and have mass protests along the lines of the Occupy movement that staged long-lasting demonstrations in the capital, New York and other cities.
"Occupy D.C. to fix Social Security," Kasich said.
Heading into the weekend of campaigning, Cruz told a Milwaukee County GOP dinner that Trump as the Republican nominee would be "a train wreck," quipping, "That's actually not fair to train wrecks."
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Woodward reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Kevin Burbach in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and Greg Moore in Burlington, Wisconsin, contributed to this report.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks at a campaign event, Saturday, April 2, 2016, in Eau Claire, Wis. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, addresses the crowd Saturday, April 2, 2016, a a campaign rally at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)
A supporter of Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, looks around the room before the start of a town hall Saturday, April 2, 2016, in Rothschild, Wis. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Republican presidential candidate, Ohio Gov. John Kasich talks to supporters at a campaign stop at Veterans Terrace, Saturday, April 2, 2016, in Burlington, Wis. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Supporters of Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, chant, Build That Wall, before a town hall Saturday, April 2, 2016, in Rothschild, Wis. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Juventus beats Empoli 1-0 to go provisionally 6 points clear
MILAN (AP) Juventus moved provisionally six points clear at the top of Serie A after beating Empoli 1-0 on Saturday.
Mario Mandzukic scored the only goal before halftime to send Juventus further ahead of Napoli, which visits Udinese on Sunday.
"Credit to the boys for winning 20 out of the past 21 matches," Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri said. "Winning is never easy, especially in the final part of the season.
Juventus' Mario Mandzukic, right, celebrates with teammates after scoring during a Serie A soccer match between Juventus and Empoli, at the Juventus Stadium, Turin, Italy, Saturday, April 2, 2016. (Alessandro Di Marco/ANSA via AP) ITALY OUT
"We must not lose our focus because the hard part starts now. We need to keep racking up the points because Napoli isn't giving in."
Empoli had its chances and almost got off to a great start but Riccardo Saponara blazed over from close range.
Mandzukic put Juventus in front with a glancing header from a chipped Paul Pogba pass. It was the forward's first goal for Juventus this year.
Alvaro Morata earlier sent a curling shot off the crossbar from the edge of the area.
Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini, who only just came back from injury, limped off in the second half after appearing to aggravate his calf problem.
Empoli goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski almost gifted Juventus a second. He rushed out of the penalty area to clear and completely missed the ball, but was able to scramble back in time as Juan Cuadrado raced in.
Skorupski kept his side in the match, however, with a number of saves, including a fantastic triple one shortly before fulltime to deny Morata, Kwadwo Asamoah and Simone Zaza.
Earlier, Sassuolo won at relegation-threatened Carpi 3-1.
Sassuolo took the lead in the fourth minute when Nicola Sansone beat the offside trap to run onto Gregoire Defrel's flick and blast the ball into the roof of the net.
Riccardo Gagliolo leveled when he headed in a free kick for his first Serie A goal, but Defrel restored Sassuolo's lead 10 minutes later following Sansone's assist.
Francesco Acerbi sealed matters in the second half.
Carpi, which moved out of the bottom three for the first time this season after two straight wins, remains level on points with 18th-place Palermo, which visits Chievo Verona on Sunday.
Juventus' Mario Mandzukic, second from right, heads the ball to score during a Serie A soccer match between Juventus and Empoli, at the Juventus Stadium, Turin, Italy, Saturday, April 2, 2016. (Alessandro Di Marco/ANSA via AP) ITALY OUT
Juventus' Mario Mandzukic, left, lies on the ground after scoring during a Serie A soccer match between Juventus and Empoli, at the Juventus Stadium, Turin, Italy, Saturday, April 2, 2016. (Andrea Di Marco/ANSA via AP) ITALY OUT
Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon reacts during a Serie A soccer match between Juventus and Empoli, at the Juventus Stadium, Turin, Italy, Saturday, April 2, 2016. (Andrea Di Marco/ANSA via AP)
'Trailer Park Boys' actor arrested in Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES (AP) An actor who stars on the television series "Trailer Park Boys" has been arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of misdemeanor battery.
Police and jail records show Michael Smith, who plays Bubbles on the show, was arrested in Hollywood around 1:15 a.m. on Friday. He was booked on suspicion of misdemeanor domestic battery and released hours later on $20,000 bail.
Smith denied any wrongdoing in a written statement. Smith writes, "At no time did I assault her. I am not guilty of the misdemeanor charged against me."
In this Monday, Sept. 21, 2009 photo, actor Michael Smith arrives in character as Bubbles for the Canadian premiere of the film "Trailer Park Boys Countdown to Liquor Day" in Toronto. Smith who stars on the television series Trailer Park Boys was arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of misdemeanor battery. Police and jail records show Smith was arrested in Hollywood on Friday, April 1, 2016. He was booked on suspicion of misdemeanor domestic battery and released hours later on $20,000 bail. (Darren Calabrese /The Canadian Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT
No additional details about the arrest, which was first reported Friday by the celebrity website TMZ.com, were available on Saturday.
"Trailer Park Boys" is produced by Toronto-based Showcase Television and appears on Netflix.
Co-star Lucy DeCoutere said she resigned from "Trailer Park Boys" just hours after Smith denied assaulting the woman, the Canadian Press reported. DeCoutere also testified against Jian Ghomeshi in the former Canadian Broadcasting Corporation host's highly-publicized sexual assault trial.
"Trailer Park Boys" is about three petty felons living in a trailer park.
Government plays down Chinese steel tariffs effect on UK companies
The Government has sought to play down the effect of the latest Chinese steel tariffs on UK firms amid growing fear of a damaging trade war with Beijing.
Ministers have been under pressure to act after the Chinese ministry of commerce announced on Friday that it was imposing levies of up to 46% on some types of specialist steels imported from the European Union, South Korea, and Japan.
The move deepened anger among trade unions and MPs following news that Tata Steel was to sell off its loss-making UK assets - largely due to the "dumping" of cheap Chinese steel on world markets - threatening the loss of up to 40,000 British jobs.
Workers at Tata Steel in Port Talbot
In a bid to cool the situation, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills insisted that Britain actually exported "very little" of grain-oriented flat-rolled steel covered by the new Chinese tariffs.
"Tata themselves have confirmed that they have not exported this type of steel to China in recent times from their UK operations," a spokesman said.
However Gareth Stace, the director of the industry body UK Steel, warned that the knock-on effects of imposing the new levy on South Korea and Japan could still cause problems for British producers.
"That means that Japan and Korea don't have that export market now so where will they ship their grain-oriented electrical steel?" he told Sky News.
"They might ship it here to the UK, to Europe, so therefore we might see the indirect effect being much more significant than the direct effect of this tit-for-tat trade war that we're seeing from China."
He called on the Government to step in with direct financial support for the industry in order to show potential buyers of Tata's UK plants - including Port Talbot in South Wales - that the sector had a long-term future.
"We need reassurance that the Government is prepared to temporarily step in to support our sector financially, directly, and even push the boundaries of the very narrow and tight European state aid rules that the steel industry is governed by," he said.
"The Government is looking for a buyer for Tata Steel. It needs to give the confidence to any of those buyers that the UK steel sector has a future."
The calls for Government intervention were backed by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn who said workers at the threatened plants were facing an "appalling" situation.
"We have such incredible skills to manufacture steel in this country," he said in a speech to party activists in Weymouth.
"Is the industry to be closed down simply because a global corporation decides that that is the way forward and the inability to control dumped steel imports means the industry is totally undermined as a result of it?"
"Or is the responsibility of government to actually do something about it to protect industry in this country?
"I think it is the responsibility of government to intervene to ensure that we do have a steel industry in this country."
Downing Street said David Cameron raised the problems of global over-production of steel with China's president Xi Jinping during an international nuclear security summit in Washington.
"The Prime Minister raised concerns about the global steel industry, said we needed to work together to tackle the challenges with over-capacity and that G20 could be a good forum to address it later in the year," a Government source said.
But with the Government already facing accusations that it blocked moves by the EU to raise tariffs on Chinese steel, it did not go far enough for opposition parties, with Labour calling on Business Secretary Sajid Javid to change his position.
In a letter to Mr Javid, shadow business secretary Angela Eagle said: "If the Government and other EU members states now accept that steel making in Europe is in 'emergency measures', then it would be possible to apply 'safeguards' to effectively halt the flood of imports into the EU."
Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said the UK steel industry was now paying the price for Chancellor George Osborne's determination to woo Beijing at any price.
"The Chancellor has made a 'better relationship' with China, a cornerstone of his economic policy. Now the consequences of that decision are being felt by steel workers," he said.
Novak Djokovic closing in on Andre Agassi's Miami Open record
Novak Djokovic is one game away from a record-equalling sixth Miami Open title after getting through a tough semi-final with David Goffin.
The world number one, who had eased to the last-four stage, was given his toughest test yet by the Belgian, but had enough to come through and win 7-6 (7/5) 6-4 and now will try and level Andre Agassi's number of titles in Miami.
The pair exchanged a break apiece in the opening set before Djokovic, who had been run ragged by Goffin, prevailed in the tie-break.
Novak Djokovic, pictured, beat David Goffin at the Miami Open semi-final
It was another tight affair in the second until Djokovic typically used adversity to his advantage. After being called for a time violation, despite appearing to be injured, the Serb vented furiously at the umpire and then took his frustrations out on Goffin's serve as he decisively broke to seal the second set 6-4.
"It was windy, it was humid, it was warm," Djokovic said on the ATP Tour Website. "It was like everything was thrown out there. And to overcome those obstacles and conditions was something that I'm proud of. I managed to stay tough in the right moments."
Djokovic will meet Kei Nishikori in the final after the sixth-seed eased past Nick Kyrgios in straight sets.
EU states urged to share more intelligence with airports
BRUSSELS, March 31 (Reuters) - European Union aviation security experts agreed on Thursday that police and intelligence agencies should share more information with transport authorities and operators to help prevent attacks like last week's twin bombings at Brussels' Zaventem airport.
Three suicide bombers killed 32 people at the airport's departure hall and at a crowded rush-hour metro station on March 22. The strikes on Zaventem reignited a debate about how to secure Europe's airports without creating too much disruption for travellers.
At an emergency meeting of the Committee for Civil Aviation Security, European Commission sources said experts reviewed existing security measures in landside areas of EU airports, meaning departure halls and other areas that can be accessed without going through normal security checks before boarding.
EU Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc said they agreed on the need for better intelligence-sharing in order to be "even more proactive and even more efficient in safety".
However, any additional security measures must be proportionate and risk-based, she added. "Right now this is a matter for national authorities."
Officials have stressed the need to avoid simply "moving" vulnerable areas, for example by introducing screening at airport entrances and thereby creating queues in front of terminals.
U.S. 'concerned' about Israel destroying Palestinian homes -spokeswoman
WASHINGTON, April 1 (Reuters) - The United States is "concerned" about Israel's demolition of Arab buildings in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, a State Department spokeswoman said on Friday, adding that it raised questions about Israel's commitment to a two-state political solution to the Palestinian conflict.
Israeli forces bulldozed a school in the Bedouin village of Khirbet Tana in the West Bank early in March, leaving 23 children with nowhere to study in the community overlooking the Jordan valley. The school had been built by the European Union in an effort to help the community of about 40 families.
After destroying the school, the Israeli forces returned two weeks later and demolished 17 homes, 21 pens for sheep, goats and chickens, and five outhouses, according to B'tselem, an Israeli nongovernmental organization.
"These actions are indicative of a damaging trend of demolitions, displacement and land confiscation," spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau told a State Department briefing.
She said Washington was "concerned" and the demolitions, coupled with continuing Israeli construction and settlement activity "undermine the possibility of a two-state solution."
"They also call into question the Israeli government's commitment to that two-state solution," Trudeau said.
The State Department previously made similar comments.
So far this year, Israeli forces have destroyed or dismantled around 400 homes and other structures across the West Bank, more than in the whole of 2015.
U.S. citizens warned against travel to southeastern Tunisia
WASHINGTON, April 1 (Reuters) - The State Department warned U.S. citizens on Friday against traveling to southeastern Tunisia near the Libyan border because groups affiliated with Islamic State militants have targeted Tunisian security forces and tourist sites in the region.
The warning, which is more serious than the travel alert issued a month ago, calls for U.S. citizens to avoid traveling near the Libyan border or the mountainous areas of western Tunisia and to exercise caution in all places in Tunisia frequented by tourists. The country's tourism revenue has plummeted.
U.S. citizens are urged to avoid Tunisian political gatherings, large crowds and demonstrations and to be alert to the possibility of kidnapping, the warning said.
Dozens of foreigners were killed in two major attacks by Islamist militants in Tunisia last year.
On March 22, President Beji Caid Essebsi renewed Tunisia's state of emergency, which was put into effect after last year's attacks, extending it three months until June 22.
U.S. to act to address Iran concerns on sanctions relief -Obama
WASHINGTON, April 1 (Reuters) - The United States will address some Iranian concerns that it has not been able to take full advantage of sanctions relief under last year's nuclear deal but Iran must also reassure businesses, U.S. President Barack Obama said on Friday.
U.S. weighs ramping up deployment of special forces to Syria
By Phil Stewart, Warren Strobel and Jonathan Landay
WASHINGTON, April 1 (Reuters) - The U.S. administration is considering a plan to greatly increase the number of American special operations forces deployed to Syria as it looks to accelerate recent gains against Islamic State, U.S. officials told Reuters.
The officials, with direct knowledge of the proposal's details, declined to disclose the exact increase under consideration. But one of them said it would leave the U.S. special operations contingent many times larger than the around 50 troops currently in Syria, where they operate largely as advisors away from the front lines.
The proposal is among the military options being prepared for President Barack Obama, who is also weighing an increase in the number of American troops in Iraq. A White House spokeswoman declined comment.
The proposal appears to be the latest sign of growing confidence in the ability of U.S.-backed forces inside Syria and Iraq to claw back territory from the hardline Sunni Islamist group.
Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, controls the cities of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria and is proving a potent threat abroad, claiming credit for major attacks in Paris in November and Brussels in March.
But there are mounting indications that the momentum in Iraq and Syria has shifted against Islamic State.
U.S. officials say the group is losing a battle to forces arrayed against it from many sides in the vast region it controls. In Iraq, the group has been pulling back since December when it lost Ramadi, the capital of the western province of Anbar. In Syria, the jihadist fighters have been pushed out of the strategic city of Palmyra by Russian-backed Syrian government forces.
Since U.S.-backed forces recaptured the strategic Syrian town of al-Shadadi in late February, a growing number of Arab fighters in Syria have offered to join the fight against the group, the U.S. officials said.
U.S. forces have also had increased success in eliminating top ISIS leaders. Air strikes in recent weeks killed a top official called Abd al-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli, and an Islamic State commander described as the group's "minister of war" -- Abu Omar al-Shishani, or Omar the Chechen.
The United States announced last December it was deploying a new force of special operations troops to Iraq to conduct raids against Islamic State there and in neighboring Syria. That followed its announcement in October that dozens of U.S. special forces would be deployed in Syria, the first U.S. ground troops to be stationed there.
The additional U.S. forces in Syria would be primarily assigned to establishing sites where they would train Arab tribesmen who have been volunteering to fight ISIS. The tribesmen eventually would be provided weapons, paving the way for offensive against the de facto ISIS capital of Raqqa under U.S. air cover.
The dozens of U.S. special operations forces now in Syria are working closely with a collection of Syrian Arab groups within an alliance that is still dominated by Kurdish forces. The United States has been supplying Arabs in the thousands-strong alliance with ammunition since October.
While the strategy is showing results so far, U.S. officials and Kurdish leaders agree that a predominately Arab force is needed to take Raqqa, a majority Arab city whose residents would consider Kurds as occupiers.
The new push by U.S. special operations forces in Syria would be separate from a revised U.S. military effort under way to train a limited number of Syrian fighters in Turkey. That effort is focused on teaching them to identify targets for U.S.-led coalition air strikes.
El Salvador Congress backs measures to combat gangs in prisons
SAN SALVADOR, April 1 (Reuters) - El Salvador's Congress approved on Friday a series of measures to regain control of its prisons and stem a tide of gang warfare that has made the country one of the most violent in the world.
Congress unanimously approved 14 measures to suspend hearings, restrict movement in prisons, ban visits for one year and concentrate gang members in certain penitentiaries.
The legislature also authorized the government to impose sanctions on telecommunication firms that do not block cell phone signals inside prisons, where gang members give orders to kill, extort or sell drugs.
The measures will be implemented in seven prisons in the Central American country where gang members are concentrated.
Gang violence fueled a 70 percent jump in El Salvador's murder rate last year, putting it into contention to overtake Honduras as the world's most murderous nation.
Worse followed: In the first two months of the year, homicides were up 118 percent.
Libyan oil firm NOC says it will work with new unity govt
By Ahmed Elumami
TRIPOLI, April 2 (Reuters) - Libya's National Oil Corporation said on Saturday it was working with the U.N.-backed unity government, which arrived in Tripoli this week, to coordinate future oil sales and "put a period of divisions and rivalry behind us".
NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanalla also welcomed the U.N. Security Council's renewal on Thursday of measures to prevent illicit oil exports from Libya, a reference to efforts by Libya's eastern government to sell oil independently.
"Combined with the recent announcement by the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) that it intends to reopen export ports it has been blockading, I hope NOC and the country's oil resources can provide a solid platform on which the country's recovery can be built," Sanalla said in a statement.
The new government received the endorsement of the PFG, a semi-official armed faction that controls key oil installations in the east, some of which it has shut down amid political disputes.
Libya descended into political turmoil and armed conflict following an uprising that toppled long-time strongman Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, with two pairs of rival parliament and governments operating in Tripoli and the country's east.
Its oil production has been slashed by rivalry between armed factions, attacks by Islamic State militants and labour disputes, falling to less than a quarter of the 1.6 million barrels per day produced before the uprising.
Hours after Sanalla's statement, two guards were killed in an attack on Bayda field, about 250 km (155 miles) south of the major oil terminals of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf, a guards spokesman said.
Militants loyal to Islamic State have carried out repeated attacks in the area, but have not taken control of any oil facilities, and spokesman Ali al-Hassi said Saturday's attack had been repelled.
The unity government emerged from a U.N.-mediated deal signed in December that has faced continuing opposition from hardliners inside Libya.
Its leaders travelled to Tripoli on Wednesday and have been operating out of a heavily secured naval base in the capital as they seek to gain control of government ministries and financial institutions.
PFG spokesman Ali al-Hassi said on Thursday that the guard was prepared to reopen eastern oil terminals at Zuetina, Es Sider, and Ras Lanuf, though he could not say when this might happen.
The latter two ports have been repeatedly attacked and damaged by Islamic State.
Libya's eastern government issued a statement on Saturday saying that if any ports were reopened, oil should only be exported with the approval of a parallel NOC that it has tried to set up in Benghazi.
The parallel NOC's efforts to export oil have so far been unsuccessful, with major oil trading firms and the international community continuing to support the NOC in Tripoli.
However, boosting Libya's oil sales with the support of the east will be a challenge for the new government. It has so far failed to win approval from the parliament in the east, as required by the U.N.-mediated deal, and the eastern government has indicated that it opposes any transfer of power unless such a vote is obtained.
The U.N. Security Council issued a resolution on Thursday stating that the unity government had the "primary responsibility" for preventing illicit oil sales, urging it to communicate any such attempts to the U.N. committee overseeing Libya-related sanctions.
As Ebola flares up, Guinea plans to vaccinate contacts of survivors
CONAKRY, April 2 (Reuters) - Guinea will soon vaccinate people who have come into contact with more than 500 men who have recovered from Ebola, a senior health official said, the first time it has vaccinated the contacts of survivors.
The decision reflects research that indicates Ebola can remain in the bodily fluids of survivors for months. The contacts will include but will not be limited to sexual partners, said Fode Tass Sylla, the spokesman for the West African nation's centre for the fight against Ebola.
"We know the virus can stay in the sperm of a healed patient for a certain period of time," Sylla said. "That's why we want to vaccinate the circles of 501 men, to avoid all risk of spreading the disease."
The vaccinations will begin in the next few days, Sylla said. The centre also plans an awareness campaign to warn mothers who have recovered from the virus against breastfeeding their newborns, he said.
One of three countries at the epicentre of the world's worst recorded Ebola outbreak, along with Liberia and Sierra Leone, Guinea was declared free of active transmissions of the virus in December 2015. But it announced eight new cases last month .
There are 10,000 survivors of the deadly hemorrhagic fever in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, according to the World Health Organisation.
The WHO said 800 possible contacts of people suffering from Ebola had been vaccinated against the virus in the so-called "ring vaccination" method. That means swiftly vaccinating anyone who has come into contact with an Ebola sufferer and contacts of theirs. More than 1,000 people were under observation.
Liberia, which has declared the outbreak over three times, closed its border with Guinea after its neighbour announced its fresh cases.
Mass grave found in Palmyra after recapture from Islamic State - military
By Lisa Barrington
BEIRUT, April 2 (Reuters) - Syrian troops have identified 45 bodies so far in a mass grave found in the city of Palmyra after it was recaptured from Islamic State, a military source told Reuters on Saturday.
Syrian government forces backed by heavy Russian air support drove Islamic State out of Palmyra last Sunday, inflicting what the army called a mortal blow to militants who had dynamited the city's ancient temples.
The communal grave, on the north-eastern edge of Palmyra, is the only one found so far in the city by the Syrian forces, the source said. It held the bodies of both civilians and Syrian army members captured by Islamic State.
Syrian state news agency SANA said on Friday the grave contained many women and children and some of the bodies had been beheaded.
In May last year, as Islamic State took control of Palmyra, the hard-line Islamist militants were reported by Syrian state media to have killed at least 400 people in the first four days of control.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the five-year-old Syrian conflict through a network of sources on the ground, said that Islamic State had killed a number of people at an earlier time and buried them on the outskirts of the city.
The Observatory reported on Saturday that fighting between Syrian forces and Islamic State around Qaryatain to the west of Palmyra. It also reported, and Russian and Syrian air strikes in the same area and to the east of Palmyra around the town of Sukhna.
The land of the holy cow has taken its holier than thou attitude up a notch.
I refer to the "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" fiasco that has hijacked the headlines in the Indian media for weeks now, shoving other important issues like world terrorism out of the limelight.
The story won't go away partly because of RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat's dogged persistence on complete compliance from all Indians.
"Now the time has come when we have to tell the new generation to chant 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai'. It should be real, spontaneous and part of all-round development of the youth," Bhagwat said.
At a ghar wapsi havan in Agra.
His comments raised a few eyebrows but the most volatile reaction came from AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owasi who said he won't chant "Bharat Mata ki Jai" even if a knife was put to his throat. As if on cue, Shiv Sena sang its usual hit song "Go to Pakistan".
The controversy refused to die despite AIMIM MLA Waris Pathan's suspension from the Maharashtra Assembly for refusing to chant "Bharat Mata ki Jai". One would hope that the Congress Party would be the voice of sanity, but no, they joined the circus too.
However, the party is just getting started. Now jumping on the bandwagon are the people of India's largest seminary, Darul Uloom Deoband, which has just issued a fatwa stating that Muslims should refrain from chanting the slogan as it against the basic tenets of their religion.
In the fatwa, the seminary stated that there was no doubt that India was their nation and that all Muslims love their country. "But we cannot worship the country. Muslims cannot worship anyone other than (God). In that slogan, Bharat has been called equivalent to a goddess," the fatwa stated.
The BJP has already established itself as a sanctimonious, judgmental Hindutva joyless group, but now it seems to have completely lost its narrative.
This can be seen as a desperate attempt to wrest control from the people of India, who seemed to be getting louder and more vocal in their protests. These are the "anti-nationals" who have been in the news.
Students, activists and some journalists who are expressing concern over the BJP's politics.
The BJP really needs their voters to stay stupid and complicit. They don't want independent, free thinking individuals because frankly, they will be too difficult to fool and govern.
They can't dominate the rich who are marching to their own anthem, which goes something like "Audi, Gucci, Prada, Rolex, Channel and Louis Vuitton. Jai India for the flights to these shopping destinations."
The government caters to the rich because they grease the corrupt system.
So they are going after the poor and the middle class. It's a game of intimidation and control. They ask the masses to be "national" and subservient.
Because the BJP knows it has no answers to the questions that the country and Indians worldwide are asking. Where are the fancy plans of "development" and "achhe din"? What has improved? When will change come?
What about basic human rights? India has the largest population in the world without access to clean water. Water Aid, an international charity, says that 75.8 per cent of Indians either buy water at high rates or use supplies that are contaminated with either sewerage or chemicals, or both. How about the BJP chant the slogan "Clean Water for All"?
Amnesty International states that India has effectively failed to implement laws on crimes against women. Every 15 minutes, a woman is raped in India. Here are the figures they document:
2014 - 37,000
2013 - 33,707
2012 - 24, 923
2011 - 24, 206.
Their report also says that every two minutes, a woman in India is a victim of a crime.
We have learnt nothing from the Nirbhaya gang rape. Women continue to be raped. On February 23, 2016, a woman was raped in a New Delhi hospital just hours after she gave birth by C-section. On March 8, 2016, a 15-year-old girl was raped and set on fire. How about a BJP chant a slogan "India will be safe for women and children"?
And then there are the other issues - of homelessness, pollution, diseases, education, health insurance, human rights violations and poverty - that need to addressed. These are just a few examples.
I think the BJP, who have become the self-appointed guardians of "nationalism" and "patriotism", spectacularly demonstrate their ability to divide the nation.
Now, they should reevaluate their agenda and focus on uniting the country as one nation. Improve India and citizens will want to sing about its greatness because no government should have to force its people to do that.
Local motorists may be looking ahead with deep dread to the amplified disruption of Rio Road and U.S. 29, when Rio is closed this summer for construction and traffic is diverted to Berkmar Drive.
But a look back at the U.S. 29 mess reveals another group of disadvantaged local residents, whose plight is often forgotten. These are the homeowners and landowners whose property was confiscated by the state way back in the early 1990s, when the Virginia Department of Transportation was preparing to build a short bypass west of U.S. 29. A total of 93 parcels were acquired.
Well after the land was purchased and plans were developed for the bypass, the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors effectively killed the project by removing its support.
Not only were U.S. 29 traffic-alleviation plans left in limbo, but so were property owners.
The new traffic solution devised by VDOT involves major work within the current U.S. 29 corridor, including reworking the Rio Road intersection and widening U.S. 29 from the Rivanna Bridge to Hollymead.
To address the predicament of property that has now been rendered superfluous, VDOT last fall began attempting to sell most of the parcels back to the original holders.
Thats an equitable solution.
But its not without problems of its own.
For one thing, not all the former owners can buy back their property.
Some have died.
Others are still in dispute with VDOT over the prices of property disputes that have lingered for 20 years over the amount the state was willing to pay when it took land and houses under eminent domain. Some property owners never accepted those offers; as a result, several properties remain tied up legally.
The lengthy legal disagreements especially illustrate just how unfair the U.S. 29 bypass project turned out to be for landowners. First their land and homes were taken from them then the confiscation turned out to be unnecessary.
In reselling property to original owners, it has been suggested that VDOT ought not take into account property appreciation but rather sell at something approaching the original price.
That might help compensate owners for the difficulties and disruptions confiscation might have caused them but it does not meet the agencys fiduciary responsibilities to the taxpayers. VDOT is obligated to get the best deal it can reasonably obtain.
There are no easily identifiable bad guys and good guys in this scenario. Most state, local and regional officials behaved, most of the time, in ways that they believed at the time would best serve their constituents.
But the arguments, the delays, the reversals and the resulting confusion served rather to complicate and prolong the process of finding a U.S. 29 solution. As usual, its the taxpayer, the common man or woman on the street, who ultimately pays the price.
LONDON - England - Without a Brexit, there will be riots across Britain amongst anarchy and chaos never imagined. No, this is not Project Fear, but a certainty.
The reason for the chaos and riots is quite simple. If Britons dont vote for a Brexit, there will be another massive deluge of migrants never before seen on these shores.
Forget about calling an ambulance for your sick child, or calling for a fire engine when your house is on fire, as for the police, they will be too busy with the riots or will have been disbanded because of governmental cuts.
There is no remedy for the oversubscribed NHS or the school system which is barely functioning at the moment apart from Brexit.
The riots will be all encompassing, across the length and breadth of Britain and there will be no escape either, wherever you go you will find discontent, chaos and the blood will run thick in the streets.
Supermarket shelves will be empty as millions take to the streets in search of food and to loot as much as they can.
Death and Mayhem
Anarchist groups are hoping for a Remain vote for a very good reason, they want the chaos to topple the government and monarchy. Why do you think theyre in the Calais jungle inciting and advising illegal migrants to cross the Channel.
With no school places left for your children, no hospital beds, and no police, law and order will break down very quickly as Britain absorbs the deluge from the EU and Third World.
The Benefits system will eventually collapse due to lack of taxpayer funds as the migrants eat the welfare system dry, and they themselves will take to the streets in frustration.
The tiny island of Britain has already become a dumping ground for millions of migrants, but the deluge will reach astronomic levels if Britain stays in the EU.
Anarchy
The anarchist groups are waiting for the EU referendum with bated breath, for they know what is coming. Soon they will be flying their flag from Buckingham palace, and dragging a soaked Kate Middleton down the street in her 5,000 dress, only pausing for a second or two to jeer and spit at her.
Jeremy Corbyn, is an Anarcho-Marxist, his role will increase in the event of a Remain vote. He will rally the troops, to round up the Jews, the rich and the remaining monarchy, lined up against blood stained walls and brutally dispatched with no mercy.
This is the future of Britain under the EU. It had no qualms about crushing Greece, inciting mass riots and destroying their economy, why should it have any qualms about destroying Britain.
The EU does not want a strong Britain, it does not in any circumstances want an economy that is doing well globally, and this is why it is crushing the British steel industry under the auspices of China.
Children of Men
The riots will halt everything, once one riot starts, it will spread, and so on. The sheer anger amongst the population is so high, the closeted ignorant Cameron Cabinet will not know what to do. There has never been such a weak lily livered prime minister to date, and as in many things, this out of touch wet rag will wilt further as he is caught in the headlights. He will soon hang from a post as many of them will such will be the fury of the people, the disenfranchised masses who see his fat lying face everywhere.
He will be dragged from Number 10 whimpering like a wounded animal and strung up on a post in Whitehall. As his useless life fritters itself away, he will spy one face smiling Corbyn.
In the next 35 years, Asia would have about 1 billion more people becoming "water-stressed". (Photo: Pixabay)
Washington: Countries in Asia, including India, may face severe water shortage by 2050 due to rising economic activity, growing populations and climate change, MIT scientists have warned.
There is a "high risk of severe water stress" in much of an area that is home to roughly half the world's population, scientists said. Having run a large number of simulations of future scenarios, the researchers found that the median amounts of projected growth and climate change in the next 35 years in Asia would lead to about 1 billion more people becoming "water-stressed" compared to today.
While climate change is expected to have serious effects on the water supply in many parts of the world, the study underscores the extent to which industrial expansion and population growth may by themselves exacerbate water-access
problems.
"It's not just a climate change issue," said Adam Schlosser, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in US. "We simply cannot ignore that economic and population growth in society can have a very strong influence on our demand for resources and how we manage them.
And climate, on top of that, can lead to substantial magnifications to those
stresses," said Schlosser. To conduct the study, the scientists built upon an
existing model developed previously at MIT, the Integrated Global Systems Model (IGSM), which contains probabilistic projections of population growth, economic expansion, climate, and carbon emissions from human activity.
They then linked the IGSM model to detailed models of water use for a large portion of Asia encompassing China, India, and many smaller nations. The scientists then ran an extensive series of repeated projections using varying conditions.
In what they call the "Just Growth" scenario, they held climate conditions constant and evaluated the effects of economic and population growth on
the water supply. In an alternate "Just Climate" scenario, scientists held growth constant and evaluated climate-change effects alone. And in a "Climate and Growth" scenario, they studied the impact of rising economic activity, growing populations, and climate change.
Approaching it this way gave the researchers a "unique ability to tease out the human (economic) and environmental" factors leading to water shortages and to assess their relative significance, Schlosser said.
"For China, it looks like industrial growth (has the greatest impact) as people get wealthier. In India, population growth has a huge effect. It varies by region," said lead author Charles Fant. The study was published in the journal PLOS One.
Hyderabad: The findings of the Comptroller and Auditor General regarding revenue deficit for financial year 2014-15 has given the Centre a weapon to counter the AP government's claim.
The AP government has been demanding that the Centre sanction about Rs 16,300 crore as assured in the AP Reorganisation Act to fill the revenue gap for the financial year 2014-15. So far, the Centre has released Rs 2,800 crore towards filling the revenue gap.
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had said that he would write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting sanctioning of the balance amount.
In the 2014-15 Budget, the state government estimated revenue gap of `25,574 crore. In the revised estimates at the end of the financial year, the revenue gap was Rs 16,300 crore.
However, the CAG in its recent report on state finances for the year 2014-15 found fault with the state government for over statement of revenue deficit.
The CAG said out of total revenue deficit as estimated by the AP government, Rs 10,417.49 crore pertaining to combined state and about Rs 6,994.46 crore by way of conversion of power utilities loans were also included in the total revenue deficit.
Washington: A US drone strike in Somalia has targeted a key leader of the al-Shabab militant group who was involved in two attacks in Mogadishu more than a year ago that killed more than 30 people, at least three Americans among them, the Pentagon said on Friday. Several US officials said he and two others were killed.
Hassan Ali Dhoore was targeted in the airstrike Thursday, but the US military was still assessing the results, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a statement. Other US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the operation, said it occurred about 20 miles south of Jilib in southern Somalia not far from the Kenya border, killing Dhoore and two others.
Cook said Dhoore helped facilitate a deadly Christmas Day 2014 attack at Mogadishu International Airport and a March 2015 attack at the Maka al-Mukarramah Hotel. US citizens were among those killed in the two attacks, he said.
One senior official also said that Dhoore was believed to be involved in plotting more attacks that would have targeted US citizens.
Cook said Dhoore, who was also a member of al-Qaida, worked for al-Shabab's security and intelligence wing.
Killing Dhoore "would be a significant blow to al-Shabab's operational planning and ability to conduct attacks."
In the Christmas 2014 assault, gunmen attacked the African Union's main base leading to an exchange of gunfire between militants and soldiers that killed at least nine people, including three soldiers.
Three months later, gunmen from the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab rebel group launched an attack in the reception area of the hotel in the Somali capital, killing at least 24, including six attackers.
UN investigators have identified 108 alleged new victims, the vast majority of whom are under-age girls who were raped, sexually abused or exploited by foreign troops, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. (Representational Image)
Bangui, Central African Republic: The UN pledged to stamp out sexual abuse during global peacekeeping missions, calling for DNA testing and court-martials after appalling new accounts, including bestiality, from more than 100 victims in Central African Republic.
"We will discuss with members states ... the possibility of holding court martials on the spot, in the countries where the reprehensible actions were committed," UN under-secretary for peacekeeping operations Herve Ladsous said Friday.
"This would show victims we are dealing with their plight," said Ladsous during a visit in the Central African capital.
He also suggested taking DNA samples of troops about to deploy on peace missions "to facilitate paternity tests" in case of claims.
UN investigators have identified 108 alleged new victims, "the vast majority" of whom are under-age girls who were raped, sexually abused or exploited by foreign troops, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Thursday.
French President Francois Hollande and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Friday there would be no impunity for French troops and UN peacekeepers accused in the scandal.
Hollande, who met with Ban in Washington, said that if true, the allegations would "stain France's honour."
French authorities this week received a UN letter outlining new allegations of sexual abuse.
Ban was "shocked to the core" by the allegations that emerged after a UN team traveled to south-central Kemo prefecture to interview the women and girls.
The teams received accounts that troops from France's Sangaris force coerced girls to engage in bestiality in return for small amounts of money.
AIDS-Free World, a civil society group that tracks peacekeeper sex abuse cases, said three girls told a UN rights officer that in 2014 they were tied up and undressed by a Sangaris commander inside a camp and forced to have sex with a dog.
'Heart Of Darkness'
Dujarric stressed that "the facts have not been ascertained" in what could be the most serious wave of allegations to date to hit the troubled peace mission in Central African Republic.
"We must face the fact that a number of troops sent to protect people instead acted with hearts of darkness," Dujarric said.
France sent its Sangaris intervention force to the Central African Republic in December 2013 and while the troops are not part of the UN mission, they have been mandated by the Security Council to help restore peace to the country.
Also Friday, the French defence ministry said the soldiers, if convicted, would face strict military discipline in addition to any criminal penalities that may be brought.
UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein has called for investigations that "leave no stone unturned."
Under UN rules, the responsibility for investigating and prosecuting peacekeeper sexual abuse lies with the countries that contribute the troops and police to the peace missions.
In a first, Dujarric said the United Nations would carry out joint investigations with Burundi and Gabon of the allegations that took place between 2013 and 2015.
The Central African peacekeeping operation, known as MINUSCA, counts about 12,600 foreign police and soldiers, as well as more than 500 foreign civilians.
The UN mission took over from an African Union force in September 2014 as the country was still reeling from a wave of sectarian bloodshed.
As disturbing allegations of sexual assault by troops targeting civilians mounted, Ban in August fired the mission chief, but new claims have continued to emerge.
Earlier this week, the United Nations reported two new cases of sexual abuse by Burundian and Moroccan troops, including one that involved a 14-year-old girl.
Copenhagen, Denmark: The Danish government on Friday extended random identification checks along the country's German border until May 3, saying they were needed to deter migrants from entering the country.
"The pressure on Europe's external borders is still high and refugee and migrant flows may rise significantly when the weather gets better," Integration Minister Inger Stojberg said in a statement.
"It is necessary to extend the border controls so that we ensure that large groups of refugees and migrants do not accumulate here in Denmark," she added.
The controls were introduced on January 4, hours after Sweden began requiring rail and ferry companies to verify the identities of people traveling from Denmark across the Oresund Strait, and have been extended four times.
Last year Denmark largely served as a transit country for migrants traveling to Sweden, which until recently had some of Europe's most generous asylum rules.
Denmark received more than 21,000 asylum applications in 2015, a 44 percent jump from 2014, though significantly fewer than its northern neighbour, which registered 163,000 asylum applications in the same year.
The number of people seeking asylum in Denmark fell to 35 in the week ending Tuesday, the lowest number since the border checks were introduced, according to data from the Danish government.
"Asylum numbers can fluctuate considerably from day to day... It may be due to several things," Stojberg told Danish news agency Ritzau, citing bad weather conditions and border checks in Denmark and elsewhere in Europe as possible explanations.
Director Shashank who is best remembered for his work, Moggina Manasu, is now returning with the sequel to the master piece, Mungaru Male. Touted to be very different from its prequel, Mungaru Male 2 is not only unique in its form and content but concerted efforts have been made to change the style of narration and the result is worth watching, says Shashank.
If the first part of the movie was shot in rain, the sequel has gone beyond just rain and romance. The shooting for Mungaru Male 2 began almost six months ago. The locations for the shoot were chosen after a lot of research and care has been taken to make every scene appear different. We waited for the monsoon in Madikeri to shoot one of our sequences there which we did in July. Then, we wanted to shoot one of the scenes, in the deserts of Rajasthan, so we waited for the right time in November to shoot there. We have travelled a lot for this film, explains Shashank.
He explains, that the script has been written in such a way that the crew had to not only shoot across the country, but in a few select locations across the world as well. We have also shot in Slovenia in Europe which has one place where you find both the snow and beaches. We found this place after a lot of research, he adds.
Shashank says that the film will also be shot in a few star hotels in the city. We have zeroed in on a couple of houses, parks and other hotels in the city. We have only two songs left to work on before we can say that the film is ready, he adds. Mungaru Male 2 has Ganesh and Neha Shetty playing the lead role. Veteran actor V Ravichandran plays the role of Ganeshs father in the film. Ganesh has changed his appearance for this film and we have introduced former model Neha Shetty as the lead. This may be Nehas first film but she has done a good job. She sat through a few workshops before she
began the project and I must say that she has grasped her part very well, says Shashank.
He says the project will focus more on the dialogues, script and narration. The script is the hero. We have eliminated repetition because we dont people to think that Mungaru Male 2 is similar to the first part. This project will be a great visual treat, assures Shashank.
India has reacted sharply to China scuttling its attempt to get JeM chief Masood Azhar designated as terrorist by the UN, but China stood its ground.
Expressing its strong "disappointment" over the development, India said it finds it "incomprehensible" that while the Pakistan-based JeM was listed in UN Security Council Committee for its well known terror activities and links to the Al Qaeda, the designation of the group's "main leader, financier and motivator" has been put on a "technical hold".
In a strongly-worded statement, India slammed China's virtual veto of its attempt to blacklist Pathankot terror strike mastermind Azhar, saying "this does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism".
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said the UN sanctions committee was taking a "selective approach" in tackling terrorism, adding that "Its working methods, based on the principles of unanimity and anonymity, is leading the Committee to adopt a selective approach to combating terrorism."
However, China defended its action, maintaining JeM chief does not qualify to be nailed as a "terrorist" to face UN sanctions as his case "did not meet" the Security Council's requirements.
"Any listing would have to meet the requirements" for blacklisting, Chinese Permanent Representative to the UN Liu Jieyi told reporters yesterday in response to questions over China's decision to place a 'technical hold' on designating Azhar in the UN Sanctions Committee.
After the attack on the IAF base at Pathankot on January 2, India in February wrote to the UN calling for immediate action to list Azhar under the Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee.
The India submission was considered by the Counter- Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED) for technical aspects of the evidence provided. The technical team then with the support of the US, UK and France had sent it to all the members. However, hours before the deadline, China requested the Committee to hold up the banning of the JeM chief.
In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei defended China's decision, saying that it acts on such issues based on facts and rules in an "objective and just manner".
This is not the first time China has blocked India's bid to get Pakistan-based militant groups and leaders proscribed by the UN.
The UN had banned the JeM in 2001 but India's efforts for a ban on Azhar after the 2008 Mumbai terror attack also did not fructify as China, that has veto powers, did not allow the ban apparently at the behest of Pakistan again.
Last July, China had similarly halted India's move in the UN to take action against Pakistan for its release of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, saying that its stand was "based on facts and in the spirit of objectiveness and fairness" with Beijing again claiming at the time that it was in touch with New Delhi.
Clinging to its pro-Pakistan stance, China has asserted that JeM chief and Pathankot terror attack mastermind Masood Azhar does not qualify to be nailed as a "terrorist" to face UN sanctions as his case "did not meet" the Security Council's requirements.
"Any listing would have to meet the requirements" for blacklisting, Chinese Permanent Representative to the UN Liu Jieyi told reporters yesterday in response to questions over China's decision to place a 'technical hold' on designating Azhar in the UN Sanctions Committee.
He, however, gave no further details. Liu's comments came on a day when China, one of the five permanent members of the 15-nation Council, assumed the rotating presidency of the UNSC for April.
India has reacted strongly to China's blocking of its bid at the UN to ban the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief, saying that the sanctions committee was taking a "selective approach" in tackling terrorism.
In Beijing, also yesterday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei defended China's decision, saying that it acts on such issues based on facts and rules in an "objective and just manner".
"We always deal with the listing issue (banning militant groups and their leaders) under the UN Security Council committee established under resolution 1267 based on facts and relevant rules of procedures in an objective and just manner.
"The Chinese side has always been in communication with relevant parties on the listing issue," he said, hinting that China is also in touch with India on the issue.
India yesterday said it is disappointed that a "technical hold" has been put on its application to include Azhar in the UN sanctions list, terming the move "incomprehensible" that this is despite the JeM being listed in the UN Security Council Committee as far back as 2001 for its known terror activities and links to the Al Qaeda.
This is not the first time China has blocked India's bid to get Pakistan-based militant groups and leaders proscribed by the UN.
The UN had banned the JeM in 2001 but India's efforts for a ban on Azhar after the 2008 Mumbai terror attack also did not fructify as China, that has veto powers, did not allow the ban apparently at the behest of Pakistan again.
Last July, China had similarly halted India's move in the UN to take action against Pakistan for its release of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, saying that its stand was "based on facts and in the spirit of objectiveness and fairness" with Beijing again claiming at the time that it was in touch with New Delhi.
Gunmen have kidnapped four Malaysians from a ship off the east coast of Sabah state in waters where Abu Sayyaf militants are known to operate, local media reported today.
If the Philippine Islamist group is confirmed to be behind the kidnapping, it would be their second such hostage-taking in as many weeks and comes amid an uptick in such attacks.
Sabah police commissioner Abdul Rashid Harun told Malaysia's official news agency Bernama that authorities were still investigating if the kidnapping yesterday occurred in Malaysian or international waters.
"The area is vast and we have our assets there. So we are investigating whether it happened in or off our waters," he was quoted as saying by Bernama. "The five other individuals in the ship comprising Myanmar and Indonesian nationals were released." There were conflicting reports over whether the boat, the size of which was not immediately known, had been sailing to Malaysia from the Philippines or making the reverse journey.
Many Western and other embassies routinely issue warnings against travelling to most of the Philippines' Muslim-populated southern regions, which lie just northeast of Sabah, because of the risk of being abducted by the Abu Sayyaf.
On Tuesday, officials said that 10 Indonesian sailors had been kidnapped in waters off the southern Philippines. The incident was believed to have happened last Saturday. The Philippine military said initial information indicated the sailors may have been taken by an Abu Sayyaf faction to Sulu, a remote southern island that is a hideout of the militant outfit.
Someone claiming to be from Abu Sayyaf called the vessel's owners to demand a ransom for the sailors' release. Other recent kidnappings, including of two Canadian tourists and a Norwegian resort owner in areas previously considered beyond the group's reach, have further raised fears.
Last year, Malaysian Bernard Then was kidnapped from a seaside restaurant in Sabah, about 300 kilometres (180 miles) from the Abu Sayyaf's Jolo stronghold. He was later killed by the group.
Two more bodies were extricated from underneath the pile of debris of the collapsed under- construction flyover in central Kolkata, pushing the death toll to 26 even as one more official of Hyderabad-based IVRCL engaged in its construction was arrested.
Tanmay Sil, an officer of IVRCL, was arrested during the day when he was trying to flee, police said.
Three senior officials of the construction and engineering company were arrested by Kolkata Police last night in connection with their probe into the mishap.
Kolkata Police disaster management team along with fire fighters extricated bodies of two men from underneath the rubble of concrete, which was possibly part of a small temple at the mishap site, a senior Kolkata Police officer told PTI.
The number of people injured was 89, he said. "This area is quite critical because of its proximity to residential buildings along the road. We were getting foul smell from underneath the rubble but we have to be very cautious while carrying out the rescue work...A single wrong step can lead to another mishap by bringing down the other part of the flyover," the officer said.
On the identity of the two bodies, he said from their attire they seem to be beggars sitting outside the temple.
A portion of the under-construction Vivekananda flyover, which was reportedly around 60-metre long collapsed on the afternoon of March 31.
Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi visited the site and met the injured in hospital during the day.
"There has been a tragedy here. I have come here to give them whatever little support I can provide," he said.
Asked to comment on the allegations of lapses in the construction of the flyover, Gandhi said, "I have come here to meet the injured. I'll not talk about politics."
Later, addressing an election meeting at Niyamatpur in Burdwan district, Gandhi said TMC men got the work contract for the flyover.
"People have died, TMC did not suffer any loss," he said. Meanwhile, BJP claimed that during her stint as Railway Minister in 2011 Mamata Banerjee knew about Hyderabad-based IVRCL.
BJP national secretary Siddharth Nath Singh said soon after the flyover collapse, Banerjee was quick to say that the work was awarded to the company by the former Left Front government here in 2009 when it was already blacklisted.
"Will the chief minister answer why the Railway Ministry gave the work to the company (IVRCL) for the tunnel project in 2011 when it was already blacklisted and was on the CBI radar following irregularities in house building scam?" he asked.
Quoting an IRCON document, he said the tunneling project started during the tenure of subsequent two Trinamool Congress Railway ministers followed by Congress incumbents.
Singh said after Trinamool Congress came to power in 2011, the government again reviewed Vivekananda flyover project and gave its nod to IVRCL to continue with the work.
"There is a suspicion of a quid pro quo as it was later revealed after the collapse that a company close to the Trinamool Congress was a sub-contractor for the project," he claimed and demanded a CBI probe or a court-monitored probe into it.
The National Human Rights Commission has issued notices to six states, including Delhi, for adopting 'lackadaisical attitude' in the rehabilitation of 740 bonded child labourers rescued from 2013 to 2014.
These states include Rajasthan, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. The Commission has sought reports from the six states within eight weeks.
Seven hundred and forty child labourers 610 from Bihar, and the rest 130 from Jharkhand, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Rajasthan were rescued.
But release certificates were issued for only 456 children from Bihar. However, they were not given copies of the release certificates by the concerned authorities in Rajasthan, the NHRC observed.
Release certificates for 284 rescued bonded child labourers are yet to be issued. The certificates are essential to start the rehabilitation process in the respective states.
The issue of the rescue of child labourers is not merely an instance of employing a child in violation of laws. It is rather more heinous in nature that children are being taken from one state to another, which cannot happen without the involvement of human/child traffickers, said D Murugesan, member, NHRC.
Action plan
No report has been submitted by the state agencies regarding the action taken plan to curb child trafficking so far, said Murugesan.
Therefore, the allegation of the complainant that the human/child traffickers have not been dealt with in accordance with law, required to be investigated in an impartial and transparent manner.
The notices have been issued to the chief secretaries, police and labour commissioners of the state governments to submit the report.
On the eve of Vice President of India Hamid Ansaris visit to Jammu, Director General of Police (DGP), K Rajendra Kumar Friday reviewed security arrangements in a high level meeting.
Ansari, who will be the chief guest at the 16th Convocation of University of Jammu, will give away medals to around 100 students and scholars on Saturday.
Rajendra directed the officers for ensuring implementation of joint mechanism chalked out with other security agencies to make the visit successful, an official spokesman said.
He said that while putting in place the security arrangements, coordination with university authorities and other concerned agencies should be ensured. During the meeting, officers briefed the DGP about the security and deployment plan put in place during the visit of VVIP to Jammu University.
The DGP stressed for greater synergy among different agencies and forces being deployed for the security of VVIP. He asked to utilize the security gadgets including CCTV Cameras en-route the visit and the venues.
Traffic arrangements were also discussed and it was decided that proper parking of vehicles inside the venue of Convocation at the already identified slots would be ensured.
Rajendra stressed upon the officers to share inputs regarding the activities of suspicious elements and ensure required preventive measures to foil any ill designs of such elements. He also asked for high alertness in the border areas to curb any undesired
Delhi government and North Delhi Municpal Corporation have joined hands for the much-needed revival of the dying Naini Lake in North Delhis Model Town area.
Delhi Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra met North Delhi Mayor Ravinder Gupta on Thursday and renewed the lease of the lake which got expired two years ago. North Municipal Corporation is the land-owning agency.
The decision was taken after repeated pleas by the residents of the Model Town area to restore the water body.
Major decision on Naini Lake done- Delhi Tourism will revive and conserve the lake. Amazing support from Mayor Ravinder Gupta for it, wrote Mishra in a tweet.
Once a popular destination in Delhis Model Town area and home to various birds, frogs and other creatures, the lakes condition over the years has worsened, and it is nearly ecological dead now.
It has low oxygen level and is devoid of plant life because of which fish and other creatures are finding it difficult to survive.
Conserve water bodies
Delhi Tourism department will work to rejuvenate the lake for boating and other activities.
Besides tourism, the project will also give a boost to Delhi governments plan to conserve water bodies to have a reserve of water in case of a crisis, like the one seen during the Jat agitation in Haryana, when water supply in the national capital was affected.
According to a survey by Delhi government in 2014, of the 611 water bodies in the capital, 274 have already dried up, while the remaining 337 are in a terrible condition.
A plan for reviving Naini Lake was submitted to the department by professor C R Babu, renowned ecologist and professor-emeritus at Centre for Environmental Management of Degraded Ecosystems, in July.
However, it was put on the backburner as the MoU between the government and the North Corporation, which is the land-owning agency, was to be renewed.
North Municipal Corporation grants licence for boating and supporting activities on a revenue sharing model between it and Delhi Tourism.
Charas hidden in religious books was being sent from the capital through courier to European and south-east Asian countries, said Narcotics Control Bureau.
Two of the drug traffickers were arrested on Wednesday.
Charas was meticulously concealed by creating false cavities in the books binding covers. Around 20 kilos of the drugs have been seized in the last few months. The two held in connection with the case are Munish Gupta, 28, and 50-year-old R B Singh. The duo used to bring these books from Nepal by road. The gang had been running a very well oiled network engaged in smuggling of extremely high-quality charas of Nepali origin, said NCB Zonal Director Rohit Sharma.
The drugs of Nepali origin is considered to be of the highest quality. Besides Malana charas of Himachal Pradesh origin, this drug is in high demand across the worldwide.
The books with drugs were put among religious books when brought to the capital. These were then couriered to the United Kingdom, Germany, Portugal, Austria and Hong Kong.
Gupta and Singh were nabbed after a parcel containing charas concealed in Buddhist religious scriptures was intercepted by the NCB.
A round-the-clock surveillance was mounted on the possible hideouts of the suspects. However, it turned out that the parcels were booked on forged identities.
Our efforts of linking the missing dots over the last few months have borne results with the arrest of Gupta and his associate Singh, Sharma added.
On being questioned, the duo confessed to have sent around 25 such parcels over the past year.
They have also informed police that the masterminds are Nepal based.Gupta and Singh used to get Rs 50,000 from their Nepali handlers for every consignment sent abroad, said police.
NCB will share the information with the concerned international authorities to bust the complete syndicate.
Gupta and Singh were produced before court and remanded to judicial custody.
The charred bodies of three drug addicts were found at a rented house in south Delhis Lodhi Colony on Thursday afternoon. The family members of the deceased alleged the landlady a widow is involved in the murders.
Police suspect Sandeep, Ganesh and Gaurav were burnt to death after synthetic clothes and foam in the house caught fire due to beedis used for taking drugs. They are also looking into the allegations of the family members. No FIR has been filed so far in the case.
The house in Sewa Nagar Railway Colony was taken on rent by Sandeep, 22, who hailed from Nepal.
Sandeep lived with his wife and two children. His family members were not at home as they had gone to his sisters house on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Sandeep called his friends Ganesh, 22 and Gaurav, 18, for a party at his house. The three work as labourers. Police have recovered drugs and liquor bottles from the room. They were found dead when Ganeshs wife Deepa went to the house on Thursday afternoon, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Prem Nath.
Deepa went to the house when Ganesh did not return home. Following this, the police were informed. The call to the police control room was made by Pushpa Chauhan, the landlady. Deepa told police in her statement that Ganeshs cellphone was switched off a few hours after he left the house on Wednesday. She claimed there were injury marks on Ganeshs body.
Sandeeps father Sant Bahadur claimed he saw bloodstains on the stairs leading to the house.
Police have questioned Chauhan and her two sons.
Chauhan had rented out rooms on the terrace of the building to Sandeep. Prima facie, evidence hints that the incident occurred late on Wednesday. High on drugs, it seems that they were unable to save themselves from the fire, said a police officer.
Sandeeps family members alleged he often had arguments with Chauhan and her family members over rent and parties that he organised with his friends. They alleged the Chauhans had also threatened to kill Sandeep.
Police, however, said there were no injury marks on the bodies. After inspecting the house, local electricians claimed that there were no signs of short-circuit.
The bodies have been handed over to families after the postmortems conducted at AIIMS. The investigators are waiting for the postmortem reports. Police have almost ruled out foul play.
While Ganesh hailed from Nepal, Gaurav was from Uttar Pradeshs Aligarh district.
Enforcement Directorate (ED) today issued the third and possibly the last summons to liquor baron Vijay Mallya to present himself before its investigators on April 9 in Mumbai in connection with money laundering probe in the over Rs 900 crore IDBI loan fraud case.
Mallya had yesterday sought time till May to depose before the agency, expressing his inability to keep the scheduled date for today at the ED's zonal office in Mumbai.
Official sources said the investigating officer (IO) at ED's Mumbai office today issued fresh summons to the United Breweries (UB) group Chairman to personally appear before him on April 9.
ED officials hinted that this could possibly be the last summons to Mallya as the IO had allowed his plea to postpone his appearance till now, both on technical and legal grounds.
They said, under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), usually a maximum of three summons are sent and that would be completed by the fresh date on Saturday next.
They also added that the IO had turned down Mallya's request for giving him time till May as his joining the probe was important and hence he only gave him a week's time, till Saturday next.
It is understood that Mallya had yesterday informed the IO that cases related to bank loans were currently subjudice in the Supreme Court and he was trying to settle these loans with the help of his legal and corporate team and, hence, would require some more time.
If he again fails to appear on April 9, sources said, the ED could initiate legal action for revoking his passport and also get a non-bailable warrant against him issued by a court.
Mallya was first summoned by the agency to "appear in person" at its office in Mumbai on March 18 but he sought more time citing his prior engagements, following which the agency asked him to depose on April 2.
Mallya and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd (KFA) had on March 30 submitted to the Supreme Court in a sealed cover a proposal for repayment of Rs 4,000 crore out of the loan amount of Rs 6,903 crore to a consortium of banks led by State Bank of India by September this year.
He is currently reported to be in the UK after he left India on March 2. The UB group Chairman was first issued summons by ED under the provisions of PMLA to provide documents related to his personal investments and finances, Income Tax Returns for the last five years and his passport.
The ED had recently registered a money laundering case against Mallya and others, based on an FIR registered last year by the CBI. The agency is also investigating financial structure of the now defunct KFA and looking into any payment of kickbacks to secure loan.
Tata Motors will deliver 300 all terrain vehicles (ATVs) to the armed forces per quarter, a senior company official said today.
"We delivered 39 ATVs in December last year and another 100 in March. We will now increase the delivery rate to 300 ATVs per quarter and we are confident of meeting the schedule," said Veron S Noronha, Vice-President (Defence and Government Business) Tata Motors, told PTI.
He, however, did not specify how many such vehicles are to be delivered to the armed forces.
Tata Motors has order backlogs worth Rs 1,400 crore related to supply of logistic vehicles, light armed vehicles, ATVs and 6 by 6 trucks to the security forces, he said.
The private company, which makes an array of vehicles, ranging from passengers cars to ATVs, presented its products and technology at the just concluded 'Defence Expo 2016' here.
The expo was a very good opportunity for Tata Motors to meet foreign entities and discuss prospective technical collaborations, he said.
Talking about Make In India initiative, Noronha said the manufacturing project will definitely help companies like Tata Motors as funding by the government for research and development has become more transparent.
"Exchange rate variation and other items have been specifically introduced (under the project) which put companies like Tata Motors on level playing field."
DRDO can now become production partner in initial stages of product development, Noronha added.
Bhoomata Brigade leader Trupti Desai and 25 others were today taken into preventive custody to stop them from entering the inner sanctum of the famous Shani temple in Ahmednagar's Shignapur village.
They were, however, later released near Shirur in Pune district this evening, police said.
Desai was detained in the afternoon near the Shani temple in adjoining Ahmednagar district, about 120km from here, along with 25 other activists when they tried to enter the core area of the popular shrine, where females are not allowed.
She was to taken Ahmednagar Civil hospital for a medical check-up but she reportedly refused to undergo it.
After a verbal exchange with authorities she was subsequently taken near Shirur, a taluka town bordering Ahmednagar district, in her own car and left there, police said.
They said Desai and others were detained in view of angry public sentiments (among locals) against her attempted entry to the sacred platform of the temple dedicated to Lord Shani.
There was also a possibility of a stampede and law and order situation arising out of the temple entry march, they added.
The march to the temple at Shinganapur by Desai and others came in the wake of the Bombay High Court yesterday asking the State government to uphold fundamental right of women to enter any place of worship.
The right-to-pray archivist and her supporters faced stiff opposition and protests by villagers who said they would defend the centuries-old tradition banning women from entering the inner sanctum sanctorum of the temple.
Desai alleged her detention has tarnished Maharashtra's image as a progressive state and demanded resignation of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis as Home Minister for failing to honour the HC order and asking police to ensure safe passage for the women activists.
Never before in the history of humanity has it been possible to stroll down a few metres to partake of the globe. Coffee from a US-based company, Italian ice-cream, clothes from a Spanish outlet, shoes from an American brand... everything is now within reach in your neighbourhood mall, whether you are in Bengaluru, Kanpur, Madrid or Buenos Aires. Our world, it seems, is coasting along towards becoming One World, at least culturally.
And yet... Think of a city, any city. What is it that comes to mind first? With Paris, its likely to be the Eiffel Tower. With Delhi, perhaps the Qutb Minar. London may have conjured images of the Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, or perhaps a melange of its streets and its old buildings, while New York might remind you of the Empire State Building or its many mouth-watering museums. Point to note: a city is still usually associated with something unique about it. Rarely, if ever, is it identified by its modern malls or by its resemblance to other cities.
In the last decades of the previous century, there was a fear that the march of globalisation would swallow up some unique cultures of the world. But we had reckoned without the fact that humans are conflicted creatures: We all want to be the same, but we all also want to be different! And so, the world over, the threat of globalisation-induced cultural homogenisation has engendered a tendency to hold out against sameness by holding on to ones roots. This is not to say that globalisation has not been an engine of change, because it has. But even as globalisation bulldozes over the local, it is simultaneously the driver of a celebration of the local and the unique.
This is nowhere more evident than in cities, those engines of growth that are at the forefront of globalisation. Governments around the world have attempted to showcase their cities uniqueness, their distinctive heritage that makes them special. In Singapore, for example, in the late 1980s, the government stepped in to conserve and revive the traditional shophouse. These narrow and terraced houses, built between the 1840s and the mid-1900s, were common in most southeast Asian cities and functioned both as shops and residences. Post conservation, alongside Singapores famously swanky high-rises, these traditional shophouses are home to its hippest shops and restaurants and some of its toniest residences.
In the case of the Pike Place Market in Seattle in the United States, it was citizens who took on the role of retaining and highlighting local heritage. This marketplace began life as the Public Market in 1907. By the 1970s though, it had fallen into the kind of hard times many of us Indians are familiar with reduced footfalls, low rents, peeling paint and a general disrepair. The city government proposed an urban renewal plan which envisaged replacing the ageing and fading market with spanking new high-rise offices, hotels and a multi-storey parking lot.
When citizens got wind of this scheme though, there were vociferous protests. They argued that the market was a unique and valuable community asset that deserved to be retained. Eventually, their push for a Historic Market District prevailed. The market was restored and rejuvenated with generous public funding. Today, it is reputed to be the countrys oldest operational marketplace, and is Seattles most-visited tourist destination. It is also central to Seattles image, and a source of great pride for its people.
Cultivating culture
A fine example of sensitive urban renewal in India is the Nizamuddin Urban Renewal Project of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, which in 2007 initiated a still-ongoing intervention in the historic urban quarter of Nizamuddin, in New Delhi. One of the mandates of the project was to use culture as a catalyst for urban renewal. The intervention began with extensive community consultation and dialogue and has successfully restored several heritage structures in the neighbourhood, with full community co-operation. Cultural spaces have been revived and created where poetry readings and melas are held, all of which go towards fostering a keen sense of place.
The Nizamuddin initiative, unfortunately, is an exception in India. Most of our cities have hitched themselves onto the global bandwagon, while resolutely turning their backs on the local. Bengaluru itself is a perfect example of this. A recent survey by the NGO Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) found that more than 50% of a set of heritage buildings (including mostly houses) that had been recorded in the city in 1985 had been lost by 2015.
This is unfortunate because a city is more than just a set of buildings and streets. A city is a palimpsest, with several inter-layers of history. It is also an accumulation of stories, memories and meanings for its people. Most peoples lives are entwined with the houses and streets they grew up in, or the trees, parks and hills that they roamed in their neighbourhood. The demolition of these old houses and traditional markets, and the transformation of streets into a glitzy modernity erases these markers of memory, severs the citys links with its past, and leaves its people feeling unmoored.
It is this feeling of being lost in ones own city that moves people to seek an anchor that they can hold on to even as they are buffeted by waves of change. For proof of a search for rootedness, browse through social media. There has been a surge in the number of social media groups catering to nostalgia for the old days. There are groups dedicated to bygone Abu Dhabi, Manila, Bangalore, San Francisco, Liverpool, Madison and scores of other cities, each boasting more than 20,000 members. Posting their memories and photographs on these groups gives people a sense of shared history and belonging.
Another symptom of the need to belong is the popularity of heritage walks across cities both in India and elsewhere. Not all these walks showcase monumental heritage or discuss national history. Indeed, many of the more popular city walks focus on the ordinary and the everyday local cuisines, vernacular architecture, and street-side stories and heritage. Such walks feature prominently on the itineraries of tourists seeking out islands of non-conformity and non-homogeneity in a sea of sameness.
Interestingly, residents also flock to these walks to understand more of their own city and neighbourhood. For in-migrants, acquiring knowledge of the citys heritage is one way of getting an insiders view of their adopted city. Abhaya Agarwal, an entrepreneur who moved to Bengaluru 10 years ago and attended his first heritage walk in 2011, says the walks helped him look past the language barrier to understand the city, and also made some parts feel familiar and more approachable. It certainly helped establish a connect to the city, he says. For those born and brought up in the city, awareness of their heritage is a way of reaffirming and proclaiming their belonging.
An eye for detail
Exactly which city do people want to belong to? There is a plethora of pasts and a multiplicity of histories that have contributed to the present character of cities. Which of these pasts and which strands of history are chosen to be projected and reclaimed as our heritage reflects who we think we are. To say that heritage and identity are closely linked is a tautology. The very meaning of the word implies it. The Oxford dictionary defines heritage as the history, traditions and qualities that a country or society has had for many years and that are considered an important part of its character.
Most often, our identity, and therefore our cultural heritage, is strongly linked to the two Rs of region and religion. We want our children to learn our mother tongue, the dance form associated with our region, our kind of classical music, our cuisines, and of course, our religion. Other histories and other heritage do not carry the same resonance for many people. The destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas is only one extreme example of this. Less heinous instances happen in smaller ways, such as when things from the past fall out of fashion, or are simply neglected or forgotten. An example that comes to mind are the many Iron Age burial sites on the outskirts of Bengaluru.
These approximately 2,000-year-old sites are remnants of a civilisation we know little about and that probably did not share our religious beliefs. Most of these sites are being quarried away, replaced by residential layouts, or being dug up by treasure hunters. In fact, in one instance, people living in their vicinity referred to the site as nidhi, meaning treasure!
Can we transcend territoriality and religion in our identity? Just as my identity as a South Indian does not preclude my identity as an Indian, we must try and remember that our identity as Indians or as French does not preclude our identity as first and foremost, humans. I like to think we already see this. After all, we make time for the pyramids when in Egypt, or for Stonehenge when in Britain, and we are awed and moved by these ancient manifestations of human endeavour.
We immediately connect to these heritage sites that are thousands of kilometres from home because we understand the hopes, dreams and desires that they represent. Humans, through the ages, have gone through the same striving, hoping, living and longing that we all do. Globalised world or not, we all have a shared history of humanity.
An all-party delegation from Karnataka will once again meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his intervention in resolving the inter-state Mahadayi river dispute, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said today.
The Karnataka Assembly on Wednesday had adopted a resolution seeking the Prime Minister's intervention amid protests by opposition BJP members.
Siddaramaiah today held a meeting of representatives of political parties and farmers to discuss the future course of action on the issue that has put Karnataka and Goa at loggerheads.
Referring to the Assembly resolution, he said, "We will soon fix a date for meeting with Prime Minister after communicating with his office. On the issue of state's water, border and language, we have all worked together to provide justice to our people keeping our political differences aside."
"I'm sure that we will all work together to find solution to Kalasa-Banduri issue and help in providing drinking water to our people," he said.
Siddaramaiah also requested members of Parliament from the state to take up the task of convincing the Prime Minister on priority.
Union Ministers Ananth Kumar, Sadananda Gowda, Siddeshwara and BJP national vice president B S Yeddyurappa were part of the meeting.
Pointing out that waiting for the tribunal order and out of court settlement of the issue with the intervention of PM were the only options to solve the issue, the Chief Minister said the tribunal route will take a lot of time.
Parts of north Karnataka are seeing protests demanding implementation of Kalasa-Banduri canal project, over which the state government has locked horns with Goa.
The Kalasa-Banduri Nala (diversion) project, which will utilise 7.56 tmcft of water from the inter-state Mahadayi river, is being undertaken by Karnataka to improve drinking water supply to the twin cities of Hubballi-Dharwad and the districts of Belagavi and Gadag.
It involves building barrages across Kalasa and Banduri, tributaries of Mahadayi river, in order to divert 7.56 TMC to Malaprabha river which adheres to the drinking water needs of the twin cities.
Siddarmaiah had earlier too led a delegation to the Prime Minister seeking his intervention by calling a meeting of Goa, Maharashtra and Karnataka, which did not turn out to be fruitful.
Goa government has rejected Karnataka's attempt for out of court settlement of the dispute stating that the people of the state felt it was more prudent to settle the dispute through the tribunal.
Siddaramaiah, during the meeting today, also announced that all cases against farmers during Kalasa-Banduri protest will be withdrawn.
Reaching out to expatriates, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tonight announced a 24X7 multi-lingual helpline for them and said a move to regularise migration was in the offing through an online programme.
Asserting that the expatriates could count on the Indian government in the times of crisis, he said they coud use the avenues like the MADAD portal to reach the government for help.
Specifically for Indians in Saudi Arabia, he announced the setting up of worker resource centres in Riyadh and Jeddah to provide them with all necessary help.
Addressing a gathering of L&T workers who are constructing metro rail here, he said the country was proud of their contribution which has enhanced India's image abroad and opened doors for overseas employment opportunities for their compatriots.
"Whenever any good news regarding you people comes, I feel as happy as your family. When there is news of some concern regarding you, I feel the pain like your family would because you are my family," Modi said, adding that he shared their happiness and sorrow.
"Govt has started a programme called e-migrate. In the coming days, we are working to regularise migration," he said.
"In the coming days, we plan to establish worker resource centres in Riyadh and Jeddah to meet your needs and there will also be a 24X7 helpline. A call centre will be established whose facilities can be availed in different languages and through this helpline you can share your problems," Modi said.
Describing the expatriates as the pride of India, Modi asked them to use forums like MyGov website and 'Narendra Modi Mobile App' "through which you can reach me and I can communicate with you."
"By using this I will be in your pocket all the time. When you can have your Prime Minister in your pocket, what more do you want," Modi said, evoking peals of laughter.
"I am free 24 hours. I have no work. I have the work of over 125 crore people. I have no work of my own," he said.
He said the government has been trying to address the problems of the Indians abroad and cited the example of evacuation undertaken in Yemen. In this context, he praised External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj saying she and her team are giving priority to these issues.
"The MEA, the entire team of officials, Sushmaji...they are always helping Indians who face any problems overseas," he added.
"MADAD portal is a digital way of getting your voice to reach the government of India. When our community faces troubles we reach out to them immediately," Modi said.
Praising the Indians working abroad, he said they have earned respect for the country and as a result, Indians are prefered for services abroad. In this context, he said what he was told by the Saudi rulers about the Indian workers had made him feel proud.
"In this way, you have opened doors for employment opportunities for your fellow Indians," he said.
"India has regained its respect," he said.
Modi said earlier Indians looked at lightly but now they are taken seriously. "Now Indians are seen with respect."
He said in the future, the world will require workforce which only India can provide.
Even as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has announced to increase the number of seats in Mandya Institute of Medical Sciences (MIMS) from 100 to 150 in the budget, the Medical Council of India (MCI) has put it on hold, citing lack of facilities in the hospital.
In fact, MCI has warned of cancelling the recognition of the college within a month, if it fails to adhere to its guidelines and has laid down certain conditions for renewal of the present recognition. It is said that a committee, which visited the hospital for inspection, has reported that the hospital lacks 21 facilities required for medical education.
According to sources, the college faces staff shortage (13.2%) and about 10.1 % of the doctors posts have to be filled up. The general surgery ward requires 120 beds, whereas there are only 90 beds. The committee has directed MIMS to take steps to increase the number of beds.
Currently, there is only one common room for men and women where injections are given and wounds are dressed. The committee raised its objection over just one ward for ear, nose and throat (ENT) and psychiatry departments.
The report also highlights that there is no ventilation in the library, lack of facilities like X-ray, sterilizer and intercom. The hospital administration, in an effort to show the MCI committee that they have extra rooms, had converted the corridors of various departments into cabins, which was inconveniencing the patients.
The committee found that many teaching and paramedical staff were not provided quarters. As per the records, quarters have been provided to only 14 teaching staff out of 36. Similarly, only 169 nursing staff have accommodation facility out of 247 people; 120 paramedical staff have quarters out of 179.
As the institution provides post-graduate education, it is mandatory to have MRI equipment, as per the guidelines. But, there is no MRI machine on the campus. In 2014, a discussion was held with Hindustan Latex to procure an MRI machine.
But, no steps have been taken so far in this regard. However, the institution has a CT scan machine. But it is not being used as there are no qualified Radiologists and technical staff, it is said.
Speaking to Deccan Herald, Dr D H Rajendra, principal of MIMS, said that a decision has to be taken in the Cabinet to install an MRI equipment in the hospital. However, a few facilities are being provided shortly.
With the chief minister announcing five trauma centres on the national highways in the State, the people of the district have urged the government to set up one such centre near Mandya, on Bengaluru-Mysuru national highway.
In the first ever public ratification of the Congress on its coalition with the Left, party vice-president Rahul Gandhi called for people to bring the coalition to power in Bengal.
His words are expected to enthuse party workers and smooth out doubts that crept in over seat-sharing in the last few weeks. It will be a government by all. It will be a government of the poor and the common people, a government of tribals and Dalits, weaker sections, said Rahul while addressing his seasons first public rally in Bengal at Niyamatpur in Burdwan district.
Pointing out that he agreed to the wishes to the state party unit, he said, Ive agreed with what you wanted. Now you go along with Left workers, hold their hands, and defeat Mamataji and the Trinamool Congress. Bring a coalition government in Bengal. Rahul, who shared the dais with a number of senior Left leaders, took on both Mamata Banerjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress vice-president said that both of them want one-person rule. Both of them wish to crush the entire opposition. Both wish to run their governments single-handedly, he said, accusing Mamata and Modi of being dictatorial. Accusing Modi of using money power to topple democratically-elected governments at Arunachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Rahul said Modi of trying to finish off democracy in India.
Stating that Modi is pursuing the ideology of Nagpur, headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, he said, He wants only one ideology in India, one view point, that of Nagpur, which he wants to impose on rest of the country. And wherever one stands up against him he wants to crush it. Further attacking Mamata, Rahul said what Trinamool chief is doing in Bengal is what Modi is doing across India. She also wants the monopoly of one person. He added that the coalition will not run a government of just one person, hinting at Mamata, who is often considered as the sole power centre of the Trinamool government.
When Assams former Congress minister Himanta Biswa Sarma left the party to join the BJP, one of the reasons he gave was his opposition to dynasty politics taking charge of mainstream Congress politics in Assam.
In the first phase of Assam assembly polls to be held on 4th April, the ruling Congress will be banking on many of the sons and daughters and other kith and kin of many Congress stalwarts who are contesting from the traditional Congress stronghold.
It is only the Congress which gives scopes to young people. We might have a political lineage, but it is not that we are not working in politics. I have been involved in NSUI and Youth Congress politics for a long time. Moreover, if you look at all the young candidates whom the Congress has given tickets you will find that they are very well educated and have social service background. We are not like BJP who gave tickets to secret killers and criminals said Angkita Dutta, Congress candidate from Amguri Assembly segment, a seat which was previously represented by her father Anjan Dutta, the president of Assam Congress.
Angkita is a lawyer and a PhD research scholar, who is very active on social media.
She has been part of the social media campaign team of the Congress. The Congress is the only party that promotes young people. We have given ticket to at least 60 candidates who are in their youth Anjan Dutta told Deccan Herald.
It is not Angkita alone, state cabinet minister Gautam Roys son Rahul Roy is in the fray from Algapur Assembly seat in Southern Assam. Rajdeep Goala, son of once Congress bigwig late Dinesh Prasad Goala is seeking re-election from Lakhipur seat which has been with the family for decades. The tribal face of Congress politics in Assam, Gobinda Chandra Langthasa's son, Nirmal is contesting from Haflong constituency in Dima Hasao district. Also in the fray are Diganta Barman from Barkhetri, son for former chief minister Bhumidhar Barman, former chief minister Hiteshwar Saikias son Debabrata Saikia.
In Sarupathar of Goaghat district, the Congress has given ticket to Rosalina Tirkey, daughter of Congress legislator Akilus Tirkey and in neighbouring Bokajan, Klengdoon Engti is seeking mandate for his second term as MLA.
We are from political families and we have seen it all right from childhood. So the connect is always there. These are traditional Congress seat where the family factor works said Klengdoon, who is the son of veteran parliamentarian Biren Sing Engti.
If that is not enough, then we have Diganta, son of state minister Bhumidhar Barman, fighting the polls from the Assembly seat. Klengdoon Engti, son of former parliamentarian Biren Sing Engti, is the Congress candidate from Bokajan.
In fact the son of chief minister Tarun Gogoi and Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi did campaign for many of these sons and daughters.
Why cant the Congress give scope to people from families who are talented but not from any dynasty? In the centre, they have the Gandhis, in Assam they have the Gogois, Duttas, Roys and the Devs, Himanta Biswa Sarma said. The BJP has made the mini-dynasties within Assam politics a key poll issue.
A day after the death of Balika Vadhu-fame actor Pratyusha Banerjee, it emerged that she ended her life because of emotional and financial distress.
The actors live-in partner Rahul Raj Singh was grilled by the police.
However, a cross-section of her friends and relatives said that the 24-year-old actor was not the kind of person who would commit suicide and asked the Mumbai Police or the CBI to go into the details of her mysterious death.
On Friday evening, Rahul found her hanging from the ceiling fan at her Bangurnaga flat in Goregaon area of western suburbs and rushed her to the Kokilaben Hospital at Andheri, where she was pronounced dead on admission and the Mumbai Police was informed.
I am innocent
Mai bekasoor hoon (I am innocent), said Rahul, as he was asked by news persons while he entered the police station. Earlier in the day, he was seen crying at the mortuary while the post-mortem was being conducted.
Pratyusha had no financial problems. She was doing very well in her career, said actor Kamya Punjabi, who was one of her closest friends.
It is very clear... it is not suicideit is murder.where was he (Rahul), where he disappeared (after her admission in hospital), this is very clear, said actor Ajaz Khan, adding that she was tortured and drugged. Its a planned murder, he added.
Suicide or not, there is a responsibility. Pratyushas relationship wasnt good, she was going through a very rough time, said TV producer Vikas Gupta.
Veteran actor Raza Murad too said that she was not the kind of person who would end her life as she had made comebacks and hence there is a need for a thorough probe to clear the air.
Even after she died, he appeared to be insensitive, said Rakhi Sawant.Rahul is behind her death
Pratyushas family friend Surabhi Chatterjee said that Rahul was behind her death. He is a blackmailer, cheater and criminalhe was also involved with another girl we are shocked. I have known her for long, she is not the kind of person who would commit suicide, she said.
Her parents rushed from Jamshedpur and claimed the body and in the evening the last rites were performed.
We have registered a case and investigations were in progress, said zonal deputy commissioner of police Vikram Deshmane.
PDP chief and Chief Minister-designate Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday called up Opposition National Conference leader Omar Abdullah to invite him for the swearing-in ceremony scheduled on Monday.
Very gracious of Mehbooba Mufti Sahiba to phone & invite me to her oath taking ceremony. I look forward to being there on the 4th, the former chief minister Omar tweeted.
Mehbooba is scheduled to be sworn-in as the first woman chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir on April 4 in Jammu where Union Ministers Venkaiah Naidu and Jitendra Singh are also scheduled to be present.
When Mehboobas father late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed took oath as chief minister last year in March, both the National Conference (NC) and the Congress including Omar had stayed away from the swearing in function.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP national president Amit Shah, BJP veterans Lal Krishan Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar were among various dignitaries who attended late Muftis swearing in function.
However, this time around, the swearing-in ceremony of the PDP-BJP coalition government in J&K is likely to be a low-key affair.
Prisoners in the Varanasi district jail went on a rampage on Saturday to protest against extortion and poor quality of food.
They held the jail superintendent and his deputy hostage for several hours.According to police sources here, deputy jailer Ajai Kumar Rai was thrashed by the prisoners and was admitted to the hospital.
His condition is said to be critical.
Sources said that the trouble sparked off around 10 am, when the prisoners were being taken for parade. The prisoners turned violent after one of the inmates was assaulted by a jail staff.
Hundreds of prisoners indulged in heavy stone pelting inside the jail, forcing the jail officials and guards to beat a hasty retreat.
Jail superintendent Ashish Tewari and Rai were held hostage by the inmates.Alarmed officials rushed additional police force from the nearby police stations to quell violence.
Senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leaders were also roped in to talk to the inmates and restore order.
While Rai was allowed to be taken to hospital by the prisoners, Tewari could be rescued after seven hours following intervention of senior officials and local SP leaders, sources said.
The government later shunted Ashish Tewari and Ajai Kumar Rai and ordered a magisterial probe into the violence.
Around a dozen people, including cops, were injured in the violence, sources said.
This summer, residents of Bengaluru have to brace themselves for encounters of the creepy kind with the scorching heat driving snakes, particularly cobras and rat snakes, into homes for cool respite.
From March onwards, there has been a rise in the cases of these reptiles coming out of their natural habitat to beat the heat. The Forest Cell of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has been flooded with rescue calls from people across the City. Snake catchers and NGOs too have been getting calls from frantic residents.
Sharath Babu, Wildlife Warden, BBMP Forest Cell told Deccan Herald that eight zones of the Cell such as East, West, South, Yelahanka, Dasarahalli, Mahadevapura, Bommanahalli and R R Nagara get calls every day.
According to him, the Cell has been receiving around 150 calls a day since the beginning of March from residents for catching the snakes that have entered their homes or compounds. Even though the City has 23 species of snakes, majority of the snakes that enter homes are cobras and rat snakes, he said.
Before the start of summer, the Cell used to get between 50-100 calls a day. Due to the early onset of summer this year, reptile and rodent menace has increased. Snake catchers attend only calls where the snakes have entered homes and ignore calls if the reptiles are spotted on roads, a BBMP official said.
As summer is breeding season for reptiles, snakes come out of their habitat for mating as well, Sharath Babu noted.
Manjunatha, a resident of Uttarahalli, said recently he spotted four snakes, including a huge cobra on the bund of Subramanyapura lake. I have been residing in this area for the last nine years but spotted snakes for the first time, he said.The only silver lining to this scary situation is that no snake bites have been reported since March.
Residents may contact the Forest Cell on telephone number 080-22221188 in case a snake slinks into their house.
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) sleuths have collected evidence which indicates that the II PU Chemistry question paper leak was outside Bengaluru.
Initially, we thought that the paper was leaked in Bengaluru. But now, it has emerged that a group of people leaked the question paper outside Bengaluru, a senior police officer involved in the probe told Deccan Herald on Saturday. We are trying to ascertain if the question paper was leaked in Bengaluru too. The investigation is on the right track and the suspects will be arrested very soon, the officer said.
It was not just one person who leaked it. There is an organised syndicate which had a common motive. The same syndicate seems to have leaked the paper twice, said the police.
There are indications about the syndicate members and the top priority of the cops was to trace them and ascertain their motive, the police said.
The CID sleuths on Saturday continued to question students, parents and PU Board officials. Over 100 persons have already been questioned and the cops have gathered leads. The police hope to crack the case before April 12, when the students write the Chemistry paper in a re-exam.
It is said that the students and a few others sold the paper for between Rs 3000 and Rs 6000. Some of them even shared it free of cost.
Leaked before printing
Some members of the team visited Tumakuru, Kolar and Ballari, based on mobile phone call details and origins of e-mails and WhatsApp messages. H C Kishorechandra, DGP (CID), held a meeting with them and supervised the investigation. The collective evidence indicated that the paper was leaked much before it was printed and transported, said the police.
The all-party meeting convened on Saturday to find a solution to the vexed Mahadayi river water sharing issue ended in a fiasco with the ruling Congress and the BJP refusing to arrive at a consensus.
The meeting, held at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru, became a platform for political parties to indulge blame game.
The Congress insisted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should intervene to resolve the dispute, while the BJP vehemently argued that the Congress government should first win the confidence of the Opposition leaders in Goa and Maharashtra to find a solution.
The meetings agenda was to discuss the Kalasa Banduri canal project which is meant for providing drinking water to Dharwad district and surrounding areas. The BJP leaders including Pralhad Joshi, B S Yeddyurappa and Jagadish Shettar were so furious that they tried to walk out of the meeting hall before it concluded.
Farmers representatives at the meeting raised slogans against the BJP leaders and blocked the doors to prevent them from stepping out. However, the BJP leaders managed to leave from another exit point.
Earlier, Siddaramaiah told the meeting that in the Assembly, a resolution was passed to request the prime minister to step in. The prime ministers intervention is important. His appointment would be sought for which the cooperation of Union ministers and MPs from the state is being sought. The BJP should pressure Modi to convene a meeting of the chief ministers of the riparian states, he reiterated.
The BJP leaders said that Karnataka should write to the Opposition leaders of Maharashtra and Goa, as suggested by the prime minister, to seek their cooperation.
While shifting the responsibility of solving the issue on the BJP, Siddaramaiah said, Water is a fundamental right. This issue should not be politicised. No prime minister has so far put the onus on the opposition party when it has come to settling water or border disputes. Settling the dispute by a prime minister outside the tribunal is not so difficult.
An upset Joshi reminded the government that the UPA government had suggested dialogue among states to solve river water dispute.
In 2006, the then UPA government had given an affidavit to the Supreme Court appealing that a tribunal be constituted as the dialogue among the states concerned had fallen flat. In this light Modi had asked the state government to first convince the opposition parties in the neighbouring states, he said.
Former chief minister Yeddyurappa said Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi should intervene.
The meeting which lasted for two hours saw angry leaders from both the sides arguing. They blamed each other with politicising the issue and nothing could be heard in the din, sources said.
JD(S) seniors absent
JD(S) leader H D Deve Gowda and his son H D Kumaraswamy, the party floor leader in the Assembly, did not attend the meeting. While Gowda camped at his house in Padmanabhanagar to address a press conference, the reasons for his sons absence were not known. The party was represented by C S Puttaraju, MP, MLA Konaraddi and MLC Basavaraj Horatti.
While political leaders indulged in a heated debate over Mahadayi, a group of farmers, enraged over not being allowed to participate in the meeting, staged a protest outside the meeting hall in the Vidhana Soudha. Several farmers from Bagalkot, Gadag, Dharwad, Belagavi and Vijayapura districts had travelled all night to take part in the meeting.
Though the farmers made it inside the Vidhana Soudha, their entry was restricted at the conference hall where the all-party meeting was scheduled. Upset, they started shouting slogans against the government, forcing the Vidhana Soudha polices intervention.
However, the police too found it difficult to manage the farmers. Navalgund MLA N H Konaraddi (JD-S) had to come out of the meeting hall to pacify them. The 70-odd farmers sat in the corridors, till the meeting concluded.
Ramesh Nagammanavar, a farmer from Dharwad district, said that the people of North Karnataka districts who were facing acute drought conditions. They would give a fitting reply to the Congress leaders during the elections, he said.
Though we have the official permission to be present in the meeting, they have not allowed us inside. Let them come to our doorsteps, we will teach them a lesson. We are the real farmers, but the government is not concerned about us, he added.
Later, assuming that the BJP had walked out of the meeting mid-way, the farmers started shouting slogans against its leaders.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has assured the students of the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru, that he would soon arrange a meeting with various stakeholders to thrash out a solution to their problems.
Vice chancellors of all the agricultural universities, Agriculture Minister Krishna Byre Gowda and student representatives will take part in the meeting, he said. When student representatives met Siddaramaiah on Saturday at the Vidhana Soudha, he appealed to them to give up their agitation.
Union Minister D V Sadananda Gowda has also promised to fulfil their demands by taking up their cause with the government.
Students pursuing their education in the four agricultural universities across the state, including the sub-campuses such as Hassan and Mandya, launched a protest on Wednesday demanding that the government stop giving permission to open private agricultural universities. They also sought that vacant positions in the department of agriculture be filled immediately. The students said they would continue their protest till they got a written assurance from the agriculture minister in this regard.
In a press release, Minister Byre Gowda stated that the government would look into the demands of the students and appealed to them to call off their agitation.
Low build quality, lower utility value, guaranteed delays and cost over-runs of mammoth proportions. Bengalurus road infrastructure projects should have taught lessons galore in mismanagement to the government. But, in its rush to build more elevated corridors of questionable utility, has the State cold-shouldered long-term sustainable transport solutions to decongest Bengaluru?
Urban mobility analysts and a few government insiders themselves are convinced that the high cost flyovers cannot solve the citys acute traffic congestion. Flyovers might offer temporary relief for a few years, but only after trapping commuters in a twister of construction-linked traffic chaos for long. Eventually, every new lane gets filled up with cars and SUVs. That just doesnt seem logical!
Costly projects
Yet, six new corridors with long stretches of them elevated, are in the pipeline. Besides, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) is all set to invite tenders for a 6.7-km elevated corridor connecting Basaveshwara Circle and Hebbal Junction.
The estimated cost of this project is a whopping Rs. 1,350 crore, ready for completion only in two years. When it was first announced in the State budget, the estimated cost was only Rs 1,000 crore.
The objective is clear: Create more road space for motorised private vehicles, whose numbers have been unrelentingly explosive. An estimated 56 lakh vehicles are packed into the citys estimated 10,200 km of road length. Creating more corridors for them would simply mean incentivizing more cars, more private transport.
Seeking a shift from this policy skewed heavily in favour of motorized transport, an online petition on Change.org has urged the Chief Minister to stop the project. The petitioner, Sathya Sankaran reasons, with particular reference to the Hebbal junction project, This elevated road will be full the day it is finished building and will not alleviate any traffic jams.
The corridor, says Sankaran, will, in fact, move the jams to Hebbal as seen by the elevated highway on the NHAI side. You have to come to the surface somewhere and you know it is not a cakewalk at that point.
Reservations within govt
It is learnt that the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) attached to the State Urban Development Department is itself against building more elevated corridors. DULT, sources say, wants the government to push for sustainable options such as more public transport buses and bus priority lanes. Corridors cannot be a solution, augmenting mass transit systems is.
Three years ago, a government-appointed committee had shot down the proposal for another elevated corridor project passing through Koramangala. It was based on a study by the IISc Centre for infrastructure Sustainable Transportation and Urban Planning (CiSTUP) that cited high costs, traffic management problems and division of communities in the vicinity.
Existing flyovers are clear proof that elevation does not necessarily decongest traffic. A flyover merely transfers traffic load from the entry point to the exit point, triggering chaos elsewhere. For instance, the poorly designed and executed Richmond Circle flyover bears testimony to this fact. Speeding vehicles alight the Electronic City elevated corridor only to face the congestion at the Silk Board junction. This scenario recurs at the Esteem Mall junction.
Underneath most elevated monsters, the roads are left to rot as though people down there are not worth any good infrastructure. The petition draws attention to a recent statement by Union Minister for Road Transport that building 55 flyovers in Mumbai has not solved any problem there.
No transparency
Lack of transparency is another issue. Public consultation is not part of the process, although commuters are subjected to tremendous inconveniences during and after the construction. Projects are decided and pushed through despite experts clearly advising the government against the massive pillar-laying projects.
Why the fixation with unsustainable projects? A Sadashivanagar resident and a cyclist for 15 years, Dasarathi G V, puts the blame squarely on the greed for kickbacks. Flyovers and such massive projects are a constant source of bribery. It is a very big income, when the kickbacks could go up to 40 per cent.
As a citizen, Dasarathi terms the corridor proposal a very bad idea. He explains, We should be reducing the number of vehicles rather than catering to them. In the last two decades, we have been building these elevated corrirdors. There will come a time soon when all of these will be choked.
The Delhi Police are probing into a complaint of Rs 50 lakh asked for an MBBS seat at Vardhman Mahavir Medical College, attached with south Delhis Safdarjang Hospital. The seat was promised under Nominee of Government of India (NGOI) quota.
Manoj Aggarwal, a homeopathic doctor from west Delhis Naraina, paid the amount for his sons admission. He and his son were told to come at Safdarjang Hospital, where they were made to fill an application form.
They were also introduced to a doctor, Dwarka-resident Virender Kumar. It was claimed that the admission would be provided through Kumar, an officer with the Medical Council of India (MCI).
Aggarwal, who practises at the DDA Shopping Complex in Naraina, also made a payment at the parking lot of the hospital. But no seat was provided to his son till date.
In his statement, the victim told the police that he was duped after receiving a bulk text message sent on his mobile phone from DZ-JSSEDU.
A man named Anil Kumar Rathore was offering direct admission in MBBS. He claimed to be from Laxmi Nagar-based JSS International Education Services, police said.
Rathore claimed that the firm had vast experience in medical admission and providing consultation to thousands of medical aspirants. He also said that he provided admission in reserved quota.
Out of my curiosity, I called on his mobile number and asked from where he got my mobile number. He replied that he can get my sons admission in MBBS, Aggarwal stated in his complaint.
In the beginning, Aggarwal was not satisfied with Rathores reply. But Rathore kept on telling him different stories for his satisfaction. My son completed his class XII last year and was keen to get admission in MBBS. I asked him if he can get my sons admission in a government medical college, the complainant added.
Rathore assured that he would get it done in Vardhman Mahavir Medical College under NGOI quota.
A case under section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code has been filed with crime branch police station. A team is looking into the case, but no arrests have been made so far.
As legal marijuana has proliferated in Denver, city officials concerned about exposure to children long have tried to keep pot shops at least 1,000 feet from schools.
Yet more than two dozen schools in the city now are located closer than that to stores selling medical or recreational marijuana, according to a Denver Post analysis of city data. The Post identified 25 shops closer than 1,000 feet to at least one nearby school, out of 215 medical, recreational or dual shops.
Most often in 17 cases the shops landed there first.
Only later were they joined by new or relocated schools, often charters or alternative schools. Other shops predated city and state distance restrictions or a change in the citys measuring method.
City officials view all of the shops as effectively grandfathered, putting them on solid legal footing, at least as far as local and state law are concerned. Similarly, the city doesnt shut down liquor stores or bars when a school later opens within 500 feet, the buffer for liquor licenses.
But the existence of so many marijuana shops near schools has prompted concern among some council members and issue advocates. The issue came to light as the council began considering new restrictions aimed at addressing industry saturation.
We are making this attractive to kids and young people, said Gina Carbone, a co-founder of Smart Colorado, a group that advocates for protections for children from marijuana. The city should do all it can to keep this away from kids, she said, including taking a hard look at the shops that are near schools.
Just four years ago, before Colorado voters legalized recreational marijuana, U.S. Attorney John Walshs office pressured 57 medical marijuana centers across the state to close or move because they were within 1,000 feet of a school. He threatened the possibility of federal prosecution.
For shops near schools now, the hard-to-predict specter of federal intervention still looms.
Thats something that those businesses have to be aware of and I know that thats incredibly difficult, said Dan Rowland, a spokesman for the citys marijuana policy office. It really is that question of grandfathering (by the city) and of the businesses needing to be aware that theyre operating at risk.
In a statement to The Post this week, Walsh said the issue remained a concern particularly if there is evidence that marijuana is ending up in the hands of young people as a result. But he said he couldnt speculate on the potential for future enforcement actions.
City analysts researched the proximity of shops to schools for the council as it considers proposals to replace a temporary moratorium, set to expire May 1, that bars new players from the cannabis industry.
The council is aiming to institute citywide caps on stores and cultivation facilities. A newly drafted proposal spearheaded by at-large member Robin Kniech would allow pending applications for dozens of new business locations to proceed before the city clamps down. A moratorium committee, which has found consensus on some of the components but not all, is expected to consider the measure Monday.
Concerned about odors from grow houses, the council also has discussed making new cultivation facilities follow both the 1,000-foot school buffer that has applied only to new stores and a new 1,000-foot buffer from residential areas.
But as the citys experience with buffers has shown, its not always simple to maintain them.
In 2010, when the city began regulating medical marijuana after the industry already had already taken root, it set 1,000-foot restrictions from schools. And it measured them by the zig-zag distance a pedestrian would travel.
Three years later, when the council set regulations for the coming recreational market, it adopted the same school buffer, but measured as the crow flies which sets a broader radius. Only in February, when the council updated the citys marijuana codes, did it finally apply that more restrictive method to new medical shops, too.
While the citys recent analysis identified 22 shops within 1,000 feet of schools using straight-line measurement, The Post found 25 operating near schools by culling a larger city list.
Among them is Chronorado, a medical marijuana dispensary that opened in early 2010 just before the city adopted the initial school buffer on Leetsdale Drive near Monaco Parkway. It is southeast of George Washington High School.
We havent had any trouble with any neighbors no complaints, owner Christian Reyes said, and thats in part because he tries to maintain a clean store image. When students occasionally entered during its first few years, he said the approach was simple: If you dont have a red card, youve got to get out of here.
Reyes remembers looking through the mail nervously in 2012, as other licensees near schools received the federal prosecutors letters. He never got one. It was a scary moment for us, he said.
But if a new license applicant sought to open a store there now, the city would deny it, since it says the store is just short of 800 feet from the high school. In fact, Reyes says the city rejected his recent application to add a retail marijuana license.
For stores that saw schools open nearby, their newfound proximity also might constrain them from something as simple as moving to nicer digs across the street.
Denver attorney Christian Sederberg, who focuses on marijuana law, said shops located near schools dont appear to be at legal risk.
He noted that there was no specific direction on how far shops should be from schools in a 2013 U.S. Justice Department memo that outlines eight prerogatives states should follow to avoid crackdowns on legalized marijuana sales. Called the Cole memo, it simply says the feds are concerned with preventing the distribution of marijuana to minors.
If you look around the country, that 1,000-foot rule does not exist within the federal government, Sederberg said. It is not something the federal government is applying uniformly across the country.
In his statement this week, Walsh said the Cole memo guides his office, but all of our enforcement decisions are made on a case-by-case basis, taking into account specific circumstances and evidence.
Compared to 2012, new wrinkles include the city changing how it measures distance and the opening of schools near established marijuana shops.
Often, charter school operators and Denver Public Schools officials have faced few options when seeking new locations.
In recent years, DPS moved two northwest Denver schools, the Contemporary Learning Academy and the Denver Justice High School, to buildings in the 200 and 300 blocks of East Ninth Avenue, respectively, near DPS old central office.
Those Capitol Hill locations also were within close proximity to four marijuana shops.
DPS was seeking central locations for CLA, an alternative school for middle- and high-school students, and the Justice High School, a charter school for troubled students.
David Suppes, the districts chief operating officer, said it would consider nearby marijuana shops in locating a school. But trade-offs sometimes are necessary, especially since marijuana licensees also often seek out central, easily accessible locations.
We try to find something that is both in the right location where the need is, he said, but also in a location that we think would be a good place for kids to learn.
Jon Murray: 303-954-1405, jmurray@denverpost.com or @JonMurray
Authorities in southern Colorado are searching for the person who shot a red tail hawk with an arrow.
The bird was found Wednesday by Fremont County sheriffs deputies who were waved down by citizens near the Canon City Parks and Recreation Archery Ranger.
State wildlife officials and the deputies took the hawk to the veterinarian where it was determined the arrow had only penetrated the hawks left wing.
The arrow was removed and it was discovered that the hawks left wing was broken, the county sheriffs office said in a statement.
The hawk was taken to the Nature and Raptor Center of Pueblo where it is expected to make a full recovery.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife is asking for anyone with information on the shooting to call Officer Zach Holder at 719-269-0656. Tipsters can remain anonymous by calling Colorado Operation Game Thief at 1-877-265-6648.
A cash reward is available.
Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or @JesseAPaul
OSU defense dominates, offense revs up late in 54-10 rout of Iowa
Overcoming a sluggish start by its offense, Ohio State pulled away for a 54-10 victory over Iowa.
Defending Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohamed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar, China's permanent representative to the United nations, Liu Jieyi, has reiterated Beijing's stance that the mastermind of the attack on the Indian Air Force's Pathankot air base does not qualify as a terrorist who should face UN sanctions. Speaking to reporters in the United Nations on Friday after assuming the rotating presidency of the Security Council, Liu asserted that Azhar did not meet "the Council's requirements" to be considered a terrorist. On China's exercise of a virtual veto at the UN sanctions committee by putting a hold on Azhar being declared a terrorist subject to a range of punitive actions, Liu said, "Individuals and orgnisations on the sanctions list of the United Nations would have to meet the requirements. It is the responsibility of all the members of the Council to make sure that each requirement is followed." Asked in what way Azhar fell short of being a terrorist, Liu merely said: "The Council's requirements," without going into details. Following the January attack on the Pathankot Air Force base, India had requested the sanctions committee in February to include Azhar in its list of terrorists. The action by the panel, popularly known as the 1267 committee after the Council's resolution number setting it up, would have required Pakistan and other countries to freeze his assets and ban his travel. At the committee's meeting on Monday, all the other 14 members of the Council supported placing Azhar on the list, but China put a hold on it, which is in effect a veto. The exercise of veto through holds by permanent members in the sanctions committee falls into grey area as it appears to extend the right beyond the Council where the veto is recognised by the Charter. India has called it a "hidden veto". This is the second time that China has come to the aid of Pakistani terrorists in the sanctions committee. Last June, China blocked India's demand for taking action under the Council's anti-terrorism resolutions against Pakistan for freeing Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, the Lashkar-e-Taiba mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attack in which 166 people were killed. India has criticised Beijing's latest action to prop up Pakistan-based terrorists. External affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said Friday it was "incomprehensible" that while JeM was listed by the sanctions committee as far back as 2001 "for its terror activities and links to the al-Qaeda, the designation of the group's main leader, financier and motivator has been put on a technical hold". In the statement issued in Washington, Swarup said the committee's "working methods, based on the principles of unanimity and anonymity, is leading the Committee to adopt a selective approach to combating terrorism. This does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism".
Govt looking to boost hydro power generation, energy efficiency: Goyal
The government will take major policy initiatives to boost clean power generation, including hydro power, improve transmission network and accelerate the use of energy-efficient LED bulbs, as the country continues to reduce its carbon emissions, minister for power, coal and renewable energy, Piyush Goyal, said.
He said the energy-efficient LED bulbs are now selling in such large volumes that their prices have crashed below Rs60, adding that consumers have gained enormously from the LED lighting programme as it reduces their monthly electricity bill significantly.
Addressing a conference organised at the launch of the energy portal ETEnergyworld.com, the minister said his government was determined to resolve legacy issues that have choked India's energy sector. He said the government had already tackled the shortage of coal, which had plagued the thermal power sector.
Power secretary P K Pujari, coal secretary Anil Swarup and renewable energy secretary Upendra Tripathy said in separate sessions at the launch of the energy portal that the days of fuel scarcity were over and the country was now faced with the problem of plenty.
"Earlier, I was pressurised for coal deficit, now for surplus... I have coal, I have rakes, I don't have demand," Swarup said. Pujari said the country has about 25,000-MW of idle and underutilised electricity generation capacity as private companies set up power plants in anticipation of high prices.
Industry leaders such as GMR Energy chairman GBS Raju, Lanco chairman Madhusudhan Rao, Suzlon chairman Tulsi Tanti and Sterlite Grid vice-chairman Pratik Agrawal told the minister at a breakfast meeting that the energy sector would make rapid progress if efficient transmission and distribution along with a stable grid was ensured.
Solar energy entrepreneurs, including ReNew Power chairman Sumant Sinha, Hero Future Energies chairman Rahul Munjal also highlighted the importance of efficient distribution and transmission as well as grid stability.
Industry leaders attending the conference also included Tata Power Solar CEO Ashish Khanna, First Solar country head Sujoy Ghosh, Fortum India MD Sanjay Aggarwal and Adani group's CEO for renewable energy Jayant Parimal.
Sounding a note of caution for entrepreneurs, Sinha said a lot of renewable energy companies are keen on selling their plants after bagging them through aggressive bids. This, he said, may affect project implementation and decrease the appetite for new projects in primary market.
Earlier, speaking at a conference on `Transformation in Energy Sector Value Chain', Goyal said that large corporates in India should recuse themselves from award ceremonies and instead encourage smaller companies and people who really need to be encouraged.
"May be a good idea if all the big corporates of this country decide to recuse themselves from awards because they are already doing a good job, they have already reached a certain scale and level, but nevertheless what we need to do is take this to people who really need to be encouraged," he said while inaugurating a CSR Awards-cum-Summit organised by Assocham.
Goyal also said that he had opposed making two per cent corporate social responsibility (CSR) spending by private firms mandatory when it had come to the Parliamentary Standing Committee of Finance for review of the company's law amendment.
"I genuinely believe that CSR is not something that you force down somebody's throat because the moment there is something which is made mandatory then it becomes ritualistic and could often also become just a way to create a facade or fill in a document or a form but will not necessarily do the kind of benefit to the society that one should really be wanting to," said Goyal.
Halloween creatures owls, crows and bats all live at Crossroads, and that makes us very happy, for these scary animals make a positive contribution to the habitats of the preserve. We don't even mind black cats, IF they are kept indoors. Feral and outdoor cats are exceedingly harmful to wildlife ... and that's not a superstition! But to tamp down superstitions, we at Crossroads will spend the week demystifying Halloween creatures.
On October 28, 2022, at 6 p.m. will be our Evening with Owls. The Open Door Bird Sanctuary will be at Crossroads, offering a one-hour presentation followed by the opportunity to meet and greet live birds. Learn all about owls and the other incredible birds in the care of the Sanctuary!
Down through the centuries, in many cultures throughout the world, owls have been associated with evil and death. Truth is, owls probably are not smart enough to be evil. But researchers agree that owls are about as dim as the nighttime forests in which they hunt.
Owls don't need to be smart. They have everything else going for them. They are muscular. They fly silently. Their huge eyes enable them to see in the dark. Their beaks and talons are strong and wickedly sharp. But their sensitive ears are what make owls extraordinary hunters.
Most people assume that the plumicorns (a.k.a. "horns) of an owl are its ears. Not so.
The actual ears lie under feathers on the sides of the head, and they aren't symmetrical. Because one ear is higher than the other and the ears are unequal in size, sound is different from different directions, helping owls locate prey, which they do almost unfailingly, even in total darkness.
Owls do not smell their prey. As with most birds, the sense of smell is insignificant, if it exists are all. Great Horned Owls frequently prey on skunks. Enough said.
But well-developed intelligence? Researchers have observed owls beating their wings on bushes to try to flush out little birds. Is this learned behavior? Is it problem-solving?
Maybe.
For the most part, owls do not have a lot of problems to solve. They appropriate abandoned nests of other birds, so they don't need building skills. They are stealthy by nature, and they pounce on and usually catch anything they hear, so they don't need hunting techniques.
In spite of ghost stories, legends of American First People, and superstitions from Europe and India, hooting owls do not foretell impending death, although their nocturnal calls are spooky. We hear them now and then this time of year, but we will regularly hear those eerie calls at Crossroads in January or February.
In contrast to owls, crows are noisy all year round and they are amazingly intelligent. They can learn. They can remember. They can solve problems. They can even identify individual humans. And they detest owls, though whether this is innate or learned behavior is not clear.
Those curious about crows will want to attend the Crossroads Book Club on Wednesday, October 26, at 10:00 a.m. This month, the book Crow Planet, Essential Wisdom for the Urban Wilderness by Lyanda Lynn Haupt will explore the fascinating world of these remarkable birds. The program is free and open to all, whether or not they have read the book.
So bring the family to our program on owls, learn about crows at the Crossroads Book Club, or learn about bats at our pre-school Junior Nature Club on Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. or our Family Science Saturday program at 2:00 p.m. Costumes are encouraged but not required at Junior Nature Club and Science Saturday, and adult visitors are welcome.
Women Made Whole Dothan will meet April 4 at 7 p.m. at Comfort Suites, 1650 Westgate Parkway, Dothan. A ministry designed to encourage women to become whole in Christ, the group meets every other Monday. There is no charge to attend, and Women Made Whole is open to females of all ages, races and denominations. For more information, email WMWDothan@womenmadewhole.com, visit www.WomenMadeWhole.com or search Women Made Whole Dothan on Facebook.
Faith Tabernacle Community Church, 1665 Coe Dairy Road, Dothan, will hold a spring revival April 4-6 with services at 7 p.m. Speakers will be the Rev. E.H. Haddock on Monday, the Rev. Marcus Ramer on Tuesday and the Rev. Shirley Hatcher on Wednesday. Special singing each night. For more information, call 334-350-7605 or 334-258-0009.
Maple Avenue Baptist Church, 1009 W. Maple Ave., Geneva, will host the monthly luncheon of the 39ers C.L.U.B. on April 12 at 11 a.m. If you have been involved in the 39ers C.L.U.B., please contact your table hostess by Tuesday, April 5, to make or cancel your reservation. If you would like to be a part of the 39ers C.L.U.B. and have never been before, call the church office at 334-684-9617 by April 5. The 39ers C.L.U.B. (Christians Living Under the Blood) is a non-denominational group. The cost for the luncheon is $5 per person. The Rev. Dicky McAllister will present the April program. He is the director of missions for the Geneva County Baptist Association.
Johns Chapel AME Church, 605 Geneva Highway, Enterprise, will host a fish fry on Friday, April 8, from 4-7 p.m. at the church. Fish dinners are available for $8 each, and fish sandwiches are $5 each. Orders may be picked up at the church, or for delivery, call 334-393-2661. Pre-Orders are preferred. Contact any member of Johns Chapel AME Church for tickets.
The Dixie Echoes Quartet will perform April 8 at 7 p.m. at Rainbow Meadows Baptist Church, located on Napier Field Road in Dothan. An offering will be taken. Call 334-790-1940 for more information.
The Dothan-Eufaula District of the AME Church will hold its 2016 district conference on April 8-9 at St. Luke AME Church, located at 234 Dr. T.V. McCoo Blvd. S. in Eufaula. On April 8, pastors will meet at 10 a.m. and the conference will open at 11:45 a.m. with a worship service at 12 p.m. and workshops starting at 3 p.m. The district Praise Team will begin the praise and worship service on Friday at 6:45 p.m., followed by the Ecumenical Worship and Holy Communion service at 7 p.m. On April 9, breakfast will be at 8:30 a.m. and devotion will be at 9:30 a.m. Saturday workshops will begin at 10 a.m. The Dothan-Eufaula District Ministers' Spouses will also meet at 10 a.m. The Dothan-Eufaula District Koinonias will begin the praise and worship service at 11:45 a.m. A worship service will begin at 12 p.m. For more information, call 334-308-1400 or 334-347-8360.
Klondyke Gospel Music Center, located between Newton and Ozark at 3885 Highway 123 S., will host the following groups: Teddie Cox from Gadsden, April 8; Senn Family from Midland City, April 15; Robin Scott from Eufaula, April 16; Stepping out on Faith from Marianna, Florida, April 29; The Conrad Family from Dothan, April 30. Concerts start at 7 p.m. On April 9, Klondyke will host a showing of the movie War Room at 11:30 a.m. with soda and popcorn. Following the movie, there will be hot dogs and fellowship at 5 p.m. Admission is free; offering will be taken. For more information, call 334-405-1500.
Malvern Baptist Church will have a gospel sing on April 9 at 6 p.m. featuring gospel artist Walter Wilson as well as Tom Thompson of Hartford. Refreshments will be served following the sing. Everyone is invited to attend. Call 334-792-8409 for more information.
Grimes Gospel Lighthouse, 1512 County Road 25, Grimes, will host Kay Armour of Ashford on April 9; Martha Whitrock of Malvern on April 16; local talent on April 23; and Billy Gene Dickerson of Ashford on April 30. All concerts are at 7 p.m. Admission is free; offering will be taken. Call 334-983-4654 or 334-714-4658 for more information.
Patterson Street Free Will Baptist Church, 406 Patterson St., Dothan, will celebrate the fifth anniversary of its pastor, the Rev. Harold McKissic Sr., with a service on April 10 at 11 a.m. Guest speaker will be the Rev. Eulus Lumpkin, associate pastor of Mount Sinai Baptist Church. Call 334-793-7681 or email pattersonbaptist@centurylink.net for information.
Bethlehem Temple Church of God in Christ in Bellwood will host its annual appreciation service for its pastor, Elder Sylvester Pritchett, and his wife, Ethel Pritchett, on April 10 at 3 p.m. Guest speaker will be Elder William A. Brown Sr. of Living Waters Church of God in Christ in Hartford and Dothan Tabernacle Church of God in Christ. Call Deacon Joe Killings at 334-798-6433 or Elder Roy Matthews at 334-393-2643 for more information.
St. Mathis Baptist Church in Cowarts will hold its annual Missionary Day service on April 17 at 2:30 p.m. Guest minister will be Pastor Anthony Yarbrough of Newberry AME Church in Jakin, Georgia. The Newberry AME Church Choir will be the guest choir.
Shady Grove Missionary Baptist Church #2, 1547 Lucy Grade Road, Dothan, will host its annual spring revival April 20-22 with services at 7 p.m. Guest minister will be Clifton Green of Macedonia Baptist Church in Sarasota, Florida. All churches are welcome. Call 334-677-5765 for information.
The Dothan Evening Community Lighthouse of Aglow International meets at 5:30 p.m. on the third Thursday of the month at Shoney's Restaurant, located at 3054 Ross Clark Circle in Dothan. Barbara Brunner, the founder of Rahab's Promise, will be the guest speaker on Thursday, April 21. Rahabs Promise is a ministry that reaches out to women in strip clubs and shares the gospel with them.
Stringer Street AME Church Family Reunion will be held April 24 at 11 a.m. with the Rev. Dr. Frederick D. Sherrod III, pastor. Members, former members, future members, family and friends are all invited. A family picnic will follow the morning worship service and will feature games, inflatables, food and fellowship.
Temple Emanu-El in Dothan will hold its annual Deli Day on May 4 and will be taking orders through April 25. Bagged lunches are $12 each and include a deli-style kosher corned beef sandwich with a kosher dill pickle, a bag of chips, a chocolate chip cookie and a picnic pack prepared by the John Conti Center at Vaughn-Blumberg. To order, buy tickets from members of Temple Emanu-El; call the Temple office at 334-792-5001 for an order form; or order online at http://www.dothandeliday.org.
The Baptist College of Florida in Graceville will hold a Creation Conference on April 26-27 with breakout sessions designed for pastors and youth groups. The conference, free to attend, will examine apologetics with the primary topic being the biblical account of creation. Leading the conference will be Jonathan Sarfati of Creation Ministries International in Atlanta, Georgia. Sarfati will speak at the regular chapel services at 10 a.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday and will lead a special session for pastors on April 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. He will lead a session for youth, homeschoolers and Christian school groups on April 26 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Conference sessions are open to the public by reservation. To register, call 800-328-2660, ext. 513; email hollis.prange@baptistcollege.edu; or visit baptistcollege.edu/creationconference.
The Dale Baptist Associations WorshipFest will be held at Ridgecrest Baptist Church in Ozark on Friday, April 29, starting at 6:30 p.m. WorshipFest is a praise and worship service led by local worship bands and praise teams. There is no cost for admission, and everyone is invited to attend. A nursery will be provided. Ridgecrest Baptist Church is located at 1971 Deese Road in Ozark.
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This is my first time to try fencing. Ive always wanted to do it because of Richard Gomez, Zorro and the Three Musketeers! Haha! Anyway ,Fencing is known as a very elite sports in the Philippines because of the expensive equipment, but now you can try it out without having to buy a thing! Just []
Family Whitsun Week in the Ionian Islands
Late May is one of the best times of year to visit Greece with warm, early summer sunshine, crowd-less beaches and enticing early-season prices.
Greek island villa specialist Ionian Villas which offers only the very best villas across eight of the islands has numerous options for families looking for a week in the sun this coming Whitsun half term. Here are just a few ideas
Three-bedroomed Villa Icarus (as in Icarus and Daedalus in Greek mythology) on the island of Lefkas is one of four villas, each with a private pool, perched high above the sea on a south coast promontory. The sumptuous retreat has theatrical views across Vassiliki Bay towards the islands of Ithaca and Cephalonia.
The owner offers a breakfast delivery service, private chef and babysitting. The port of Vassiliki with its many tavernas and cafe bars is a 10-minute drive away. A weeks stay from 29 May costs 2040 or 340 pp when fully-occupied by six people.
Dexa Beach House on the island of Ithaca lies within a large bay of olive groves, one kilometre north of Vathy, the islands capital port. In Homer's Oddysey, Odysseus is returned to Ithaca by a Phoenician longboat and it is said that the Phoenicians dropped him off whilst he was sleeping, on Dexa Beach.
The two-bedroomed property is set amongst olive groves, just 15 metres from the beach and looks out through the trees towards the sea. There is a simple snack bar/cantina just above the beach and the small town of Vathy with its shops, tavernas and boat hire is just a five-minute drive away. A weeks stay from 28 May costs 1210 or 302 pp when fully occupied by four people.
Averto Avalli is a magnificent three-bedroomed apartment on the island of Paxos, located within a grand building that was once home to the British Governor from 1815-1864, prior to the island being re-united with Greece. The stylish, spacious, waterfront property has views across the water to a Venetian fortress and is a two-minute stroll to Gaios square, with its pedestrianised side streets of shops and tavernas (there is also a beach within a five-minute walk).
A hired boat can be moored directly below the apartment, ideal for exploring the coastline and to get to the sandy beaches of AntiPaxos. A weeks stay from 30 May costs 1420 or 236 pp when fully occupied by six people.
None of the prices quoted include flights (the islands can be reached by no-frills carriers such as Easyjet, which flies to Corfu). For more information, visit ionian-villas.co.uk.
Apple has shifted a portion of its cloud services business from Amazon Web Services to the Google Cloud Platform, according to reports published this week.
The company reportedly maintained a smaller presence with AWS, as well as its existing relationship with Microsoft Azure.
It is spending between US$400 million and $600 million under the cloud services agreement, which was signed late last year, CRN reported, citing conversations that Google executives have held with others.
Amazon threw a splash of cold water on the report, raising questions about why Apple would engage in possible violations of its contractual relationship.
Its kind of a puzzler to us, because vendors who understand doing business with enterprises respect NDAs and their customers and dont imply competitive defection where it doesnt exist, Amazon said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by spokesperson Kerri Catallozzi.
Apple Shift Predicted
Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak warned in a research note last month that Apple might reduce its reliance on AWS for cloud services.
CEO Tim Cook in a January conference call with analysts cited Apples plans for additional data centers as a driver of 2016 capex growth, Nowak said. Apple announced plans to build data centers in Ireland and Denmark in 2017 and in Mesa, Arizona, later this year, for a total of more than 2.5 million square feet of space, in a bid to power various services, including iCloud, iTunes and the App Store.
The company spent about $1 billion on data centers in 2015, including money spent on AWS, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty said, noting that it could take one to two years to shift that business away from AWS.
It has a team working on those plans, under the code-name McQueen, as in The Great Escape star Steve McQueen, according to a report inRe/code.
More the Merrier?
Apple is not abandoning Amazon and Azure as providers of cloud services, but adding Google to its stable of providers, according to Jeff Kaplan, managing director ofThinkStrategies. There also is speculation about whether Apple is using its experiences with those companies to shape plans for its own cloud services.
Apples tactic of using multiple cloud providers is comparable to what other enterprises are doing today experimenting to determine which cloud services are the best fit for their specific needs, he told the E-Commerce Times. In many cases, they are selecting multiple providers so they arent dependent on a single source.
Apple likely is working with multiple vendors to take advantage of the fierce competition in the cloud services space and leverage costs, said Kevin Krewell, principal analyst atTirias Research.
AWS is the big dog in cloud services, he told the E-Commerce Times. Google is likely more aggressive on cost, trying to gain share. For Apple, this could save money and show Amazon its willing to shift vendors and keep its suppliers nervous.
Another Google Gain
The move marks another victory for Google, which last year hired VMware cofounderDiane Greene to help ramp up its corporate cloud services business.
Just last month, streaming music provider Spotify announced that it had moved its business over to Google as part of a decision to move away from buying data centers.
Apple has been deluged with complaints from users who say the latest version of its mobile operating system is breaking links and crashing apps.
Following iOS 9.3 on iPhone 6splus update links in safari no longer open, then safari crashes any ideas how to fix? Same problem in Chrome, user John MacDonald posted Monday on Apples support page on Twitter.
Another user, Armando Couri Filho, had similar problems. My IPhone 6 is not opening links from Safari, Mail and WhatsApp. What should I do? he asked Apple support.
Clicking on links in the new iOS update causes safari to freeze. Ive had to switch to using @googlechrome and @firefox, noted Ohanes Kalayjian.
Whats causing the problem with links in iOS 9.3? So far, Apple has been mum on the subject, but according to one news report, the issue could be with Universal Links, which Apple introduced in iOS 9.0.
Universal Headache?
Universal Links allow Web links to be opened directly from within apps running under iOS without first opening Apples Web browser, Safari.
The Universal Links are stored in a database in iOS, and if an app contains too many, they will crash not only the app, but Safari too, according to TechCrunch.
However, that doesnt explain why apps without any Universal Links are crashing, nor does it explain other problems, such as iOS refusing to verify updates because it says a device is not connected to the Internet when clearly it is.
For users who have installed the new version of iOS, there doesnt seem to be a quick fix. Turning off JavaScript in Safari has helped some users, but not all, BGR reported. Others have avoided the problem by using Googles Chrome browser, but that too seems to be an inconsistent fix.
Of course, unlike with some desktop operating systems that allow an update to be rolled back to a previous version that worked fine, once most users commit to a new version of iOS, theres no turning back.
There are good reasons for that no-rollback policy, noted Patrick Moorhead, principal analyst atMoor Insights & Strategy.
Many more times than not, the latest software is safer and better, he told TechNewsWorld.
Whats more, backgrades are very complex and if not done precisely, the backgrade could break all functionality, Moorhead added.
More Regression Testing Needed
Kevin Krewell, an analyst withTirias Research, has the new iOS running on his iPhone and hasnt experienced any problems with it yet, he said.
However, any time theres a major change in an operating system, theres always the risk of problems, he told TechNewsWorld
I would be concerned that Apple is not doing enough regression testing on applications to catch these things before they ship new software, Krewell said.
Although Apple always has touted its commitment to software excellence, the latest iOS fumble may be a sign its succumbing to the pressures plaguing all software makers, according to Moorhead.
Apple should take a look at their development process as insiders are starting to question their commitment to software quality, he said.
Apple is racing top speed across many different, complex platforms, and every software developer, including Microsoft and Google, are issuing software with bugs, Moorhead continued.
The whole software industry has taken a fast-fail approach to get code out and let users find fixes, he said. This is particularly happening in consumer environments.
Too Many Apps
Given the size of Apples app ecosystem, the problem of getting everything to work right is a mighty one for the company, which released seven beta versions of iOS 9.3 before sending it to users.
Its hard when your ecosystem is so large, but they should have stats on which apps are most popular and test for those, Krewell said.
Part of the problem is the amplification of software. There are so many different apps, its getting harder and harder for Apple to keep track of the apps you have on your phone, he added.
While it is true that OS updates need to go through intense scrutiny before being pushed to customers, its sometimes impossible to test for all in-the-wild scenarios, added Adrian Liviu Arsene, a senior threat analyst withBitdefender.
The issue here, he said, is how fast will Apple fix the bug, how many apps trigger the crash, and whether it will persist even after the fix.
The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday voted 3-2 to approve a US$2.25 billion program to subsidize broadband Internet service and bundled voice and data packages for low-income consumers. The new subsidy is part of a major overhaul of the agencys Lifeline program, which has provided affordable phone access for decades.
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, and Commissioners Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel voted in favor of the measure. Commissioners Ajit Pai and Michael ORielly dissented.
The goal is not only to expand affordable high-speed Internet, but also to eliminate waste and fraud from the system, Wheeler said. Further, they will even the playing field in the modern economy.
By dramatically improving Lifelines management and design, and putting the program on sound fiscal footing moving forward, we will help low-income Americans across our nation connect to the Internet and the opportunities of the broadband revolution, Wheeler pointed out.
Down to Basics
The FCC launched the Lifeline program in 1985 to ensure low-income Americans had access to basic telephone service. It provides subsidized basic landline or wireless telephone service for consumers who are at or below 135 percent of the poverty line.
However, 43 percent of the nations poorest households cannot afford to have broadband service in their homes, according to the FCC.
The order approved on Thursday will phase in minimum standards for standalone broadband or bundled service starting in December 2016. The program will provide a minimum of 500 mg per month at 3G speeds starting in December, eventually rising to 2 GB per month by the end of 2018. It will phase in a minimum of 500 bundled voice minutes per month starting in December, and rise to 1,000 minutes per month by Dec. 1, 2018.
To encourage carrier participation, the FCC will enlist a third-party National Eligibility Verifier to screen applicants. There will be a streamlined process for bringing in carriers, called Lifeline Broadband Providers, and to refine the list of federal programs that consumers can use to verify eligibility. Those programs include SNAP, Medicaid, Veterans Pension, Tribal programs, SSI and HUD Federal Housing Assistance.
Narrowing the Digital Divide
The vote was a long-awaited reform for many low-income communities that have broadband access only through smartphone connections.
Todays order is a tremendously important step towards getting more Americans online, said Josh Stager, policy counsel at New Americas Open Technology Institute. Lifeline is not a silver bullet that closes the digital divide entirely, but it tackles the biggest barrier to broadband adoption: cost.Forty-eight percent of households making less than $25,000 a year are online, while 95 percent of households making $150,000 are online, noted Phillip Berenbroick, counsel for government affairs at Public Knowledge.
Eighty percent of Fortune 500 companies require job applications to be done online, he pointed out, which means low-income job seekers effectively have an automatic disadvantage when competing for jobs.
The FCC should expand the program to work with local public libraries and nonprofits in low-income communities, where many of the libraries currently loan out mobile hotspots to residents, said Craig Settles, a technology analyst who specializes in broadband issues.
Making broadband service available to low-income customers for less doesnt seem to be a problem for providers.
Cable companies have been supportive of the FCCs effort to modernize Lifeline, Berenbroick told the E-Commerce Times.
Earlier this year, providers including Comcast, Cox, AT&T, Verizon, CenturyLink, and Frontier filed a letter, along with Public Knowledge, urging the FCC to reform Lifeline to support broadband, he noted.
Republican Resistance
The Republican-appointed commissioners objected to the program because they were seeking stricter budget caps and sought other changes, Settles told the E-Commerce Times.
Pai earlier this week said he was looking for a lower budget $1.75 billion and a mechanism that automatically would reduce payments to carriers when program costs exceeded the budget, Settles noted. Pai also wanted to eliminate the programs $25 enhanced subsidy in counties with more than 50 people per square mile, as the subsidy was intended to support construction of facilities in Native American communities and instead has gone to cities like Reno, Nev., and Tulsa, Okla.
The government should make it easier to deploy mobile broadband on federal lands, suggested Public Knowledges Berenbroick. Many rural areas are near large swaths of federal lands, and providers often find it difficult to deploy in those areas.
There are many other actions that should be taken to improve broadband access, he added, such as ensuring accessible broadband conduits in federally funded road projects; ensuring that communities can self-provision broadband; and ensuring sufficient unlicensed spectrum for WiFi access.
IBM on Thursday announced that it has agreed to buyBluewolf, a Salesforce system integrator.
It reportedly will pay US$200 million.
Bluewolf will provide cloud consulting and implementation capabilities as part of IBM Global Business Services Interactive Experience practice. The aim is to deliver differentiated, cloud-based, consumer-grade experiences, IBM said.
The deal, scheduled to close in Q2, will position IBM for both midmarket and enterprise clients in the Salesforce professional services industry, which is pegged at $111 billion, IBM said.
Bluewolf will continue to develop solutions around Salesforce industry implementations based on its library of industry-specific assets, accelerators and mutual expertise in various vertical markets, including healthcare, manufacturing, the public sector, financial services, higher education and new media.
Acquiring Expertise
Seems to me IBM bought the expertise they dont have in-house, observed Denis Pombriant, principal at Beagle Research Group. Bluewolf has a wealth of knowledge about how to build apps on Salesforce for multiple different platforms.
IBM is looking for ways to pump up its professional services business, said Mike Jude, a research program manager at Frost & Sullivan.
Remember that IBM turned away from technology and towards services some time ago, and has since been looking for points of resonance in the professional marketplace [where] Bluewolf has a great deal of experience, he told the E-Commerce Times.
Going Into CRM
The Bluewolf acquisition is the second CRM company purchase IBM has announced this month, the first beingOptevia, which specializes in the public sector market in the UK.
The Bluewolf purchase is another step in IBM acquiring partners that have a cloud implementation and services model, pointed out Rebecca Wettemann, vice president of research at Nucleus Research. It also further indicates that IBMs moving into the CRM space beyond the Sugar partnership and recent Microsoft partner announcements.
Buying Bluewolf gives IBM significant bench strength in Salesforce implementations obviously a growing competitive field and a skill set thats important to many existing IBM clients, she told the E-Commerce Times.
However, the battle is over and IBM would be invading CRM for no good reason, Beagle Research Groups Pombriant told the E-Commerce Times. They dont bring anything that cant be found elsewhere in Salesforce, Oracle, Microsoft, Accenture, Deloitte and many others.
Realigning the Market?
IBMs push into CRM may not impact the industry much because CRM is a pretty mature market with defined leaders who are not IBM, he said.
That said, the companys deep pockets might tip the balance in its favor.
Any time IBM starts playing in a market, you can expect things to rearrange themselves fairly quickly, Jude commented. It will definitely give the other participants pause.
The company has been fashionably late to the party many times, only to buy its way into a respectable position, Pombriant acknowledged. They have a lot of capital and are looking for businesses that can scale.
Expect more acquisitions in this space, Wettemann predicted, as increasing numbers of traditional vendors and their systems move to cloud implementations.
Competition or Cooperation?
By purchasing Bluewolf, IBM will become more of a player in the Salesforce space.
It will be interesting to see how Bluewolf, as IBM, treats competitive situations where IBMs Marketing Cloud, with Silverpop and Unica, is up against Salesforces capabilities, Wettemann noted.
Since Bluewolf is Salesforce-centric, the purchase places IBM and Salesforce in a weird position with respect to each other, Frosts Jude said. Is it coopetition or will it be?
Salesforce has been playing in IBMs space for a while with some very large clients, Pombriant said. Im sure IBM had no adequate answer to why customers should go to third parties and away from IBM for cloud/Salesforce apps. This helps to change all that.
A federal magistrate judge on Monday granted the Department of Justices request to delay a much-anticipated court hearing that had been scheduled to take place on Tuesday in Riverside, Calif.
The court granted an indefinite stay, after the DoJ said it had found a possible method of accessing the encrypted iPhone of the San Bernardino terrorist without the help of Apple.
The Justice Department said it would issue an update on April 5.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Wilkison asked Judge Sheri Pym to postpone the scheduled hearing to give investigators time to see whether the method would work. The DoJ notified lawyers for Apple at 2:30 p.m. Monday, based on the filing, asking them for Apples position on the matter, and Apples lawyers in turn asked for a status conference by telephone.
Our top priority has always been gaining access into the phone used by the terrorist in San Bernardino, said DoJ spokesperson Melanie Newman. With this goal in mind, the FBI has continued in its efforts to gain access to the phone without Apples assistance, even during a month-long period of litigation with the company.
As a result of these efforts, an outside party demonstrated to the FBI this past weekend a possible method for unlocking the phone, she said.
Investigators must first test this method to ensure that it doesnt destroy the data on the phone, but we remain cautiously optimistic, Newman added.
Broad Ramifications
This is good news, because a legal precedent requiring companies to write backdoors is incredibly dangerous to the security of millions of iPhone users, said Kurt Opsahl, general counsel for the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
This case was always about more than access to a single phone, he told the E-Commerce Times.
It was an attempt to set a legal precedent that requires any company to undermine their users security at the FBIs request, Opsahl contended. Security is vital to protect the information on your phone, and the FBI should work to enhance user security, not against it.
Taken by Surprise
The DoJs request came as a bolt from the blue, Apple attorneys told reporters in a conference call Monday evening. The basis for the departments request was a mystery.
However, if the DoJ should pursue the case at a later date, then the company would ask it to disclose everything the government knows about how to access data, the Apple attorneys said. Further, they would want to question the entity that contacted the government with the possible method for unlocking the phone.
Over the past month, the government gave Apple no indication that it was attempting to contact third parties, they noted.
We can only speculate as to the exact reason for the delay, but at this point it seems that the FBI has wasted everyones time pushing a legal theory that is now moot, said Eli Dourado, director of the Technology Policy Program at George Mason Universitys Mercatus Center.
Lets hope they never do this again, he told the E-Commerce Times.
Court Fight
The DoJ and FBI have battled Apple for more than a month in an often bitter public debate over whether Apple should be forced to provide a backdoor method to give investigators access to data stored on the iPhone of San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook.
Along with his wife, Farook shot up a holiday party in an ISIS-inspired spree, killing 14 and wounding 22 people. Both Farook and his wife, who is suspected of helping to radicalize him, were killed in a shootout with law enforcement.
Graceful Exit?
The indefinite postponement of the hearing may be a sign that the government is looking for a graceful exit from a civil liberties nightmare that was beginning to divide Congress along nontraditional lines.
This would be a very good outcome, said Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center.
The government may use all lawful techniques to obtain evidence authorized pursuant to a court order. Apple drew the right line in this matter, he told the E-Commerce Times, and it appears the FBI is respecting that line.
Fierce Resistance
Apple, which has cooperated with investigators in numerous other cases, publicly attacked the governments request for assistance in the San Bernardino case. Its chief concern was that creating a new set of code to allow investigators to access one phone would open the door for additional requests.
It also would leave it vulnerable to cooperation demands with various governments around the world that might have dissidents they wanted to crack down upon, Apple maintained.
This case was never about a phone, it was always about a precedent, said Evan Greer, campaign director of Fight for the Future.
Well be watching carefully to see how this unfolds, but for now it appears that the government is attempting to gracefully back down from its dangerous request that Apple build a backdoor, he told the E-Commerce Times.
The group had planned to demonstrate with an online campaign, as well as protesters outside the courthouse on Tuesday, and they will still be there, according to Greer.
Decision makers need to know that the public and security experts oppose dangerous backdoors in encryption, he said, so they dont attempt something like this again.
In this weeks top story, Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull , was accused of completely and utterly walking away from public schools by proposing that the States and Territories take full responsibility for their funding. The Australian Education Union s (AEU) deputy federal president, Maurie Mulheron , told The Educator that should the proposal go ahead, it would deeply entrench inequality in society and affect future generations. The Prime Minister has just announced to every parent in Australia: if you send your child to a public school, we wont give you a single dollar. Hes saying well continue to tax you, but your school will not get a dollar from us, Mulheron said. However, Federal Education Minister, Simon Birmingham defended the proposal, saying it was about preventing the education system from being strangled by multiple levels of government bureaucracy.In other news, the Fair Work Commission ruled that schools no longer need to immediately fire staff charged with child sex offences. The ruling comes after Sydney Catholic Schools formally Catholic Education Office Sydney lost a case where it claimed state law required it to sack a teacher after he was charged with a sex offence involving a minor. In a statement on Tuesday, Dr Dan White, executive director of the Catholic body, called on State and Federal governments to provide clarity on this issue as a matter of urgency. The implications of the decision are significant. It will apply to all non-government schools, not just Catholic schools. It throws up a range of other questions that will require urgent consideration from state and federal governments, he said.Finally, a damning new report warned that a socio-educational hierarchy of schools is widening the nations equity gap. The two researchers behind the study former principals Chris Bonnor and Bernie Shepherd said the report was an alarming account of what the numbers behind the Federal Governments MySchool data actually show. The report, titled School daze, analysed school data on the website in order to reveal the true extent of disadvantage in the nations schools, as well as the alleged funding disparities between the school sectors. It found that while public schools enrol a larger proportion of disadvantaged students, public funding to public schools between 2009-2013 increased at around half the rate (12.4%) of funding to Catholic (23.5%) and Independent (23.7%) schools.
The last time I wrote a signed piece was in my first issue as Editor (11 September 2004); it seems appropriate then that I write one in the last edition of EPW that I edit.
The intervening yearsclose to 12have been as interesting and tumultuous as any EPW has seen. The world in 2016 is very different from what it was in September 2004. At the time the United Progressive Alliance government had assumed office only a few months earlier, George Bush was in power in the United States, Facebook was just born, Twitter was yet to emerge, and China was only beginning to assert itself.
Movimentu Kontra Okupasaun Tasi Timor
Movement Against the Occupation of the Timor Sea
Rua dos Martires da Patria, Bebora, Dili, Timor-Leste
Tel: +670-7734-8703
email: zebdiaz@gmail.com
As thousands of people rallied peacefully in front of the Australian embassy in Dili on 22 March, the organizers of the protest issued two statements, one to Australia and one to Timor-Leste . Tetum versions and photos of the protest can be accessed at http://www.laohamutuk.org/Oil/Boundary/CMATSindex.htm#Mar16Demos . The following are English translations of the two statements: li, 22 March 2016
Declaration to the Government of Australia
MKOTT sees that Timor-Leste is the closest neighbour to Australia. During the past few decades, people from these two countries have had good relations. In World War II, many Timorese people supported Australia, and more than 40,000 Timorese lives were sacrificed because Australia came to use Timor Island as a base to defend against Japan. In addition, in 1999 Australia supported Timor-Leste to end Indonesias military brutality.
Unfortunately, the history of past good relations has been scarred by Australian government policy to illegally occupy Timor-Lestes maritime territory, because Australia is interested to take resources from this small nation. Therefore, today, MKOTT returns to call for justice in settling a maritime boundary which is fair to Timor-Lestes people.
MKOTT comes to ask the following demands:
1. Australia should return to the mechanisms for resolving maritime boundary disputes under the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.
2. The Government of Australia should respect the rights of Timor-Lestes people in the Timor Sea according to international law (UNCLOS).
3. The Government of Australia should engage in honest and open negotiations about maritime boundaries, not only to talk about bilateral relations in general.
4. The Government of Australia should stop stealing Timor-Lestes peoples resources, which reduces opportunities for good lives for women, children, and vulnerable people in Timor-Leste.
In addition to the above demands, through this request, MKOTT also asks the Australian people, as a people who have shown their maturity and strong civic spirit, to:
1. Stand alongside the people of Timor-Leste to fight for sovereignty, as you did during the Indonesian occupation.
2. Encourage your Government to respect Timor-Lestes peoples rights, through deciding a fair maritime boundary according to international legal principles.
3. Help your domestic politics to become more democratic, respecting law and human rights, to make Australia an exemplary nation with a democratic system that other countries in this region can follow.
LONG LIVE TIMOR-LESTE
LONG LIVE THE MAUBERE PEOPLE
LONG LIVE THE MOVEMENT AGAINST OCCUPATION OF THE TIMOR SEA
Photo from March 22 protest in Dili. Photos via Lao Hamutuk. The Movement Against the Occupation of the Timor Sea (Movimentu Kontra Okupasaun Tasi Timor - MKOTT) is a social movement composed of activists, students, former resistance fighters and individuals which advocates for legal, judicial and diplomatic processes between the Australian and Timor-Leste governments to find a fair solution to the maritime boundary between these two nations.MKOTT sees that Timor-Leste is the closest neighbour to Australia. During the past few decades, people from these two countries have had good relations. In World War II, many Timorese people supported Australia, and more than 40,000 Timorese lives were sacrificed because Australia came to use Timor Island as a base to defend against Japan. In addition, in 1999 Australia supported Timor-Leste to end Indonesias military brutality.Unfortunately, the history of past good relations has been scarred by Australian government policy to illegally occupy Timor-Lestes maritime territory, because Australia is interested to take resources from this small nation. Therefore, today, MKOTT returns to call for justice in settling a maritime boundary which is fair to Timor-Lestes people.MKOTT comes to ask the following demands:1. Australia should return to the mechanisms for resolving maritime boundary disputes under the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.2. The Government of Australia should respect the rights of Timor-Lestes people in the Timor Sea according to international law (UNCLOS).3. The Government of Australia should engage in honest and open negotiations about maritime boundaries, not only to talk about bilateral relations in general.4. The Government of Australia should stop stealing Timor-Lestes peoples resources, which reduces opportunities for good lives for women, children, and vulnerable people in Timor-Leste.In addition to the above demands, through this request, MKOTT also asks the Australian people, as a people who have shown their maturity and strong civic spirit, to:1. Stand alongside the people of Timor-Leste to fight for sovereignty, as you did during the Indonesian occupation.2. Encourage your Government to respect Timor-Lestes peoples rights, through deciding a fair maritime boundary according to international legal principles.3. Help your domestic politics to become more democratic, respecting law and human rights, to make Australia an exemplary nation with a democratic system that other countries in this region can follow.LONG LIVE TIMOR-LESTELONG LIVE THE MAUBERE PEOPLELONG LIVE THE MOVEMENT AGAINST OCCUPATION OF THE TIMOR SEA
Mandate of MKOTT to the Government of Timor-Leste
As a nonpartisan citizens movement, MKOTT also has a responsibility to defend Timor-Lestes peoples rights to access a fair distribution of state resources, as well as to defend peoples right to information, transparency and accountability from our leaders. MKOTT believes that the people of Timor-Leste should be the real beneficiaries and should determine their leaders decisions.
History has shown that, from the UNTAET administration until today, Timor-Lestes leaders have looked for ways to share revenues with the Australian government and oil companies who exploit our oil and gas from the Timor Sea, rather than choose for our sovereignty.
MKOTT recognizes that the weak economic situation when independence was restored in 2002 compelled Timor-Leste to give in to Australian pressure to sign the Timor Sea Treaty and International Unitization Agreement which were unfair to Timor-Leste, because we had just emerged from devastating conflict which had destroyed more than 80% of our infrastructure. State finances were stronger a few years later, and MKOTT did not agree when Timor-Leste and Australia signed and ratified the CMATS Treaty in 2006 and 2007.
Since 1999, Australia has taken in around USD $5 billion in revenues from oil and gas fields in the part of the Timor Sea which should belong to Timor-Leste. They got this money from the Elang-Kakatua, Bayu-Undan, Laminaria-Corallina, Buffalo and Kitan fields, which are now nearly entirely depleted. The remaining 7% of the Bayu-Undan reserve will be used up soon.
In our land, the Government of Timor-Leste has already spent more than $7 billion from these natural resources, and about $16 billion remains in our Petroleum Fund. MKOTT observes that this unique resource must be managed well to benefit current and future generations. When our economy becomes strong, and it no longer depends on oil and imports, more people will have jobs, household economies will improve, and the Government will be better able to support women and men, children, and all vulnerable people. MKOTT believes that a stronger economy will also strengthen Timor-Lestes position in maritime boundary negotiations with Australia.
Therefore, today, in front of many people, MKOTT gives this mandate to the Government of Timor-Leste: To defend sovereignty ahead of money, or projects or benefits from Australian donors.
To use the peoples resources to improve all peoples quality of life, ensuring equity for everyone.
To control public finance policies not to throw money away, or use it to benefit only a few.
To promote transparency and accountability about all public decisions to the Timorese people, as the owners of this land.
As a social movement, MKOTT promises to watch over this mandate, as one part of our duty as citizens to defend the peoples interests under the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste. As a nonpartisan citizens movement, MKOTT also has a responsibility to defend Timor-Lestes peoples rights to access a fair distribution of state resources, as well as to defend peoples right to information, transparency and accountability from our leaders. MKOTT believes that the people of Timor-Leste should be the real beneficiaries and should determine their leaders decisions.History has shown that, from the UNTAET administration until today, Timor-Lestes leaders have looked for ways to share revenues with the Australian government and oil companies who exploit our oil and gas from the Timor Sea, rather than choose for our sovereignty.MKOTT recognizes that the weak economic situation when independence was restored in 2002 compelled Timor-Leste to give in to Australian pressure to sign the Timor Sea Treaty and International Unitization Agreement which were unfair to Timor-Leste, because we had just emerged from devastating conflict which had destroyed more than 80% of our infrastructure. State finances were stronger a few years later, and MKOTT did not agree when Timor-Leste and Australia signed and ratified the CMATS Treaty in 2006 and 2007.Since 1999, Australia has taken in around USD $5 billion in revenues from oil and gas fields in the part of the Timor Sea which should belong to Timor-Leste. They got this money from the Elang-Kakatua, Bayu-Undan, Laminaria-Corallina, Buffalo and Kitan fields, which are now nearly entirely depleted. The remaining 7% of the Bayu-Undan reserve will be used up soon.In our land, the Government of Timor-Leste has already spent more than $7 billion from these natural resources, and about $16 billion remains in our Petroleum Fund. MKOTT observes that this unique resource must be managed well to benefit current and future generations. When our economy becomes strong, and it no longer depends on oil and imports, more people will have jobs, household economies will improve, and the Government will be better able to support women and men, children, and all vulnerable people. MKOTT believes that a stronger economy will also strengthen Timor-Lestes position in maritime boundary negotiations with Australia.Therefore, today, in front of many people, MKOTT gives this mandate to the Government of Timor-Leste: Representatives
Juvinal Dias (Civil Society), Faustinho Soares (Universities), Jorge "Wemoris" Alves (Veterans)
A protest calling for the establishment of permanent maritime boundaries along the median line half way between Australia and East Timor.took place on February 23 outside the Australian Embassy in Dili. The demonstration was organized by The Movement Against the Occupation of the Timor Sea (Movimentu Kontra Okupasaun Tasi Timor/MKOTT) has been formed by activists, students and former resistance groups. Photo by Juvinal Dias see also Graduate Students of the University of Peace Write to Australia (April 2)
MKOTT: Appeal to the people of Timor-Leste (March 18) TSJC: Protest outside Australias embassy in East Timor over the occupation of the Timor Sea (February 23, 2016) ETAN's MKOTT: MKOTT Declaration to the Australian Government (February 23, 2016) Timor Sea page SUPPORT ETAN! ETAN is "A voice of reason, criticizing the administration's reluctance to address ongoing human rights violations and escalating oppression in West Papua and against religious minorities throughout Indonesia." Noam Chomsky Donate Today!
WWW http://www.etan.org
Stop Japan's Financing of Indonesia Coal Plant
Protest at Japanese embassy against financing coal plants in Indonesia and elsewhere.Photo via FOE.
Protests took place in Washington, DC, Japan and Indonesia demanding that Japan stop financing coal projects in Japan, Indonesia, and around the world. Protesters at each event delivered a letter with these demands signed by over 220 groups - including ETAN - from 43 countries.
Read full letter and list of signers here (PDF)
Below is an excerpt:
Japan has a history of encouraging continued dependence on coal even as the science and deadly climate impacts have shown the urgent need to keep fossil fuels in the ground.... Japan remains the worlds number one supporter of overseas coal to the detriment of the planet and people. Initiating new coal-fired power plants in 2016 risks locking in damaging carbon emissions for decades to come, at a time when the world has agreed in the Paris Agreement that every country must play their part in dramatically decreasing emissions.
One example is the Batang coal-fired power plant in Central Java, Indonesia. Even though the project owners have failed to ensure social acceptability for the project in an appropriate manner and have blocked landowners and farmers from the land they depend on for their livelihood without their agreement, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) has so far failed to reject financing for the project. Coal-fired plants cause grave damage to the climate, but they are burden local communities with millions of dollars in negative health impacts and shortened life expectancies. In light of the negative environmental, social, and climate impacts, and the human rights violations associated with the project, we strongly urge JBIC to reject financing for the project ahead of its financial closure deadline on April 6, 2016.
The project proponents and the Indonesian government have failed to implement the appropriate environmental and social considerations according to the JBIC Guidelines. Late last year, an Indonesian state-sanctioned but independent Human Rights Commission even warned the Japanese government to review human rights violations surrounding the land acquisition process. The Japanese government and JBIC must immediately urge the project proponents to ensure free access to the unsold farmland, to prevent any unnecessary conflict and so that the farmers can maintain their livelihoods....
See also FOE: Activists protest Japans controversial coal financing during Prime Minister Abe's visit (Mar. 31, 2016)
Open letter from civil society groups opposing the World Bank support of coal in Indonesia (October 2, 2013)
Boston, MA-- Having too little thyroid hormone in the blood--even in the low-normal range--raises the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, especially in people with prediabetes, a new study in nearly 8,500 people finds. The study results will be presented Sunday at the Endocrine Society's 98th annual meeting in Boston.
Prediabetes is a mild elevation in blood glucose, or sugar, level that usually occurs before diabetes develops. One of every 10 people with prediabetes will develop Type 2 diabetes every year, according to the Hormone Health Network.
In the new study, the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes over long-term follow-up increased by 13 percent for people with low thyroid function--often called underactive thyroid gland or hypothyroidism--or even those with low-normal thyroid function. However, the diabetes risk was up to 40 percent higher for individuals with reduced thyroid function if they already had prediabetes, the investigators reported.
"These findings suggest we should consider screening people with prediabetes for low thyroid function," said lead investigator Layal Chaker, MD, of Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Currently, experts recommend thyroid screening of people with Type 1 diabetes, because they have a greatly increased risk of thyroid disease. Both Type 2 diabetes and hypothyroidism occur more often in older adults. However, Chaker said the association of thyroid function with Type 2 diabetes and prediabetes remains unclear.
Thyroid hormones are crucial for the regulation of metabolism, which is how the body converts food into energy or stores it. Hypothyroidism slows metabolism and can lead to weight gain. According to Chaker, past research has found a link between hypothyroidism and reduced sensitivity to the hormone insulin, another risk factor for Type 2 diabetes.
The study by Chaker and her colleagues included 8,452 participants from the Rotterdam Study, a population-based study in adults age 45 or older that reflects the general population in the Netherlands. Participants had an average age of 65 years. All participants had blood tests to measure their blood sugar and thyroid function. They were reexamined every two or three years to check for the development of Type 2 diabetes, and their medical records also were reviewed.
Over an average follow-up of nearly eight years, 1,100 participants developed prediabetes and 798 developed diabetes, according to the study abstract.
The researchers found that even among participants whose thyroid function was in the normal range at first measurement, progression from prediabetes to diabetes was reportedly 1.4 times higher for those in the lowest third of thyroid function levels compared with the highest third.
"We found it surprising that even people whose thyroid function was in the low-normal range had an increased risk of diabetes," Chaker said. "Future studies should investigate whether screening for and treatment of subclinical hypothyroidism [mildly low thyroid function] is beneficial in subjects at risk of developing diabetes."
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Endocrinologists are at the core of solving the most pressing health problems of our time, from diabetes and obesity to infertility, bone health, and hormone-related cancers. The Endocrine Society is the world's oldest and largest organization of scientists devoted to hormone research and physicians who care for people with hormone-related conditions.
The Society, which is celebrating its centennial in 2016, has more than 18,000 members, including scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students in 122 countries. To learn more about the Society and the field of endocrinology, visit our site at http://www.endocrine.org. Follow us on Twitter at @TheEndoSociety and @EndoMedia.
Boston, MA--As skin tans, it darkens to protect itself against harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation, but the increasing pigment blocks vitamin D synthesis, limiting the skin's ability to produce more vitamin D, a new study from Brazil finds. The results will be presented in a poster Saturday, April 2, at ENDO 2016, the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society, in Boston.
Even people exposed to high levels of sunlight may be deficient in serum vitamin D because it is mainly induced by UV irradiation and synthesized in the skin.
"Our research showed that, in a large sample of individuals living in a tropical region located 8 degrees south of the equator with very high rates of sun exposure and extremely high UV irradiation, most people had serum vitamin D below 30 ng/ml (nanograms per milliliter), the cutoff for normal," said lead study author Francisco Bandeira, MD, PhD, associate professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Endocrinology and Diabetes at the University of Pernambuco Medical School in Recife, Brazil. "Our findings suggest that skin tanning, which is a natural protection against the harmful effects of UV irradiation, limits the progressive rise in serum vitamin D towards optimal concentrations."
Bandeira and colleagues evaluated 986 people between 13 and 82 years of age, with roughly equal numbers of males and females, living in the city of Recife, Brazil. All study participants had high rates of daily sun exposure and did not regularly use sunscreen or take vitamin D supplements.
The researchers evaluated each participant's Fitzpatrick skin phototype scale to estimate the response of different skin types to UV light. In general, higher Fitzpatrick scale scores indicate deeper color and tendency to tan rather than burn in the sun.
They also calculated each participant's sun index, the number of hours of sun exposure per week multiplied by the fraction of body surface area exposed.
They measured everyone's serum vitamin D levels and compared them with their skin phototype and sun index scores.
Although the individuals with greater sun exposure had skin that was more tanned and less vitamin D deficiency than other participants, most of those with very high daily exposure had serum vitamin D levels below the normal cutoff.
Overall, 72 percent of participants had vitamin D deficiency, and their mean vitamin D level was only 26.06 ng/ml. The participants with deficient serum vitamin D tended to be older and have lower sun index values than those with normal levels.
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The Association for Endocrine Research in Recife, Brazil provided financial support for this project.
Endocrinologists are at the core of solving the most pressing health problems of our time, from diabetes and obesity to infertility, bone health, and hormone-related cancers. The Endocrine Society is the world's oldest and largest organization of scientists devoted to hormone research and physicians who care for people with hormone-related conditions.
The Society, which is celebrating its centennial in 2016, has more than 18,000 members, including scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students in 122 countries. To learn more about the Society and the field of endocrinology, visit our site at http://www.endocrine.org. Follow us on Twitter at @TheEndoSociety and @EndoMedia.
I know this question has been asked in different ways but I haven't seen something close enough to what I'm trying to accomplish.
My wife and I are US Citizens looking to spend 6 months (Sep-Feb) in Italy. My wife is not employed in the US. She is looking to attend a language school in Rome on a student visa through which I know she also can work part-time. That's the easy part.
I, on the other hand, am looking at either also having a student visa or was told by my local consulate that an elective residence visa would be an option if I pay for our housing entirely in advance and can show adequate funds. I was also told by the consulate that working remotely would be available to me with an ER visa.
The problem I have is with my US employer (who has no presence in Italy). Upon asking them about doing this (I have worked remotely for 10 years now), I was told that they would be unable to give me permission because they do not have information on the tax implications of doing this. They have an international tax consultancy firm available for this types of questions, but have been told that it would cost $2000 to simply request a quote on the cost of providing the tax implications of my working for 6 months abroad. As a result, they are unwilling to proceed.
Can anyone advise me or recommend options to address this? I've googled my fingers to the bone and it seems that I would need to be a resident for 183 days in a fiscal year to be in a situation where I would owe taxes in Italy. I could be completely wrong in that assumption though. Has anyone done something like this?
Any information would be most appreciated.
Thanks.
-mike
coondawg said: That was before my time and my interest, since it had nothing to do with me and my family. Click to expand...
I find that interesting CD since, according to you, your family arrived in the slaveholding state of Texas in 1838 and, if they opposed the then standard commercial and domestic practice of enslavement of Africans in 1838 Texas, they must have been considered pariahs if they were of European descent and about as welcome around there as ticks on a *******.My family in Alabama were unreconstructed sympathizes with local social norms of the day in 1838 and were also probably slaveholders although this was not discussed among civilized people when I was being raised in that state. In order to assuage resultant family guilt, I was compelled to join the civil rights movement in Birmingham in the 1960s - a decision I have never regretted since although it was a bit scary at the time.By the way, Will, thanks for reminding me that African Alabamians were counted in the census in those day as 3/5th of a human being, not 3/4ths as I stated in my above post but they were still not considered among many European Alabamians of the time to have souls. Reminds me that as late as the 1960s, indigenous people were not allowed to walk on the sidewalks of San Cristobal de Las Casas as they were also considered as lesser human beings - just as they are today by many Coletos of European or mixed descent although they are no longer required to walk in the streets. See, in 488 years some things have changed at least superficially. Mainly because Indigenous Chiapanecans will no longer brook that B.S.
WOOSTER, Ohio Its been 20 years since agronomists have developed fertilizer recommendations in Ohio.
But now, Ohio State University Extension is embarking on a major initiative to determine the optimal rates of fertilization on the states major crops. The goal is to not only maximize farm profitability, but also contribute to improved nutrient management and water quality in the state.
On-farm Fertilizer Trials
The Ohio State University On-farm Fertilizer Trials project plans to gather data from hundreds of farms statewide over the next two to three years, said Steve Culman, soil fertility specialist with the universitys College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences and researcher with the colleges Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center. OSU Extension is the outreach arm of the college.
Similar projects are being conducted in Indiana and Michigan, and the results will replace the current tri-state fertilizer recommendations, he said.
In Ohio, farmers will be paid up to $500 for participating, and crop consultants who join the effort will be paid $1,000-$1,500 for each trial they manage, Culman said. Ohios funding comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and commodity checkoff funds from the Ohio Soybean Council and the Ohio Corn and Small Grains Marketing Programs.
The fundamental question is agronomic, Culman said. Do we get a yield response to fertilizer application? Depending on the field, there is a lot of variability across the state. That requires a lot of different trials, documenting what we see with data.
This is not a top-down university approach. It will take buy-in and participation from the agricultural community.
Data gathering
Organizers plan to gather data from corn, soybean and wheat farmers at planting, during the summer and at harvest. For each of the eight combinations of fertilizer applications they want to test, they hope to attract 30 farms to participate. Farmers can decide which type of nutrients they will test nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium or sulfur, or a combination.
Phosphorus especially has been linked with harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie and other bodies of water. Too much nitrogen entering lakes and streams can also cause serious environmental and human health issues.
Sulfur, which is not used on a widespread basis as a fertilizer, is being included in the study because sulfur deposition into soils from the atmosphere has decreased substantially in recent years due to a shift from coal-based power, Culman said.
It is interesting because we never had to think or worry about sulfur in the soil before, but now people are looking at it more seriously, he said.
Applying gypsum to soil is one way to provide sulfur and is being promoted as a best management practice, Culman said. The product can be mined, but its also a byproduct of scrubbing sulfur dioxide from the gas emissions of coal-burning power plants.
Farmers participating in the nitrogen trial will be paid a premium if they include testing strips without any applied nitrogen as one of the four treatments they undertake, Culman said.
Nitrogen is a really challenging nutrient to develop recommendations for, he said. The soil itself can provide quite a bit of the nitrogen plants need, but it depends on a number of things: temperature, moisture, and the decomposition of the soils organic matter.
Last year, there was probably a lot of decomposition, but it got so wet that a lot of nitrogen was likely lost to the environment, he said. Nitrogen just doesnt stick around. Its availability and loss is difficult to quantify, so its difficult to develop nitrogen application recommendations.
If we have test strips in this study without any nitrogen being applied, then we can determine how much effect applied nitrogen had on neighboring strips.
But its likely the areas without any applied nitrogen will have lower yields, so the project will compensate farmers for that risk, Culman said.
More information
Ohio farmers and crop consultants can find more details at go.osu.edu/fert-trials, and may contact Culman at culman.2@osu.edu or 330-822-3787, or post-doctoral researcher Anthony Fulford at fulford.19@osu.edu.
Besides being of interest to crop farmers statewide, results from this project will be used by researchers and Extension personnel involved with the universitys Field to Faucet water quality initiative, which is designed to ensure safe drinking water while keeping farms productive and profitable.
What were most interested in is to provide solid information so farmers can make informed decisions based on what their crops need, Culman said. After 20 years without a formal revision of fertilizer recommendations, the agricultural community realizes things have changed.
Differences of opinion on proper fertilization rates are common, with some ag retailers recommending higher or lower rates than whats in the 1995 guidelines, he said.
We as the land-grant university have the advantage of conducting these trials and gathering a good, robust data set so farmers know what the appropriate application rate really is, Culman said.
Since fertilizer inputs are generally second only to seed as the largest costs farmers have, we can help farmers maximize profits by being as judicious as possible with fertilizer.
If they apply fertilizer based on just what the crop needs, the overwhelming majority of time, well get a better crop and better water quality as a result.
New Holland has unveiled the latest T5 and T6 tractor ranges, packed with more horsepower and other treats.
New Holland T5
New Holland has improved its popular T5 tractor range one of the best sellers in its power bracket in Europe to not only meet Tier 4B emissions regulations, but also to incorporate a host of new features designed to boost comfort, efficiency and productivity.
The new T5 Tier 4B range has been re-engineered to meet the evolving needs of livestock farmers and those who require a nimble, mid-powered tractor for dairy and mixed farming.
New Holland has traditionally been very strong in serving this sector of agriculture with tractors in this power bracket, and the T5 Tier 4B developments are designed to build on that, explains Sean Lennon, Head of Tractors, Telehandlers and PLM Product Management.
While upgrading the T5 tractors emissions systems to meet Tier 4B regulations, New Holland has taken the opportunity to add further developments that enhance the machines versatility and capabilities. Styling has also been brought into line with that of the higher powered T6 and T7 range.
A key development is the renowned Terraglide front suspended axle option. When paired with the optional Comfort Ride cab suspension farmers and operators can expect similar comfort levels to those already found on larger machines. Optional front brakes are available for true four-wheel braking performance.
In the deluxe VisionView cab, comfortable operation is improved with carefully arranged controls and tiltable steering column, keeping everything close at hand.
A panoramic windscreen and large 200-degree wiper improves visibility even in poor weather conditions. The operator also benefits from enhanced stowage with the addition of a storage box to the left of the seat.
Externally, night vision is improved with new high power LED work lights. The optional 8 LED lights provide 15,600 lumens and a broader spread of white light.
Compared to equivalent powered Halogen lights they offer 145% more light and increased durability with less power consumption.
Those operating compatible equipment benefit from optional ISOBUS Class II capability, which makes it easy to monitor and control all implements using the optional IntelliView III monitor for single screen operation.
New Holland T6
A new wide frame with bolted towers and the option of side rails form part of a loader-ready package.
The option of new mechanical or electrohydraulic joysticks with integrated transmission shifting is aimed at making operation easier, and more efficient, for those who fit their T5 with a loader. These provide transmission and loader function buttons on the one unit.
New Auto Transport and Auto Field modes improve the functionality of the Electro Command transmission, enhancing drivability.
For roadwork, operator input can be reduced by simplified gear changing in Auto Transport mode, which can significantly reduce fuel consumption.
In the field, performance and economy during PTO and draft operations can be optimized with Auto Field mode which manages both engine speed and transmission. Optional Creeper is also available with the 40kph ECO Electro Command transmission.
Additionally, there are now three settings for shuttle modulation, allowing the operator to set the responsiveness of forward/reverse changes, a feature particularly targeted at the large number of users who equip tractors of this size with a loader.
The new T5 range is available in three models: the 99hp T5.100, the 107hp T5.110 and the 117hp T5.120, with respective maximum torque figures at 1,500rpm of 430, 468 and 491 Nm.
All are equipped with the 3.4-litre Common Rail F5C engine with ECOBlue Compact HI-eSCR technology and Low Rate EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) developed and produced by FPT Industrial.
This is in alignment with the New Holland Tier 4B strategy, which foresees the use of Compact SCR and Low rate EGR for lower powered products with reduced cooling requirements, and for which overall product dimensions are of vital importance.
It all adds up to outstanding efficiency, increased performance and up to 24% more torque backup for even more productivity. Fuel capacity is 165 litres, and AdBlue tanks hold 12 litres.
New Holland T6
New Holland Agriculture launches the new T6 all-purpose tractor series that combines ultimate power with advanced technology to deliver unmatched comfort, visibility and manoeuvrability together with more power and performance.
The new range also introduces New Hollands sleek new tractor family styling.
The new T6 complies with Tier 4B emissions standards with New Hollands ECOBlue Hi-eSCR (High-Efficiency Selective Catalytic Reduction) technology. With this after-treatment system the engine breathes clean air, optimising combustion, torque rise and fuel efficiency.
The new T6 engines achieve better performance by maximising power output from each cylinder.
The new engine control unit brings the engine to maximum torque faster and holds through to the lower rpm longer, outperforming the previous generations engine.
The Engine Power Management develops more power and torque according to the load on the transmission, hydraulics and PTO. On the T6.165 it can deliver up to 33 extra horsepower when it is needed to maintain performance.
Engine Speed Management ensures the engine speed is maintained under changing loads, for applications that require a constant PTO speed or to maintain a fixed forward speed in difficult terrain.
All these features result in a powerful, responsive and efficient performance that is achieved with the same fluid consumption (diesel fuel and DEF) as the previous generation, and with longer refuelling intervals.
The T6.175 AutoCommand model at the top of the range, featuring a 175 hp (129 kW) 4-cylinder engine, meets the requirements of the most demanding customers looking for a premium tractor with excellent power-to-weight ratio and CVT transmission.
It is also available in Blue Power exclusive version, featuring New Hollands most advanced and productive technologies.
The Horizon cab provides the operator with the ultimate working environment: from the dual-zone air conditioning to the enhanced instrument panel; from the further reduced noise levels at 69 decibels to the Sidewinder II armrest that puts all the controls at the operators fingertips in the Auto Command models.
In addition to the base seat three new seats choice are available: Comfort, Dynamic Comfort and Auto Comfort. The Comfort seat utilises a low frequency suspension design. The Dynamic Comfort seat features an enhanced low frequency suspension and a variety of comfort enhancing features, such as the automatic shock absorber adjustment, pneumatic lumbar support and two-stage heater.
Both seats feature an innovative swivelling backrest designed to provide upper back support while enabling the operator to turn and look back.
The Auto Comfort active seat with incorporated climate control reduces whole body vibration by up to 40% compared to a low frequency seat, while extraction fans within the seat remove moisture, lowering surface humidity and temperature. It all adds up to unmatched comfort.
The cab also provides exceptional visibility in all directions with the single-piece windscreen, 5.85 square metre of glass and, for loader work, the high-visibility roof panel.
In addition, all T6 models feature standard LED work lights that provide exceptional illumination for after-daylight operation. The base 8 LED lights deliver 10,000 lumens, 60% brighter than the work lights on the previous generation.
For those wanting to turn night into day the top specification work light package offers the new LED work lights that produce 31,200 lumens, more than five times as bright as their predecessors.
The wheel base of all models is now similar to the previous 6 cylinder range at 2642mm and retains a tight turning radius of 4300mm.
In addition, the SuperSteer front axle offers an unrivalled manoeuvrability that makes all the difference when turning at the headland or working in confined spaces.
The longer wheelbase delivers better traction and an exceptionally smooth ride during field operation and transport. For maximum comfort at high transport speeds, the Terraglide suspended front axle cushions the operator from shocks when travelling over uneven surfaces. In the field, it maintains contact between the tyre and the ground, improving traction.
The new T6 bristles with features that boost productivity and make it easy to work efficiently. It can be ordered from the factory IntelliSteer ready or with the complete IntelliSteer package installed and ready to use.
The ISOBUS Class II option makes it easy to monitor and control all implements using the tractors monitor. Auto Command models are able to interact with the implements further with ISOBUS Class III.
In addition, the new T6 is fully loader ready from the factory, and a choice of New Holland loaders are available. Together the upgraded armrest and electronic midmounts valve makes the T6 a key player in modern mixed farming.
The new T6 Series offers a wide choice, with five four cylinder models ranging from 125 to 175hp. The six cylinder T6.180 tops the range with a maximum torque of 740Nm the only six cylinder tractor in this category on the market.
Jamie Adams has returned to the director's chair this weekend with his new film Black Mountain Poets. This is the third feature film of his career and comes after the success of Benny & Jolene and A Wonderful Christmas Time.
Black Mountain Poets
We caught up with the filmmaker to chat about the new movie, working with Alice Lowe, Dolly Wells, and Tom Cullen and what lies ahead.
- You are about to return to the director's chair with Black Mountain Poets, so can you tell me a bit about the film?
Black Mountain Poets follows sisters Claire and Lisa, who are at a point in their lives where they have been stealing JCBs for a while and carrying on the family business; their father, who is now deceased and has been for a while, that is what he used to do. They are getting a bit complacent and when we stumble across their story, it is as they have been found out and caught for the first time. They make an escape and they don't really know where they are going.
These sisters are slightly neurotic, are not really sure how to deal with the common sense aspect of life and have convinced themselves that the police are going to be chasing them and they are being hunted. They just keep going until they run out of petrol and they find themselves in the Black Mountains of Wales, where they pretend to be internationally renowned poets the Wilding Sisters at a poetry retreat. During this weekend, they are able to... by pretending to be these sisters, they are actually able to become more themselves, be more their own person and discover what that actually means to both of them.
They think it means to become more individual and to be less in each other's pockets, but they discover that it is not about that and they are close for a reason. It is about knowing that they are individuals and they just need to deal with the passing of their father a bit more and not be so jealous of each other. They learn to not be afraid of losing the other.
- As well as being in the director's chair, you have also penned the screenplay, so where did this project start for you and what inspired the story?
I plan the story first and then I get the cast involved and get them talking about what they would bring to the character. We talked about losing a parent - I lost a parent when I was eighteen and I have a younger brother who is very close to me; I am thirty-five and he is thirty-two. We seem to live in each other's pockets. For Alice and Dolly, that was something... they both have siblings that are close and they have both lost a relative quite young. So we all had that in common. I then go and write what I call a scriptment, which is thirty pages of scene by scene; so we know what the scenes are. When we get on set, we create the scenes as we shoot them - there is no rehearsal we just rehearse on camera and keep going until we feel that we have got what we need.
Plot wise, the story was inspired by an uncle of mine - Uncle Derek - who I never really saw that much but he would pop in and out of our lives. He used to steal JCBs and he got caught. But the person who would buy the JCBs off him paid for him to run away to South Africa for a couple of years. When he came back, my dad was like 'you have got to go to a police station,' which he did. It does come from a family story but I did make changes to that story where no one comes to the rescue and they have to sort it out themselves.
The movie is also inspired by Some Like It Hot (laughs). I wanted the leads to be women and I rang Tom Cullen and was like 'I want you to be a Marilyn Monroe type character.' And he was like, 'that sounds good to me.' Dolly and Alice were just pleased that it was two women in their thirties that were going to be the leads. That is where it all came from I guess.
- Black Mountain Poets is an improvised piece that was shot in just five days, how much do you enjoy working this way?
I come from a point of view that if you are a filmmaker - especially an independent filmmaker - you have some kind of disease because you have to make films. It is impossible to make films as there is no money anywhere for independent film, especially in Britain; we are testament of that as these films are made for next to nothing. The budget for this came to 24,000, which is a lot of money for where I am from but, in film terms, that is very small.
We shot this film in five days, which is ridiculous. I said after doing it once that I was never going to do that again and here I am having done it three times now. And it is all because I have to tell these stories and I get so excited about the stories. I love actors; especially when we get them in front of the camera and they are working. They are quite complicated characters as people (laughs) but get them in front of the camera and in the scenes, that is when they are at their best. Especially these kinds of actors because they are just willing to give themselves over to the process, to trust me and to... it also helps that we have done three of them now, so they do know that they are going to work, there is going to be a film at the end of it and I will be able to guide them through.
Working with actors is great. That is when the casting becomes so incredibly important because if you get the casting wrong on something like this, then it is not going to work. Everybody has to pull together, in the pouring rain, on a mountain, in the dark, in Wales, where there is no signal and I might keep them acting and not say cut for an hour. Tom Cullen came to shoot this having made another film in the desert and he had a massive cold. The first night we had to go up onto the mountain in the rain (laughs). He never came out of character and was shivering and when I said 'cut' he came over and was like, 'can you try and make that a bit shorter because I am going to get pneumonia' (laughs). And I was like 'yeah, fair enough.' I loved working with these guys.
- Alice Lowe and Dolly Wells takes on the role of sisters Lisa and Claire. What were you looking for when you were casting these roles and what did you see in Alice and Dolly?
I wanted two very funny women and incredibly comic performers. I had worked with Dolly before and she is just fantastic; you only have to look at her work in Doll & Em. She can do natural and relationship kind of comedy and then she can do surreal comedy like in Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy.
She is incredibly intuitive as a comic actress and she brings the heart and the cathartic nature that you want from an actor. She is able to be in the moment and make you believe that she is experiencing these things. She is so selfless. It was a no-brainer - it just had to be Dolly.
Alice Lowe had been really encouraging and positive about my... the first work that I put out there was a web series about five years ago and she was one of the first industry type people to send me a Facebook message. She told me to carry on making this kind of stuff and hoped that we would work together one day. I always had her in mind. After I saw her in Sightseers I thought that there was no chance that I was going to get her until I had a bigger budget. The fact is, Alice and Dolly had worked together years before on Star Stories, they already had a bit of a shorthand and they wanted to work together.
As much as she wanted to come in and find out what this improv five-day shoot was going to be like with me, she also wanted to be on screen with Dolly. They knew that they could work as sisters - and they really did. At the end of day one, it was like we had been in rehearsals for weeks. They immediately had a rapport and a way of knowing when was going to be the one with the punchline; it was very much like sisters in the way that they were giving and taking. That's why it had to be those two.
- I have been chatting to Alice and she thinks that this would not have worked as well if they hadn't known each other so well. Do you agree with that? They are terrific together in the film.
Thanks for that. It has a lot to do with it. We didn't have the luxury of being able to do rehearsals. What would have happened if the actresses didn't know each other, was by day three we would have been getting really good stuff. But the first couple of days may have been strange because they would have been finding each other and they would have been discovering each other on camera.
Alice and Dolly hit the ground running because they had this shorthand. I think they had conversations before they turned up as well and I know that they talked about the history of the sisters; they put the work in basically. It was incredibly important when you are shooting a film in five days for this kind of relationship to really come across and to feel real. For the actresses to already know each other and have the kind of bond was invaluable really.
- Tom Cullen also stars, so can you talk about bringing him on board?
I have known Tom since he graduated the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama and he came and did a day on the web series that I talked about earlier. He actually played the long-lost Calzaghe twin - as in Joe Calzaghe the boxer. He played a character called Sergio Calzaghe and was a really silly and broad kind of comedy. It was a way in which I just started playing around with improv on camera as a way of forming the stories. Tom came to do that and really enjoyed it. Six months later he was doing Weekend, which was a big breakout movie for him, and then he goes and does big things like Downton Abbey. Again, I thought 'that's Tom gone.'
While my films Benny & Jolene and A Wonderful Christmas Time were not seen by millions, they did get to see them, they were impressed by the and the way in which the process was really starting to galvanise. He wanted to do something with me but Tom was never sure that he could do comedy. I said to him, 'number one, you are going to have Alice Lowe and Dolly Wells with you. And you are going to play the Marilyn Monroe character and so you are the straight good-looking one.' And he was like 'there's no pressure on me to be funny?. And I said 'no, exactly'. He was really interested in playing this love interest.
For that to be pitched to him rather than to an actress was something that he wanted to do as well. The actors want to feel that they can bring something to the role and, for him, he had not been asked to play a sensitive guy who is a bit downtrodden and lost. For Tom, it was interesting to try that out and it wasn't just him on screen but it was a character that he was exploring. I know that he enjoyed performing with Alice and Dolly.
- The movie has played well on the festival circuit, playing at South by Southwest and Edinburgh, so how have you been finding the response to the film?
It has just been overwhelming. When me and my editor Mike Hopkins... the edit is very much like a documentary edit because you just have so much footage. My assemble edit for each scene is about fifteen minutes long and we have to bring that down to about a minute to two minutes to each scene. You can do it a million different ways really. If I passed away and someone had to take it over, it would be a completely different film (laughs) because there are so many options and no single way to make it work. At the end of the edit, I am just happy that I am watching something that I am not embarrassed by; all I know about the film is that it is something that I can sit and watch with my wife and not cringe. My wife Zoe is usually the first audience and she was laughing all of the way through and she is never like that when she watches my films as she is normally a bit nervous as well.
Then Mark Adams, who was the head of the Edinburgh Film Festival at the time, saw it next and was like 'yeah, this is great and even better than A Wonderful Christmas Time. We want it in the festival.' That was the moment where I was like 'hold on, this one is pretty good' (laughs). Everything after that probably won't sink in until twenty year time when I can look back and say 'I did that and it did alright'. It is a beautiful thing.
There was a review that this eighteen-year-old girl from Luxembourg wrote and she is not an English speaker. She wrote this review in English and was saying how honest, sincere, beautiful, and funny the film was. That was the best moment for me because we had reached an eighteen-year-old girl in Luxembourg, which is fantastic. It is cool (laughs).
- Finally, what's next for you as we go through 2016?
I shot a film with Craig Roberts just before Christmas with Alex Karpovsky, who is Ray in Girls. Alex Karpovsky is amazing and a filmmaker in his own right and he wanted to come across to Wales and do this thing with me. It was my fourth five-day feature - even though I said I would never do it again. I hadn't seen Craig for ages; we had done Benny & Jolene but we knew that we could do better, especially as the process gets more refined. We have co-written this film together and that has been interesting as it is the first thing that I have co-written. Erin Richards, who is in Gotham at the moment, is in it as well. It is about a child actor who comes home for Christmas after twenty years of pretending that he has other work and he hasn't.
I am currently putting together another film with Dolly Wells, which the BFI are backing. It is incredible that the BFI have come on board and said they want to back me - it is such a bold move for them as I don't write scripts (laughs). That is really the biggest achievement for me so far as the BFI are now taking me seriously. Hopefully, that will shoot in August but we will see.
Black Mountain Poets is out now.
by Helen Earnshaw for www.femalefirst.co.uk
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State-controlled Grupa Azoty, one of Poland's largest plastics and fertiliser manufacturers, has announced that it will invest in a new propylene plant at its site in Police in the country 's north-west.The $450 million investment will create the largest such plant in Europe by 2019, and is the largest undertaking in the company's history, media reports said.
State-controlled Grupa Azoty, one of Poland's largest plastics and fertiliser manufacturers, has announced that it will invest in a new propylene#
The investment, the largest in the company's history, will create Europe's biggest production plant for propylene, a critical chemical in the production of plastics and solvents, used in a range of products including car parts, carpets and toys.Poland's Treasury Minister Wlodzimierz Karpinski told journalists in Warsaw, Friday, that the construction of the plant will create 1,000 jobs and an additional 200 jobs for highly qualified employees for the servicing of this investment.The initial project for the plant was drafted 6 years ago, with Grupa Azoty deliberating a number of sites for the investment. The new plant is capable of producing 400,000 tonnes of propylene a year and will begin production in 2019. This is expected to increase the Warsaw-listed company's annual revenue by 20 per cent to $3.2bn. Currently, around 150,000 metric tonnes of propylene are processed in Poland annually.Grupa Azoty is one of only a handful of Polish business giants that has managed to turn national dominance into international clout, amid long-overdue efforts by the country's government to encourage overseas expansion and investment in new business areas among its largest corporates.Pawel Jarczewski, the company's chief executive, said the investment was of historical magnitude.Europe is estimated to have a deficit of about 1,000 tonnes of propylene per year. The plant, to be built in Police on Poland's northern Baltic coast, will export 60 per cent of its production, the company said.The investment is part of Grupa Azoty's planned $2 billion capital expenditure push between now and 2020 and is expected to be funded by new financing. (SH)
Fibre2Fashion News Desk India
Indian exporters of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resin to the US will now have to pay anti-dumping and countervailing duties after the US International Trade Commission (USITC) determined that a US industry is materially injured by the import of PET resin from Canada, China, India, and Oman. The USITC's decision came after the US Department of Commerce concluded are sold in the US at less than fair value and subsidized by the governments of China and India.In a press release, the USITC said it also made negative findings with respect to critical circumstances with regard to imports of this product from India. As a result, goods that entered the US from India in the 90 days prior to August 15, 2015, will not be subject to retroactive countervailing duties, and goods that entered the US from India in the 90 days prior to October 15, 2015, will not be subject to retroactive antidumping duties (dates are the dates of the Department of Commerce's affirmative preliminary determinations).
Indian exporters of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resin to the US will now have to pay anti-dumping and countervailing duties after the US#
All six Commissioners made affirmative material injury determinations and negative critical circumstances findings.The Commerce Department will issue countervailing duty orders on imports of this product from China and India and antidumping duty orders on imports of this product from Canada, China, India, and Oman.The anti-dumping duty on Indian PET will be between 8.03 per cent and 19.41 per cent, while the duty on PET from Oman will be 7.82 per cent. Canadian PET will pay a 13.6 per cent anti-dumping duty, while Chinese PET will be charged a duty of between 104.98 per cent and 126.58 per cent.The US Commerce Department also will place countervailing duties of 6.83-47.56 per cent on Chinese PET and of 5.12-153.8 per cent on Indian PET. The department earlier had ruled that PET makers in Oman had not received countervailable subsidies.PET resin is commonly used in the manufacture of carbonated soft drink, juice and water bottles, in food containers and as packaging for household, cosmetic, automotive and pharmaceutical products.The USITC's investigation followed a petition filed on March 10, 2015 by DAK Americas LLC, M&G Chemicals and Nan Ya Plastics Corp. America charging that unfairly traded imports of PET resin from Canada, China, India and Oman were causing material injury to the domestic industry. Imports from the four target countries surged into the US market in recent years, displacing US producers' sales and market share. The domestic industry stated that this import surge was driven by low import pricing that caused US producers to suffer from reduced prices and profits."We have maintained throughout this case that the skyrocketing volume of imports of PET resin from Canada, China, India and Oman has injured the domestic industry with aggressive, dumped and subsidized prices. The domestic industry is extremely pleased that the Commission agreed and that these importers will now be subject to the discipline of trade orders to offset these practices," commented Paul Rosenthal of Kelley Drye, the lead trade counsel of the petitioners. (SH)
Fibre2Fashion News Desk India
(2) Reflects the number of positions in issuers: (a) in which the Company has previously, publicly disclosed an investment, (b) in which the Company has invested more than 5.0% of its AUM (as defined below), or (c) in which the Company has invested more than 1.0% of its AUM and for which it has completed its accumulation strategy. Cash, cash equivalents, direct or indirect currency or other hedges and income/expense items are excluded. Multiple financial instruments (for example, common stock and derivatives on common stock) associated with one (1) issuer will count as one (1) position. A position will be removed from the table only if: (a) the investment is less than 1.0% of the AUM of the Company, and (b) the Company has previously, publicly announced a disposition of the investment, or otherwise becomes 0.0% of the portfolio.
(3) Investments for purposes of valuation are valued as follows: (a) issuer equity or debt is valued at market value, (b) options referencing such issuer equity or debt are valued at market value, and (c) swaps or forwards referencing such issuer equity or debt are valued at the market value of the notional equity or debt underlying the swaps or forwards. Long position is determined by whether an investment has positive exposure to price increases; therefore, long puts count as short exposure.
(4) Includes all issuer equity and debt securities and derivatives related to issuer equity and debt securities and associated currency hedges. Cash, cash equivalents, direct or indirect currency or other hedges and income/expense items are excluded. The market values of associated currency hedges are added to the associated investment. In the event that there is a change in market cap category with respect to any non-publicly disclosed position, this information is not updated until such position is publicly disclosed.
(5) Portfolio composition is reflective of the portfolio positions as of the date of this report, but is not necessarily indicative of the composition of the portfolio in the future which may be significantly different than that shown here. A position in an issuer investment is only assigned to a sector (including the "Undisclosed Position" sector) once it meets the criteria of Footnote 2.
(6) "Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. AUM" is the assets under management of Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. Performance fee crystallized as of the end of the year will be reflected in the following period's AUM.
(7) "Total Strategy AUM" is the aggregate assets under management of Pershing Square, L.P., Pershing Square International, Ltd., Pershing Square II, L.P. and Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. Redemptions effective as of the end of any period (including redemptions attributable to crystallized performance fee/allocation, if any) will be reflected in the following period's AUM.
(8) "Total Firm AUM" is the aggregate of the Total Strategy AUM and the assets under management of PS V, L.P., PS V International, Ltd. and affiliated entities (collectively, "PSV"), less amounts invested in PSV by the entities listed above (as applicable).
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 04/01/16 -- Kaizen Discovery Inc. (TSX VENTURE: KZD) announced today that it has entered into a strategic financing agreement with ITOCHU Corporation of Japan to advance Kaizen's exploration efforts at its Pinaya Copper-Gold Project in southeastern Peru. Under the terms of the agreement, ITOCHU will provide Kaizen with up to C$2.5 million in initial exploration funding for Pinaya, in exchange for an indirect 20% stake in the project.
The financing agreement calls for ITOCHU to pay the C$2.5 million to Kaizen in three payments.
-- The first payment of C$625,000 is to be made upon closing of the transaction, which is expected in early April 2016. This payment will give ITOCHU an initial 5% interest in Kaizen's subsidiary, Kaizen Peru Holdings Ltd., the indirect holder of the Pinaya Project. Kaizen will retain the remaining 95%. -- ITOCHU's second payment of C$625,000, for another 5% interest in Kaizen Peru Holdings, is conditional on Kaizen obtaining local community approvals for the lease and surface rights for the Pinaya Project and obtaining all necessary approvals to establish and operate the exploration camp, within two years of the initial payment. Kaizen recently signed surface-rights agreements with local landholders, securing access to key, geologically prospective parts of the project area. -- The third payment of ITOCHU's investment is conditional on Kaizen obtaining the necessary environmental permits, water and electricity rights required to conduct exploration drilling on the Pinaya Project within two years of the initial payment. Subject to fulfillment of this condition, ITOCHU will pay Kaizen C$1.25 million to bring its aggregate interest in Kaizen Peru Holdings to 20%.
Kaizen has agreed to match ITOCHU's exploration funding, which will bring total funding to C$5 million for the company's planned first phase of exploration at Pinaya. Kaizen expects that the C$5.0 million will cover approximately two years of exploration work at the project.
"This strategic investment by ITOCHU represents a significant milestone in the progress of Kaizen's exploration efforts in Peru's emerging Andahuaylas-Yauri Porphyry Belt. It also represents a strong endorsement of the quality and potential of the Pinaya Project," said Peter Meredith, Chairman of Kaizen Discovery.
"We now have a sizeable exploration budget to conduct an aggressive, comprehensive exploration program at Pinaya to test the project's potential to host large-scale, copper-gold porphyry and skarn systems, building on the existing resources."
Kaizen acquired 100% of the Pinaya Project from AM Gold in October 2015 (details of the Pinaya acquisition and the project's current Mineral Resources are available in Kaizen's October 26, 2015, news release). The project covers 192 square kilometres and includes more than 25 kilometres of strike length within the Andahuaylas-Yauri Porphyry Belt in Peru's provinces of Caylloma and Lampa. This belt hosts numerous productive and world-class porphyry and skarn systems, including Las Bambas, Tintaya, Constancia and Haquira.
A framework agreement entered into between Kaizen and ITOCHU in January 2014 established a collaborative working arrangement under which both companies agreed to evaluate opportunities to explore and develop selected, high-quality, international mineral projects.
To view Figure 1: Location of the Pinaya Copper-Gold Project in Peru visit: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1049251a.jpg
To view Photo 1: View from the highest point on the property, looking south across the resource area visit: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1049251b.jpg
The initial C$1.25 million of Kaizen's C$2.5 million funding is due on or before the earlier of (i) one year after the date of ITOCHU's initial investment; or (ii) completion of ITOCHU's third-tranche payment. Kaizen's second C$1.25 million is due two years after the date of completion of ITOCHU's initial investment. Following Kaizen's C$2.5 million funding, both Kaizen and ITOCHU become subject to customary cash call obligations and dilution should a party not fund its then pro rata amount of any future funding.
ITOCHU also will obtain rights with respect to approvals of annual exploration and development plans for the Pinaya Project, budgets and capital expenditures, but only after such time as ITOCHU has obtained 10% share ownership following its second-tranche investment. ITOCHU also has the right to withdraw from the Pinaya Project after two years, and the right to put its shares in Kaizen Peru Holdings back to Kaizen at any time for a payment that may include a pro rata portion of any unspent funds. Conversely, Kaizen has the right to bring in a third-party investor provided that investment does not exceed 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of Kaizen Peru Holdings and the proceeds are for no less than C$2.5 million.
About Kaizen Discovery
Kaizen is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company. Kaizen has a collaboration agreement with ITOCHU Corporation of Japan and has access to HPX TechCo's proprietary, geophysical, Typhoon technology under a dedicated services agreement. Kaizen's long-term growth strategy is to work with Japanese entities to identify, explore and develop high-quality mineral projects that have the potential to produce and deliver minerals to Japan's industrial sector.
More information on Kaizen is available at www.kaizendiscovery.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.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Statements in this news release that are forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties concerning the specific factors disclosed here and elsewhere in both Kaizen's and AM Gold's periodic filings with Canadian securities regulators. When used in this news release, words such as "will", "could", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "potential", "should," and similar expressions, are forward-looking statements. Information provided in this document is necessarily summarized and may not contain all available material information.
Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the completion of all three tranches of the investment by ITOCHU, the potential for a further third-party investor, the future growth and long-term strategy of Kaizen, statements regarding Kaizen's plan to begin a comprehensive exploration program to test Pinaya's potential to host a large-scale, copper-gold porphyry system and other statements that are not facts. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management based on the business and markets in which Kaizen operates, are inherently subject to significant operational, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies.
Although Kaizen has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements, there can be other factors that cause results, performance or achievements not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate or that management's expectations or estimates of future developments, circumstances or results will materialize.
Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this news release are made as of the date of this news release, and Kaizen disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise such information, except as required by applicable law, and Kaizen does not assume any liability for disclosure relating to any other company herein.
Contacts:
Kaizen Discovery Inc.
Investor Relations
+1-604-669-6446
info@kaizendiscovery.com
www.kaizendiscovery.com
Editor's note: What's more fun than passing off stalking celebrities on social media as work?
Very little, right?
And so, we scanned the Instagram and Twitter accounts of celebs from India and abroad, to bring to you weekly updates from the interwebz. Who tweeted to whom? Who reposted last night's party pics? Who went on a rant about-... well, whatever it is Kanye West rants about. Whatever it is, don't worry, we've got you covered.
We stalk, you read. Deal?
This week we bring to you a debut, a nude selfie and some good old Leonardo DiCaprio lovin'!
Did you say Nude? Let's start with Kim Kardashian, who perhaps has the most predictable instagram post this week. Following her nude selfie a couple of weeks ago, and the social media backlash that followed, Kim K posted another nude selfie with model Emily Ratajkowski.
When we're like...we both have nothing to wear LOL @emrata A photo posted by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Mar 30, 2016 at 11:57am PDT
Fake news before April Fool's Day: Mumbai Mirror had earlier reported that Farhan Akhtar is currently homeless as he's living with his sister Zoya Akhtar and had no access to the house. Akhtar was quick to rubbish the report, calling it a result of creativity. Let's just put it this way, the day Farhan Akhtar is homeless, we'll stop eating pizza.
Wtf...!!!! Undeniable evidence that creativity has no bounds & I, seemingly, have no friends... #fakenewsagain.. pic.twitter.com/RnUdIyuliV Farhan Akhtar (@FarOutAkhtar) March 31, 2016
via GIPHY
Speaking of Leo...
Monkeying around with Leonardo DiCaprio: At the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programmes Orangutan Quarantine Center in Indonesia, almost-extinct orangutans are rescued and taken care of before they are released back into the wild. Guess who went to visit these balls of fun? None other than Leonardo Di Caprio. We all need to take lessons from the Oscar winner (so good to finally be able to say that) on how to mix business and pleasure.
Kareena Kapoor's dubsmash debut: Raise your hands if Kareena's Poo avatar in Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham is your favourite of hers yet! While Kareena is known to be a social media recluse (she's one of those who believes celebs shouldn't be so easily accessible), she finally made her dubsmash debut in Gaurav Gera's famous 'shopkeeper' series.
Deepika's back in Toronto before you can spell Sri Lanka: There were several reports about Deepika Padukone's whereabouts in the last week. First she was supposed to have flown into Mumbai only for 24 hours. She then reportedly managed to squeeze in enough time to meet ex-boyfriend Ranbir Kapoor, before flying to Sri Lanka for her friend's wedding, where current boyfriend Ranveer Singh joined her.
Phew. While you're processing all that info, Padukone already made her way back to Toronto and resumed shooting for xXx. Wow, such professionalism!
.@deepikapadukone is back in Toronto for @XXXReturnOfCage & is already putting a smile on the faces of her fans! pic.twitter.com/4o2m5UB3NM Deepika Fan Club (@DeepikaHolics) March 31, 2016
This week's Kanye-isms (because why not?)
New Delhi/Mumbai: Liquor baron Vijay Mallya will not present himself before ED investigators in Mumbai on Saturday even as he sought time until May to depose before the agency which is probing his role in a money laundering case in the over Rs 900 crore IDBI loan fraud case.
The investigating officer of the case at ED's Mumbai zonal office, officials said, has been informed by Mallya that he will not be able to keep the scheduled date of 2 April and that he should be given a fresh date, sometime in May.
It is understood that Mallya has informed the IO that cases related to bank loans are currently ongoing in the Supreme Court and he is trying to settle these loans with the help of his legal and corporate team and, hence, would require some more time.
It is learnt that while ED is mulling options for its next action, it may not be "too keen" to accede to his request given the "gravity" of the PMLA case.
They said the IO has until now not got back to Mallya with his decision.
"His personal appearance is important to unravel the alleged irregularities reported to have been done in the IDBI loan fraud case. Money laundering offences probe are serious. Also, under PMLA, the onus to prove not guilty is on the accused and not on the investigating agency," sources said.
The agency, by and large, has two options, either to agree and issue him a third date or undertake steps to possibly take legal action for revoking his passport.
Mallya was first summoned by the central probe agency to "appear in person" at its office in the Ballard Pier area of the western metropolis on 18 March but after he sought more time citing his prior engagements, the agency asked him to depose on 2 April.
"All options are open. The merits of the case will decide the future course of action," sources said.
Mallya and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd HAD on 30 March submitted to the Supreme Court in a sealed cover a proposal for repayment of Rs 4,000 crore out of the loan amount of Rs 6,903 crore to the consortium of banks led by State Bank of India by September this year.
The United Breweries (UB) Chairman was first issued summons by ED under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and it required him to furnish documents related to his personal investments and finances, Income Tax Returns for the last five years and Passport.
The ED had recently registered a money laundering case against Mallya and others based on a CBI FIR registered last year. The agency is also investigating the overall financial structure of the now defunct Kingfisher Airlines and will look into any payment of kickbacks to secure loan.
If theres one thing that embarrasses politicians it is being seen to be playing politics. Especially when faced with a horrific tragedy like the crash of a flyover in Kolkata on Thursday. So the favourite phrase prefacing the reactions of politicians to Thursdays disaster was: This is not the time to play politics, but and never has a but been more eloquent. Because finally it is all about politics, of course, all the more so at election time.
The first thing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said after rushing to the accident site was: It is a disaster, no one should indulge in politics over it. But the project was initiated in 2007 and construction started in 2009 (i.e., during the Left regime).The contract should not have been given to a company that was blacklisted.
The retort came swift and sharp. At the CPM headquarters in Kolkata on Alimuddin Street, party MP Mohammad Salim said, This is not the time for politics but the Chief Minister has left us with no choice. Its no different from the way she behaved over the death of children soon after coming to power. (Salim was referring to Mamata Banerjees response to a spate of simultaneous deaths in a government-run childrens hospital when she said, Remember these children were conceived during the earlier regime.)
At the Centre, which too has a role to play in the making (and hence in the unmaking too) of the flyover as it is a JNNURM project, that is partly funded by Delhi, junior urban development minister Babul Supriyo said, While I dont want to bring politics into this, this was a joint venture of the UPA at the Centre and the CPM government in Bengal.
Since the Centre can only vet the projects and release the funds, monitoring being limited to sending reminders and pushing for compliance if the states fail to implement them, Bengals sole BJP minister in the Capital did not forget to add, It is the failure of the state government. It is responsible.
The flyover may never come to be. Many experts are now voicing doubts over the choice of the location itself, narrow, busy, built-up, congested streets in the heart of the city. And the local peoples objections, who had never welcomed it, are now getting a hearing.
Whatever its fate, the imminent question playing on many minds is, will it have played its historic role by becoming an election issue, touched as it is by all the leading players in this state? Surely it should, there ought to be some accountability somewhere and the polling booth is the ultimate court of appeal. Otherwise, all those innocent people will have lost their lives or limbs in vain.
The political bosses are not quite sure which way the people will go or whether they will all be blamed equally and thus cancel each other out. So they are taking no chances.
The ruling Trinamool Congress has understandably most to lose. There were troubling signs on Thursday when city mayor Sovon Chatterjee and local MLA Smita Bakshi, both candidates in the imminent elections, were booed and heckled by the crowds during their visit to the accident site.
The air rang with cries of chor hai, sab chor hai.
The mayor is one of the people shown to be taking money in the Naranda sting videos. No other TMC leader other than the Chief Minister visited the area on Thursday. Friday morning saw local MP, TMCs Sudip Bandopadhyay, standing amid the debris, reading out a list of disasters that took many lives during the Left Fronts years.
Mamata Banerjee gave the cue last night when she lashed out, even while making sure of adequate supply of floodlights and drinking water for the rescue workers that, Dirty politics is being played over blood. I will not allow this. We have enough blood. There is no need for a blood donation tamasha. If blood is needed there are enough of us around. I just have to give a call, one lakh people will turn up to give blood.
The provocation for her outburst: the overwhelming response to blood donation camps organised last evening by Left student unions at one of the citys Central Blood Banks for the disaster victims. It was not long before TMCs all-powerful doctor-MLA Nirmal Majhi put a stop to it, accusing the Left of coercing people to donate blood.
Utterly meaningless, he said, and demanded an explanation from the blood bank authorities for taking what was tantamount to tainted CPM blood.
Meanwhile, the Left is busy performing its own deflecting manoeuvres. Siliguri mayor and former urban development minister Ashok Bhattacharya, whose Siliguri model is the blueprint for the current Left-Congress electoral alliance, has a heavy cross to bear.
He had commissioned the flyover and given the job to the Hyderabad-based infrastructure company IVRCL. He is screaming hoarse that the company was not blacklisted when it was given the project. It got blacklisted two or three years ago. I would ask why Firhad Hakim (the current urban development minister) did not get rid of the company after it got blacklisted. We suspect there was compromise on the quality of materials.
He was hinting at Trinamools already much-maligned building materials supply syndicates.
According to Bhattacharya, The bulk of the construction began in 2013. By pointing fingers at us, they are trying to evade their responsibilities.
The cry for the head of urban development minister Firhad Hakim is growing louder by the day. Hakim is also the chairman of the Kolkata Municipal Development Authority, an agency of the urban development ministry which was directly responsible for the implementation of the flyover. Hakim is also part of Naradas sting videocast.
The BJP, the Congress and the CPM have all demanded his resignation. But Mamata Banerjee usually puts huge storage by loyalty. Its the peoples loyalty in the time of disaster that she needs to worry about.
Red. That was the dominant colour of the stock markets last week as everything ended in the red -- the benchmark indices, Monkey portfolios and the brokers' portfolio.
While the Sensex and Nifty lost about 3 percent each, the brokers' portfolio, consisting of 10 stock picked by 10 investing experts, and Monkey portfolio 1, comprising 10 randomly-picked stocks from the BSE 100, slipped 1 percent each for the week ended 11 May. Monkey portfolio 2, consisting of 10 randomly-selected stocks from the BSE 500, sank a steep 6 percent.
With the markets in constant turmoil, even the gains of the three portfolios for the period since their inception (19 August, 2011) have been practically erased. For instance, for the nearly 10-month period, the brokers' portfolio is down 1 percent after advancing 9 percent recently (see table below). Similarly, Monkey portfolio 1 is now up a marginal 0.9 percent after boasting a 10 percent gain last month (see table below).
Monkey portfolio 2, meanwhile, doubled its losses to a whopping 17 percent as its run of bad form continued (see table below). Former star performers VIP Industries and Manappuram Finance remained the biggest drags on the portfolio, tumbling more than 50 percent each. In comparison, the Sensex and Nifty managed to eke out gains of just 1-1.7 percent. Positive, but only just.
No doubt, there's a lot to be depressed about. The rupee's precipitous fall, the government's continuing tax battle with Vodafone (and soon possibly other multinationals as well) and sluggish economic prospects are giving foreign investors the jitters, who are rushing to the exits. If foreign investors leave en masse, there's little hope of markets climbing higher, since foreigners are the biggest driving force. And that's worrying everyone.
Sources told Firstpost that both the Monkeys and the brokers ( see table below), in a rare meeting of minds, have decided to just drink away (or possibly drown) their sorrows this weekend. More interestingly, Firstpost has learnt that both the simian duo and the brokers will be heading to Big Nasty, a club with a supposed 'industrial feel' in suburban Mumbai to...let's see, how shall we put it? Oh yes, to 'discuss the future of their investments'. Neither side, of course, knows that the other will be there.
Well, THAT will be exciting. With hot-headed Monkey 2 at one end and the brokers' bunch at the other, the air will be as combustible as the 'Flaming Lamborghini', if not more. To the teetotallers among us, that's a classic combustible cocktail (we kid you not!) that can, quite literally, set you on fire. If you don't believe us, click on this CNNGo link to find out more. Thank goodness at least Monkey 1 is a teetotaller. If indeed there are fireworks, he can clear up the debris.
To be sure, whatever happens when the two sides bump into each other, it will be 'big and nasty'.
Details will be spilled next week! Join us then.
Walking through the streets of Jew Town in Kochi, Kerala, you will find yourself comparing it to Janpath in Delhi or Colaba Causeway in Mumbai. Shops here sell everything from Indian textiles to silver accessories and other odds and ends (I'm looking at you antique-y weighing scales). Steeped in history, Jew Town is also where you will come across the Paradesi Synagogue.
Built in 1568 in this port town, this Jewish Synagogue has Chinese hand-painted tiling that was laid down in 1762, a testament to globalisation. The White Paradesi Jews like their counterparts, the Black Jews, came to India as merchants. They settled down along the West Coast of India from Surat to Mumbai, all the way down to the Malabar Coast.
The existence of the Paradesi Synagogue highlights an important point that histories of civilisations place an emphasis on land-based coups while not enough attention is paid to those expeditions that surged from the sea. These sometimes calm, sometimes turbulent but always mercurial waters have portended many changes in the course of human history.
The impact of seafaring on Indian civilisation especially, is ignored, even as land-based invasions are denigrated for its fall. This, during the same time period that a certain Chola king (Rajendra Chola I), sent forth his navy to subdue present-day Indonesia. A fuller picture of Indian history might be painted if greater consideration is given to those traders and invaders that traversed the Indian seas (way before Colonialism) and changed the course of history.
Contemporary human civilisation owes much of its evolution to nautical enterprise: This was the subject of a lively discussion organised by Gateway House and Avid Learning in Mumbai this week, between maritime historian, editor and author of The Sea & Civilisation Lincoln Paine, writer-historian Sifra Lentin and noted cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote. The arrival of people on Australia 50,000 years ago could only have been through sea routes; a point of some contention. On the other hand, there is undisputed evidence that people travelled via the seas and oceans around 20,000 years ago, as Paine pointed out. People have been sailing far before animals were first domesticated some 10,000 years ago. Thats a long time for humans to have been indulging in seafaring! While the Internet has accelerated globalisation, people from around the world have been brought together by maritime activity for centuries before technology came on the scene.
For instance, Surat, the first point of contact for Jewish traders arriving in India, still bears the signs of a once-bustling trading port with its Dutch warehouses and shipbuilding on the river Tapi. Bombay or Mumbai, has been built upon, layer by layer, through the influence of traders that came through naval routes. Theyve left their marks in the British architecture that is the signature of South Mumbai and the institutions that are odes to David Sassoons Jewish influence.
Maritime travel didn't just influence the locations where these seafarers landed. The travellers themselves were affected by the places they travelled to. So, while the Vikings might have changed the course of trading in the Western world, they themselves were not left unchanged. Originating in Scandinavia, their influence spread far and wide from North America to Eastern Europe. Despite little success in America, Iceland and Greenland they managed to infiltrate England, Scotland, Ireland all through to Central and Eastern Europe. The Norse migration opened up river networks that succeeded in establishing trade routes between the Baltic and Black Seas. They brought back with them a centralised system of ruling, leading to the founding of the kingdoms of Denmark, Sweden and Norway.
Scandinavia also inherited Christianity from Southern Europe. These nautical encounters, whether they be Jewish or Norse, resulted in transcultural exchanges, a sort of trading that extended beyond the purely material, and impacted both parties.
Trading and travelling to distant lands was rarely straightforward and never easy. It was sometimes a means of escape (as it was in the case of David Sassoon, who was fleeing from the Turkish army), at other times it was for trade with a distant, foreign land. People travelled with their own cooks (like some folk even today!) and mingling was restricted to trading with other communities. One personality who is mentioned in this regard is Abraham Ben Yiju, a Jewish merchant living in Mangalore, who married an Indian slave girl Ashu, but persisted in following the Jewish way of life.
There was a distinct bubble within which traders lived. However, thriving in a port city was reliant on interaction with traders from other communities and cosmopolitanism duly evolved. It induced an expansion of ideas and a broadening in the ways people lived, within some boundaries of interiority. Religious texts also prescribed and proscribed various forms of behaviour that influenced the way traders from different communities would have interacted with each other. This dictation of righteous conduct, especially in case of the Mediterranean region where people from the different faiths of Islam, Christianity and Judaism were trading in the same markets, would lay down the groundwork for international trade laws.
Whether as traders or invaders, the flagbearers for globalisation have stimulated the diversification of human civilisation. Ibn Batuta might have bumped into a fellow Muslim traveller from Tangier in China, only to realise that he knew him from his travels through Delhi just as we now stumble upon acquaintances in airports. We have been brought together, as maritime history shows us, just as we once drifted apart, travelling across oceans, moulding our respective cultures and changing the course of human civilisation.
Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has sought the comfort of numbers to answer environmentalists and green activists opposing the state governments plan of constructing a carshed for its Metro III train coaches at the Aarey Colony. After activists alleged that constructing the shed at Aarey Colony would result in 350 trees being cut, Fadnavis responded that the alternative would cost the state Rs 1,500 crore more.
Fadnavis told the state assembly on Friday that if the governments plan of constructing the shed at Aarey Colony falls through, they would have to build one at Kanjurmarg, on the other side of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park. This would involve additional expenditure of Rs 1,500 crore, or, if 350 trees are to be saved, Rs 4.28 crore per tree.
Moreover, if the state is to spend more on constructing the Metro shed, the costs would be passed on to the commuters, Fadnavis has warned. By sacrificing 350 trees at the Aarey Colony, Mumbaikars would pay less to travel by the Colaba-Bandra-Seepz Metro corridor. Either cut the trees or pay more for tickets, he said, adding that the government would not only compensate for the trees which were cut but also plant 3,000 more trees.
He was responding to a discussion on the budgetary expenditure for urban development and home departments in the legislative assembly. He added that some of the opposition to the carshed plan was based on misunderstandings and misgivings. Its true that the original plan involved the hacking of 2,300 trees. But we have since revised the details and redesigned certain elements. The new plan would see the chopping of 350-500 trees now, he added.
The alternative plan the state has in mind involves fallow land near the dumping ground at Kanjurmarg. Construction had already begun on this, but Fadnavis didnt favour the option. The land we identified is marshy. If we decide to build the carshed there, it would involve reclaiming this land. This itself would increase the input cost by Rs 1,500 crore. The hike would affect the overall project cost, which would then reflect in increased ticket prices, Fadnavis said.
Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray and his son Aaditya have been aggressively opposing using the Aarey Colony land for constructing the shed. The proposal has also met with resistance from green activists and local residents.
Also, lashing out at the Shiv Sena, Fadnavis said he wants to provide Mumbai with a world class transportation network before his tenure is over. I am not a Mumbaikar. I will return to my home city Nagpur when I retire. But I want to create a Metro network in Mumbai with stations which are 500-metres apart. This would be an improvement on the current railway network, with stations 1-2 kms apart. So when I go back to Nagpur, I want people of Mumbai to realise that it was a Nagpur man who cared for the city, he said.
Repeated opposition over using the Aarey Colony land for the Metro car shed project has delayed it by over two years. The original 2020 deadline has been revised to 2022 already.
A former rebel chieftain, among the most active insurgent leaders in Assam's Bodo heartland between 1996 and 2003, is today the BJP mascot and a key ally for the upcoming Assembly election.
Before this, from 2006 until mid-2014, he had been an ally of the ruling Congress party. This switching of sides makes Hagrama Mahilary the most important figure in Bodo politics ever since he disbanded the rebel outfit he headed, the Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT), following a peace agreement with the government in February 2003.
A musician of some repute, Hagrama was among the most pragmatic of Northeast insurgent leaders. Unlike some of his rebel comrades, his BLT outfit pressed for a separate Bodo homeland within India, making the task for negotiations with New Delhi a lot easier.
The 2003 peace deal he signed with the government led to the creation of a 40-member elective politico-administrative structure called the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC). Along with it came an annual allocation of Rs 100 crore for the Council, jobs in the paramilitary for most of the 2,600 BLT cadres who laid down arms and three new districts carved out in western and northern Assam.
Hagrama and his colleagues, besides some of his mainstream allies in the Bodo heartland, took over power at the newly created council and, in 2005, having floated a political party, won the first ever polls to the BTC. His Bodoland Peoples Front (BPF) won two successive polls to the BTC in 2010 and 2015 making a hat-trick.
In 2006, the BPF entered into an electoral alliance with the ruling Congress and won 11 Assembly seats. BPF MLAs were inducted into the Tarun Gogoi ministry. BPF started as an ally of the Congress again in 2011, but snapped ties in mid-2014 following differences.
The BJP started wooing the BPF towards mid-2015, but realised Hagrama was a tough bargainer. He openly demanded an aid package of Rs 1,000 crore for the Bodo Council in exchange for support to the BJP. At one stage, Hagrama had openly announced, "We can support any party who is ready to give our Council Rs 1,000 crore for development programmes."
By this time, Himanta Biswa Sharma, a leading Congress leader who fell out with Tarun Gogoi, had joined the BJP and swung into action with his idea of forging a grand ethnic alliance for the saffron party. Himanta Biswa finally managed to take Hagrama and his senior colleagues to Delhi to meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the alliance was clinched.
In fact, Modi began his campaign for the Assam Assembly polls this year with a massive public rally in Kokrajhar, the hub of Bodo politics in the state.
The BJP may have given just 16 of the state's 126 seats to the BPF as part of the electoral alliance, but Hagrama has become one of the saffron party's star campaigners, hopping in and out of places in a chartered helicopter, campaigning for BJP nominees where his party has not fielded candidates.
This is because in several constituencies in northern, western and southern Assam, there are a considerable number of voters who belong to the Bodo community. The BJP feels Hagrama's call to his Bodo brethren to vote for the saffron party could swing the votes in its favour.
With exit polls coming up with varying predictions from a clear majority to the BJP to a neck-and-neck contest between the BJP and the Congress performance of a party like the BPF could hold the key once the results come on 19 May. In the event of a hung Assembly (the magic figure being 64 in the 126-member House), the BJP may require the backing of the BPF, and, of course, those who fall in the "others" category.
The BPF had won 12 Assembly seats in 2011, and it is left to be seen if it could repeat the performance this time. Apart from perceived anti-incumbency against the ten-year rule of the BPF at the local Bodo Council, it is also facing opposition from a newly formed political party in the area, the United People's Party. The UPP has since entered into an alliance with the Congress with the latter leaving four seats to the fledgling party.
Another factor the BPF cannot ignore is the attempt by the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) led by Maulana Badruddin Ajmal to spread its tentacles in the Bodo-dominated areas that also has a sizeable presence of Muslim settlers and others. The AIUDF has fielded at least six candidates in areas considered as stronghold of the Bodos. This factor cannot be brushed aside as insignificant because at the Bodo Council polls in 2015, the AIUDF managed to win four seats, two of the winners being people belonging to the Bodo community.
Wasbir Hussain is a Guwahati-based political commentator and television talk show host
Kolkata: With the West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress facing fire from the opposition parties over the Kolkata flyover collapse incident that killed 26 people, chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday asserted that her government takes responsibility and acts in instances of "real injustice".
"Our government is the common man's government. It will never do anything to burden the common man. Our government is not CPI-M or Congress. We have the capacity to label injustice as injustice, but if somebody lies and says 'this is injustice', then we do not accept that," she said.
"If Trinamool Congress sees that there has been real injustice, then it takes responsibility and corrects it. But if someone lies and makes something seem wrong, then we do not believe in that action," said Banerjee at a poll rally in West Midnapore ahead of the first phase of polls on Monday.
At least 26 people died while many others are still in hospital, some of them injured seriously, following the collapse of the under-construction Vivekananda Road flyover in north Kolkata's market area Posta on Thursday.
The Bharatiya Janata Party sought a CBI probe, calling the incident an "act of fraud protected by the West Bengal government" while Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, during his visit to Bengal on Saturday, alleged that Trinamool leaders were involved in the construction of the collapsed flyover.
Banerjee hit out at Gandhi. "Some leaders from Delhi, who do not love Bengal, come down to the state during elections all of a sudden and go on talking in an unbridled fashion," she said, adding, "Do not listen to them. They have always ignored Bengal."
Firing salvos at the CPI-M and Congress over their tie-up, Banerjee said both the parties have no work except to spread lies and canards. "Congress has no capability on its own. It is going to all states and forging alliances and strengthening its base," she said.
She also took potshots at a local media house for participating in the nexus and misleading people. "Their owner is the chairman of this alliance. Reporters are not to blame. Sometimes that person (the owner) goes to Delhi and falls at the feet of BJP, the Congress and sometimes CPI-M. That person wants to acquire land from farmers through guns," said Banerjee.
New Delhi: Those in the BJP who think that the division bench's order of the Uttarakhand High Court staying the floor test in the assembly, even as the state is under President's Rule, vindicated their stand would be better advised to pause and consider what the party had experienced 17 years ago, in March 1999.
On a dark night on 10 February 1999, 12 Dalits were gunned down by suspected Ranvir Sena activists in Narayanpur village in Jehanabad district of Bihar. In the span of less than a month, this had been the second time that the Sena had indulged in the mass killings of Dalits. The Vajpayee government had been in power at the centre for 11 months, and Rabri Devi, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav were ruling Bihar.
A day after the Narayanpur killings, the then Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan announced an important decision taken by the Central Cabinet, which was chaired by LK Advani in absence of PM Vajpayee who was touring abroad, that the Cabinet had decided to impose President's Rule in Bihar.
Then president KR Narayanan was outside Delhi. But by late evening on 12 February, President's approval was obtained and the Rabri Devi government in Bihar was dismissed and President's Rule was imposed. Governor Sunder Singh Bhandari, one of BJP veterans from the RSS background, assumed command of the state.
But things didn't go as the BJP had hoped. Three weeks later on 8 March, 1999 then Home Minister Advani made a brief statement in the Lok Sabha saying, "The Union Cabinet met today morning and decided to recommend to the Rashtrapati, revocation of President's Rule in Bihar. The President is out of town today and shall return in the night. All formalities for revocation of President's Rule in the State would be completed after that."
The Next day Rabri Devi again assumed office in Bihar. Critics and rivals ridiculed the Vajpayee government and BJP for that. It had so happened that the Vajpayee government had failed to muster requisite support in Rajya Sabha, where like today, it was in minority. The Congress had thrown its weight behind the RJD and was determined to defeat the motion, which had been passed by the Lok Sabha.
Supposing that the fate of imposition of President's Rule in Uttarakhand remains undecided in the Uttarakhand High Court for next two months, the BJP leadership or Modi government has a tricky situation at hand.
Article 356(3) of the Indian Constitution states that, "Every Proclamation issued under this article... ceases to operate at the expiration of two months unless... it has been approved by resolutions of both Houses of Parliament... and if a resolution approving the Proclamation has been passed by the Council of States, but no resolution with respect to such Proclamation has been passed by the House of the People before the expiration of that period, the Proclamation Shall cease to operate...,"
The Budget session of the Parliament, which is currently in recess, will end on 13 May. This means that the ruling BJP will have to get the imposition of President's Rule in Uttarakhand ratified by both Houses of Parliament before 13 May. The BJP has clear majority in Lok Sabha and it will obviously be passed (as in case of Bihar in 1999) but Congress is sure to flex its muscle along with support of parties like the Left, RJD, JU(U) in Rajya Sabha.
If the government fails to get it passed from there, the President's Rule will be revoked and the Harish Rawat government will return to office and depending on prevailing political situations then, he may or may not have to take a floor test. That again would lead to suspenseful political situations.
The BJP can avoid seeking Parliament's approval for President's Rule if an alternate government is placed in office before the budget session ends, something that it was successful in doing in Arunachal Pradesh where the leader of the breakaway faction of the Congress party Kalikho Pul was sworn in as Chief Minister and was able to prove his majority on the floor of the House.
But ground situations in Uttarakhand are a bit different from Arunachal Pradesh, and the options for the BJP much more narrower: Look at the numbers in the assembly, currently under suspended animation, the total strength is 70, Congress has 27, "disqualified" Congress rebels are 9, the BJP has 28, Bahujan Samaj Party 2, Independent 3, and the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal(P) 1.
Unlike Arunachal, the BJP can't back a government led by a Congress rebel for two reasons, the number of Congress rebels is thin and secondly the state is too close to assembly elections. If the BJP forms its government and nine Congress rebels support it on floor of the House then they(nine) would be liable for action under the anti-defection law. Moreover, the BJP will have very less time to perform and that too under pressure from its prospective supporters Congress rebels, BJP,UKD and the Independents.
The Devbhumi of Uttarakhand, generally known for its scenic hillside beauty and the Char Dham Yatra, is sure to give BJP a far greater headache than it would have bargained for.
Saudi Arabia's intervention in Yemen although extremely unpopular internationally has three basic elements that makes it different from the Russian intervention in Syria.
First, three UN security Council resolutions (2201, 2204, 2216) unequivocally support the legitimacy of the first elected president of Yemen Abdo Rabbo Mansour Hadi, and demand Houthi militia to unconditionally withdraw their forces from government institutions, including in the capital.
Second, the UN resolutions also disapprove of the efforts of former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh and his family for using the sectarian divide within the Yemeni military whose command allied with his son when he chose to support Houthi militia.
Third, the Security Council also calls on all member States to refrain from external interference and instead to support the political transition an indirect reference to Iran whose official media had been using an entirely different vocabulary: Fugitive former President for Abdo Rabbo Mansour Hadi, Yemeni army for pro-Saleh rebels, invasion for the Saudi-led Arab military alliance.
Iranian recognition to the Houthis initial victories was so swift that the Houthi-led Yemeni government and Iran formally signed a MoU for civil aviation cooperation.
Yemen crisis since its start in 2011 after anti-Saleh protests started, political dialogues were initiated by the GCC countries and Saudi Arabia had hosted Ali Abdullah Saleh for a long period of time after he was injured in an attack. Interestingly, Irans traditional allies Russia and China do not share much understanding on the Yemeni crisis. The Iranian reaction to the current Yemeni crisis has been largely of a political nature, rather than legal.
Iran understands that the Houthi groups are not the same as Alwites in Syria or Shias in Iraq. Not all Zaidi community members are members of Houthi group Ansarallah, many secular Zaidis including former president Ali Abdullah Saleh and many of his colleagues shared power with Sunni tribes. Interestingly, Ali Abdullah Salehs love for Zaidi Shias or Houthi militias is only newly found and he had fiercely fought against Houthis in the past.
His efforts to return to power despite his failure to form a political alliance, has received support from Iran and Houthi militias which has made him more unpopular and unreliable. The newly-found romance between Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Houthis is set to decline once Saudi Arabia and the Houthis start a direct dialogue.
Recent statements by Houthi leaders asking Iran to not intervene in Yemeni affairs came to light after news appeared that a Houthi delegation led by Mohammed Abdel Salem had started held negotiations in Saudi Arabia. The dramatic shift in Houthi position should be seen in the context of increasing loss of their militant cadre and loss of entry points for arm supplies, since all Yemeni ports are effectively controlled by the Arab alliance force.
Ali Abdullah Saleh and his family members are going to be the biggest losers if the current confidence building between Saudis and Houthis succeeds. The only difference Saudi-led airstrikes have made is that they has given the GCC council and the Arab League an upper hand over Iran. The Saudis have conveniently used the opportunity to isolate Houthis to force them to join the Saudi side. With Houthis in Saudi confidence, Saudi Arabia can handle sectarian divide in the region. The way most Arab states have supported Saudi-led action, Iranians found it difficult to use the Syrian strategy in Yemen.
If Syria has proven the reach of Iranian power, Yemen has proved Saudi Arabia's ability to forge a broader Arab military alliance isolating Iran from the Arab security architecture something not many Iranians would have liked. This could be more visible in securing Russia's absence and China's support in UNSC voting on Yemen-related resolutions since 2015. A Russian invitation has been handed over to the Yemeni vice-president to visit Moscow in near future. Similarly, in the Chinese president Xi Jinping's recent visit to Saudi Arabia, he recognised Abdo Rabbo Hadi Mansour as the legitimate President of Yemen.
Saudi-led airstrikes have contained the Houthi advance and reclaimed many cities, but the real test still remains where a lasting peace has to be brought about. If the Saudis fail to have an end game, the Yemen crisis will destabilise the Gulf monarchies. The real test for the Saudi leadership is its ability to reach out to all possible stakeholders of the Yemeni crisis and bring them to the table for a final takeoff to a negotiated resolution.
The real challenge to an enduring peace and stability in Yemen is the return of the old template of power in which interests of common citizens and their representation was articulated only through tribal and sectarian politics. Notwithstanding his repressive rule, former president Ali Abdullah Saleh is the recipient of nostalgic reverence, because he conveniently shifted his identity as a secular leader to a member of Zaidi sect.
The return of Ali Abdullah Saleh or his family members to power will worsen conditions as he will have to rely on external support from Saudi Arabia or Iran. By allowing Houthis directly to share power may help Yemen to write a new social contract more inclusive to all sects and tribes. For Saudi Arabia and the GCC leadership, any leader and group that keeps Iran away from Yemen will be acceptable. It all depends on who that will be between the Houthis and Saleh, who are moving fast to prove their anti-Iran credentials to the GCC leadership.
The author holds a PhD in Middle East Studies and is a research fellow at the Indian Council of World Affairs. Views expressed are personal.
Karachi, known as The City of Lights, is the most diverse city of Pakistan and one of the biggest metropolises in the world. Karachis population comprises many different ethno-linguistic and religious groups. The major ethno-linguistic groups include Urdu-speaking migrants from India, Sindhis, Punjabis, Pakhtuns, Balochis, etc. Major religious groups include Muslims, Hindus, Christians, Parsis, and Bohris among many others. Due to its diversity, and being the financial capital of the country, Karachi has been both a melting pot for multiple cultures and a hub of ethno-political conflict since the creation of Pakistan.
Consequently, over the past few decades, the city that once accommodated and gave space to expressions of multiple shades of life has resorted to excluding many and silencing dissident voices. In the recent past, "unidentified gunmen have been responsible for the murder/attempted murder of prominent civil society activists such as Sabeen Mahmud and Perween Rahman, and journalists such as Wali Khan Babar, Aftab Alam, and Hamid Mir among many others. Those targeted in these cases have been involved in challenging the status quo, such as exposing the land mafia in Karachi, holding talks on the controversial issue of Baluchistan, and questioning the military and Intelligence agencies of Pakistan.
The status quo whose vested interests are threatened by the dissident voices and need to be protected through the action of unidentified gunmen is not a fixed entity. Very often it is argued in the international circles that the State of Pakistan is responsible for silencing the voices of dissent. The issue is, however, a lot more complex than that. While the state (usually referred to as 'establishment' by critics), the military and the intelligence agencies (or the deep state) certainly engage in actively protecting the national interests by curbing the voices that dare to differ from or question their authority on defining the national interest they are not the only stakeholders.
In the wider context of Pakistan, and particularly in the case of Karachi, the status quo is also shared by other power brokers, such as the landed aristocrats, industrialists and owners of other means of production, as well as the religious elite. While the religious, economic, political, and institutional elite of Pakistan are linked together in intricate networks of power and influence, they all have their own means of silencing any critical voices that rise against them. There are also instances when these centers of power are posed against each other and their conflicts are shadowed by the price of freedom and life paid by common citizens.
In such circumstances then, it is extremely hard to freely express ones socio-political and religious opinions in an increasingly polarised society. Those who dare to do so, have either paid the high cost of freedom of thought and expression or continue to live under threat from multiple sources.
Another important element that has increasingly curtailed the ability to engage in critical discourse within Pakistan and caused the democratic space of discussion to shrink significantly is the un-accountability of extremist elements. Individuals and groups who do not necessarily belong to any of the elitist power circles mentioned above, but are motivated by the extreme right religious politics usually accompanied by lack of proper education and economic deprivations, have also been involved in labelling and executing individuals who express liberal and progressive ideas in the public.
The free flow of weapons in the informal economy of Karachi further enables and empowers these extremist elements to take destructive actions. As a consequence, the diverse and multicultural city of Karachi has been blanketed by an atmosphere of fear, where anyone from a street vendor or a cleric to the higher ups in the state machinery can choose to punish the dissenting ones without being held accountable for their actions. Hence, although Pakistan has recently made a successful democratic transition and the military has taken a back seat as far as the civilian governance is concerned, yet the space for critical democratic dialogue has been shrinking. We have reached a stage where any intellectual dissent is suppressed to support the ideological domination of particular right leaning groups over the public democratic space.
Despite such strong suppression of the progressive members of civil society, there are many who continue to risk their lives and struggle to make Karachi a better city. Muhammad Jibran Nasir, a Karachi-based civil society activist has been actively engaged in promoting critical discussions of government policies, agendas of political parties, ideological domination of the religious right, thus challenging the status quo in several ways. He has received direct threats from militant groups and encountered hostility from various groups of people, nevertheless, he continues to dedicate his efforts to open up the space for free democratic discussions in the country.
Another recent example is that of Alamgir Khan, the leader of the 'Fix It' campaign. He started by painting the face of the Sindhs CM, Qaim Ali Shah, near the open manholes in the city of Karachi and inscribing the words Fix it. The campaign soon grew into a wide agenda pointing out the problems of a common man in Karachi, calling out the Sindh government for its negligence and urging them to Fix It. Many young men took to streets to fix the manholes and other common issues that needed attention, to further highlight the disregard by government authorities. However, as one could predict, challenging the authority in a place like Karachi does not come without its costs, hence Alamgir Khan was arrested by the Police in February this year. He was released on bail due to pressure from the civil society.
However, given the marginalisation (at the least) and elimination (as the extreme) of the nonconforming and challenging individuals in Karachi in the past, the environment is highly unfavourable for the likes of Jibran Nasir and Alamgir Khan.
The writer only wishes to be identified by her first name
BAKU/YEREVAN Clashes erupted between troops from Azerbaijan and the rebel Nagorno-Karabakh region on Saturday, the two sides said, disputing who had violated a fragile ceasefire again.
Nagorno-Karabakh's military also said that Armenian anti-aircraft forces downed an Azeri helicopter, although the report was denied by Azerbaijan.
Nagorno-Karabakh, which lies inside Azerbaijan but is controlled by ethnic Armenians, has run its own affairs with heavy military and financial backing from Armenia since a separatist war ended in 1994.
Both sides report numerous casualties, accusing each other on Saturday of violating a ceasefire, a sign that the two-decade-old conflict which has left some 30,000 people dead is far from a peaceful resolution.
Similar violence was reported last month.
"The enemy, using tanks, artillery and aviation made attempts to get deep into the defence lines of the Nagorno-Karabakh Army of Defence and capture tactical positions. The enemy was thwarted," the Armenian Defence Ministry said in a statement.
War erupted over Nagorno-Karabakh in 1991 as the Soviet Union broke up, and killed about 30,000 people. A ceasefire was called in 1994 but violence has sporadically broken out since.
(Reporting by Nailia Bagirova in Baku and Hasmik Mkrtchyan in Yerevan; writing by Vladimir Soldatkin, editing by Louise Heavens)
This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Hanoi: Vietnam's National Assembly has elected the police chief to be the country's new president, the second-highest post in the country.
Public Security Minister Tran Dai Quang, 59, took the oath of office Saturday after the vote. He was widely expected to become president after being re-elected to the Politburo, the powerful 19-member committee that effectively rules the country, at the Communist Party Congress in January.
At that January meeting, Nguyen Phu Trong was re-elected to the top post of party general secretary.
In Vietnam, the president is the head of state and chief commander of the military, while the prime minister to be chosen next week oversees the economy.
Meanwhile, the Vietnamese parliament on Thursday elected Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan as its chairwoman, making her the first woman to lead the Communist-dominated legislature.
Ngan, 61, won 95.5 percent of the votes, the National Assembly said on its website.
State media reported that Ngan took the oath of office, vowing to "be completely faithful to the country, people and the Constitution."
Ngan rose from director of the finance department in her home province of Ben Tre in the southern Mekong Delta to vice chairwoman of the assembly five years ago.
Her appointment was widely expected when she was re-elected to the powerful Politburo at the Communist Party Congress in January.
On Wednesday, the Assembly voted to relieve chairman of the Assembly Nguyen Sinh Hung of his duties.
Hung, who was not re-elected to the Politburo, should have served out his term when the new legislature meets in July, but officials have said that new leaders selected for the top positions of the ruling Communist Party should be appointed to lead the assembly, state and government.
A shocking picture caught the world's attention a few days ago and finally presents a graphic reminder on the realities of Yemen's war. The picture shows an extremely malnourished five-month-old boy and paints the hardships and daily struggles Yemenis have to endure due to the ongoing war which started when Saudi Arabia and its allies, with the United States' backing, launched a series of airstrikes in an attempt to oust the Shiite rebels who seized the capital a year ago according to an article by Richard Hartley-Parkinson on the Metro.
The five-month-old boy in the picture, Udai Faisal, probably never tasted peace and the luxury of food on demand that the average American enjoys but take for granted. Udai had the misfortune of being born in the middle of the war that is not his choosing; her mother was in labor right when the Saudi-led coalition sent warplanes to strike an army base occupied by the rebels and near where the family lived. In fact, a shrapnel hit the family's one-bedroom house while Udai's mother screamed while delivering him.
And so began Udai's hard life. Twenty days after his birth, Udai's mother had to stop breastfeeding him because no milk came out anymore - a result of her own malnutrition. Udai fed on milk formula when it is available and the family can afford it. On other days, Udai drank only water and sugar, and sometimes the water wasn't even clean. Water trucks only occasionally reached the area and so the family had to make do with whatever water was available.
Three months into his young life, the boy Udai Faisal developed diarrhea but most local clinics do not have the proper medicine to treat the child and even if they had, Fiasal Ahmed- Udai's father - could not afford them. On March 20, 2016, the boy was rushed to the emergency unit of al-Sabeen Hospital.
According to Emergency Unit head Saddam al-Azizi, Udai suffered from severe malnutrition, chest infection, and diarrhea. At five months old, he weighed only 5.3 lbs. His twig-like arms convulsed, one can see the outline of his skull through his cheeks and he eyes were dry. In fact, he was to dehydrated that there were no tears when he cried.
Two days later, the family decided to take Udai home which Dr. Al-Azizi interprets that it is because they could not afford the necessary treatment. In addition, even if treatment was administered to the boy, Udai had only 30 percent chance of survival according to an article in the Independent.
Sadly, the boy passed away three hours after he was taken out of the hospital and 2 days after that last picture was taken, one of the casualties of the war-induced hunger.
Apparently, Udai was just one of the 1.3 million children with severe malnutrition caused by the airstrikes according to the Independent. Yemen already had one of the highest cases of malnutrition in the world before the airstrikes were started. Now, with the naval blockade and the destruction of the country's infrastructures, entry of food supplies to the country has been affected.
These resulted in the almost doubling of the country's number of people who can't eat without aid up to 7 million from 4.3 million a year ago.
One can't help but question if the Saudi-led coalition's goals justify the cost of acquiring it. Is there a goal so worthy that it had to be paid with innocent lives, including children?
The picture also pushes to public consciousness another problem - food inequality. While food is daily wasted in most countries in the west, there are places on earth that people are dying because there is no access to food. Clearly, this is a problem that could not be solved by one country alone but requires a coordinated effort by the global community.
Sources:
http://metro.co.uk/2016/03/30/days-from-death-because-of-war-the-picture-thats-shocked-the-world-5783641/
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/yemen-civil-war-crisis-conflict-udai-faisal-starving-children-malnutrition-saudi-air-strikes-aid-a6958096.html
A recent report released by the United Nation's Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) stated that Latin America either lost or wasted foods up to 348,000 tons daily. This wastage, according to the global body, was making it difficult to achieve the sustainable development objectives (SDO) in this part of the globe.
The FAO has proposed that the loss must be reduced by half by 2030 at retail as well as consumer level and also in production and distribution chains, Bernama reported.
The report cautioned that unless the alarming figure is reduced by 50 percent, the region cannot achieve the targeted SDO set up in September 2015. It is worth noting that in 2015, the regional governments with the support of FAO established a network of experts, a regional strategy and a regional alliance to prevent as well as reduce food losses and waste of food.
While national panels were created in Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic to deal with the issue, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Saint Vincent, Mexico, Peru, and the Grenadines and Uruguay also discussed similar initiatives.
According to a U.N. estimate committee, the food wasted in Latin America could possibly feed over 37 percent of the global population suffering from hunger. The FAO said that this represents 300 million people suffering from hunger worldwide. It further stated that an estimated 36 million people residing in Latin America could fulfill their calorie requirement with the amount of food wasted in supermarkets.
In fact, this amount of wasted food could easily feed the entire population of Peru, and more than the total number of people suffering from hunger in the region, Telesur TV reported. According to the study, 16 million tons of food, 12.5 percent of the national agro-food production, was wasted in Argentina alone.
However, the FAO has welcomed the recent policies aimed at reducing food waste, either individually or through the regional bodies such as the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. It has been observed that Brazil, Costa Rica, Chile, Colombia, and the Dominican Republic have made significant advances to reduce waste.
Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman is one of more controversial figures on Wall Street. The head of the $12 billion Pershing Square Capital Management fund has gained the ire of several peers, including Carl Icahn and Dan Loeb, and was even called "despicable" by Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. Ackman also took Warren Buffett to task last fall for his support of Coca-Cola, saying that the company does enormous societal damage, in response to Charlie Munger, Buffett's right-hand man, attacking one of Ackman's investments. Pershing Square's portfolio, which has included stocks like Oreo maker Mondelez and Burger King parent Restaurant Brands International, can hardly be called purely healthy or socially responsible.
Though Pershing Square was the best-performing large hedge fund in 2014, according to Bloomberg, the fund has come off the rails since then. It fell 20.5% last year and is down a whopping 25.2% as of March 22 of this year. Let's take a look below at three of Ackman's biggest blow-ups.
1. Valeant Pharmaceuticals (BHC 4.84%)
Lately, Ackman has been in the news due to his troubled investment in Valeant, which is now his worst investment ever. Ackman began buying Valeant in the beginning of 2015, and bought 19.5 million shares in the first quarter last year when the price fluctuated between $142 and $205. Marketwatch estimates his current stake was purchased at a weighted average of $171.
Today, Valeant is racked by an accounting scandal and congressional accusations of excessive price increases, and trades at just $27. Ackman has lost about $2 billion, but continues to defend his investment, saying that the company is sitting on valuable assets.
On Wednesday, Valeant's shares tumbled again when it asked creditors for more time to file its annual report as it hopes to avoid defaulting on its $30 billion debt.
2. J.C. Penney (JCPN.Q)
The man most responsible for J.C. Penney's collapse circa 2012 is Ron Johnson, the Apple retail chief who was brought on to rejuvenate the aging department store chain in 2011. But Bill Ackman is probably the second-most responsible. The activist investor pushed Penney's board to install Johnson after acquiring a $900 million stake in the company in 2010 and gaining a seat on the board. He helped design Johnson's strategy at Penney, which included jettisoning the discounts and private brands that had become the core reason for many of Penney's customers to shop there. The results were a disaster. J.C. Penney's same-store sales fell by an incredible 25% in 2012, and Johnson was ushered out the following April as the board brought in the former boss, Mike Ullman, as interim CEO.
After writing a letter to the board that August accusing them of dragging their feet on finding a permanent CEO, Ackman exited his bet and stepped down from the board. The stock had fallen about 50% under Johnson's tenure, and Ackman lost about $500 million, closing out his investment at around $13/share.
Penney's stock continued to fall further, but has rebounded lately, trading around $11 today.
3. Herbalife (HLF 2.19%)
Ackman's crusade against nutritional product seller Herbalife has been his most dramatic. The hedge fund billionaire has accused the multil-level marketer of being an illegal pyramid scheme that makes money by requiring its vendors to buy into the system, rather than selling actual products. Ackman persuaded Congress to investigate the company, though Herbalife was cleared of fraud last month as investigators failed to find sufficient evidence of criminal wrongdoing.
Ackman shorted the stock in 2012 when it was trading at $47, revealing in a three-hour presentation that he was betting $1 billion on its downfall. Since then, he has spent millions on legal fees and other expenses to levy his claims against the company and lobby against it, comparing it to the mafia and drug dealers at times.
In a single session in February, Herbalife shares shot up 27% after it said it was in talks with the Federal Trade Commission to potentially resolve an investigation opened in 2014. Ackman still believes the stock will go to zero, but he would only break even at around $31 or $32, due to the money he spent making his case. Today, the stock trades around $61, meaning he is about $600 million in the hole. Considering the government's recent findings, it seems likely that shares will move higher.
Crude prices have made a substantial comeback. After trading in the mid-$20s per barrel twice, WTI prices have rallied more than 45% and are now near $38 per barrel. Although inventories in Cushing, Oklahoma and elsewhere are still at or near record highs, there are several reasons to believe that the worst might be over for the essential energy commodity.
1. 800,000 barrels per day of oversupply that might not exist
According to The Wall Street Journal, the crude market is oversupplied by 1.9 million barrels a day, or about 2% of the world's total production. Of those 1.9 million barrels a day of oversupply, only 1.1 million barrels a day are accounted for, and 800,000 barrels a day, or almost 300 million barrels in 2015, are unaccounted for.
Some analysts think the unaccounted barrels might be in China or other non-OECD countries that don't record inventory very well. China is expanding its strategic oil reserves, after all. But China's strategic oil reserves aren't big enough to account for the difference, and the unaccounted oil could easily also be due to understated demand or overstated supply production. If a substantial percentage of the unaccounted barrels is due to increased demand or lower production, the eventual balancing of the market might occur sooner than many believe.
2. U.S. production is on a downward slope
Because of the lower crude prices, U.S. oil production has shrunk meaningfully. According to the Energy Information Administration, U.S. crude production has declined by 6% from its peak in early 2015 to around 9 million barrels a day in March and should continue to decline to about 8.3 million barrels a day in September. The 700,000-per-barrel decline in U.S. production will probably offset the majority or all of the increase in Iranian production resulting from the lifting of sanctions. Assuming the other OPEC countries and Russia freeze their production, global supply production will basically remain steady around 96 million barrels a day for 2016.
3. Crude demand is on an upward slope
Most importantly for the bull case, demand is rising. According to EIA projections, global demand for crude will grow by 1.1 million barrels per day in 2016 and another 1.2 million barrels per day in 2017. If global demand is just slightly higher than EIA projections, the current oversupply in the market will dissipate by the end of 2016 or the beginning of 2017. Although inventories would still be near record highs, the lack of spare capacity would justify crude prices substantially higher than $38 per barrel.
4. Crude needs higher prices for net production to grow
As the above chart shows, the shale industry will likely need higher than $38 per barrel prices for net production to grow. If prices rally, U.S. production isn't guaranteed to come back quickly either. Given that many shale companies lost a lot of money last year when prices rallied into the $60s and the companies expanded production only to see prices fall sharply shortly after, many companies will think twice before committing to expansionary capital expenditures this year. The industry will also need to hire back some of its laid off workers, which might also take some time.
Stocks that will benefit from the energy rebound
Among the energy companies that will benefit from the balancing of the market are Occidental Petroleum (OXY 3.50%), Chevron (CVX 2.50%), and Devon Energy (DVN 3.64%). Each company will realize more cash flow from higher crude prices. Occidental's operating cash flow is expected to increase by $100 million for each $1 rise in WTI, while Chevron's cash flow is expected to rise by around $325 million for every $1 increase in Brent. Devon Energy will probably realize more from its $2 billion to $3 billion in planned non-core divestments in 2016 if energy prices were higher.
If crude demand rises 1.1 million barrels per day in 2016 and a major part of the 800,000 unaccounted barrels per day is due to understated demand or overstated supply, many analysts believe crude prices will rally to $60 per barrel or higher. If prices rally to that point, Chevron will almost certainly be free cash flow positive by 2017, a goal the company has been targeting for some time now. Occidental will have enough cash flow to increase production and support its attractive dividend, and Devon will ramp up shale production in the Permian Basin substantially.
If demand growth falls short of expectations and U.S. shale supply doesn't decline as much as the EIA estimates, all three companies have the balance sheet strength and liquidity to tough out another year or two of sub-$40 per barrel prices. Chevron and Occidental pay dividends that yield over 4% at current prices and Devon Energy trades at a discount price relative to the quality of its assets.
There are good reasons why JPMorgan Chase (JPM 5.25%) is one of the most respected banks in America today. Long before it played its helpful role during the recent financial crisis, when it acquired Bear Stearns and Washington Mutual to prevent them from failing, JPMorgan played a central role in the industrialization of the American economy during the Gilded Age.
The Motley Fool's Gaby Lapera and John Maxfield discuss this in the video below, explaining the specific ways that JPMorgan helped the United States to eventually eclipse the United Kingdom as the most powerful economy in the world.
A transcript follows the video.
This podcast was recorded on March 28, 2016.
Gaby Lapera: So we have this first component of banking in the United States set up during the Civil War. Then you get into the Gilded Age; this is post-Civil War. The South, anyways, was totally devastated. People who want to industrialize the South, the North is way ahead in that respect. This is when really industrialization takes off in the United States. You have a lot of foreign money coming in. You have the rise of the railroads. People are linking all of the country via railroads. Railroads really changed America. It's weird to get so excited about trains. It's a pursuit for guys in their basements with their little train sets, which is cool. The railroad itself was an incredible leap forward in America.
John Maxfield: The railroad was so important. If you think ... Not only did it connect one side of the country to the other side of the country -- which didn't happen until 1869 -- but it also was really the birth of these massive, massive industrial concerns. That is where you have ... That's why banks were so important during this period. To fund those.
Lapera: Absolutely. The interesting thing about this period is that we only have the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, so that means there still no central regulator for banks. So you're having these really frequent panics and financial crises on average every six years. I think.
Maxfield: You had a banking panic or crisis, on average, once every six years during the Gilded Age.
Lapera: You ended up having to fairly big depressions, not as big as the Great Depression, obviously, but in the 1870s and 1890s, these were financially devastating events.
Maxfield: If you think about, you know, we like to think about when you look at United States history, that really the bottom point was the Great Depression of the 1930s, and to a certain extent that's true, but at that point ... That is very unusual to think about today, because even though we went through the financial crisis, it certainly didn't turn into a Great Depression. But at the time, depressions were actually pretty common occurrences. The reason, to allude to what Gaby's getting at, is that because we only had the OCC -- we didn't have the Federal Reserve, we didn't have the FDIC -- banks would fail all the time, and that would take all these people's savings and then they would have no money.
Lapera: Absolutely. Sorry, I just have to laugh because my mother pointed out to me the other day that I say "absolutely" all the time on the show, and I don't say it in real life.
You are correct, John Maxfield. One of the things that was really interesting about this to me, this whole history of the banking crisis, is that a lot of times people portray bankers as these fat cats, like you talked about in the beginning of the show -- especially guys like J.P. Morgan. You hear "J.P. Morgan," you think of this giant investment international bank, right. But the original J.P. Morgan was actually in his own way kind of a good guy, because during these financial crises, the little panics that they had, him and a few other bankers would get together and act a little bit like a central bank to help these other banks out to keep them from failing.
Maxfield: If you think about J.P. Morgan, he is maybe the greatest banker in American history and one of the reasons is during the Gilded Age, we had just this explosion of industrialization. That's really when the United States turned into the economic powerhouse that we are today, is during the Gilded Age. How did that happen? Where did the financing for that come from? That came from, in large part, Europe. J.P. Morgan, what they did, this is the reason they became so successful: They were the primary bank that brought money from Europe -- and England in particular -- over to the United States to invest in railroads, to invest in steel companies and all of these different things.
Once considered a taboo topic, marijuana is now just as much a front-and-center issue as any of the others being discussed in this year's presidential debates. And it's certainly not hard to see why.
A national Gallup poll conducted in October showed that 58% of Americans were in favor of legalization, which tied an all-time high from a few years prior. Also, a national CBS News poll on medical marijuana legalization conducted in April 2015 showed even more resounding support, with 84% in favor of such a measure.
In states where marijuana is already legal, lawmakers are predominantly enjoying the drug's positive economic impact. Colorado has been the shining star of the group, namely because it was among the first two states (Washington was the other) to legalize recreational marijuana in 2012. In 2015 Colorado finished just shy of $1 billion in total combined medical and recreational marijuana sales. Further, these sales, along with licensing fees, added approximately $135 million in tax and fee revenue that the state is now using to pump money into education, law enforcement, and statewide drug abuse programs.
Marijuana's support hits a new record
However, last week the news got even better for the marijuana movement. A new survey was released by the Associated Press in conjunction with the NORC Centers for Public Affairs Research which analyzed opinion on substance abuse among 1,042 representative Americans. Among the drugs the respondents were questioned on was marijuana.
Based on responses from the AP-NORC study, a whopping 61% of respondents affirmed their belief that marijuana should be legal. This 61% is a new high-water mark when it comes to surveys that demonstrate national support for marijuana's legalization -- and it's surveys like this that give supporters in a number of states hope that this upcoming election season will bear a substantial number of victories for the marijuana movement.
In particular, grassroots campaigns in California, Ohio, Arizona, Massachusetts, and Florida are all looking to expand or introduce legal marijuana markets within their respective states. As we've previously examined, California, Ohio, and Florida could arguably be viewed as the three most important of the up-to-one-dozen states that could be angling for a marijuana initiative or amendment on this year's ballots.
An approval of recreational marijuana in California would be a key victory because of the sheer size of the state's economy. In Ohio and Florida, a victory would mean a changing tide: Ohio's marijuana initiative (known as Issue 3) failed in November 2015 because residents feared an oligopoly would emerge among growers, while Florida's high concentration of elderly voters did in a legalization measure during the November 2014 elections. Approvals in both states of medical and/or recreational marijuana would be seen as both a victory for the free market (in Ohio) and a demonstration that older Americans can't hold back what's becoming a strongly supported drug (in Florida).
Not a clear path to success
Of course, marijuana doesn't exactly have a straight shot to success even with these overwhelmingly positive top-line support figures.
The AP-NORC poll also asked the 61% of respondents who were in support of marijuana's legalization if there should be any restrictions on marijuana use. A third (33%) of the 639 respondents in the "yes" crowd believed that marijuana should be legalized without any restrictions. Another 43% believed that the drug should be legal, but purchase amount limitations should be put in place. The remaining 24% only believe that marijuana should be legal with a medical prescription.
Now, let's step back and really look at what we're being told here. A third of 61% want marijuana legalized without any restrictions, or roughly one in five people surveyed. A further 43% of the 61% who approved want to see limits on how much marijuana can be purchased. This works out to about 26% of all survey takers. Finally, around a quarter of the supporters want to see marijuana approved solely with a medical prescription, or about 15% of total survey takers. In other words, only around 46% of all people surveyed are really in support of marijuana's recreational legalization, and the majority of those still want the drug's sale to be regulated.
We see additional skepticism when analyzing various age ranges. Younger adults aged 18 to 29 overwhelmingly support the legalization of marijuana. More than four in five (82%) affirmed their support in the AP-NORC poll. Conversely, only 44% of Americans aged 60 and up support the legalization of marijuana. This is an important statistic considering that people are living longer than ever, so the older American population is growing, not shrinking. In select states, older Americans could prove to be quite the obstacle for marijuana's expansion.
Expect the bifurcation to continue
The AP-NORC survey's data suggests that we're liable to see a continuing bifurcation of the marijuana movement.
At the state level things seem to be motoring right along. It looks probable that a number of states will put marijuana initiatives in front of voters this year, and that quite a few could wind up passing. The more individual states that legalize medical and/or recreational marijuana, the stronger a case can be made that the federal government's stance on marijuana should be altered. More state approvals also mean more job creation within the industry.
On the flipside, this report suggests that most people still either don't want to see marijuana legalized, or they want some form of regulation (i.e., requiring a medical prescription or purchasing limit). This skepticism gives lawmakers on Capitol Hill all the more reason to sit on their hands until they have conclusive long-term safety data on marijuana at their disposal, which frankly could take many more years.
The problem with the wait-and-see approach on Capitol Hill is that it significantly hinders the growth capabilities of existing marijuana businesses. These businesses are selling a product that the federal government deems illegal, which means there's no ability to take normalized tax deductions. Additionally, most small, regional, and even national banks largely want nothing to do with marijuana businesses, leaving them with no access to checking accounts or credit lines.
Even though we could see strong expansion at the state level in November 2016, this isn't an investor-friendly industry as of yet. I believe the only way this industry does become worthy of investor dollars is if and when the federal government changes its stance on marijuana.
Social Security is one of the most important income sources for many retirees, and yet it's also one of the most misunderstood.
According to a survey conducted last year by MassMutual Financial Group, the vast majority of Americans don't have a firm grasp on basic Social Security concepts. MassMutual, which hired KRC Research to complete its survey, found that only 28% of survey-takers could get a passing grade by answering at least 7 out of 10 questions correctly. Furthermore, only one of the 1,513 test-takers answered all 10 questions correctly. In short, Americans still have a lot to learn about the Social Security program.
The good news is the Social Security Administration isn't shy about offering up information that can help current and future retirees better understand the program. Here are nine basic facts that the Social Security Administration, or SSA, wants you to know.
1. Nine out of 10 individuals ages 65 and older are receiving Social Security benefits
The first thing the SSA wants you to know is that the Social Security program covers a lot of seniors. Roughly 90% of Americans older than 65 are receiving Social Security benefits, and the only reason the other 10% aren't could be that they're between ages 65 and 70 and simply haven't filed for benefits, or they don't have enough lifetime work credits to qualify. The latest data from January 2016 shows that approximately 60 million Americans are receiving Social Security benefits.
2. Retired workers account for 72% of total benefits paid
Based on data from June 2015, the majority of beneficiaries (72%) who received benefit payments were retired workers. People should realize that the Social Security program, which was signed into law more than 80 years ago and began paying out benefits in 1940, is primarily designed to provide income to low-wage workers in retirement. But that's not all it does, as you'll see below.
3. 90% of workers between ages 21 and 64 are covered in case of long-term disability
There's more to Social Security than just income for retired workers. The program also covers 9 in 10 workers between the ages of 21 and 64 should they become disabled over the long-term. This is particularly important, because the SSA notes that almost 7 in 10 private sector workers have no long-term disability insurance.
4. 96% of workers ages 20 to 49 are covered by survivors insurance protection
Additionally, the SSA wants you to know that the vast majority of workers between the ages of 20 and 49 (96%, to be exact) are covered by survivors insurance protection. Survivor benefits are paid to the surviving spouse and children of a deceased, but qualifying, worker. Survivor benefits account for about 10% of all Social Security benefits paid.
5. Social Security benefits account for an average of 39% of the elderly's income
As a whole, Social Security benefits are designed to replace about 40% of a worker's previous income based on data from June 2015. The SSA wants seniors to know that Social Security benefits will be there when they retire, but that it's probably not in their best interest to rely on Social Security income to provide the bulk of income during their retirement. You'll see why below.
6. The number of older Americans will increase to 79 million by 2035
America is aging, and the program is expected see a plethora of new retirees over the next two decades. In June 2015, when the SSA's fact sheet was released, there were 48 million older Americans. By 2035, this number is expected to swell to 79 million. This will lead into the next point.
7. The worker-to-beneficiary ratio is expected to fall to 2.1 by 2035
The SSA wants you to know that the worker-to-beneficiary ratio, or the number of people currently in the labor force compared to the number of people receiving benefits, is expected to drop from 2.8-to-1 in 2015 to just 2.1-to-1 by 2035. The retirement of baby boomers is a big reason why this ratio is expected to fall. But there are other problems.
8. The life expectancy of a 65-year-old is nearly 21 years
Another reason we're witnessing the worker-to-beneficiary ratio fall is the fact that life expectancies are on the rise. Since the mid-1960s, based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, life expectancies in the U.S. have risen by about nine years. According to the SSA, a person who lives to be 65 years old today is expected to live nearly 21 more years. By comparison, a 65 year-old in 1940 was only expected to live an additional 14 years. If people are living longer, they'll be able to draw benefit payments for a longer period of time, too.
9. 34% of the workforce has no savings set aside for retirement
Finally, SSA data shows that around one in three of the estimated 165 million workers covered by Social Security haven't set aside any money specifically for their retirements. In plainer English, more than 50 million working Americans could be heavily reliant on Social Security come retirement.
This last part is a bit worrisome considering that baby boomer retirements and growing life expectancies are expected to exhaust the Trust's cash reserves by 2035 according to the Board of Trustees. If this were to occur and lawmakers are unable to come to an amicable fix over the next 19 years, it's possible a 21% benefits cut could ensue in order to keep the program solvent through 2087.
The key takeaways of the SSA's basic fact sheet from June are that Social Security will be there for you when you retire, and that it covers more people than you probably realized. However, you should consider having a plan B handy and not count on Social Security as your primary income source with an aging population expected to weigh on the program in the coming decades.
Q: Sebastian, same procedure as in Melbourne: how unsatisfying is the gap to Mercedes?
Sebastian Vettel: Not funny at all! Nothing to laugh about! We are definitely not where we want to be so of course our whole aim is to get the best out of what we have. Actually today was a pretty good day. The car felt super despite that fact that there are still rough spots here and there be it on the straights or in the corners. We know that there are things to come unfortunately not tomorrow! (laughs) But in the race things can very fast look different: last year we did very well here as much will depend on the tyres and how fast they degrade. So hopefully ours will not degrade that fast and hopefully we will have a good start and that we can carry the superb balance of the car into the race. True, that sounds like a lot of variables so key will be that we will be able to stick to our strategy and if that includes annoying the two in front, even better!
Q: Your start in Melbourne was phenomenal. Nico Rosberg couldnt believe that it was possible to brake so late and still stay on the track. Is it possible to copy it here?
SV: My guess is yes. My start was almost perfect and I think Kimis as well but that was also down to the fact that the two front row guys botched theirs and I dont think that they will do us that favour again! But what could play to our advantage is that the two will not attack each other so we can be more aggressive. But in the end its not our business to think what they will or will not do. We will concentrate on our start and in the end you understand pretty fast if you have a good one or not. And if somebody else has a better one then we will try to make good in the race.
Comcast 's NBCUniversal recently hiked the price of a one-day pass to Universal Studios Hollywood by up to 20% ahead of the opening of its Wizarding World of Harry Potter attractions on April 7. The tickets, which previously cost between $95 to $105 on the surge pricing model it introduced in February, are now being sold for $115. While many parkgoers will complain about the move, it suggests that the new attractions could generate lots of fresh revenue for the company's growing theme park business.
Source: Universal Studios.
Why do theme parks matter to Comcast?To understand why theme parks matter to Comcast, we should first discuss the impact of cord-cutters, who are causing the company to shedcable video subscribers and generate weaker TV ad revenues. Comcast lost 36,000 cable video subscribers in 2015, although price hikes and bundling strategies boosted overall sales 3.6% to $21.5 billion. Its cable networks revenue inched up just 0.7% to $9.6 billion, while its broadcast television revenue dipped 0.1% to $8.5 billion.
Yet its theme park business has been booming, with revenues rising 27.3% to $3.3 billion last year. While that only accounts for 12% of NBCUniversal's sales and 4% of Comcast's total revenues, the weight of that business has steadily risen over the past few years:
Theme parks revenue 2012 2013 2014 2015 YOY growth 4.8% 5.3% 17.3% 27.3% % of NBCUniversal 8.8% 9.5% 10.3% 11.7%
Source: Comcast annual reports.
How Comcast saved Universal StudiosAfter Comcast acquired a controlling stake in NBCUniversal in 2011, it invested billions into renovating Universal Studios' aging parks. It spent $100 million to build Transformers: The Ride at Universal Orlando, which opened in 2013 and arguably raised the bar for 4D rides. It addednew Despicable Me and Fast and Furious rides to its park, and plans to open new King Kong, Hello Kitty, and Nintendo attractions in the near future.
The company added eight new restaurants to Orlando's CityWalk shopping area, with plans to open a new Volcano Bay water park next year. It also invested $1.6 billion in its Hollywood park to build new rides, hotels, and parking spaces. It's evenchasing Disney overseas with planned theme parks in Beijing, Moscow, South Korea, and Dubai. In Japan, it acquired a majority stake in Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, and is currentlymulling the development of a second Japanese park in Okinawa.
Why Harry Potter mattersBut despite all those big investments, the centerpiece of the "new" Universal Studios is the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. To add those attractions to its parks, NBCUniversal initially secured a licensing deal with Scholastic and Time Warner's Warner Bros. in 2007.
The first phase of those attractions, which reportedly cost about $250 million to construct, opened in 2010 at Universal Studios' Islands of Adventure. The second phase, Diagon Alley, was announced after the Comcast merger closed in 2011, and opened at its main park in 2014. Thanks to the opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, annual attendance at Islands of Adventurerose 29% to 5.9 million in 2010, reversing a 13% decline in the previous year. Between 2010 and 2014 (the most recentyear of data from market tracker TEA), annual attendance at the park soared 37% to 8.1 million visitors. Attendance at Universal Studios Florida jumped 17% to 8.3 million in 2014, thanks to the opening of Diagon Alley.
Source: Universal Studios.
Those numbers encouraged Universal to build new Wizarding Worlds worldwide. It opened its first overseas Wizarding World in Osaka in 2014, which boosted attendance by 17% to 11.8 million that year. The opening of the new Wizarding World in Los Angeles should have a similar effect on the park, which hosted 6.8 million visitors in 2014. The recent introduction of on-demand pricing should also even out visitors over the year while reducing wait times for visitors.
But it won't catch up to Disney anytime soonComcast's ongoing expansion of its theme park business is a solid strategy, but it won't catch up to market leader Disney anytime soon. The House of Mouse's theme park andresorts business generated nearly five times as much revenue as Universal's theme park business, and its new Shanghai Disneyland park could boost annual sales growth back into double-digit territory.
However, the multi-year expansion of Universal Studios could turn the business into a major pillar of growth for Comcast, which could soften the impact of cord-cutters whittling away at its video subscriber and cable revenues.
The article Harry Potter May Boost Comcast Corp's Theme Park Sales Again originally appeared on Fool.com.
Leo Sun owns shares of Walt Disney. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Walt Disney. The Motley Fool recommends Time Warner. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
At most major airports, there are one or two dominant airlines that carry most of the passenger traffic. It's rare to see rivals mount a serious challenge to the market leaders. Delta Air Lines' recent move into Seattle -- Alaska Air's home turf -- has been a somewhat surprising exception to the rule.
It looks like the next big airline battle could come in Los Angeles. Right now, all three legacy carriers are in a dead heat there, with none holding more than 19% market share. However, American Airlines and Delta Air Lines are both trying to pull away from the pack.
Delta is ready to invest for growth in LADelta has been the fastest-growing airline at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) since 2009 and it now offers about 160 peak day departures there. Delta roughly doubled its capacity at LAX between 2009 and 2015, as measured by the number of seats offered.
Delta has grown faster than any other airline in Los Angeles since 2009. Image source: The Motley Fool.
Delta now has nonstop flights to dozens of destinations from LAX, including up to 10 daily flights to New York and an hourly shuttle flight to San Francisco. Los Angeles is also a key trans-Pacific hub for Delta. It has nonstop flights to both Tokyo airports, Shanghai, and Sydney, and has requested government approval to begin flying to Beijing in December.
The main thing preventing Delta from expanding further at LAX is the airport's cramped terminals. The carrier recently completed a $229 million renovation of its terminal at LAX, but it's still far from being a state-of-the-art facility.
That's why Delta has signed a letter of intent with the city to completely renovate Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 and move Delta's entire operation there. This would allow Delta to build a world-class terminal from scratch (more or less). Delta may be willing to spend more than $1 billion on this project to make it by far the best terminal at LAX.
The new facility would presumably accommodate more gates than Delta currently controls. This would allow the carrier to ramp up its growth again. However, it will probably take at least five years to execute this project -- if it is even approved.
American Airlines looks for its own advantageToday, American Airlines is the largest airline in Los Angeles -- if only by a few percentage points -- and it plans to build on that advantage. It currently operates about 200 daily departures at LAX and is in the midst of building two more gates there. That will allow American to add another 20 daily departures beginning in June.
American is also in the midst of a rapid international buildup in Los Angeles, which is becoming the carrier's main trans-Pacific gateway. Just a few months ago, American's only trans-Pacific flights from LAX were to Shanghai and Tokyo's Narita Airport.
American Airlines has been adding lots of international flights at LAX. Image source: American Airlines.
However, American Airlines launched new nonstop flights to Sydney in December and Tokyo's Haneda Airport in February. It has also announced new routes to Auckland and Hong Kong that will start later this year. Finally, just two weeks after Delta applied for LAX-Beijing flights, American Airlines put in its own application to serve that route -- with the same proposed starting date!
Clearly, American Airlines doesn't want to let Delta gain any route network advantage in Los Angeles. But the stakes are particularly high in this case. The U.S. government can only award one more daily flight to China under the current bilateral aviation treaty -- so it will have to pick either Delta or American and leave the other one out in the cold.
Competition will benefit travelersThe consolidation of the airline industry has meant that travelers in fortress hub markets often face high fares, while travelers in mid-size cities typically have limited nonstop flight options. In either case, service is frequently subpar.
That's not the case in Los Angeles, though. The rivalry between Delta and American -- with United Continental and Southwest Airlines not far behind -- will likely lead to low fares, lots of flight options, and better service. That's a great reason to root for a stalemate rather than a decisive victory by any airline in the battle for Los Angeles.
The article An Airline Battle Is Heating Up in Los Angeles originally appeared on Fool.com.
Adam Levine-Weinberg owns shares of United Continental Holdings, and is long January 2017 $40 calls on Delta Air Lines, and long January 2017 $30 calls on American Airlines Group. The Motley Fool is long January 2017 $35 calls on American Airlines Group. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Image source: Craig Butz via Wikimedia Commons.
A few years ago, there was a lot of enthusiasm about a new kind of solar energy installation that would be able to provide solar energy 24 hours a day. The concept was the solar thermal power plant -- which uses mirrors to focus the sun's energy on a power tower, where it heats a liquid (usually an oil) that eventually turns a turbine to create electricity. If solar thermal power plants worked well, they could be connected to an energy storage medium, like molten salt, allowing that heat to be held in reserve temporarily and doled out produce electricity to the grid 24/7.
A few massive plants were commissioned, including a $2.2 billion, 440 MW Ivanpah Solar Power Facility in the California desert. A $1.6 billion loan guarantee was given to the project by the federal government, and in late 2013 the power plant started generating energy. But the results haven't been quite as impressive as its developers planned.
Solar thermal and the performance problem Ivanpah's problems began shortly after it came online. The plant only generated about a quarter of its expected power output in its first eight months of operation as owners NRG Energy , Alphabet , and BrightSource Energy worked to optimize operations.
Problems early on weren't surprising because the solar thermal power tower is a fairly new technology. But we're now over two years into operations, and the plant still isn't meeting its contracted production terms with utility PG&E. Last week, regulators gave the plant another year to increase production, rather than forcing it into default on its contract, but that may not be enough.
Consumer advocates are already pushing for the utility to renegotiate terms with the power plant, which signed its power purchase agreement when solar plants were much more expensive. The plant was paid $0.20 per kWh last summer for electricity and $0.135 for the rest of the year, compared to an average solar system getting about $0.05 per kWh for new contracts today.
If the plant can't crank up its production numbers by a year from now, PG&E may be able to negotiate a better deal, which could conceivably end up with the plant forced to shut down if the new lower rate doesn't cover its operating costs.
Not yet beating the incumbents Solar thermal technology was once seen as a high potential technology because it could supply energy more consistently over time than a traditional solar plant. The way the power tower heats fluid, and the potential for molten salt or another medium to store energy, made it look more feasible as a base-load technology. But it has proven the be more expensive than more mainstream technologies, and when you include the distraction thousands of mirrors pose to air travel and the thousands of birds that have been fried by the concentrated light, it isn't living up to plan. But this isn't the first time solar technologies haven't lived up to expectations.
Technologies like thin-film CIGS (think Solyndra) and amorphous silicon solar cells were supposed to lead to lower-cost solar panels and lower cost solar, but never panned out. Instead, most of the solar panels being deployed today are using silicon technology developed decades ago. The industry is proving that tried-and-true technologies with years of historical performance to lean on are better than concepts that haven't been proven on a big scale. Ironically, that means that old, stodgy companies like Trina Solar and SunPower, who have proven the ability to make solar panels cost effectively, are better investments than the next new tech coming to the market.
The disappointing production from Ivanpah, combined with other failed solar technologies, shows why investors should look more for known technologies than new technologies to disrupt the industry. Because the history of these promising breakthroughs leaving holes in investors' pockets is a bad one.
The article How a $2.2 Billion Solar Plant Became a Money Pit originally appeared on Fool.com.
Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fools board of directors. Travis Hoium owns shares of SunPower. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Alphabet (C shares). The Motley Fool owns shares of NRG Energy, Inc.. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Source: Apple
It goes to show just how popular tech giant Apple truly is that its least impressive product unveiling in recent memory still drew the world's attention.
Though Appleby no means debuted anything astounding, its largely derivative new iPhone SE and iPad Pro are still likely to carry some key business implications, particularly for its all-important smartphone segment. More specifically, the iPhone SE is likely to cut into Apple's margins to some degree in the near term. However, of far greater import, the device's benefits should far outweigh its costs over the long term.
Source: Apple
iPhone SE margin impactThough its screen was the most readily observable thing Apple shrunk on the new iPhone SE, it was hardly the only thing that Apple made smaller.
Apple also lowered the upfront price to $399 for the 16 GBversion and $499 for the 64 GB version. Effectively powered by the same innards as the firm's flagship iPhone 6s, the iPhone SE will cost roughly 27%less than its larger smartphone brethren when it officially goes on sale.
In doing so, Apple has shifted its pricing strategy away from using older iPhone models as the gateway devices into its ecosystem to offering cheaper editions of its most current technology, which has some camps concerned over the phones' overall profitability. Estimates currently peg the bill of materials for the iPhone 6s to be $211.50, though the iPhone SE likely costs slight less to produce.
For argument's sake, let's assume parts and assembly for an iPhone SE cost an admittedly imprecise, but practical $200, based on its smaller, less pixel-laden display and its older case design. Though inexact, this plausible working estimate implies a per-device gross margin of 50% for the iPhone SE, which compares unfavorably to the rest of the iPhone lineup.
Metric iPhone SE iPhone 6S iPhone 6s Plus 16 GB Price $399 $649 $749 Bill of Materials $200* $211.50 $236 Estimated Gross Margins 50%* 67% 68%
Sources: IHS, Apple, *author's estimate
Viewed this way, the iPhone SE seems like a relatively unpalatable option for Apple and its shareholders. Crucially though, that chart only tells half the story.
Not 2013 all over The prospect of tighter margins for Apple has some more tenured investors and observers understandably spooked. Those of us who have followed the company for long enough remember its 2013 sell-off, in which margin contraction issues also played a pivotal role.
AAPL data by YCharts
Thankfully, a similar scenario is unlikely to unfold in the coming weeks, for several reasons. For starters, Apple's 2015 annual iPhone unit sales were roughly 53% greater than its 2013 iPhone sales.
Apple disclosed that it sold 30 million 4-inch iPhones in 2015, and its fair to expect it to sell even more SEs than that in 2016, due to their competitive prices and improved hardware. However, the truly massive scale of Apple's iPhone business today should help insulate the firm from any kind of material impact.
What's more, the timing of the iPhone SE launch should also prove a mitigating factor in preventing a margin meltdown similar to 2013 from occurring. Though it's early in the year, we're likely only six months away from the expected debut of Apple's iPhone 7, which should help drive renewed interest in Apple's larger, more profitable models.
Taking a longer-term view, the iPhone SE is likely to prove a valuable tool in pulling new consumers into Apple's ecosystem. As VP of Product Marketing Greg Joskwiak mentioned at the SE launch event, the 4-inch iPhone has proven particularly popular in key emerging markets like China. Viewed through this lens, the iPhone SE appears most likely to become the entry-level iPhone in coming years, which should help the firm compete with Android phones in emerging markets. And given the strength of Apple's ecosystem in retaining customers, this new carrot will likely serve Apple well in years to come.
The article How Apple Is Playing the Long Game With the iPhone SE originally appeared on Fool.com.
Andrew Tonner owns shares of Apple. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Apple. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The government urged health officials around the country Friday to get ready now in case there are outbreaks of the mosquito-borne Zika virus in the U.S. this summer.
A Zika epidemic has been sweeping through Latin America and the Caribbean, and officials think it's likely some small clusters of Zika will occur in the U.S. when mosquito numbers boom.
At a "Zika Summit" on Friday, experts prodded some 300 state and local officials gathered at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters to make Zika response plans now.
When West Nile virus transmitted by a different mosquito moved through the U.S. about 15 years ago, health officials were caught flat-footed, noted Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association.
"This is an opportunity to get ahead of the curve," he told the summit's attendees.
The Zika virus causes only a mild and brief illness, at worst, in most people. But in the last year, infections in pregnant women have been strongly linked to fetal deaths and to potentially devastating birth defects, mostly in Brazil.
The virus is spread mainly by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which also live in parts of the U.S. It was thought to be mainly in the South but the CDC revised its map this week, showing the mosquito has been found in parts of the Midwest and Northeast.
Officials don't expect Zika to be a big problem, though, in the U.S. for a number of reasons, including the widespread use of air conditioning and screens. The Zika mosquito likes to bite indoors. They think the clusters may be small and surface only in a few states most likely Florida and Texas. But they don't know for sure.
So far, there have been no Zika infections in the U.S. caught from mosquitoes. More than 300 illnesses have been reported, all linked to travel to Zika outbreak regions.
About 350 additional cases have been reported in U.S. territories, most of them in Puerto Rico, where mosquitoes are already spreading the virus. Together, dozens or even hundreds of births in the 50 states and territories could be affected in devastating ways by Zika, said Dr. Edward McCabe of the March of Dimes, who spoke at the summit.
"We have a few short weeks to stop the Zika virus from gaining a foothold," McCabe said.
During the summit, state and local officials were encouraged to map where the Zika mosquito lives and breeds in the state and which insecticides would work best in their area.
The Zika response will likely mean workers will go door to door, sometimes asking to go on properties and even spray. That's different from the truck- and aerial-spraying seen in conventional mosquito eradication efforts.
It will be a kind of campaign not seen in this country since efforts to wipe out yellow fever in the 1950s and 1960s, and it will take different kinds of equipment, approaches and more staff, CDC officials said.
Local health officials at the summit said the work ahead is daunting, especially since it's not clear where they're going to get the money. And health departments are already struggling financially, said Dr. Jeff Duchin, a Seattle-based county public health official who was at the meeting representing the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
"Our priority is to make sure we have enough resources to meet the threat," Duchin said.
Paul Ettestad, New Mexico's public health veterinarian, said some of the state's counties only have a handful of people doing mosquito control work the same people who also handle snow removal in the winter
"They don't have much," Ettestad said
The Obama administration in February requested nearly $2 billion in emergency funding for Zika response work. Congressional leaders have not formally voted on the request.
One of the things money is needed for, officials said, is better and faster blood tests for Zika. Now, it takes between a few days to a week to get results.
If Zika starts spreading in the U.S, women of childbearing age are going to be "intensely concerned," predicted Dr. Bill Foege, a former CDC director and expert on global health. "They're going to want to know if they are infected and they're not going to want to wait a week."
A cure for HIV and AIDS reportedly could be just a few years away after scientists have been able to successfully snip away the virus from infected cells and prevent the disease from returning.
Scientists at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University are confident that within the next three years they will be able to start human trials, the UK Daily Telegraph reported.
American researchers have previously shown that its possible to edit genes to cut the virus from DNA cells entirely.
British experts believe that this treatment, which has only been tested in labs, would allow the body to effectively cure itself from the inside, the newspaper reported. Human immune cells that were tested in the labs have showed no alteration to any other part of the genetic code.
The fact that for the first time we have been able to completely eliminate segments of the viral genome in the laboratory demonstrates that we should be able to eliminate it in the human body, lead researcher Professor Kamel Khalili told The Telegraph.
He reiterated that based on the recent findings, clinical trials could start within the next three years.
The new technique is called Crispr/Cas9. It involves targeting the genetic code of HIV which inserts into cells, according to The Telegraph. Scientists then take the Cas9 protein and edit it so it can recognize viral code.
The patients blood is then taken and scientists would inject Cas9, which would then seek out the HIV virus in the cells. The protein then releases and enzyme and snips out the virus. Scientists are confident that replacing 20 percent of immune cells with genetically altered cells would be enough to cure the virus.
It is an important step forward. This is part of a wave of research that is being done using these new techniques to attack HIV in particular but also a number of other diseases, Britains Manchester University Professor Matthew Cobb told Radio 4, according to the newspaper.
According to the latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 1.2 million people in the U.S. are living with HIV and about 12.8 percent of them are unaware that they have the virus.
Those infected take an antiretroviral drug to control the infection, but need to take it for the rest of their life. If they stop taking the treatment, the virus could cause AIDS.
Click for more from the UK Daily Telegraph.
Syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer told viewers Friday on Special Report with Bret Baier that President Obamas comments following the nuclear security summit in Washington are evidence the president is divorced from reality, and from the real problems plaguing the world.
The president said that the South Americans are securing their nuclear materials. Id been up late nights unable to sleep thinking about the South American nuclear issue, Krauthammer said. The president is operating in a world that is detached from ours.
Krauthammer ticked off the presidents main accomplishments over the last several months: the Paris climate change conference, the nuclear security summit, and a holiday in Cuba.
Thats it, he said, adding, The world is on fire. Weve got Brussels, Paris, San Bernardino. All over the world, we have a rise of Islamic radicalism, and he is obsessed with these long-term, utopian, as he said, transnational issues that ordinary people do not appreciate.
While Krauthammer said he doesnt object to the national security summit, he called it a failure that the Russians didnt show up at the event.
Three days in which traffic was shut down in Washington is a high price to pay for securing South American nuclear materials, he said.
Maine Gov. Paul LePage is so angry at Democrats for rejecting one of his nominees that he canceled the swearing-in ceremony for a newly elected senator who had driven 75 miles for the event with her brothers and two friends.
The Republican governor on Friday refused to sign a proclamation certifying the result of Tuesday's special election.
Democrat Susan Deschambault, of Biddeford, said she received a message from the governor's staff on Thursday evening to show up at LePage's office at 8:50 a.m. the next day to be sworn in. But when the retired social worker arrived at the Statehouse in Augusta on Friday, a staff member told her that LePage was unable to meet with her.
"I was stunned," said Deschambault, 68. "I kept thinking, 'This ain't right.'"
LePage spokeswoman Adrienne Bennett says the governor canceled the event in response to a party-line vote Thursday in the Legislature's labor committee, which turned down his pick for the unemployment insurance commission. Bennett said Democrats treated the nominee, Steven Webster, "despicably."
Phil Bartlett, chairman of the Maine Democratic Party, said LePage is disregarding the will of voters.
"Once again, the governor decides to throw a temper tantrum and refuse to do his job because he did not get his way," Bartlett said.
Bennett said LePage is not refusing to swear in Deschamault. Maine law gives the governor five business days to certify the results of an election, she said, and LePage doesn't want to "prematurely" cut off the unsuccessful candidate's statutory right to request a recount.
It was not a tight race. Deschambault beat her Republican opponent Stephen Martin by a margin of 16 percentage points.
She later walked into the Senate chambers and sat in the back of the room with other members of the public. Senate President Michael Thibodeau, a Republican, noticed her and announced that "Senator-elect Deschambault" was present. Both Democrats and Republicans rose to their feet and applauded. The meeting came to a halt, and senators from both parties lined up to shake her hand.
"They wanted to let me know I was welcomed," she said.
World leaders declared progress Friday in safeguarding nuclear materials sought by terrorists and wayward nations, even as President Barack Obama acknowledged the task was far from finished.
Closing out a nuclear security summit, Obama warned of a persistent and harrowing threat: terrorists getting their hands on a nuclear bomb. He urged fellow leaders not to be complacent about the risk of catastrophe, saying that such an attack by the Islamic State or a similar group would "change our world."
"I'm the first to acknowledge the great deal of work that remains," Obama said, adding that the vision of disarmament he laid out at the start of his presidency may not be realized during his lifetime. "But we've begun."
Despite their calls for further action, the roughly 50 leaders assembled announced that this year's gathering would be the last of this kind. This year, deep concerns about terrorism were the commanding focus, as leaders grappled with the notion that the next Paris or Brussels could involve an attack with a nuclear weapon or dirty bomb.
Obama said of the terrorists, "There is no doubt that if these madmen ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material they most certainly would use it to kill as many innocent people as possible."
So far, no terrorists have obtained a nuclear weapon or a dirty bomb, Obama said, crediting global efforts to secure nuclear material. But he said it wasn't for lack of the terrorists trying: Al-Qaida has sought nuclear materials, IS has deployed chemical weapons and extremists linked to the Brussels and Paris attacks were found to have spied on a top Belgian nuclear official.
Throughout the two-day summit, growing fears about nuclear terrorism tempered other, more positive signs of the world coming together to confront the broader nuclear threat.
The U.N. Security Council members who brokered a sweeping nuclear deal with Iran held up that agreement as a model for preventing nuclear proliferation, as they gathered on the summit's sidelines to review implementation of the deal.
Obama also spent part of the summit huddling with the leaders of South Korea and Japan about deterring nuclear-tinged provocations from North Korea, in a powerful show of diplomatic unity with two U.S. treaty allies. Similarly, Obama's sit-down with Chinese President Xi Jinping offered the two strategic rivals a chance to illustrate mutual concern about the North, a traditional Chinese ally.
Undeterred, North Korea only hours later fired a short-range missile into the sea and tried to jam GPS navigation signals in South Korea precisely the kind of act that South Korean President Park Geun-hye had warned would trigger even tougher sanctions and more isolation.
Aiming to show concrete action, leaders came to the nuclear summit with commitments in hand, known in diplomatic-speak as "gift baskets."
Latin America and the Caribbean are now free of highly enriched uranium, the White House said, praising Argentina by name for converting its remaining stockpile into a less dangerous form. Fissile materials like highly enriched uranium and separated plutonium are necessary ingredients to make nuclear bombs.
The United States, in newly declassified statistics, said its own national inventory of highly enriched uranium has dropped from 741 metric tons two decades ago to 586 metric tons as of 2013. And the U.S. and Japan announced they'd finished removing hundreds of kilograms of weapons-grade material from a Japanese research reactor, and pledged to do the same at another.
On the global front, a strengthened nuclear security agreement was finally poised to take force, extending safeguards for nuclear materials being used, stored and transported while requiring criminal penalties for nuclear smuggling. Those tweaks were approved in 2005, but have sat dormant awaiting ratification from a critical mass of nations, reached only in the past few days.
Still, frustration over the slow pace of reducing nuclear stockpiles shadowed the summit. The absence of key players especially Russia further underscored the lack of unanimity confronting global efforts to deter nuclear attacks.
After six years of prodding by Obama and others before him, the global stockpile of fissile material remains in the thousands of metric tons. What's more, security officials warn that the ingredients for a "dirty bomb," such as cesium and cobalt, are alarmingly insecure in many parts of the globe.
Ahead of the summit, fewer than half of the countries participating had agreed to secure their sources of radioactive substances, which are widely present in hospital, industrial and academic settings. Obama said as the Islamic State is squeezed in Syria and Iraq, the world must anticipate it will lash out elsewhere, citing recent attacks in Belgium and Turkey as examples.
Obama has held four such summits in hopes of advancing the disarmament goals he set at the start of his presidency, when he declared in Prague that nuclear weapons were "the most dangerous legacy of the Cold War."
"This summit is not the end of our quest to make the world safe from nuclear terrorism," Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the Netherlands said. He said the assembled leaders were passing the baton to international organizations. "Should the need arise, I know that everybody here will be ready to return."
Sen. Ted Cruz is making the case that GOP presidential rival John Kasich and his pesky campaign cannot win the party nomination unless he has top showings in eight states -- an argument that could help Cruz in the upcoming Wisconsin primary and the GOP White House race.
Cruz in recent interviews has repeatedly cited a Republican National Committee rule that states candidates can be nominated only if they've won the total delegate majority in eight or more states, as reported first by The Washington Post.
The Texas senator is trailing front-runner Donald Trump by 273 delegates with about half of the countrys caucus-primary contests remaining.
However, Cruz now leads Trump in the Tuesdays Wisconsin primary, according to most polls. But Kasich, the governor of Ohio who is running a distant third in the GOP White House, could win enough votes to decide the primary and the entire nominating process.
Kasich has won only one contest, his home-state of Ohio, and he has finished in second-place or tied for second in five others.
Trump has 736 pledged delegates, followed by Cruz with 463, then Kasich with 143 -- with 1,237 needed to secure the nomination.
The RNC wrote the rule in 2012 after then-Texas Rep. Ron Paul had nearly enough wins to at least complicate the nomination process for clear front-runner Mitt Romney.
Kasich is now considered the only remaining candidate that the Republican establishment could try to nominate in a contested convention.
Trump and Cruz have in part made their campaigns an indictment of insider Washington and are being called un-electable in a general-election race against Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton.
Cruz on Wednesday told conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt: "It was the Washington establishment that put this rule in place. So now when the Washington establishment candidates are losing, they want to change the rules to try to parachute in some candidate who hasn't earned the votes of the people. That is nothing short of crazy."
Hewitt was following up on Cruzs comments on a CNN Town Hall in which he said Kasich being on the ballot was against the rules and If no one has 1,237 (delegates), you have to have won at least eight states."
Karl Rove, a senior Bush White House adviser, said Thursday on Hewitts show that Cruz has misinterpreted the so-called 40b rule.
Rove acknowledge the rule was indeed written just before the 2012 convention to keep Paul, who has just roughly 5 percent of the vote, from getting a full blown nomination process.
He said the rule states candidates must have that majority of delegates to have an official nominating speech and seconding speeches. However, they can receive votes on the first ballot from the pledged delegates they won in caucuses and primaries.
Republican officials and others have also reportedly said new rules could be written before this years convention in July.
French President Francois Hollandes comments this week in Washington about Islamic terrorism -- a term President Obama wont use -- were omitted from an official White House video.
Holland made the comments at an international summit in Washington on nuclear security that also focused largely on global terrorism.
We are also making sure that between Europe and the United States there can be a very high level coordination. But were also well aware that the roots of terrorism, Islamist terrorism, is in Syria and in Iraq. We therefore have to act both in Syria and in Iraq, and this is what were doing within the framework of the coalition. Hollande said following a meeting at the summit between his and Obamas top officials.
However, an audio gap occurs in the original White House video where the French-to-English translator would have said: Islamist terrorism, is in Syria and in Iraq. We therefore have to act both in Syria and in Iraq, and this is what were doing within the framework of the coalition.
The gap was reported first by the Media Research Center, a conservative-leaning government watchdog group.
Republicans and others have been highly critical of Obama, and Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton, for not saying the words Islamic terrorism when talking about the Islamic State terror group, which has claimed responsibility for the recent, deadly bombing attacks in Paris and Brussels.
For seven years, President Obama, and Hillary Clinton and this administration have been sound bound up by political correctness that they have refused to acknowledge what is it is we are fighting, refused to even name it, GOP presidential candidate Texas Sen. Ted Cruz told FoxNew on Sunday.
After every one of these attacks, the president does a national TV conference where he refuses to say the words radical Islamic terrorism. Instead he lectures Americans on Islamophobia. Well, enough is enough.
The White House told several news outlets on Friday the audio gap was the result of a "technical issue" not an attempt to scrub or censor Hollandes comments and that an updated video with the complete audio was posted on WhiteHouse.gov soon after the problem was recognized.
Officials also said the official transcript posted on the website always included the dropped sentences.
Obama has said that he will not use the words radical Islamic terrorists because they legitimize the efforts of the Islamic State, to which he refers as ISIL.
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin went to bat for Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump at the Milwaukee County GOP dinner Friday night.
Palin called on Republicans to unify behind Trumps candidacy. She said hes the only candidate who understands that common sense is an endangered species in Washington. She also touted Trump as the only candidate who has created private-sector jobs, saying He builds big things.
"Donald Trump is the only one who really understands this reality. He's the only one who creates private sector jobs, balances budgets and builds things, he builds big things," she said.
Trump didnt attend the dinner.
Palin also attacked the other Republican candidates on their immigration policies at the dinner. She accused Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Ohio Gov. John Kasich of seducing (illegal immigrants) with gift baskets.
There were also some chuckles in the crowd when Palin said Trump is the only one who "talks rationally" about foreign policy and national security.
Cruz received high praise at the dinner from Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. He endorsed Cruz Monday and called the senator a rock star before Cruz took the stage. Walker is also planning to join Cruz on the campaign trail in Wisconsin Sunday.
Cruz noted that Walker is one of five former Republican presidential candidates who are now backing his campaign. The others are Rick Perry, Carly Fiorina, Jeb Bush and Lindsey Graham.
"That is the very real manifestation of the unity we need across this country," he said. "If we are divided, we will lose the primary and hand the general election to Hillary Clinton."
Cruz said nominating Trump would be a "train wreck."
"That's actually not fair to train wrecks," Cruz said. "Nominating Donald Trump elects Hillary Clinton."
In his speech at the same event, Kasich cast himself as an independent-minded Republican, saying he understands the frustration felt by Trump backers.
"The Republican Party has been my vehicle and not my master," Kasich said. "I've never wanted to be a professional politician in fact, I don't even like politics."
Kasich, whose only primary victory has come in his home state of Ohio, is hoping to survive the primary season and win the nomination at the GOP convention in Cleveland in July.
"We are going to have a contested convention," said former four-term Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson when he introduced Kasich, noting that Abraham Lincoln won the nomination 156 years ago going into the convention as the underdog.
The anti-Trump forces have been working to stop the billionaire businessman in Wisconsin, a state that will help determine whether he can emerge from the primaries with enough delegates to avoid a contested convention. Wisconsin awards 18 delegates to the statewide winner, and divides 24 delegates among the winner in each eight congressional districts.
If Cruz sweeps all the delegates in Wisconsin, Trump will need to win 57 percent of the remaining delegates in other states to collect the 1,237 he needs to clinch the nomination. So far, he has won 48 percent of all delegates awarded.
In the latest Fox Business Poll, Cruz holds a 10-point lead over Trump in Wisconsin.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz took different approaches Saturday toward winning the GOP president nomination but stuck with the personal attacks in an effort to discredit each others campaign.
Such deception and such lying, the front-running Trump said about Cruz, at a rally in Racine, Wis., after one of the worst weeks of his campaign.
The Texas senator was, meanwhile, taking a quick detour from Wisconsin to make an appearance at North Dakota's Republican convention, where presidential delegates are being picked.
Convention-goers are scheduled to select 25 of their 28 national delegates on Sunday. North Dakota isn't holding a primary or caucus in the 2016 Republican race.
Still, before leaving Wisconsin, which holds its primary Tuesday, Cruz said Friday that making Trump the GOP nominee would be a train wreck.
Trump and Cruz are in a close race in Wisconsin, with Ohio Gov. John Kasich running third, according to most polls.
Trump and Kasich sent supporters to North Dakota on their behalf to make the case that they should be backed by the states delegates at the Cleveland convention in July.
Cruz earned an ovation in North Dakota when he said the state has become "a powerful energy haven" and that he would keep the federal government "the heck out of the way."
The outcome in Wisconsin could help determine whether Trump can seize the Republican nomination without a fight at the party's convention this summer.
Trump says his wife, Melania, is going to be joining him Monday at campaign events.
In Racine, Trump began the afternoon by defended a series of controversial comments in recent days on NATO, abortion and his remark that Japan and South Korea should perhaps be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons.
"This politics is a tough business because you can say things one way and the press will criticize you horribly, he said. You say it another way and the press will criticize you horribly."
Among his biggest missteps have been Trump's recent comments on abortion, which have managed to unite both abortion rights activists and opponents in their criticism.
During a taping of "Face the Nation" on Friday, Trump said he believed that, when it comes to abortion: "The laws are set. And I think we have to leave it that way." His spokeswoman, Hope Hicks, quickly issued a clarification that Trump meant that laws won't change until he's president and appoints judges who can interpret them differently.
It was the second time in days that he'd stepped in hot water over the issue. On Wednesday, he'd said women should be punished for getting abortions if they're ever banned -- a position the notoriously unapologetic campaign quickly reversed.
Trump told the audience on Saturday that his words had been repeatedly taken out of context, and complained that he was being held to a different standard than his rivals. He called his comments on "Face the Nation" "perfect" and "so good."
"They took words out that I said," Trump told the rally, implying CBS had edited his answer about keeping abortion laws as they are. But the video made clear there was no editing in the exchange about abortion and his response was given in full.
"It's a tough question," he added of abortion. "You know, 50 percent of the people hate you. Fifty percent of the people love you, very simple."
Trump's comments raised concerns in the Republican Party about whether his unpopularity with women as measured in preference polling would make him unelectable in a general election match-up against Democrat Hillary Clinton.
In an apparent effort to address that concern, Trump is bringing his wife on the campaign trail. His daughter Ivanka, who just had a baby, will also be returning to campaign with him in another week or so, he said.
Trump responded at length to criticism from both of his rivals as well as from President Obama over his call to consider allowing South Korea and Japan to acquire nuclear weapons -- a position the president said betrayed an ignorance of foreign policy and the world.
"Now I didn't say anything about letting Japan nuke," Trump said. "But I did say, perhaps if we can't do the right deal, we'll have to let them take care of themselves."
Trump said, "if that means they'll have to someday get nuclear weapons, in all fairness folks, I know the way life works, eventually they're going to probably want to do it anyway." And he later claimed that his much-panned assertion that NATO was irrelevant was suddenly being embraced by people who had "studied the organization for 30 years."
Trump said he was popular in some areas of Wisconsin but "in certain areas, the city areas, I'm not doing well. And I'm not doing well because nobody knows my message."
He said people were given misinformation, and partly blamed "crazy talk show hosts" including Charlie Sykes, with whom he had a contentious radio interview.
But Trump said he's hoping he'll be able to win some of those skeptics over as he campaigns across the Wisconsin -- and went so far to predict, in an afternoon rally in Wausau, that he would win the state.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
In a bold vow to hunt down one of the most wanted men on the planet, the spokesman for U.S. forces in Iraq told the Islamic State terror group's chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi his days as a free man were numbered.
I hope that al-Baghdadi watches these press conferences because I want him to know that we are hunting him and we will find him just like we found his mentor Zarqawi and killed him. Just like we found the grand master of terrorism Usama bin Laden, we killed him," Col. Steve Warren told reporters.
"We are going to find Baghdadi, and he will taste justice. I dont know if that justice will look like a hellfire missile or if it will look like a dark prison cell somewhere but he will find justice one day."
A U.S. airstrike in Iraq killed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in 2006, five years before a U.S. raid killed Usama Bin Laden in Pakistan. Analysts say Zarqawi led the Al Qaeda faction that would ultimately become known as ISIS.
Warren says he believes Baghdadi is alive and continues to move between Iraq and Syria. This is a terrorist that should not sleep well ever, Warren added.
A long awaited program to train dozens of Syrian fighters has also started, following the Pentagon's failed train and equip program last fall. Gen. Lloyd Austin, commander of U.S. Central Command, told Capitol Hill lawmakers in September that only four or five U.S. military-trained fighters remained in the battle against ISIS in Syria.
Fox News' Lucas Tomlinson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Egypt's new antiquities minister, Khaled El Anany, sounded caution this morning at a press conference in Luxor over the claim that Tutankhamun's tomb holds two hidden chambers.
Egyptologist Nicholas Reeves, of the Amarna Royal Tombs Project, had proposed that two hidden chambers were lurking in the tomb of Tutankhamun and that the hidden rooms may hold the tomb of Queen Nefertiti, the stepmom of King Tutankhamun.
Radar scans conducted last year by Japanese radar technologist Hirokatsu Watanabe supposedly supported this idea. On March 17, Egypt's ministry of antiquities, led at the time by Mamdouh El-Damaty, stated that Watanabe's scans "suggest the presence of two empty spaces or cavities beyond the decorated north and west walls of the burial chamber," as well as the "presence of metallic and organic substances."
The radar scans also showed what could be door lintels that indicate the presence of doorways, the antiquities minster said at the time in a statement to media. [See Photos of King Tut's Burial and Radar Scans]
However, radar experts not affiliated with the project disputed the results of those scans. These experts noted that the sediment layers at the Valley of the Kings, where King Tut's tomb is located, contain natural voids and rock inclusions that make it difficult for radar to distinguish between archaeological remains and natural phenomena.
Over the past two weeks, the antiquities minister at the time, ?El-Damaty, along with Egypt's minister of tourism, Hisham Zazou, were replaced in a cabinet shuffle. Yesterday, a team supported by the National Geographic Society conducted new radar scans. Those scans are being processed and analyzed; however, the new antiquities minister El Anany sounded a note of caution at today's press conference.
"We are not looking for hidden chambers but for the reality of the truth," El-Anany said. "We are very keen to follow the scientific procedures," he said, adding that more radar work would be performed in late April, followed by an international conference in May in which experts would review the results. Egypt's former antiquities minister, El-Damaty, was also at today's press conference and said that while the two cavities could exist, "we have to be sure 100 percent."
Even so, the Egypt's antiquities ministry said in a statement that "the preliminary results [of yesterday's scans] reached so far do not contradict with the results of the previous radar scans."
Reeves also said that the two cavities, possibly holding a tomb, could still exist.
No new radar images were released to media.
Third set of scans
For the next scan, scheduled for the end of April, another team of scientists will use a different radar-scanning method on King Tut's tomb. In the previous two scans, scientists tried to peer behind the walls of the Tutankhamun burial chamber. The new scans will take place in the hills above Tutankhamun's tomb, using radar equipment that can peer 40 meters (130 feet) below the ground to see if hidden chambers exist.
The international conference to review the results will be held in the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo, El Anany said. There, experts will discuss whether the two chambers exist, and if so, what could be in them and what would be the best way to access them. Scientists will not use any methods that could damage the artwork in Tutankhamun's tomb, El Anany said.
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The Facebook account of a man accused of killing a Delaware bar patron and wounding another was suspended after comments were posted under the suspects name, including that justice will be served and the whole truth will come out.
Police said they were aware of the social media posts under the name of the suspect, Tyerin Griffin, 35, the Wilmington News Journal reported Saturday.
We are actively looking for the suspect, a police spokesman told the paper. We are conducting a very careful and comprehensive investigation with our end goal is to safely arrest the suspect and to stop any retaliation and any continued threats.
An arrest warrant accuses Griffin of shooting two people inside the Shades of Blue Bar and Lounge early Friday.
Police said one of the victims was flown to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. State Police say the second man was also taken to a hospital where he is being treated for his injuries.
Police said he has ties to Wilmington and Philadelphia.
A lot of yall think yall know the story but dont, the post on Griffins Facebook account says, according to the News Journal.
Alot of yall knew what was going on but made no attempt to intervien, the post goes on to say. All of yall a sitting and watching my family, daughter, mother, girlfriend, sisters lives and friends life get threaten but once again yall don't are not doing anything about that.
The author of the post claims he will surrender to police but only after he is assured that everyone in his life is protected, the paper reported.
Authorities say a mother who was under the influence of a mixture of drugs has been charged with causing her 6-month-old daughter's death.
Forty-one-year-old Danielle Lefay, of Endicott, New York, was arraigned Friday in Broome County Court on second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide charges.
Authorities say Lefay suffocated her daughter after rolling on top of the baby while sleeping next to her on an air mattress in January 2015. Investigators say Lefay had taken a mixture of both prescription and non-prescription medications, along with marijuana, before going to sleep that night.
The Press & Sun-Bulletin of Binghamton reports the child was found unresponsive the next morning and taken to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Lefay is being held on $50,000 cash bail or $100,000 bond.
A New Jersey woman accused of fatally stabbing her boyfriend during a dispute over their Xbox console has pleaded not guilty to reckless manslaughter and weapons charges.
Authorities have said Aisha Barr stabbed 26-year-old Christopher Greene at their Newark home last May. They say the couple was arguing over an Xbox when the dispute turned physical.
Authorities say the 29-year-old Barr grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed Greene in the chest. He was taken to a hospital, where he died a short time later.
Specific details about the dispute have not been disclosed.
Barr was indicted on the charges last month. She entered her pleas on Monday during an arraignment hearing and remains jailed on $250,000 bail. She's due to return to court next month for another hearing.
A terminally-ill cattle dog from Australia, whose owners created a long bucket list for their beloved pet, completed his final goal following his death this week, 9NewsAU reported.
Buddy, a six-year-old cattle dog recently diagnosed with severe lymphoma completed 48 out of 49 items on the famous bucket list his owners created for him before he died.
Upon hearing from the veterinarian that Buddy had the terminal cancer and given four weeks to live, owner Emily Mochan of Australia compiled a bucket list for the ailing dog she had owned for four years.
Some of the goals included meeting a celebrity, paw-paint a canvas picture, get his very own order at a fast-food establishment, ride in a limousine and even be the guest of honor at an event.
But before Buddy could complete the 49th item on the list, he succumbed to his illness and passed away this week.
Although it breaks my heart, Im glad to say he was laid to rest yesterday morning at 10 a.m. before he really started suffering, Mochan wrote on Facebook, adding that he passed away peacefully.
After his death, his 49th bucket list wish was finally realized. Mochan donated all of the money she and Buddy raised to the RSPCA.
Even though hes not here with others, hes still helping others, she told the news outlet.
At the time of his passing, the Buddys Bucket List Facebook page had more than 13,000 followers.
Click for more from 9NewsAU.
Since 1994, Nagorno-Karabakh, where heavy fighting between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces erupted Saturday, has existed in a tense limbo.
This mountainous region of Azerbaijan, with about 150,00 residents in an area of 12,000 square kilometers (4,400 square miles) somewhat smaller than the U.S. state of Connecticut has been under the control of local ethnic Armenian forces and the Armenian military since the end of a full-scale war that killed about 30,000 and displaced an estimated 1 million.
Long-simmering tensions between Christian Armenians and mostly Muslim Azeris began boiling over as the Soviet Union frayed in its final years. Once the Soviet Union collapsed and the republics became independent nations, war broke out.
A 1994 cease-fire left Armenian and Azerbaijani forces facing each other across a demilitarized zone, where clashes were frequently reported. International mediation efforts to determine the region's final status have brought little visible progress. The unresolved conflict has been an economic blow to Armenia because Turkey has closed its border with Armenia, leaving the country with open borders only with Georgia and Iran.
Britain Prime Minister David Cameron warned Western leaders Friday the Islamic State plans to use drones to spray nuclear material over Western cities.
The UK Daily Telegraph reported that there is growing concerns among world leaders that extremists are looking to buy commercial drones to launch a dirty bomb attack over major metropolitan cities, which could kill thousands.
Cameron warned the dangers of ISIS getting hold of nuclear material were only too real. He met with leaders from the U.S. , France and China to plan out a reaction response to such an attack, the newspaper reported.
US officials reportedly fear that extremists could steal radioactive material from a medical facility and sold through the dark web. Cameron said he would deploy counterterrorism police and the UK Border Force while British leaders hold a Cobra meeting.
We have already seen (ISIS) trying to look at whether they can get their hands on low-level crop-using-type drones, one British official told The Telegraph.
The Islamic State is believed to have seized about 90 pounds of low-grade uranium from Mosul University in Iraq after capturing the city in 2014. However, it might cause more panic than actual harm. Cameron told reporters at the nuclear summit in Washington that concerns of a nuclear attack were real.
So many summits are about dealing with things that have already gone wrong. This is a summit about something we are trying to prevent, Cameron added.
Cameron said at the summit that Britain plans to hire 1,000 more armed police and deploy counterterrorism units in cities outside London to help counter any possible attack.
Click for more from the UK Daily Telegraph.
Muslim teacher Salah Farah stood in the way as Islamist militants stormed his bus in Kenya in December -- refusing their demands to split from Christian passengers and instead taking a bullet that would later kill him.
Now, three months after the attack, the father of five will be honored posthumously by Kenya for his act of courage, the country's president announced this week.
President Uhuru Kenyatta told parliament during his state of the union address Thursday that he is awarding the Order Of The Grand Warrior -- one of the country's highest honors -- to Farah, according to multiple media reports.
Farah and about 60 other passengers were traveling from the capital, Nairobi, to the town of Mandera, on Dec. 21 when Somalia-based al-Shabab militants began firing shots at the bus.
The gunmen forced the bus to stop and told the Muslims and Christian passengers to separate. Farah, who was the deputy head of the Mandera township primary school, and other Muslim passengers refused to cooperate -- instead telling the insurgents to kill all the passengers or leave them alone. Al-Shabab militants have been known to execute Christians and spare Muslims in previous attacks in the region.
Farah, who was shot in the hip and suffered shrapnel wounds to his arm, died during surgery one month later. Prior to his death, Farah told Kenya's The Daily Nation that, "We asked them to kill all of us or leave us alone."
"People should live peacefully together, Farrah told Voice of America from his hospital bed in January.
We are brothers. It's only the religion that is the difference, so I ask my brother Muslims to take care of the Christians so that the Christians also take care of us. and let us help one another and let us live together peacefully," Farah said.
On Thursday, Kenyatta lauded Farah, telling parliament that the Muslim man "refused to be divided by terrorism," BBC News reported.
"We are our brother's keeper. I salute Salah Farah, (the) Muslim teacher who died protecting Christians in Al-Shabaab attack," Kenyatta said, according to The Daily Nation.
Farah's brother, Rasheed, told the news outlet that the Kenyan president called the family on Thursday and asked about Farah's five children.
"The President himself called us Thursday at noon. He asked about Salah's five children and told me 'usijali (don't worry) we shall take care of them.' He also spoke to his wife and other family members," he told the Daily Nation.
"He (the President) vowed to visit Mandera to visit the children, saying they won't be forgotten. We are very happy we have not been forgotten. We are one people," he said.
Immediately following Farah's death, Kenyans took to social media to praise him, saying his example should be emulated in a country facing a growing threat of Islamic extremism as Kenyans with ties to al-Shabab launch attacks in this country.
In 2011, Kenya's government deployed peacekeepers to Somalia in part to stop al-Shabab members from crossing the border and launching attacks on Kenyan territory. Al-Shabab opposed the deployment and vowed to wage more attacks.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A partial, symbolic airline service will begin Sunday at Brussels Airport after a 12-day shutdown of passenger service caused by a deadly bombing attack, the airport's chief executive said Saturday.
Arnaud Feist, CEO of Brussels Airport Co., said the Brussels Airlines flights to Athens, Turin in Italy and Faro in Portugal, the first of which he said should take off around 2 p.m. local time were chiefly symbolic.
Effective Monday, Belgium's biggest airport should be back at around 20 percent of capacity and able to process 800 passengers an hour.
It has been closed since devastating suicide bombings in the airport's main terminal and a Brussels subway train killed 32 people and wounded 270 on March 22.
Speaking at a joint news conference, Feist called it "a sign of hope" and a demonstration of "shared will" that even partial passenger service could resume so soon following what he called "the darkest days in the history of aviation in Belgium."
He said he was expecting the formal go-ahead from the Belgian government later Saturday.
The March 22 attacks, in which three suicide bombers also died, were claimed by the Islamic State group. To minimize the chances of a repeat, Belgian Federal Police spokesman Michael Jonniaux said new security measures have been ordered at the airport, including spot checks of vehicles before they arrive, the closing of a drop-off parking area outside the terminal, and the screening of all people, their ID and travel documents and baggage before they are allowed to enter the facility.
The bombers had been able to enter the airport's check-in area with suitcases packed with high explosives and nails, and the resulting blasts collapsed the ceiling, shattered windows and caused great damage.
Until the terminal can be fully repaired, Feist said departing passengers will first enter a temporary structure erected on the tarmac, then go to a specially built area for check-in.
There will be no access by rail or public transport to the airport for the foreseeable future, he said.
Brussels Airport, which usually handled about 600 flights a day, served about 1.5 million people in February, the month preceding the attack. Feist said he hopes full service can be restored by the end of June or beginning of July in time for the summer vacation season.
Tens of thousands of trapped Iraqi civilians have stalled the government's advance in the battle against the Islamic State group in the western Anbar province, the spokesman for Iraq's elite counterterrorism said Friday.
The civilians are trapped between the Iraqi forces' lines and the IS extremists hunkered down in the center of the town of Hit, 85 miles west of Baghdad, the official told The Associated Press.
Meanwhile, IS claimed responsibility for two suicide car bombings that killed 11 security forces late Thursday night southeast of the city of Mosul, which is controlled by IS.
Early Thursday morning, Iraqi forces re-launched an offensive on Hit under cover of heavy U.S.-led coalition airstrikes, said the counterterrorism chief, Sabah al-Numan. Over the past week the coalition launched 17 airstrikes in and around Hit, according to Pentagon statements.
The town lies along an IS supply line linking the extremist group's fighters in Iraq and those in neighboring Syria. Iraqi commanders have said that retaking the town would be key to building on their momentum after retaking the Anbar provincial capital of Ramadi earlier this year and linking up government forces to the west and the north of Baghdad in preparation for an eventual push on Mosul.
The counterterrorism forces, which are leading the Hit operation, reached within 1.8 miles of Hit center Thursday before being forced to stop, al-Numan said.
"The commanders are making a plan to evacuate these families," al-Numan said, Iraqi forces dropped leaflets over Hit, telling civilians which roads they can take to flee safely.
Iraqi forces encountered similar problems in the battle for Ramadi earlier this year as government forces advanced across downtown Ramadi, IS pulled back and took civilians captive, significantly slowing the advance of ground troops. While downtown Ramadi was declared under government control in December 2015, it wasn't until two months later that Iraqi and coalition forces said the rest of the city was "fully liberated."
One of the IS car bombings southeast of Mosul killed eight Iraqi Kurdish fighters while the other targeted an Iraqi police station in the same area, killing three policemen.
Iraq's military is conducting what the U.S.-led coalition describes as "shaping" operations ahead of a planned Mosul offensive. Iraqi forces have pushed IS out of a number of villages around Makhmour base where a U.S. Marine was killed during an IS attack last month.
On Wednesday, Iraqi forces celebrated as they took the Anbar provincial town of Kubaisa from IS.
Makhmour base and other front-line Iraqi positions southwest of Mosul have increasingly come under attack from IS in recent weeks as Iraqi troops built up in the area.
After storming across Iraq in the summer of 2014 and overrunning Mosul, the Islamic State group still controls large swaths of territory in the country's north and west.
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Always Best Care of San Diego Announces Home Health Care Services
San Diego, CA - March 15, 2016 - (PR.com) - Bill Mathis, owner of Always Best Care Senior Services of San Diego, is excited to inform the public about skilled home health care services offered by ABC. Always Best Care, which serves the needs of seniors in San Diego County, including the communities of San Diego, Escondido, Chula Vista, La Jolla, Poway, and surrounding areas, has been offering services for in-home care since 1996, with its San Diego location providing care and comfort to the elderly in the region since 2007. Always Best Care of San Diego understands the changes that have happened in recent years to the healthcare system, as well as the ways in which seniors prefer to live. With its skilled home health care services, the company is able to provide the most comprehensive care available to aging individuals in the San Diego area.
Always Best Care of San Diego is staffed by caregivers who provide companionship and assistance to seniors in their homes, but the company also offers skilled in-home health care services to assist elderly individuals who require expert medical care. These days, seniors prefer to remain at home instead of spending precious time inside hospitals, clinics and other facilities. Thanks to the abilities of its highly trained caregivers, Always Best Care of San Diego makes it possible for seniors to receive the care they require from the comfort of their own homes.
My wife Diane and I opened the Always Best Care San Diego office with a vision of becoming the best provider of senior care services in San Diego, not the biggest provider. We aim to always meet and exceed the needs and expectations of our clients, families, and the senior care professionals we serve. Going the extra mile is not just what we do, its who we are. - Bill Mathis, Owner, Always Best Care Senior Services of San Diego
Key Facts:
Skilled Home Health Care enables seniors discharging from Acute Care Hospitals and Skilled Nursing Rehabilitation Centers to return home with more reassurance
Changes in the current healthcare climate, along with revisions in Medicare and HMO standards, mean that hospital and rehabilitation center stays are becoming increasingly shorter
Skilled clinicians, including; Dedicated RNs and Social Workers (MSWs) along with Physical, Speech, and Occupational Therapists follow clients discharging from Acute and rehabilitation stays to assist in the road to recovery
Skilled Home Health aims to reduce hospital visits and increase safety standards and clinical oversight for homebound discharges
Skilled Home Care is covered through seniors' Medicare, HMO, PPO and even Medi-Cal insurances
Seniors do not need to have recent hospital stay to qualify, only a physicians order
Seniors, families, and healthcare professionals requiring assistance with skilled Home Health Care, private home care and senior living community placement can call Always Best Care San Diego at 888-681-1559, or visit online at www.alwaysbestcaresandiego.com. Inquiries can also be sent via email to cmathis@abc-seniors.com.
About Always Best Care
Founded in 1996, Always Best Care Senior Services is based on the belief that having the right people for the right level of care means peace of mind for the client and family. Always Best Care assists seniors with a wide range of illnesses and personal needs, and currently provides more than 4 million hours of care every year. Franchise opportunities are available to individuals interested in leveraging the companys clear strategy and proven track record for delivering affordable, dependable service to seniors in their local areas.
By working with case managers, social workers, discharge planners, doctors, and families, Always Best Care franchise owners provide affordable, comprehensive solutions that can be specifically matched to meet a clients particular physical or social needs. The hallmark services of the Always Best Care business portfolio include non-medical in-home care and assisted living finder and referral services, with skilled home health care now being phased in throughout the country. For more information, visit www.AlwaysBestCare.com. For franchise opportunities, visit www.FranchiseWithAlwaysBestCare.com.
Always Best Care also offers Free ABC Rx cards, which provide discounts of up to 65 percent off the cost of prescription drugs at more than 59,000 pharmacies across the USA, and have saved consumers more than $500,000 since its inception. This service is offered at no cost to the users, there are no deductibles, no waiting periods, no pre-existing exclusions, and no eligibility requirements -- everyone can use the card (even family members and pets). The Free ABC Rx card covers many medications that Medicare Part D and regular insurance often do not. To download a free card, visit www.FreeABCRx.com.
Another exclusive program offered by Always Best Care is Always in Touch, a telephone reassurance program that provides a daily phone call to seniors and disabled adults who are living alone and have limited contact with the outside world. Always in Touch is the only absolutely free national telephone reassurance program of its kind anywhere in the USA and Canada. For more information on Always in Touch, or to request an application, visit www.Always-in-Touch.com.
SOURCE Always Best Care
Contact:
Bill Mathis
Always Best Care of San Diego
(619) 757-1114
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Jersey Mike's Subs Opens First Vestavia Hills Location
Owner Celebrates With Free Sub Fundraiser
March 15, 2016 // Franchising.com // Vestavia Hills, AL - Jersey Mikes Subs, known for its fresh sliced/fresh grilled subs, opened in Vestavia Hills on March 9. Franchise owner Patrick Decker held a grand opening and free sub fundraiser from Wednesday, March 9 to Sunday, March 6 to support The Alabama Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorder at Childrens of Alabama.
The new restaurant, located at 1031 Montgomery Hwy, circulated 5,000 coupons throughout the community offering a free regular sub for a minimum $2 donation to The Alabama Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorder at Childrens of Alabama.
We have the opportunity to open our newest location in Vestavia Hills during our annual Month of Giving, said Decker. We decided to take this opportunity to celebrate our month-long charity partner during our grand opening. Childrens helps so many families in the area and we are so grateful to be one of their supporters. We look forward to welcoming you opening day and cannot wait to share the final donation amount raised at the end of the month.
All March long, franchisees throughout the nation are celebrating the 6th Annual Jersey Mikes Month of Giving. The campaign will culminate in the nationwide event, Jersey Mikes Day of Giving on Wednesday, March 30, when 100 percent of the days sales every single dollar is donated to the local partner charity. Last year, $3 million was raised for 150 different charities nationwide.
Decker is an exemplary Jersey Mikes franchise owner who shares the companys commitment to quality products and exceptional customer service, and who is dedicated to giving back to the local community. Since 2010, Jersey Mikes locations throughout the country have raised nearly $14 million for worthy local charities and have distributed more than 1.5 million free sub sandwiches to help numerous causes.
About Jersey Mikes
Started in 1956, Jersey Mikes now has 1,500 restaurants open and under development nationwide. In 2015, for the second year in a row, the company was named the #1 fastest growing chain in the Nations Restaurant News Top 100, and continues to win best sub awards in virtually every market it enters.
The growth is fueled by passionate Jersey Mikes fans who crave their subs made Mikes Way with the freshest vegetables onions, lettuce and tomatoes topped off with an exquisite zing of the juice red wine vinegar and olive oil blended to perfection. Jersey Mikes premium meats and cheeses are sliced on the spot, piled high on in-store baked bread and served up with a helping of neighborly banter from a dedicated and high-energy team.
The restaurants hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week. You can contact this location directly at (205) 978-9600.
SOURCE Jersey Mikes
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RICHMOND The Latest on the fatal shooting of a state trooper and gunman at a busy Virginia bus station (all times local):
5:15 p.m.
A woman who dated the Virginia bus station gunman says he frequently expressed his hatred toward police and once nearly choked her to death years after she broke up with him.
A former girlfriend of James Brown III spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because she said she fears for her safety.
Court records show that a judge granted a protection order against Brown in 2011 by his ex-girlfriend's request. Brown pleaded guilty in 2012 to domestic battery and aggravated battery of pregnant woman. He was released from prison in March 2014.
Authorities said Brown shot Virginia state trooper Chad Dermyer at a Richmond bus station Thursday before being killed by two other troopers.
4:15 p.m.
Authorities say the gunman who opened fire in a bus station and killed a state trooper was an ex-con who had more than 140 rounds of ammunition with him.
State police superintendent Steven Flaherty said Friday that there were more than a dozen state troopers, special agents and supervisors going through a counterterrorism training exercise in a bus station when James Brown III killed a state trooper within seconds. The police superintendent says surveillance footage from the bus station helped authorities piece together what happened moments before the shooting. Brown was at the bus station at a stopover on his way to Chicago.
He was seated in a restaurant at the terminal and then walked toward his bags near the front entrance. He encountered Trooper Chad P. Dermyer, who may have made some small talk with Brown. Brown pulled a handgun and started firing just inches from the trooper's chest.
The police superintendent said he wasn't sure why Brown started shooting. He said the gun was legally purchased more than a year ago, but not by Brown.
Two troopers also in the training exercise fatally shot Brown. Two other women were also injured.
3:00 p.m.
The Virginia State Police trooper who was fatally shot at a Richmond bus station discovered a dead body in the trunk of a women's car last year, making one of the most high-profile arrests in recent years.
Virginia State Police say 37-year-old Trooper Chad P. Dermyer died Thursday after being shot multiple times. Last year, Dermyer pulled over Tonya M. Slaton on Interstate 64 because her license plates were expired. Dermyer eventually searched the car and authorities say he found the remains of Slaton's son, who had been missing for a decade.
Slaton has since been charged with murder.
Dermyer's former partner, Cyndi Grace, said the Slaton traffic stop highlighted Dermyer's skill as a meticulous and thorough police officer.
2:30 p.m.
A Binghamton University official says the student who was injured during a shooting at a Virginia bus station has been released from the hospital.
Spokesman Ryan Yarosh said the woman was released Friday. The school said the student was a member of the track team and was traveling to William & Mary for a meet when the shooting occurred.
Police say James Brown of Aurora, Illinois, shot Trooper Chad P. Dermyer several times at the Greyhound bus station Thursday before Brown was killed by two other troopers.
Officials have not released the names of the student or the woman who was injured. Police have not said how the two women were injured.
1:45 p.m. The man who police say fatally shot a Virginia state trooper at a Richmond bus station had a lengthy criminal record in Illinois. Court records show 34-year-old James Brown III of Aurora was charged with attempted murder in 2001 before pleading guilty to lesser charges. He was sentenced to four years in prison, with credit for time served. In 2006, Brown was charged with unlawfully possessing a weapon and body armor as a felon and drug charges. Court records show he pleaded guilty to cocaine possession and the other charges were dropped. He was sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison. Records show that Brown pleaded guilty in 2012 to domestic battery and aggravated battery of a pregnant woman. He was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison. Police say Brown shot Trooper Chad P. Dermyer several times at the Greyhound bus station Thursday before Brown was killed by two other troopers. 11:40 a.m. Greyhound says its Richmond bus station will soon reopen after a police say a gunman fatally shot a trooper before he was killed. A company spokeswoman said the bus terminal will reopen at 1 p.m. Friday and service will resume at 2 p.m. Police say 34-year-old James Brown III of Aurora, Ill fatally shot Trooper Chad P. Dermyer several times at the station Thursday before Brown was killed by two other troopers. Police have not said what they believe motivated the shooting.
11:00 a.m.
Authorities have identified an Illinois man as the gunman who fatally shot a Virginia state trooper at a bus station in Richmond.
State Police identified the man Friday as 34-year-old James Brown III of Aurora, Ill.
Police say Brown shot Trooper Chad P. Dermyer several times at the Greyhound bus station Thursday before Brown was killed by two other troopers.
Police have not said what motivated the shooting.
Authorities say two women were also injured in the shooting but are expected to recover.
One of them is a member of the Bingham University track team who was heading to a meet at William & Mary.
___
10:50 a.m.
A prayer vigil is being organized for a Virginia State trooper who was fatally shot a busy bus terminal in Richmond.
Organizers say a vigil for Trooper Chad P. Dermyer will be held at 6:30 p.m. Friday across from the Greyhound Bus terminal where the shooting occurred Thursday.
Charles Willis is executive director of United Communities Against Crime, a Richmond-based group that advocates for anti-violence initiatives and is helping to organize the vigil.
Willis said he expects several hundred people to come out. He said the trooper's death has "touched so many folks."
People are being asked to wear navy blue and to bring a single blue or white rose.
Police say two women were also injured in the shooting.
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9:50 a.m.
The Virginia State Police trooper who was fatally shot at a Richmond bus station is being remembered by a family whose dog the trooper recently saved.
Virginia State Police say 37-year-old Trooper Chad P. Dermyer died Thursday after being shot multiple times.
Earlier this year, Dermyer and another trooper became a mini-viral sensation after they rescued a miniature schnauzer named Pinta that was dodging cars on I-644 and I-64 in Hampton. The rescue was highlighted on Hampton's WVEC TV station and received attention on social media.
Jeffrey Corbin, Pinta's owner, said he briefly met Dermyer when he returned the dog. Corbin said he previously perceived state troopers as having little personality and being "all business" but said Dermyer had a "warm persona about him."
___
9:20 a.m.
A Binghamton University official says one of two women injured in a shooting at a busy bus terminal in Virginia is a member of the school's track team.
Ryan Yarosh, a spokesman for the school in New York, said Friday that the team was on its way to a meet at the College of William & Mary when the shooting occurred at the Greyhound station Thursday. He says the woman's injuries are non-life threatening.
Yarosh says school officials have been in touch with the woman's parents and have arranged for counselors to be available for students.
Yarosh said he couldn't disclose her name.
State Trooper Chad Dermyer was fatally shot at the bus station while conducting a training exercise. Authorities have said another civilian woman also was injured and is expected to recover.
___
9:15 a.m.
A Virginia state trooper who was fatally shot at a busy bus terminal in the capital city of Richmond is being mourned in Michigan, where he grew up and formerly served as a police officer.
Virginia State Police say 37-year-old Trooper Chad P. Dermyer died Thursday after being shot multiple times. Police say Dermyer, the father of two children, was a native of Jackson, Michigan, and a former Marine who had served on the force in Jackson and Newport News, Virginia.
The Jackson Citizen Patriot reports (http://bit.ly/1q97IK0) that Dermyer kept in touch with friends in Michigan and visited last summer. Matt Miller, who lives in Jackson, played soccer with and against Dermyer since they were children. He described Dermyer as a good guy and a strong athlete.
___
4:35 a.m.
Virginia State Police say a trooper has died after a shooting at a Greyhound bus station in Richmond.
Virginia State Police Superintendent Col. Steven Flaherty says the trooper, Chad Dermyer, died Thursday after being shot multiple times.
State Police have said two civilians were also shot at the terminal. The gunman was shot dead by two other troopers.
The Greyhound station is west of the city's downtown area, across from Richmond's minor league baseball stadium and within a former industrial area. It's on a main thoroughfare connecting a residential district to the stadium and nearby restaurants.
City Councilwoman Rita Trammell was at the scene of the shooting and says it was a "senseless act."
Programming Homework Assistance Introduced by Homework Help Marketplace
Programming homework help for US students is introduced by Studypool
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Online homework help can help individuals learn the different concepts related to computer programming as they are applied in the real setting. An online programming homework help can thus provide a more realistic and more sensible appreciation of programming fundamentals.
Everyone has the right to quality education. Students need to learn as much as they can from educational institutions. While some individuals say that experience is still the best teacher, schools today are revamping their curriculum to bridge the gap between theory and practice. In these situations, homework, assignments, and projects are utilized by the academe to stimulate learners to learn on their own. Given guide questions it is expected that students will be able to find out more in-depth answers to problems. Additionally, homework is designed primarily to stimulate logic and critical thinking among students, especially those that are taking up programming courses.
Today's world is largely dictated by technology. Almost every aspect of human life is technology-driven which requires fundamental understanding of programming languages, concepts, and principles. Unfortunately, schools can only do so much in bridging the gap between theory and practice. Many schools especially in the pre-college levels are still predominantly teacher - centered with some slowly moving towards a more student - centered approach. There are students who may respond positively to such a challenge. However, there are also those students who may have problems learning on their own.
Learning the different programming languages and concepts is considered a lot easier when supplemented with input from people who are programmers themselves. Schools provide the necessary theoretical foundations upon which programmers will eventually use. Real-world programmers serving as tutors can help bridge the gap between theory and practice in order for programming students to understand how certain principles and concepts are applied in the real setting.
Online programming homework help websites provide invaluable assistance to students who want to learn more about a particular concept especially when it comes to the exact manner in which a particular concept is applied in the real setting. Some would think that only students who have difficulty understanding a concept in school require tutorial services. However, many academicians say that this is not necessarily so. Tutorial services provide an in-depth understanding of different programming concepts in a manner that is congruent to the cognitive abilities of the learner. For instance, StudyPool is ensuring all learners are given the best possible answers to their questions only from qualified and duly screened tutors. Academicians and cognitive specialists say that people learn a lot better if they are given the opportunity to engage with those who teach them and that interpersonal communication and feedback is valued. Getting programming homework help that is personalized to the needs of the learner is thus crucial in the understanding of the different concepts. StudyPool is an online platform that provides academic and tutorial solutions to students who require extensive and in-depth understanding of programming languages, concepts, and principles as a complement to what they learn in school.
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Homework Help Marketplace Introduced Business and Finance Help Option
Online homework marketplace introduced business and finance homework help
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Students learning business and finance can now find homework help for these topics or subjects online. The online business and finance homework help is designed primarily to provide students with the correct tools to understand such vital concepts as business and finance.
The progress the world enjoys today is largely the result of an ever-expanding knowledge about business and finance. The different schools of thought in both business and finance has seen a lot of conflicting theories, principles, models, and systems which can make learning a little bit more challenging than it was several decades ago. Each year, newer and better business models replace legacy systems that simply do not work anymore in today's highly digitalised world. With the collapse of communism, even so-called socialist states have slowly begun integrating business concepts as well as finance structures in their societies such that business and finance are clearly essential concepts that need to be learned and mastered.
Students learning the different theories, models, concepts, and principles of business and finance can learn best when individuals providing help are those that are renowned in their respective fields. While teachers in academic institutions provide the theoretical foundations for business and finance, individuals who have first-hand experience of the practical applications of business and finance concepts and principles are considered to be in the best position to provide a more realistic understanding of such concepts as they occur in the real world. This is very important in order for students to really learn the importance of such business and finance concepts, theories, and models.
One of the most useful tools to find business and finance homework help is the internet. There are plenty of online academic tutorial platforms that provide excellent academic support for students learning the fundamental concepts and principles of business and finance.
Homework help websites like StudyPool are capitalizing on the expertise of business and finance professionals to provide students with a more real-life understanding of such concepts. According to a spokesperson for StudyPool Sebastian Almnes, students today need to understand how abstract concepts can be applied in the real-life setting. This can only be done with tutors who excel in businesses and finance institutions. Students need a highly personalized approach to learning the different concepts in order for them to be successful later in life. Tutors must therefore provide students with a simplified explanation of certain concepts especially on how it is actually applied in the real world. Because business and finance concepts can sometimes be confusing, it is essential for a tutor to provide explanations that are easy to understand and show the connection between the concepts and the actual practice. StudyPool is an innovative online academic tutoring platform that provides excellent academic assistance for students who want to learn everything and anything they can about business and finance. The company aims to simplify the learning processes by connecting students with experts in business and finance.
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Writing Homework Help Introduced by Studypool - Online Homework Help Marketplace
New writing homework help introduced
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Students need all the help they can get in writing excellent and well-organized articles, topics, subjects, and any other homework that needs writing. Online writing homework help websites can help students produce better and more effective written communication pieces.
Writing is a fundamental component of education as one of two main forms of communication, the other being speech. Academicians consider communication skills as very important in conveying information that develops in the brain without necessarily using the faculty of speech. From the very first time a person has learned to draw lines and then shapes, experts say that he is already communicating something that may otherwise prove difficult to explain using speech.
Written communication is therefore an important part of learning. Schools teach students as a group. As such, some students may lag behind when it comes to developing their writing skills. Some individuals are naturally gifted to write their thoughts as eloquently as they can voice out their ideas. Unfortunately, some will require help in their writing assignments. Some academicians discourage getting outside help for writing assignments citing it as a form of cheating. However, other academicians do recognize the value of seeking outside help as a means to augment the learning of the fundamentals of writing. They do caution however that students will still need to read the written assignment before submission in school in order for them to get an idea of how the different elements of the article are constructed. Additionally, academicians recommend actively engaging with writers to gain an insight into how the assignment or homework was written.
Online writing homework help platforms are therefore one of the best ways to seek assistance in the completion of writing homework. Successfully passing the written requirements of any subject is tantamount to earning a degree. Written communication is a very important aspect of man's daily life is it in the form of a business correspondence, social letter, or even a simple letter to a friend. Unfortunately, not everyone is gifted to put into writing the ideas that are generated by the mind.
Online writing homework help websites such as StudyPool provide help to students and other individuals who may have problems writing their thoughts into meaning sentences to convey a particular message. Each of this writing homework is tailored specifically to the need of the student and is not mere templates which can be reproduced over and over. This is what makes online writing homework help websites very invaluable when it comes to creating opportunities for students to learn how to write effectively. Students are able to engage with their writers giving them the opportunity to ask questions about how the article needs to be written and what the student is actually thinking about. StudyPool is an online academic tutoring platform that has been helping students and learners of all ages to create meaningful writing homework. The company aims to ensure that students also learn the essentials of good writing by understanding how a good article should read.
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Myrtle Beach Weddings Launches Website
Myrtle Beach weddings performed by Reverend Benjy Simmons are simple and memorable. The reverend is a wedding planner as well as an officiant at the ceremony.
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Myrtle Beach weddings by the Reverend Benjy Simmons take advantage of the many scenic and memorable locations in and around Myrtle Beach. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina offers many different opportunities to enjoy a Myrtle Beach simple wedding day. The area is a favorite vacation destination of many people for a Myrtle Beach wedding. The area is a beautiful and romantic place to exchange wedding vows. Whether the couple are saying their vows for the first time, or are choosing to renew vows, the locations are myriad.
Some of the locations which have been utilized for wedding sites include the beach, hotels, resorts, a chapel, public parks or camp grounds. There are other beautiful and opportune locations to choose for a wedding ceremony and related activities.
According to the Reverend Benjy Simmons, "A wedding can be elaborate and very expensive, or it can be very simple and cost effective, without sacrificing the beauty of the ceremony or the surroundings. If you are looking for a simple wedding ceremony to be performed on the beach or at your designated setting, then I would count it an honor to perform your ceremony. Myrtle Beach weddings and vow renewals are fun and memorable."
In addition to officiation services for wedding and vow renewals, Reverend Benjy Simmons can provide wedding decorations, simple wedding photography or professional wedding photography services. There are beach ceremony sets for weddings and engraved toasting glasses. Planning a Myrtle Beach wedding requires consideration of weather, tides, time of day and the crowds on the beach.
Reverend Benjamin Simmons has more than 24 years of pastoral experience with dozens of wedding ceremonies performed in church settings as well as outdoor setting. The ceremonies can be customized for each couple. Rev. Simmons is available to officiate at wedding located in all types of setting and of any size. He will perform ceremonies which are casual or formal. Large wedding parties or no wedding parties can be accommodated.
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A pesticide amnesty scheme could be extended after farmers handed in more than 2,000kg of banned and unwanted chemicals.
Anglian Water worked with Lincolnshire farmers to remove out-of-date or unwanted pesticides from farms, including leftover chemicals that have recently been banned.
Some 29 farmers took advantage of the free scheme, which saw the water company employ specialists Chemclear to remove 247 unwanted products.
The aim of the scheme is to safeguard against any chemicals accidentally finding their way into the countys watercourses and ground water.
Anglian Water farming adviser Kelly Hewson-Fisher said pesticides were a vital tool for farmers in the battle against crop diseases and weeds.
See also: Illegal pesticides removed from farms
But she added: Sometimes even the most organised farm manager can find themselves with an out-of-date bag of chemicals or a product which was perfectly legal when they bought it, but which has since had its licence revoked.
If any of these accidentally found their way into a watercourse there would be implications for wildlife and water quality.
The safest option is to remove them from the farmed environment completely.
Ms Hewson-Fisher said Anglian Water had a good relationship with farmers participating in the amnesty scheme.
All the farmers we dealt with were more than happy to take advantage of the service and its now something were looking to expand in other areas.
Although it was possible to remove most pesticides from raw water before it was supplied to consumers, it was better to ensure they didnt enter watercourses in the first place.
Any farmers in the catchment area around the Louth Canal, Great Eau and River Ancholme were eligible to take advantage of the pesticide amnesty.
The service was free and entirely anonymous.
Ms Hewson-Fisher said the slug pesticide metaldehyde continued to one of the biggest issues for water quality in the region.
It is not viable to remove the chemical at treatment works and there is strict water-quality legislation covering it, she said.
Anglian Water was working with growers to encourage them look at how alternatives to metaldehyde might bring benefits the their farm businesses.
Nokia A1 Press Image Surface: An Exciting Android Smartphone with a Disappointing Twist! Features oi -Sayan
Nokia has been knocked out of the smartphone market ever since the acquisition of its Device and Services division by Microsoft back in 2013. The Finnish company however has been itching for long to end the market back again. Sadly, though the agreement with Microsoft prohibited them to launch any new smartphone under their brand name till 2016.
SEE ALSO: 5 Cool And Amazing Inventions That Your Would Love To Own Right Now
Incidentally, Nokia is done with that curfew of sorts and is in fact prepping to launch an Android smartphone dubbed Nokia A1 if reports are believed to be true. Just to recall this won't be the first entry of Nokia into the Android market, rather the Finish company had first embarked on this path back last year when it launched its Nokia N1 tablet in China.
SEE ALSO: Leaked: The ZTE Axon Pro 2 is coming to take on the Xiaomi Mi 5!
The new report that got leaked towards the latter half of yesterday reveal the alleged Nokia A1 smartphone in full glory. Apparently it seems like press renders of the first Android smartphone from Nokia. Apart from that the expected specs of the smartphone has also emerged. So let's dig deep to find out why you should be interested about the upcoming Nokia A1!
#1 The leaked images of the Nokia A1, shows no resemblance to the design language of its Lumia line of devices. In short, this phone doesn't look anywhere near Nokia's of the past. This is due the intellectual property rights, which doesn't allow Nokia to uses its Lumia design language in any of its future phone. Instead the Finnish company is making use of a Polycarbonate Shell for the smartphone. The rear plate comes with a textured finish with the Nokia logo to the bottom, just above the speaker grill. #2 As per leaked specs, the Nokia A1 smartphone packs a 5.5 inch Full HD (1920x1080p) IPS display on the front which is flanked by three backlit capacitive keys on the bottom. The press images further reveal that the smartphone makes use of a 2.5D curved screen to provide better viewing experience and smoother horizontal scrolling. #3 Well, Nokia seems to have realised that the budget to mid-range markets it best spot to target if they plan to make a comeback in the smartphone space. In order to do the Finnish company is packing in the latest mid-range chip from Qualcomm inside the Nokia A1. Apparently Nokia A1 will sport the Snapdragon 652 chip, same as the one found in the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3. # As per the leaked image, the Nokia A1 smartphone will run a heavily skinned Nokia Z Launcher interface on top of Android Marshmallow. For those unaware it is the same launcher that shipped with the Nokia N1 tablet and the one found for download on the PlayStore. #5 So far reports suggest that Nokia will launch their Android smartphone first in China. Well, this isn't quite surprising considering the fact the Nokia N1 tablet was initially launched there followed by a global rollout. But whether or not the smartphone will make it to India is a matter of debate! Apparently the Nokia tablet didn't end up touching India's shores.
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'Feels Like Home Season 2' offers something real and tangible to think about; takes home a pertinent point - if your intentions are good, there is nothing in life that isn't achievable.
Russia security agency arrests CIA-trained Ukrainian spy
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 7:56AM
Moscow says it has captured a CIA-trained Ukrainian officer, who attempted to infiltrate Russia's main security agency.
Yuriy Ivanchenko was detained upon arrival on the Russian territory on Saturday, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said in a Thursday statement.
Prior to his entry, the FSB, the main KGB successor agency, reportedly received information that the officer had been trained by the Ukrainian Security Forces (USF) and the US spy agency CIA to infiltrate the FSB by offering to spy for the Russian agency.
The counter-intelligence officer entered Russia under the pretext of visiting relatives, while the authorities in Kiev prohibit special security forces from leaving the country, according to the report.
His mission was to approach an FSB employee by providing him with false information, paving the way for Ukrainian security forces and the CIA to arrest the Russian security official, the statement added.
The FSB further said Ivanchenko would be deported to Ukraine and banned from entering Russia.
In Kiev, chief of the Ukrainian Security Service Vasyl Grytsak confirmed in comments to the Interfax news agency that Ivanchenko was an SBU employee but insisted he went to Russia on his own volition.
Moscow and Kiev are locked in a dispute after the Crimean Peninsula's integration into Russia in 2014 and Ukraine's war on pro-Russians fighting to independence in the country's east.
US fueling Ukraine violence
The CIA is accused of stoking the 2014 political tensions that led to the ouster of the former pro-Russia government in Ukraine.
Since the removal of the former Ukrainian president, Viktor Yanukovych, the United States has stepped up its military aid to Kiev amid a war with pro-Russia forces in the east.
On Thursday, the United States said it would go ahead with plans to provide an additional $335 million in military assistance to Ukraine
The news came after a meeting between US Vice President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Washington on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit there.
Last May, the US signed its second $1 billion loan deal for Ukraine to help it fight pro-Russians in the country's flashpoint east and jolt its tattered economy.
During his visit to Washington, Poroshenko criticized the international community for what he called its reluctance to provide weapons to the Ukrainian military.
Reacting to the developments, the Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov said foreign arms supplies to Ukraine would not help settle the crisis gripping the country's eastern parts.
"Of course, there is no way the delivery of lethal weapons to Ukraine from abroad will help resolve the internal Ukrainian crisis and fulfill the Minsk agreements, considering an increase in the number of provocations staged on the contact line," the Russian official said.
He was referring to the peace deal signed between Kiev and pro-Russia forces in Minsk, Blarus, in February 2015. Since then, however, both parties have, on numerous occasions, accused each other of breaking the ceasefire.
The crisis has left more than 9,000 people dead and over 20,000 others injured, according to the United Nations.
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C-17 drag reduction testing aims at saving fuel
By Kenji Thuloweit, 412th Test Wing Public Affairs / Published April 01, 2016
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AFNS) -- From testing synthetic biofuels to "vortex surfing," Edwards Air Force Base is on the forefront of finding new ways to cut fuel costs for the Air Force.
The latest venture is currently underway at the 418th Flight Test Squadron where a test team of Air Force and Boeing personnel recently completed the first phase of Air Force Research Laboratory's C-17 Drag Reduction Program.
According to an AFRL study, the price the Air Force pays for jet fuel has quadrupled between 2004 and 2012. At the same time, the demand for personnel and equipment to be transported around the world has increased. Airlifters like the C-17 Globemaster III, C-130 Hercules and C-5 Galaxy use most of the Air Force's fuel -- 70 percent in 2012. Of these cargo planes, the C-17 uses the most fuel.
The purpose of the C-17 Drag Reduction Program is to collect data on how airflow is affected with different modifications done to a C-17.
The modifications are scheduled for different phases using Vortex Control Technologies "Finlets" and Lockheed Martin microvanes and fairings. The ultimate goal is to see which, if any, modification reduces drag and thus fuel consumption.
"The C-17 in one of the highest consumers of jet fuel in the Air Force," said Capt. Kevin Meyerhoff, a test pilot with the 418th Flight Test Squadron. "A reduction of just a few percent can result in significant cost savings."
The first phase consisted of putting six VCT Finlets on the aft part of the fuselage. The test aircraft for the program is a C-17 on loan from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
Test sorties for Finlets 1 configuration were completed in March to determine how the C-17 performed with the modification.
Although the goal is to reduce fuel consumption by increasing airflow efficiency and reduce drag, it has to be done without negatively effecting what the C-17 can do now.
"The cost savings these devices may offer are entirely dependent on the C-17 still being able to fulfill its mission in the Air Force," Meyerhoff said. "Our testing focused not only on fuel performance, but also on any impacts that the devices may have on the flying qualities of the aircraft. This includes the C-17's ability to perform critical air drop missions."
The next phase of testing will add five more Finlets to each side of the C-17 for a total of 16 Finlets.
The strakes that come on production C-17s will be removed to make room for the additional Finlets.
In the third phase of testing, the Finlets will be removed and six microvanes will be placed on each side of the aft fuselage.
"The Finlets are similar to the strakes, only smaller and attached in greater numbers to the airplane. The microvanes are even smaller, similar to small plastic blades," said C-17 airdrop engineer Nhan Doan.
The fourth phase will see fairings attached to locations on the wings near the engines and winglets.
All these different structure modifications manipulate the airflow around the airplane. During computer simulations, spots on the C-17 were identified that showed where drag could be reduced.
The flight tests at Edwards AFB are the final stage of AFRL's program following computer simulations and wind tunnel tests with a scale model. The data collected will be sent to AFRL at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, to see if any of the modifications increase streamlining and reduce drag. After that, Air Force leaders will ultimately decide whether or not any of the modifications should be implemented throughout the C-17 fleet.
"Our end goal is to reduce fuel consumption while maintaining military utility" said Steve Salas, a 418th FLTS project manager. "This program has the potential for significant savings in C-17 fuel costs, helping the Air Force stretch its budget even further, while maintaining force readiness."
Testing is scheduled to be completed in October.
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Airfield management Airmen support combat sorties
By Tech. Sgt. James Hodgman, 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs / Published April 01, 2016
AL UDEID AIR BASE, Qatar (AFNS) -- A team of Airmen at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, is responsible for inspecting almost 50 million square feet of pavement every day, as they support operations at the largest airfield in the U.S. Air Forces Central Command.
The team, the 379th Expeditionary Operations Squadron Airfield Management section, also reviews every flight plan prior to any aircraft departure -- there were nearly 3,000 in the first three months of this year. They also inspect airfield signage, runway markings and help manage the airfield driver's program.
Staff Sgt. Talia Fulgham, the 379th EOSS Airfield Management operations NCO in charge from Alliance, Ohio, said her Airmen provide critical support to flying operations. The team supported more than 20,000 sorties in 2015.
"We conduct daily inspections of all pavement on the airfield to make sure there's no obstructions that could inhibit flying in any way," Fulgham said. "We also inspect all airfield markings and signs."
These inspections consist of sweeps for foreign objects or debris, airfield markings visibility tests and distance evaluations known as 1,000-foot checks, which are conducted to ensure no objects are within 1,000 feet of either of Al Udeid's two runways.
Fulgham said she's conducted many inspections of the airfield and often finds FOD. One time, she discovered a portion of asphalt that was breaking apart on an aircraft taxiway.
"If we don't do thorough inspections something could happen that could prevent aircraft from taking off on time and that puts the mission at risk," she said. "I appreciate my job, because I feel like we have a real impact toward the mission."
Another responsibility of the airfield team is managing the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing's airfield driving program. The team ensures anyone who requires a flightline driver's license gets the necessary training before driving on the airfield.
Senior Airman Logan Winter, a 379th EOSS airfield management journeyman from Quincy, Washington, said managing more than 3,000 flightline drivers can be challenging.
"It can get overwhelming because many people out here have never driven on an airfield in their careers and they're expected to become proficient in three days," Winter said.
"Safety is magnified on the flightline because of our aircraft," he added. "If we have an incident that blocks off an area; that will degrade mission capability."
Team members conduct hourly checks of the airfield to ensure vehicle operators are driving safely according to instructions. They also respond to any incident involving vehicles and aircraft.
During his time at Al Udeid AB, Winter said one driver managed to drive his truck under the wing of a taxiing C-17 Globemaster III, and another driver drove a bus on the runway while a C-130 Hercules was landing. The driver told responders that he saw the C-130 in his rearview mirror, realized he made a mistake and quickly exited the runway.
Both incidents resulted in the suspension of airfield driving privileges.
"The biggest hazard is for a vehicle to hit an aircraft, which is something we try to avoid," Winter said. "Jet engines are also very powerful and have the potential to flip a vehicle. If that happened, that would likely close down an area until the investigation is complete, which would likely delay flying operations."
Supporting the mission at Al Udeid AB has been a shining moment for Winter's career, he said.
"Deploying here has been the highlight of my career," he said. "I see the direct impact we have every day. We're serving a greater purpose, supporting Operation Inherent Resolve and keeping our country and families safe. That's why I joined the Air Force."
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Military Strikes Continue Against ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq
From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release
SOUTHWEST ASIA, April 1, 2016 U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
Operation Inherent Resolve - Targeted Operations Against ISIL Terrorists
Operation Inherent Resolve
Officials reported details of yesterday's strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
Strikes in Syria
Attack and ground-attack aircraft conducted five strikes in Syria:
-- Near Ayn Isa, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL fighting position and an ISIL vehicle-borne bomb.
-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, a strike destroyed two ISIL bulldozers.
-- Near Mara, a strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions.
Strikes in Iraq
-- Rocket artillery and fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 12 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq's government:
-- Near Habbaniyah, a strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
-- Near Hit, three strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL vehicle-borne bomb, two ISIL bomb factories, an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL anti-air artillery staging area and nine ISIL tunnel entrances and denying ISIL access to terrain.
-- Near Kirkuk, a strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL assembly areas.
-- Near Mosul, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL assembly areas and five ISIL vehicles.
-- Near Qayyarah, two strikes destroyed an ISIL tactical vehicle and an ISIL mortar firing position and suppressed two separate ISIL mortar firing positions.
-- Near Ramadi, a strike destroyed two ISIL vehicle-borne bombs.
-- Near Sinjar, a strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL assembly area.
-- Near Sultan Abdallah, a strike destroyed three ISIL tunnel systems and three ISIL assembly areas.
Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.
Part of Operation Inherent Resolve
The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the group's ability to project terror and conduct operations.
Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.
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Coalition Targets ISIL Leaders, Continues Hunt for Baghdadi
By Lisa Ferdinando DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, April 1, 2016 Coalition efforts against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant's leadership have severely limited the terror group's operations, the Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman said today.
Army Col. Steve Warren told Pentagon reporters via teleconference from Baghdad that the coalition has remained active in targeting ISIL leadership.
Coalition efforts have dismantled ISIL headquarters and disrupted the terrorists' efforts to plan attacks in Iraq, Syria or abroad, Warren said.
"ISIL's leadership is having an increasingly difficult time governing their so-called caliphate and they're hunkered down with a degraded ability to shoot, move or communicate," he said.
Coalition Hunting ISIL Leader Baghdadi
The coalition is actively searching for ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who is believed to travel between Iraq and Syria, Warren said.
"I hope that al-Baghdadi watches these press conferences because I want him to know that we are hunting him," Warren said.
"We will find him just like we found his mentor [Abu Musab al-] Zarqawi and killed him, just like we found the grandmaster of terrorism, Osama bin Laden, [and] we killed him," Warren told reporters.
"He will taste justice," he added. "I don't know if that justice will look like a Hellfire missile or if it will look like a dark prison cell somewhere but he will find justice one day."
Baghdadi is a brutal terrorist, Warren said, who should "not sleep well -- ever. ... Someone's either going to come in the window and snatch him up, or the entire house that he's in will get reduced to rubble."
Developments in Iraq, Syria
Warren said Iraqi security forces, supported by the coalition, kicked off a new offensive last week in the Tigris River Valley called Operation Valley Wolf.
"This shaping operation, which is taking place about 45 miles south of Mosul, will help set the conditions for the liberation of Mosul," he said.
Units from Iraq's 15th Division have already pushed west out of Makhmour, liberating the villages of Kudilah, Kharbardan and Karmadi, Warren said.
To the west, in the Euphrates River Valley, Operation Desert Lynx continues, the colonel said.
The Iraqi 7th Division seized the Kubaysah Cement Factory and cleared Kubaysah. Iraqi forces and tribal fighters are now clearing that town of IEDs, Warren said.
"Tribal forces are key to maintaining long-term stability after the army moves out of the area," he said, adding that ISF is now nearing the outskirts of Heet.
Meanwhile, in Shaddadi, Syria, the Syrian Democratic Forces are improving their defenses and preparing for future operations. In the last six weeks, they have gained more than 3,200 square kilometers, Warren reported.
He described operations along the Mar'a line as a "shoving match," in which the SDF and ISIL have both gained and lost several villages and towns in the sector.
"The shoving match continues," Warren said.
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U.S. Department of Defense
Press Operations
News Release
No. NR-117-16 April 01, 2016
Statement from Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook on Airstrike in Somalia
In cooperation with the Federal Government of Somalia, on Thursday, March 31, the U.S. military conducted an airstrike in Somalia against Hassan Ali Dhoore, a senior leader of al-Shabaab, who is part of al-Qa'ida. While we are still assessing the results of this operation, removing Dhoore from the battlefield would be a significant blow to al-Shabaab's operational planning and ability to conduct attacks against the government of the Federal Republic of Somalia, its citizens, U.S. partners in the region, and against Americans abroad.
In addition to being part of al-Qa'ida, Hassan Ali Dhoore was a member of al-Shabaab's Amniyat (security and intelligence) wing and was heavily involved in high profile attack planning in Mogadishu. He had planned and overseen attacks resulting in the death of at least three U.S. citizens.
Dhoore played a direct role in the December 25, 2014 attack on Mogadishu International Airport, resulting in the death of several African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) personnel and one U.S. citizen. Dhoore was also directly responsible for the March 27, 2015 attack on the Maka al-Mukarram Hotel in Mogadishu, resulting in the deaths of 15 people, including one Somali-American national. Hassan was believed to have been plotting attacks targeting U.S. citizens in Mogadishu.
We will provide additional information as and when appropriate.
http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/711634/
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U.S. Department of Defense
Press Operations
News Transcript
Presenter: Secretary of Defense Ash Carter April 01, 2016
Remarks by Secretary Carter on a major announcement in new technology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts
SECRETARY OF DEFENSE ASH CARTER: Thank you. Thanks so much, President Reif, my old friend, for that introduction, and to Governor Baker, Governor Wolf, Senator Markey, Congressman Kennedy, DOD family. I see here many friends and partners of long-standing, public servants, scientists, entrepreneurs and more, thanks for being here today.
It's a pleasure be back in Cambridge to continue advancing what's been one of my core goals as secretary of Defense, and that's building, and in some ways rebuilding, the bridges between our national security endeavor at the Pentagon and the wonderful, innovative, open technology community of companies and universities that make up one of America's great strengths.
We've got a long history of partnership, benefiting both our security and our society, and MIT is proof of that. From the Rad Labs pioneering work on radar during the second world war to developing computer navigation systems on -- (inaudible) -- guided ballistic missiles, but also landed men on the moon, to the ground-breaking work that continues today at Lincoln Labs, this has always been a place where great minds and great ideas come together to help defend our country and build a better world.
That is, in fact, the mission of the Defense Department. That's why we have the finest fighting force the world has ever known. And that's what our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines do everyday all over the world. They're working right now with our coalition partners in more ways everyday to accelerate the defeat of ISIL, which we will do. They're training with our NATO allies in Europe to deter Russian aggression.
They're sailing the waters of the Asia-Pacific, ensuring that the most consequential single region for America's future remains stable, secure and prosperous for all nations. They're standing guard on the Korean Peninsula and countering Iran's malign influence against our friends and allies. And all the while, they're helping protect our homeland.
Our men and women in uniform do this in an increasingly competitive and changing world, particularly when it comes to technology. When I began my career in physics, most technology of consequence originated in America, and much of that was sponsored by the government, particularly the Department of Defense.
Today, we're still major sponsors, but much more technology is commercial and the technology base is global. Indeed, technologies once long possessed by only the most formidable militaries have now gotten into the hands of previously less capable forces and even non- state actors. Meanwhile, nations like Russia and China are modernizing their militaries to try to close the technology gap.
So to stay ahead of those challenges and stay the best, we're investing aggressively in innovation. We're pushing the envelope with new research into new technologies, robotics, biotech, cyber defense, electronic warfare, hypersonic engines that can fly five times the speed of sound and many, many others.
We're building what I call on-ramps and off-ramps for technical talent to flow in both directions so more of America's brightest minds can contribute to our mission of national defense, even if only for a time or a project, and so our military and civilian technologists in the innovative defense industry that support us already can interact in new ways with the entire innovative ecosystem.
And we're developing new partnerships with our nation's innovative private sector and technology communities in places like Boston and Silicon Valley and Austin, Seattle, and America's many other great hubs of unrivaled innovation.
As I often say, we, in the Pentagon, need to think outside our five-sided box and formulate new ways to keep that enduring American technological edge in what is, after all, a new technological and competitive landscape. That's why we've established an innovation hub in Silicon Valley and planned similar steps in other tech hubs. More on that later. That's why we created the Defense Digital Service.
Is Chris here? Our director of our defense -- there's Chris, director of the defense digital service. By the way, if you want to get in and do something that really matters, and you're a technologist, see Chris.
The Defense Innovation Board I just established, which Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google and now Alphabet, is chairing. New internships and externships for technologists, uniformed and civilian. New ways of accessing the American population, including women, for what is, after all, an all-volunteer force.
And while we're investing nearly $72 billion in R&D in the budget I just submitted to the Congress -- more than double, by the way, what Apple, Intel and Google spent on R&D last year combined.
And right here, right now, we're taking another step forward. Today, I'm announcing the Department of Defense is partnering with Advanced Functional Fabrics of America -- (inaudible) -- has already described a competitively selected consortium with 89 companies, universities, non-profits, research organizations and startup incubators across the country to establish a new manufacturing innovation institute focused on revolutionary fibers and textiles.
And this is a pioneering field, combining fibers and yarns with things like flexible integrated circuits, LEDs, solar cells, electronic sensors and other capabilities to create fabrics and cloths that can see, hear, sense, communicate, store energy, regulate temperature, monitor health, change color and much more.
The Defense Department is making a $75 million investment, which has already been matched more than three times over, with more than $240 million in contributions from our public and private partners.
And like the seven other manufacturing innovations institutes established by the president over the last four years -- five of which DoD has helped lead, I should mention -- in the areas of 3D printing, light weight metals, integrated photonics, digital manufacturing and design and flexible hybrid electronics.
This will ensure that the innovations needed to develop, manufacture and commercialize these cutting edge materials will happen right here, in America.
The president takes a personal interest in these institutes, I should tell you, asks about them -- I've spoken with him about them a number of times. And so, I know how important it is to him that America keeps leading in manufacturing innovation, and continues to bring great manufacturing jobs back home.
Because a strong U.S. economy, I know, is the bedrock of American security.
With a range of innovators involved in technical textiles here in New England and the greater Northeast, including companies like Bose, and New Balance and DuPont and others, this institute will be headquartered here at MIT, and it will be strengthened by a robust network of research partners and manufacturers all across the country, from Oregon, to Ohio, to South Carolina, to Georgia, to Pennsylvania.
Revolutionary fibers and textiles have enormous potential for our defense mission. For example, light weight sensors woven into the nylon of parachutes will be able to catch small tears that might otherwise expand in mid-air, risking paratroopers' lives.
Uniforms with electronics embedded in their fibers will be able to detect potential chemical and radiological agents. Help power the various network devices that our troops carry into the field, and know when a wounded service member might need an anti-bacterial bandage.
And with tents, whose very fabrics can generate and store their own power, and even regulate the temperature inside, we will be able to reduce fuel consumption on the battle field, which is critically important when you consider -- and I remember this very well -- but in the middle the war in Afghanistan some years ago, four or five years or so ago, the Army would lose an average of two soldiers for every 50 fuel supply convoys.
The reality is that as I stand here, we don't know all the advances this new technology is going to make possible. That's the remarkable thing about innovation, and it's another reason why America and America's military must get there first.
The commercial applications of technical textiles will be just as transformative, if not more so, given the drive toward wearables and the internet of things. For example, running shoes as lightweight as socks will be able sense impact load for every step so athletes can better understand their physiological condition. New fibers will strengthen walls and floors in buildings and other structures, reducing construction costs while also providing improved protection from the elements.
First responders will benefit from firefighting gear that's not much heavier than that which exists today, if at all, but yet is vastly more protective against even the hottest of flames. And instead of tracking physical performance with straps on our wrists, we'll have the same capability embedded in our clothing thanks to washable featherweight sensors providing an even clearer picture of our health and fitness.
Now this an exciting time. It reminds me of the collaboration between companies, universities and government that built the Internet and GPS, and before that, communication satellites and the jet engine. For those interested in foreign policy and national security, there are lots of interesting challenges and problems to work on, and that's also true for those interested in technology. But the intersection of the two is truly an opportunity rich environment.
These issues matter. They have to do with our protection and our security in creating a world where our fellow citizens can go to school and live their lives, dream their dreams and one day give their children a better future. Helping defend your country and making a better world is one of the noblest things that a business leader, a technologist, an entrepreneur or a young person can do, and we're all grateful to all of you for doing that with us. Thanks.
SEC. CARTER: This is an important milestone in our efforts to keep the technological edge for our military and our country more broadly.
I want to thank Governors Baker and Wolf and Senator Markey and Congressman Kennedy for being here. President of MIT, President Reif, I don't know whether he's here right now, but once again, for his leadership of this and the partners represented in this room. It's an important thing for national defense, important for our country and I'm grateful for all the leaders who joined me in this announcement and in this important enterprise today.
We talked about what it does and why it's important to us, and I'm not going to try to recapitulate all that. Why don't we go right to your questions?
MR. COOK: Yes. The first question, Kevin Baron.
Q: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. I'm Kevin Baron from -- executive editor from Defense One. (inaudible) news today, the president spoke with the P5-plus one on the Iran deal to defend it, saying it's making the country and the world safer. I wondered if you could expand on that from your perch at DoD? The criticism on that is that it's not safe or it's going to, you know, it's destabilizing the region. From your perspective, how is it making the world or the region safer? And are there any signs of improving relations military wise, cooperation wise with the fight against ISIS in the region in Iraq?
SEC. CARTER: I don't, Kevin, have anything really to add today beyond what I've said in the past, namely that the nuclear deal was a good deal in keeping Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, if it's fully implemented, which is important. but it doesn't change much of our mission in the Department of Defense. We still have an enduring mission in the Gulf to defend our partners and allies there, especially Israel, freedom of navigation and freedom of the commerce in the Gulf, countering Iran's other malign influences in the region, deterring aggression, and of course, the military option, which the president has instructed us to preserve, which we do.
So all that continues to go on for the Department of Defense. Oh, I'm sorry. I should add missile defense to that, both of our own forces and our allies. So we're all full speed ahead on everything we've been doing.
MR. COOK: Next. Kevin, let me try and get to as many people as I can. Kim?
Q: Yes. Hi, Secretary. Kim Tunick, with WBZ Radio. Just wondering how specifically you think this new fiber technology may help in specifically the fight against ISIS?
SEC. CARTER: Well, a couple of ways. It will allow our soldiers to carry, for example, antennas within their clothing to operate in a hot climate, and those of our troops that are training and enabling and equipping Iraqi forces, for example, in Iraq, summer is coming. A number of these fabrics are much more light-weight and shed heat better, and that's not an insignificant matter when you're a soldier and you're carrying around a lot of weight. There are more lightweight ways of weaving batteries into fabric.
So there are all these things that are very important to the war fighter. One other one, just while I'm mentioning them, is some different ways of attaching parachutes to cargoes for air drops. We do air drops in both Iraq and Syria.
So, all of this is relevant to a lot of different military tasks, including in the war against ISIL, which we are prosecuting and will win. But this will be another way that we're helped in that regard, and in all the other ways that we stand guard against other kinds of threats around the world in the future.
So, it's a big deal for national defense, it's a big deal for the world of technology, and it is also going to be very important to the economic future of our country, which no secretary of defense can be completely indifferent to either, because it's the foundation of our long-term strength.
MR. COOK: Jeremy?
Q: Thank you. Mr. Secretary, today, North Korea launched another short-range missile just hours after President Obama's Chinese counterpart met at the second National Nuclear Security Summit.
Is there anything the U.S. can do more at this point to deter North Korea? And what would you like to see China -- steps China take?
SEC. CARTER: Well, we do a lot to deter and also to defend.
I'll just take them in turn. We stand alert on the DMZ every single day. We never forget that; we wake up to that every morning, and at the Department of Defense, that's been going on decade, after decade, after decade.
We have strong forces there, as the Republic of Korea, and we have more that would reinforce if there is ever a crisis there. And specifically, with respect to ballistic missiles, we have very strong ballistic missile defenses there ourselves and in concert with our South Korean and Japanese allies.
We have defenses against ballistic missiles of varying ranges, all the way -- in terms of our defensive systems, from Patriot through THAAD, through the GBI system in Alaska and California, which we're adding to both quantitatively and qualitatively, constantly upgrading that.
So, we do a lot to protect ourselves, and also our friends and allies and also to deter conflict.
MR. COOK: WBUR?
Q: Thank you. So, cyber intelligence and surveillance seems to be playing an increased role in the Air Force.
Can you speak to the importance of that from the Defense Department's perspective?
SEC. CARTER: It's extremely important. We -- all of our equipment today, our planes, our ships, our tanks, they're networked, and they only function -- or function much better when they're networked.
Not only that, our troops are young people; they've grown up in the Information Age. They're used to having these tools available for them.
So, it's very important that we provide them, but also that we have strong cyber defenses to protect them.
Job one in cyber for the Department of Defense is the protection of our own networks. In that mission, we have a great common cause with the commercial sector -- also concerned about the exact same thing.
We make common cause with them, we share technologies, we're a great funder of innovation in that field, even as we are in the textiles and advanced fabrics field that we have been discussing here today.
And we do that in partnership with industry, because we're stronger when we do it that way.
And again, not here today, but also in Massachusetts, previously, another way -- places around the country, Seattle, Austin, San Francisco and so forth -- we are strengthening our links to the commercial cyber sector, because we are mutually dependent
MR. COOK: We've got time for one more. Paul?
Q: (Inaudible) -- Paul Shinkman with U.S. News and World Report. I just -- (inaudible) -- to ask you about why you felt you didn't need to be at the nuclear security summit this week in D.C.
And just to follow up on Jeremy's question about what China could be doing, they have a much stronger relationship with North Korea but have expressed their own concerns recently about their actions. What more could China be doing, and what might you be asking China to do in the coming weeks?
SEC. CARTER: Well, it's a very important meeting. The Department of Defense is represented at this summit as it has been represented at all the previous summits by the commander in chief of the armed forces.
MR. COOK: And on China, sir.
Q: What could China be doing to help deter North Korea?
SEC. CARTER: Well, that's an important question. And China has, by dint of geographic proximity and the strength of their economic relationship, much more leverage than any other of the parties to the Six Party talks on nuclear matters with North Korea. And so their potential is very great, and them realizing that full potential, I think, is going to be essential if the goal of those talks, which is a non-nuclear Korean Peninsula -- which remember, everybody signed up to, we're just not moving yet in that direction -- is to be realized.
And we're parties to that, we're very important to that as well. But I think it's fair to say that our relationship with North Korea is not one that has the historical closeness, let alone the economic and geographic proximity of China. So they're essential.
MR. COOK: All right. Thank you, everyone. Appreciate it.
SEC. CARTER: Great. Thanks, guys. Good to see you.
http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Transcripts/Transcript-View/Article/711667/
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US, Republic of Korea Submarine Forces Strengthen Alliance
Navy News Service
Story Number: NNS160401-11
Release Date: 4/1/2016 11:16:00 AM
By Lt. Lauren Gaidry, Commander, Submarine Squadron 15 Public Affairs
SANTA RITA, Guam (NNS) -- Commander, Submarine Group 7 conducted bilateral talks with the Republic of Korea Navy March 30-31 at Polaris Point, Naval Base Guam.
The 43rd Submarine Warfare Committee Meeting, hosted by Submarine Squadron 15, brought together representatives from the U.S. and ROK navies.
Rear Adm. William R. Merz, commander, SUBGRU 7, met with Rear Adm. Youn Jeong Sang, commander, Submarine Force to discuss planning joint exercises, training and continued development of integrated anti-submarine warfare plans.
The underlying theme of the talks was to leverage the strong relationship between the U.S. and ROK to advance the capabilities of both submarine forces.
"This conference provides an excellent opportunity to foster the relationship between the U.S. and Korean submarine forces and is becoming increasingly more important," said Merz.
"Bilateral talks like these improve our planning and coordination in support of maintaining peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region."
At the conclusion of the conference, a formal agreement was signed between COMSUBGRU 7 and CSF. The agreement reaffirms the longstanding relationship and pledges continued support between the two submarine forces.
"I strongly believe it is because of the enthusiastic support of the U.S. and especially the submarine force that we are who we are today as a submarine force," said Youn. "We hope to continue closely coordinated efforts with our regional partner."
Established in 1994 during the birth of the ROKN submarine fleet, the SWCM has evolved into a discussion between U.S. and ROKN submarine forces and focuses on submarine tactics, force integration and future submarine development.
The ROKN visit to Guam centered on the 43rd SWCM but also included office calls to the command leadership of Naval Base Guam, Guam Naval Hospital, Andersen Air Force Base and SUBRON 15. COMSUBGRU 7 and CSF also toured the Naval Submarine Training Center Pacific Detachment Guam and the War in the Pacific Museum.
"Hosting our partner nation during their visit to Guam has been invaluable," said Capt. Jeffrey Grimes, commander, SUBRON 15. "We were able to show them the evolving submarine force presence here in Guam and discuss the importance of having submarines available and able to quickly respond when the need arises. Having a strong and capable partner nearby allows for greater bilateral training opportunities, which we look forward to in the future."
SUBRON 15 is located at Polaris Point, Naval Base Guam in Santa Rita, Guam, and consists of four Los Angeles-class attack submarines.
The squadron staff is responsible for providing training, material and personnel readiness support to these commands. Also based out of Naval Base Guam are submarine tenders USS Frank Cable and USS Emory S. Land.
The submarines and tenders are maintained as part of the U.S. Navy's forward-deployed submarine force and are readily capable of meeting global operational requirements.
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China Defends Its Right to Set up Air Defense Identification Zone
People's Daily Online
(CRI Online) 08:34, April 01, 2016
China's Defense Ministry is expressing frustration at speculation it will declare an Air Defense Identification Zone in the South China Sea.
Spokesperson Yang Yujun says if an ADIZ is established in the South China Sea, it is within China's right to do so.
"We have stated our position on this many times when it comes to the establishment of an Air Defense Identification Zone in the South China Sea. What needs to be reiterated is that sovereign states have the right to set up an ADIZ. This is why there is no need for other countries to gesticulate."
The comments come a day after a US Defense Department official went on-record saying the US will not recognize such a zone in the South China Sea.
China imposed an ADIZ over the East China Sea three years ago, requiring aircraft flying through the area to identify themselves.
Meanwhile, the Chinese Defense Ministry has also confirmed the establishment of a dedicated unit to coordinate "non-war" activities overseas, such as evacuations from conflict zones.
"In recent years, as our national and military strength has increased. This has seen the Chinese military participate many times in overseas military actions to fulfill our international responsibilities and obligations."
The new "non-war" unit will be responsible for coordinating peacekeeping missions, evacuations and joint military drills.
The Chinese navy has been actively taking part in anti-piracy patrols in the waters off the Horn of Africa.
It's also been involved in the evacuation of Chinese citizens and other foreigners from conflict zones.
New legislation also allows Chinese forces to go overseas to take part in anti-terror missions.
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Beijing's Ominous Threat to Washington Over South China Sea: 'Be Careful'
Sputnik News
03:20 01.04.2016(updated 05:05 01.04.2016)
Tensions continue to mount between the US and China with an escalation of aggressive posturing on both sides.
On Thursday, Beijing's Defense Ministry issued a veiled warning to the US, regarding naval activity in the South China Sea and a newly signed agreement between the US and the Philippines: "be careful."
Tensions have risen between the US and China in recent months. There have been disputes over China's handling of the North Korean sanctions regime, with American officials arguing that Beijing failed to implement the agreed-upon measures fully, and posturing by both sides regarding the long simmering dispute over territories in the South China Sea.
Earlier this month, the Philippines agreed to provide US forces access to five military bases, including some in the disputed South China Sea territories, at a time when China has moved to claim these territories by introducing military construction and civilian travel to several of the Spratly and Paracel Islands.
Growing tensions between Beijing and Washington date to October 2015, when the US carried out the first of two recent high-profile "freedom of navigation" operations, in which US warships sailed within 12 nautical miles of islets in the South China Sea claimed by China.
When questioned about these recent US naval operations, Yang Yujan, the Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman said, "As for the US ships which came, I can only suggest they be careful."
The US has countered that the naval operations are necessary to maintain a balancing presence in the region, accusing China of having dispatched ballistic missiles to the disputed islands in an effort to militarize the area.
Yang says that the United States is guilty of imperialism and militarism in the region, not China. "The United States has come back and is reinforcing its military presence in this region and promoting militarization in the South China Sea," he stated.
As relations continue to deteriorate between the countries, America's Cold War revivalists are preparing to add China to their adversary list.
Sputnik
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UN refugee agency urges safeguard compliance before any returns begin under EU-Turkey deal
1 April 2016 The United Nations refugee agency today urged parties to the recent EU-Turkey agreement on refugees and migrants to ensure all safeguards are in place before any returns begin.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) "does not object to returns of people without protection needs and who have not asked for asylum, providing that human rights are adhered to," UNHCR Chief Spokesperson Melissa Fleming told reporters in Geneva.
According to a statement issued by the EU, the sides agreed that all new "irregular" migrants crossing from Turkey into Greek islands will be returned to Turkey, starting from 20 March, and for every Syrian being returned to Turkey from Greek islands, another Syrian will be resettled from Turkey to the EU.
Across Greece, which has been compelled to host people because of closed borders elsewhere in Europe, numerous aspects of the systems for receiving and dealing with people who may need international protection are still either not working or absent, she said.
There are currently around 51,000 refugees and migrants in the country, 46,000 on the mainland and 5,000 on the islands. Recent arrivals spiked on 29th March at 766 after several days of arrivals averaging about 300 people a day.
Without urgent further EU support, the limited capacity of the Greek asylum service to register and process asylum claims will create problems, she said. Limited hours of registration, daily ceilings on registrations, a lack of access to the Skype system for registration set up by the Asylum Services, are at present adding to the anxiety.
In Turkey, UNHCR has requested access to people returned from Greece, to ensure people can benefit from effective international protection and to prevent risk of refoulement. UNHCR hopes that the Temporary Protection regulation required for granting or reinstating temporary protection status for Syrians readmitted from Greece will be adopted soon.
UNHCR has set out the safeguards that would be required for safe readmission from Greece to Turkey, most recently in a paper of 23 March.
In line with its global policy on promoting alternatives to detention, UNHCR has had to suspend services at all closed facilities, with the exception of protection monitoring and providing information on asylum procedures, she said.
In March, sea arrivals down in Greece, up in Italy
Greece saw more than 150,700 sea arrivals for the first three months of 2016, albeit with lower arrivals in March.
Sea arrivals on the other main Mediterranean route from North Africa to Italy increased to 18,784 from 10,165 recorded in the same period of 2015, representing a more than 80 per cent increase, with March arrivals showing a four-fold increase. These are predominantly Nigerians, Gambians, Senegalese, Malians and other West African nationals.
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Most of EU militants in Iraq, Syria from 4 states: Study
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 5:51PM
Four European Union member states have been branded as the largest source of European militants fighting in Syria, a new study suggests, warning governments that they put more efforts to prevent deadly terror attacks by people returning from the conflict zones in the Middle East.
The International Centre for Counter-Terrorism, based in The Hague, said in its report published on Friday that Belgium, Britain, France and Germany contributed to the militancy in Iraq and Syria by having 2,838 of their nationals traveling to those countries for joining terror groups.
That is more than half of a total of 4,294 foreign fighters who have left the EU member states for those two Arab countries over the past few years.
The independent think-tank, which has used data supplied by 26 EU countries, said that about 30 percent of those European militants have since returned home, while about 14 percent were killed on the battlefield. It said 17 percent of the group were women, and up to 23 percent were converts to Islam. Most of those militants came from urban areas or peripheral suburbs of the European cities.
The research wrote that Belgium has been the largest contributor to the number of European militants fighting in Iraq and Syria. The small western European country has the highest number of Iraq, Syria militants per capita in the European Union, sending 41 fighters per million population. Belgium has been home to the attackers in the Paris shootings of November 2015, which killed 130 people, and last month's Brussels bombings, which left some 35 dead. The report also said that only 18 percent of the Belgian nationals have returned home, the least among the EU countries.
The largest source country by absolute terms, the study said, was France, which saw 900 people leaving to fight alongside the Takfiri group Daesh in Iraq and Syria. Germany and Britain have also sent hundreds. The lowest figures belong to the eastern European states, although the researchers were unable to find data for Greece and Hungary.
The study warned the European governments about the risks associated with the return of those citizens, saying the states have lacked the proper policies to counter the flow.
"Experts and government officials have increasingly warned of the potential security threat this phenomenon might also pose to Europe and beyond," the report said.
Elaborating on the weak countermeasures, the study said few European countries have any kind of reintegration program for those returning from the conflict areas. It said only nine have made it a criminal offence to become a foreign fighter. It also recommended that EU should move to establish an effective and centralized monitoring and evaluation framework to analyze the impact of existing policies.
Estimates suggest that some 30,000 foreign fighters from about 104 countries were fighting in Iraq and Syria between September 2014 and September 2015.
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China has no hidden defense expenditures, spokesperson says
People's Daily Online
By Yuan Can (People's Daily Online) 16:21, April 01, 2016
Some questions have been raised recently about whether China's defense budget has hidden portions, including expenditure on hi-tech weapons systems and on research and development of military technology.
According to Yang Yujun, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, at a press conference on Thursday, the Chinese government has incorporated all defense expenditures involving national defense development into the national budget, which was submitted to the National People's Congress for review.
Yang said that the defense budget in 2016 will be used for a variety of purposes.
First, it will ensure strong support of national defense and military reform, including downsizing and restructuring, adjustment of operations systems, and more.
Second, the budget will ensure ongoing investment in equipment, which means eliminating some old and obsolete equipment and gradually upgrading to later generations of defense technology.
Third, the budget will support the construction of a team of highly qualified military talent.
Fourth, it will be used to improve the training, working and living conditions of grassroots units.
Fifth, it will promote in-depth integration of the military and civilian sectors and give better support to border and coastal defense construction.
Yang explained that all these areas military reform, armaments development, talent cultivation, combat training, national defense mobilization, border and coastal defense construction and others have been taken into consideration during the development of the 2016 defense expenditure plan.
The plan was finalized according to both the goals of the military and the current national economic situation. There are no hidden portions, and the plan is designed to meet the demands of safeguarding national sovereignty and security.
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China, U.S. vow to boost nuclear security cooperation
People's Daily Online
(Xinhua) 07:13, April 01, 2016
WASHINGTON, March 31 -- China and the United States on Thursday reaffirmed their joint commitment to global nuclear security and pledged to continue cooperation in this area beyond the Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) process.
In a joint statement released as Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Barack Obama met here on the sidelines of the fourth NSS, the two countries declared their "commitment to working together to foster a peaceful and stable international environment by reducing the threat of nuclear terrorism and striving for a more inclusive, coordinated, sustainable and robust global nuclear security architecture for the common benefit and security of all."
Nuclear security cooperation has become a bright spot in the building of a new type of major-country relations between the world's largest developing and developed countries. In February, the two sides carried out the inaugural round of bilateral discussions on nuclear security in Stockholm, Sweden.
"We plan to continue this dialogue on an annual basis, so as to intensify our cooperation to prevent nuclear terrorism and continue advancing Nuclear Security Summit goals," said the joint statement.
In a more recent example, a nuclear security center of excellence (COE) jointly financed and built by the Chinese and U.S. governments was inaugurated in suburban Beijing on March 18. It is the largest, best equipped and most advanced facility of its kind in the Asia-Pacific region.
The COE, said the statement, "is a world-class venue to meet China's domestic nuclear security training requirements, as well as a forum for bilateral and regional best practice exchanges, and a venue for demonstrating advanced technologies related to nuclear security."
The two countries pledged continued engagement on nuclear security training and best practices so as to maximize the use and effectiveness of the COE, and China vowed to sponsor training programs at the site for regional partners and other international participants to further promote global nuclear security awareness and engagement.
Meanwhile, the two sides agreed to push forward cooperation on conversion of miniature neutron source reactors (MNSR) from highly enriched uranium fuel to low-enriched uranium fuel, including working through the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to support the conversion of MNSRs in Ghana and Nigeria as soon as possible.
China, according to the joint statement, also "reaffirms its readiness, upon the request of respective countries, to convert all remaining Chinese-origin MNSRs worldwide."
Recognizing the need for strengthened international cooperation to counter nuclear smuggling, China and the United States reiterated their "enduring commitment to prevent terrorists, criminals or other unauthorized actors from acquiring nuclear or other radioactive materials."
The two sides "will continue to coordinate efforts to strengthen counter nuclear smuggling capabilities and share best practices with the international community, taking full advantage of the training programs sponsored by the China Customs Training Center for Radiation Detection," said the statement.
Furthermore, Beijing and Washington expressed satisfaction on "the fruitful cooperation between the two sides in enhancing the security of radioactive sources, in particular regarding recovery of disused sources and transport security of radioactive sources," and pledged to further strengthen cooperation in this regard and facilitate the sharing of experiences and best practices with other countries.
Stressing that "strong communication and cooperation are essential to nuclear security," the two countries committed themselves to continuing strong support for the work of relevant international agencies on nuclear security in accordance with their respective mandates.
The NSS process, initiated by Obama and headlined by a biennial leaders' meeting since 2010, will come to an end in its current format after the fourth summit, though nuclear security is faced with increasingly grave and complicated challenges.
Under such circumstances, China and the United States expressed their "strong commitment" to addressing the evolving nuclear security challenges through sustained efforts after the current NSS process concludes, said the joint statement.
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China to defend sovereignty in South China Sea: President Xi
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 8:44AM
Chinese President Xi Jinping tells US counterpart Barack Obama in Washington that Beijing is resolute in defending its sovereignty in the South China Sea.
Xi said that the disputes over the waters should be settled peacefully by relevant claimants through direct talks.
Beijing "respects and safeguards the freedom of navigation and overflight other countries are entitled to under international law," he said during a meeting with Obama on the sidelines of a global nuclear summit on Thursday.
China claims sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea, which is also claimed in part by Taiwan, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. The contested waters are believed to be rich in oil and gas reserves.
The dispute has at times drawn in extra-territorial countries particularly the United States which have more often than not sided with China's rivals.
Recently, the US has increased its presence in the Asia-Pacific region through its so-called pivot strategy, which critics denounce as a provocative policy.
Beijing accuses Washington of meddling in regional issues and deliberately stirring up tensions in the South China Sea.
The US, in turn, accuses Beijing of carrying out what it calls a land reclamation program in the South China Sea by building artificial islands in the disputed areas.
New nuclear missile
On Thursday, a report said experts expected China to deploy a new generation of Chinese intercontinental ballistic missiles believed to be the world's longest-range with the capacity of carrying multiple warheads.
Richard Fisher, a senior fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Center in Washington, a US-based think tank, said the missile would be of the DF-41 type, with an operational range of up to 14,500 kilometers (9,000 miles), The Financial Time said.
"Given the number of real reported tests, it is reasonable to speculate the DF-41 will be deployed to PLA Strategic Rocket Force bases in 2016," Fisher said in reference to the bases of the People's Liberation Army of China.
The projectile is not comparable in range with the first version of the DF-5, which went into service in 1980.
Fisher said Western estimates put the number of Chinese nuclear missile warheads at a maximum of 20 until roughly 2008, but recent estimates are between 200 and 400.
The US has a stockpile of 4,760 nuclear warheads, according to the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, a nontechnical academic journal.
"We will see a period of rapid increases in the numbers of China's nuclear warheads that can reach the United States," Fisher claimed.
Meanwhile, Tong Zhao, a nuclear security expert at Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy in Beijing, said the DF-5 is silo-based, while the DF-41 has a mobile launcher.
News of the DF-41's deployment first emerged earlier this week in Canada-based military journal Kanwa Asian Defense.
China warns US
On Thursday, China warned the US navy to "be careful" in the South China Sea when asked about latest US patrols in the disputed waters.
"Now, the United States has come back, and is reinforcing its military presence in this region and promoting militarization in the South China Sea," Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun told a briefing.
Since last October, the US has conducted two "freedom of navigation" operations, during which it sailed warships within 12 nautical miles of islets claimed by China.
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DPRK Red Cross Society Blames Park Geun Hye for Failure of Holding Reunions of Separated Families and Relatives
Korean Central News Agency of DPRK via Korea News Service (KNS)
Pyongyang, April 1 (KCNA) -- Recently the south Korean puppet forces are asserting that more than half of those of the south side who had applied for the reunions of separated families and relatives passed away and the number of those passing away will increase in a crafty bid to give impressions that they are deeply concerned for the reunions.
A spokesman for the Central Committee of the Red Cross Society of the DPRK in a statement Friday said that lurking behind such assertion is a crafty trick to pass the blame for the failure to hold the reunions on to the DPRK and justify their policy of confrontation with the DPRK.
The statement said Park Geun Hye is entirely to blame for the failure to settle Red Cross humanitarian issues between the north and the south including the reunions of separated families and relatives.
It went on:
Last year we ensured the reunions of separated families and relatives on the occasion of the Harvest Moon Day despite so grim situation and made a reasonable proposal for fundamentally solving the issue of reunions of separated families and relatives at the December north-south authorities talks.
But the Park Geun Hye group categorically rejected the DPRK's just proposal but pushed the north-south relations into the lowest ebb at the instigation of its American master, thus cutting off all ways of settling humanitarian issues.
The north-south relations have been put to a total collapse by the Park Geun Hye group's frantic moves for escalating confrontation with its fellow countrymen and this resulted in totally blocking the reunions so much desired by separated families and relatives.
As long as the Chongwadae is bossed by traitor and confrontation fanatic Park Geun Hye without an equal, there can never be any humanitarian exchange including the reunions of separated families and relatives. This is our principled stand.
Trouble-maker of the nation Park Geun Hye will have to pay a very high price for rubbing salt into the wounds of the separated families and relatives again by bringing the north-south relations to a total collapse. -0-
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U.S. and S. Korean Warmongers Had Better Stop Nuclear Saber-rattling against DPRK: KCNA Commentary
Korean Central News Agency of DPRK via Korea News Service (KNS)
Pyongyang, April 1 (KCNA) -- When the U.S. and the Park Geun Hye group of traitors of south Korea are bluffing with "high-density strike" and "operation for advancing into inland area of the north", parts of their large-scale joint military exercises aimed to "bring down its social system," the DPRK is powerfully demonstrating the capability of Juche-based nuclear treasured sword, the capability to fight an actual war to inflict a final doom on the enemies at a single blow.
This is evidenced by the exercise of tank crew and the successful simulated test of atmospheric re-entry of a ballistic rocket in the wake of a ballistic rocket launching drill staged in the way of exploding nuclear warhead in the designated altitude under the simulated conditions of attacking the ports in the enemy-controlled area to which overseas aggression forces would be hurled.
Much upset by the self-defensive counteroffensive made by the DPRK not giving them a breathing spell, the U.S. bellicose forces made shrill cries that the U.S. missile shield failed to prove its capability to protect its mainland from the missile attack of the north. The south Korean puppet forces are trembling with fear that when the barrage of fire would be showered on their heads.
Under this situation Western media recently asserted that the "theory of collapse" of the DPRK does not sound plausible and the best way is to settle the issue by the way of co-existing with the nuclear DPRK.
An article posted by Christopher Black, a judicial figure of Canada, on GLOBALRESEARCH. CA on March 21 said that the U.S. is busy with military drills aimed to "bring down the social system" in north Korea while applying no sanctions against Israel which reportedly had access to nuclear weapons. Strong counteraction against them is the legitimate right of north Korea for self-defence, it noted, adding that in order to bring peace to the Korean peninsula it is necessary to give up "pressure" on it, approach its government with dignity and open the door of dialogue with it so that justice and logic may reign.
Reddit and other media of the U.S. and its experts on Korean affairs said that the solution to the nuclear issue of north Korea through "collapse" and "regime change" that has been sought by the U.S. so far is outdated and impossible, its Korea policy reached the limit and diplomatic method through negotiations is the only way for settling the issue.
As commented by the media, the U.S. should properly judge the reality.
The DPRK is the military power possessed of strong nuclear treasured sword of Juche.
The frantic anti-DPRK war exercises being staged by the U.S. and the puppet group of traitors are adventurous acts of precipitating their self-destruction out of their megalomania about force.
Once the DPRK is determined, the Korean-style operation for preemptive attack will be staged the way the world has never seen to blow up all the bases of aggression, big and small, at once.
The best way for the U.S. to protect its mainland from nuclear radioactivity is to halt its nuclear war games on the Korean peninsula. -0-
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DPRK sending GPS-jamming signals to S. Korea: Seoul
People's Daily Online
(Xinhua) 15:50, April 01, 2016
SEOUL, April 1 -- South Korea's defense ministry said on Friday that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has been sending disruptive signals to jam global positioning system (GPS) in the country.
Defense Ministry spokesman Moon Sang-Gyun told a regular press briefing that the DPRK's jamming operations are expected to continue for the time being as Pyongyang seemed to aim to raise tensions on the Korean peninsula by showing off its capability of disrupting GPS signals in South Korea.
The DPRK began late Thursday to send the GPS-disrupting signals to South Korea from several regions north of the military demarcation line (MDL) dividing the two Koreas, including the western port city of Haeju and Mount Kumgang in the east coast.
Moon said there has been no damage reported in South Korea from the DPRK's jamming operations, but he noted that if any damage happens from South Korean ships and airplanes, Seoul will make Pyongyang "pay a due price".
Jamming signals could cause malfunction of mobile phones and disruption of GPS in planes and vessels, which depend on the positioning system for navigation.
Pyongyang reportedly has GPS-disrupting devices. The country has allegedly tested its devices from a month ago before launching an attack this week.
The spokesman said the DPRK's jamming devices could reach more than 100 km and affect Seoul and its suburban areas.
He noted that the South Korean military has equipment capable of detecting the jamming operations.
Unification Ministry spokesman Jeong Joon-Hee told a press briefing that jamming the GPS signals in South Korea itself was an act of provocation, urging Pyongyang to "immediately stop such provocations that will not provide any help to improve inter-Korean relations."
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DPRK fires ground-to-air missile into eastern waters
People's Daily Online
(Xinhua) 13:33, April 01, 2016
SEOUL, April 1 -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Friday fired off a ground-to-air missile into eastern waters, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
The short-range missile, which flew about 100 km, was launched at around 12:45 p.m. local time (0345 GMT) from the eastern region near the coast of Seondeok in South Hamgyeong province.
The launch came just three days after Pyongyang fired one round of its new 300-mm multiple rocket launcher in northeastern direction.
With projectile launches in recent weeks, Pyongyang has shown its protest against the ongoing U.S.-South Korea joint military exercises and newly-adopted international sanctions on the DPRK.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who attended the two-day nuclear security summit in Washington, reiterated her position on Thursday of focusing on sanctions, rather than dialogue, to make the DPRK abandon its nuclear program.
The DPRK started off a new year by detonating what it claimed was its hydrogen bomb on Jan. 6, the fourth of its nuclear tests, followed by the launch of a long-range rocket, which was condemned as a disguised test of ballistic missile technology, on Feb. 7.
UN Security Council unanimously adopted tougher-than-ever sanctions on Pyongyang on March 2, and South Korea introduced its standalone restrictions on its northern neighbor such as a ban on foreign ships staying at the DPRK ports from entering the South Korean territory.
Annually-held spring war games between Seoul and Washington kicked off on March 7. The Key Resolve command post exercise ended 12 days later, but the Foal Eagle field training exercise would last until later this month.
Pyongyang has denounced the U.S.-South Korea military exercises as a dress rehearsal for northward invasion.
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Obama, Xi agree to implement N Korea sanctions: White House
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 4:32PM
US President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping have agreed to fully implement sanctions against North Korea, according to the White House.
The two presidents met on Friday on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC, shortly after North Korea reportedly fired another ballistic missile off its east coast.
The White House said in a statement on Friday that Obama and Xi agreed to "to strengthen coordination in addressing the shared threat presented by North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile systems."
The statement added, "Both leaders affirmed their commitment to achieving the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2270," which was passed on March 2 in response to a nuclear test North Korea conducted in January, followed by a missile test in February.
On Thursday, Obama met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Park Geun-hye on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit.
"We are united in our efforts to deter and defend against North Korean provocations," Obama said with Shinzo and Park at his side.
"We have to work together to meet this challenge and we also recognize that it is important to the entire international community to vigilantly enforce the strong UN Security Council measures," he added.
The US president added that trilateral security cooperation is essential to maintain peace and stability in Northeast Asia.
Last month, Obama signed a new executive order that tightens the US trade embargo on North Korea over its nuclear and missile tests.
The Obama administration said on March 16 the new measures block any US trade with the North Korean government and any entities in the country engaged in finance, transportation, mining and energy.
Washington's unilateral measures follow a series of tough sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council on Pyongyang earlier last month.
North Korea has been at odds with the South since the end of the Korean War of the early 1950s. An armistice ended all military hostilities between the two Koreas back then, but no peace deal ever ensued, meaning that, while the two countries are not at war, they are not at peace, either.
In the tensions that emerge too frequently, the US has been taking South Korea's side. Washington says Pyongyang is after developing long-range missiles that can carry nuclear warheads and can reach the US.
North Korea says its adversaries, including the US, seek to bring the regime in Pyongyang down, and it is thus strengthening itself against hostile countries.
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North Korea seems to have fired another missile: South Korea
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 7:22AM
South Korea says the North appears to have fired another missile into the sea off its eastern coast as tensions continue on the Korean Peninsula.
South Korea's Defense Ministry said the projectile was apparently fired from the city of Sondok at around 12:45 p.m. local time (0345 GMT) on Friday.
The range and trajectory of the missile could not immediately be confirmed, according to an unnamed ministry official.
Meanwhile, the South's Yonhap news agency said the missile seemed to be ballistic.
'United' front against North
The Friday launch came amid a two-day global nuclear security summit being hosted by US President Barack Obama in Washington.
Meeting on the sidelines of the conference on Thursday, Obama joined his South Korean counterpart, Park Geun-hye, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and vowed to step up pressure on Pyongyang in response to its nuclear and missile tests.
"We are united in our efforts to deter and defend against North Korean provocations," Obama told reporters following the trilateral meeting, underlining the need for the international community "to vigilantly enforce the strong UN Security Council measures" against Pyongyang.
Last month, the 15-member council passed its harshest sanctions against North Korea. The bans had been devised by the US.
Diplomatic solution to the Korean issue
This is while China's President Xi Jinping called for dialogue to resolve the "predicament" on the Korean Peninsula during the same summit.
"The Chinese side stands ready to make efforts in a constructive way to resume dialogue within the framework of six-party talks," China's Xinhua news agency quoted Xi as saying on Thursday during a meeting with his South Korean counterpart in Washington.
The six-party talks he was referring to included Russia, China, the United States, Japan, South Korea and North Korea. The talks stalled in April 2009 after the UN imposed tougher sanctions on Pyongyang for conducting nuclear and missile tests.
Meanwhile, North Korean state media labeled the summit a "nonsensical" effort to find fault with what it described as the North's "legitimate access to nuclear weapons."
In another development on Thursday, the European Union (EU) extended its trade and financial sanctions on North Korea.
The 28-nation bloc said the new measures prolonged export and import bans on items that could increase the capability of the country's armed forces.
The EU also expanded financial embargoes on North Korea, including a new asset freeze on government entities linked to Pyongyang's nuclear or ballistic missile programs.
Tensions between the two Koreas have escalated since the start of 2015 after the North's nuclear test in January and its long-range rocket launch in February.
Pyongyang said the rocket launch was aimed at placing an earth observation satellite into orbit. However, Washington and Seoul denounced the move as a cover for an intercontinental ballistic missile test.
North Korea has pledged to develop a nuclear arsenal in an effort to protect itself from the US military, which occasionally deploys nuclear-powered warships and aircraft capable of carrying atomic weapons in the region.
Washington also holds joint military maneuvers with Seoul, which Pyongyang views as preparations for war and a direct threat against its security.
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India, Pakistan Make Progress on Pathankot Terror Attack Probe
Sputnik News
19:08 01.04.2016
Agreements have been reached on an investigation into the Pathankot airbase attack between Indian and Pakistani investigators, top sources said after Thursday's meeting in New Delhi.
"The meeting between Indian and Pakistani investigators is positive. They (the Pakistani side) have not contradicted our findings," Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs of India said on Friday.
A five-man Pakistani Joint Investigative Team (JIT) arrived in India to talk to Indian witnesses, collect evidence and share its investigation with the National Investigative Agency. "Evidence like post mortem reports, DNA samples of the terrorists, details of weapons and ammunition with Pakistani markings have been shared with the Pakistani investigators," a senior officer told NDTV.
Indian investigations reveal that Maulana Masood Azhar, the chief of Pakistan-based terror organization Jaish-e-Mohammed (JEM), and his followers were responsible for the airbase attack.
Earlier, India sought access to Maulana Masood Azhar, his brother Mohammed Rauf and other key JeM members of the group. "We have asked the Pakistani team for their voice samples," a senior officer said.
India is also expected to ask Pakistan to allow Indian investigators to visit the country soon. However, no date has been fixed for the visit yet, Mr. Rijiju said.
Pakistani investigators are expected to leave India Saturday.
This historic visit has opened the gates for a strategic installation amidst intense criticism from opposition parties. The chief of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, Amit Shah, said: "For the first time Pakistan has made serious effort towards investigation."
On 2 January 2016, a heavily armed group attacked the Pathankot airbase in India. Four terrorists and two security forces personnel were killed in the 80-hour gun battle, with an additional security force member dying from injuries hours later.
Sputnik
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More BrahMos to Come: India Gets Two New Supersonic Cruise Missiles
Sputnik News
14:00 01.04.2016(updated 14:36 01.04.2016)
Two more regiments of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile jointly developed by Russia and India will be inducted into the Indian Army within approximately two weeks, Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar said.
NEW DELHI (Sputnik) The country's army already possesses three regiments of the Block III version of BrahMos missiles. The induction of new missile regiments is expected to boost India's air defense capabilities.
"The process of induction of two more regiments [of BrahMos missile] in the Indian Army is in the final stage and within 15 days, these regiments will be inducted in Indian Army," Parrikar was quoted as saying by the Press Trust of India news agency on Thursday.
BrahMos, a word combining Brahmaputra and Moskva, is a short-range supersonic missile, which has been in manufactured by the Indian Navy since 2005. The missile has a range of 180 miles and can carry a conventional warhead of up to 660 pounds.
On Monday, head of the Russian-Indian BrahMos Aerospace enterprise, Sudhir Mishra, announced that a BrahMos cruise missile may be installed on a Fifth-Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) being jointly developed by Moscow and New Delhi.
Sputnik
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Obama Hails Success of Iran Deal at Nuclear Security Summit
Sputnik News
19:25 01.04.2016(updated 19:34 01.04.2016)
The Iran nuclear agreement has been a real success in addressing nuclear proliferation, even though it doesn't resolve all of the Washington's differences with Tehran, President Obama said.
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) Delegates from the P5+1 group of countries say the Iran nuclear agreement has been a real success in effectivelly addressing nuclear proliferation, President Barack Obama told reporters at a meeting on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, DC on Friday.
"Thanks to this deal we have seen real progress," Obama stated.
In July 2015, the P5+1 group of countries comprised of the United States, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom plus Germany, reached an agreement with Iran to ensure the peaceful nature of Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
He pointed out that the P5+1 group agrees the nuclear agreement "has achieved a substantial success and focused on the dangers of nuclear proliferation in an effective way."
Since implementing the nuclear agreement, Obama noted, Iran had dismantled two-thirds of its centrifuges, shipped out nearly all enriched uranium stockpile and removed its Arak reactor core.
However, the US president also observed that the agreement "does not resolve all of our difference with Iran."
Following the adoption of the nuclear agreement, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 2231 that calls on Iran to refrain from engaging in activity related to ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, among other issues.
Earlier in March, Iranian state media reported the country's Revolutionary Guard Corps conducted a ballistic missile launch as one of the last steps in testing the capabilities of Iranian-produced missiles.
Sputnik
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Daesh Bomb-Making Factory Uncovered in Mosul University Lab
Sputnik News
20:13 01.04.2016
Materials made at the lab reportedly include peroxide-based chemical bombs, suicide bomb vests, nitrate-based explosives and chemical weapons.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) Daesh a terrorist group known also as ISIL and the Islamic State has commandeered a university chemistry laboratory in Mosul, Iraq, to assemble explosive devices, which possibly were used in terrorist attacks in Europe, media reported Friday.
"The University of Mosul is the best Daesh [Arabic acronym for IS] research center in the world," Iraq's top explosives officer Gen. Hatem Magsosi told The Wall Street Journal. "Trainees go to Raqqa [IS stronghold in northern Syria], then to Mosul university to use the existing facilities."
Materials made at the lab include peroxide-based chemical bombs, suicide bomb vests, nitrate-based explosives and chemical weapons, Magsosi said.
Daesh, outlawed in both the United States and Russia, captured Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city, without any resistance from the US-trained and equipped Iraqi army in June 2014. The newspaper cites people with knowledge of the university as saying "dozens" of IS engineers and scientists had set up a "research hub" at its well-stocked chemistry lab by March 2015.
Foreign IS fighters have reportedly been seen moving through the labs at least since August. A surge in the use of bombs made from a powdery substance known as triacetone triperoxide (TATP), described by Magsosi as the "Satan Recipe" due to its lethal effects and difficulty of detection, was registered around the same time, the newspaper claimed.
Although it could not be established whether the perpetrators of the Brussels and Paris attacks used the Mosul labs, at least one suspect was found last month to have made TATP-based suicide belts and suitcase bombs. Belgian police uncovered 33 pounds of TATP-type substances during a March 23 raid in the Schaerbeek municipality, one day after the deadly acts that killed 32 people and injured 316.
Two weeks after the November 13 Paris attacks, French police found a suicide belt containing bolts and TATP, the same substance believed to have been used in seven vests detonated during the string of attacks that killed 130 people and wounded 368.
According to the publication, despite numerous US-led coalition bombings targeting the site, most recently on March 19, the status of the University of Mosul remains unclear.
Sputnik
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Peshmerga General Tells Sputnik How His Troops Plan to Clear Out Daesh
Sputnik News
17:49 01.04.2016(updated 19:49 01.04.2016)
The Kurdish Peshmerga forces will do their best to clear Iraqi Kurdistan of Daesh; the group is a dangerous enemy to all mankind, according to General Lokman Serefhani, who commands a Peshmerga military unit.
In an interview with Sputnik's Kurdish edition, General Lokman Serefhani, a Peshmerga military unit commander in Iraqi Kurdistan, said that the Peshmerga forces will do all they can to drive the Daesh terrorists out of their region of Iraq.
The interview came as the Iraqi Army continues a military operation to liberate the country's second largest city, Mosul, from the terrorists.
"We are conducting a large-scale fight against Daesh. This terrorist organization is mankind's most dangerous enemy and [an enemy to] every one of us. The terrorists continue to kill everyone, including women, children and the elderly," Serefhani said.
He also said that Peshmerga forces "are effectively fighting against the jihadists on all fronts," and that they had managed to seize a large number of the terrorists' weapons and armored vehicles.
"We are going to clean the Kurdish region of Daesh's presence and we are ready to fight till the bitter end. If we stop the struggle, the jihadists will be able to retake our lands," he added.
As far as the liberation of Mosul is concerned, Serefhani urged the Iraqi government to show more determination on the issue.
"Peshmerga forces want to liberate Mosul's residents from Daesh oppression. In this vein, we are poised and ready to fulfill any orders that will come from the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs," he pointed out.
The Kurdish Peshmerga are considered to be the most effective ground force fighting against Daesh, and they have managed to win back significant swathes of territory in northern Iraq which were once controlled by the terrorists.
On March 5, special US presidential envoy for the international anti-Daesh coalition Brett McGurk announced the launch of a campaign to liberate Mosul. Daesh, a terrorist group that has been condemned by the governments of Russia, the United States and many other countries, captured Mosul and some of the area surrounding it in June 2014.
Sputnik
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Iraq: UN envoy voices alarm at ongoing violence, 'unacceptable' loss of civilian lives
1 April 2016 The top United Nations official in Iraq has expressed concern over the continuing acts of violence in the country, which last month took 1,119 lives and injured another 1,561 according to casualty figures recorded by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).
"I am extremely disturbed at the continuing loss of life and injury as a result of terrorism, violence and armed conflict. It is totally unacceptable that civilians should bear the brunt of violence," said the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) for Iraq, Mr. Jan Kubis, in a press release.
Among the casualties were civilians in personal security details, facilities protection police and the fire department, in addition to 45 federal police officers killed and 50 others injured.
The Iraqi Security Forces, which included Peshmerga, Special Weapons And Tactics Team (SWAT) and militias fighting alongside the Iraqi Army but excluding Anbar Operations, experienced 544 killed and 365 injured.
The overall casualty figures saw an increase from February, where a total of 670 were killed and 1,290 were injured.
"My hope is that the proposed reforms will be implemented and will lead to an eventual normalcy in this beautiful country," Mr. Kubis asserted.
With 259 killed and 770 injured, Baghdad totalled 1,029 civilian casualties, making it the worst-affected Governorate. Elsewhere, Ninewa endured 133 killed and 89 injured; Babil, 65 killed and 141 injured; Kirkuk, 34 killed and 57 injured; Diyala, 11 killed and 0 injured; and Salahadin, 6 killed and 1 injured. According to information obtained by UNAMI from the Health Directorate in Anbar, up to and including 30 March, that Governorate suffered 201 civilian casualties, comprised of 64 killed and 137 injured.
The UN mission noted that it had been hindered in effectively verifying casualties in conflict areas as well as reports of large casualty and unknown numbers of persons who died from secondary effects of violence after fleeing their homes due to elements exposure and lack of water, food, medicines and health care. For these reasons, the figures reported are considered as the absolute minimum.
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Kurdish Officials: IS Spies in Iraqi Army Compromised US Base
by Rikar Hussein April 01, 2016
Undercover Islamic State (IS) fighters in the Iraqi army gathered intelligence about a U.S. military base in northern Iraq that came under heavy IS attack resulting in the death of an American Marine last month, Kurdish sources told VOA.
"We are 100 percent sure IS has informers there," said Maj. Gen. Sirwan Barzani, the Kurdish commander of the Gwer-Makhmour frontline. "We are investigating the matter now and are looking for more evidence."
A U.S. Marines' artillery outpost near Mosul, Firebase Bell, is the first U.S. base established in Iraq since the return of American forces to the country in 2014. The base came under heavy IS fire in recent weeks before the Pentagon made its existence public.
The IS attack in mid-March resulted in the death of U.S. Marine Staff Sgt. Louis F. Cardin of Temecula, California, and injuries to several U.S. troops.
The Pentagon did not release specifics about the base before the IS attack because it was not fully operational, according to U.S. Army Col. Steve Warren, spokesman for the U.S. military operation against IS. Warren would not comment to VOA on the Kurdish allegations of IS spies.
"We take great care to protect important information, and we work closely with our Iraqi partners to do the same," he said. "We will not further publicly discuss matters of intelligence."
IS spies not new
Iraqi officials in Baghdad contacted by VOA also declined comment on the Kurdish claims. But the chief of the Iraqi Nineveh operations command in Northern Iraq near the U.S. base rejected the accusations and said there were no IS spies in his unit.
"This is absolutely not true and has no basis. I don't even want to talk about it," Major General Najim Abdullah al-Jubouri said.
Kurdish leaders and Iraqi officials have a contentious political and social relationship. The Kurds operate a governing authority in northern Iraq and want independence from Baghdad. The fight against IS in northern Iraq is complicated as Kurdish and Iraqi forces have separate military units that cooperate only within limits.
Iraq legislator Shakhawan Abdullah, a Kurd who is head of the Iraqi parliamentary security and defense committee, said Baghdad has long feared IS infiltration in its military ranks.
"This is not a new issue," he said. "In the past IS spies inside the Iraqi army have not only provided information to IS but also have engaged in direct suicide bombing."
Abdullah said IS spies were behind a January bombing at Camp Speicher, an Iraqi military base which is a former U.S. installation. Twelve members of Iraqi security forces were killed in the incident.
"Some of the soldiers were arrested by Iraqi defense ministry, and they now face a life sentence," Abdullah said of the troops linked to IS.
Iraqis with IS ties
Kurdish commanders say IS members in recent weeks infiltrated the Iraqi army and its allied Sunni militia Hashd al-Watani, stationed near Firebase Bell in Makhmour.
"IS has information sources inside the Iraqi army and Sunni forces near the U.S. artillery base," said Najat Ali, the Kurdish commander of Makhmur front.
According to Ali, IS has exploited strong social and religious ties with some Iraqi soldiers who helped it obtain firsthand information on most military moves in the area.
"There are Iraqi soldiers whose father, brother, or uncle is a member of IS," said Ali. "We have become very suspicious of them."
Iraqi parliament member Abdullah said IS would not have been able to locate the American base without inside information from the Iraqi army.
"I have no doubt that Daesh [IS] wouldn't have been able to attack the American forces there without spies in the Iraqi army there," he said.
But Barzani, the Kurdish commander, said the Kurds "don't have documents to prove" the spying allegations.
"IS has used drones to collect information on the area," he said. "But their attack on the U.S. firebase in Makhmur was so precise and can't be only through drones. They for sure have informers there."
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Constitution Does Not Ban Japan from Owning, Using Nuke Weapons: Japan Gov't
People's Daily Online
(People's Daily Online) 00:35, April 02, 2016
Japan's Cabinet Council on April 1 issued a statement saying that Japan's Constitution does not necessarily ban the owning and use of nuclear weapons, an answer for the questioning on nuclear weapons from Takako Suzuki, a non-partisan in House of Representatives.
According to the statement, Article Nine of the Constitution limits the self-defense to the minimum, hence even the nuclear weapons are not prohibited, so long as they are within the necessary minimum range.
Yusuke Yokobatake, director-general of the Japanese Cabinet Legislation Bureau, allegedly said that Japan's Constitution does not necessarily ban the use of nuclear weapons. But "the use of weapons, not just nuclear arms, is restricted under domestic and international laws," Yokobatake also said, adding that the use of nuclear weapons by Japan is unrealistic.
The ambiguous attitude of Japanese government on nuclear weapons aroused concern worldwide. It is understandable that the shortage of conventional energy resources has led Japan to the pursuit of nuclear energy, but the country's alarming nuclear material stockpiles, which include 1.2 tons of highly enriched uranium that can be directly used to make nuclear weapons, are way above its needs for civilian purposes, Xinhua reported.
"Japan also has large stockpiles of other sensitive nuclear materials, including separated plutonium and large amount of highly enriched uranium. This issue has indeed attracted global attention. It is hoped that the Japanese side would take necessary steps to address the concerns of the international community," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on March 22, 2015.
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10 Libyan cities pledge allegiance to new unity govt.
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 5:26AM
Ten Libyan cities controlled by a self-declared authority in Tripoli have pledged their support to the UN-backed unity government of the country, which has moved into the capital.
The announcement was made in a statement published on Thursday on the official Facebook page of the municipality of the northwestern city of Sabratha.
It came following a meeting between representatives from the 10 coastal cities located between Tripoli and the border with Tunisia.
The statement welcomed the arrival of the members of Libya's UN-backed government to Tripoli and urged all Libyan citizens to "support the national unity government."
It further called on Libya's internationally-recognized administration to "put an immediate end to all armed conflicts across Libya."
On Wednesday, Libya's Prime Minister-designate Fayez al-Sarraj along with several members of his cabinet arrived from Tunisia at Tripoli's Abusita naval base by boat.
The internationally-recognized government had been largely based in the northeastern city of Tobruk.
However, the General National Congress (GNC), the non-recognized authority in charge of Tripoli, branded their entry into Tripoli illegal and demanded that Sarraj leave or surrender.
Tripoli officials had declared a state of emergency ahead of Sarraj's arrival while several main highways were blocked by armed groups. Police were posted on the streets and flights were suspended for security reasons.
A television station that supports the Tripoli authorities went off the air late on Wednesday and there were brief clashes close to the city center.
Formed under a power-sharing deal signed on December 17, 2015 in Morocco, the unity government is tasked with taking over from rival groups running different parts of the North African state.
Libya has had two rival administrations since mid-2014, when militias overran the capital and forced the parliament to flee to the country's remote east.
The oil-rich country has been dominated by violence since a NATO military intervention followed the 2011 uprising that led to the toppling and killing of longtime dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
Taking advantage of the political chaos, the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group took control of Libya's northern port city of Sirte in June 2015 and made it the first city to be ruled by the militant group outside of Iraq and Syria, where they are mainly operative.
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Libyan Interim PM Says No Clashes Amid Unity Gov't Arrival in Tripoli
Sputnik News
05:44 01.04.2016
The situation in Libya's capital Tripoli is volatile, but no clashes have taken place following the arrival of Presidential Council members, the Libyan interim government's Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj said Thursday.
ROME (Sputnik) Several members of the Libyan UN-backed Presidential Council, which is chaired by Sarraj, reportedly arrived in Tripoli by sea on Wednesday amid threats of arrest by competing factions. The Tripoli-based self-proclaimed General National Congress had threatened to close the capital's airspace to prevent the interim government members from arriving.
"As regards the current situation in the country's capital city, Serraj said that there have been no clashes although the situation remains volatile. Minister Gentiloni reiterated Italy's support to the government of national accord and to any action designed to expand and consolidate the consensus for it," Sarraj told Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni in a phone conversation, as quoted in the Italian ministry's press release.
The Presidential Council is determined to press for dialogue, the prime minister said, adding that all parties must work to consolidate the Government of National Accord and stabilize the country, according to the statement.
Libya has been in a state of turmoil for years after the Arab Spring protests in early 2011 led to a civil war and the overthrow of long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi.
In December, Libya's rival governments the internationally-recognized Council of Deputies based in Tobruk and the Tripoli-based General National Congress agreed to create a Government of National Accord to end the political struggle.
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Russia 'to respond' to US deployments in Eastern Europe
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 10:28AM
Russia slams US plans to position troops, tanks and other armored vehicles full time along NATO's eastern borders, saying Moscow is preparing a "completely asymmetrical" response to the deployments.
Russia's Ambassador to NATO Alexandr Grushko said on Rossiya-24 television on Thursday that Moscow would not act like a "passive observer" but would rather undertake all those military measures needed to counter the "totally unjustified increased military presence."
"Of course, our response will be completely asymmetrical. It will be calibrated to match our ideas about the degree of military threat, to be most efficient and not overly expensive," Grushko said.
Since 2014, the US has been intermittently rotating some 4,200 troops in and out of Europe, Separately, some 62,000 US military personnel are assigned permanently on the continent.
The Pentagon, however, announced on Wednesday that it is seeking to divide the rotational force among the six eastern NATO member states of Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria for permanent presence.
It further announced plans to start rotating an additional full armored brigade in and out of Eastern Europe as part of the US President Barack Obama administration's "European Reassurance Initiative."
In another interview, with Russia's Izvestia daily on Thursday, Grushko said Moscow views the troop rotation as a violation of a 1990s agreement between Russia and NATO, which bans additional combat troop deployment to Eastern Europe.
In a third interview, with Deutsche Welle, Germany's international broadcaster, the Russian envoy also warned that the US plans weaken European security, describing the initiatives as a "further step establishing NATO's transition to confrontational patterns."
"No-one can be misled any more by talks about NATO's military activities having only a rotational character," he said.
The Western military alliance has been deploying troops and equipment close to Russia's borders since it suspended all ties with Moscow in April 2014 after the Crimean Peninsula integrated into the Russian Federation following a referendum.
The United States and its European allies accuse Moscow of destabilizing Ukraine and have imposed a number of sanctions against Russian and pro-Russia figures. Moscow, however, rejects having a hand in the Ukrainian crisis.
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Russian State Arms Exporter Seals Over 1,300 Contracts in 2015
Sputnik News
19:58 01.04.2016
Sergey Goreslavsky, Russian state arms exporter, Rosoboronexport, said that Rosoboronexport signed over 1,300 contracts in 2015.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) The Russian state arms exporter, Rosoboronexport, concluded over 1,300 contracts on the weapons delivery in 2015, the company's deputy director general said Friday.
"Last year, we signed over 1,300 contracts," Sergey Goreslavsky told Rossiya 24 television.
On November 2, 2015, Rosoboronexport's Director General Anatoly Isaykin said the agency would maintain annual arms exports levels at $12-13 billion until at least 2017.
These levels would allow Russia to retain the second place after the United States in exporting weapons, Isaykin added.
On December 14, 2015, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) published its annual report of the world's 100 largest arms manufacturers, ranked in terms of sales, where it said that in 2014 Russian arms industry's sales continued their upward trend, despite difficulties in the country's economy, caused by Western economic sanctions.
The report said that at least 11 Russian arms manufactures were included in the top 100 for 2014, and they accounted for 10 percent of the total arms sales of the 100 firms.
Sputnik
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Russia Waiting on France to Return Mistral Equipment Before Resale to Egypt
Sputnik News
16:24 01.04.2016(updated 17:03 01.04.2016)
Russia is awaiting the return of its equipment for the Mistral-class helicopter carriers from France to resell it to Egypt, a Russian military source told RIA Novosti on Friday.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) France officially terminated the $1.3 billion deal to sell two Mistrals to Russia last summer. Paris then signed a contract to sell the same carrier to Cairo in October 2015.
"We are waiting for our equipment back from France, then we could start supplies," the source said.
Russian Ambassador to Egypt Sergei Kirpichenko said in early February that Russia would be the main party to help Egypt equip the Mistrals.
Russian Trade Minister Denis Manturov said the previous month he was willing to discuss the deliveries of naval helicopters for the carriers if Cairo expressed readiness to do so.
Late in February, a spokesman for the state technologies and export corporation Rostec's United Instrument Manufacturing Corporation disclosed that Russian radio and electronic equipment had been stripped from the carriers and returned to the Russian Navy for training.
Sputnik
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Ramzan Kadyrov Refutes Claims Democracy 'Non-Existent' in Chechnya
Sputnik News
13:00 01.04.2016(updated 13:28 01.04.2016)
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov refuted claims in an interview with Sputnik that there is no democracy or freedom of speech in the southern Russian republic.
GROZNY (Sputnik) Kadyrov has been the object of criticism by a number of human rights organizations and government opposition figures for years.
"They say there isn't anyone, there isn't any democracy, there's no freedom of speech. That's all dreamed up," Kadyrov said.
Kadyrov said his actions are supported by an overwhelming majority of Chechen residents.
"Take any policy, be it economic, spiritual, moral, religious, or social, more than 80 percent of the population here is always behind us and for us doing everything right," the Chechen leader said.
He added that there are others in the republic who are "schizophrenics and psychologically ill," as well as those "who have sold their honor and dignity."
Kadyrov emphasized that Chechen authorities are open for dialogue with everyone.
"We're open for everyone. Our ministers and leaders go to the mosque every morning to pray. Anyone who wants to can come up and ask a question. Everything is wide open for them. If you want, we can go to the large mosque tomorrow morning where there are a lot of officers, [local] parliament members, ministers, and leaders," Kadyrov said.
Sputnik
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Kadyrov Undecided in Run for Leader of Chechnya
Sputnik News
12:15 01.04.2016(updated 12:51 01.04.2016)
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov called Russian President Vladimir Putin the "only single person in Russia who can make any decision in regard to him."
GROZNY(Sputnik) Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov told Sputnik that he has not yet decided to run for another term to head the southern Russian republic, which he has led since 2007.
On March 25, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Kadyrov would assume the title of "acting leader" until elections are held in September.
"I have been termed 'acting.' We still need to live until September, and that's still a long ways away," Kadyrov said.
When asked more directly of whether he plans to run for the post, Kadyrov said "I'm a soldier, I'll do what the commander says."
During a recent meeting with Kadyrov, Putin expressed his hope that Kadyrov would participate in the elections.
"[Putin] is the only single person in Russia I think who can make any decision in regard to me. I would obey without question," Kadyrov added.
Kadyrov added that he was quite satisfied with his current team.
"If there are elections, if I participate, if I win the election, the current team is quite satisfactory," Kadyrov said.
He added that he is already making some slight changes to his team.
"A person who is tired of working in one field, it's not good to keep someone in any position for too longThe head of my administration, Islam Kadyrov he was mayor, Minister of Regional Property and Land Relations. Idris Cherhihov worked in the Security Council, in the secretariat, in the administration and as a minister. If a person can handle [the position], [then] we give him the opportunity to move further," Kadyrov said.
The Chechen Republic is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus. Ramzan Kadyrov has been the head of the republic since 2007.
Sputnik
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Russia concerned with reports of Turkey military shooting at refugees
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 4:8PM
Russia has expressed concerns about reports of Turkish military's shooting at refugees struggling to cross into the country from Syria, calling for justice to be served for those responsible for alleged crimes.
"If reports are confirmed, it will be necessary to conduct thorough investigation, including possibly in the international format, to bring those guilty of such humanitarian crime to justice," said Russian Foreign Ministry's Commissioner for Human Rights, Democracy and Supremacy of Law Konstantin Dolgov.
The comments on Thursday came in reaction to an article published in The Times suggesting that Turkish border guards have been shooting refugees dead as people struggle to flee the violence in Syria.
"We are seriously concerned about the information that appeared in the media on this matter," said Dolgov, adding, "This is among other flagrant violations of human rights that are permitted by Turkish authorities on the Turkish territory."
According to information provided by the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a group advocating the Syrian opposition, some 16 refugees including three children, were killed by guards as they crossed into Turkey over the past four months, the magazine said in its March 31 report.
The brutal treatment of refugees comes as Turkey has been tightening the grip on refugees arriving from Syria after Ankara reached a multi-billion-euro deal with the European Union for curbing the flow of refugees into Europe.
The deal reached last month has faced strong criticism from governments and international organizations, including the United Nations refugee agency, also known as the UNHCR, which swiftly slammed the agreement as facilitating the collective punishment of refugees.
Turkey has been one of the main backers of militants in Syria since a conflict erupted in the country in 2011. The Turkish government has accepted hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the war in Syria over the past years, only to allow them to cross into Greece via the Mediterranean.
Under the EU-Turkey deal, Ankara is supposed to take back all refugees reaching the Greek shores from April 4. Refugees, however, defy the agreement with reports on Friday suggesting many continued their sit-in protest on railway lines across Greece. The asylum seekers said they will not leave their makeshift camps unless they can cross the border into Macedonia.
Lawmakers in Greece were debating a bill on Friday whether to deport refugees back to Turkey as part of the agreement with Ankara.
Some 12,000 refugees are currently housed at Greece's Idomeni camp alone. The government has said that it will not use force to remove them.
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Moscow dismisses reports on US-Russia deal on Assad's fate
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 1:11PM
Russia has dismissed reports on an alleged agreement between Moscow and Washington on the fate of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told a news conference on Friday that rumors about the future of Assad are "dirty leaks which distort reality."
He said such reports indicate the inability of the US government to convince its allies that the future of Syria and its leader should be decided by the Syrians.
"Our American partners cannot publicly call into question this formula that ... only the people of Syria decide all the questions about the future of Syria," Lavrov said.
Rumors, he added, about the fate of President Assad shows "Washington's inability to force some of its allies in the region and in Europe ... to give the Syrian people a sovereign right to decide their destiny as well as who will be their leader."
The comments by the Russian top diplomat came in response to a report in Arabic newspaper al-Hayat published on Thursday suggesting that Russia and the US had reached an understanding on the future of Syria's peace process. The report said US Secretary of State John Kerry had told several Arab countries that at some unspecified stage of the process Assad will depart for another country.
The Kremlin denied the report, calling the speculations as untrue.
"Al-Hayat published information which does not correspond to reality," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a conference call with journalists on Thursday.
"Russia is advantageously different from other nations because it does not discuss the issue of the self-determination of third countries either through diplomatic or other channels."
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Lavrov to Kerry: Seal the Turkish-Syrian Border to Prevent Terrorists Flow
Sputnik News
21:16 01.04.2016(updated 21:34 01.04.2016)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reiterated in the a phone call with US State Secretary John Kerry that the Turkey-Syria border remains 'full of holes' and is actively used to bring terrorists to Syria via Turkey.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov insisted in a phone call with US State Secretary John Kerry on Friday that the Syrian-Turkish border must be completely closed to curb the flow of terrorist reinforcements to Syria, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
"Sergei Lavrov reiterated that the Turkey-Syria border remains 'full of holes' and is actively used to bring terrorists to Syria via Turkey," the ministry said in a statement.
"He insisted that the border must be sealed, and urged a quick coordination of all necessary measures, including on the part of the UN Security Council, to resolve this issue," the statement said.
According to the ministry, Lavrov and Kerry also reaffirmed plans to continue support of talks between the Syrian government and the entire spectrum of the Syrian opposition under the UN aegis to ensure the success of the political settlement of the Syrian crisis.
Sputnik
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US to Train, Equip Individual Troops in Syria Instead of Entire Units
Sputnik News
19:08 01.04.2016
Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. Steve Warren said that during the first train-and-equip program in Syria, the US military pulled entire units off the battlefield and tried to push them through training, but that initiative failed.
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) The US military will apply lessons learned from its failed train-and-equip program in Syria by training individuals as opposed to pulling entire units off the battlefield, Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. Steve Warren told reporters on Friday.
"Dozens of people are now being trained [in Syria]," Warren stated. "These are individuals as opposed to units."
During the first train-and-equip program in Syria, the US military pulled entire units off the battlefield and tried to push them through training, but that initiative failed, Warren explained.
The Department of Defense canceled its first Syrian train-and-equip program at the end of 2015 after the $500 million initiative failed to produce more than five or six fighters.
Earlier this month, US Central Command Commander Gen. Joseph Votel told Congress the Defense Department would enhance the vetting processes in the revived program, and fighters trained would focus efforts against the Islamic State (ISIL, or Daesh) as opposed to Syrian government forces.
Sputnik
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Finding Terrorist Foxholes: Syrian Army 'Smokes Out' Daesh in Deir ez-Zor
Sputnik News
08:56 01.04.2016(updated 09:27 01.04.2016)
The Syrian Army and the country's National Defense Forces have tracked and destroyed a strategic tunnel which had been dug by Daesh in the besieged government-held enclave of Deir ez-Zor.
A key tunnel built by Daesh terrorists has been obliterated by the Syrian Army and the country's National Defense Forces (NDF) in the eastern Syrian city of Deir ez-Zor, the Iranian news agency FARS reported.
Dozens of the terrorists were killed and many more wounded after the army launched an attack on the 20-meter tunnel located in the southern part of the city, sources said.
The attack came just days after the Syrian troops advanced on Daesh's strongholds in the towns of al-Mayadeen and al-Ashara in Deir ez-Zor province, where scores of additional terrorists were eradicated.
Earlier, the Syrian Army and the NDF foiled a Daesh attempt to penetrate the army's positions in the Eastern part of Deir ez-Zor military airport, killing at least five terrorists.
Syria has been mired in a civil war since 2011, with forces loyal to the country's President Bashar Assad fighting a number of opposition factions and extremist groups, including Daesh and the Al-Nusra Front, which have been blacklisted as terrorist organizations by many countries, including Russia.
In February 2015, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 2268, endorsing a Russia-US agreement on the cessation of hostilities in Syria; the ceasefire came into force shortly thereafter, on February 27, and fighting throughout much of the country subsided. However, Daesh and the Al-Nusra Front were not included in the truce.
Between September 30, 2015 and March 14, 2016, the Syrian Army's anti-terror efforts were backed by an extensive Russian air campaign. During that period, more than fifty Russian warplanes, including Su-24M, Su-25 and Su-34 jets, conducted precision airstrikes on Daesh and Al-Nusra targets in Syria at the behest of President Assad.
However, on March 14 Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the Russian Aerospace Forces unit had fulfilled its mission in Syria and that its withdrawal would begin the following day. Nonetheless, Russian air power was utilized by Assad's forces in the liberation of the ancient city of Palmyra.
Moscow will maintain a military presence in Syria, although a deadline for a complete pullout has not yet been announced. Putin also indicated that Russian forces will remain at the port of Tartus and Hmeymim Airbase.
Sputnik
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Taiwan reiterates commitment to cross-strait peace
ROC Central News Agency
2016/04/01 19:56:21
Taipei, April 1 (CNA) The Presidential Office on Friday reiterated President Ma Ying-jeou's () commitment to promote peace across the Taiwan Strait, after the Taiwan issue was raised during a meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping ().
During the meeting held on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit in Washington on Thursday, Xi urged the United States to continue to take substantial steps to maintain the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, according to China's official Xinhua news agency.
The two leaders also discussed issues related to the South China Sea.
Presidential Office spokesperson Ma Wei-kuo () said the administration of President Ma has adhered to the "no unification, no independence, no use of force" approach to maintain the cross-strait status quo based on the Republic of China Constitution.
It has also been promoting the peaceful development of cross-strait ties on the basis of the "1992 consensus" of "one China, different interpretations," Ma said.
Over the past eight years, such a foundation has enabled the two sides of the Taiwan Strait to maintain close cultural and trade exchanges and build a high level of mutual trust, she said, adding that the peaceful and prosperous status quo across the strait has won the support of the majority of people in Taiwan.
As to the South China Sea issue, she said the "South China Sea Peace Initiative" put forth by the government last year can serve as a reference for Beijing and Washington.
(By Hsieh Chia-chen and Y.F. Low)
ENDITEM/ls
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UK MoD Dodging Requests to Disclose Number of Killer Drones in Middle East
Sputnik News
16:18 01.04.2016(updated 17:46 01.04.2016)
The UK Ministry of Defense continues denying requests to disclose the number of Reaper drones deployed from the Middle East countries, the investigative online outlet Drone Wars UK said Friday.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) The UK Ministry of Defense continues denying Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to disclose the number of Reaper drones deployed from Afghanistan to Iraq, Syria and other countries in the Middle East, the investigative online outlet Drone Wars UK said Friday.
Defense Secretary Michael Fallon announced the relocation of Reapers from Afghanistan to the Middle East in a written statement to parliament on October 16, 2014, as the US-led NATO combat mission withdrew from Afghanistan later that year.
The UK government found in its decision that the "balance of public interest was found to be in favor of withholding the information given thatthe public interest is best served in not releasing any details on the number of Reaper deployed." It further claimed that disclosure would provide "tactical advantage to our enemies" and "prejudice the security of UK personnel serving abroad."
The outlet's founder and author of the request, Chris Cole, argued that the United Kingdom avoids "both the responsibility and also the opportunity to set high standards internationally for transparency and public oversight of the use of these systems."
The UK parliament voted to extend its Royal Air Force counterterror mission from Iraq to Syria in December two years after denying Prime Minister David Cameron the approval he had sought.
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Washington pledges more security aid to Kiev
Iran Press TV
Fri Apr 1, 2016 6:6AM
The United States has pledged hundreds of millions in security assistance to Ukraine.
Washington said Thursday that it will provide Ukraine with an additional $335 million in security assistance.
The news came after a meeting between US Vice President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Washington on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit there.
Biden told the Ukrainian leader that Kiev's move to form a "reform-oriented" government would prompt even further aid.
"The vice president welcomed the efforts of President Poroshenko to form a stable, reform-oriented government, and stressed that this step, as well as the enactment of needed reforms, are critical to unlocking international economic assistance, including the third $1 billion US loan guarantee," said the White House in a statement.
Last May, the US signed its second $1 billion loan deal for Ukraine to help it fight pro-Russians in the country's flashpoint east and jolt its tattered economy.
Ukraine has witnessed spiraling violence after its eastern regions sought independence a couple of years ago.
Violence flared up in east Ukraine in April 2014, after Kiev deployed troops to the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk to suppress pro-Russians.
Since then, the US and some other Western countries have imposed several rounds of sanctions against Russia over accusations that Moscow has been involved in the deadly crisis in Ukraine. Russia has denied the allegation.
Relations between Russia and the West specially strained after Crimea in southeast Ukraine declared independence from it on March 17, 2014 and formally applied to become part of Russia following a referendum a day earlier.
The Kremlin has slapped restrictions on some food imports from the US, the EU, Norway, Australia and Canada in a tit-for-tat move.
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In Washington at Nuclear Security Summit, Ban highlights role of UN watchdog agency
1 April 2016 At the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C., Secretary-General Ban Ki moon has attended a working lunch with other dignitaries and in his remarks, he is expected to spotlight the crucial role played by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in the area of nuclear security.
Many states lack sufficient capacity to act on nuclear security threats and this is where the IAEA role is indispensable in providing expertise, advice and technical assistance, said UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
The spokesperson also noted that the UN chief will also highlight the importance of UN Security Council resolution 1540, requiring the states to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and of the UN Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism.
On the margins of the Summit, the Secretary-General met with the President of France, Francois Hollande. The Secretary-General and the President discussed the situation in Western Sahara.
They also exchanged views on the situation in Mali. Mr. Ban thanked France for its continued support to the implementation of the peace agreement in Mali, for the review of the mandate of the UN Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) and for tackling issues of insecurity and the re-establishment of State authority throughout the country.
He thanked France for its continued support to the democratically elected Government of the Central African Republic, underlining the need to maintain international attention on the situation in the country.
On the allegations of misconduct by peacekeeping troops in the Central African Republic (CAR), the Secretary-General and President Hollande agreed on the imperative of a thorough investigation to ensure that perpetrators be brought to justice.
Mr. Ban also met with the President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko and commended the country for its important contribution to global nuclear security.
Regarding the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine, Mr. Ban expressed his deep concern over the precariousness of the security situation and reiterated the urgent need for full implementation of the Minsk agreements. President Poroshenko also updated the Secretary-General on the domestic political situation in Ukraine.
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PERTH, Australia, April 1, 2016 /CNW/ - Galaxy Resources Ltd. (ASX:GXY) ("Galaxy") ("the Company") advises that it has released an announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) titled "Lithium Concentrate Production Commences at Mt Cattlin"
The announcement was released on the ASX on 1 April 2016. The announcement can be viewed and downloaded from:
http://www.asx.com.au/asx/statistics/announcements.do?by=asxCode&asxCode=gxy&timeframe=D&period=W
SOURCE Galaxy Resources Ltd.
Vancouver, April 1, 2016 - Golden Dawn Minerals Inc. (TSXV: GOM) (FSE: 3G8A) (the "Company" or "Golden Dawn") announces that the Company has granted 1,200,000 stock options at an exercise price of $0.15 effective today. The options are exercisable for 5 years and will be cancelled 30 days after cessation of acting as director, officer, employee or consultant of the Company.The Company also wishes to confirm the figures relating to the recent private placement closed March 10, 2016. The total amount raised was $751,206 in two separate tranches. 2,838,230 FT shares were issued at a price of $.13 cents per share and 3,185,300 NFT shares were issued at a price of $.12 cents per share. The flow-through shares were issued with a full warrant valid for two years at an exercise price of $.15 cents per share in the first year and at $.18 cents per share in the second year. The non flow-through shares were issued with a full warrant valid for 2 years at an exercise price of $.13 cents per share in the first year and at $.15 cents per share in the second year.On behalf of the Board of Directors:GOLDEN DAWN MINERALS INC."Wolf Wiese", Wolf Wiese, Chief Executive OfficerCorporate Communications604-221-8936allinfo@goldendawnminerals.comTHIS PRESS RELEASE WAS PREPARED BY MANAGEMENT WHO TAKES FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR ITS CONTENTS. 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 DOCUMENT CONTAINS CERTAIN FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS WHICH INVOLVE KNOWN AND UNKNOWN RISKS, DELAYS, AND UNCERTAINTIES NOT UNDER THE COMPANY'S CONTROL WHICH MAY CAUSE ACTUAL RESULTS, PERFORMANCE OR ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE COMPANY TO BE MATERIALLY DIFFERENT FROM THE RESULTS, PERFORMANCE, OR ACHIEVEMENTS IMPLIED BY THESE FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS. WE SEEK SAFE HARBOR.
What has Gov. Abbott done about the six mass shootings on his watch?
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Program to be phased out in the fall
By Becca Nelson Sankey Special To The Standard-Times
Go to facebook.com and enter the words, "Take back the ASU honors program" in the search window, then click the link.
In less than 24 hours, the Facebook page of the Angelo State University Honors Program went from serving as a networking site for its students to being a campaign page to reinstate the program at ASU.
Honors Program members changed their Facebook site's name to Take Back the ASU Honors Program after university officials announced Thursday evening that the program would be phased out beginning this fall.
The Honors Program goes beyond the traditional education to engage academically gifted students with challenging courses and campus involvement, according to ASU's description on its website.
Honors Program Director Shirley Eoff declined to comment Friday regarding specifics of the decision or how many staffing positions it would affect, but she said the announcement is "a result of a combination of new strategic directions that the university wishes to take and the financial challenges of supporting honors education at a level that it can be viable."
According to an ASU news release issued Friday, strategic rather than budgetary factors spurred the decision, the goal of which is "to reach a broader range of students than just those eligible for the Honors Program."
The closure has no direct impact on ASU faculty, Eoff said, but will have some implications for Honors Program staff.
"What that impact is at this point, I can't tell you," she said. "I can tell you the university is committed to attempting to find other positions on campus for the honors staff."
Jessica Kindrick, an ASU senior and honors student, said an emergency Honors Program meeting was called Thursday night and attended by students, Eoff and Anthony P. Blose, the university's provost and vice president for academic affairs.
"My understanding is that Texas Tech Board of Regents decided more of the school's money should be allocated to more of the students who have made a 21 through 24 on their ACT," instead of funding scholarships for students like those in the Honors Program who score higher, Kindrick said.
Suggested entry requirements for prospective honors students include a 1200 SAT or 27 ACT, Eoff said.
Kindrick said that the students were told at the meeting that without scholarships, the program cannot continue. Students appeared to accept the fact that the scholarships would be cut, she said, but were less understanding upon news that the funds would be reallocated.
"It's that they're reallocating the funds to students who are less qualified and probably less likely to stay in school or do as well as the Honors Program students," Kindrick said. "It's like a slap in the face to me because I don't understand."
According to the university's release, ASU is planning to implement an "undergraduate research experience" to enhance the educational experience of students studying for their bachelor's degrees.
Eoff said students who currently have honors scholarships will continue to be eligible for them through the next two years.
"But students who entered the program in the 2010-11 academic year will not receive honors scholarships," she said. "It is affecting students who are current freshmen in the program, but hopefully will have minimal impact on those who will be juniors and seniors next year in terms of scholarships."
Honors classes will continue to be offered the next 12 to 18 months "to try to get as many of the current students in the program through," Eoff said. "We're going to work individually with the students, their degree plan, to try to allow them to finish with honors certification."
Despite not being one of the students directly affected by the program's termination, Kindrick is still frustrated.
"People in the honors program are mostly the ones heading the student organizations," she said. "They're helping ASU reach out to the community, they're bettering ASU, and it's like they're taking funding away from those students and giving it to those students who are less qualified and less involved."
Kindrick wasn't the only student upset by the news. She said Thursday's meeting began at 7:30 p.m., but some students stayed until about 10:20 p.m., when Blose left.
"They were angry; they were upset," she said. "A lot of them were irate."
Student posts began popping up on the Honors Program's Facebook page early Friday morning. One of the first posts read, "For those of you who honestly care for the Honors Program, please make the call to the Chancellor's Office. The more people we have, the more difficult it becomes to ignore."
By 1 p.m. Friday, another post informed students that ASU President Joseph Rallo "is no longer accepting phone calls from honors students."
Others posted information about the Honors Program's regularly scheduled meeting for Monday and pleaded that students come prepared with ideas to reinstate the program.
Eoff said 56 students have graduated with honors certification since the program formed in 2002. One hundred-thirty students were enrolled during the 2010-11 academic year, and 16 will graduate with the honors distinction in May, she said.
Bernie Ecclestone has kept hopes alive that Monza might retain the Italian grand prix beyond September's 2016 race.
In the past week, reports have suggested the negotiations might be close to collapse, but F1 supremo Ecclestone said on Friday that talks will resume "in a couple of weeks".
"There will be another meeting in a couple of weeks to discuss the future of Monza," he told the Italian broadcaster Sky Sport in Bahrain. "So you'll have to wait."
But the 85-year-old repeated his warning that F1 could live without the iconic venue.
"Can I imagine a future for F1 without Italy? It's funny because I could never imagine the future without France but here we are," Ecclestone said.
He confirmed reports that a potential replacement on the calendar for Monza could be a second US grand prix in Las Vegas.
"I am going to be talking to them in ten minutes," Ecclestone told reporters on Friday. He said Las Vegas could happen "in a couple of years I suppose".
"We'd keep Austin and have another race."
Finally, Ecclestone was asked about the qualifying debacle, admitting his preferred successor for the hated 'musical chairs' format might include a ballot to determine the grid, or a system where time penalties apply for success.
"Let's wait and see," he told Italy's Sky. "We'll see tomorrow (Saturday) and we'll see what happens. This (format) was never my idea, it was the FIA."
A poll conducted by the German broadcaster RTL said 91 per cent of fans are in favour of scrapping the current system.
(GMM)
Although this marks the first synthesis of ruthenium nanoframes, the break-through is not limited to this one metal. Xia says the process the team developed is more important.
A team of chemists, led by Xiaohu Xia from Michigan Technological University, has developed an effective method based on seeded growth and chemical etching for the facile synthesis of ruthenium (Ru) nanoframes (NFs) with high purity for use as effective catalysts. A paper on their work is published in the ACS journal Nano Letters
Nanoframes (NFs) made of noble metals have received great attention in recent years due to their remarkable performance in many applications including catalysis, plasmonics, and biomedicine. The highly open structure of NFs is mainly responsible for their enhanced properties and superior performance. In catalysis, for example, nanocatalysts with frame morphologies ensure increased surface area to volume ratio and reduced coordination number for atoms on the surface, thereby maximizing the catalytic activity.
Over the past two decades, a variety of noble-metal NFs have been actively developed, including those made of Au, Ag, Pt, Pd, Rh, and a combination of them. However, to the best of our knowledge Ru NFs have never been reported before. It should be noted that Ru nanostructures have found widespread use in many industrially important catalytic reactions such as hydrogenation, ammonia synthesis, and CO oxidation, which motivated us to explore NFs of Ru and investigate their catalytic properties. Ye et al.
In an effort to make better catalysts, Xia brought together a team from the Argonne National Laboratory, University of Texas at Dallas, and Temple University. Haihang Ye, Xia's graduate student, is first author on the paper; undergraduate Joseph Vermeylen also contributed to the work.
Ruthenium, a noble metal and fairly rare, has joined an elite group of catalyst metals including gold, platinum and palladium. Since the metals are so rare, there is a strong incentive to reduce how much of a catalyst is used in any given process. Usually researchers control shape and sizethe key is more surface area. Nanoframes, which are nanoparticles with open centers, have an advantage with their gazebo-like atomic arrangements.
Since we have the interior space available, its another benefit. Because catalytic reactions occur only on the surface of materials, the surface atom arrangement has a great impact on determining the catalytic activity. Xiaohu Xia
The crystal structure of a materiali.e.the arrangements of atomscan be difficult to manipulate. In general, ruthenium nanocrystals adopt the hexagonal close-packed (hcp) structure. But Xia and his team came up with an elegant solution for making ruthenium nanocrystals with another structure: face-centered cubic (fcc) structure.
The process involves two steps, growth and etching. Basically, ruthenium doesnt naturally grow in a crystal structure that can be made into a nanoframe. Instead, the team grew the nanoframe on a core of palladium, which they later removed.
The first step starts with a palladium seed with an fcc structure, and the researchers used the metal as an atomic template. Ruthenium was directed to preferentially grow on the edges and corners of the palladium octahedron. That way, the newly formed ruthenium simply replicated the fcc structure of the palladium seed. The second step is called etching, which removes the palladium seed, leaving behind the hollowed out ruthenium nanoframe.
Schematic illustration showing the two steps involved in the synthesis of Ru NFs: (1) selective nucleation and growth of Ru on the corners and edges of Pd truncated octahedra, yielding PdRu core frame octahedra, and (2) formation of Ru octahedral NFs by etching away the Pd cores. Credit: ACS, Ye et al. Click to enlarge.
To ensure the material had catalytic potential, the team ran the ruthenium nanoframes through several diagnostic tests: the reduction of p-nitrophenol by NaBH 4 and the dehydrogenation of ammonia borane. While more data is needed to quantify how well ruthenium holds up against existing metal catalysts, Xia says the results from their experiments are promising.
Improving the materials stability is the next line of research. Being such a new catalyst, it needs to be fully characterized and have its limits tested. For example, Xia says they will want to know how thick the nanoframe material can grow and still keep the fcc structure and be effective as a catalyst.
Most importantly, once the material has been vetted, researchers will be able to start applying the catalyst to several big challenges. Namely, Xia says that ruthenium nanoframes and other catalysts with unique crystal structures could improve hydrogen fuel production and carbon storage.
Resources
How about calling a special session to limit terms for the Senate leader in the legislature? Phil Berger represents himself, not the people. Better yet, how about we, the people of North Carolina, call for Phil Bergers resignation? For not doing his job, representing everybody.
It pains me to see the condition of our state, how Berger and company have alienated people. Im hearing that the legislature and the governor are protecting the safety of people. To say that gay and transgenders are a threat to women and children is outrageous and wrong. Heterosexual people are just as much of a threat.
The legislature and governor are using their own prejudices to rule over North Carolina. Time for the people to stand up. Vote them out. Theyre a disgrace to us all.
Nancy Dimsdale
Reidsville
STAMFORD A East Side man was arrested Thursday after firing a warning shot that narrowly missed a woman visiting from Venezuela, police said.
Rodney Canada Jr., 22, received a gun permit three months ago and was bragging Thursday to another man about the weapon he had, when the man told him to either use it or stop talking about it, Police Lt. Diedrich Hohn said. Canada told police he fired the shot as a warning and did not intend to harm the man outside a Dale Street home near Ursula Place about 3:05 p.m., Hohn said.
However, instead of being fired into the air, the bullet slammed through an enclosed porch, pierced a window and narrowly missed a woman sitting on a living room couch, Hohn said. The shot was fired in the direction of the man with whom Canada was arguing, who was about 75 yards away, police said.
Hohn said the bullet came within a few feet of striking the visitor.
She was a very lucky woman, Hohn said.
Canada, of Glenbrook Road, was charged with criminal attempt at first-degree assault, two counts of reckless endangerment, discharging a weapon within the city limits and criminal mischief for the damage he did to the Dale Street home, Hohn said.
This was a great job by responding patrol officers, Assistant Police Chief Matheny said of the quick arrest.
Luxury specialists Karalux out of Vietnam are now offering a gold-plating service for the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, so you can upgrade from your last-year 24K-covered Samsung flagship.
Samsung's switched from A7000 to A6000 grade aluminum, Karalux says, which has forced the company to introduce changes to its manufacturing processes. It now takes 6 hours over 10 separate stages to put some extra bling on an already premium device.
Gold-plated Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge by Karalux
The pleasure of owning a gold-plated Galaxy S7 costs VND 35 million ($1570), phone included, if you happen to live in Vietnam, while international buyers will need to shell out $1730. For the S7 edge, on the other hand, those numbers are $1705 and $1930, for local and global purchases respectively.
Source
Haiti - Justice : New area for juvenile in Les Cayes prison
In collaboration with the Directorate of Penitentiary Administration of Haiti (DAP), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has just completed the construction of a cell block for juveniles in the prison of Les Cayes (South) which houses 650 inmates including just over fifteen minors.
After having built a area reserved for women https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-11215-haiti-social-new-area-reserved-for-women-in-les-cayes-prison.html in this prison in 2014, it was important for us to do the same for juvenile to provide prison conditions appropriate to the age of these detainees," declared Thomas Ess, ICRC head of delegation in Haiti "The construction of this specific space responds to the need to protect minors by ensuring their separation from the rest of the prison," explained Aurelie Gautier, Coordinator in charge of ICRC protection activities in Haiti.
This work is part of the rehabilitation and development of the civil prison of Les Cayes started in 2011, aimed at improving the living conditions of inmates. The renovated unit can accommodate 18 children on a surface that has been optimized by the installation of bunk beds. The vents and cell ventilation meet the prescribed standards. The multipurpose space, furnished and equipped beside the cell, will allow among othersto continue the education of young people and organizing recreational activities in better conditions.
"It is important to stress that the ICRC was able once again to rely on the expertise available within the DAP, which through its logistics Sub-Branch, fully monitored the work to a successful conclusion," stressed Mathias Stephane Roche, in charge of "water and habitat" program for the ICRC in Haiti.
HL/ HaitiLibre
Haiti - Diplomacy : The international community welcomes the installation of CEP
In a note Sandra Honore, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the other members of the "Core Group" (the Ambassadors of Brazil, Canada, France, Spain, United States of America, the European Union and the Special Representative of the Organization of American States) "welcome the swearing-in and the installation on 30 March of the members of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-17025-haiti-elections-swearing-and-installation-of-the-new-cep.html . The Core Group welcomes the election of the Bureau of the CEP https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-17027-haiti-flash-formation-of-the-new-cep-bureau.html and its stated intention to organise credible, transparent and inclusive elections.
It encourages the relevant authorities and actors concerned to work together in order to conclude without further delay the electoral process begun in 2015 aimed at filling presidential as well as legislative, municipal and local elected posts, to ensure the institutional continuity foreseen in the 5 February Agreement.
The Core Group reiterates its full support to the Haitian Government and people as well as the efforts of all stakeholders aimed at reinforcing stability, consolidating democracy and restoring constitutional order."
HL/ HaitiLibre
Haiti - News : Zapping politics...
No elections before 6 months
Pierre Esperance, Executive Director of the National Network Defense of Human Rights (RNDDH), believes that the elections will not be completed before October 2016. Stressing that will take at least a month for the special verification commission (not provided for in the agreement of 6 February) may submit its report. The CEP will also have to organize in addition of the second round, the partial senatorial for the 10 senators elected in 2009 whose term ends in January 2017.
USA ready to strengthen cooperation
Friday Me Camille Junior Edouard, Minister of Justice and Public Safety received the visit of the US Ambassador accredited to Haiti, Peter Mulrean. This meeting that took place in an atmosphere of mutual cordiality, was an opportunity for the US diplomat to reiterated the determination of the US to strengthen cooperation with Haiti in the field of Justice.
Inauguration of the operating room of the Adventist Hospital
The First Lady, Dr. Ginette Michaud Privert, took part in the celebration of the 35th anniversary of the Adventist Hospital of Haiti and celebrated the opening of the ultra modern operating room of the Adventist Hospital.
Joe Biden speaks about Haitian elections
Vice President Joer Biden met President Michelle Bachelet of Chile yesterday at the Naval Observatory. The two leaders also discussed the status of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (Minustah) and the need for the international community to support a free and fair election process in Haiti in order to advance the country's political stability and economic recovery.
The new Minister for Women takes position
Marie Denise Claude, the new Minister for Women and Women's Rights held a taking position meeting, with the organized sector of disabled people claiming justice for the 3 deaf and dumb women cowardly murdered in Cabaret March 18, 2016 https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-17033-haiti-social-the-triple-lynching-of-disabled-women-provokes-outrage.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-16982-haiti-flash-3-disabled-women-assassinated.html
Privert receives a delegation from the European Union
Friday at the National Palace, President a.i. Jocelerme Privert, received a delegation from the European Union...
Platform VERITE astonished
Gennard Joseph, the Coordinator of the Platform VERITE welcomes the arrival of the transitional government in which, he says, his party is not represented. However, he said to be compared the treatment they had eserved to Fritz Jean.
HL/ HaitiLibre
The appointment of a woman to the most senior role in RTE has been hailed as a "progressive move".
Dee Forbes, who is originally from Cork, was announced as RTE's next director general by its board yesterday.
Ms Forbes, who is currently based in London, will leave her role as managing director of Discovery Channel Europe in the coming weeks.
Her appointment is expected to be ratified by the Government next week.
It will be Ms Forbes' first job in Ireland since she left in the 1980s.
"Although it was a tough professional decision to leave Discovery, the personal decision to return to Ireland and lead its biggest broadcaster, RTE, is an opportunity of a lifetime," she said.
Ms Forbes is not expected to take up the new role for some weeks until current director general Noel Curran sees out the remainder of his five-year term.
She began her broadcasting career with Turner Broadcasting, where she spent 14 years in a range of roles, including head of advertising sales for Europe and general manager in the UK and Ireland, running seven channels.
In 2010 she joined Discovery Networks. She is currently president and managing director of the Western Europe division, covering 27 TV brands in 18 markets. Chair of RTE's board, Moya Doherty, said she was delighted to announce the appointment.
Pivotal
"Not only is this the first director general in almost 50 years to be appointed externally, but she will also be the first female to hold the role. RTE is at a pivotal moment, one where the future shape and financing of public service broadcasting is being re-imagined.
The appointment will come as a surprise to many at RTE as the role of director general has traditionally been filled by somebody with a history at the organisation.
Deputy director general Kevin Bakhurst was expected by many to succeed Mr Curran - with head of television at RTE, Glen Killane, also being tipped.
Joan O'Connor, chairperson of Women in Media, said she was "thrilled" with the appointment describing it as a "progressive" move.
It will be all about relaxing for 2fm star Louise McSharry for the next couple of weeks as she settles in to her new role as a mum-to-be.
The presenter has spoken of her joy and "total disbelief" at discovering she is pregnant following her battle with cancer.
Louise said she and her husband Gordon Spierin are expecting their first child despite previously accepting that their chances of conceiving naturally were not good.
They will celebrate their good news when they head off this weekend on holiday.
Louise (32) confirmed she is due to give birth in the autumn.
She battled Hodgkin's lymphoma for nearly a year and is currently in remission.
Louise married long-term partner Gordon in Cork last August.
Opening up about her exciting news on her blog, she said she is delighted to "have beaten the odds".
Decimated
She said she had been prepared for the worst when it came to her fertility because "the treatment which had saved my life had also decimated my egg count".
"Where I should have been at 35 or 40 on the scale of being able to conceive, I was a two. I was a two, and I was p***ed off," she wrote.
"We are absolutely delighted and just a little bit terrified at the prospect of becoming proper adults, but I gather that's a normal way to feel.
"We are also incredibly grateful that we have beaten the odds."
Judge Bridget Reilly accepted Mr Forde's change of plea to not guilty and adjourned the case for hearing to a date in June (Stock picture)
A former Labour and Sinn Fein Dublin city councillor has denied making 100 nuisance telephone calls of "drunken gibberish".
Killian Forde (45) is also alleged to have told the two victims "you'll be got".
He previously pleaded guilty to making the nuisance calls - but following legal advice he has now changed his plea to not guilty.
Mr Forde was a councillor with Sinn Fein from 2004 to 2010, before switching to Labour. He resigned his seat on Dublin City Council in 2011 when he was made Chief Executive of the Integration Centre.
Judge Bridget Reilly accepted Mr Forde's change of plea to not guilty and adjourned the case for hearing to a date in June.
Tallaght District Court heard Mr Forde is currently unemployed, and defence solicitor Richard Young was assigned on free legal aid.
The accused, with addresses at Carndonagh Park in Donaghmede and Sutton Park in Sutton, is charged with making 100 hoax telephone calls to two individuals, both with addresses in Tallaght.
The hoax calls were allegedly placed over a 48-hour period between October 6 and October 7, 2014.
The court heard that the DPP has directed the case be heard in the District Court.
Outlining the allegation for jurisdiction purposes, Garda Sergeant Michael Ahern alleged the first victim received 40 calls and voicemail messages from a mobile phone number which was registered to the accused.
Sgt Ahern alleged the second victim received 39 calls on his mobile phone and 21 on his landline.
The sergeant also alleged the voice messages and calls were of a threatening and intimidating nature, and were along the lines of "you'll be got".
Sgt Ahern alleged a lot of the messages were "drunken gibberish".
Judge Reilly accepted jurisdiction, meaning the matter stays in the District Court. The case will be heard in June.
A 28-year-old man accused of attacking Dublin glamour model Ava Van Rose has been served with a book of evidence and sent forward for trial
Sean O'Dea (28), with an address at Woodside, Clontarf, had been charged earlier with assault causing harm to his then partner Bridget Byrne (26), from Clondalkin, who works under the professional name of Ava Van Rose.
The model and mother- of-three appeared in the short-lived reality show Infectious along with Big Brother's Marc O'Neill.
It is alleged the assault happened at Mr O'Dea's address last November 27.
He also has additional connected charges for producing a knife and for making a threat to kill or cause serious harm to a named male at the same location and on the same date as the alleged assault.
Mr O'Dea, who has not yet entered a plea, made his fourth appearance at Dublin District Court yesterday, when he was served with a book of evidence.
The DPP had directed that he should face trial on indictment which means his trial will be heard in the circuit court which, on conviction, has tougher sentencing powers.
Bail
He was notified that if he intended to use an alibi in his defence he must notify the prosecution within 14 days.
Judge John Brennan made an order sending him forward for trial to appear on April 15 at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
He was remanded on continuing bail.
Michaella McCollum (left) and fellow drugs mule Melissa Reid, from Scotland, after their arrest in Lima Airport (AP)
Drugs mule Michaella McCollum has been released from prison in Peru after being granted parole and plans to work as a volunteer with an Aids charity.
A solicitor for the 23-year-old aspiring model from Dungannon, Co Tyrone, said she walked free from the Ancon Dos prison in northern Lima, and the Herald has learned she has already arranged a job and accommodation.
Irish-American Bishop Sean Walsh, who is based in the Peruvian capital, said Michaella will volunteer with his Eastern Catholic Church in the city.
He has also said he will provide a bed for her in his own home.
"She has been granted parole to my very great surprise," he said. "She's going to be granted parole for the remainder of her sentence.
Thankful
"I visited her in prison several days ago. She is quite relieved and thankful to God that the course of life has gone this way.
"Probably she will remain in Lima. She will be allowed to work and study if she wants to do that.
"She is also going to work as a volunteer for my church and for Fr Cathal Gallagher, who has an Aids charity here.
"Being on parole means she only has to check in with the clerk and the prison system office for special and psychological questioning and to ensure she remains in the country."
Michaella has been granted parole to live in Peru, but will be unable to return to Ireland for the foreseeable future.
She also owes a sum of money to the prison authorities.
"She opted for getting out on parole in Peru," said Bishop Walsh.
"She's blending in better in this culture than the majority of foreign prisoners, so she will fit in comfortably to life in Lima."
The bishop said he was in court on Tuesday when Michaella was granted parole.
"I didn't expect this. This is great news," he said. "I think the judge was wooed by her age.
"Michaella has been an exemplary prisoner. She learned Spanish. She has shown that she is intelligent, innovative and productive.
"I met with her on the day of her court appearance. She looked great and, of course, she was a little nervous until the announcement."
Michaella has adapted to life behind bars. As well as taking Spanish classes, she did a course in hairdressing.
Bishop Walsh said she wants to use these skills in the "outside world".
"She is a young lady with a lot of potential. She learned hairdressing. She wants to help with our church magazine. In prison, she learned fluent Spanish and I'm hoping she can teach English as a second language to my clergy.
"She is obedient and she really loves to learn."
Michaella's solicitor, Kevin Winters, said she was released effectively on parole on Thursday night and was waiting to hear the terms of her release.
"I can confirm Michaella has been released from jail and I'm waiting to hear the outcome of the judicial process," he said.
Michaella and Melissa Reid, from near Glasgow, were jailed in 2013 for six years and eight months after admitting trying to smuggle cocaine worth 1.9m out of Peru.
Kidnapped
The pair had been working on Ibiza and had travelled to Lima. As they prepared to return to Spain, they were stopped in Lima airport by security who found a huge amount of drugs hidden in their luggage.
They claimed at the time that Colombian drug lords had kidnapped them at gunpoint and forced them to board a flight with almost 11kg of cocaine concealed in food packets.
They faced the prospect of a maximum 15-year prison term but struck a plea bargain to secure a shorter sentence.
John Gilligan pictured after drinks with friends and family in Dublin earlier this week
John Gilligan's return to Dublin took many by surprise. It's no secret that Gilligan is a marked man for a number of criminal gangs operating in the capital - indeed he fled to the UK in March 2014 after two attempts on his life.
But history seems to repeat itself with Gilligan. Ireland's most loathed criminal returned to Ireland in fear of his life after he was threatened by a UK-based traveller gang.
The pint-sized criminal, who once deemed himself untouchable, was forced out of the Midlands after "running his mouth" off at the crime family.
Threat
Gilligan (64) had been living in a halting site in Birmingham - linked to the feared McCarthy/Dundon gang - for the last two years.
Such was the threat against Gilligan in the UK, he has now returned to Ireland despite being the prime target of a number of national and international organised crime gangs.
In typical Gilligan fashion, the once feared drug trafficker turned gangland target made a number of enemies in the UK due to his arrogant demeanour.
"The reason for Gilligan's return was that he was run out of Birmingham by a Traveller family. He was running his mouth at the family, and received a number of threats as a result of this," a source said.
"However, he realised that he was up against it and ran away in fear of his life back to Dublin, where he is still a target for a number of gangs," the source added.
The Herald captured Gilligan looking like he hadn't a care in the world outside a west Dublin premises on Thursday. The convicted drugs trafficker looked a different man from the fragile and scared gangster pictured leaving James Connolly Memorial Hospital in a wheelchair in March 2014 after surviving a botched assassination attempt.
His return to these shores comes two months ahead of the 20-year anniversary of the murder of investigative journalist Veronica Guerin, who was gunned down in her car on the Naas road in June 1996.
Gilligan remains the chief suspect for ordering the fatal shooting of the heroic Sunday Independent journalist. He was eventually convicted of drug trafficking in 2001, and was initially handed a 28-year-sentence, which was eventually reduced on appeal.
Gilligan was freed from Portlaoise Prison on October 15, 2013, but lasted just four months in Ireland.
He fled the country after surviving two botched assassination attempts, as well as the murder of his bodyguard, Stephen 'Dougie' Moran.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny has ruled out weekend talks between Fine Gael and Fianna Fail which were sought by Independent TDs.
Mr Kenny was speaking after 40 hours of talks over the last five days between Fine Gael, Independent TDs and several smaller groups of deputies.
He said this process had produced 15 different topic papers on areas such as rural development, health, housing, and other issues.
The Taoiseach said these papers would be worked on over the weekend in efforts to produce a draft Foundation Document for a Partnership Government.
Roscommon-Galway TD Denis Naughten was among the Independents who urged weekend talks between the two big parties, saying they should use the time to agree ground rules on how a minority coalition could work - irrespective of who might lead it.
Minority
Mr Kenny again ruled out Fine Gael supporting a Fianna Fail-led minority government, while seeking that his rival party do just that for him.
He argued that Fine Gael had got biggest vote and the most seats in the general election on February 26. This meant it was his duty as Taoiseach to work to form a minority government.
Mr Kenny said Fine Gael and Fianna Fail will talk again after next Wednesday's Dail session. This will include a vote on Taoiseach and plans for major Dail reforms which would enhance the chances of a minority coalition providing stable government.
The Taoiseach refused to speculate on a time-frame much less set a deadline, for establishing a government.
Gay Byrne in an episode of The Meaning of Life with gardening expert Dermot Gavin
Australian viewers are about to get a lesson in the meaning of life from our very own Gaybo.
Veteran broadcaster Gay Byrne is proving his international appeal after his series in which he quizzes famous faces about their faith was snapped up by a leading TV station Down Under.
ABC TV has bought in-house RTE production The Meaning of Life for its religion and ethics slot Compass.
The 30-minute episodes see the former Late Late Show host discuss life's big questions with public figures including Stephen Fry, Michael Parkinson, Martin Sheen and Bob Geldof.
A hugely popular destination for Irish immigrants and backpackers, 81-year-old Gay will be familiar to many viewers when the series lands on ABC TV in Australia.
With 50 episodes of The Meaning of Life under his belt, Dubliner Gay finished filming the latest series earlier this year.
The radio and TV star told the Herald recently that he is taking "life more slowly" following a heart attack over the Christmas period. He finished up on his Lyric FM show last week, but is due back on air later this year.
"I'll be on again but by arrangement I come off at the end of March, and go back in October," he said.
The Meaning of Life is just one in eight RTE series that has been sold to Australian broadcasters.
There was another success for celebrity chef Donal Skehan, who's latest series Kitchen Hero: Feast was picked up by Foxtel Australia.
Narrated
Foxtel has also bought Room to Improve, fronted by Dermot Bannon, while Dr Eva Orsmond's Sugar Crash show was bought by SBS, as was the RTE 1916 documentary narrated by Liam Neeson.
Australia's Nine Network has picked up the series Garda Down Under, which looks at life on the beat for Irish officers in Western Australia, the largest police district in the world.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. Brittany Hudson was pregnant, addicted to painkillers and afraid of a Tennessee law that calls for the arrest of mothers of drug-dependent babies. She eventually gave birth without medical help, on the side of a road in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains.
Hudsons dilemma, doctors say, was one of many unintended consequences of the Tennessee Legislatures decision in 2014 to become the first and only state with an explicit criminal offense for these addicted mothers.
The law was meant to deter drug abuse by threatening mothers with up to a year behind bars, while allowing them to avoid jail and have their assault convictions removed if they got drug treatment. It was also an experiment with a sunset clause, meaning it will expire this July because the laws supporters lacked the votes to extend it.
The problem of drug use and pregnancy is worsening nationwide, with a drug-dependent baby born every 25 minutes in the U.S. at a cost of $1.5 billion in additional health care, according to a Vanderbilt study. And states cant just arrest their way out of it, said Dr. Stephen Patrick, a neonatologist who co-authored the study.
But doctors who treat addicts say Tennessees experiment backfired, encouraging women to avoid prenatal care and exposing their babies to more risks while failing to reduce the astronomical costs of treating newborns who suffer from drug withdrawal what doctors call neonatal abstinence syndrome, or NAS.
As soon as the law was passed, very quickly I started to see women with drug addictions seeking prenatal care later and later in their pregnancies and seeking treatment for their addiction later in pregnancy, said Dr. Jessica Young, who runs an outpatient program for pregnant addicts at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
And what they would tell me is that they would attempt to self-detox at home, attempt to stop at home without any treatment because they were afraid of what would happen if they admitted they had a problem, Young said.
The law was meant to help women get treatment and hold them accountable for child abuse, said its sponsor, Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver, a Republican who still believes it had a positive impact. She dismisses the evidence as anecdotal and says there isnt enough data to show women were avoiding treatment. She wonders what will happen now.
Who is going to be the voice of these babies? she said.
Its not clear how many women have been arrested, in large part because the law created no new reporting obligations on the part of doctors, police or prosecutors, nor did it fund efforts to study the impact. Neither did the law provide for expanding the programs needed to keep these mothers in treatment and out of jail.
Tennessee does track its number of afflicted newborns, which has not decreased. Roughly 1,000 babies suffering from drug dependence have been born every year since 2013, when the state began requiring all hospitals to report them to the health department.
In the end, only two-thirds of Tennessees district attorneys responded to states Department of Safety and Homeland Securitys survey, reporting 97 prosecutions initiated under the law as of last fall. This means prosecutors responding to the survey may have initiated cases against less than a tenth of these women, on average. In the Memphis area, thats because prosecutors invoked the law very selectively, only pursuing cases when the babies tested positive and the mothers refused treatment, said Larry Buser, a spokesman for Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich.
Farah Diaz-Tello, a staff attorney with Advocates for Pregnant Women, said her organization received numerous reports of women avoiding treatment and prenatal care for fear of arrest.
Weve been confident from the beginning that good sense and good medical practice would prevail here, and I hope that this will send a message to other states that are contemplating similar laws that this is the wrong way, she said.
Other states also arrest women who abuse drugs during pregnancy on charges such as child endangerment or assault, and those prosecutions are rising. Oklahoma and North Carolina attempted to pass laws similar to Tennessees. Alabama and South Carolina rely on court precedents to prosecute women whose newborns suffer from opiate withdrawal.
Nationwide, there have been about 1,200 arrests of pregnant women since 1973, most of it for drug use, according to a study of media accounts by the Advocates for Pregnant Woman. The majority were arrested in the last decade 800 since 2005, and about 500 of those were in Alabama.
The New York-based organization, however, says the real number is probably far greater.
Weaning a pregnant addict and her baby off drugs can be both costly and difficult, since the science on this is relatively new. Many treatment centers are wary of liability questions surrounding the effect on the child, and the law failed to do much to create more places pregnant addicts can turn to.
It punished women for not finding treatment when there wasnt treatment to be found, said Mary Linden Salter, executive director of the Tennessee Association of Alcohol, Drug and other Addiction Services.
Hudson said she had avoided going to the doctor in hopes of keeping her family together. As she went into labor, she rushed to someone she was told was a midwife. Then she gave birth in the back of the car, and the woman turned out to lack that training.
Her newborn was taken to the neonatal intensive care unit at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, where opiates were found in her blood. Hudson became one of the first women to be punished under the law, and the state put her baby in protective custody.
Hudson didnt stop taking painkillers until she had spent two weeks behind bars. She had sought help from three different treatment centers after she went to jail, but none would accept payment from TennCare, the states Medicaid program. After time in a halfway house, she got a job helping other addicts.
I have two kids, and with my first one I went to every (obstetrician) appointment, and this law was not on the books; so I can safely say that the reason I did not get OB care was because I was scared, said Hudson. I know from other women as well, because I work in a treatment center, that people are not going to their OBs.
Hudson is now clean and her 17-month-old girl is healthy. Many authorities would credit the threat of jail for making that possible.
But Hudson says her sobriety wasnt achieved because of this law. She believes pregnant addicts desperately want treatment, and should not be demonized.
To help the baby, we have to help the mom, she said, because thats a win when the baby is born drug free.
Nothing goes right for Edgewood in long trip to East Central
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Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday blamed West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress party for a flyover that collapsed in Kolkata.
The flyover collapsed and people died. People of Trinamool Congress were involved in the construction of the flyover, Gandhi said in his first political campaign in Burdwan districts Kulti.
At least 27 people have been killed after the flyover partially collapsed in the city and the incident has sparked a war of words between political parties, with the ruling party forced on the back foot just three days ahead of the assembly elections.
Mamata Banerjee wants to have a one-person rule in Bengal like Narendra Modi, he told hundreds of Left supporters, who thronged the rally ground, and shouted slogans like Rahul Gandhi Lal Salam (Red Salute to Rahul Gandhi).
READ: Dont want to politicise issue: Rahul visits Kolkata accident victims
Gandhi said that after coming to power, the Congress-Left combine will take strict action against those involved in corruption. The two traditional rivals have buried the hatchet and entered into a pre-poll alliance for the first time to take on the Trinamool.
He also attacked Banerjee on the issue of corruption pointing to the sting operation, which allegedly caught Trinamool leaders taking bundles of bribe money.
The sting operation, which comes two years after the Sarada chitfund scam, has dealt a veritable blow to the Trinamool. In the tape, MPs Saugata Ray, Suvendu Adhikary, Sultan Ahmed and Prasun Banerjee were seen taking money from a journalist pretending to be a businessperson.
Leaders are seen accepting cash. The Saradha scam was the biggest in the country, yet Mamata Banerjee is silent, the Congress leader said referring to the narada.coms sting and the chitfund scam.
He also hit out at Modi on issues like his virtual dictatorship and what he called efforts to spread the RSS view in the country.
Narendra Modi removed Congress government in Uttarakhand over an alleged sting operation, but looked the other way in Bengal after Narada sting operation, he said.
That the Left took a big part in making the rally successful was quite evident at the spot as hundreds of red flags fluttered beside the Congress party flags. Left candidates from the area led by former minister and Lok Sabha MP Bangsagopal Chowdhury were present on the dais.
Go together. Go hand in hand, and win the elections against Trinamool Congress, Gandhi said urging his party leaders to carry on a joint campaign with the Left.
Congress leaders sent a formal invitation to state CPI-M secretary Suryakanta Mishra for this meeting, but he stayed away.
Bollywood actor Emraan Hashmi is set to release his first book, The Kiss of Life - How a Superhero & My Son Defeated Cancer, on April 7 in Delhi. The event will be attended by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and culture minister Kapil Mishra. The book, co-authored by Emraan and Bilal Siddiqi, revolves around the struggle and hardships that the actor and his wife faced when their son, Ayan, was diagnosed with cancer in 2014 at the age of four.
Mr Kejriwal and Kapil will attend the event. Im very happy and thrilled about the books launch, because Ive worked very hard on it the entire last year, says Emraan.
Watch: Eamraan Hashmi in Azhar trailer
Ask the actor if any of his friends from the film fraternity are also attending the event, and Emraan says, No, it will be an intimate conversation about cancer and what we can do to rectify things, because its becoming alarming in our country.
Emraan reveals that working on the book was an emotional experience for him. Its been a great journey. It has been the most personal experience that Ive documented, more than all the films put together, says the actor, adding that the Mumbai launch of the book is likely to take place a few days after the Delhi launch.
Isabel Losada is a writer in search of a cause. She finds it in Tibet, the greatest lost cause on the planet, according to some. In finding Tibet, she hints to the readers that she finds something of herself.
The world Losada surveys from her London street is in turmoil. The Middle East is breaking up and is streaming into Europe, stoking old fears of race and religion. The war on terror is roaring ahead, sparking flames of angry revenge in the streets of Europe and America. Terror and the war on terror are badly rocking the boat of the tenuous world order.
Read: Why the Dalai Lama may be Indias noblest resident
Isabel Losada hints to the readers that she finds something of herself in Tibet.
In such a world, Losada asks, What can you and I do about the war on terror? Ill tell you: We can observe that terror is not the way that we want to go. So we ask Who is the worlds leading proponent of non-violence? Most people, when asked this question say, the Dalai Lama. He asks for what he wants for Tibetans but insists on non-violence. Hes the man for me.
Why is the world fighting terror with terror and yet not supporting a man who has spoken for non-violence for fifty years? Why are we ignoring the sanest voice on the planet? And can one crazy, misguided woman that lives on Battersea Park Road in London do anything about it?
Read: Dalai Lama again tops 100 most spiritually influential
Having found her cause and framed it in a form of a question, the reader at first suspects that she wants to do a Lawrence of Arabia act. But the author draws on a far older and better known and better loved European wisdom to act on behalf of Tibet. She becomes our modern-day Don Quixote, tilting her writerly lance at the windmills of economic might, narrow national interest and un-budging prejudice. This unlikely white female knight in shining armour sets out to change the world, to undo the great injustice and right the mighty wrong on Tibet. To Losada, accepting the world as it is should be tilted with all the force of her lance. The world should be re-arranged in the name of justice and truth. One big re-arrangement in this is restoring Tibet to Tibetans, according to Losada.
Like the faithful Sancho Panza, we, her readers, follow her in her adventures around the world. Her adventure begins in the streets of London where a small but noisy protest demonstration erupts into slogan shouting and Tibetan flag waving before the Chinese embassy. Losada writes, I glanced at the Embassy. The might of China was unmoved. The closed eyes of the shuttered windows didnt blink.
Read: Despite tightening control, Tibetan aspirations continue to live
If individual anger at China in the streets of London wasnt enough, what about showing it in Lhasa itself? Would that do the trick? Would that un-nerve China? Hardly, as the author discovers. In fact, the experience un-nerves her. Losada recounts, We turned into the Dalai Lamas Throne Room. This is the room where official guests have been received for generations. A large photo of the Thirteenth Dalai Lama was up on the wall. A matching photo of the current Dalai Lama was conspicuous by its absence. As indeed he was. This was all stolen property. It didnt belong to them and I began to seethe under the injustice of it all I was one more tourist seeing what the government wanted me to see.
Then I walked out on the roof and was suddenly transported again to another time and place; the roofs were untouched, the hills were still there, the air was cold and the sky was as blue as it always had been. This was the confusion, rage one minute and exhilaration the next. It was stunningly beautiful and I couldnt get out of there soon enough.
Read: China has no business in reincarnation system, says Tibetan PM-in-exile
Back in Dharamsala and with an audience with the Dalai Lama, something triggers in her. Losada writes, I am not one given to describing peoples energy fields. I dont see auras. Im not psychic. But here is an energy that even I can feel. The man is huge. Physically I see an elderly Tibetan He isnt particularly tall and his face is, well, it is just as weve all seen it smiling from a million pictures. No surprise there. And he is warm and modest, just as Id expected. But this energy . . . what is this? I feel myself lost.
In the end Losada hasnt changed the world. But she is able to tell whats wrong with the world with humour and her love for Tibet. And her word has got around the world.
For Tibet with Love: A Beginners Guide to Changing the World
Isabel Losada
Bloomsbury
Rs 299, PP371
Thubten Samphel is Director, The Tibet Policy Institute
In 1893, Mowgli made his first appearance in In The Rukh, a short story in Many Inventions, a collection of Rudyard Kiplings work. Here, Mowgli is a young man, no longer with his friends in the jungle he gets a job as a forest ranger, marries a Muslim girl, and the wolves babysit his child.
So one of Mowglis last adventures was the first to be published. Then, other short stories about Mowgli appeared in magazines and periodicals and The Jungle Book was serialised in 1894.
What is it?
The Jungle Book is a collection of stories about Mowgli, the man cub raised by wolves and his romps with his friends: Baloo the bear, Bagheera the panther, Kaa the python, and his nemesis: Shere Khan, the tiger. Within a year came The Second Jungle Book, and Kipling said, That ends up Mowgli and there is not going to be anymore of him.
Little did Kipling know that his hero would inspire films across the world from Walt Disney himself to filmmakers in Russia and Japan. Most of these have little to do with Kiplings stories, but only borrow the plot. (Tarzan, as it turns out, was also inspired by Mowgli.)
We take you through the best of the Jungle Book film trail.
1942: Although this was the first screen adaptation of The Jungle Book, it has little to do with Kiplings stories.
Instead, this film made by the British-Hungarian Korda brothers, is a fantastical tale. This isnt about Mowgli and his friends in the jungle, but about his interaction with the villagers, a love story, and grotesque encounters with the animals. Since it was filmed during the Second World War, it had to be shot entirely in Hollywood. Many of the animals in the film are real. The jungle scenes look lush and exotic. It was nominated for four Oscars.
In its review, The New York Times wrote, The consequence is a picture in which wild and ferocious animals abound, in which some equally ferocious actors do some semi-barbaric things, all adding up to a semblance of a super-Tarzan film in Technicolor.
Sabu Dastagir, who played Mowgli, became the first Indian film star on the international stage
Mowgli was played by Sabu Dastagir the son of a mahout from Mysore, he had been discovered by an English filmmaker, and became the first Indian film star on the international stage, according to film historian Rachel Dwyer.
1967: This is the last film Walt Disney worked on himself he died while the film was still in production. He had asked the writers to ignore the details of Kiplings version because he thought it was too dark for children. The most striking thing about Disneys Jungle Book was the music: Oscar-nominated The Bare Necessities, for instance.
You may remember Thats What Friends Are For, sung by four vultures flapping around young Mowgli. Originally, the idea was to have The Beatles sing the song (but John Lennon declined). The vultures were even made to look like the Fab Four with mop-top hair.
Again 1967: Kipling, as it turns out, is wildly popular in Russia. And so, in the year Disney related its child-friendly cartoon version of The Jungle Book, Russia produced Adventures of Maugli truer to the original. Except here, Mowgli is a tall, strapping Tarzan-like Russian lookalike; Bagheera is female, very graceful, and considers it her responsibility to discipline Mowgli.
In the Russia-produced Adventures of Maugli Mowgli is a tall-strapping Tarzan-like Russian lookalike.
1989: The version closest to Indian hearts: this is where we first heard lyricist Gulzar and composer Vishal Bhardwajs masterpiece Jungle jungle baat chali hai. What we didnt know at the time was that the Doordarshan cartoon series was actually a Japanese anime called Jungle Book Shonen Mowgli, dubbed in Hindi.
1994: This is a strange adaptation. First, its actually called Rudyard Kiplings The Jungle Book, but it is more like Indiana Jones, as The Chicago Sun-Times called it, an action thriller that Kipling would have viewed with astonishment. Mowgli, played by Jason Scott Lee, is a full-grown man hunting for lost treasure, along with his childhood sweetheart Kitty (Lena Headey, who plays Cersei Lannister on Game of Thrones).
2003: There is nothing special about The Jungle Book 2 the only people who liked it are aged five or younger. Mowgli is living in the village again and he misses his jungle friends terribly, so he goes back to the forest for some adventures. The animation is adorable, but thats about it.
2016: The trailer looks stunning. The entire film other than Neel Sethi who plays Mowgli is animated (just like Life of Pi). Judging by the latest trailer, Idris Elba-voiced Shere Khan is terrifying. And then there is Bill Murray as Baloo, Ben Kingsley as Bagheera, Lupita Nyongo as Raksha and Scarlett Johansson as Kaa. Well probably watch it a second time, dubbed in Hindi, because Jungle jungle baat chali hai has been re-recorded for the film. And like the Doordarshan dubbing, Nana Patekar is once again Shere Khan. Irrfan Khan is Baloo, Om Puri is Bagheera and Priyanka Chopra is Kaa.
2017: Not sure why, but theres another Jungle Book movie set for next year and its cast is just as incredible as this years: Andy Serkis as Baloo, Christian Bale as Bagheera, Benedict Cumberbatch as Shere Khan and Cate Blanchett as Kaa.
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From HT Brunch, April 3, 2016
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I dont know about you, but when it comes to discovering new and exciting authors, I rely on two sources. The first is Amazon, which prompts me towards new finds based on the books that I have already bought or downloaded.
And the second is the kindness of friends, those like-minded souls who call me up excitedly to tell me about that brilliant new author that I simply must read. And honest to God, neither source has let me down to date.
So today, in the spirit of paying it forward, I am sharing with you my list of the most amazing books I have read over the last year. I cant recommend them enough!
* All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr: I had my doubts about this one. It is set during the Second World War. Its two main protagonists are a blind French girl and a young German boy who is a member of the Hitler Youth. It didnt sound very promising at all. But I trusted the word of a good friend and bought it. And I am very glad I did. The story is amazing in itself but it is the lyrical quality of the writing that draws you in. Acutely observed, beautifully articulated, this is a book that will stay with you.
Read: 15 books you should have read by now
* The Truth About The Harry Quebert Affair by Joel Dicker: Originally written in French, the release of its English edition was marked by rather sniffy reviews. But it is telling that even those reviewers who carped that there was nothing special about the book confessed that they had, nevertheless, found it gripping. And they were right about that at least: this is a cracking good read. A young author struggling with writers block goes to visit his mentor and old professor, when the body of a young girl who disappeared 33 years ago is discovered on the professors property. Buried alongside her is a manuscript copy of the novel that made the professor, Harry Quebert, famous. So, did he do it? Or didnt he? The young author grapples with these questions as he attempts to save his saviour.
* Dear Daughter by Elizabeth Little: If you liked Gone Girl, you will love this. The dear daughter in the story is Janie Jenkins, who is convicted of her mothers murder and sentenced to life only to be set free on a technicality after ten years. Is she guilty or innocent? Even Janie doesnt know for sure. So, she sets out to find out what really happened on the night her mother died, dodging a media machine determined to hunt her down and a crime blogger who is obsessed with her guilt. This one will keep you awake all night.
* You by Caroline Kepnes: This is a story about obsessive love, told from the point of view of the stalker, a bookstore manager who fixates on a young student who visits his bookstore. Sounds appalling, right? And yes, on the face of it, it certainly is. But such is the skill with which Caroline Kepnes depicts a sick mind that by the end of the story you find yourself immersed in the world of the narrator, in which the usual moral codes dont apply. And even more shockingly, you begin to see things from his perspective, even though you know in your rational mind that he is pure evil.
The new fascination: Both these books (above) are set during the period of the Second World War. Honestly, what is this recent obsession with World War II?
* The Widow by Fiona Barton: Written by a former journalist, this is a book that is deceptive in its simplicity. The story unfolds through the viewpoints of different characters: the widow (of the title) whose recently deceased husband was once accused of abducting a child; the reporter who tries to persuade the widow to sell her story to her newspaper; and the police detective who was investigating the case of the missing child. The constantly shifting perspective is unsettling, especially as you discover that nothing is quite what it seems.
* Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans: This is one of the quirkiest books Ive read in a long time. Set during the period of the Second World War (honestly, what is this recent obsession with World War II?), it tells the story of a lonely orphan being brought up by an eccentric godmother, whose faculties are rapidly declining. After her death, he is evacuated to the country where he is taken in by yet another eccentric woman. The bond between these two damaged creatures evolves slowly as they become partners in petty crime, and create a dysfunctional family all of their own.
Read: Introducing, Brunch Book Challenge Part-3 (Indian Writing Special)
* The Sleepwalkers Guide to Dancing by Mira Jacob: This is yet another tale of Indian immigrants in the West, struggling with dislocation, straining against family ties, and trying to do the best they can as they navigate the tightrope between two cultures. But dont let that put you off. Mira Jacob has a lightness of touch which makes Jhumpa Lahiri seem wooden and clunky. This novel, spanning continents and generations, sparkles and shines with wit and humour even as it shines the spotlight on familial relations and the immigrant experience.
* The Darkest Secret by Alex Marwood: A psychological thriller clearly inspired by the Madeleine McCann (the young British girl who was kidnapped from a Portuguese resort a few days short of her fourth birthday while her parents had dinner in a nearby restaurant) case, this is a book that will draw you in from the first page and then resolutely refuse to let go until you have galloped to the denouement. You have been warned.
From HT Brunch, April 3, 2016
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Reliance Retail, an arm of Mukesh Ambanis Reliance Industries that is the largest modern retailer, joined the fashion e-commerce race with the launch of portal ajio.com.
The online fashion and style destination of Reliance Retail was unveiled with a preview at the Lakme Fashion Week on Saturday.
Ajios online store will feature a collection of over 200 international and national brands as well as own-brand merchandise comprising apparels, lingerie, shoes, accessories, and jewellery. It will leverage Reliances sourcing, supply chain and retail operations capabilities to differentiate further in the market, Ajio said.
Isha Ambani, director on the board of Reliance Retail has been closely associated with the conceptualisation of the fashion portal. This is Reliance Retails second e-commerce initiative. It has already launched reliancefreshdirect.com, its grocery delivery platform in Mumbai and surrounding towns.
In its third quarter earnings update in January, Reliance had said that apart from fashion e-commerce, development of marketplace platform would be rolled out in a phased manner. An electronics e-commerce platform is also expected later this year.
Reliances e-commerce initiatives are expected to get a boost once the company commercially rolls out its Jio 4G telecom service.
With the advanced internet infrastructure built by Jio and a robust physical retail business built by Reliance Retail, we will create a differentiated e-commerce model for India. This model will entail seamless integration of online and offline while innovating across superior customer experience, delivery services and payment ecosystem, RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani had said at the companys annual general meeting last year.
The online fashion marketplace is currently dominated by the likes of Myntra.com, owned by Flipkart, jabong.com, Amazon among others.
Companies such as Reliance Retail, Shoppers Stop and the Aditya Birla Group, which have predominantly been brick-and-mortar retailers are also investing in this space. Last October, Kumar Mangalam Birla-led Aditya Birla Group launched its own fashion portal abof.com, which sells apparel brands owned by its group companies and footwear and accessories.
In August, Shoppers Stop tied up with Snapdeal to open its online store on the latters marketplace. Shoppers Stop is also revamping its own e-commerce portal shopperstop.com.
The Tata Group is also expected to launch its online marketplace later this year.
Increasing internet penetration, growing number of smartphone users and small town residents getting access to latest fashion brands and trends is driving growth of the e-commerce portals. According to estimates by Google, India is expected to generate almost $100 billion online retail revenue by 2020, with fashion e-commerce contributing to around $35 billion.
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A pet dog foiled an armed attack by two unidentified bike-borne assailants outside his owners house and saved his life in Loni town of Ghaziabad on Friday night.
Blacky (3), a German Shepherd, attacked and chased away the two men who fired several shots at him. Blacky escaped unhurt.
At around 8 pm on Friday, pet owner Chaman Bansal was with his family in his house in Ram Park Extension when he heard three shots being fired and his dog barking.
The men had asked one of my cousins about me. My cousin was standing outside her house, next to ours. They started shooting at my house and my dog came. They fired three shots at the dog but he escaped, said Bansal, who runs a PG hostel in Dehradun.
He said the attackers fired six to seven shots in all. Blacky was unafraid and pounced on them, he said.
When I came outside, the two men fired a shot at me as well but I took cover behind a wall. My dog was still trying to stop them from shooting. The men then sped away on the bike, he said. The dog did not give up and continued to chase the attackers for a distance, he said.
Because of my pets bravery, I was unhurt. Fortunately, he was also unhurt. I bought him from one of my relatives two months after he was born. He never allows outsiders to venture into the house, added Bansal.
On Saturday, Bansal forwarded a complaint to the Tronica City police station.
We have received the complaint and are in the process of lodging the FIR under relevant sections of the IPC, said Tronica City station house officer Shilesh Kumar.
Since it is not established whether the shots were fired at the house with an intention to kill someone, it will not be a case of attempt to murder. The other sections of IPC will be slapped. We are investigating the case and are in search of the accused, he added.
That ours, at times, is a quirky and eccentric country or even odd and inexplicable is something many accept in their hearts. The satirically jocular expression This is India says it all. But the present controversy over Bharat mata ki jai truly takes the biscuit.
The BJPs National Executive has passed a resolution stating: Our Constitution describes India as Bharat also; refusal to chant victory to Bharat tantamounts to disrespect to our Constitution itself.
Im sorry, but thats simply not true.
First, the Constitution speaks of Bharat and not Bharat mata. Second, it does not require Indian citizens to chant any slogan including BMKJ. Third and most importantly, the Supreme Court ruled in the 1986 Jehovahs Witnesses case that refusal to sing the national anthem provided you stand in respect is not disrespect to the Constitution or the anthem. And Jana Gana Mana is more sacrosanct than BMKJ.
READ: Vande Matram real national anthem: RSS leader Bhaiyyaji Joshi
What the BJP has forgotten is that Indias Constitution not only grants each citizen freedom of speech but also the freedom to be silent. So whilst I may be happy to chant BMKJ if some Muslims dont wish to they have the right to refuse. Pratap Bhanu Mehta says it would be objectionable to coerce them. More importantly, that would be disrespect to our Constitution.
The Muslim position is simple. Some have a religious objection to BMKJ. First, it represents the deification of the country. Second, RSS illustrations show Bharat Mata as a goddess astride a lion waving the saffron flag and not the tri-colour. For those who believe their faith requires they only bow before Allah embracing BMKJ feels wrong.
Now, you may think this is an exaggerated concern. You may suspect its thin cover for other motives. But whatever your doubts you have to accommodate their hesitation. Otherwise you could be guilty of disrespecting the Indian Constitution.
Unfortunately, so strong are the emotions that centre around this issue that even the Congress Party is confused. Newspaper reports claim either its Maharashtra legislative leader, Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, moved the motion to suspend Waris Pathan when he refused to say BMKJ or the party consciously and deliberately failed to dissent when the motion was put to vote. The first makes Congress the prime mover, the second willingly complicit. None other than Shashi Tharoor accepts that either way the Congress was intimidated by the BMKJ controversy and the emotions surrounding it.
My point becomes clearer when you recall that four weeks ago Rahul Gandhi berated the prime minister for destroying relationships between communities in the name of the flag but when his own MPs supported the suspension of an MLA, because he wouldnt chant BMKJ, Mr Gandhi was deafeningly silent. The Maharashtra MLAs contradicted him. Their behaviour suggests they dont accept his criticism of the BJP. Yet he had nothing to say.
READ: Fatwa against Bharat Mata slogan goes viral
This brings me back to my original point: We can, at times, be an odd and inexplicable country. Who would have imagined BMKJ would achieve such salience and create a deep and divisive controversy? Who would have thought the newly outspoken Rahul Gandhi would be reduced to helpless silence by his own colleagues? And who would believe Mr Modi would let the BJP derail his development agenda in pursuit of BMKJ?
Finally, does Amit Shah realise that if Mehbooba Mufti refuses to say BMKJ he must break the BJP-PDP alliance? Or end up perpetuating what he considers disrespect to the Constitution?
Truly, this is India! Bharat mata ki jai.
The views expressed are personal.
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Indian officer: Welcome to Pathankot Air Base.
Pak ISI agent: Good morning. I am Sherlock Sharif of the ISI and this is my colleague Watsonuddin.
Indian officer: Air Commodore Srinivasavadivelu here.
Sherlock: My apologies for you having to hurry up and rush here.
Srini: How on earth did you know that?
Sherlock: Your left boot is less polished than your right one, so clearly you were in a hurry. Also, your fly is unzipped.
Srini: Amazing.
Sherlock: Elementary, my dear Srinivasavadivelu.
Srini: This is my colleague, Mycroft Kumar.
Sherlock: Ah, from the Intelligence Bureau. You have the look of a man who has spent a lifetime eavesdropping on boring conversations.
Mycroft: Ha ha, bhai-saheb.
Srini: This is the crime scene. See, heres an identity card that clearly says LeT, or Lashkar-e-Taiba, and a paper signed by the JeM.
READ: Masood Azhar cant be considered a terrorist, says China after veto
Sherlock: But LeT stands for Ladies Education Trust and Jaish-e-Mohammed always uses recycled paper. JeM here stands for Juvenile Education Mart, a shop for selling school books. The guy from the JeM was probably dating the LeT girl.
Watson: How many terrorists were there?
Srini: Ummmwe arent sure, either six or four. Here are the records of the calls they made to Pakistan.
Sherlock: Oh they probably ordered some drugs from that number, thats where I get my cocaine from.
Mycroft: Tut, tut.
Sherlock: Smuggling drugs is big business. Did you notice the curious incident of the dog in the night time?
Srini: What dog?
Sherlock: Precisely. There was no dog in the night time.
Srini: Eh? What about these food packets with Karachi written on them and this hanky bearing the mark ISI?
Sherlock: Dont tell me you havent tasted the famous Karachi halwa, which is what these packets contained. The hanky shows the terrorist was from the Indian Statistical Institute.
Mycroft: Those guys terrorise data, not people.
Watson: Why is this area scorched so badly?
Srini: Because of all the firing, of course. Hey, the imprint of your boots is the same as that of the terrorists.
READ: NIA to visit Pakistan in May to gather proof on Pathankot
Sherlock: Quite possible. We had a major theft recently. They ran off with hundreds of boots. Ok, heres what happened. Six Indians, including a girl student, a bookseller and a statistician, got friendly with a drug dealer in Pakistan who also supplied them with stolen arms and boots and they came down here in a drugged haze, ate Karachi halwa and started shooting people at random. Four of them were killed while two, probably the bookseller and his girlfriend, were abducted by aliens whose spaceship scorched the earth around this place.
Watson: Brilliant.
Sherlock: Thanks. My guru Holmes used to say that when you have excluded the impossible whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.
Manas Chakravarty is Consulting Editor, Mint. The views expressed are personal.
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Sometimes the wheels of justice grind slowly, British author Terry Waite had once famously said. But, as the legend goes, justice is swift and fair in the court of Hindu god Golu.
After nine Congress legislators switched sides to back the BJP in the assembly and plunge Uttarakhand into a political crisis, leaders from both parties are making rounds of Kumaon to pray in several temples dedicated to the god of justice, seeking a verdict in their favour.
The BJP-ruled Centre imposed Presidents rule in the state on March 27, a day before the Harish Rawat government was scheduled to prove its majority in the assembly.
At least two petitions filed by the Congress and challenging the Centres move will be taken up by the Uttarakhand high court on April 6. Another petition filed by the rebel MLAs challenging their disqualification by the speaker will be heard on April 11.
But the Congress is not banking just on the court of law to save the Rawat government.
Lord Golu is our biggest hope in the present times as he is just and dispenses justice swiftly, said Khazan Pandey, state Congress general secretary, who made a three-day trip of Kumaon from March 27 to pray at four major Golu temples.
Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha activists present a memorandum at the Golu Temple at Ghorakhal, Nainital district on Saturday. (HT Photo)
Hindus believe that Golu, also called Gwel or Goljyu, dispenses swift justice on matters that appear to have no solution in sight.
An incarnation of Lord Shiva, Golu is said to move around on his horse and camp at villages along the Himalayan foothills to hear and decide on peoples petitions. People also hang typed and hand written petitions at the hundreds of Golu temples in the hill state.
Another Congress leader Dinesh Kunjwal, who also visited several Golu temples, said that for the people of Kumaon, the Golu temple is the divine court.
This is part of our faith. I have seen IAS officers, doctors and engineers putting up their pleas in the divine court of Golu devta which is a testimony to the peoples immense faith in him, said Kunjwal.
The BJP, hoping to grab power in the state, is also pinning its hopes on Lord Golu.
A team of activists from the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha the youth wing of the BJP offered prayers at the Golu temple at Ghorakhal on Saturday.
We have immense faith in Golu devta and know that he will dispense swift justice in this situation, said BJYM Nainital district president Nitin Karki.
Mahipal Singh, a Delhi-based Kumaon resident who is associated with the Golu temple at Gerad, said the faith in people in the deity is immense.
Harish Ram, who retired as a havildar from the Armys Kumaon Regiment, said he owes his life to Lord Golu who had performed a miracle in 2001 near Srinagar.
Ram said that a 15-minute prayer had cleared extreme weather conditions, enabling landing of a helicopter to evacuate him to a base hospital for treatment of a frost-bitten leg.
I can today walk on my legs and I attribute to the blessings of Golu devta, said Ram, now settled in Damuadhunga, Haldwani.
Umesh Singh Mehra, a farmer of Bhujiaghat in Haldwani, said his 28-year-old son survived a paralytic attack in January only due to their prayers to Lord Golu.
Read: Rebel Congress MLAs may join BJP or form own party
Read: HC defers rebel MLAs plea hearing to April 11
Read: PIL seeks criminal case against Rawat, hearing after 3 weeks
Neglect: Filth, defunct escalators, broken tiles and anti-social elements keep most pedestrians away from the foot overbridges in Jangpura, Maharani Bagh, Hari Nagar and Munirka
Vibha Sharma and Sohil Sehran
southdelhi@hindustantimes.com
In 2007, when several state-of-art Foot-overbridges (FOBs) were being planned, many felt relieved. It was to help children, senior citizens and the differently abled. However, the FOBs have failed to serve their purpose as most pedestrians are reluctant to use them. Poor maintenance at many FOBs have left the escalators non-functional, while many have fallen prey to vandalism due to lack of security staff . People can be seen urinating near these sites, making the surrounding filthy and stinky.
When these FOBs were planned, it was expected that they would provide a safe passage to pedestrians on roads that witness heavy traffic. But they have turned out to be a waste of public money, said a resident of the Jangpura Extension.
The facilities came up before the 2010 Commonwealth Games. The government spent around R 3.8 crore for FOBs with escalators the ones without escalator were for R1.3 crore. As Public Works Department (PWD) plans to construct more FoBs with escalators, HT South Delhi visits four FOBs to check their condition.
Jangpura
Hundreds of pedestrians use the bridge every day to cross the busy Lala Lajpat Rai Marg and a majority of them include people going to Jangpura Metro station (located at the backside of CGO complex). However, the shabby state of the facility raises questions over the maintenance by the authority. Garbage lines the bridge, the dirty and stinking escalator remains out of service most of the time, and, in the absence of security, most fitting and fixtures have been stolen.
For the convenience of pedestrians, the authority has installed lifts on both the entrances, but these dont work on most days. The corners facing the gates have turned into urinals and people entering or exiting have to cover their faces because of the stink, said Girish Chawla, a resident of Jangpura who uses the bridge daily to reach the Metro station. The railings have pan stains, making it impossible for anyone to hold them for support.
The lights are non-functional and it becomes completely dark in the night. The light panels are lying unattended and open for days, this could lead to electrocution. The absence of guards has made the FOB unsafe and drug addicts and drunkards sit here in the late hours, said Suddapa Abbas, who now avoids using the bridge now. The existing circumstances force pedestrians to risk their lives by crossing the busy road.
Maharani Bagh
The area surrounding the FOB at Maharani Bagh has become a public toilet of sorts for many despite the fact there are four public toilets at a distance of 150 metres. The stink is unbearable for people waiting at the nearby bus stop and those using the FOB.
The stench makes it difficult to walk on this FOB. Escalators are out of service most of the time which makes it difficult, especially for the senior citizens, to use it, said Sufiyan Hassan, a commuter.
These public properties have also been defaced and one can find large advertisements covering the walls, making it shabbier.
Residents of Kalindi Colony said that the FOB is home to beggars and miscreants. At night, many drunkards can be spotted around the FOB, which raises a safety concern among all.
Hari Nagar (near Ashram Chowk)
The FOB here is not equipped with modern escalators has a crumbling infrastructure. The shopkeepers around it have made it a dumping site and sweepers clean it only once a week.
Prabjot Singh, 66, said, Only a few people use the facility as it is easier to cross the road directly rather than climbing the stairs. A proposal of covering this bridge with polycarbonate sheet is pending since 2013. The administration has failed to maintain it. Singh said the authorities should take inspiration fro the Delhi Metro, which is always clean as it is planned well.
Pedestrians also blame the faulty location of the FOB as another reason that prevents them from using the facility. It is constructed close to the Ashram Chowk and far from the market. It is quite common to see people crossing the road near Hari Nagar flyover, which increases the chance of accidents, said Ishita Malhotra, a resident of Lajpat Nagar.
DDA Flats, Munirka
The FOB opened three and a half years back and is already in shambles. Tiles on the staircases are crumbling and chances of people tripping or losing balance is always high. The lifts have not functioning for the last six months. The footpath to access the FOB is encroached upon and broken at places making it impossible to walk on. Residents have often complained of the increasing nuisance from the encroachment. Authorities have failed to remove the vendors on the footpath.
Pedestrians are concerned about their safety at FOB. One of the entrances of FOB leads to a wine & beer shop in Munirka Market. So this place becomes a shelter for drunkards in the evenings and women cant use the facility, said Anupama Sharma, a resident of Vasant Vihar.
The agency doesnt maintains the site and garbage can be seen spilled all around the FOB. To highlight the issues we filed an RTI with the Public Works Department (PWD) last year. We questioned their negligence and they passed the buck on South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC). But as per our information the property belongs to PWD, said Yudhister Sharma, RWA president, Munirka DDA flats. The situation has worsened to the extent that now no one bothers to remove debris at the entrance of the FOB which were dumped here last month.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday took stock of the Shahjahanabad redevelopment project in a meeting with all stakeholders.
The development comes a day after HT carried a report Orders and plans but no action yet to clear Chandni Chowk chaos. The report highlighted how encroachments are defacing the Mughal-era bazar.
Chandni Chowk MLA Alka Lamba said Kejriwal has asked representatives of all concerned agencies to initiate action against squatters and unauthorised construction within a week.
The North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) assured the government to start removing the encroachments after April 6 as per the court order.
As the NDMC expressed inability to act due to non-availability of police force, DCP (North) Madhur Verma promised to provide adequate number of police personnel as and when the corporation begins the drive against illegal construction. The corporation also assured that it would comply with the court orders with sincerity, Lamba said.
On Monday, the Delhi high court expressed displeasure over the delay in Chandni Chowk redevelopment and ordered all authorities responsible to remove encroachments and illegal religious structures within three weeks.
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New Delhi: Three weeks after the World Culture Festival event was held on the Yamuna floodplain, the clean up work at the venue is in progress and will take more time to complete.
Hindustan Times on Saturday visited the site to assess the progress of the clean-up. Labourers at the site said it would take another month to dismantle the seven-acre stage.
Three groups of workers belonging to different contractors are dismantling the stage. It is a labour-intensive job and will take time, said Raju (name changed on request).
Giant cranes, trucks and nearly 100 men were seen in action. A few security guards were also deployed at various corners of the site. Apart from the stage, all other structures have been dismantled, said one of the guards.
Even though most parts of the site have been cleaned, plastic waste dot the area. When rain played spoilsport on the opening day of the festival on March 11, plastic sheets were placed around the stage to keep the muck away. These have now become part of the soil at many places.
Plastic waste and debris around the seven- acre stage . (Ritam Halder/ Hindustan Times)
A spokesperson for the Art of Living said the clean-up would be complete once the stage was removed.
Read more: Art of Living blinks, will pay Rs 25 lakh today, Rs 4.75 cr in 3 weeks
The event that took place from March 11 to 13 saw lakhs of spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravishankars followers had converge at the site. The event was under the scanner for causing damage to the floodplain. The National Green Tribunal had allowed the Art of Living Foundation to hold the event on the condition that it paid restoration costs for damaging the environment. It imposed an initial cost of `5 crore on the foundation.
Subsequently, the court said, the foundation would have to pay restoration costs for damage caused to the environment, ecology, biodiversity and aquatic life. The cost will be decided by a committee appointed by the court.
Read more: NGT panel to visit Yamuna floodplains, assess damage caused by AoL event
The event stirred another controversy when the government told the army to build two floating bridges on floodplain for the event.
The government had come under Opposition criticism in Rajya Sabha.
Several serving and retired officers said the army should not be involved in providing equipment and soldiers for private events as it was a strain on its resources and dented its image.
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A 15-year-old hanged herself from a ceiling fan at her home in northeast Delhis Gokalpuri on Thursday. Police said the class 9 student was depressed as she had failed in her mathematics examination.
Rakhi, who had failed in the same subject last year too, left behind a suicide note saying she could not bear the burden of failure.
Rakhi lived with her parents and four siblings in Brijpuri near Gokalpuri. She was studying in a government school in Yamuna Vihar. Her parents run a small laundry shop near their home.
In the one-page note she said she was leaving us as she could not bear the failure, said Rakhis father Atar Singh. Rakhi mentioned in the suicide note that she was excited about celebrating her youngest sister Paris birthday on April 8, Singh added.
She wrote that she would not be available to attend the birthday celebration, he said.
Rakhis parents told the police that on Thursday she had left for school in the morning as her examination results were to be declared. The parents were away at work when she returned home alone and went directly to her room.
A few minutes later, Rakhis sister returned home from the shop and walked into her room to find Rakhi hanging from the ceiling fan. She ran out and informed her parents about Rakhis extreme step.
We took her to the nearest hospital where doctors told us that she was dead. She had used her chunni to hang herself, said Singh.
Dissatisfied with their results, students of the Government Girls Senior Secondary School in northeast Delhi vandalised school property on Friday.
The incident took place at Karawal Nagar, where girls of Class 9 and 11 broke chairs, fans, lights, flower pots and burnt mats. When the students became unruly, the police were called.
In the school, almost 600 students of Class 9 and 11 have failed. There are around 800 students in Class 11 alone.
The students were first protesting outside the principals office. But in no time, the situation went out of hand as a few outsiders entered the school, said Sushlesh, a school management committee (SMC) member.
As classes were being held, many students were locked inside the classrooms. They were allowed to leave the rooms once the police arrived.
We had no choice, but to call the police as the students didnt listen to us. The SMC members had to help the principal leave the school. She was terrified, said Sushlesh.
To prevent any more trouble, the police detained a few students.
We have registered a case of mischief causing damage at the Karawal Nagar police station, said a senior police official.
The Deputy Directorate of Education (DDE) of northeast district said they would look into the matter.
This should not have happened. This was not the way to express anger and resentment. We will look into the issue, said ML Ambhore, DDE, northeast.
It wasnt just northeast Delhi, protests against poor results were also held at a school in west Delhi.
At Sarvodya Kanya Vidyalya, Nilothi, Class 9 students protested against their poor results.
If students get compartment in two subjects, they are considered pass, but I have been failed. I was not given any marks for Home Science practicals too. Many other parents were also at school today, demanding an explanation, said a student from Class 11.
The vice-principal, Ranjana Budhiraja, said the school had an average result.
The results are normal. A few students have failed, said Budhiraja.
A similar problem had taken place last year also, when several Class 9 students failed in their exams.
After visiting India multiple times over 23 years, an Italian doctor finally moved to Varanasi to work towards the rehabilitation and education of children with autism.
Dr Moreno Toldo looks like one of the many tourists who mill about Varanasi. He first visited the holy city when he was 30 and was struck by the plight of poor villagers unaware of autism, a complex brain disorder that inhibits communication and social skills. Over the next two decades, he found himself coming back to India through his medical profession. Having never married, the doctor decided to shift to Varanasi in 2006, and work for the rehabilitation and empowerment of autistic children and their families.
People with autism struggle to develop social relationships, and often have extreme behavioural challenges. The rural society is unaware of this. It considers people with such neurological differences as being rude or demonstrating bad behaviour, when in fact, he or she does not perceive these differences, Dr Toldo said, speaking on the eve of World Autism Awareness Day (April 2).
There are not enough public services for autistic people and private services are too expensive, complicating matters for such families, the doctor said.
In a bid to work for the rural people, I met the director of Kiran Society, Sister Sangeeta JK. A resident of Switzerland, she founded this society 25 years ago for rehabilitation, education and vocational training of differently-abled children of Varanasi and the surrounding districts. I saw it as a ray of hope for those who did not have proper medical support. In 2006, I joined the society, said Dr Toldo who works at Madhopur on the outskirt of the city.
The society has a mobile team that organises camps in about 50 villages around Varanasi and its surrounding districts.
We have also started a Family Mediated Integrated Program (FMIP) in collaboration with a leading institute of Bengaluru for the treatment of communication impairment in children below five years. We have included 15 families with their children affected by autism. They have gone through therapy demonstrations and a home training programme to understand the needs of their child and help them recover, said Dr Toldo.
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Acting on the Supreme Courts instruction to set up a three-member ombudsman for regulating advertisements given by various governments and authorities, the Centre on Thursday suggested the composition of the regulating authority, which will now be put forth before the apex court.
According to sources, a selection committee headed by the Press Council of India chairperson that met on Thursday has suggested including a retired judge, an expert from the advertising sector and a journalist to be the three- member ombudsman.
No names have so far been proposed, but the composition will now be laid before the Supreme Court, which had recently sought the Centres response on whether the ombudsman to regulate advertisements has been selected, a source told HT.
The courts notice to the centre had come in the wake of the petition filed by the Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL), seeking initiation of contempt proceedings against the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi and the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu for flouting the courts orders on public advertisements.
In May 2015, the Supreme Court had barred the centre and the state governments from putting out advertisements in publications with the photographs of chief ministers, ministers and other leaders; it had allowed the exception of President, Prime Minister and the Chief Justice of India. The court had reasoned that publication of photographs of politicians and government functionaries, encouraged personality cults.
This past March, the court agreed to allow the use of photographs of governors, chief ministers and ministers in government advertisements.
The apex court had however, specified that the government should constitute a three-member body consisting of persons with unimpeachable neutrality and impartiality and who have excelled in their respective fields.
The court had said it could have suggested the names for the ombudsman, but will leave the exercise to be performed by the Centre. The ombudsman will be required to recommend suitable changes to the guidelines of the court to deal with new circumstances and situations, as per the courts order.
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The Supreme Court will on Monday hear the appeals of the four men convicted in the sensational December 16 gangrape and murder case, 21 months after the Delhi High Court upheld their death sentences.
The appeals will be heard by a three-judge bench of Justice Dipak Misra, Justice V Gopala Gowda and Justice Kurian Joseph in accordance with an SC ruling that death appeals should be heard only by three-judge benches.
The Delhi High Court had confirmed the sentence of Mukesh Singh, 27, Akshay Thakur, 29, Pawan Gupta, 20, and Vinay Sharma, 21, saying their crime falls in the rarest-of-the-rare category, which warrants death penalty.
The prime accused, Ram Singh, 35, had been found dead in a cell in Tihar Jail in March, 2014 and proceedings against him were since abated.
On August 31 last year, another accused, a juvenile at the time of the crime, was convicted and sentenced to three years in a reformation home.
On the night of December 16, 2012, the paramedic student was gangraped in a moving bus in south Delhi after the convicts lured her and her 28-year-old male friend, who was also assaulted, to board a vehicle they were driving. The girl died on December 29, 2012 in a hospital in Singapore.
Two days after the Delhi high court upheld the trial courts verdict awarding death penalty to the four convicts, the top court had on March 14, 2014, stayed their hanging. Till the SC gives its final verdict, the four cannot be hanged.
Within a month of the brutal incident, a fast-track court began the trial proceedings in the case on January 17, 2013. It took just eight months to hand out death sentences to all the accused.
Even the Delhi high court fast-tracked the convicts appeal and within six months it confirmed the capital punishment given to the convicts.
Though the cases got listed four times in the past before the Supreme Court, it could not be taken up for hearing.
A design flaw led to the collapse of the flyover in Kolkata, experts said after visiting the spot on Friday, dismissing the construction companys argument that the incident was an act of god.
Structural and civil engineers with decades of experience in building bridges across the country, told HT that structural flaw of a T-shaped pillar -- technically a cantilever pier --led to the collapse. A cantilever bridge rests on structures that project horizontally into space only on one end.
A portion of the flyover caved in on Thursday afternoon killing 24 people and injuring more than 90. A few hours after the crash an official of the construction company, Hyderabad-based IVRCL, described the disaster as an act of god.
The design of the pier head (the t-junction) was inadequate. The arms simply buckled under pressure of the steel and concrete, said Achyut Ghosh, a bridge expert and visiting professor at IIT Kharagpur, Jadavpur University and IIEST in Shibpur.
The bridge was yet to be inaugurated, and therefore, there were no pressure of vehicles that a functioning flyover carries. This proves that it was simply a design failure, added Ghosh.
This was preventable. It cant be called an accident, he added.
Read | Kolkata flyover tragedy: Builder says accident not case of negligence
Experts pointed out that cantilever piers are one of the most unstable structures and are usually avoided. If absolutely necessary they are meticulously designed and need perfect implementation with strict quality check of materials.
It appears to be a technical failure. What was running on two pillars (at the start of the bridge) has converged on to one pillar. But this single pillar did not have adequate strength, said professor Arun Chakravarti of IIEST, Shibpur.
Read | Told govt Kolkata flyover design was flawed: TMC legislator
Another civil engineer Snehasis Sinha, who visited the crash site earlier in the day, reinforced the flawed design angle. He also alleged that there could have been serious lapses in quality control and even execution.
Apart from the flawed design there could be compromise in quality of materials and even lapses on the implementing authoritys part while the flyover was being built. There could have been lapses in monitoring and checking, he said.
Read | Kolkata flyover collapse: Builders say city officials were in the loop
Read | Flyover collapse: Trinamool on back foot 3 days before Bengal polls
A CBI special court in Ahmedabad on Saturday allowed retired Gujarat IPS officer DG Vanzara, a key accused in the 2004 Ishrat Jahan and Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter cases, to return home to the state.
Special judge SJ Raje modified the bail condition that had confined Vanzara to Mumbai for the past one year, fearing that his presence in his home state would pose a threat to witnesses.
Vanzara had expressed threat to his life in Mumbai which is a native place of hardcore and internationally-declared criminals like Dawood Ibrahim and Chhota Shakeel. After the Bombay HC had lifted confinement orders, he had moved the CBI court last week.
The retired police officers bail plea said, The applicant (Vanzara) is Z-category protected person and so far the Mumbai city is concerned, it is the native place of hardcore and internationally declared criminals like Dawood Ibrahim, Chhota Shakeel and others who are facing red corner notices.
The applicant while on service has booked such criminals and detected and unearthed the criminal conspiracies and their crime against the nation and the terrorists acts conspired or committed by them. The applicant has constant and serious threat from such declared criminals as well as certain terrorist groups like SIMI, India (Indian) Mujahidin and Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaise Mohammad (Jaish-e-Mohammad), etc. Such terrorist groups have wide spread networks in the city of Mumbai, therefore the applicant is facing serious threat to his life in Mumbai accordingly, to force the applicant to stay in Mumbai or outside Gujarat would amount to putting the applicant inside the jaws of death.
Vanzara also put forward the necessity to have home-cooked food owing to a skin disease.
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi reached the location of the collapsed flyover in Kolkata, before heading to the hospital to meet the victims on Saturday.
Gandhi landed in Kolkata in the morning and headed straight to the Burrabazar area where the accident took place on Thursday. He then went to the hospital where the injured are being treated.
Talking to reporters later, Gandhi said that he had come to extend support to the victims and did not want to politicise the issue.
There has been a tragedy here.I have come here to give them whatever little support I can provide, Gandhi said after meeting the injured in the hospital.
When asked to comment on the allegations of lapses in the construction of the flyover, Gandhi said, I have come here to meet the injured. Ill not talk about politics.
I am here in Kolkata to support those who have been injured in this tragedy. I have come here to give whatever little support I can Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) April 2, 2016
, hospital injured ,
Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) April 2, 2016
Gandhi, accompanied by state Congress President Adhir Chowdhury and party leader Deepa Dasmunsi, earlier talked to NDRF officials at the accident site.
Watch | Rahul Gandhi meets Kolkata flyover collapse victims families
The West Bengal state government announced an ex-gratia compensation of Rs 5 lakh to next of kin of the victims and Rs 2 lakh to those gravely injured.
Twenty four people were killed in the incident while dozens more were trapped under the debris.
Police filed an FIR against Hyderabad-based construction company, IVRCL that was in-charge of the project. The company said an inquiry committee had been set up but maintained that the accident was beyond anyones control.
The military and National Disaster Response Force were pressed into service to carry out relief and rescue efforts. Heavy earth movers and gas cutting equipment were brought in to dig out those trapped, with rescue operations concluding on Friday.
Hours after Thursdays flyover collapse, chief minister Mamata Banerjee promised stringent action against those responsible for the tragedy that claimed 24 lives and wounded about 90 people.
More than four years ago, she had vowed the same, after a devastating fire ripped through a city hospital and claimed 91 lives. But despite her promise of speedy justice, relatives of those who died in the 2011 blaze at the AMRI hospital in Dhakuria of south Kolkata are still awaiting justice.
The hospital has reopened, functioning from its parent building and an annexe that were spared by the fire. Only the building engulfed by the fire remains inoperative.
On March 19, a local city court ruled that 16 officials of the hospital will be charged under Section 304 of the Indian Penal Code (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) for the fire. If found guilty, those responsible could be jailed for up to 10 years and also fined. All the accused persons, currently out on bail, are to appear before the judge on April 16.
Several serious allegations like stocking inflammable goods in the underground car parking and not switching off AC machines were brought against the hospital authorities. This negligence allegedly caused the fire to spread to the upper floors of the Annexe 1 building. Among the dead were many patients.
Police had submitted the charge sheet in March 2012. Lawyers for the accused have over the years argued before the court that instead of Section 304, they should be tried only under Section 304A (death by negligence) carrying a sentence of maximum two years.
Where the case stands
Fire broke out at annexe 1 building in December 2011
Next court hearing: April 16
Charges under: IPC 304
Number of accused: 16
Number of witnesses in case: 452
91 people died
Max punishment: Jail term for maximum 10 years and/or fine.
Read: Rahul Gandhi in Kolkata, visits accident site
Two universities now at the centre of a raging debate over nationalism and free speech are Indias best, a first-ever government-backed survey has found, using parameters ranging from research facilities to employability of their graduates.
New Delhi-based Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and University of Hyderabad have been on the boil since January with rival students groups sparring over differing political ideologies, but that seems to have had little impact on their academic excellence.
The survey results assume significance considering that students of the two campuses have been at loggerheads with the government over free speech and anti-caste campaigns.
The rankings, to be released by human resource development minister Smriti Irani on Monday, are set to show that the two universities are the best in India, although on the overall list they come after two scientific institutes that are not designated as universities.
More than 3,500 higher educational institutions were considered in the survey. The other categories of institutes that have been ranked include engineering, management and pharmacy. No ranking was considered for colleges since the response was poor.
Read | Over 200 scholars condemn police action at HCU, ask V-C to step down
Among the universities, the Delhi University figures among the top 10 but behind JNU and Hyderabad university. The Jamia Millia Islamia university ranks further down the order.
The criteria used to rank the institutions included teaching/learning resources, research, graduation outcomes (employability), outreach/ social and gender inclusivity and perception.
An independent agency, the National Bureau of Accreditation, validated the data submitted by the institutes, government sources said.
The data for the first four parameters, which account for 90% of the weightage, was submitted by the institutions and verified by National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), a body constituted by the HRD ministry last year to conduct annual quality surveys.
For the perception criterion, feedback was taken from various stakeholders, including parents, teachers and alumni.
Read | The JNU crackdown could be the BJPs undoing
While protests swept JNU after its students union leader Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested on charges of sedition for allegedly attending an anti-India event, the university in Hyderabad saw trouble over the suicide of Rohith Vemula, a Dalit PhD scholar who alleged on-campus social discrimination.
Iranis ministry came under fire for Vemulas death, with the opposition accusing it of discriminating against the student and abetting his suicide.
Read | Sedition row fallout? 3,000 fewer aspirants apply to JNU
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The BJP said on Saturday Mamata Banerjee awarded a contract for a strategic railway tunnel to the company constructing the collapsed Kolkata flyover despite knowing the fact that the firm was blacklisted and was facing a CBI probe.
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi also mounted pressure on the West Bengal chief minister ahead of the assembly polls starting April 4 saying the ruling party was responsible for the flyover cave-in that killed 26 people. Gandhi visited the collapse site and met injured at the hospital on Saturday.
The BJP and the Left-Congress are trying to pin down the Trinamool over the flyover collapse and project it as a result of corruption under Mamatas tenure. The Trinamool, however, say the flyover project was initiated by the erstwhile CPI-M government.
BJP national secretary Sidharth Nath Singh distributed a one-page document to the media to back up his allegation that Mamata was familiar with the Hyderabad-based IVRCL, under the scanner following the flyover cave-in.
Police arrested one more official of the company on Saturday taking the total number of people behind bars in the incident to four. Three arrested officials were produced before a court on Saturday and were remanded to police custody for seven days.
Singh said Mamata, who was the railway minister in 2009 and 2011, awarded a joint venture of IVRCL a contract to build the Rs 761-crore Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramula tunnel despite the company being already blacklisted. The contract was cancelled on April 11, 2014 after 10% of the work was completed.
Mamata Banerjee knew that the CBI was investigating a case against IVRCL for supply of materials to build houses for tsunami victims. She cannot run away from the fact that IVRCL got this contract when she was the railway minister. She cannot say she did not know IVRCL, Singh said.
The work of the tunnel continued under railway minister Mukul Roy, also from the Trinamool.
He said a subcontract for the flyover was given to a relative of Trinamool MLA and candidate from Jorasanko constituency Smita Bakshi. Bakshi is the proprietor of Sandhyamani Projects.
The sub-contractor was allegedly involved in supplying cement and iron for the portion of the Vivekananda flyover that collapsed on Thursday.
The Trinamool hit back with Lok Sabha MP Kalyan Banerjee saying that the BJP was trying to mislead the people as it has realised that it will not get a single seat this time.
The incident figured prominently during the day in the states electoral theatre with Rahul Gandhi paying a visit to the disaster site in the morning and having a look around the twisted metals and the debris.
The flyover collapsed and people died. People of Trinamool Congress were involved in the construction of the flyover, Gandhi said in his first political campaign in Burdwan districts Kulti.
He also attacked Mamata on the issue of corruption and highlighted the Narada sting operation, which purportedly showed Trinamool leaders including state urban development minister Firhad Hakim taking bundles of bribe money.
Relief efforts in Kolkata notched the death toll in the flyover collapse up to 27 on Saturday after two more bodies were found and a victim died at a hospital.
Police had recovered 23 bodies following the accident on Thursday when a section of the structure that was under construction caved in. On Friday evening, two more bodies were recovered from a truck, and one body was found in the rubble. However, a victim who was taken to the Marwari Relief Society Hospital died on Friday night.
Read more | Alive only because my time hasnt come yet: Kolkata accident survivor
The collapse, one of the worst urban accidents in recent times, took place in a congested market area in central Kolkata in the afternoon, crushing and trapping people under the debris.
Read more | Flyover tragedy: Heart-wrenching scenes at Kolkata hospitals
Visuals of rescue work, the blood and suffering, played out on TV and newspapers, stoked politics in the state that goes to polls on Monday. Assembly elections have pitted the ruling Trinamool Congress against opposition parties like the LeftCongress alliance and BJP.
Read more | Told govt Kolkata flyover design was flawed: TMC legislator
Kolkata votes on April 25 and May 5 giving the opposition a month to step up pressure on the Trinamool, which has sought to deflect all blame. The flyover project however was sanctioned during the previous government under the Left.
Read more | Flyover collapse: Trinamool on back foot 3 days before Bengal polls
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about India and Canada being made for each other during his bilateral meeting with Justin Trudeau in Washington, but ties have to get back on track as two significant agreements are yet to be inked after five years of negotiations.
Canada is facing strong headwinds due to a global downturn in commodity prices, particularly petroleum products, and this may, ironically, push it to pay more attention to India at this time.
Its no surprise Modi commented on the new energy, dynamism and speed in bilateral relations after Trudeau became Prime Minister in November 2015.
Read | India, Canada made for each other: PM Modi tells Justin Trudeau in US
Multiple high-level meetings could accelerate that process external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj is expected in Ottawa in June for the third round of the strategic dialogue, and commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman and deputy national security adviser Arvind Gupta are also scheduled to visit the Canadian capital.
Indian high commissioner Vishnu Prakash said the two sides are ready to resume discussions on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agreement (FIPA).
Both sides feel the agreements are in mutual interest, he told Hindustan Times.
Negotiations for both began in 2010, but progress was slowed, first by Indias general election in 2014 and then parliamentary polls in Canada last year. We expect to see progress in both negotiations, Prakash said.
Read | Holi celebrated for the first time at Canadas Parliament
When Modi and Trudeau met on the margins of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, it was the fourth encounter between the two Trudeau, then leader of the opposition Liberal Party, had met Modi when the Indian leader visited Canada last April, and subsequently as counterparts, they exchanged pleasantries at multilateral events such as the G-20 summit in Turkey and the climate change summit in Paris late last year.
After this, the first formal bilateral meeting, Trudeaus office said in a statement: The two leaders undertook to advance the longstanding relations between the two countries, which are built on shared traditions of democracy and pluralism as well as extensive people-to-people ties. They also discussed cooperation on increasing trade and investment links and addressing climate change.
Read | I have more Sikhs in cabinet than Modi: Canada PM Justin Trudeau
Escalating the partnership in the energy sector, especially nuclear power, could be another part of the equation.
While Modis visit to Canada in 2015 highlighted ties between the two countries, it came with barely six months left for the Stephen Harper government and proved a peak in a period of stasis.
Trudeau reiterated his acceptance of an invitation to visit India during his latest meeting with Modi. We are in touch with each other for the visit on an early date, the Indian envoy said.
That visit, when it happens, could give the India-Canada narrative the new impetus it needs.
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New Delhi
Indias new defence procurement rules, aimed at cutting dependence on imported weapons and boosting indigenous manufacturing, will apply to all new acquisitions from Saturday.
The core of the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP)-2016 is the governments Make in India plan which will tap the countrys manpower pool and engineering capability while also helping local industries design, develop and manufacture military hardware.
Defence minister Manohar Parrikar unveiled the new mandate at a military systems exhibition in Goa on March 28, which was attended by 1,055 Indian and foreign firms.
The procurement procedure introduces a new category of Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured (IDDM) products that will be given the highest priority while making defence purchases.
Buy Indian-IDDM, the most favourable mode of buying military items of five categories listed in the DPP, prefers acquisition from an Indian vendor, provided one of two conditions are met.
If a product is manufactured, designed and developed locally, it should have a minimum of 40% indigenous content (IC) of the total contract value. But if it is not a local product, it should have 60% IC on the cost basis of the contract value.
The DPP stated procedures had been refined to ensure increased participation of the Indian industry. It will likely be reviewed after six months.
Self-reliance is a major corner-stone on which the military capability of any nation must rest, the DPP read.
The new norms also aim at enhancing the role of micro, small and medium enterprises in the defence sector.
The least priority will be given to the Buy (Global) category that governs outright purchase of equipment from foreign vendors.
The defence ministry is giving finishing touches to a policy on strategic partners and partnerships to allow Indian and foreign firms to collaborate on building warplanes, advanced submarines and helicopters. Though mentioned in the DPP, it will be brought out as a separate document.
India will also be spending as much as 10% higher than usual for procuring better defence equipment under the new rules.
Additional weightage will be given to vendors selling equipment with enhanced performance parameters (EPP), a stark departure from the present protocol that picks the lowest bidder (L-1).
Equipment successfully meeting the EPP parameters will be awarded a credit score of up to 10%, for evaluation of L1, the DPP stated.
However, inability to meet the EPP does will not disqualify one from bidding for a contract.
If an air defence gun can fire 1,000 rounds, I will prefer the one that can fire 1,200 rounds. Though my requirement may be met by the previous gun, certain additional points will be given to the superior gun, Parrikar said on January 11 when the new rules were approved.
The move is likely to benefit the country because if a particular firm is unable to secure the 10% advantage, it could quote a lower price to stay competitive.
The DPP will however not require foreign vendors to invest in the indigenous defence sector for contracts worth less than Rs 2,000 crore, up from the existing ceiling of Rs 300 crore. This could hit smaller businesses in the country.
Parrikar had earlier said the existing offset policy of foreign vendors being required to invest 30% of the value of all contracts worth Rs 300 crore was being revised as the country did not have the capacity to absorb the investment. Cost of equipment had gone up by 17% due to the offset clause.
The new DPP, however, does not cover the governments blacklisting policy and appointing arms agents and will be dealt with in a separate document.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced several key initiatives taken by his government in the area of nuclear security and non-proliferation, including countering nuclear smuggling and deployment of technology to deter nuclear terrorism.
Part of Indias Progress Report, the announcements were made by Modi on the second and final day of the Nuclear Security Summit (NSS), which was attended by leaders from more than 50 countries.
The Prime Minister said the country will continue to accord a high national priority to nuclear security through strong institutional framework, independent regulatory agency and trained and specialised manpower.
The national plan includes development and deployment of technology, including physical and cyber barriers, technological approaches, setting up a facility for medical grade Moly-99 using low enriched Uranium and using vitrified forms of vulnerable radioisotopes such as Ceasium-137.
To counter nuclear smuggling, Modi said the national detection architecture for nuclear and radioactive material would be strengthened, adding that a dedicated counter-nuclear smuggling team has been set up.
India will also join three gift baskets for this summit in priority areas of countering nuclear smuggling, nuclear security contact group in Vienna, and sharing of best practices through Centres of Excellence such as Indias own, Modi said.
Gift basket diplomacy involves an approach to a crucial issue where, if consensus is not reached, then those willing can join in.
Further, India pledged an added contribution of USD1 million to the nuclear security fund to support the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)s central role in nuclear security. A workshop with IAEA experts on International Physical Protection Assessment Service will be held in India, apart from a meeting of Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism in 2017. A conference on countering nuclear smuggling in partnership with Interpol is also on the cards.
Modi also said the country will also join the Trilateral Initiative, the joint statement of the previous three co-chairs of the NSS, circulated as a document in the IAEA.
The Prime Minister wound up his two-day trip to Washington after the session, and headed to Saudi Arabia as a part of his three-nation tour. Modi began his first foreign trip this year with Brussels, landing at the Belgian capital for the India-EU summit.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday attributed Indias growth to its political stability as he began a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia aimed at enhancing trade and firming up security cooperation to counter terrorism.
Modi was welcomed by the governor of Riyadh when he flew into Saudi Arabia after attending the Nuclear Security Summit hosted by US President Barack Obama in Washington. This is the first visit to the kingdom by an Indian prime minister in six years.
The first major event on Modis itinerary was an address to members of the nearly 3 million-strong Indian community at a hotel, a shift from the huge events associated with his visits to countries with a large Indian diaspora.
Reason for Indias growth is the political stability in India, Modi said, according to a series of tweets on his official Twitter account.
Worlds attention is towards India due to the economic progress in India. India can contribute a lot to the world, he said. In a very short span of time India has once again given rise to new expectations at the world stage.
Modi also interacted with workers and managers of Larsen & Toubro, which is constructing the Riyadh Metro, at their residential complex. He said he shared the joys and pain of the workers, adding the government has helped all Indians facing difficulties in any part of the world.
The Prime Minister earlier visited Masmak Palace, a clay and mud brick complex built around 1865. The building is closely linked to the Al Saud royal
Family, which has ruled the kingdom for more than a century.
On the second day of the day of the visit, King Salman will host a ceremonial reception, including a lunch, in Modis honour. The event will be attended by key Saudi ministers.
This will be followed by meetings and talks with senior Saudi officials and members of the royal family, including Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Naif, who is the deputy premier and interior minister, and Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, the second deputy premier and defence minister.
Modi and King Salman are expected to discuss a range of bilateral, regional and global issues, including terrorism, security cooperation and commercial ties, officials said.
Their talks will also focus on the situation in Syria, Iran, Yemen and Libya and help frame a joint strategy to fight terrorism, officials added.
Two days before Modis visit, Saudi Arabia and the US announced joint sanctions on four individuals and two organisations for backing and funding the Lashkar-e-Taiba, al Qaeda and Taliban. Among those sanctioned was Saudi-based Muhammad Ijaz Safarash, accused of providing financial or technological support to LeT.
Modi will also tour Tata Consultancy Services all women IT centre and meet top Saudi and Indian business leaders at the Council of Saudi Chambers.
Several agreements are expected to be signed on Sunday, including a framework for investment promotion between the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority and the National Investment Promotion Agency of India.
Saudi Arabia is Indias fourth largest trading partner with two-way trade at more than $40 billion. It is also Indias largest supplier of crude oil, accounting for almost one-fifth of New Delhis imports.
Nearly 3 million Indians living in Saudi Arabia, the largest expatriate community, send more than $10 billion in remittances every year.
Late King Abdullah visited India in 2006, when the two sides signed the Delhi Declaration.
During former prime minister Manmohan Singhs visit in 2010, the two sides signed 10 agreements, including the Riyadh Declaration which established a strategic partnership for deeper engagement in politics, economics and defence.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is seeking more details from the US on the involvement of a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) financier in the 2007 Samjhauta Express blast to wrap up probe into the terror attack that left 68 people dead.
A high-level delegation led by NIA director general Sharad Kumar left for New York on Saturday to meet his US counterparts and get more details about the involvement of the LeT financier Arif Qasmani in the incident, government sources said.
The 68 people killed in the incident on February 18, 2007 near Panipat included both Indians and Pakistanis.
On June 29, 2009, a United Nations committee on al-Qaida and its affiliates named the Karachi-based Qasmani as the kingpin behind the Delhi-Lahore Samjhauta Express blast and 2006 Mumbai local train bomb blasts.
The sources said the NIA approached the US government in 2010 to know on what basis it had pinpointed Qasmanis involvement in the Samjhauta blasts. Washington replied saying they had nothing more to add or share.
It is normal for intelligence agencies not to share detailed information with even friendly countries for fear of compromising the source.
The NIA team is going to meet all concerned officials in the US government so that a final view on Qasmanis involvement is taken in the case, said a senior official.
During the 10-day trip to the US, Kumar will meet officials of the Department of Treasury, Department of Justice, FBI and CIA in Washington to get further details on Qasmani.
The name of Qasmani, identified as a friend of crime syndicate chief Dawood Ibrahim, was notified by the US Treasury Department and added to the UN list.
Indian security agencies tried to pin the blame of the Samjhauta bombing on fringe Hindu groups like Abhinav Bharat on the basis of purported statements of its activists but investigating agencies have not been able to get corroborative evidence on ground.
The train blasts also became a contentious issue in India-Pakistan relations as Islamabad accuses New Delhi of dragging its feet in the investigations.
The UN body named Qasmani as a fund raiser and weapon supplier for LeT and al-Qaida terror groups and a conduit for Dawood Ibrahims terror activities in India.
Now nearly 80-year-old, Qasmani is a known shadowy financier of terror groups with wide links in Saudi Arabia and Gulf countries.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday arrived in Saudi Arabia for a two-day visit aimed at enhancing bilateral trade and firming up security cooperation to counter the challenge posed by terrorism and extremism.
Modi was received by the governor of Riyadh when he flew into Saudi Arabia after attending the Nuclear Security Summit hosted by US President Barack Obama in Washington.
The Prime Minister will also be accorded a welcome by the Indian community during a reception at a hotel in Riyadh. He will also interact with workers and managers of Indias Larsen & Toubro (L&T), which is constructing the Riyadh Metro, at their residential complex in the evening.
Modi will also visit the Masmak Palace in the Saudi capital, which was built around 1865.
He will begin the second day of his visit by touring Tata Consultancy Services all women IT centre. This will be followed by a meeting with top Saudi and Indian business leaders at the Council of Saudi Chambers in Riyadh.
WATCH: PM Modi received upon arrival by Governor of Riyadh, to interact with Indian community later todayhttps://t.co/7mKWveSRL4 ANI (@ANI_news) April 2, 2016
King Salman will host a ceremonial reception, including a lunch, in Modis honour on Sunday afternoon. The event will be attended by key Saudi ministers. This will be followed by a series of meetings and talks with senior Saudi officials and members of the royal family, including Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Naif, who is the deputy premier and interior minister, and Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, the second deputy premier and defence minister.
Modi and King Salman are expected to discuss a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues, including terrorism, security cooperation and commercial ties, officials said.
Reached Saudi Arabia. I look forward to a productive visit that will strengthen our bilateral relations. pic.twitter.com/lgdWHpVwHw Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 2, 2016
The talks will also focus on the situation in Syria, Iran, Yemen and Libya and help frame a joint strategy to fight terrorism, officials added.
Several agreements are expected to be signed during Modis visit, including a framework for investment promotion between the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority and the National Investment Promotion Agency of India.
This is the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Saudi Arabia in six years. Late King Abdullah had visited India in 2006, when the two sides signed the Delhi Declaration.
During former prime minister Manmohan Singhs visit in 2010, the two sides signed 10 agreements, including the Riyadh Declaration which established a strategic partnership for deeper engagement in politics, economics, security and defence.
Saudi Arabia is Indias fourth largest trading partner with two-way trade at more than $40 billion. It is also Indias largest supplier of crude oil, accounting for almost one-fifth of New Delhis imports.
Saudi Arabia is also home to almost 3 million Indians, the largest expatriate community in the kingdom.
An Indo-Canadian Sikh was assaulted by four men in Quebec City last weekend in what appears to be a racially motivated attack that drew condemnation from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Supninder Singh Khehra, an Indian citizen originally from Patiala and a resident of the Toronto suburb of Brampton, was beaten by the men who seemed to be drunk.
He was punched in the eye and kicked when he fell. Khehra attributed the attack to his race and the headgear he was wearing, alluding to his turban.
I seriously feel depressed, I feel very bad about what happened. Ive never experienced anything like this, Khehra, a 29-year-old business analyst, told Hindustan Times
Physically, Im trying to recover, but mentally Im thinking of the event more and more. Im a bit worried about the safety of elder men and young children of our community.
The episode was condemned by Trudeau while he was speaking to reporters in Washington, where he was attending the Nuclear Security Summit hosted by US President Barack Obama.
Trudeau was quoted as saying that such hateful acts had no place in Canada. He said: We stand clearly against the kind of discrimination and intolerance that represents.
Khehra said he was thankful to the Prime Minister that he spoke about this issue.
Khehras parents and wife, whom he married just this January, are in India and he did not mention the attack to them till it went public on Friday. He also allowed a blackened eye to heal before he had a Skype conversation with them.
They were initially in a state of shock, he said, but after Trudeaus statement, they have relaxed a bit.
While two men were arrested by local police, one was later released, according to media reports. Police continue to investigate the assault.
Khehra said he had been verbally abused, mostly in French, as the attackers pointed to his turban. He told CTV News: It was all because of my race, my colour and the headgear I was wearing.
The incident was captured in a cellphone video that shows the men rushing Khehra as he tried to ignore them.
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A senior Pakistani military official accused India on Saturday of stoking violence in the restive Balochistan province.
The arrest of the Indian spy has proven Indian state sponsored terrorism in Pakistan, Inspector General Frontier Corps (IGFC), Major General Sher Afgan, said, addressing media at FC headquarters in provincial capital Quetta.
Afgan, who is leading paramilitary FC in the fight against extremism and militancy in the province, said there was no indigenous armed movement in Balochistan as those involved in violence were supported from abroad.
He said in addition to India, Afghan intelligence was also involved in terrorism.
The IGFC also claimed that the arrest of Kulbushan Jadhav had led to arrest of his facilitators.
The military official also alleged that India was trying to sabotage the $46-billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
Jadhav, who was reportedly arrested in Balochistan after he entered from Iran, has been accused by Pakistan of planning subversive activities in the country.
Pakistan Army had also released a confessional video of Jadhav, who said he was the serving the Indian Navy.
In the video, Jadhav said that he arrived in Iran in 2003 and started a small business in Chahbahar.
India has acknowledged that Jhadav was a retired Indian Navy officer but denied the allegation that he was in any way connected to the government.
A group of women activists were prevented on Saturday from entering a temple in Maharashtra traditionally open only to men, a day after the Bombay high court ruled that women have a fundamental right to enter and pray inside temples.
The women entered the Shani Shingnapur temple compound but hundreds of villagers -- both male and female -- who believe in the centuries-old tradition of barring women from entering the inner sanctorum formed a human wall, forcing the activists to retreat.
The temple, located in Maharashtra state, has become the focus of a protest by female activists who say theyre fighting a centuries-old tradition of barring women from worshipping at some Hindu temples.
But their failure on Saturday, despite a court backing and government assurances, underscored the challenge in breaking down gender biases in a deeply conservative country.
The women had made a similar attempt to enter the Shani Shingnapur temple in January, but were stopped by police some distance away after protests were staged by temple priests and local villagers, mostly men.
On Saturday, police moved the women to a safe place after angry villagers barricaded the temple and said they would attack anyone who tried to forcibly enter the main shrine.
#WATCH Stand off between Bhumata brigade and the locals at #ShaniShinganapur temple complexhttps://t.co/WJNkQw2uvF ANI (@ANI_news) April 2, 2016
Police faced a tough time controlling the angry mob, which shouted slogans against what it said was publicity stunt by the women activists. The crowd chanted Shani Maharaj Ki Jay when activists were taken to police vehicles.
This is a murder of democracy. Police should have allowed us to enter the sanctum with protection, said Trupti Desai, who led the women activists.
If (Maharashtra) chief minister Devendra Fadnavis does not order police to allow us to worship at the Shani platform inside the temple in keeping with the HC order, I will file an FIR against him for violating it (the ruling), she said.
Desais group, called the Bhumata Ranragini Brigade, planned the march to the temple after the Bombay high court said women have a fundamental right to enter temples. The state government assured it was totally opposed to gender discrimination and it would implement a 1956 law which stipulated six months jail for violators.
Some Hindu temples in the country ban women from entering the inner sanctum, with Keralas famous Sabarimala temple barring all female worshippers aged between 10 and 50 years.
The Shani Shingnapur temple is dedicated to Lord Shani, who personifies the planet Saturn in Hindu belief. Women devotees are not permitted on the platform as per tradition followed at the shrine, which has no walls or a roof.
A five-foot-high black stone stands on a sacred platform (prohibited area) and is worshipped as Lord Shani.
The temple trustees said they would continue with the 400-year-old tradition of barring women. --
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Jewellers protesting the Centres Budget proposal to increase the excise duty and furnish customer PAN details, opened up makeshift vegetable stores and sold only to people with PAN cards to show their disapproval.
Merchants in Bardoli at Surat sold pakoras, vegetables and excise tea in response to the government increasing the excise duty by 1% and asking for PAN details for transaction above Rs 2 lakh. Jewellers have been on protest for a month following the governments announcement during the Budget session in February. The jewellers want the proposal to be rolled back.
In Rajkot, about 2,000 jewellers and workers announced they were withdrawing their membership from the ruling BJP as slogans like kamal ka phool, hamari bhul (the lotus was our mistake) picked up among the protesters. The lotus is the BJPs insignia.
Some merchants reportedly demanded PAN details for purchases as low as Rs 10 at the makeshift vegetable stalls.
The strike across Gujarat is hitting the jewellery business across the country as Surat has several diamond polishing units and Rajkot is a hub for designing and making.
Many jewellery houses in cities such as Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata have also remained closed since the protests started on March 2.
Finance minister Arun Jaitley said the government would not roll back the proposal. However, the government has constituted a panel under former chief economic advisor Ashok Lahiri to look into issue and submit a report in 60 days. The sub-committee will look into issues related to the compliance procedure for the excise duty, including records to be maintained, forms to be filled, operating procedures and other relevant aspects.
The governments stubborn stand on increasing the excise duty and asking for PAN details is aimed at ensuring checks and balances in the jewellery industry. It also impedes those eluding paying taxes or funnelling black money through heavy bullion purchases.
The Hyderabad-based company under scanner in the Kolkata flyover collapse has a tainted history in at least one state and has come under fire in another where it is executing several projects, including central government schemes. The company IVRCL running in losses for the last few quarters termed the incident an act of God and dismissed allegations of negligence.
On Friday, as a team of Kolkata police arrived in Hyderabad to question officials over the incident, the spotlight was back on the company headquartered in the posh Banjara Hills.
While the whereabouts of the top management, including chairman and managing director E Sudhir Reddy were not known, two officials addressed the media to defend the company.
In Jharkhand, the company faced a CBI probe for allegedly paying Rs 22 crore as kickback to former CM Madhu Koda to earn contract for rural electrification. However, the CBI later asked a special court to close the case in 2013 as it did not find any evidence against the accused.
The state government black listed the company for haphazard work and demanded Rs 750 crore from it for loss and damages, said advocate Naveen Kumar, who represented the Jharkhand electricity board in high court.
In Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena on Friday demanded that all ongoing projects in the state by the firm should be probed for technical soundness.
Currently, IVRCL is involved in several road projects in districts like Pune, Satara, Yavatmal, Chandrapur, Wardha. It has also bagged several irrigation projects in the state. The firms website shows that it has a share of public infrastructure contracts in several states including Andhra Pradhesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat.
The under-construction flyover in Kolkatas Burrabazar area partially collapsed on Thursday, killing 24 and injuring another 90 people.
The CBI court here on Friday convicted 47 policemen in the infamous Pilibhit fake encounter case of July 1991 in which the cops killed 10 Sikh pilgrims after labelling them as militants.
Pronouncing the judgment, CBI special judge Lallu Singh held the 47 cops guilty and fixed April 4 for announcing the quantum of the punishment.
Initially, the CBI had chargesheeted 57 cops involved in the fake encounter. However, 10 cops died during the course of the trial.
At a time when Sikh militancy was at its peak, the fake encounter emerged as a glaring example of police brutality. After media reports about the encounter being fake came to the fore, Supreme Court advocate RS Sodhi filed a PIL in the apex court seeking a CBI probe. The court ordered a CBI inquiry into the incident and during the course of the probe, the investigating agency concluded that police personnel from several police stations in Pilibhit and its adjoining districts were involved the fake encounter.
On June 12, 1995, the CBI filed a chargesheet indicting 57 cops under several sections of wthe IPC, including 302, for fake encounter. The CBI report also contradicted the findings of the KN Singh Commission set up by the then Kalyan Singh government, which had stated that the cops involved in the encounter deserved commendation, not condemnation.
The incident
The massacre took place in Mahof forest of Uttar Pradeshs Pilibhit district on July 12, 1991, when Sikh pilgrims from Pilibhit were returning home after visiting holy Sikh shrines, including Patna Sahib in Bihar, Gurudwara Nanakmatta Sahib in Udham Singh Nagar, Uttarakhand (then in Uttar Pradesh), Hazur Sahib in Nanded, Maharashtra among other places, in a luxury bus.
Cops intercepted the bus carrying the pilgrims at Kachla Ghat area in Badaun district and asked 10 passengers to get down from the bus and board a mini-bus waiting for them.
After a few hours, the mini-bus and the luxury bus, in which Sikh pilgrims were travelling, reached Pilibhit with several police vehicles following them. The mini-bus headed to the forest area while the luxury bus was sent to the local gurudwara. Cops divided the passengers in the mini-bus into three groups before killing them.
In the first fake encounter, four Sikhs were shot dead at Phagunai Ghat. In two similar fake encounters that followed the same night, six more Sikhs were gunned down by the police in the Pattabhoji forest area.
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Deposed Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat was reportedly shown black flags on Saturday and his convoy was pelted with stones in Dehradun when he was going to an event to mobilise public opinion against the dismissal of his government.
Stones were thrown from under a flyover by BJP goons hit vehicles in the convoy of the former CM. Fortunately, no one was hurt but it shows the desperation of BJP that has lost all sense of political courtesy, senior Congress leader and former CMs media in charge Surendra Kumar told PTI.
Undeterred by the attack, Rawat came out of his car to lead a march from Kanwali road to Balliwala chawk during which he was also shown black flags.
Later, addressing a large public meeting at Sadhuram Inter College, he asked people of the state to teach a lesson to those who had dislodged a democratically-elected government in Uttarakhand with the power of money and muscle.
You tell me who would give me justice and punish those who dislodged a government which had made provisions in its budget for the poor and the downtrodden, the youth and women? Rawat said at the meeting that was part of his save democracy yatra.
BJP has stooped to a new low by trying to disrupt the CMs yatra in such a manner. First, it murdered democracy in Uttarakhand by overthrowing a popular government and now it is shamelessly displaying its disregard for decent political behaviours. The party condemns it in the harshest of words, Pradesh Congress president Kishore Upadhyay said.
Over two dozen activists of Bhumata Ranragini Brigade on Saturday set off for Shani Shingnapur temple of Maharashtras Ahmednagar district where tradition bans women from entering the shrines sacred platform.
The march, led by Trupti Desai, is taking place a day after the Bombay high court ruled that it is the fundamental right of women to go into places of worship.
Describing the HC verdict as a victory for womens campaign against gender bias, Desai had on Friday announced that she and members of the group would head to the ancient temple the next day itself.
Around 25 activists proceeded for the temple on Saturday morning in 2-3 small vehicles.
After the high court itself ruled in womens favour, we are determined to reach the sacred chauthara of the temple and we are sure that police will not restrict us en route, Desai said before leaving Pune.
On being told that if a temple does not allow any person, irrespective of gender, inside the sanctum sanctorum, then the Maharashtra Hindu Place of Worship (Entry Authorisation) Act 1956 and its provisions will not be of any help, Desai said, In case of Shani Shinganapur, the temple trust used to allow men at chauthara and only after our agitation started, they had put restrictions on males. So we should not be restricted.
Desai also urged Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadanvis to issue directives to the local administration and police to cooperate with them to go inside the temple peacefully and allow them to worship Lord Shani, whose idol is placed at the chauthara.
The shrine is dedicated to Lord Shani, who personifies the planet Saturn in Hindu belief. Women devotees are not permitted on the platform of the shrine, which has no walls or a roof. A five-foot-high black stone stands on a sacred platform (prohibited area) and is worshipped as Lord Shani.
Meanwhile, members of an action committee formed in the district to maintain the 400-year-old tradition at the temple is mulling to challenge the HC order in the Supreme Court.
We will soon approach the apex court against the HC ruling as it is a matter of protecting the faith of devotees, said Sambhaji Dahatonde, a member of the action committee. After the agitation began, the temple management shunned the practice of special pooja for men in the last two months. Now both men and women are offering prayers from an equal distance from the idol. As of now, only the priests are allowed in the sacred sanctum.
The debate over the issue of womens entry into the sanctum sanctorum of Maharashtra temples escalated after a woman last year tried to enter and offer prayers at the Shani Shingnapur temple.
This had prompted the temple committee to suspend seven security men and the villagers to perform purification rituals.
Subsequently, the Bhumata Brigade led by Desai had on January 26 this year launched a high-voltage campaign to breach the ban at the Shani temple and vowed to carry on with its movement for gender justice.
Besides, around 150 women under the banner of outfit had last month headed to the famous Trimbakeshwar temple in Nashik district seeking to break the bar on female devotees at the inner sanctum of the Lord Shiva shrine. Their attempts were, however, foiled by the police.
Kung Fu Panda 3
Direction: Jennifer Yuh Nelson, Alessandro Carloni
Voices: Jack Black, Bryan Cranston
Rating: 2/5
Po, the portly panda protagonist, is back for another bout of kung-fu related antics in this third instalment (after the 2008 and 2011 editions) of the action-oriented franchise.
This time around, the furry critter (voiced once again by funnyman Black) must hone his martial arts skills to vanquish an enemy from the spirit world.
Read other movie reviews here
The jeopardy now comes from a megalomaniacal yak (dubbed in fearsome tones by the Whiplash Oscar-winner JK Simmons) who steals the chi (life force, for those not familiar with the Chinese lexicon) of legendary warriors in order to wreak vengeance on panda-kind.
In terms of story line and humour Kung Fu Panda 3 is decidedly lightweight compared to the first two films in the series.
Meanwhile our unlikely hero is reunited with his long-lost biological father (Cranston). Embarking on a quest of self-discovery, Po trains an army of fellow dumpling-obsessed fighter bears.
With its colourful landscapes and karate moves, its a treat for the kids but will likely prove a little wearying for their adult companions.
Read: Kung Fu Panda 3 trailer is heart-warmingly hilarious
In terms of story line and humour Panda 3 is decidedly lightweight compared to the first two films in the series.
The emotional component, which arrives when Po discovers the truth about his long-dead mother, is glossed over in favour of incessant pratfalls and slapstick shenanigans.
Watch the trailer here
Many of the returning characters, such as the diminutive mentor (Dustin Hoffman), the tigress (Angelina Jolie) and the adoptive father goose (James Hong), are given little to do and come across as ciphers.
New characters like the flirtatious ribbon dancer (Kate Hudson) fare marginally better.
This could be it; we doubt viewers will want to be subjected to the further exploits of Panda any time soon.
Follow @htshowbiz for more
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With monsoon two months away, municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta, has asked all the ward officers to complete cleaning of minor nullahs and ongoing road works with a special attention on monsoon-related diseases, in a monthly review meeting on Saturday.
He also asked ward officers to remove and take action against encroachments around major and minor nullahs in the city.
According to the civic body, there are around 13,000 huts encroaching the nullahs in the city.
Taking a special note of water-logging at Hindmata, Gandhi market King Circle, Kurla (East) and Milan Subway in Santacruz, the civic chief has ordered officials to focus on these areas for a flood-free monsoon.
He has also asked them to cover manholes and reinstate all the trenches. Ward officials will also conduct mock-drills ahead of monsoon with the BMCs fire brigade, disaster management department and the national disaster response force.
The Brihanmumbai municipal corporation (BMC) recently provided many civic services online, from paying bills to applying for health and birth certificates and complaints about illegal encroachments.
However, many citizens complained about the glitches in the systems and the civic chief has asked officers to take up the matter.
After discontinuing the popular pothole tracking website, the BMC on Saturday unveiled its new platform on Facebook (www.facebook.com/mcgmroad), wherein citizens can post complaints about potholes with pictures, which will be monitored by the civic body.
A chief engineer from road department will administer the complaints.
Following the new platform for pothole tracking, all the assistant engineers (maintenance) from each ward will open a new Gmail account to exclusively access the new Facebook account to receive the complaints.
Taking note of the abysmal segregation of waste in the city, the commissioner has asked all ward officers to prioritise and work with Advance Locality Management (ALMs) to promote segregation.
The Uttar Pradesh excise department has reduced the rates of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) in the state by 20 to 25%, effective from April 1. This was done to increase sales and stop liquor smuggling from Delhi and Haryana where prices are lower than those in UP.
According to Ghaziabad district excise officials, prices of country-made liquor will see a rise of Re1 while those of various brands of beer will rise by Rs5-Rs10 per bottle from April 1.
The old stock will be sold at new rates that have already been displayed at liquor shops. Revised lists are coming in and more lists will arrive soon for other IMFL brands. The reduced price will help us bring down instances of smuggling from states like Haryana where average liquor price is lesser by nearly 265%. Our reduced prices will shorten the gap and stand at around 190-200%, said Karunendra Singh, district excise officer at Ghaziabad.
According to the new rates, the prices of 750ml of deluxe scotch will be between Rs1,500 and Rs1,570, down from Rs1,700. The rate of Delux Scotch in Haryana is nearly Rs1,100.
Another brand selling rare whisky will now cost Rs770 (750 ml) against a previous price of Rs1,025. This costs around Rs570 in Haryana.
The price of a superior whisky brand will come down to Rs410 from Rs555. The same brand costs Rs250 in Haryana. A brand of reserve whisky will now be priced at Rs595 against a previous price of Rs760.
The new pricing will make our liquor prices closer to those available in Delhi. People often cross the border and purchase liquor from Delhi to avoid higher prices in UP. We expect that the reduced prices will encourage our buyers to purchase IMFL from UP. This will also impact liquor smuggling, which has been frequent this year, Singh said.
During the last financial year (2015-16), Ghaziabad officials seized nearly 2,11,967 litres of different brands of liquor as against nearly 1,30,594 litres during the previous financial year (2014-15).
The much-awaited domestic airport at Adampur is inching closer to reality with the Airport Authority of India (AAI) team, which visited the airbase to study feasibility in August last year, giving positive feedback to the Union civil aviation ministry to start commercial operations.
The facility will cater to NRIs from Doaba who have long been demanding an airport in the region.
The report was submitted to the Union ministry in January. It says that a domestic airport can be set up at the airbase on around 50 acres of land available nearby. As far our parameters are concerned we hardly found any bottleneck, a member of the AAI team that visited the site informed Hindustan Times.
The AAI team comprising Debashish Khan, general manager (planning), SK Soni, deputy general manager (operations) and Rajeev Handa, deputy general manager (civil) assessed the proposed airport site right from the wide access to the land on which the airport terminal will be constructed.
Union minister of state and Hoshiarpur MP Vijay Sampla, who led a delegation of local industrialists demanding setting up of the airport, said the AAI team has given report in favour in starting of domestic airport.
I do not know what exactly the AAI team suggested to the ministry. But I was told by a secretary-level official that the report was positive. A meeting of Union civil aviation and defence ministries has been fixed in the second week of April to discuss the matter. It is going to be crucial meeting in which I have also been asked to attend, Sampla said.
The MP claimed that Union defence minister Manohar Parrikar was keen on starting domestic flights from the airbase and he in a meeting few months back in Delhi with Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Badal had assured to clear all formalities as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the AAI has also given go-ahead for hiring a private consultancy firm by the airlines to study the operational feasibility with regard to customers.
The consultancy officials have asked us to arrange meeting with at least 100 businessmen and travel agents in order to make an assessment of daily traffic from the Doaba region. The firm would hold a one-to-one meeting with all stakeholders to assess the flow of traffic to Delhi and some foreign countries.
We are waiting for the next communication from the firm so that we can finalise the date of meeting, said Ashwani Victor, industrialist and member of the Doaba Airport Welfare Association (DAWA), a group of people campaigning for setting up of airport at Adampur.
Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has already announced to provide 50-acre land to the AAI for the purpose. The land owned by individuals, has been identified near the airport by the district administration.
The ministry of defence has already given its go-ahead for providing its air-strip for commercial use.
The Punjab government on Friday asked the Centre in the Supreme Court to come out with details of the presidential reference over the Sutlej-Yamuna Link canal issue, including why it was made.
Haryana, on its part, told the court that 2004 Punjab law terminating all water sharing agreements with Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi breached principles of separation of powers and was also contrary to the countrys federal polity.
Appearing for Punjab, senior advocate Rajeev Dhawan told the five-judge constitution bench: This reference is of fundamental importance. It is important for Union of India to explain why reference has been made by it. We want to know what we have to answer.
The bench headed by justice AR Dave is conducting a hearing on the presidential reference pertaining to Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, 2004. This case has come from Centre and not from Haryana. We would like to see the views of teh central government, Dhawan said.
Meanwhile, assailing the 2004 Punjab Act, Haryana told the bench that the Punjab assembly cant pass a law to neutralise the judgment of the apex court in which its own executive was a party to dispute.
Addressing Punjabs contention that there was a change of circumstance, senior counsel Shyam Divan, appearing for Haryana, said the Punjab assembly was not competent to enact a law on the grounds that the dispute had already been decided by the court, the extra-territorial nature of the legislative act and the federal structure of the countrys polity.
Referring to the apex court judgment on Cauvery water dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and dispute between Kerala and Tamil Nadu over Tamil Nadus demand for increasing the water level in Mullaperiyar dam to 142 feet, Divan said that any change of circumstance could only be considered by the court alone and legislature cant step in.
The Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday quashed a criminal complaint and consequential proceedings against Punjab local bodies minister Anil Joshi and his family members in an alleged dual- vote case.
The high court bench of justice Kuldip Singh stated in its order that the complaint along with documents attached with the same did not disclose any offence under the Representation of Peoples Act-1950 and was nothing but misuse of the process of court. The Act provides for punishment in case of making false declaration, which is either known or believed to be false of an electoral roll or any entry in or from any electoral roll.
The judgment came on the petition of Joshi and his family members, who had challenged the criminal complaint and summoning order by Amritsar chief judicial magistrate in February 2014. The complaint was filed by the election department against Joshi and his family members saying they were enrolled as voter twice in Amritsar in 2007-08 and were guilty of offences under Sections 17 and 31 of the Act.
The Section 17 of the Act says no person shall be entitled to register in the electoral roll for more than one constituency. However, violation of the said section was not a criminal offence.
The high court questioned as to how for the offences committed between year 2006-2008, the complaint was filed in February 2014 much beyond the period of limitation of one year. Also HC also questioned lower court order of summoning the accused persons without opportunity of hearing.
The high court also noted that the initial compliant came from two persons Sandeep Gorsi and Vaneet Mahajan who had challenged Anil Joshis election on similar allegations. The petition was dismissed by a division bench in 2015. It (division bench order) goes on to show that the said two applicants have their own axe to grind and want to settle some score with one of the respondents, namely, Anil Joshi, who was elected as a member of legislative assembly from Amritsar north assembly constituency, the high court bench recorded in the order.
The order also says it was not clear as to who got the names of all said voters entered into the Tarn Taran constituency in 2005 and for the subsequent entries in Amritsar west and Amritsar north, no record was attached with the complaint to show as to who got the enrolment made and who made the declaration.
The Punjab and Haryana high court has quashed the appointment of two medical officers (dental) by the Punjab government in 2012.
The high court bench of justice GS Sandhawalia passed the judgment while deciding a bunch of petitions challenging these appointments in the backward class (BC) category. Dr Barinder Pal and Dr Subprinder Kaur were hired against these posts. In the same matter, the high court also dismissed the petition of one Dr Anuradha Saini, who had sought direction for her appointment under the BC ex-servicemens category. The bench directed the government to appoint Dr Amarjit Singh in her place. This post was kept vacant after the dispute arose in 2012.
Justice Sandhawalia directed the Punjab government to complete the exercise of appointments within two months. The petitioners shall be entitled to all the notional benefits for the purpose of seniority from the date of initial appointment of candidates who were part of the original selection, since they were denied the appointment wrongly, the high court bench recorded in the order.
The 20 posts, including 11 backlog posts of medical officer (dental), were advertised in 2011. Dr Barinder Pal and Dr Subprinder Kaur were given provisional appointment, which was challenged on the grounds that at the time of advertisement, the both did not have the requisite educational qualification. In Dr Sainis case, it was alleged that she was a reserved-category candidate by the 2009 notification, which at the time of advertisement was in abeyance; hence, she was not liable to be considered in the category.
During the hearing, it came to light that Dr Barinder Pal had neither passed the required medical college examination nor completed his internship before the August 2011 deadline for applying for the posts. He registered with the Punjab Dental Council on December 7, 2011, only. Dr Subprinder Kaur completed her internship only in November 2011 and registered with the Punjab Dental Council the same month.
In Dr Sainis case, the court observed that the petitioner was not entitled to appointment in the reserved category in the absence of any appropriate certificate issued in accordance with the instruction of the department of welfare (as the advertisement required), so no benefit could be granted.
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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will start a mass contact programme in Punjab from April 14 to mark the birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar, which would conclude on April 24. This announcement came via a press release issued by Punjab BJP chief Kamal Sharma after the partys state executive meeting in Chandigarh on Saturday.
He also launched attacks on the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), saying that both were in the same business of befooling the people. Speaking at the executive meet, Sharma said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is working round the clock in order to ensure all-round development of the country, besides uplift of every section of society, read the release.
BJP Punjab affairs in-charge Prabhat Jha said, in line with the favourable atmosphere prevalent for BJP in the entire country, the partys graph has gone up tremendously in Punjab. The press release further quoted him as having said, From a figure of 3 lakh, the BJPs membership in Punjab has crossed 23 lakh, which is unprecedented for any political party. This clearly reflects the positive mood of the people of Punjab towards the saffron party. Former Punjab BJP president Ashwani Sharma presented the report of the partys national executive meet recently held at Delhi.
Also read: Punjab CM Badal slams AAP, calls it a band of fugitives
With Akalis on SYL
While presenting the political resolution, BJP state secretary Jatinder Kalra supported the stand taken by the Punjab government on the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, and also the steps taken to prevent the incidents of sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib other religious books.
Union minister Vijay Sampla, and state ministers Chunni Lal Bhagat, Anil Joshi, Madan Mohan Mittal and Surjit Kumar Jyani presented the reports of their respective ministries. Apart from this, deliberations over many other issues, including party activities in the past three months, future programmes, strengthening and expansion of the organisation were held, said the press note.
Among the attendees were Rajya Sabha MP Shawet Malik, MLAs Manoranjan Kalia and KD Bhandari, Sukhjit Sahi, Seema Devi, Rajinder Bhandari, Tikshan Sud, Harjit Singh Grewal, Paramjit Kaur Panjgrain and other office-bearers among the 250 members of the state executive.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which has emerged a powerful third force in Punjab for the coming assembly polls, is still waiting for Punjabis to loosen their purse strings for it. Of the total money collected by the AAP since December 2013, Punjabs contribution is only 3.4%. On the donor states list -- AAP website shows daily donations from around the world -- Punjabs position is sixth.
Note, that the party claims that its Punjab Jodo campaign has brought 20 lakh families into its fold out of the 56 lakh households in the state. And, ever since its Maghi Mela grand show in January, AAP leaders are working full steam across the state, consolidating the cadre too.
Delhi tops the list, followed by Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and Haryana. The total donation from Punjab is Rs 1.7 crore, so far. The donation in the same period from Haryana is more than Rs 2.8 crore. While Delhi has contributed more than Rs 15 crore, Maharashtra is a close second at almost Rs 13 crore. The total assistance to the party from India is now close to Rs 50 crore.
Punjab is the only state where the AAP won any Lok Sabha seats in 2014. Its Sangrur MP, Bhagwant Mann, claims that the huge donation from Punjabi NRIs (non-resident Indians) is yet to be taken into account. Mann adds that the partys growing popularity is reflected in the fact that of Rs 1.7 crore collected from Punjab since December 2013, more than Rs 1.1 crore came in after November 2014. In the state-wise contribution to the AAP since November 2014, Punjab is fourth in the country and contributing 6.5% to total donation since. The historic victory of the party in the Delhi state has really energised Punjabis and made them believe in the AAP and their power of vote, said the MP.
The party has been organising fundraising dinners in the state. From the latest on March 25 in Sangrur, it made Rs 25 lakh, at Rs 5,000 a plate. It prompted Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal of the Shiromani Akali Dal to accuse the AAP of looting people by first inviting them to dinner and then asking them to pay for it. She said that in the land where free langar was served to people, this party has set a reverse trend.
People are coming round to understanding that the money they give us will not go waste. The fundraising dinners are well attended, said Mann, adding:The collection from Punjab is low because it started here last. Also, the states culture, so far, was to accept money from politicians, not to give them.
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Punjab deputy chief minister and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday asked his partys leaders to take a vow from people who board the SADs buses that they would attend the partys Baisakhi rally at Talwandi Sabo in Bathinda on April 14. This is evidently an outcome of the Maghi Mela (fair) fiasco at Mukstar in January when the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) not only stole the show but even the people gathered by other parties for their conventions.
Pindan vich bussan bhej dittian jaan gian, par workers to saunh pawa ke leke auna (Buses will be provided for every village, but bring workers to the rally after making them take the vow), he said, at a meeting of MLAs, halqa (constituency) in-charges, district presidents and circle in-charges of Faridkot, Bathinda, Muktsar, Mansa, Ferozepur and Fazilka here on Saturday.
Also read: AAP weaves Maghi magic, eclipses SAD, Cong shows in Muktsar
You (office-bearers) have to ensure that the workers first attend the Akali Dal convention before that they go to pay obeisance at Darbar Sahib in Talwandi Sabo. The workers must sit until the last speaker has concluded his speech, Sukhbir stressed in his address.
He referred to the Maghi Mela too but claimed that people ferried by the SAD from different constituencies opted to enjoy the fair (mela) instead of attending the rally. HT had reported how people ferried even by the Congress got off the buses and walked into the AAP venue where Delhi CM Arvin Kejriwal addressed the gathering. The SAD too had lost attendance to the AAP though it had chosen a venue about 7km away.
Also read: People get down from Congress buses, walk into AAP rally
We had mobilised and brought the maximum number of people then; but less people attended the rally. Make sure that is not repeated on Baisakhi, Sukhbir said.
He said due to it being election year, every party is going to show off its strength during political rallies; but we must make the rally historic by participating in huge numbers. Asserting that opposition parties are spreading wrong propaganda among the people, he said SAD leaders must clear the picture among people in their respective areas and urge them to come to the rally.
Whisky swing at Captains coffee!
Taking a dig at Punjab Congress new initiative Coffee with Captain wherein its president Captain Amarinder Singh meets people, deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal remarked in Bathinda on Saturday that the name was wrong: Whiskey with Captain is more appropriate for the campaign. He added, It should be whisky... as Captain saab doesnt like and drink coffee much.
Also, Sukhbir said the SAD didnt need any strategist like Prashant Kishor, who has been hired by Congress, as the Akali Dal is well aware of the sentiment of the people. He also targeted Amarinder over the action initiated against his son by the Enforcement Directorate in a foreign accounts case. Amarinder has been completely exposed.
Also read: What AAP gets from dinners is Captains coffee bill
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The move last week by the Gurgaon administration to revise Natural Conservation Zone (NCZ) to include eco-sensitive areas such as the wastelands in the Aravalli foothills and paleo-channels (old nallahs) has been hailed by environmentalists. Calling it a first step forward, which should be emulated by all cities in India, environment experts say now natural water recharge bodies will be preserved and not used for constructing high-rises or high-end farmhouses.
The NCR Regional Plan 2021, published in 2005, marked out eco-sensitive areas like the Aravallis, forests, rivers, water bodies and groundwater as NCZ.
Most of the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) member states, such as Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan, which were required to factor in NCZ in their sub-regional plans and master plans did not bother to do so for 11 years.
Ritwick Dutta, environment lawyer, says the NCZ concept is very relevant today. There are many residential projects (read housing blocks) coming up in sectors with wetlands, storm water drains, ravines, gullies, foothills etc in the NCR. No effort has been made to earmark or scientifically understand the ecological function they perform, adds Dutta, who has set up the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Resources and Response Centre, which provides an accessible database on environment impact assessment reports, along with a critical analysis.
While cities such as Mahabaleshwar, Panchmarhi, Panchgani and Mount Abu have been declared as ecological sensitive zones they have not delineated NCZ as a separate zoning category and if Gurgaon does it, it would be the first city to have done it, he says.
Underlining the difference between green belts in master plans and natural conservation zones, Dutta says the former are artificial plantations or landscaped areas that have an aesthetic function to perform. The NCZ, however, is a natural demarcation and plays a serious ecological role in maintaining water tables and serving as the primary source of groundwater recharge in NCR. By delineating these areas as such in the master plan the administration is legally ensuring these areas can only be put to specific use (forestry, water body, agriculture) and must be conserved and protected at any cost.
We are ready to incorporate all important areas, including wasteland and palaeo-channels. All stakeholders have been directed to give details of such areas, which will be incorporated in NCZ, deputy commissioner TL Satyaprakash, who heads Gurgaons district administration, had said last week. This move came after comments from the forest department, Haryana, on the interim NCZ maps. Earlier in March, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) issued a notice to the Haryana government, asking why it had excluded nearly 50,000 hectares of land, including vast areas of the Aravallis, from the NCZ.
The notice was issued after a city-based environmentalist, Colonel SS Oberoi, moved the green court after the state government last year decided to reduce NCZ area to about 42,000 hectare from 95,000 hectare in the Haryana subregion of the NCR.
The authorities have been reducing NCZ in the sub-regional plan. The plan simply says that NCZ area is about 42,000 hectare. There is no mention of the remaining land, where a lot of water bodies, forest and wetlands exist. The area also has a flourishing wildlife, said Oberoi, who had filed the petition in the green court in 2015.
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They were asked by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to plant 10 trees as penalty for one tree felled by them in Mangar Bani, a grove off the Gurgaon-Faridabad Road, but nothing, not even a sapling, has been planted by the penalised developers. The National Green Tribunal (NGT), on March 17, also slapped a fine of Rs 1 lakh on three real estate firms for allegedly trying to develop more than 400 acres of the forest land. Villagers and environment activists had welcomed the NGT move, saying it would prevent deforestation. The Mangar Bani and areas falling within gair mumkin pahar (uncultivable) in Mangar village are parts of the Aravalli range which is covered with herbs, shrubs and trees. It is rich in flora and fauna and any development work will disturb the fragile ecosystem.
Though the fine of Rs 1 lakh on the developers seems to be a paltry sum, activists feel it is a significant move. Whether it is Rs 1 lakh or ten times more, it doesnt seem to be much from the developers perspective, but when we look at the circumstances, this fine matters, said Chetan Aggarwal, environment analyst.
Sarvadaman Oberoi, also an environmentalist, said there had been rampant damage done to the forest. Construction is going on in the area which comes under protected or reserved forest area notified under the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA)-1900. Many developers tried to change the status of uncultivated land to agricultural land that comes under PLPA. The Act prohibits non-forestry activity in the area. The manner in which the permission is given for construction is unfair. The court will take a decision on the demolition of buildings constructed in the Mangar area.
Vivek Kamboj, another activist, felt a fine was not enough. The developers had caused much harm to the environment and allowing of agriculture and construction of roads in the Aravalli areas of Mangar would open the unfragmented jungle to traffic and colonisation, he said.
Fierce clashes left at least 30 Azerbaijani and Armenian soldiers dead Saturday as Russia and the West urged an immediate ceasefire after a major escalation in violence over the disputed Nagorny Karabakh region.
Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian said 18 Armenian troops were killed and some 35 wounded in the largest-scale hostilities since a 1994 truce ended a war that saw Armenian-backed fighters seize the territory from Azerbaijan.
Sarkisian did not specify if the troops were from the forces of unrecognised Karabakh -- which claims independence but is backed by Yerevan -- or Armenias army.
Earlier Azerbaijans defence ministry said that 12 of its soldiers were killed in the clashes and a military helicopter shot down.
The surge in fighting over the disputed territory reportedly also claimed the lives of one Armenian and one Azeri civilian after the arch foes accused each other of unleashing heavy weaponry across the volatile frontline.
Armenia accused Azerbaijan of launching a massive attack along the Karabakh frontline using tanks, artillery, and helicopters on Friday night.
Azerbaijan, however, insisted it had counter-attacked after coming under fire from large-calibre artillery and grenade-launchers.
Sarkisian said that clashes were continuing Saturday evening in the north and south of the frontline but insisted the armed forces of Karabakh are in control of the situation.
Ethnic Armenian separatists backed by Yerevan seized control of the mountainous Nagorny Karabakh region in the early 1990s war that claimed some 30,000 lives and the foes have never signed a peace deal despite the 1994 ceasfire.
The region is still internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan and the two sides frequently exchange fire across the front, but the latest episode marked a surge in violence and sparked frantic appeals for peace from international powers.
Azeri forces claimed that they had taken control of several strategic heights and a village in the Armenian-controlled territory, but Yerevan denied the claim as disinformation.
- Ceasefire calls -
Russian President Vladimir Putin called for an immediate end to fighting along the frontline, the Kremlin said.
President Putin calls on the parties in the conflict to observe an immediate ceasefire and exercise restraint in order to prevent further casualties, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian news agencies.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu held phone talks with their counterparts in Armenia and Azerbaijan to urge a de-escalation in the fighting.
Meanwhile, mediators from a group made up of representatives from Russia, the United States, France and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which has been trying to negotiation a settlement, expressed grave concern.
The European Unions foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said that the reports of heavy fighting were deeply worrying and called on all sides to avoid any further actions or statements that could result in escalation.
Azerbaijans strongman President Ilham Aliyev also spoke by phone to ally President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in which the Turkish leader expressed solidarity with Azerbaijan, Aliyev press office said.
Energy-rich Azerbaijan, whose military spending has in the past exceeded Armenias entire state budget, has repeatedly threatened to take back the breakaway region by force if negotiations fail to yield results. Moscow-backed Armenia says it could crush any offensive.
The last big flare-up occurred in November 2014 when Azerbaijan shot down an Armenian military helicopter.
US Vice President Joe Biden met this week separately with both Aliyev and Sarkisian, as they attended a nuclear summit in Washington. He urged a peaceful settlement to the dispute.
Biden expressed concern about continued violence, called for dialogue, and emphasized the importance of a comprehensive settlement for the long-term stability, security, and prosperity of the region, the White House said.
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US President Barack Obama has flagged the Indian subcontinent as a challenge in the context of global nuclear security, saying India and Pakistan must ensure their military doctrines do not move in the wrong direction.
Obama made the remarks during a news conference held after the fourth and final Nuclear Security Summit hosted by him. He also listed the reduction of the nuclear arsenals of the US and Russia, and North Koreas atomic programme as other key challenges.
The other area where I think we need to see progress is Pakistan and India, that subcontinent, making sure that as they develop military doctrines, that they are not continually moving in the wrong direction, he told the news conference at the end of the two-day summit.
Though Obama did not spell out his concerns, his remarks appeared to be a reference to the growing atomic arsenals of India and Pakistan and the nuclear doctrines of the two countries.
Pakistan is believed to have the worlds fastest growing stockpile of nuclear weapons, and US secretary of state John Kerry recently cited the example of the US and Russia--which are working to reduce their arsenals--as he nudged Islamabad to cut the number of weapons and review its nuclear policy.
While India adopted a no first use policy soon after its nuclear blasts in 1998, Pakistan has not put in place a similar policy. The world community has also expressed concern about Pakistans new policy of developing tactical or battlefield nuclear weapons to counter any possible military thrust by Indian forces.
Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop (L) greets Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a plenary session of the 2016 Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, DC. (AFP)
Obama said one of the challenges facing the US and Russia is that it is very difficult to see huge reductions in our nuclear arsenal unless both countries, as the largest possessors of nuclear weapons, are prepared to lead the way.
Referring to the tensions arising from North Koreas recent nuclear and missile tests, he said, And we have to take a look at the Korean peninsula, because...North Korea is in a whole different category and poses the most immediate set of concerns for all of us, one that we are working internationally to focus on.
Concerns about North Korea had figured in his trilateral meeting with the leaders of Japan and Korea and were a major topic of discussion with Chinas President Xi Jinping, he added.
More needs to be done to prevent non-state actors from obtaining nuclear materials, world leaders said in a communique after the summit. The meet, attended by more than 50 world leaders, described the threat of nuclear and radiological terrorism as one of the greatest challenges to international security. The threat is constantly evolving, the communique said.
We commit to fostering a peaceful and stable international environment by reducing the threat of nuclear terrorism and strengthening nuclear security, it added.
Obama also warned that terrorist groups such as al Qaeda and Islamic State will use nuclear weapons if they get hold of them.
Fortunately, because of our efforts so far, no terrorist group has yet succeeded in obtaining a nuclear device or producing a dirty bomb using radioactive materials, Obama told the summit earlier.
There is no doubt that if these madmen ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material, they would certainly use it to kill as many innocent people as possible, he said. It would change our world.
India said Friday it was disappointed by a technical hold put on its move at the UN to designate Mohamad Masood Azhar, the Jaish-e-Mohammad chief, under a Security Council resolution.
We find it incomprehensible that while the Pakistan based JeM was listed in UN Security Council Committee established under UNSCR 1267/1989/2253 as far back as 2001 for its well known terror activities and links to the Al Qaeda, the designation of the groups main leader, financier and motivator has been put on a technical hold, India said in a statement
The statement issued by MEA spokesman Vikas Swarup did not, however, mention China, which had put that technical hold in the final moments of the process on Thursday.
But minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju has not only named China but slammed it saying, What China has done was not good. The ministry of external affairs will take an appropriate action. Whatever action is required, we will take.
If the designation had gone through, Azhar would have had his assets frozen by all UN member nations, who would also have had to deny him entry or transit through their territory.
In effect, Pakistan, where he stays, would have had to freeze his funds, and throw him out, neither of which it has been willing to do despite mounting evidence of his role in spreading terrorism.
Jaish-e-Mohammad carried out a deadly attack on an Indian Air Force base in Pathankot, Punjab in January killing seven security personnel.
Referring to the attack, India said in the statement it has shown that India continues to bear the dangerous consequences of not listing Masood Azhar .
Given the global networking of terrorist groups, this has implications for the entire international community.
China has defended its decision saying it was based on facts and procedure. And that it did not have all the facts it needed to clear the move to designate the terror chief.
But India was not buying that clearly. This does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism.
Syrian troops have found a mass grave containing the bodies of 42 people executed by Islamic State jihadists in Palmyra, as Washington warned the groups leader will eventually taste justice.
IS has in recent months claimed responsibility for deadly attacks in Brussels and Paris, but has lost ground in Syria and Iraq.
Days after Syrian troops backed by Russian forces recaptured Palmyra and its ancient ruins, the army uncovered a mass grave of officers, soldiers, members of the popular committees (pro-regime militia) and their relatives, a military source told AFP on Saturday.
Twenty-four of the victims were civilians, including three children, he said, asking not to be named.
They were executed either by beheading or by shooting.
The bodies, which were found on Friday, have been transferred to a military hospital in the provincial capital Homs and some have been identified.
In a major symbolic and strategic coup for President Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian army on Sunday recaptured Palmyra and its UNESCO World Heritage Site, which IS had overrun in May 2015.
During their nearly 10-month occupation of Palmyra, the jihadists executed at least 280 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor which confirmed the discovery of the mass grave.
Soon after IS stormed Palmyra, it shot dead 25 soldiers in the ancient Roman theatre.
It later released a video of the mass killing in which the executioners appeared to be children or teenagers.
Syrias five-year war has left at least 270,000 people dead. Few mass graves have been found, however.
Nearly a week on, few of Palmyras up to 70,000 original residents have returned.
People fear reprisal by the regime, and also the mines planted all over the city by IS, Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.
In addition, many houses were flattened by Russian air strikes before Palmyra was reclaimed, he added.
- IS chief to taste justice -
About 70 kilometres (45 miles) to the west, Syrian troops on Saturday pounded the city of IS-held Sukhna, which the army wants to take back in order to consolidate its grip over Palmyra.
If the regime takes Sukhna, it will use it as a launching pad for an operation against Deir Ezzor province, which is located in eastern Syria along the Iraqi border and is mostly controlled by IS, Abdel Rahman said.
The Syrian army has previously said the takeover of Palmyra would allow it to extend operations against IS in the east and around Raqa, the jihadists de facto capital in the north.
A five-week-old ceasefire imposed by the United States and Russia, which back opposing sides in Syrias war, has seen Damascus focus its firepower on the jihadists, as the truce does not apply to them.
At least 40 mostly foreign IS members, including 18 child soldiers, were killed in raids Thursday on a village in Deir Ezzor province, the Observatory said.
It was one of the single highest tolls that IS has suffered in a single strike since it emerged in Syria in 2013, the monitor said.
IS has lost a string of high-ranking commanders in the past few weeks, mainly to strikes by the US-led coalition which launched a campaign against the jihadists in 2014.
On Wednesday, a drone strike near Raqa, likely by the US-led coalition, killed Abu al-Haija, a Tunisian commander summoned by IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi from Iraq.
IS has since arrested 35 of its members and security officers suspected of having revealed Abu al-Haijas location, the Observatory said.
On Friday, the Pentagon warned that Baghdadi himself, who in 2014 appointed himself caliph of swathes of Iraq and Syria, would eventually be hunted down and killed.
Just like we found his mentor, (Abu Musab) al-Zarqawi and killed him. Just like we found the grand master of terrorism, Osama bin Laden, we killed him. We are going to find Baghdadi, and he will taste justice, military spokesman Colonel Steve Warren said.
The US military is also working with dozens of Syrian rebels under a revamped train-and-equip program implemented after a much-criticised initiative collapsed last year, Warren said.
Salah Abdeslam, the Paris attacks suspect who was arrested in Brussels last month, refused to blow himself up on the day of the attacks, his brother Mohamed told French news channel BFM TV.
Abdeslam, who will be extradited to France, has renewed an offer to cooperate with French authorities investigating the November 13 attacks that killed 130 people, his lawyer said this week.
There would have been more victims had I done it, Salah Abdeslam told his brother. Luckily, I couldnt go through with it.
After his arrest in Brussels on March 18, Abdeslam answered some investigators questions but then exercised his right to silence following the suicide bombings in Brussels on March 22 that killed more than 30 people.
Investigators believe the attacks in Paris and Brussels were carried out by militants from the same Islamic State network.
Abdeslam, the sole surviving suspect in the Paris attacks, was arrested in Brussels on March 18 after four months on the run as Europes most wanted man.
Read | Who is Paris attacker Salah Abdeslam?
Four days after he was arrested, the Belgian capital was struck by coordinated Islamic State bombings at the airport and a metro station carried out by suicide attackers with links to Abdeslam and the Paris attacks cell.
Abdeslams arrest was considered a rare success in Belgiums anti-terror fight although he was found within a short distance of his family home in the Molenbeek district of Brussels.
He is believed to have acted as a logistics coordinator for the Paris attacks and has told investigators he was meant to carry out a suicide bombing at the Stade de France stadium but backed out.
Read | Brussels airport to reopen, attacks suspect Abdeslam set to cooperate
US President Barack Obama went radioactive on Republican frontrunner Donald Trump on Friday, questioning his understanding of foreign policy, nuclear issues or the world generally.
Addressing reporters at the end of the Nuclear Security Summit, Obama said Trump doesnt know much about foreign policy or nuclear policy or the Korean Peninsula or the world generally.
Obama went on to say, and not for the first time, that Trump was not fit to be president: We dont want somebody in the Oval Office who doesnt recognise how important that is.
Politico news-site called it Obama going radioactive on Trump.
Obama was responding to a question about Trumps recent remarks that Japan and South Korea could acquire nuclear weapons if they wanted, faced with a threat from North Korea.
He has also said he is open to using nuclear weapons to settle a conflict in Europe. Im not going to use nuclear, but Im not taking any cards off the table, he told MSNBC.
Japan, the only country ever hit by a nuclear bomb, has vowed to never acquire one as a national policy, and its foreign ministry responded to Trumps remarks saying it never will.
Obama said many of over 50 world leaders who came for the nuclear summit had brought up Trump and his controversial remarks in private conversations with him.
This is where GOP legislators think women should go for Pap smears and birth control prescriptions!
Good Luck with that, ladies. I'm sure your dentist knows just what to do.
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6 Simple Ways to Boost Workplace Efficiency
Posted by Janet Jacobson on Saturday, 04-02-2016 5:04 pm
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Even the most talented, well-trained employee can lose efficiency with time if the work environment isnt aiding and encouraging productivity. As an employer, its your duty to always find creative ways to increase workplace efficiency and ensure maximum productivity. Here are few simple ways to boost workplace efficiency: 1. Motivate employees through Gamification Lack of motivation kills productivity faster than most other factors. An unmotivated employee would usually lack the enthusiasm to complete challenging tasks. One great way of boosting employee motivation is using gamification techniques, that is, employing gaming elements like achievement badges, levels and rankings, leader boards, points, rewards, virtual currencies, and so on, to make challenging or boring tasks more engaging. 2. Encourage regular breaks Research has shown that working without breaks leads to a steady decline in performance, while brief and rare mental breaks keep people fo...
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Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-04-02 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] The Ancient Theatre of Larissa opens its doors to the public [02] Curator of Athens-Epidauros Festival Jan Fabre resigns [01] The Ancient Theatre of Larissa opens its doors to the public One of the best preserved ancient theatres, the Ancient Theatre of Larissa dated back to the 3rd century BC, opened its doors to the public. Following Larissa Antiquities Ephorate decision, the theatre will be open for visitors every day from 10.00-13.00 with free entrance. The Ancient Theatre of Larissa is one of the best preserved and larger theatres of the ancient world that could host approximately 12.000 spectators. The visitors will have access to the area of the orchestra and the stage. However, the seats and the other areas of the theatre will not be accessible because they are under restoration. [02] Curator of Athens-Epidauros Festival Jan Fabre resigns ANA/MPA---Newly appointed Curator of the Athens and Epidauros International Festival Belgian Jan Fabre resigned on Saturday following a series of reactions caused by his decision the first year of his tenure to "consist of a tribute to Belgium". Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
U.S. President Barack Obama has made no secret of his contempt for Donald Trump.
But he reserved some of his sharpest words for the Republican contender for a press conference at a Nuclear Security Summit on Friday.
Obama shaded Trump for his knowledge of nuclear weapons, foreign policy and, basically, the world.
Obama: Trump "doesn't know much about foreign policy or nuclear policy, or the Korean peninsula or the world." pic.twitter.com/3IzMeiLlzv Mashable Politics (@mashpolitics) April 1, 2016
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Obama was responding to comments that Trump has made about nuclear weapons in a number of forums.
One of them was a 100-minute-long interview with The New York Times, in which he he said he wouldn't mind letting South Korea and Japan develop their own nuclear weapons to defend themselves against China and North Korea, instead of having Americans protect them.
Trump made similar remarks in a CNN town hall this week.
"You have so many countries already China, Pakistan, you have so many countries, Russia you have so many countries right now that have them," he said.
"Now, wouldn't you rather, in a certain sense, have Japan have nuclear weapons when North Korea has nuclear weapons?"
But such a plan has been derided by leaders of both Japan and South Korea, MSNBC reported.
Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said, "It is impossible that Japan will arm itself with nuclear weapons."
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And in addressing Trump's remarks, Obama went on to say, "We don't want someone in the Oval Office who doesn't recognize" the importance of America's "nuclear security in Asia," according to MSNBC correspondent Ari Melber.
Now: "We don't want someone in the Oval Office who doesn't recognize how important" our nuclear security in Asia is, Obama says about Trump Ari Melber (@AriMelber) April 1, 2016
This is hardly the first time that Obama has weighed in on the upcoming U.S. presidential election, though he has mostly stayed out of it.
In February, he said he continues "to believe Mr. Trump will not be president," CNN reported.
"And the reason is that I have a lot of faith in the American people. Being president is a serious job. It's not hosting a talk show, or a reality show," he added.
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Lucy DeCoutere, a central witness in the sexual assault trial of Jian Ghomeshi, has resigned from the "Trailer Park Boys" show after a castmate was charged in a domestic dispute.
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Lucy DeCoutere is seen in this 2008 photo at the premiere of 'Trailer Park Boys: The Movie' in West Hollywood, Calif. (Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Mike Smith, who plays Bubbles in the Netflix show, was arrested and charged with misdemeanor battery in Los Angeles on Friday.
A day later, "Trailer Park Boys" issued a statement in which Smith denied the allegation that he had choked a female friend in a bathroom at Hollywood's Roosevelt Hotel.
"The other members of the Trailer Park Boys and all staff stand behind Mike and look forward to the matter being resolved favourably," said the statement from the production.
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However, it appears that DeCoutere did not agree with the declaration of support. A few hours later, she publicly announced her resignation from the TV series.
I have resigned from Trailer Park Boys. lucy decoutere (@lucydecoutere) April 2, 2016
She confirmed that her decision was directly related to Smith's arrest and charge.
DeCoutere also tweeted on Saturday:
If I find out that somebody is abusive, I cut them out of my life. It's very easy. lucy decoutere (@lucydecoutere) April 2, 2016
She testified against Ghomeshi, a former CBC Radio host, and accused him of attacking her during a date in 2003. He was acquitted last month on four counts of sexual assault and one count of overcoming resistance by choking.
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The Ghomeshi case has generated an intense national debate on how Canada's justice system deals with sexual abuse complainants.
Actor Mike Smith, seen in 2008, is best known as Bubbles in the "Trailer Park Boys." (Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
On Saturday, Smith spoke out about the L.A. incident, along with the alleged victim, Georgia Ling, through statements released by the "Trailer Park Boys."
"Georgia is a friend of mine and we had a loud and heated dispute. That is all. At no time did I assault her. I am not guilty of the misdemeanour charged against me," said Smith.
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In the statement, Ling confirms that the two did have a heated dispute, but said, "At no point did I feel I was in danger, otherwise I would've called the police myself, which I did not."
DeCoutere said she had spoken to both Smith and Ling before resigning.
However, publicist Shelia Roberts told CBC News in an email that the show's producers knew a few weeks ago that DeCoutere had decided not to participate in another season.
The 10th season of "Trailer Park Boys" recently debuted on Netflix.
With files from The Canadian Press
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Kevin Winter via Getty Images WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA - JANUARY 23: Actor Mike Smith arrives at the premiere of Screen Media Film's 'Trailer Park Boys: The Movie' at the Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theater on January 23, 2008 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Canadian actor Mike Smith best known for his role in "Trailer Park Boys" has issued a statement, disputing his arrest for allegedly choking a woman in Los Angeles.
Smith, who plays Bubbles in the Netflix series shot in Nova Scotia, was charged with misdemeanor domestic battery after an incident at Hollywood's Roosevelt Hotel on Friday, reported TMZ.
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Witnesses told the celebrity news site they heard an argument in the bathroom and a woman yell "You're choking me." They claimed to have found the 43-year-old actor pinning her against the wall.
"At no time did I assault her. I am not guilty of the misdemeanour charged against me."
On Saturday, Smith released a public statement through the "Trailer Park Boys" along with the alleged victim, Georgia Ling.
"At no time did I assault her. I am not guilty of the misdemeanour charged against me," Smith said, describing Ling as "a friend."
In the statement, Ling confirms that the two did have a heated dispute, but said, "At no point did I feel I was in danger, otherwise I would've called the police myself, which I did not."
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The LAPD Sheriffs Department database shows that Smith was arrested early Friday at 1 a.m. He was released on US$20,000 bail about four hours later.
Those who overheard the argument say it seemed to be sparked by text messages Smith was sending, added the New York Daily News.
From left to right, "Trailer Park Boys" actors J.P. Tremblay, Mike Smith, and Robb Wells have created a cult following for their show. (Photo: Rick Eglinton/Toronto Star via Getty Images)
Other cast members and staff of "Trailer Park Boys" support Smith, said Saturday's statement from the show.
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However, later that day, castmate Lucy DeCoutere announced via Twitter that she has resigned from the show due to Smith's arrest and charge. She said she had spoken to both Smith and Ling.
"Trailer Park Boys," which follows residents in the fictional Sunnyvale Trailer Park set in the Maritime province, has developed a cult following. Smith's character Bubbles is known for his foul-mouthed quips and ultra-magnifying, round glasses.
The franchise has spawned several films, and a TV series which originally ran from 2001 to 2008 and was later picked up by Netflix for a reboot in 2014.
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What's Good on Netflix Canada in April 2016? See Gallery
Biafra, dominated by the great Igbo race, enjoyed sovereignty before Great Britain commenced exploitive colonial rule over Nigeria under the racist banner of Rudyard Kipling's "the White Man' burden." Britain asserted authority over Biafra based on the tyrannical doctrine that the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.
The Berlin West Africa Conference, 1884-85, and the Berlin General Act symbolized colonial lawlessness by treating Africa as a carcass to be divided up among European vultures.
Restoration of Biafra's sovereignty is justified under international law and practice--especially with the ongoing ethnic-inspired killings and persecutions of Biafans by Nigeria's elected military dictator from the North touting sharia law, President Mohammdu Buhari.
Biafra's sovereignty journey will require deft international diplomacy and the marshalling of widespread popular support from Biafrans and their resources. Power is never voluntarily surrendered. Rights ultimately are what you are willing to fight and die for.
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Prior to British colonization in 1906, the great Igbo people to the East of Niger, numbering some 3 million, and their cognate tribes enjoyed decentralized self-government. They were not living in a state of nature. Their self-rule came by force of arms--not voluntarily.
In 1900, the British government assumed responsibility for the Royal Niger Company's territories, and formed the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria, the Niger Coast Protectorate and the Lagos Colony Protectorate territories. 1913 witnessed the amalgamation of Nigeria into three administrative areas: the crown colony of Lagos and the Protectorates of Northern and Southern Nigeria.
In 1960, Britain ended its colonization of Nigeria without reference to the Igbo or any other peoples of Nigeria entitled to self-determination. The Nigeria Independence Act established Nigerian territorial boundaries not by popular referendum or other reliable manifestations of self-determination of peoples, but according to the Nigeria's Orders in Council, 1954 to 1960. They reflected British selfish maneuvers to dominate Nigeria economically.
Britain's failure to offer Biafrans the right to self-determination violated the United Nations General Assembly Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples adopted on 14 December 1960. Paragraph 5 of the Declaration required that immediate steps be taken by the colonial power "to transfer all powers to the peoples of those [colonized] territories...in accordance with their freely expressed will and desire...in order to enable them to enjoy complete independence and freedom." The 1970 Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Cooperation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations emphasized that, "By virtue of the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, all peoples have the right freely to determine without external interference their political status...."
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The people of Biafra--recognized as distinct by British colonial authorities--were never provided an opportunity to vote for complete independence and freedom from the rest of Nigeria according to their freely expressed will and desire. They were never consulted on the subject when Nigeria became independent in 1960. Further, the 1960 Constitution of Nigeria was never approved by the people of Biafra in a referendum or otherwise. And neither has any subsequent Nigerian Constitution, including the current version decreed by a military dictator in 1999.
In sum, the British decolonized Nigeria in violation of international law by failing to transfer power to the peoples of Biafra in accordance with their freely expressed will.
That violation was not a technicality, but an affront to a fundamental human right. All governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed. Consent is required to legitimate authority and to forestall external subjugation, oppression, persecution, or even genocide fueled by tribal, sectarian, ethnic, or megalomaniacal ambitions or hatreds.
After independence from Britain, Nigeria soon became a charnel house for Biafrans. Deprived of their right to self-determination, they were left to the tender mercies of the Hausa-Fulani of the North and the Yoruba of the South in a unitary state unsuited for its diverse tribal, ethnic, and religious landscape. The gruesome 1967-1970 Biafran War was emblematic. Ethnic-based massacres of Biafrans and countless starving children who died as little more than skeletons was its grim face. The horrors suffered by Biafrans gave birth to the first modern international relief effort to lessen unspeakable misery.
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At the war's conclusion, Nigeria's General Yakuba Gowon's sloganeered, "No victor, no vanquished." The words proved a cruel hoax. The Igbo were marginalized, persecuted as traitors, and subjected to a Northern political yolk. Under incumbent Nigerian elected military dictator Buhari, the repression of the Igbo have reached new heights featuring indiscriminate killings, torture, and detentions without trial.
Last March, for instance, 13 Biafrans were murdered and their corpses burnt to ashes and dumped in a burrow pit located in the area of Aba-Port Harcourt Road in Abia State by suspected Buhari agents. Last February, a team of Buhari's Army, Navy, and Police and gunned down 22 Biafrans protesting Buhari's detention of Biafan leader Prince Nnamdi Kanu.
A complete chronicle of Buhari's horrors only would numb by repetition.
The point is that there is no political remedy for Biafra's suffering--like an abused wife in a forced marriage--short of self-determination to regain its sovereignty that was illegally extinguished by the British and never surrendered after decolonization.
States born from longstanding repression of peoples by ruling authorities are part of the woof and warp of international law or custom. Think of Bangladesh, Namibia, South Sudan, Zimbabwe, East Timor, Eritrea, and Kosovo.
The case for Biafran sovereignty is as strong or stronger as these precedents.
But to succeed, Biafrans will need to organize, unify, and make their case to the United Nations Security Council, the United Nations Human Rights Council, the African Union, the European Union, and the United States.
Cannabis Plant
I'm going to start this week's column by apologizing for it, up front. This is because I know it is going to be a weak and wooly-headed column today. I already know this because I myself am getting sick -- I woke up with flu symptoms, complete with the usual weakness and fuzzy thinking. I considered just punting altogether on today's column, but am feeling slightly better now, so I'm going to make the attempt. But it's going to be a pretty poor attempt, I'll warn you of that from the get-go. It will probably not be anywhere near as long as usual, for which some of you might actually be thankful (I do tend to ramble on, every Friday). One last warning -- normally, on such an auspicious date, I have lots of fun writing a piece of satire and then at the end stick in an "April Fools!" But I'm not going to do that today, which I'll explain further in the talking points section.
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Normally, I would begin with an overview of the week in politics, but I really don't have the energy to do all the research that entails. Luckily for me, it was a fairly quiet week in the political world, with (for once!) no primaries at all after last Saturday's voting. Next week, all eyes will be on Wisconsin, where Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz seem to be up in the polls. Hopefully by Tuesday I'll be feeling well enough to cover the Badger State primaries.
So while Donald Trump said several outrageous things this week (as usual), and there was plenty of shocked reactions to them (both faux and real), we're going to ignore all of that and instead just present one interesting tidbit of news that may make some headlines tomorrow (or maybe not, considering the type of coverage the subject usually gets from the media.)
Marijuana activists are planning a provocative protest tomorrow -- a big "smoke-in" right across the street from the White House, complete with a 51-foot-long joint. Now, holding White House smoke-ins is actually a very old tradition (reaching back to the late 1960's, in fact), although they normally happen on the Fourth of July. We ran down the full history of this event back in FTP [337], in fact, if anyone's interested. We ended that commentary thusly:
It took a long time, but this week pot smokers finally reached the Promised Land in D.C. Oh, sure, it's just a beginning -- the Smoke-Ins themselves are still illegal in at least two major ways. Public consumption is still illegal, which would seem to cover standing in front of the White House smoking a joint. And Lafayette Park is one of many plots of land within the District which are federal property (where pot smoking is still illegal, by federal law). So if this year's event does happen across Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House, it'll still be a protest for further change. But mostly it'll be a celebration of victory. If you believe in an issue strongly enough to blatantly break the law in full view of the leader of the country, eventually at times you can convince enough of you fellow citizens to support your cause. So in the midst of all the other celebrations of D.C.'s new legalization law, I thought it'd be particularly appropriate to fully remember those who let their freak flag fly on our nation's birthday. Right across the street from the White House, no less. Everyone who fires up a legal joint in Washington this week should thank those brave souls who protested without much hope of ever winning the political argument.
Smoking pot across the street from the president's house was always a provocative act. But for a long, long time it was also almost an exercise in futility. Nobody really expected weed to become legal any time soon, to put this another way. So while it was a protest, the thought that it would be successful wasn't really considered realistic, especially back in the 1970s and 1980s.
But now Washington has legalized recreational use of marijuana. So the protest scheduled for tomorrow is a lot more specific and a lot more targeted. As mentioned, smoking a doobie in Lafayette Park is still illegal twice over -- because it is "public consumption" and because the park is federal property, meaning federal laws apply (not D.C. laws). The protesters are fully expecting to be arrested for their cause.
Tomorrow's smoke-in was organized by the same group which successfully got the legalization ballot measure passed in D.C. From the Washington Post article, Adam Eidinger, the chief organizer of the smoke-in, explains why he's protesting:
He said the smoke-in is the most aggressive way he could think of to draw attention to the roughly 5 million marijuana-related arrests since Obama took office. He also thinks that Obama must do more in his remaining time to remove marijuana from the country's list of most-dangerous controlled substances. Without that change, decisions by states to legalize pot could be in jeopardy if a Republican wins the White House, Eidinger said. "Obama -- he smokes, maybe not now, but he did smoke," Eidinger said. "So for him to oversee an enforcement regime that has arrested 5 million people for marijuana... I'm very motivated because I think it's a discriminatory practice." . . . Eidinger supports Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Democratic presidential contest. Sanders wants recreational use of marijuana legalized. But Eidinger wants Obama to begin the process of rescheduling marijuana before he leaves office because he thinks it would provide political cover for the probable Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, to finish the job should she win the presidency in November. "If Obama really wants to help Hillary, he'll do this -- because people like me, who are strong Bernie supporters, we would feel more comfortable supporting the Democratic candidate if this is underway," Eidinger said.
He's probably right about that. Hillary Clinton almost never utters the word "marijuana" on the campaign trail, and when she does so, the only thing she has so far said she'll support is "more research" into medical marijuana. That's pretty tepid, these days. Which means that even if she wins the election, the best chance to see marijuana moved off of Schedule I might be for Obama to begin the process.
For decades, smoking pot outside the White House was no more than a (dangerous) lark. The protesters didn't seriously expect to see the laws changed. Now the laws have changed -- or at least some of them have. Which means that now such protests are a lot more targeted and a lot more important. If the nation's federal marijuana laws -- which are absolutely antediluvian, still -- are ever going to change, it will be because activists hold some Democratic politicians' feet to the fire (so to speak).
For those interested in attending, Lafayette Park is right across Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House. The smoke-in is scheduled to begin (naturally) at 4:20.
Bernie Sanders just had the best two weeks on the campaign trail he's yet seen. He swept last Saturday's caucuses, which means he has now won six of the last seven primary contests (Alaska, Hawai'i, Idaho, Utah, Washington, and Democrats Abroad) while Hillary Clinton only managed to win in Arizona.
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That is impressive. It's even more impressive since many pundits have already written off Bernie's chances entirely -- which sometimes dooms a contender in future primaries. So far, that doesn't seem to be happening to Bernie's campaign. He is actually favored in the next contest as well, if the polls in Wisconsin turn out to be correct. That would be a streak of seven out of eight wins for Bernie.
The delegate math is still daunting, of course. Winning the Democratic nomination might be out of Bernie's grasp. Even so, Sanders continues to ignore the predictions of "Bernie's campaign is dead" that have become a regular drumbeat from the media, and he continues to go out and win state after state. As on the Republican side, the voters are having their say no matter what the inside-the-Beltway crowd thinks.
Bernie Sanders, as he is fond of pointing out, was never supposed to get this far. He was supposed to be some sort of court jester of a candidate, who might goad Hillary Clinton into a few less-timid positions on the issues, but who in the end would largely be ignored by the voters. He is, the media continually remind us, a socialist, after all.
Bernie Sanders has beaten expectations time and time again in the 2016 nominating contests. Whether he is ultimately successful or not, his campaign is already both incredibly impressive and resilient. The pundits can sneer at his message of economic populism all they want, but the voters are paying attention. No matter what happens to Bernie, he has awoken a movement in the Democratic Party which is not going to go away any time soon. People are tired of the platitudes and the "be happy with some legislative crumbs" attitudes from Democratic politicians.
Whether Bernie is the nominee or not, his revolution has already succeeded beyond anyone's prediction. For that, and for his string of recent primary victories, Senator Bernie Sanders is our Most Impressive Democrat Of The Week. A whole lot of people are feeling the Bern, it seems.
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[Congratulate Senator Bernie Sanders on his Senate contact page, to let him know you appreciate his efforts.]
After having given the MIDOTW award to Bernie Sanders, we're going to hand the Most Disappointing Democrat Of The Week to prominent Bernie supporter Susan Sarandon.
In a recent interview, Sarandon got herself in some hot water when she was asked what would happen if Bernie lost the nomination to Hillary Clinton. She responded:
I think Bernie would probably encourage people to [support Hillary if he loses] because he doesn't have any ego in this thing. But I think a lot of people are, "Sorry, I just can't bring myself to."
When pressed on what she'd do if the choice came down to voting for Clinton or Donald Trump, Sarandon said:
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I don't know. I'm going to see what happens. Some people feel that Donald Trump will bring the revolution immediately if he gets in, things will really explode.... If you think it's pragmatic to shore up the status quo right now, then you're not in touch with the status quo. The status quo is not working.
The most cringeworthy part of this, of course, is the idea that Trump would be better for the country in the end because he would be so bad it would result in Bernie's revolution becoming reality. Also, that "things will really explode," which in a normal year might have been dismissed as hyperbole, but what with the violence from Trump supporters we've already seen is a rather provocative thing to predict.
Now just to be clear -- Sarandon is right in the larger point she's attempting to make. Hillary Clinton shouldn't ever think she's entitled to the automatic support from people who have been backing Bernie, should she beat him for the nomination. She's going to have to earn every one of those votes, should this happen.
But to even suggest that Donald Trump getting elected to the White House would be better than seeing Hillary Clinton beat him is flat-out ridiculous. This line of "things are going to have to get worse before they get better" thinking is a pretty dangerous (and mighty cynical) way of looking at things. On one level, it is no more than schoolyard "I'm taking my bat and ball and going home" whining.
Sarandon is free to do whatever she wants, should her preferred candidate lose the nomination. She can stay home, she can vote for Trump, she can hold her nose and vote for Hillary -- it's entirely her choice. But to suggest that Bernie's revolution will happen quicker if Donald Trump is elected president is making a very dangerous gamble. America is still recovering from the last Republican president, and Dubya is looking like a mental giant now, compared to Trump.
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Sarandon is probably right about one thing -- Bernie probably will try to convince his supporters to back Hillary should he lose to her. But she should examine the reasons why he'd do so, because it goes beyond him just not having "any ego in this thing." Bernie's a smart guy, and if he weighs a Trump presidency against a Hillary presidency and concludes that Trump must be beaten, there are probably a lot of reasons why beyond Bernie just being a selfless guy.
For ignoring this from the man she says she supports, and for even suggesting that "things will really explode" is somehow something to look forward to in any way, Susan Sarandon is clearly our Most Disappointing Democrat Of The Week.
[Susan Sarandon is a private citizen, and it is our policy not to provide contact information for people not currently in public office.]
Volume 385 (4/1/16)
As previously mentioned, normally on April Fools' Day it's fun to write a column to freak people out before they realize it's all a prank. We're going to forego this fun, though, because we are in the midst of living through a freakin' April Fools' Year, in the presidential nominating contest. If, last April first, you saw a man pop out of thin air and announce: "I am a time traveler from one year in the future, and I bring you the news that Donald Trump seems likely to become the Republican nominee," who among us would have believed it to even be possible?
This election season, to date, has been one long string of foolish so-called bits of "conventional wisdom" in politics being proven laughably wrong -- over and over again. So rather than attempting to write up some talking points today, instead we're just going to list all of these foolish predictions, in rough chronological order. I should mention that I did absolutely no research whatsoever to come up with this list -- these are all just off the top of my head. If I had the energy, doubtless I could review the past year and find dozens more of these confident predictions which have all been obliterated by actual events.
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So, rather than trying to fool everyone this year, instead here is a list of the things which sounded like wisdom when they were first bandied about, but which now look like nothing so much as utter foolishness. Enjoy for now, and hopefully next week I'll be well enough to write a more normal Friday column.
2016 Campaign foolishness (so far)
Everyone knows the election will boil down to Jeb Bush versus Hillary Clinton, so it's likely going to be a really boring primary season.
Jeb Bush's absolute fortune in campaign cash is going to clear the field and convince most Republicans to stay out of the race entirely (before a whopping 17 candidates jumped into the race).
There is no way Donald Trump is serious about running for president -- he's just fooling around, as usual.
Scott Walker will be one of the strongest Republicans in the field, after winning three elections in a blue state (he was actually the second candidate to drop out).
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Ben Carson is qualified to be president -- the man's a brain surgeon, after all!
Nobody will ever actually vote for Donald Trump -- his poll numbers are nothing more than name recognition.
Bernie Sanders is a joke -- the man openly admits he's a socialist! This will be the kiss of death, because nobody will vote for a socialist.
Of course Joe Biden is going to get in the race on the Democratic side.
Elizabeth Warren will also jump in the race, too.
Trump's chances of winning a single state are toast, because of what he just said (note: this one should really be copied and pasted repeatedly throughout this entire list, for the sheer number of times all the Beltway pundits convinced themselves it was true).
Hell will freeze over before the Republican establishment will get behind Ted Cruz, because they all hate him so very much.
Jeb Bush will just outlast all the other candidates, because of his unlimited campaign budget.
Donald Trump will never be the GOP frontrunner.
Trump's entire history as a liberal Democrat will be exposed, and once the Republican voters hear it, they'll drop him like a hot potato.
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The candidate with the biggest bankroll always wins, because they can swamp all their opponents with campaign ads.
It will be impossible for Hillary Clinton to come out against either the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal or the Keystone XL pipeline, because she supported them while she was in office.
Trump is toast, because of his debate performance (again, this one should really appear multiple times in this list -- rinse and repeat).
Trump will never be the GOP nominee, so they are smart to force him to sign a loyalty oath, so he won't launch a third-party bid after his inevitable defeat at the polls. That'll lock him into supporting the eventual GOP nominee.
All those people who tell pollsters they're supporting Trump won't actually show up and vote for him on primary day.
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There are "lanes" in the Republican race, and it'll eventually come down to a Tea Party candidate, a social-conservative candidate, and an establishment candidate.
No modern presidential candidate can run a viable campaign without setting up a super PAC to rake in corporate donations and dark money.
Hillary Clinton is heading for a coronation, because she is so obviously inevitable as the Democratic nominee.
Hillary Clinton will win female Democratic primary voters by a landslide, no matter what age they are.
Bernie Sanders won't get any votes outside of liberal college towns.
Hispanic voters will never vote for Bernie Sanders.
Because of the blackout in the media, Bernie will never be able to get his message out.
Ted Cruz will sweep the South, because of all the evangelical voters there. Nobody else will have a chance, unless Mike Huckabee or Rick Santorum catch fire.
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[Fill in the blank with a Republican candidate's name] has finally come up with a strategy which will defeat Trump! This will surely work!
Chris Christie will never play second fiddle to anyone else.
Either Jeb Bush or Marco Rubio will easily win Florida, obviously.
Trump picking fights with Fox News is going to bury him, because Republican voters love Fox News so much.
Bernie will only win New Hampshire and his home state of Vermont -- he doesn't have a chance anywhere else.
There is absolutely no way Bernie will win Michigan.
Because Bernie lost Illinois and Ohio, his campaign is essentially over.
Trump's advocacy of violence against protesters will sink him, because America is better than that.
Maybe Paul Ryan will somehow save the Republican Party by being drafted at the convention.
Somehow, the Republicans will manage to steal the nomination away from Trump at the convention, and then go on to beat Hillary Clinton with whomever they do decide on.
Chris Weigant blogs at:
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
Full archives of FTP columns: FridayTalkingPoints.com
No man's life, liberty or property is safe
While the legislature is in session.
Attributed to Judge Gideon J. Tucker in the case of The Estate of A. B. (1866)
This week I use this space to offer a suggestion that will save the taxpayers money, increase the efficiency of government and enable those in Congress to more accurately reflect voters' wills. The only surprising thing is that no one has come up with this idea before now. Its genesis is the comment of Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, following Antonin Scalia's death. He said that since it had been 17 months since the voters last had a chance to express their opinions on how the government should function, it would be a mistake for the Senate to consider a Supreme Court nominee before the next election. After carefully considering his comment and the fact that his concerns apply to everything Congress does, henceforth Congress should only meet every other year. If Congress meets only during the 12 months immediately following an election, it can be sure it has a good sense of what the public wants and act accordingly. That will, obviously, make the democratic process more democratic.
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One question that may be asked, if my proposal is adopted, is whether Congress can get its work done if it only meets every other year. That can easily be addressed by doubling the number of days it meets in the years it is in session. In 2013 the House of Representative was in session for 126 days, in 2014 113 days and in 2015, 132 days. In 2016 it is scheduled to be in session for 111 days. The Senate, on the other hand, was in session for 164 days and in 2016 is slated to be in session for 149 days.
If the every other year practice were already in effect, in 2017 the House would work 222 days. Although the Senate could not double the number of days it is in session, it is hard to believe it cannot compress its work into one year, Of course, if this is to work, there will have to be some changes in practices in both chambers. Senator McConnell has already shown how that can be done.
He has instructed his colleagues not to waste any time meeting with Merrick Garland, the person selected by the president to fill the seat left vacant by Justice Scalia's death since too much time has elapsed between the last election and his nomination. That practice can be followed when other presidential nominations are made. In addition, the House and Senate can limit the number of hearings they conduct. Consider the Benghazi hearings.
According to the Benghazi Research Center, as of October 14, 2015, there have been 32 Congressional Hearings before assorted Senate and House committees at a total cost of more than $20 million. During those hearings 2,780 questions were asked by members of the committees. If Congress only meets every other year it could cut such hearings by half or three quarters without making the hearings less effective since they've not produced any useful information thus far. Similarly, the House could save time by not, for example, voting 63 times to repeal Obamacare. One or two votes that fail without there being any change in the make up of the chamber is probably more than enough to make the point. Another way Congress can get all its work done in one year is to quit appointing multiple committees to investigate the same things.
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In 2015, three congressional investigations were conducted into events that had not taken place but appeared to have taken place because of a fraudulent video about Planned Parenthood. The individuals who made that fake video have been criminally indicted by a Texas Grand Jury for their actions in producing that video. . After the three Congressional committees found no misconduct by Planned Parenthood, in October 2015 another panel was appointed and it conducted a public hearing on March 1, 2016, two months after creators of the video had been indicted. That sort of a hearing would probably have to be cancelled if Congress were only in session every other year.
Another suggestion is that Congress cut back on the number of hearings it conducts with administration officials. A good example of how that can be done was set in February of this year. On February 9, 2016, President Obama sent Congress his last annual budget proposal. A tradition going back 41 years provides that the House and Senate budget committees give the president's budget director an invitation to testify about the proposed budget. No sooner was the budget submitted than the respective chairmen stated they would not invite the budget director to testify before their committees. That was probably done to save time and could become the standard under my proposal.
Once adopted, the proposal will require some getting used to. However, it will certainly improve the mental health of the country when the amount of time Congress can embarrass itself and those who elected it, is cut in half.
Christopher Brauchli can be emailed at brauchli.56@post.harvard.edu. For political commentary see his web page at http://humanraceandothersports.com
Syrian woman in the camp for displaced persons in Qatma, Syria (January 2013)
ERBIL, IRAQ--Kurdistan in the north of Iraq has become a refuge for Christians and other religious minorities in the midst of the Islamic State's murderous rampage. In response the Republican-controlled House voted to designate the Islamic State's murderous campaign against Christians and Yazidis as genocide.
It's an ironic judgment from a body controlled by the political party most responsible for the rise of ISIS--absent George W. Bush's foolhardy invasion of Iraq, the deadly movement would not even exist. Nevertheless, Secretary of State John Kerry last week used the term for the first time regarding the Islamic State, declaring that it "is responsible for genocide against groups" including religious minorities.
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The abundant crimes of Daesh, as it also is known, constitute an unprecedented religious war against members of minority faiths who until recently largely lived in peace with their Muslim neighbors. While Christians and other religious minorities suffered pervasive discrimination and persecution by such U.S. allies as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, these groups were largely unmolested by the secular dictatorships of Iraq's Saddam Hussein and Syria's Bashar al-Assad. Indeed, a Christian woman was better off living in Baghdad or Damascus than in Riyadh or Islamabad.
Alas, George W. Bush's botched campaign against non-existent Iraqi weapons of mass destruction unleashed a tsunami of Islamist brutality. Newly empowered Shia turned the state against formerly ruling Sunnis, who responded with a virulent insurgency and indiscriminate terrorism. Christians, who possessed neither militia nor safe haven, suffered grievously, with hundreds of thousands driven from their homes, many fleeing to Syria.
The collapse the latter into civil war left Christians (and other religious minorities) poised uneasily between the government and insurgents, with many leaning toward the former. After all, they lived the show in Iraq and didn't enjoy the ending. Worse was to come from the Islamic State, an outgrowth of al-Qaeda in Iraq which allied with disgruntled Sunnis to defeat Baghdad's forces in Iraq and displace both government forces and more moderate insurgents in Syria.
As ISIS created its "Caliphate"--establishing its rule over a sizeable amount of territory--the group expanded its depredations against most everyone, including unreceptive Sunnis, but especially Christians, Yazidis, and other religious minorities. Hence the brutal campaign detailed in the nearly 300-page report, "Genocide against Christians in the Middle East," issued by the Knights of Columbus and In Defense of Christians, a group which focuses on the Mideast.
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This sustained Islamist attack targets the roots of Christianity. Believers were first called Christians in Antioch, Syria (Acts 11:26). Iraqi Christians, known as Assyrians, were converted to Christianity 2000 years ago, apparently by St. Thomas. Christianity predated Islam by hundreds of years and was subjugated through military conquest, not converted through spiritual persuasion. Nevertheless, the Christian community remained vibrant and contributed greatly to Muslim-dominated societies in succeeding centuries. Even in recent years Christians enjoyed surprising influence and authority. A Christian founded the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. In Hussein's Iraq a nominal Christian, Tariq Aziz, held multiple high public positions.
Today, however, the very survival of Christianity in its birthplace is in question.
The report argued simply: "ISIS is committing genocide" against Christians in Iraq, Libya, and Syria. "Killings, rapes, torture, kidnappings, bombings and the destruction of religious property and monuments are, in some instances, a matter of public record." But the document adds much more detail, reporting crimes largely hidden from public view in the West. Nor is this all. Explained the authors: "We are now being sent new stories and new evidence daily. So what is known about ISIS' genocidal atrocities will only increase, and the known scale of the horrors that have occurred can only expand with time."
The words of ISIS are clear. The organization publishes a magazine named Dabiq, the place where the movement expects to destroy the "Crusader army," meaning Christians. This is no metaphorical quest. Explained the Islamic State: "We will conquer your Rome, break your crosses, and enslave your women, by the permission of Allah, the Exalted." If today's ISIS killers fail in this regard, "then our children and grandchildren will reach it, and they will sell your sons as slaves at the slave market."
Nor is this viewed as a battle against secular armies. To the contrary, stated the Islamic State: "It will continue to wage war against the apostates until they repent from apostasy. It will continue wage war against the pagans until they accept Islam. It will continue to wage war against the Jewish state until the Jews hide behind their gharqad trees. And it will continue to wage war against the Christians until the truce decreed sometime before the Malhamah. Thereafter, the slave markets will commence in Rome by Allah's power and might."
Some policymakers mistakenly believed the assault on Christians was limited--for instance, mostly occurring in Nineveh in 2014. However, noted the study, "Christians have been attacked throughout the region, not simply in the Nineveh area or only during the summer of 2014. Christians have been attacked and killed by ISIS and its affiliates in Syria, Libya, Yemen and surrounding areas." Indeed, the violence began in Iraq shortly after the U.S. invasion by ISIS' predecessor, al-Qaeda in Iraq.
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The Islamic State claimed to represent historic Islam and convinced some observers that it had replicated the practice of levying the jizya tax on Christians, otherwise leaving them at peace. That is not true. Rather, explained the study, ISIS purported to employ theological concepts which may "mean something contrary to historic Islamic practice" or "nothing at all." In this case, jizya proved to be a ploy, "almost always a term for extortion and a prelude or postscript to ISIS violence against Christians."
In Nineveh, for instance, demands for the tax preceded "killings, kidnappings, rapes and the dispossession of the Christian population." In Raqqa the practice was employed only "after ISIS had already closed the churches, burned Bibles and kidnapped the town's priests." Scholar Alberto Fernandez called the concept "more a Salafi Caliphate publicity stunt than a careful recreation of jizya as practiced by the early Caliphs." It seems even ISIS, which positively gloried in its murderous ways, hoped to mislead its opponents as to the nature of its campaign.
Unfortunately, there is no reason to believe that the Islamic State will change its behavior as long as any Christians or other religious minorities survive under its control. Argued the report: "Thousands of Christians, Yazidis, Shia and Sunni Muslims, Turkmen, Shabaks, Sabean-Mandeans, Kaka'en Kurds, and Jews have been--and will continue to be--targeted for extermination because of their religion by a well-financed and highly-organized network of criminal gangs."
Yet to describe the Islamic State's crimes in generalities does not adequately communicate the truly horrific nature of its campaign. The NGO Shlomo recorded 1131 Christians murders between 2003 and 2014 in Iraq's Nineveh Plain, with more than 100 more since then. Patriarch Ignatius Youssef III Younan of Antioch, Syria believed more than 500 Christians in Iraq and more than 1000 in Syria were murdered. The Archbishop of Aleppo, Syria, Jean-Clement Jeanbart, said that hundreds of Christians have been killed or kidnapped in his city and perhaps thousands in Syria as a whole. Others have been slaughtered in Libya and elsewhere.
While widespread murder is the Islamic State's most odious crime, the group inflicts grievous harm on those it does not kill. Those interviewed for the report cited all manner of bodily harm: "Choking, beatings with guns and electrical cords, mock executions, and withholding of food and water in the extreme heat are commonplace." Rape also is widespread, with more than "1500 Yazidi and Christian girls" taken as sex slaves. As in ancient times, they are sold and shared like chattel. At least 380 Christians are known to have been kidnapped in Syria and more than 150 have been seized in the Nineveh Plain since 2014. Such activities create "mental traumas" akin to PTSD, "Including intrusive thoughts of their captors, overwhelming emotions of fear and grief, and nightmares." In some cases, such as women repeatedly raped by ISIS fighters, there is "acute mental distress, even total mental breakdown."
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Moreover, the Islamic State coerced religious conversion. Dozens of Christians have affirmed Islam "after being deprived of food and water, and being beaten and threatened with death." This process might seem unimportant to nonbelievers but, reported the authors, "the violation of conscience--the spiritual rape--involved in a conversion through force works a state of mental and spiritual unrest that is difficult to put into words." A coerced conversion against one's beliefs "introduces fear, uncertainty, guilt, and shame into the most important and intimate relationship one can experience."
There also is robbery of most everything Christians possessed--"homes, businesses, money, jewelry, clothes, and supplies." ISIS members often returned to steal more. Islamic State fighters seized the luggage of Christians forced into exile. Those left in their homes were denied electricity, sanitation, and water.
Finally, there is religious cleansing. For instance, "Christians were rounded up into busses and driven out to a remote place to fend for themselves. Sometimes this was next to a river they had to cross, sometimes it was in the middle of the desert." Left without food and water, many had to walk for hours to reach safety. All told, noted the report: "ISIS generally operated with extreme indifference or hostility to the survival and well-being of its Christian victims."
The report included detailed lists of crimes committed against Christians and Christians known to be murdered, as well as summaries of witness statements. These highlighted the tragedy that has overwhelmed the region's religious minorities. Those who escaped reported brutality, beatings, kidnappings, disappearances, expulsions, ransom demands, detentions, looting, churches vandalized and destroyed, homes seized, forced conversions, coerced marriages, and killing. Perhaps the saddest cases, tragically common, involved family members who chose to remain after ISIS's arrival, believing that the situation would quickly return to normal. Many since have not been heard from and their fate is unknown.
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Among the creepiest evidence of the depravity of the Islamic State is the "Subject/Prices of Selling Spoils of War" flier reproduced in the report. Almost beyond belief, this price list for sexual slaves has been confirmed as genuine by Zainab Hawa Bangura, the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Sexual Violence in Conflict. The document complained about a drop in "demand in women and spoils of war" which cut ISIS revenues. Thus, the "caliphate" set price controls, with the penalty of death for any violations. Prices started at 50,000 dinars for a Christian or Yazidi woman between 40 and 50 and rose to 200,000 for any Christian or Yazidi child from one to nine. Only foreigners, as in "Turks, Syrians, and Gulf Arabs," were allowed to purchase more than "3 spoils." Bangura explained that such "spoils" often were first offered to Islamic State leaders, next to wealthy Gulf Arabs, and then to local fighters.
Included within the report is a memorandum from ADF International detailing the extraordinary damage done Middle Eastern Christians. While Christianity is the most victimized faith worldwide, noted the group, "the persecution of Christian and other religious or ethnic minorities in Syria and Iraq differs significantly from the rest of the world due to the magnitude of the persecution and the intent behind it." The number of Christians in Iraq is estimated to have dropped from 1.4 million in 2003 to 275,000 today. In Syria the number has gone from 1.25 million in 2011 to about a half million today.
As the Knights/IDC report substantiates, there is no doubt of widespread genocidal persecution of religious minorities. The biggest challenge is what to do about it. Many who pushed for the designation of "genocide" hoped to force a response from Washington. But there is little military option. After all, foolish U.S. intervention triggered the crisis in Iraq and Libya and exacerbated the conflict in Syria. Indictments under the International Criminal Court would provide moral satisfaction, but the Islamic State must be defeated for any prosecutions to occur. Indeed, defeat itself is the most important way to stop ISIS activities, and is primarily the responsibility of the Middle Eastern nations under attack from Daesh.
Perhaps the most obvious response by Americans would be to offer more humanitarian aid and accept additional refugees. Despite security fears, the Islamic State is unlikely to attempt to use refugees, who typically wait years for resettlement, as a means to attack America. However, Muslim refugees could be taken in by the Persian Gulf States. Christians, Yazidis, and other religious minorities lack any comparable Mideast sanctuary: only Lebanon is hospitable to non-Muslims, and is overwhelmed with refugees of all faiths.
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A weighty question loomed large for world leaders who gathered in Washington this week for the fourth Nuclear Security Summit: could terrorists obtain dangerous nuclear material?
"There is no doubt that if these madmen ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material, they most certainly would use it to kill as many innocent people as possible," U.S. President Barack Obama said at the summit Friday.
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Fears of the so-called Islamic State's nuclear ambitions have grown since a suspect linked to the November terrorist attacks in Paris was found with a surveillance video of a Belgian nuclear power plant official. Harvard's Matthew Bunn said the Belgian case highlights further steps that must be taken to thwart nuclear terrorism. "Major nuclear facilities must be protected from sabotage," he said. "And radiological sources must be protected, tracked throughout their life and, where possible, replaced with less dangerous technologies." The Nuclear Threat Initiative, a private advocacy group in Washington that tracks nuclear security, warned in a new report that the ingredients for a radiological "dirty bomb" are located at thousands of sites across the globe -- including medical, research and industrial centers -- and that "many of them [are] poorly secured and vulnerable to theft." Cybersabotage is a further danger. Later this year, the U.K. and the U.S. plan to simulate a cyberattack on a nuclear power plant to test private and public preparedness.
Obama launched the first Nuclear Security Summit in 2010 with the goal of achieving a nuclear weapon-free world. Since then, nuclear security has advanced through numerous efforts -- not the least of which is the Iran deal. But while numerous countries have given up or stalled their nuclear weapons programs, Pakistan, India, China and North Korea are growing their nuclear weapons stockpiles. Nuclear smuggling is also a persistent problem. From 1993 to 2014, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported over 2,700 confirmed incidents of illicit radiological trafficking globally. Within the last six years, there were at least four thwarted attempts to sell radioactive material to extremists through Moldova. In February of last year, "a smuggler offered a huge cache of deadly cesium -- enough to contaminate several city blocks -- and specifically sought a buyer from the Islamic State group," the Associated Press reported. Joe Cirincione contends that it is more than likely that the material seized in the Moldova stings came from Russia and that the U.S. and Russia should redirect the billions spent on their nuclear arsenals toward preventing ISIS from accessing radioactive materials. He suggests that Obama use a speech at Hiroshima in his upcoming trip to Japan to force executive actions to stop the planned building of new U.S. nuclear weapons and thereby prevent a renewed arms race with Russia. Notably, Russian President Vladimir Putin boycotted the nuclear summit this week. He said Russia wasn't adequately included in the planning process; however, many believe he's seeking retribution for U.S. sanctions against Russia. The red carpet was rolled out for Chinese President Xi Jinping at the summit. He was the only leader to have an extended one-on-one meeting with Obama. The two leaders agreed to jointly implement sanctions against North Korea in a meeting Friday that was followed by Pyongyang warning that it would continue developing its nuclear weapons. It also fired a short-range missile into the sea Friday -- the latest in a recent series of missile launches from the country. Over the years, the U.S. and China have made important strides in cooperative nuclear security, notes Hui Zhang, except, perhaps most importantly, in the military sector. Military cooperation was cut off after the U.S. accused China of spying in the 1990s. There are also concerns about nuclear terrorism in Pakistan, where the Taliban attacked a nuclear air base in 2012. Pakistan's terrorists struck again last Sunday during Easter celebrations. A horrific suicide bombing in a park in Lahore killed more than 70 people, mostly women and children. An offshoot of the Taliban claimed responsibility. Writing from Islamabad, Mosharraf Zaidi explains that the Taliban's attack on a school in 2014 ramped up the government's anti-terror campaign, and the Taliban are getting desperate. Raza Rumi asserts that Pakistan's military campaign alone won't cure intolerance -- it must be coupled with deradicalization and reintegration programs. Farheen Rizvi makes the case that the Lahore bombing exposes dangerous fissures in the country's terror policy. Beena Sarwar breaks down how Pakistan's religious right uses "blasphemy" to usurp political power and threaten the country's rule of law. Malik Siraj Akbar chronicles mounting tensions between India and Pakistan after the arrest of an alleged Indian spy in Pakistan's Balochistan province.
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Writing from Athens, Cas Mudde details steps we can take to counter the rise of populism in Europe. Writing for HuffPost Arabi, Amr Hamzawy fears that if terrorist attacks continue, right-wing and racist movements could continue to gain momentum. Howard Fineman stipulates that Donald Trump's tragic flaw may be his need to demonstrate his "masculinity" by disparaging women. Jared Bernstein maintains that Trump's trade protectionism is ill-founded but that trade deficits in specific countries -- U.S., China and Germany -- do cost workers in jobs and incomes. Nathan Gardels sees a global race taking place between the newly empowered and the recently dispossessed.
Eric Olander and Cobus van Staden discuss whether in spite of China's "public relations offensive" across Africa to reassure investors, the slowing of China's economy will continue to slow a significant part of Africa's own economies. Writing from Beijing, Wu Jianmin calls for the U.S. and China to work together to speed up a bilateral investment treaty and to ensure the success of the G20 summit in September in Hangzhou. Nick Robins-Early discusses what Brazil's massive corruption scandal could mean for the country. Writing From Kiev, Maria Snegovaya postures that if the West doesn't force reforms in Ukraine, the country could break down. Former Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga claims the lack of compliance with the U.N. mandate to protect refugees is "endangering the global order." Writing from Munich, Sabrina Hoffmann tells the story of three refugees in Germany who are giving back by volunteering at an assisted living home. Frederic Hof, the former U.S. advisor on the transition in Syria, applauds that violence is down and humanitarian assistance is up in Syria but laments that "the map to the promised land -- political transition -- remains a blank sheet." Former Iranian National Security Council member Seyed Hossein Mousavian proposes several steps to take to resolve the Syrian crisis and curb the ISIS threat.
Kanan Makiya explores the origins of the instability afflicting the Mideast today. About six months after a U.S. aircraft bombed a Medecins Sans Frontieres trauma clinic, WorldPost Middle East Correspondent Sophia Jones relays that Afghans have more questions than answers, which has compounded mistrust. Jesselyn Cook outlines a new UNICEF report that finds that 320,000 children in Yemen are at risk of severe acute malnutrition.
Our "Forgotten Fact" takes a look at Boko Haram's largest school kidnapping and why it has gone largely unnoticed. Charlotte Alfred introduces us to a network of teachers in Kenya who are challenging extremist narratives in the classroom. She also profiles a Belgian Muslim playwright whose show, "Jihad," uses black comedy to shed light on why a disproportionate number of Belgian youth are becoming radicalized. This week, Fusion examines whether or not predictive policing, which uses algorithms to predict where crimes will happen, leads to racial profiling. Finally, Singularity tells us that researchers are testing a new approach to Alzheimer's prevention: a capsule packed with genetically engineered cells.
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WHO WE ARE EDITORS: Nathan Gardels, Co-Founder and Executive Advisor to the Berggruen Institute, is the Editor-in-Chief of The WorldPost. Kathleen Miles is the Executive Editor of The WorldPost. Farah Mohamed is the Managing Editor of The WorldPost. Alex Gardels and Peter Mellgard are the Associate Editors of The WorldPost. Katie Nelson is the National Editor at the Huffington Post, overseeing The WorldPost and HuffPost's editorial coverage. Eline Gordts is HuffPost's Senior World Editor. Charlotte Alfred and Nick Robins-Early are World Reporters. Rowaida Abdelaziz is Social Media Editor. CORRESPONDENTS: Sophia Jones in Istanbul EDITORIAL BOARD: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Arianna Huffington, Eric Schmidt (Google Inc.), Pierre Omidyar (First Look Media) Juan Luis Cebrian (El Pais/PRISA), Walter Isaacson (Aspen Institute/TIME-CNN), John Elkann (Corriere della Sera, La Stampa), Wadah Khanfar (Al Jazeera), Dileep Padgaonkar (Times of India) and Yoichi Funabashi (Asahi Shimbun). VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS: Dawn Nakagawa. CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Moises Naim (former editor of Foreign Policy), Nayan Chanda (Yale/Global; Far Eastern Economic Review) and Katherine Keating (One-On-One). Sergio Munoz Bata and Parag Khanna are Contributing Editors-At-Large. The Asia Society and its ChinaFile, edited by Orville Schell, is our primary partner on Asia coverage. Eric X. Li and the Chunqiu Institute/Fudan University in Shanghai and Guancha.cn also provide first person voices from China. We also draw on the content of China Digital Times. Seung-yoon Lee is The WorldPost link in South Korea. Jared Cohen of Google Ideas provides regular commentary from young thinkers, leaders and activists around the globe. Bruce Mau provides regular columns from MassiveChangeNetwork.com on the "whole mind" way of thinking. Patrick Soon-Shiong is Contributing Editor for Health and Medicine. ADVISORY COUNCIL: Members of the Berggruen Institute's 21st Century Council and Council for the Future of Europe serve as the Advisory Council -- as well as regular contributors -- to the site. These include, Jacques Attali, Shaukat Aziz, Gordon Brown, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Juan Luis Cebrian, Jack Dorsey, Mohamed El-Erian, Francis Fukuyama, Felipe Gonzalez, John Gray, Reid Hoffman, Fred Hu, Mo Ibrahim, Alexei Kudrin, Pascal Lamy, Kishore Mahbubani, Alain Minc, Dambisa Moyo, Laura Tyson, Elon Musk, Pierre Omidyar, Raghuram Rajan, Nouriel Roubini, Nicolas Sarkozy, Eric Schmidt, Gerhard Schroeder, Peter Schwartz, Amartya Sen, Jeff Skoll, Michael Spence, Joe Stiglitz, Larry Summers, Wu Jianmin, George Yeo, Fareed Zakaria, Ernesto Zedillo, Ahmed Zewail, and Zheng Bijian. From the Europe group, these include: Marek Belka, Tony Blair, Jacques Delors, Niall Ferguson, Anthony Giddens, Otmar Issing, Mario Monti, Robert Mundell, Peter Sutherland and Guy Verhofstadt.
MISSION STATEMENT
The WorldPost is a global media bridge that seeks to connect the world and connect the dots. Gathering together top editors and first person contributors from all corners of the planet, we aspire to be the one publication where the whole world meets.
V. O. Key said of voters, 'when given a choice of scoundrels they will likely pick one.' The Wisconsin Primary looms as an important event because it clearly presents the choice of scoundrels. But there are two games afoot. For the GOP contenders, it is an 'all-in poker hand' to decide how the rest of the nomination game plays out. For the beleaguered voters Wisconsin is a 'minimax-regret' game where they try to calm their own fears by voting to minimize buyer's remorse.
The Contenders' Game: For front-running Donald Trump, Wisconsin is the opportunity to win in a state where the ting of agrarian populism and southern white voter resentment are not at work. For Ted Cruz, it is an opportunity to post a win in a big primary state without Baptists - indeed, a win on the home turf of mainstream leaders RNC chair Reince Preibus and Speaker Paul Ryan. For John Kasich, it is his first real chance to try and score outside of Ohio.
A year ago, Wisconsin was not a consideration. Scott Walker, victor of the Union Wars and the Recall Insurgency, was supposed to be marching along having a Koch and a smile. Instead, Walker is out, and he has endorsed Cruz. So the die is most likely cast, in that the mainstream of Wisconsin has cast its lot with the most divisive and disruptive U.S. senator since Huey P. Long.
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The Voters' Tale of Discontent: The data tell a tale of a tale of general discontent. Looking at nationally-known political objects in Wisconsin and national candidates, unpopularity is the most common feature. To dig into the Badger State's unhappy electoral April, we make use of the most recent Marquette Poll.
First, the objects -- Pres. Obama, Gov. Walker, Speaker Ryan, and the Tea Party - are generally well-defined and not too terribly reviled. Pres. Obama has the highest approval (52 percent, +7.7 points over/under), and the second-smallest 'no opinion' in Wisconsin (3.9 percent). His numbers basically mirror those of Gov. Walker (44 percent approval, minus-8.4 points over/under). The highest net approval (+17) belong to Speaker Ryan, who also has a very high 'no opinion.'
The Tea Party movement, once riding high, is held in extreme disregard by Wisconsinites, with a net minus-45 point over/under on the approval rating. Among Democrats, the Tea Party is reviled; among Republicans, it is merely divisive and disliked.
Kasich and Sanders are the only presidential contenders with net positive approval ratings. Sanders overall positive is very strong among Democrats. Kasich is still taking shape as a political concept - two in five Wisconsinites including many Republicans are still deciding about the Ohio Governor. Ted Cruz is approaching majority disapproval. Donald Trump has pulled off a remarkable feat, becoming the only candidate or object in Wisconsin politics less popular than the Tea Party (see Figure 1).
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The great peculiarity of the GOP primary is how the voter preferences defy the need to win. Wisconsin is, put simply, a state that Republicans must win to have the presidency. The most recent poll puts over 70 percent of all primary votes behind not one but two candidate who most Wisconsinites are not comfortable with as president (see Figure 2).
Why You Should Listen to Wisconsin: It is important to listen to Wisconsin. A clash of political ideologies in the Badger State was driven by conservative advantage. After six years it has left a conservative shambles. The more divisive, forceful, and ideologically polarizing forces of conservative politics are also the least popular within both parties. On the left, the DLC's model of progress seems to have run its course with voters too. There's a great gap between preferences and expectations both within the parties and between the party standard bearers and the electorate.
By Mary Bottari and Jessica Mason
Jeffrey Shannon, a 49-year-old father of two, was struck and killed on March 30, 2015 when a 1,200 foot pylon fell on him while he was working for AECOM Technical Services in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. The fatal incident prompted an OSHA investigation, which cited the company for a "Serious" violation of safety training regulations and a second "Serious" violation of safety procedures during pile driving operations. OSHA issued $14,000 in penalties, though the company is contesting the case.
AECOM and its subsidiaries provide professional technical and management support services for public and private clients around the world. But the American taxpayers are by far their largest client. In 2015, $4.23 billion, or 24 percent of AECOM's total revenue, came from the federal government, principally from contracts with the Departments of Defense, Energy, and Homeland Security. Their federal projects include providing engineering services for the renovation of the National Archives in Washington, D.C., which houses the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution; overseeing chemical weapons disposal; and managing nuclear operations at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Protecting its employees should be a top priority for a company involved with such sensitive sites. Yet an AECOM executive sits on the board of the Professional Services Council (PSC), one of the trade associations that has been pushing hardest to undermine President Obama's Executive Order on Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces. The Executive Order would require prospective contractors to disclose violations of federal labor statutes before being able to win a contract.
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Professional Services Council Leads the Charge Against Contractor Accountability
Lobbyists from PSC have told Congress: "There is no evidence of a widespread problem of pervasive, repeated or willful violations of labor laws by federal contractors," and called the order "a de facto blacklisting of well-intentioned, ethical businesses."
But many of the corporations whose executives sit on PSC's board have a terrible track record on compliance with federal health and safety laws. For instance, between 2013-2015 AECOM and its subsidiary companies and related entities, including AECOM Technical Services Inc., URS Corporation, URS Federal Technical Services, URS Energy & Construction, and the Cleveland Wrecking Company, received 21 "Serious" and 16 "Other-than-Serious" OSHA citations, as well as $115,115 in penalties, some of which remain under contest or are pending abatement or penalty payment. Many of these citations were issued after President Obama issued the executive order in July, 2014, which ought to have served notice to federal contractors to clean up their acts.
Jeffrey Shannon Was Not Alone
Luis Roberto Minjarez was 51 years old in 2012 when he was killed while working for AECOM's subsidiary, Cleveland Wrecking Company at Pacific Gas & Electric Co.'s abandoned Kern Power Plant in Bakersfield, California. Minjarez was torch-cutting beams 50 feet in the air when a beam suddenly collapsed, and knocked over his aerial basket. A subsequent OSHA investigation found that the day before the June 19, 2012 incident, Cleveland Wrecking Company, had
...partially removed a section of the tank girder... [which] contributed to the instability of the tank. The tank wall section that was cut just prior to the accident was approximately 40 feet high and did not have any lateral support.
OSHA cited the company for 1 "Serious" and 4 "Other-than-Serious" violations and $12,250 in penalties.
While the 2012 incident would not be reportable under the Executive Order, the fact that Cleveland Wrecking Company continued to rack up OSHA violations in the following years, would be. After OSHA received a complaint, the Cleveland Wrecking Company facilities in Antioch, California were inspected on April 24, 2013, resulting in 1 "Serious" violation for failing to provide traffic control to protect workers on public streets and highways, as well as 2 "Other" violations and $5,875 in penalties. The following year, Cleveland Wrecking Company in San Diego, California was cited on January 28, 2014 for 2 "Other" violations and fined $340.
18 Violations in a Single Inspection for Work at Marine Corps Logistics Base
And Cleveland Wrecking Company wasn't the only AECOM subsidiary to rack up multiple violations.
Just one planned inspection at AECOM subsidiary URS Federal Technical Services, Inc. in Barstow, California on January 13, 2015 netted a whopping 18 "Serious" and 1 "Other-than-Serious" violations of multiple OSHA standards, along with $62,500 in penalties. Standards with "Serious" violations included the requirements for clearly visible "Exit" signs, regular maintenance of fire extinguishers, dangerous flooring, and failure to properly guard dangerous industrial equipment from the workplace. The company is contesting these violations. These violations occurred at the U.S. Marine Corps Logistics Base in Barstow where a related AECOM entity, URS Corporation, was recently awarded a multimillion-dollar contract for maintenance on military vehicles.
Exposure to Cadmium Hazard
In March 2013, in response to a complaint, OSHA inspected an AECOM worksite in Chambersburg, PA and found multiple violations of comprehensive standards meant to protect workers from cadmium. Cadmium exposure is associated with an increased risk of lung cancer, according to the National Institutes of Health.
OSHA initially issued 6 "Serious" violations and $30,000 in penalties. These were disputed and reduced to 5 "Other" violations and the significant sum of $20,000 in penalties. The standards violated included failure to control exposures below the allowable limit; failure to prevent handling of contaminated uniforms; and failure to properly train workers about these dangers.
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PSC Spin Won't Protect Workers
From worker deaths at construction sites, to failure to protect workers from cancer-causing chemical exposure, AECOM's shaky record undermines PSC's claim that the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces EO isn't needed.
Federal agencies doling out billions in contracts for construction projects, nuclear facilities management, weapons disposal, and other high-risk tasks, need to be informed about the records of the corporations vying for those dollars. No lobbyist spin should get in the way of keeping American workers safe.
It's time for a modern day Lysistrata. The Republican war on women may rage on endlessly unless and until women unleash the power of denial. Lysistrata is a great Greek comedy in which women seek to end war by withholding intimacy from their soldier men. A sex strike, if you will... or perhaps better said, "if you won't."
The most public -- and absurd -- salvo in the modern day war was Donald Trump's declaration that women should be punished for having an abortion, when and if the procedure is outlawed in America. Trump later tried to walk that absurdity back, but recordings don't lie. Undaunted, as only a genuine psychopath can be, he then accused MSNBC of editing the recorded program.
Outrage flew at Trump from all directions, except from the women in his life, who apparently sold their souls long ago. Even Ted Cruz thought Trump went too far. When a man who appears to support the death penalty for physicians performing abortions thinks you've gone too far, you've really outdone yourself. Trump is in a class(less) by himself.
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But this political circus is of little consequence when compared to the persistent Christian legal assault on women's rights. The recent Supreme Court case, Zubik v. Burwell, seeks to extend the notion of religious "freedom" to the borders of holy anarchy. The case is essentially an effort to expand the notion of religious "burden" as declared in the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). The plaintiffs claim that by opting out of providing contraceptive coverage, as required by the Affordable Care Act, religious organizations are complicit in committing a sin. This seems rather like claiming that you lose your virginity by merely having to say "no."
"Restoration" clearly implies that something has been lost. Precisely what was "lost" has never been declared. A more accurate name for the legislation might be the Religious Imposition on Everybody Else Act. The pious plaintiffs in the case seek to redefine a religious burden as anything a religious person might claim as a burden, unless of course they don't like your particular religion (or lack of religion), in which case you are out of luck.
A similar legal extension of piety is found in the Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt case. Here, the State of Texas pretended to make women's lives better by making abortion far more difficult to access. The arguments in the Supreme Court could have been on Saturday Night Live. The lawyers for the State of Texas had to pretend that the Texas law really -- really, really, cross my heart and hope to die -- wasn't about pro-life forces who are trying the same dishonest trick in many states across America.
For decades -- no, centuries -- er, millennia, men have sought to control women and their bodies. The vast majority of right-to-life leaders are men. All of the male, conservative Supreme Court justices cavalierly moralize about women's bodies and reproductive choices. Why not? These matters have no impact on them -- or other men. Women bear children, take the lioness's share of birth control responsibility, do the lioness's share of childcare, and deal with all the ramifications of unwanted pregnancy. But men, particularly pious men, oppose both the ability to prevent a pregnancy and the right to deal with it thereafter. And let us not forget that far too often single mothers not only have to bear and care for their babies, they have to do it on wages that are only 79 percent of the pay received by the men who abandoned them.
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Three in 10 women have abortions at some point in their lives. If I were an investigative reporter, I'd be scouring the landscape to see how many abortions have occurred among the women in the lives of the hypocritical men in the right to life movement. I would bet the ranch that the serial misogynist Trump has left more than one woman to deal with an unwanted pregnancy. I would place a similar wager about the women in the lives of Cruz, Kasich and all the other sanctimonious candidates who fell off the clown bus this year.
This entire "war" is designed to impose a Christian morality on all citizens. Non-religious employees of quasi-religious organizations have no rights, according to the religious soldiers. If religious conservatives had their way, a Christian morality about abortion would be imposed on all women. Justice Sonia Sotomayor offered the gem of the year in the Zubik v. Burwell case. "Catholic women don't use birth control anyway (wink, wink), so they would never opt-in to the services provided by a third party once the organization opts out. So what is this case about anyway?" She knows that the case is not about religious freedom at all. It's part of an insidious rightwing, religious crusade.
Despite the fact that the vast majority of women, including Catholic women (86 percent of Catholic women, according to several surveys), use birth control, the zealous male protectors of female morality preach abstinence as the only moral way to limit reproduction. How 'bout we take them at their word?
To all the women whose moralizing husbands would deny reproductive rights to others, try this: "Not tonight, honey. I've got a headache, and you're causing it." Maybe after a few months they'll see things a little differently. After all, abstinence makes the heart grow fonder.
There has never been a more critical time to support the widespread establishment of collegiate recovery programs (CRPs). The most recently available data from the U.S. Department of Education reports that approximately 21 million students were expected to attend the nearly 4,400 nationwide colleges and universities in fall of 2015. The full report states that "Increases in the traditional college-age population and rising enrollment rates have contributed to the increase in college enrollment. Between 2000 and 2012, the 18- to 24-year-old population rose from approximately 27.3 million to approximately 31.4 million. The percentage of 18- to 24-year-olds enrolled in college also was higher in 2012 (41.0 percent) than in 2000 (35.5 percent)." These statistics are significant because college campuses are widely regarded as the scenes of excessive partying, drinking, and substance use. In a report titled "Collegiate recovery communities: What they are and how they support recovery" the following data were found for an average university of 30,000 students:
31.6%, or 9,480 students met the criteria for excessive substance use
6%, or 1,800 students met the criteria for substance dependency
1.5%, or 451 students met the criteria for actively seeking help from substance dependency
In 2016, assuming enrollment has remained constant at approximately 21 million, our country will see the following:
Approximately 6.64 million total college students meet criteria for excessive substance use
Approximately 1.26 million total college students meet criteria for substance dependency
Approximately 315,000 total college students are actively seeking help from substance dependency
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Additionally, this data does not address the fact that 25% of college students have a diagnosed mental health disorder, or approximately 5 million individuals, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). Collegiate recovery programs can help students in recovery by providing recovery support services on campus. CRPs are filling the gap in the continuum of care by enabling students who are in recovery to pursue their academic and personal goals simultaneously. CRPs help students overcome barriers to recovery and provide students with an array of recovery and academic support services. A 2014 study from Dr. Alexandre Laudet and others demonstrated that students active in CRPs have higher rates of retention, graduation, and grade point average than the average student.. The vitality of supporting the intersection of education and recovery has never been clearer than it is today. For the students struggling with a substance use or mental health challenge looking to improve their health and wellness and reach their full potential, there is undoubtedly no better solution than the nationwide establishment of sustainable collegiate recovery programs.
The first recovery support program for students in recovery on a college campus started at Brown University in 1977. Since then, the three most notable CRPs have become Rutgers University, Augsburg College, and Texas Tech University, which all were established in the 1980s or 1990s. Institutions of higher education have improved greatly on their efforts to implement prevention, intervention, and treatment programs, but most are lacking in specific programming to support those students who are in recovery. College is often the time for young adults to experiment with drugs and alcohol for the first time. Media, Greek-life, and other factors only contribute to this ever-growing culture of substance use. When individuals are progressing through high school, they are frequently told that college is "the time of their lives." They think achieving this false perception is done through drinking, smoking, sex, partying, and other risky activities that take away from overall health and wellness.
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The main barriers to establishing collegiate recovery services at institutions across the nation are stigma and funding. Stigma discourages individuals from speaking up, seeking treatment, and even "coming out" about being in recovery after having gone through detox and/or treatment. Though stigma can be eradicated through advocacy, awareness, and education, the issue of funding still persists. In order to run a fully functional collegiate recovery program, a budget for staff, space, housing, and programs is needed. Many CRPs have the goal of endowment in mind, but donations and grants are extremely hard to come by for an area that is so new and lacking an abundance of evidence-based practices. From the countless reports and increasing number of programs, there are many benefits to having students in recovery on a college campus and their impact reaches far beyond the CRP. The campus at large is also positively affected by having a visible and vocal CRP present. CRP students that are open about their recovery and are involved in behavioral health efforts on campus can use their experience to provide more effective messaging to the other students. Typically, students in recovery have a tremendous sense of gratitude, grace, and redemption, which makes them assets in the classroom. They take class seriously, they are of service to their peers, and they take advantage of every opportunity to better themselves.
INDRANIL MUKHERJEE via Getty Images Indian activists carry placards of the chief of Jaish-e-Mohammad, Maulana Masood Azhar during a protest against the attack on the air force base in Pathankot, in Mumbai on January 4, 2016. Indian troops backed by helicopters searched an air force base January 4, after a weekend of fierce fighting with suspected Islamic insurgents in which seven soldiers and at least four attackers were killed. AFP PHOTO/ Indranil MUKHERJEE / AFP / INDRANIL MUKHERJEE (Photo credit should read INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP/Getty Images)
India has reacted sharply to China scuttling its attempt to get JeM chief Masood Azhar designated as terrorist by the UN, but China stood its ground.
Expressing its strong "disappointment" over the development, India said it finds it "incomprehensible" that while the Pakistan-based JeM was listed in UN Security Council Committee for its well known terror activities and links to the Al Qaeda, the designation of the group's "main leader, financier and motivator" has been put on a "technical hold".
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In a strongly-worded statement, India slammed China's virtual veto of its attempt to blacklist Pathankot terror strike mastermind Azhar, saying "this does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism".
Last July, China had similarly halted India's move in the UN to take action against Pakistan for its release of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said the UN sanctions committee was taking a "selective approach" in tackling terrorism, adding that "Its working methods, based on the principles of unanimity and anonymity, is leading the Committee to adopt a selective approach to combating terrorism."
However, China defended its action, maintaining JeM chief does not qualify to be nailed as a "terrorist" to face UN sanctions as his case "did not meet" the Security Council's requirements.
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After the attack on the IAF base at Pathankot on January 2, India in February wrote to the UN calling for immediate action to list Azhar under the Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee.
"Any listing would have to meet the requirements" for blacklisting, Chinese Permanent Representative to the UN Liu Jieyi told reporters yesterday in response to questions over China's decision to place a 'technical hold' on designating Azhar in the UN Sanctions Committee.
After the attack on the IAF base at Pathankot on January 2, India in February wrote to the UN calling for immediate action to list Azhar under the Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee.
The India submission was considered by the Counter- Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED) for technical aspects of the evidence provided. The technical team then with the support of the US, UK and France had sent it to all the members. However, hours before the deadline, China requested the Committee to hold up the banning of the JeM chief.
In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei defended China's decision, saying that it acts on such issues based on facts and rules in an "objective and just manner".
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This is not the first time China has blocked India's bid to get Pakistan-based militant groups and leaders proscribed by the UN.
The UN had banned the JeM in 2001 but India's efforts for a ban on Azhar after the 2008 Mumbai terror attack also did not fructify as China, that has veto powers, did not allow the ban apparently at the behest of Pakistan again.
Last July, China had similarly halted India's move in the UN to take action against Pakistan for its release of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, saying that its stand was "based on facts and in the spirit of objectiveness and fairness" with Beijing again claiming at the time that it was in touch with New Delhi.
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Pacific Press via Getty Images KOLKATA, WEST BENGAL, INDIA - 2016/03/31: At least 22 people have been killed and several injured after an under construction flyover collapsed in near Ganesh Talkies ( Girish Park), North Kolkata. Several people are still trapped under the debris. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee cancelled her political rally for upcoming state legislative election and superintendence the rescue operation. (Photo by Saikat Paul/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
As the brassy 'Breaking News' logo swept across the television screens in the newsroom yesterday, my first impulse was to reach for the phone and call my brother. He works in a mall, several kilometres away from Posta in north Kolkata where the flyover had collapsed. Ideally, he should have been safe. But what if he was at a client meeting somewhere near? What if he was meeting friends for a cha break between meetings? What if he was just in one of the cabs passing under the flyover? After all, it's a route taken by thousands of people everyday to travel.
He was fine, he said, slamming the phone down hastily. He had to make calls to make sure friends who worked nearby are safe.
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My next call was to one of my closest friends, a journalist, often out on the streets for stories. A guy who loves taking long walks, especially in the crumbly, warm, north Kolkata bylanes. He was fine too.
After a couple of calls and WhatsApp messages made to make sure the most important people in my life, most of them in my hometown Kolkata, were safe, a strange anxiety still left my stomach in knots. As television cameras swooped down on huge chunks of concrete and rods twisted out of shape, crushed cars jutting out from under them, people reaching out from under the debris to beg for water, it crossed my mind, could there be anyone I know trapped, fighting for their lives? There was a fair possibility there was. Having spent a better half of my life in Kolkata, I know innumerable people in the city. And every situation I imagined my brother and my friend to be in, as I mentioned in the beginning of this article, applies to each one of these people I know or half-know.
It crossed my mind, could there be anyone I know trapped, fighting for their lives?
Girls from my schools whose pictures with their fat-cheeked babies I dutifully like on Facebook. Boys from my college who have gone back to teach in the city, and whose angry status messages I gawk at and crib about in equal parts. Parents of school classmates just getting a hang of Facebook and its tagging business. Colleagues from the first job who I haven't spoken to in ages, but whose articles occasionally surface on my timeline. Sources who have helped me get great interviews. Public relations professionals who I have chased and chased away alternatively. People, human beings, I may not actively engage with, but people I'd still like to know are safe, alive.
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A general view of the under-construction flyover that collapsed in Kolkata.
While some people I knew started sharing articles, helpline numbers, information on Facebook soon after, thereby indicating they are fine, some others resorted to Facebook's safety button. And no sooner than they did that, telling people who may care that they are fine, another group of Facebook users surfaced cracking loud jokes about the futility of the process. "Really, can we mark ourselves dead?", "Dude, ABC was watching a movie in south Kolkata. Why has he marked himself safe? He wasn't even there!" The point of the the 'safety button' is precisely that, to indicate you weren't in the vicinity of the site of the tragedy. But that was lost in loud cackles, studied cynicism and the general social media compulsion to say something 'different', to be 'cooler' than the rest.
All that is probably fine the very premise of social media is to focus on the what you want the world to know you as but it's misguided in times like this.
Let's get this straight: the road on which the flyover collapsed is an arterial road. It connects the entire northern half of Kolkata to its busy suburb Howrah, which also boasts of arguably the most important junction stations in the state. If you have spent most of your life in the city like me, could someone you have known been a victim of the disaster? Face it, yes. It's fine if you think you don't need to tell the world that you are safe, but what sense does it make to pick on those who do? Sitting in Delhi, as Facebook status messages and safety button notifications kept popping up on my notifications, the deep anxiety that clawed at the back of my throat ebbed a little. Little, because nothing can quite smother either the feeling of how fragile our lives are in the stone-and-concrete, self-assured looking cities. Or the taste that the knowledge of death and devastation leave in the back of our throats. But it's a selfish, but hugely reassuring feeling when you find out people who you know have been caused no harm. It's strange, but it's human.
As Facebook status messages kept popping up, the deep anxiety that clawed at the back of my throat ebbed a little.
Why does our blood run cold when terrorists gun down children in a school in a Pakistan province many of us can't even point out in the map? Why do our stomachs churn when a flight crashes in a continent we have never been to? Why do we feel just that wee bit glum when we spot a Facebook acquaintance RIP-ing a teacher, a friend, a relative we have never known? That's because of this curious gift called empathy. And our knowledge of how mortality works.
Like my friend and photographer Shan Bhattacharya pointed out on Facebook, people marking themselves safe in Kolkata right now aren't quite endorsing an offensive political agenda. At its worst, it's just a harmless, if slightly lazy, attempt to let people who may care you're fine. At it's best, it's a way to tell people who care there are many who do that you're safe and alive. It doesn't really deserve the bile that has come its way.
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ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS via Getty Images Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at a bilateral meeting during the 2016 Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, DC, April 1, 2016. / AFP / Andrew Caballero-Reynolds (Photo credit should read ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi today met his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau and discussed bilateral ties, their first meeting after the latter swept to power last year.
Modi and Trudeau met here on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit.
Growing the #IndiaCanada story. Engagements on Day 2 begin with a bilateral with PM @JustinTrudeaupic.twitter.com/Dwza73SkXy Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) April 1, 2016
Canadian connect...today's meetings commence with an interaction with Canada's PM @JustinTrudeau. Both PMs discuss India-Canada relations. PMO India (@PMOIndia) April 1, 2016
Last year, Prime Minister Modi had visited Canada when he held extensive talks with the then Canadian Premier Stephen Harper.
Canada had agreed to supply 3,000 metric tonnes of uranium to energy-hungry India under a USD 254 million five-year deal to power Indian reactors.
The agreement for uranium supply, which came two years after protracted negotiations following the 2013 civil nuclear deal between India and Canada, was signed after comprehensive talks Modi had with Harper in April last year.
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44-year-old Trudeau carries one of the most famous names in Canadian political history. His late father was prime minister for the better part of 16 years, between 1968 and 1984.
Trudeau assumed office in November last year and surprised one and all by including four Sikh-Canadians in his Cabinet.
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Mail Today via Getty Images MUMBAI, INDIA i JULY 23: Pratyusha Banerjee, who plays the new grown-up Anandi in the serial Ballika Vadhu, during a press conference in Mumbai on July 23, 2010. (Photo by Yogen Shah/India Today Group/Getty Images)
The circumstances surrounding the alleged suicide of Pratyusha Banerjee, best-known for playing Anandi in the television show Balika Vadhu, have gotten murkier. On Friday, the 24-year-old actress was found hanging from a ceiling fan in suburban Mumbai and was declared dead after being rushed to Kokilaben Hospital by her boyfriend Rahul Raj Singh, a producer.
As per recent reports, Pratyushas parents have arrived in Mumbai from Jamshedpur while the police have detained Rahul, who reportedly absconded for a while before showing up to see her body on Saturday afternoon, and are questioning him.
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People close to the couple describe Pratyushas relationship with Rahul as "deeply troubled". A friend of the duo, whom HuffPost India spoke to at length near the premises of Kokilaben Hospital, said that the duo had major fights over money.
She would do certain events out of goodwill, but Rahul had a problem with this. He would interfere and ask for money on her behalf, leading to several arguments between them, the common associate said, on condition of anonymity.
The associate further revealed that Pratyusha had a meltdown on December 29 when she found out that Singh was already married. She had an appointment with a dermatologist where she learnt that the person she was planning a life with, was already married. They had a confrontation over this but Rahul assured her that hes divorced his first wife. The incident led to some serious trust issues between them.
HuffPost reached out to Rahuls friends to confirm this and actor Arif Ali, a friend of the producer for over 5 years, corroborated Singhs marriage. Speaking over the phone, he said, He got married in Ranchi but the couple kept it low-key. We never spoke about his personal life and I dont know when the couple separated but soon I was seeing him attend parties with Pratyusha, Ali said.
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A report on SpotboyE says that hours before her alleged suicide, Rahul slapped Pratyusha as the couple had a very public fight at Goregaons Carnival Cinema. The report also quotes a friend saying that Rahul would get violent, and there were times when the actress would sleepover at her friends house.
However, actress Sahila Chadha, who is a part of the Dispute Settlement Committee of Cine and Television Artistes Association, told HuffPost, Ive known Rahul for years and I can vouch for the fact that he can never raise a hand on a woman. We recently celebrated Holi with the couple and Rahul was beaming. He told us to keep ourselves free as he was getting married in the next few months. You think a guy who wanted to kill his girlfriend would say that? a furious Sahila said, adding, These Ajaz Khan and Dolly Bindra-types should be sued for defamtion and for passing insensitive remarks and tarnishing Rahuls image, she said referring to the comments about probable homicide made by Khan to the media.
Pratyushas body is currently in Goregaons Siddharth Hospital where an autopsy report is expected by evening. So far, the police havent made any official revelations but the autopsy will conclusively determine the possibility of foul play, if any.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE - In this March 3, 2014 file photo, blood and shattered glass cover the pavement after gunmen opened fire on the driver of a passenger bus, Roger Enrique Hernandez Gutierrez, and his assistant, killing them both in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Taxi and passenger bus drivers are targets of gangs seeking extortion money in this country with one of the highest murder rates in the world. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills, File)
The murder case of Right to Information (RTI) activist Vinayak Baliga in Mangalore has taken a new turn with the police launching a search for Naresh Shenoy, a key suspect who is one of the founders of an organisation which allegedly had close association with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
According to The Indian Express, Shenoy has worked with RSS leader Sullibele Chakravarthy, the mentor of the Yuva Brigade that Shenoy created in place of the NaMo Brigade after the general elections in May 2014.
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51-year-old Baliga was an electrical contractor who had successfully sought out more than 90 RTIs, helping the government in tracing electricity theft in the Mangalore. On 21 March, he was attacked with sharp weapons by two men on a motorcycle when he was out on his routine morning walk. According to PTI, more than 17 stab injuries were found on his body.
JUST IN: 51-year-old RTI activist Vinayak Baliga hacked to death in Mangaluru by unidentified assailants pic.twitter.com/zzb3rgILBb TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) March 24, 2016
A CCTV camera in a nearby office did capture the image of two men entering the lane on a two-wheeler, but the visuals were not clear, the police said.
The police raided Yuva Brigade leader Shenoy's house on 31 March but he wasn't there. Thereafter, the police declared him absconding, said Daijiworld. Reportedly, he has been missing since the day of Baliga's murder.
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Reportedly, the police are unable to find the motive behind the murder of Baliga, who was also a BJP worker.
However, according to IE, his brutal end may have got something to do with the local Venkataramana Temple. Baliga had reportedly discovered misappropriation of temple funds to the tune of Rs nine crore and had filed a case against the temple authorities.
After he found discrepancies in the accounts through various routes, including RTI and his own investigations, he approached the temple trustees and asked them for a clarification, but they refused. He then approached the court, Ganesh Baliga, 41, a businessman who was a co-petitioner with the victim in the case said.
The documents he obtained clearly showed that at least 8-9 crore of temple funds received from donors could not be accounted for, Ganesh said.
Now, the federation of Indian Rationalist Associations has decided to take up the fight against Baliga's murder, fearing that the case may go "the Kalburgi way", reported Bangalore Mirror.
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MM Kalburgi, a 77-year-old vocal and outspoken rationalist fell to the bullets of two unidentified men in Dharwad in August 2015 that sent shock waves across the country.
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Kansas football heads toward a bye week it needs
A number of Kansas football players were either out Saturday due to injury or at least limited. The bye week should help them.
Technical expert Scott Houle of Steel Fab in Fitchburg shows SkillsUSA champion Spenser Tanner the equipment he's being provided for his Canadian competition. State President of SkillsUSA Corey Teves speaks at Thursday's event. He and other members of the State Executive Council State Secretary Stacey Muanya, left, Samantha Dorwin will be represent the state and nation. SkillsUSA National Region I Vice President and McCann's own Samantha Dorwin will serve as the official spokesperson of the United States. Houle, who will attend the competition with Tanner, expects McCann student will 'experience something he will never forget.' Tanner, a metal fabrication senior, was selected to compete at the SkillsCanada invitational because of his performance in state and regional competition. PreviousNext
McCann Student to Compete in Canada
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. McCann Technical School students Spenser Tanner and Samantha Dorwin will travel to Quebec this May for "Competences Quebec."
Massachusetts SkillsUSA leadership announced at McCann on Thursday morning that Tanner, a metal fabrication senior, was selected by SkillsUSA Massachusetts to compete at the SkillsCanada invitational competition.
Tanner had only a few words during the press conference but enough to reassure he was ready for the challenge.
"I just want to weld," Tanner said.
Massachusetts SkillsUSA Executive Director Karen Ward said seven New England states were invited to compete. Each state chooses a competition: Massachusetts chose welding, and the competitor.
"We have a great welding program in Massachusetts and we chose Spenser to represent us," Ward said. "In this two-day competition he will be welding eight to 10 hours a day ... which is nothing new to him."
She said Tanner was chosen because of his great success in both district and state competitions.
As part of SkillsUSA's partnership with business and industry, Tanner will be accompanied by technical expert Scott Houle, a welding engineer and plant manager at Steel Fab in Fitchburg.
Houle said he has been involved in both international and national competitions in the past and has trained and employed champions.
He said he is looking forward to see what Tanner can do
"He has achieved in the competitions he has competed in, and he has that ability to handle the welding, blueprint reading and the pressure," Houle said. "He will absorb each of those moments and rise to the occasion so I look forward to spending time with Spenser and witness it firsthand. He will experience something he will never forget."
Houle gave Tanner a few gifts donated by welding supply companies and he will head north with a new automatic lens helmet, a new tool box, gloves, and other welding gear. He was also provided with all of the necessary SkillsUSA garb.
Ward said Tanner will not necessarily be competing against the Canadians but will receive the same medals they do if he hits the same scoring level.
Superintendent James Brosnan congratulated Tanner and said the spirit of vocational education and SkillsUSA is bringing mentors and experts together and sharing knowledge to create skilled workers.
"You are a passionate welder, you were taught by a passionate welder, and you were supported by a passionate welder and what SkillsUSA has always done is put all of those things together advisers, students, leaders, and business and industry partnerships."
Members of the State Executive Council State President of SkillsUSA Corey Teves and State Secretary Stacey Muanya will travel with Tanner and represent Massachusetts.
Also, SkillsUSA National Region I Vice President and McCann's own Samantha Dorwin will travel to Canada and serve as the official spokesperson of the United States.
Dorwin said it is a privilege to speak during the reception at the Consulate of the United States on tours and at the Opening Ceremonies of the Conference.
"I am extremely grateful for such a wonderful opportunity as I will be able to travel as an advocate for an organization that has given me so much," Dorwin said. "It is an incredible honor to represent my school, and national SkillsUSA at such a prestigious high profile event and I am looking forward to an experience of a lifetime."
Kantara Row: FIR Against Actor Chetan for Saying Bhoota Kola Shown in Rishabh Shetty Film Not Part of Hindu Culture
California State Fair announces 2016 award winners for agriculture, technology
Sacramento, California - The California State Fair has announced the recipients of its prestigious awards, including Agriculturalist of the Year. The State Fair annually recognizes the accomplishments and service of key individuals or organizations through a series of awards that are publicly recognized and honored at the Friends of the California State Fair Gala, which will be held this year on Thursday, June 23.
The 2016 AGRICULTURALIST OF THE YEAR AWARD will be presented to Sarbjit Sarb Johl. Johl first came to Sutter County from India in 1966, at the age of 13. He began farming with his father in 1976, after graduating from Yuba City High School and Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. He served as Chairman of the Sacramento Growers Cooperative, a cling peach co-op, from 1986 to 1993 and has also served as a board member of the California Canning Peach Association. He was founding partner of the Sacramento Valley Walnut Growers LLC., a walnut processing and marketing enterprise, and has served as Chairman of that organization since 2006. In addition to serving on the Northern California Growers Association, for 12 years, he has been a Trustee of the Butte-Yuba-Sutter Water Quality Coalition, and is currently the Chairman of the Cling Peach Board.
The 2016 GOLDEN BEAR AWARD is presented to Gail Kautz. A member of the California State Fair and Exposition Board of Directors from 1987 to 1995, Kautz is actively involved in her familys farming operation, John Kautz Farms, in Lodi, California. She was the first woman Chair of the California State Fair Board in 1993, and received the Ag Progress Award in 1996 for her outstanding contribution to Agriculture. The Ironstone Concours Foundation, which Kautz started, donates $5,000 annually to the California State Fair Scholarship fund. She has consistently devoted her time to several organizations through the years, including the California State Fair Agricultural Advisory Committee, for which she served as Chair in 2006-07. Her active involvement in the agriculture industry has earned her many awards, including Lifetime Honorary Member of the California 4-H, Lifetime Honorary State Degree from the Future Farmers of America, and the California Farm Bureau Bountiful Award. She is also a member of the San Joaquin County Agricultural Hall of Fame.
The 2016 AGRICULTURAL PROGRESS AWARD is proudly presented to Judy Culbertson, Executive Director of the California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom. A native of Courtland, California, where she grew up on a 5th generation pear orchard, Judy gained firsthand experience in the industry managing her familys packing plant. She also worked for the California Farm Bureau, assisting with the development of agricultural education projects and activities prior to joining the California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom. Her current vision for the foundation is to ensure that every student develops an appreciation and curiosity to learn about where their food and fiber comes from. Culbertson is a current member and past chair of the California State Fair Agricultural Advisory Council.
The 2016 WINE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD is granted to G.M. Pooch Pucilowski. A nationally-known wine educator and consultant, Pooch has devoted more than 30 years to the pursuit of educating consumers and trade members alike in all aspects of the wine industry. He has served as Chief Judge and Consultant to the California State Fairs annual Commercial Wine Competition and has judged several of the most prestigious wine competitions throughout the country. He is widely regarded as a wine industry expert and has given lectures and seminars on the subject throughout North America. He is also President/Owner of the University of Wine, in which capacity he has trained restauranteurs, wholesalers/distributors, retailers, and winery personnel.
The 2016 VINEYARD OF THE YEAR AWARD is deservedly bestowed toVineyard 1869/Original Grandpere. Located in Amador County, Vineyard 1869/Original Grandpere is the oldest Zinfandel vineyard in America, as documented in a deed from a U.S. Geological Survey dated in 1869. Initially planted from hardy stock, its ancient vines survived catastrophe inflicted by both man and nature over the course of the ensuing 140+ years. Purchased in 1984 by Scott and Terri Harvey, the vines have been lovingly coaxed back into producing small yields of elegant, complex, first-growth Zinfandel by Scott, a highly regarded California winemaker who was trained in Germany.
The 2016 TECHNOLOGY CHAMPION OF THE YEAR, INDIVIDUAL, is awarded to Eric Brown, President and CEO of California Telehealth Network, an organization that increases access to acute, primary and preventive care in rural America. Erics 15 years of experience in the cable television industry have included valuable contributions in the field of network affiliate relations and the management of multiple broadband system marketing and operations. He has previously served as Chairman of the California Cable and Telecommunications Association (CCTA) and is a recipient of the prestigious National Cable and Telecommunications Association Vanguard Award for excellence in cable operations. He has also received the cable industrys CTAM Chairmans Award for excellence in cable marketing.
The 2016 TECHNOLOGY CHAMPION OF THE YEAR, ORGANIZATION, is awarded to Emergency Call and Tracking System (ECaTS). ECaTS is the first universal 911 Call Reporting System that leverages the ubiquitous nature of the Internet to provide secure, real-time reporting to the 911 industry. In developing a product that gathers data on more than 350,000 calls per day to produce insights that not only identify the data, but establish how that data was produced, the company has brought private sector business intelligence analytics to the public safety industry, epitomizing the virtues of what it takes to confront the challenges of Big Data within the 911 industry.
These awards will be presented at the annual Friends of the California State Fair Gala on Thursday, June 23, 2016. Funds raised from the Gala support Friends of the California State Fair student scholarships. Prior to the dinner and awards ceremony, the Best of California Tasting will feature award-winning wine, beer, cheese and olive oil from the State Fair competitions. To support the celebration please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
About the California State Fair
For more than 160 years, the California State Fair has showcased the best of the Golden State. Cal Expo was dedicated as a place to celebrate Californias achievements, industries, agriculture, diversity of its people, traditions and trends that shape the Golden States future. The 2016 California State Fair will take place July 8-24.
Status of the 2005 Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material
Washington, DC - The United States welcomes the recent ratifications of the 2005 Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (CPPNM/A), which, once those countries to deposit their instrument of ratification with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), will bring this important treaty into force.
This treaty fills a gap in the existing international regime by modernizing the international legal framework for nuclear security, which is essential to our efforts to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction or sabotaging nuclear facilties. The 2005 Amendment strengthens the original Convention by imposing requirements for the physical protection of nuclear material for peaceful purposes in storage, use and domestic transport and security at related facilities. Once the CPPNM/A enters into force, it becomes legally binding and will allow for the IAEA to convene regular review conferences on the implementation of the treaty.
The amendment will enter into force thirty days after two-thirds of the 153 states party to the CPPNM deposit their instruments of ratification with the IAEA. As of April 1, 2016, 102 states party have deposited their instrument of ratification; two additional states party must deposit instruments of ratification for the amendment to enter into force. The United States deposited its instrument of ratification for the amendment with the IAEA on July 31, 2015. The United States has emphasized the importance of depositing the instruments of ratification and is offering assistance as needed to achieve the universalization of the Amended Convention, noting that 78 countries have ratified since April 2009.
Securing the World from Nuclear Terrorism
Washington, DC - In this week's address, the President spoke from the Nuclear Security Summit on one of the greatest threats to global security terrorists getting their hands on a weapon of mass destruction, such as a nuclear weapon. He discussed the global effort we have been leading to secure the worlds nuclear materials and highlighted the fact that working with other nations, we have removed or secured enough nuclear material for more than 150 nuclear weapons, material that will now never fall into the hands of terrorists.
The President also reiterated his commitment to making sure the world remains united and focused on destroying ISIL. He emphasized that defeating ISIL remains our top priority, and during the summit, he focused on ways to step up our efforts to disrupt terrorist attacks. Because of the progress of this weeks summit, and over recent years, more of the worlds nuclear material is secure, and the President will continue to do everything in his power to keep our nation safe and strong and free.
Remarks of President Barack Obama as Delivered
Weekly Address
The White House
April 2, 2016
Hi, everybody. This week, Im speaking to you from our Nuclear Security Summit. I welcomed more than 50 leaders from around the world to make sure were working together to meet one of the greatest threats to global securityterrorists getting their hands on a weapon of mass destruction, like a nuclear weapon.
Fortunately, because of our efforts so far, no terrorist group has yet succeeded in obtaining a nuclear device or producing a dirty bomb using radioactive materials. But we know that al Qaeda has tried. ISIL has already used chemical weapons in Syria and Iraq. And if they ever got hold of a nuclear weapon or nuclear material, we have no doubt theyd use it.
Thats why weve been leading a global effort to secure the worlds nuclear materials. And with summits like this, weve made important progress. Working with other nations, we have removed or secured enough nuclear material for more than 150 nuclear weaponsmaterial that will now never fall into the hands of terrorists.
All of South America is now free of these deadly materials. Central Europe and Southeast Asia are on track to be free of them later this year. That means that as terrorists and criminal gangs look around for the deadly ingredients for a nuclear device, vast regions of the world are now off limits. This is a remarkable achievement. And at this summit, we pledged to keep up our efforts to prevent the worlds most deadly networks from obtaining the worlds most deadly weapons.
Our summit was also another opportunity to make sure the world remains united and focused on destroying ISIL. A majority of the nations who came here are part of our global coalition against ISIL. A number of our countries have been targeted by ISIL. Just about all our nations have seen citizens travel to join ISIL in Syria and Iraq.
In Syria and Iraq, ISIL continues to lose ground. Our coalition continues to take out its leaders, including those planning terrorist attacks against our countries. Theyre losing their oil infrastructure and revenues. Their morale is suffering.
As ISIL is squeezed in Syria and Iraq, its lashing out elsewhere, as weve seen most recently and tragicallyfrom Turkey to Brussels. During our summit, we focused on ways to step up our efforts to disrupt terrorist attacks. It requires even more cooperation to prevent the flow of foreign terrorist fighters and sharing even more information and intelligence. Thats why I invited all the nations represented at this summit to join us in a broader discussion among our intelligence and security services on how we can improve information sharing to prevent terrorist attacks.
This continues to be a difficult fight. But every day, our dedicated professionalsmilitary, diplomatic, intelligence, counterterrorism, homeland security, law enforcement, nuclear expertsare working to protect us. Because of the progress we made this week, and over recent years, more of the worlds nuclear material is secure. Its harder for terrorists to get it. And as Commander in Chief, I want you to know that were going to keep doing everything in our power to keep our nation safe and strong and free.
Special Coordinator Merten Travel to Paris and Brussels
Washington, DC - Haiti Special Coordinator Kenneth Merten travels to Paris and Brussels, April 15, to further multilateral coordination between the U.S. Government, the Government of France, and the European Union in their efforts toward strengthening democracy, security, and improving economic opportunity in Haiti.
International partners of Haiti continue to coordinate with Haitian counterparts throughout the electoral process to support credible elections to be held as soon as possible, as called for in the February 5 political accord that lead to a new democratically elected government in Haiti.
President Obamas Meeting with President Xi Jinping of China
Washington, DC - The President met Thursday with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The two leaders committed to continue narrowing differences and expanding practical cooperation on regional and global challenges. Both leaders agreed to sign the Paris climate agreement on April 22, to join the agreement as soon as possible this year, and to work together and with other parties to bring the Paris Agreement into force as early as possible.
The leaders also agreed to galvanize global action to phase down HFCs under the Montreal Protocol and to work to secure an accord on a global market-based measure for addressing greenhouse gas emissions from international aviation.
The President commended our strengthening bilateral cooperation on nuclear security issues, including the establishment of Chinas nuclear security Center of Excellence and its commitment to reactor conversions. Both leaders committed to advance cooperation on development and public health initiatives, and to strengthen coordination in addressing the shared threat presented by North Koreas pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile systems. Both leaders affirmed their commitment to achieving the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2270.
The President reiterated Americas unwavering support for upholding human rights and fundamental freedoms in China. On cyber issues, both leaders reaffirmed the cyber commitments announced during President Xi's September 2015 State Visit and agreed to ensure their full implementation. The President reiterated that we will continue to monitor whether Chinese actions demonstrate their adherence to the commitments. The President further emphasized the importance of establishing a level playing field for all firms to compete fairly in China. The President urged China to address differences with its neighbors on maritime issues peacefully and in accordance with international law and emphasized the United States global interest in upholding freedom of navigation and overflight.
'What Rain?' Sun is Shining at the MCG and India-Pakistan Fans Finally Breathe a Sigh of Relief
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Waylan Smithers Jr, Mr Burnss loyal, long-time assistant on The Simpsons, will to reveal to viewers this weekend what most of them have known in their hearts for years: that he is gay.
In an episode to be broadcast tomorrow, Smithers at last accepts his love for his elderly boss will never be requited, and is helped in his search for romance by an unlikely ally, Homer Simpson. The storyline was inspired by its writers relationship with his gay son.
I am a Midwestern guy, so I dont tend to wear my emotions on my sleeve, Simpsons writer Rob LaZebnik told the New York Post. But I thought, What better way to tell my son I love him than to write a cartoon about it?
Smitherss sexuality has long been an open secret on The Simpsons, now in its 27th series. The character voiced by Harry Shearer was once depicted roller-blading through Springfields gay district wearing a tank top and rainbow-striped hotpants.
Best moments from The Simpsons Show all 10 1 /10 Best moments from The Simpsons Best moments from The Simpsons 1.Spider Pig Homer's 'Spiderpig' in The Simpsons is arguably one of the best moments of the past 25 years of the show. The Simpsons Best moments from The Simpsons 2. Planet of the Apes: The Musical "He can talk! He can talk he can talk he can talk he can talk he can talk! I can siiiiiiiiiing!" YouTube Best moments from The Simpsons Mr Burns starves Springfield of electricity Featuring some of the best dance moves ever seen on the show. YouTube Best moments from The Simpsons 4. When Homer met God "God I gotta ask you something - what's the meaning of life?" YouTube Best moments from The Simpsons 5. The entirety of the Streetcar Named Marge episode Whatever would Tennessee Williams make of this. YouTube Best moments from The Simpsons 6. Homer reacts to Lisa's perpetual motion machine "In this house we obey the laws of thermodynamics!" YouTube Best moments from The Simpsons Ned Flanders plays the devil in Donut Hell "Homer...did you eat that donut?" YouTube Best moments from The Simpsons Homer reacts hilariously to Man Getting Hit By Football "Football... his groin...it works on so many levels!" YouTube Best moments from The Simpsons Kodos at the Democratic National Convention "Forward not backward! Always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom..." YouTube Best moments from The Simpsons "Happy birthday Lisa" It's Michael Jackson, singing Lisa Simpson 'Happy Birthday'. YouTube
We didnt really want to have that big moment of Im out, you know? Mr LaZebnik said. Instead, just have it be a big embrace like everyone knows it.
When his son Johnny came out as a teenager, he and his wife Claire were similarly accepting. Johnny LaZebnik told the Post: I was the gayest little kid, and my parents knew that. I told them I was interested in a boy. My parents were, like, Yeah, we know.
Mr LaZebnik originally pitched the idea for the episode, The Burns Cage, three series ago. His son is now a psychology and film student at Wesleyan University in Connecticut.
The revelation that my father loves me is not much of a revelation, thankfully, Johnny LaZebnik said. Hes unbelievably accepting. Were as close as a straight dad and a gay son could be.
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Kezia Dugdale has thanked well-wishers for their messages of support after announcing she is in a same-sex relationship.
The Scottish Labour leader rarely discusses her private life but told the Fabian Review she is in a relationship with a woman, who she did not name.
Ms Dugdale, 34, is the fourth openly lesbian, gay or bisexual Scottish party leader, reportedly making Scotland the only country in the world where the majority of its mainstream party leaders are out as LGB. Conservative leader Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Green party Patrick Harvie and Ukip Scotland leader David Coburn have all come out as LGB.
Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Show all 29 1 /29 Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Caitlyn Jenner "Why do people think it's OK to ask deeply personal questions when you're transgender?" Reuters / Vanity Fair Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Kanye West "Look, I can be married to the most beautiful woman in the world, and I am. I can have the most beautiful little daughter in the world, and I have that. But I'm nothing if I can't be me. If I can't be true to myself, they don't mean anything," the rapper said about Jenner. Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Stephen Fry "Homosexuals are not interested in making other people homosexuals. Homophobes are interested in making other people homophobic." Rex Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Hillary Clinton "Gay rights are human rights." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Anderson Cooper - Journalist and TV host The fact is, I'm gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldnt be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud. Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Laverne Cox - Actress '"We are not what other people say we are. We are who we know ourselves to be, and we are what we love." Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights PM David Cameron "I am proud that we have made same-sex marriage happen. I am delighted that the love two people have for each other and the commitment they want to make can now be recognised as equal." AFP/Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Kellie Maloney "We don't have a choice. People think we wake up one morning, put a dress on and be a woman. I knew about it when I was very young but I was brought up in a male world and had responsibilities, I was frightened and I wanted to beat it. I didn't want to lose my friends. In the end I was so depressed and so desperate, I tried to commit suicide about three times." Getty Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Ellen DeGeneres - comedian and TV host "To me beauty is about being comfortable in your own skin. It's about knowing and accepting who you are." Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights President Barack Obama "Just to prohibit somebody who cares about another person, it just seems to me that's not what America's about. Usually, our constitutions expand liberties, they don't contract them." AFP/Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Zac Efron - Actor "To me, being gay was just another way that you can be." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Lance Bass - former NSYNC member "The thing is, I'm not ashamed - that's the one thing I want to say. I don't think it's wrong, I;m not devastated going through this. I'm more liberated and happy." Larry Busacca/Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Ed Miliband - former Labour leader "Whether you're gay or straight, you should be able to signify your commitment, your love, with the term marriage." Reuters Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Kate Bornstein - Author "Gender is not sane. It's not sane to call a rainbow black and white." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Adam Levine - Maroon 5's singer "Maybe we should make straight marriage illegal. It doesn't seem to have a very high success rate." GETTY IMAGES Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Tom Daley - Olympic diver "I felt so alone and trapped in who I was... for people to be so supportive about it has been amazing." Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Kurt Cobain - Former musician "I'm not gay, although I wish I were just to piss off the homophobes." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Jay-Z - Rapper "You choose to love whoever you love. It's no different than discriminating against blacks." PA Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Brittney Griner - Basketball player "I am a strong, black, lesbian woman. Every single time I say it, I feel so much better." Rex Features Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Daniel Radcliffe - Actor "You don't have to be gay to be a supporter, you just have to be human." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Nick Jonas - musician "My thoughts on gay marriage are that everyone has the right to love and be loved, and that's the position I take." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Elle Page - Actress "I am tired of hiding and I am tired of lying by omission... I suffered for years because I was scared to be out... I'm gay." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Michael Sam - NFL player "I want to own my truth... No one else should tell my story but me." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Pink - singer "I think the best day will be when we no longer talk about being gay or straight... It's not a gay wedding, it's just a wedding. It's not a gay marriage, it's just a marriage." Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Jason Collins - former NFL player "When I acknowledged my sexuality, I felt whole for the first time." GETTY IMAGES Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Ricky Martin - singer "Acceptance has to come from within and this kind of truth gives me the power to conquer emotions I didn't even know existed." Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Frank Ocean - Musician "I believe that marriage isn't between a man and a woman; but between love and love." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Neil Patrick Harris - Actor "I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest." Getty Images Inspirational quotes about LGBT rights Elton John "So I am deeply saddened and shocked over the current legislation that is now in place against the LGBT community here in Russia. In my opinion, it is inhumane and it is isolating." Getty Images
I have a female partner, said Ms Dugdale. I dont talk about it very much because I dont feel I need to. And theres something too about how meteoric my career has been. I am generally calm, almost serene. I dont get easily stressed or battered. But I need a bit of stability to do that, and that means my private life is my private life. Thats the thing I just have to have that nobody gets to touch, and that gives me the strength to be calm elsewhere.
Her decision to disclose her relationship "without fanfare or fuss - as it should be" was praised by politicians and the public.
Dugdale was also frank about how climbing the political ladder has inevitably impacted on her social life, admitting that impromptu mid-week drinks with friends have now been replaced by nights in her flat watching box sets.
What's the most ridiculous thing you've been asked about LGBT relationships?
Of these sacrifices, she said: Theyre hardly huge. I cant do what other people my age do such as go to a nice bar midweek and drink a bottle of wine with friends.
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President Barack Obama grinned and flashed the peace sign as world leaders gathered for a "team photo" during a two-day nuclear summit in Washington, DC.
The summit met to discuss terrorist threats involving nuclear weapons and the recent Iran nuclear deal.
President Obama praised the recent nuclear deal with Iran as a "substantial success" but also spoke of the threat of nuclear weapons falling into the hands of terrorists such as Isis.
World leaders gather for a 'team photo' during a nuclear summit in Washington, DC, on 1 April, 2016 (Reuters)
President Barack Obama waves as world leaders gather for a 'team photo' during a nuclear summit in Washington, DC, on 1 April, 2016 (Reuters)
Addressing the summit, he said that while no terror group had succeeded in getting hold of enough nuclear materials to make a dirty bomb, al-Qaeda had wanted to and Isis has already used chemical weapons.
He warned that there was no doubt if "madmen" in Isis obtained nuclear material, they would use it to kill as many people as possible.
"We have measurably reduced the risk," he said. But added: "The threat of nuclear terrorism persists and continues to evolve."
In pictures: The rise of Isis Show all 74 1 /74 In pictures: The rise of Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters of the Islamic State wave the group's flag from a damaged display of a government fighter jet following the battle for the Tabqa air base, in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from Islamic State group sit on their tank during a parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from the Islamic State group pray at the Tabqa air base after capturing it from the Syrian government in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from extremist Islamic State group parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping A video uploaded to social networks shows men in underwear being marched barefoot along a desert road before being allegedly executed by Isis Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Haruna Yukawa after his capture by Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Khalinda Sharaf Ajour, a Yazidi, says two of her daughters were captured by Isis militants Washington Post In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Spokesperson for Isis Vice News via Youtube In pictures: The rise of Isis A pro-Isis leaflet A pro-Isis leaflet handed out on Oxford Street In London Ghaffar Hussain In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Isis Jihadists burn their passports In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A man collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A woman collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid Local civilians queue for aid administered by Isis. Since it declared a caliphate the group has increasingly been delivering services such as healthcare, and distributing aid and free fuel In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces detain men suspected of being militants of the Isis group in Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Mourners carry the coffin of a Shi'ite volunteer from the brigades of peace, who joined the Iraqi army and was killed during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Samarra, during his funeral in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Shiite Turkmen family fleeing the violence in the Iraqi city of Tal Afar, west of Mosul, arrives at a refugee camp on the outskirts of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi A photograph made from a video by the jihadist affiliated group Furqan Media via their twitter account allegedly showing Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivering a sermon during Friday prayers at a mosque in Mosul. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared an Islamist caliphate in the territory under the group's control in Iraq and Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Smoke and debris go up in the air as Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul. Images posted online show that Islamic extremists have destroyed at least 10 ancient shrines and Shiite mosques in territory - the city of Mosul and the town of Tal Afar - they have seized in northern Iraq in recent weeks In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq A bulldozer destroys Sunni's Ahmed al-Rifai shrine and tomb in Mahlabiya district outside of Tal Afar In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces celebrate after clashes with followers of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi, in front of his home in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi at his home after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A vehicle burns in front of a home of a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman holds her exhausted son as over 1000 Iraqis who have fled fighting in and around the city of Mosul and Tal Afar wait at a Kurdish checkpoint in the hopes of entering a temporary displacement camp in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees Displaced Iraqi women hold pots as they queue to receive food during the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, at an encampment for displaced Iraqis who fled from Mosul and other towns, in the Khazer area outside Irbil, north Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A militant Islamist fighter waving a flag, cheers as he takes part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa. The fighters held the parade to celebrate their declaration of an Islamic "caliphate" after the group captured territory in neighbouring Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters wave flags as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters travel in a vehicle as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade with a missile in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from an al-Qaida splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from the splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters hold a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A member loyal to the Isis waves an Isis flag in Raqqa In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi anti-government gunmen from Sunni tribes in the western Anbar province march during a protest in Ramadi, west of Baghdad. The United Nations warned that Iraq is at a "crossroads" and appealed for restraint, as a bloody four-day wave of violence killed 195 people. The violence is the deadliest so far linked to demonstrations that broke out in Sunni areas of the Shiite-majority country more than four months ago, raising fears of a return to all-out sectarian conflict In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces hold up a flag of the Isis group they captured during an operation to regain control of Dallah Abbas north of Baqouba, the capital of Iraq's Diyala province, 35 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Isis fighters parade in the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Volunteers, who have joined the Iraqi army to fight against the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Isis group, demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony after completing their field training in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Kurdish Peshmerga troops fire a cannon during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Jalawla, Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference Iraqi Prime Minister's security spokesman, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference about the latest military development in Iraq, in the capital Baghdad. Iraqi forces pressed a campaign to retake militant-held Tikrit, clashing with jihadist-led Sunni militants nearby and pounding positions inside the city with air strikes in their biggest counter-offensive so far In pictures: The rise of Isis A police station building destroyed by Isis fighters An exterior view of a police station building destroyed by gunmen in Mosul city, northern Iraq. Iraq's new parliament is expected to convene to start the process of setting up a new government, despite deepening political rifts and an ongoing Islamist-led insurgency. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani issued a decree inviting the new House of Representatives to meet and form a new government In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Smoke billows from an area controlled by the Isis between the Iraqi towns of Naojul and Tuz Khurmatu, both located north of the capital Baghdad, as Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces take part in an operation to repel the Sunni militants In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An elderly Iraqi woman is helped into a temporary displacement camp for Iraqis caught-up in the fighting in and around the city of Mosul in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Christian woman fleeing the violence in the village of Qaraqush, about 30 kms east of the northern province of Nineveh, cries upon her arrival at a community center in the Kurdish city of Arbil in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman, who fled with her family from the northern city of Mosul, prays with a copy of the Quran AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq The body of an Isis militant killed during clashes with Iraqi security forces on the outskirts of the city of Samarra Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi civilians inspect the damage at a market after an air strike by the Iraqi army in central Mosul EPA In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Members of the Al-Abbas brigades, who volunteered to protect the Shiite Muslim holy sites in Karbala against Sunni militants fighting the Baghdad government, parade in the streets of the city AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Shia tribesmen gather in Baghdad to take up arms against Sunni insurgents marching on the capital. Thousands have volunteered to bolster defences AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A van carrying volunteers joining Iraqi security forces against Jihadist militants. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced the Iraqi government would arm and equip civilians who volunteered to fight AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters of the Isis group parade in a commandeered Iraqi security forces armored vehicle down a main road at the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An Islamist fighter, identified as Abu Muthanna al-Yemeni from Britain (R), speaks in this still image taken undated video shot at an unknown location and uploaded to a social media website. Five Islamist fighters identified as Australian and British nationals have called on Muslims to join the wars in Syria and Iraq, in the new video released by the Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Al-Qaida inspired militants stand with captured Iraqi Army Humvee at a checkpoint belonging to Iraqi Army outside Beiji refinery some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of Baghdad. The fighting at Beiji comes as Iraq has asked the U.S. for airstrikes targeting the militants from the Isis group. While U.S. President Barack Obama has not fully ruled out the possibility of launching airstrikes, such action is not imminent in part because intelligence agencies have been unable to identify clear targets on the ground, officials said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants attacked Iraq's main oil refinein Baiji as they pressed an offensive that has seen them capture swathes of territory, a manager and a refinery employee said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants from the Isis group parading with their weapons in the northern city of Baiji in the in Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A smoke rises after an attack by Isis militants on the country's largest oil refinery in Beiji, some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad. Iraqi security forces battled insurgents targeting the country's main oil refinery and said they regained partial control of a city near the Syrian border, trying to blunt an offensive by Sunni militants who diplomats fear may have also seized some 100 foreign workers In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group stand next to captured vehicles left behind by Iraqi security forces at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province. For militant groups, the fight over public perception can be even more important than actual combat, turning military losses into propaganda victories and battlefield successes into powerful tools to build support for the cause In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An injured fighter (C) from the Isis group after a battle with Iraqi soldiers at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis aiming at advancing Iraqi troops at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group taking position at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group inspecting vehicles of the Iraqi army after they were seized at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq One Iraqi captive, a corporal, is reluctant to say the slogan, and has to be shouted at repeatedly before he obeys Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group force captured Iraqi security forces members to the transport In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group transporting dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members to an unknown location in the Salaheddin province ahead of executing them In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A major offensive spearheaded by Isis but also involving supporters of executed dictator Saddam Hussein has overrun all of one province and chunks of three others In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group executing dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants taking position at a Iraqi border post on the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and the Syrian town of Al-Hasakah In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis rebels show their flag after seizing an army post AFP/Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants waving an Islamist flag after the seizure of an Iraqi army checkpoint in Salahuddin Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Demonstrators chant slogans as they carry al-Qaida flags in front of the provincial government headquarters in Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. In the week since it captured Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul, a Muslim extremist group has tried to win over residents and has stopped short of widely enforcing its strict brand of Islamic law, residents say. Churches remain unharmed and street cleaners are back at work
During the summit, the president also spoke to the leaders of South Korea and Japan about deterring nuclear provocations from North Korea. He also sat down with Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss their mutual concern about the North, a traditioanl ally of China.
Undeterred, North Korea fired a short-range missile into the sea hours later.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose nuclear weapons stockpile is rivaled only by the stockpile in the US, declined to attend this year's summit.
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A man who treated his wife as a slave and subjected her to "physical and mental torture" has been jailed for two years.
Safraz Ahmed, 34, is the first Briton convicted of forcing their wife in to domestic servitude.
Ahmed initially denied the offence but changed his plea to guilty.
He and his wife, Sumara Iram, married in 2006 in an arranged marriage in her home city of Gurjat, in the Pakistani state of Punjab.
When she came to the UK in 2012, she was forced to carry out endless chores for her husband, who subjected her to vicious beatings.
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Woolwich crown court heard he would throw tins of cat food at her, send demeaning text messages and told her she should jump in front of a moving car or in a river.
To keep her isolated, she was locked inside the house and her mobile was confiscated. Ahmed further humiliated her by making her wash in the garden.
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The deplorable conditions continued for two years, only coming to light when neighbours became suspicious.
After a brutal attack in February 2014, in which Ahmed broke her nose, Ms Iram ran into the street, fearing for her life. Neighbours spotted the injured woman and witnessed her being dragged back into the house.
Despite the police being called, her lack of English meant she was unable to lodge a formal complaint. Her husband was released from custody. Six months after the attack, she took an overdose of painkillers in an attempt to take her own life.
Ms Iram suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and claims the experience "ruined her life".
Ahmed will now serve two years for enforced domestic servitude and eight months for causing actual bodily harm by breaking his wife's nose. Both sentences will run concurrently.
Damaris Lakin, a lawyer for the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "This is a ground-breaking case which demonstrates how far we have come in tackling modern-day slavery. We believe this is the first conviction in England and Wales of a husband for holding his wife in servitude.
"After moving to the UK in 2012 to live with her husband it did not take long before the victim's dream of a loving family life was shattered as she realised that she had been brought to the UK only to be a servant.
"She was treated with complete contempt by the defendant who responded to her requests for affection with physical assaults and verbal abuse. She was isolated from the world, allowed only very restricted contact with her family and was not allowed to leave the house unaccompanied.
"The CPS is committed to working with the police and other partner agencies to bring the perpetrators of modern day slavery to justice and support victims to help them through the prosecution process and beyond in the hope that they can rebuild their lives."
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A Conservative MP has said that pro-refugee, anti-fascist protesters are unwelcome in his town.
Charlie Elphicke, the Tory MP for Dover since 2010, wrote on Twitter: Militant hard left occupying port road at Dover. Unwelcome, damaging to our nation's economy and the town. Go away.
Twelve people were arrested at the protest in Dover on Saturday, which featured both far-right and anti-fascist groups, according to Kent Police. The force had increased its presence in order to prevent a repeat of the violent clashes witnessed in January, using mounted police, police dogs and barriers.
Kent Anti-Racism Network were reportedly chanting pro-refugees songs, including "Theresa May, hear us say, let them in, and let them stay". Members of the group plan to take a van of supplies to the refugees in the Calais "Jungle" after the protest.
People on social media were quick to condemn the MPs comments for their lack of balance. Twitter user StuC said: Less welcome than the racist thugs are they? Well well. Who'd have thought it.
Nick O Brien added: But you've tweeted nothing today about the far right not being welcome. Appalling
After mounting criticism, Mr Elphicke then wrote on Twitter: "Fascists now matching to port. Equally unwelcome, damaging to our nation's economy & the town as the anti fascists."
Far right and anti-fascists clash in Dover, January, 2016 Show all 6 1 /6 Far right and anti-fascists clash in Dover, January, 2016 Far right and anti-fascists clash in Dover, January, 2016 Dover Police separate anti-fascists and right-wing protesters PA Far right and anti-fascists clash in Dover, January, 2016 Dover Right-wing protesters and anti-fascist demonstrators clash PA Far right and anti-fascists clash in Dover, January, 2016 Dover Anti-fascists break through police lines PA Far right and anti-fascists clash in Dover, January, 2016 Dover Far-right protesters march on the streets of Dover PA Far right and anti-fascists clash in Dover, January, 2016 Dover Diane Abbott MP speaks to anti-fascists in Dover PA Far right and anti-fascists clash in Dover, January, 2016 Dover Police hold back far-right demonstrators PA
Kent Anti-Racism Network described Mr Elphicke's comments as "dangerous". A spokesperson for the group told The Independent: "Ever since the armed and violent Nazi National Front and their fascist cohorts came to Dover on 30 January, Charlie Elphicke has equated them with those who oppose their right to march through our towns chanting anti-refugee slogans while giving Nazi salutes.
"Mr Elphicke's later comments that the fascists were not welcome only materialised after he received huge criticism on Twitter. We believe that his target was clearly humanitarian anti-fascists. If the fascists didn't march in Dover, then we wouldn't have to oppose them."
Before the protest, police said they would use powers to stop and search people or vehicles for offensive weapons or dangerous instruments. Those with face coverings may be asked to remove them if it is believed they are wearing them to conceal their identity.
Neil Jerome, Kent Polices assistant chief constable, said in a statement: "It is safe to say there will be disruption in the town which, even with all the plans in place, cannot be completely avoided.
"We believe that if people are warned in advance, they can make arrangements to avoid getting caught up in the protest and go about their business. Our policing operation is intelligence-led, based on the best information available to us.
"However, due to the nature of these protests, it is impossible to know exactly how many people are going to be involved or how they will behave on the day.
Mr Elphicke could not be reached for comment.
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April 2016 is a month of big changes for people living and working in the UK. A number of new laws and policies are coming into force, affecting just about everyone from public sector workers to dog owners. Heres what the new laws could mean for you.
1. You may have to pay more council tax
In England, if you live in a Band D property - that is, in the middle of the price range for your area - your council tax bill for the upcoming year will increase by an average of 58, starting this month. Those living in larger homes will have to pay even more. This is the biggest council tax increase for eight years.
This is because more than a hundred councils around the country are hiking council tax rates by up to 4%. The rises will be used by squeezed local authorities to fund the delivery of social care. Grant cuts to local government in the past six years have been severe, and the amount they receive will diminish by more than half by 2020.
Water bills are also up by 2 a year in England and Wales.
2. Low-paid workers over 25 now receive the National Living Wage
On 1 April the National Living Wage of 7.20 an hour was introduced, giving workers at the bottom of the pay scale aged 25 and over a pay rise of 50p an hour. However, the Office for Budget Responsibility has warned that up to 60,000 jobs could be lost as a result as employers try to make savings.
The new policy has been criticised as unfair for younger workers and should not be confused with the recommendations of the Living Wage Foundation, which says that hourly wages should be at least 9.40 in London and 8.25 elsewhere.
3. You must microchip your dog
From 6 April, all dog owners in England, Scotland and Wales will be required by law to microchip their pet, and keep their details up-to-date on an authorised database such as Petlog.
These measures will make it easier to find lost and stray dogs, which currently cost taxpayers and charities 33 million a year. However, a senior vet has advised dog owners to ignore the new law, as the chips can lead to health problems among puppies and smaller breeds.
New laws that will change the way you live Show all 5 1 /5 New laws that will change the way you live New laws that will change the way you live 1. Stricter immigration rules for working people You might think that a nurse who has spent the last decade tending to terminally ill British citizens would be considered an asset to our society. But under new legislation that comes into effect from April 2016, she could be deported. If you come from outside the EU and youve been working here for more than five years, you must be earning more than 35,000 a year, or else you will be shipped off back to your country of origin New laws that will change the way you live 2. A higher minimum wage The minimum wage for workers over the age of 25 will increase to 7.20 in April 2016, in the largest real-terms increase since 2007. The increase is part of a move toward a national minimum wage of 9 per hour by 2020 New laws that will change the way you live 3. Gender pay gap in workplaces must be reported At the moment, companies only disclose information about their pay gaps on a voluntary basis, unless forced to do so following an accusation of sexist pay discrimination being brought against them in court. But new legislation rolling out in 2016 will force employers to disclose this information each year New laws that will change the way you live 4. A new, flat-rate pension From April 2016, there will be only a single-tier pension. This will be a flat rate paid at 155.65 a week. This replaces the current, lower basic state pension of 115.95, but it also replaces secondary and additional pensions which would normally enable people to top up the basic rate New laws that will change the way you live 5. and smaller vapes and e-cigarettes If Britain in 2016 could be incarnated into a single body, it would be that of a young man gliding down a high street on a hoverboard and puffing on a vape. But new EU legislation could see vapes and e-cigs disappearing from our public spaces
4. Non-EU workers who earn less than 35,000 face deportation
Changes to UK visa rules mean that overseas workers will not be allowed to stay in the country for more than five years unless they can prove they earn more than 35,000.
If that applies to you and your five-year visa expires soon, you could face imminent deportation. The new law will not apply to nurses, PhD-level jobs and those on the official Shortage Occupation List. However most teachers and people working in IT and marketing could be packing their bags sooner than they had hoped. More than 100,000 people signed a petition against the changes, which will come into force on 6 April.
NHS England chairman Sir Malcolm Grant is drawing up rules to ensure clinicians and procurement staff are free from unmanaged conflicts of interest when purchasing drugs (Getty)
5. Prescriptions are more expensive
On 1 April, the NHS prescription charge in England increased by 20p to 8.40 per item. Prescriptions remain free in Scotland and Wales. The cost of an NHS dental check-up has also risen by 5 per cent to 19.70.
Other changes to the NHS in April include the launch of a 150m incentive programme for hospitals to prevent overuse of antibiotics and a 1 per cent increase in the value of NHS optical vouchers, which are for children, people on low incomes and those with complex sight problems.
6. Anyone buying an additional property will pay more stamp duty
Second home buyers and buy-to-let landlords will pay 3 per cent more stamp duty on purchases over 40,000 from 1 April. Mobile homes and houseboats are exempt from the charge.
Before April 2016, a buyer of a 250,000 additional property would have paid 2,500 in stamp duty. Now, they would pay 10,000 - a substantial increase of 7,500.
What does George Osborne's budget mean for you?
7. State pensions will be paid differently
If you plan to retire on or after 6 April, the way you receive your pension will be different. Instead of a basic state pension plus an additional pension, there will be a flat-rate payment of 155.65 a week. This is an increase from the previous minimum of 120.
This is supposed to make government pensions easier to manage and understand, but a survey by consumer group Which? found that 44 per cent of 50 to 64-year-olds do not know what the new rate will be, and only 18 per cent knew if they had ever been contracted out of a state pension.
Women and the self-employed may find themselves better off under the new system, according to the BBC. But to receive the full rate, you need to have paid National Insurance for 35 years, meaning younger retirees could lose out.
The lifetime allowance for pensions is also being reduced from 1.25 million to 1 million on April 6.
Public sector workers and members of Unison gather outside the Houses of Parliament in central London as they take part in the one-day walkout as part of bitter disputes over pay, pensions, jobs and spending cuts
8. If you work in the public sector, your pay will rise
More than one million public sector workers will see their pay rise by an average of 1 per cent this month. The government has claimed that this will protect 200,000 jobs in public services such as the NHS and the armed forces, but the increase been described as miserly by union leaders.
Prison staff will receive a more generous rise of 1.36 per cent to reward what ministers have described as highly ambitious changes to the prison system.
9. Social housing tenants' rents will drop, but housing benefit is changing
If you rent your home from a housing association or the council, starting this month your rent will decrease by 1% each year for the next four years.
The government hopes that this will reduce the amount of housing benefit it pays and is planning to reduce the household benefit cap this Autumn from 26,000 to 20,000 - or 23,000 in London. From May 1, the family premium of 17.45 for housing benefit claimants with one or more dependent children will also be abolished.
10. A new personal allowance will boost your savings
Another policy announced in last years budget which will come into force on April 6 is the introduction of the Personal Savings Allowance, which will allow people to earn up to 1,000 in interest tax free.
Previously, earnings on savings were automatically taxed at 20 per cent by your bank or building society. This change will benefit almost anyone with a savings account, but if you pay the higher 40 per cent rate of tax, your allowance will be 500, and the richest earners on the top tax rate of 45% will not have an allowance at all.
A new 10 per cent tax on share dividends is also being introduced on April 6, with a 5,000 tax-free allowance.
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British people who fall ill in continental Europe or are injured in accidents could be hit with medical bills running into thousands of pounds, campaigners against Brexit have claimed.
In an effort to turn focus of the referendum campaigns on to health, Britain Stronger in Europe argued that the European Health Insurance Card system would be in jeopardy if the UK votes to leave the EU.
Its claim was dismissed by the Leave campaign, which said the result of the vote would not affect the long-standing reciprocal arrangement.
British nationals are entitled to state-provided treatment in European hospitals free or at a reduced rate under a deal to transfer costs between different EU health services. That includes emergency maternity treatment.
EHIC: What Brits are currently entitled to A European Health Insurance Card gives British nationals the right to access state healthcare on temporary stays in the 28 states that make up the European Economic Area, such as Germany, France and Greece. It will cover immediate and clinically necessary state-funded treatment until you can return to the UK, according to the NHS Choices website. In Switzerland treatment is available at a reduced cost. Any pre-existing conditions are covered and routine maternity care is provided as long as you did not specifically visit the country to give birth. Applicants must provide a National Insurance or NHS number to get one. It is not an alternative to travel insurance and will not cover any private healthcare or costs such as mountain rescues or being flown to the UK. It is also not valid on cruises. Every countrys healthcare system varies slightly and might not include services provided by the NHS.
The system applies to 32 European countries, including the EUs 28 members, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland. Last year UK visitors to Europe received medical care worth 670m, with Britain Stronger in Europe calculating that the average claimant received care worth 6,200.
Its executive director, Will Straw, said: This great initiative to give holidaymakers peace of mind and access to the kind of healthcare they would get at home would be lost if Britain left the EU. The devastating result would be British holidaymakers slapped with bills for thousands of pounds because they were unfortunate enough to be ill or injured.
The organisation asserted that Britain would not be able to replicate the participation of Switzerland and Norway in the system because Leave campaigners have ruled out the UK negotiating Swiss or Norwegian-style deals with the EU.
But Robert Oxley, a Vote Leave spokesman said the Remain camp had undermined its own argument by admitting that non-EU countries participate in the scheme. They have shot themselves in the foot, but luckily the health card means they will get medical help in the EU regardless of which way we vote.
The NHS stresses that the health card does not cover any private medical care or costs such as mountain rescue in ski resorts.
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Britains top psychiatrist has challenged the Government to ring-fence spending for a comprehensive set of new waiting times targets that experts believe could finally achieve equality for mental health patients in the NHS.
Professor Sir Simon Wessely, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych), said that claims from a former health minister that the new standards the core recommendation of a recent landmark report have no funding to back them up, were crushingly disappointing.
As revealed in The Independent, Norman Lamb, the Liberal Democrats health spokesperson who served as care minister in the Coalition government, has been told by senior NHS England officials that there is no guaranteed funding to implement a set of new waiting times standards for treatment of a wide range of mental health conditions by 2020.
Recommended Read more The Government is failing its promises on mental health
Implementing waiting times standards in mental health similar to those used to measure A&E performance, and treatment for cancer and other physical health conditions will be vital to improving standards, and reversing trends that have seen funding diverted from mental health as NHS funding is squeezed, said Sir Simon and Greg Smith, RPscyh's policy analyst.
Writing in The Independent, they accuse the Government of failing to live up to previous pledges on mental health funding, and warn that do so again on waiting times standards raises the bleak prospect of the disadvantages suffered by people with mental illness in the health system continuing without an end in sight.
Former Care Services Minister Norman Lambs revelation that NHS England have told him that these vital standards have no actual funding assigned to them is hugely significant, as if this correct then (barring a miracle) they are simply not going to happen in practice, they write.
This is crushingly disappointing. Giving people with mental health problems the same opportunities to access timely care would have ended years of discrimination and represented a significant step towards realising the Governments stated ambition of achieving parity of esteem for mental health.
Waiting times standards for treatment of some mental health conditions, demanded by the Lib Dems in the Coalition years, came into force last week the first in the history of the NHS. However, they only cover anxiety and depression, and first episodes of psychosis.
In a report for the independent Mental Health Taskforce, Paul Farmer, chief executive of the Mind charity, set out a staged plan for similar standards for a wide range of treatments for other conditions to come into force by 2020.
The Government has accepted the recommendations of the report and pledged to spend 1bn more on mental health by 2020.
However, Mr Lamb has said that this money does not cover implementation of the new standards.
RPsych warn of the danger that, without the standards, money for mental health would continue to be siphoned off by healthcare commissioners to cover deficits elsewhere, citing the example of a Government pledge of 250m for childrens mental health part of a 1.25bn due to last till 2020 healthcare last year which, they say, went missing.
Despite rising demand, spending on adult mental health by NHS trusts has fallen by eight per cent since 2010, they write. Cuts have contributed to bed shortages, and a rise in the number of people suffering a mental health crisis being sent to out of area hospitals, sometimes hundreds of miles from home.
The current mental health minister Alistair Burt refuted RPsychs claims and insisted the full 1.25bn for childrens mental health would be delivered.
On waiting times standards, he said: Just this week, mental health waiting time and access standards have come into force for the first time in the history of the NHS, backed by 120 million.
We are going further and have increased funding for mental health to an estimated 11.7 billion and accepted the recommendations in the Independent Mental Health Taskforce backed by a further 1 billion by 2020.
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Downing Street has confirmed that David Cameron has raised concerns with Chinese Premier Xi Jinping about the on-going steel crisis.
The Prime Minister, who was in Washington DC for an international nuclear security summit, said over dinner on Thursday that the two countries need to work together to tackle the over capacity of steel in the international market.
A surge of cheap Chinese steal flooding the market is seen as a major factor in the steel crisis.
David Cameron said the two nations should 'work together' to tackle the steel crisis (WPA Pool/Getty Images)
The news comes alongside revelations that China plans to impose heavy tariffs on steel imports from the European Union, ranging from 14.5 per cent to 46.3 per cent.
"The Prime Minister raised concerns about the global steel industry, said a Downing Street spokeswoman.
He said we needed to work together to tackle the challenges with over-capacity and that G20 could be a good forum to address it later in the year."
The Government has faced criticism for apparently kowtowing to China and not doing enough to save the thousands of jobs at Port Talbot, where Indian giant Tata Steel has announced its intention to sell off the plant.
Sajid Javid meets with steelworkers in Port Talbot
The Prime Minister has said that nationalising the plant would not be the right answer to the crisis.
The Government has already faced criticism for allegedly blocking moves by the EU to raise tariffs on Chinese steel.
Shadow ministers went further yesterday.
Shadow business secretary Angela Eagle wrote in a letter to Business Secretary Sajid Javid that the Chinese dumping steel now had "the potential to destroy the UK steel industry."
She added: "If the Government and other EU members states now accept that steel making in the Europe is in 'emergency measures', then it would be possible to apply 'safeguards' to effectively halt the flood of imports into the EU."
"Will you commit to picking up the phone to Beijing as a matter of urgency to discuss these proposals?"
Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said the British steel industry was now paying the price for Chancellor George Osborne's determination to woo Beijing at any price.
"This news is further pain added onto a community that has been kicked in the gut by Government inaction," he said.
"The Chancellor has made a 'better relationship' with China, a cornerstone of his economic policy. Now the consequences of that decision are being felt by steel workers.
"Rather than standing up for China in the EU, by blocking higher tariffs on their steel, he should be standing up to China on behalf of the UK steel industry."
Port Talbot is the largest steel plant in the UK and its loss would represent a major blow for the British steel industry, which is in turn is a major supplier to numerous other key sectors, including construction, engineering and defence.
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After Chris Christie withdrew from the presidential race and unconvincingly praised Donald Trump, I compared him to the Eurosceptic John Redwood, who backed the Europhile Kenneth Clarke for the Conservative leadership in 1997. Will Mosseri-Marlio suggested it would make a good list.
1. Keir Hardie, leader of the Independent Labour Party, was called "catspaw of the Tories" when he endorsed several Unionists (Conservatives) over Liberals in the 1892 and 1895 elections. Hardie understood that the Labour movement could be represented in the Commons only at the Liberals' expense. Sunder Katwala admits this is "a bit niche".
2. Enoch Powell urged people to vote Labour in both 1974 elections, because it offered a referendum on membership of the European Community.
3. Hugh Trevor-Roper, professor of modern history, authenticated the Hitler diaries, 1983. Proposed by John Peters.
4. Tony Benn endorsed David Davis, Tory former leadership contender, in the 2008 Haltemprice by-election, a protest against Labours civil liberties record. Thanks to David Osland.
5. Johnny Rotten and Country Life Butter, 2008. Advertised by Jonathan Krause. Or we could have had the teetotal David Beckham endorsing Haig whisky, 2015 (Alex Briggs).
6. Robert Mugabe backed the Tories, 2010. "Conservatives are bold. Blair and Brown run away when they see me, but not these fools, they know how to relate to others." Sunder Katwala again.
7. Nicola Sturgeon definitely did not tell the French ambassador that she hoped David Cameron would win in 2015, as Calum Henderson reminds us.
8. Norman Tebbit for Scottish Labour, 2015. It was logical to vote Labour where Conservatives stood no chance, he said. Thanks to Mike Martin. Market House Books points out that Lord Tebbit had also praised Gordon Brown as the heir to Thatcher in 2007.
9. Russell Brand, who wrote a whole book about how people shouldnt vote, then urged them to do so for Ed Miliband, 2015. It almost swung the election. Nominated by Mark D.
10. Frank Field, the resolutely centrist Labour MP, nominated Jeremy Corbyn for the Labour leadership in 2015, because he believed that the party's "emotional spasm" needed to be challenged. Corbyn's nominators also included Margaret Beckett and Sadiq Khan.
Next week: Songs in which someone is callously left to die for narrative convenience (such as Oh My Darling, Clementine).
Coming soon: Job titles (starting with the Deputy Director in Charge of the Solar System, at the Mullard Space Science Laboratory).
Your suggestions, and ideas for future Top 10s, in the comments please, or to me on Twitter, or by email to top10@independent.co.uk
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A drone strike has targeted a jihadist commander suspected of involvement in two terror attacks in Somalia.
US officials believe Hassan Ali Dhoore was killed alongside two other people after being targeted on Thursday but the results of the operation are still being formally assessed.
Peter Cook, the Pentagon press secretary, said the strike was carried out in co-operation with the Somali government as it continues to fight an Islamist insurgency by al-Shabaab, with is affiliated with al-Qaeda.
Removing Dhoore from the battlefield would be a significant blow to al-Shabaab's operational planning and ability to conduct attacks against the government of the Federal Republic of Somalia, its citizens, US partners in the region and against Americans abroad, he added.
In pictures: Mogadishu attack Show all 10 1 /10 In pictures: Mogadishu attack In pictures: Mogadishu attack People carry an injured man after Somali security forces took control over of the restaurant and ended the siege where gunmen exploded car bombs and opened fire on people In pictures: Mogadishu attack A soldier patrols on Lido beach following an attack at beachside restaurant Beach View Cafe, in Somalia's capital Mogadishu Reuters In pictures: Mogadishu attack In pictures: Mogadishu attack People gather to assess the damage at Lido beach following an attack at beachside restaurant Beach View Cafe, in Somalia's capital Mogadishu Reuters In pictures: Mogadishu attack A policeman and residents walk past the wreckage of cars destroyed in a car bomb attack outside beachside restaurant Beach View Cafe on Lido beach, in Somalia's capital Mogadishu Reuters In pictures: Mogadishu attack Relatives carry away a dead body from the beach, following an overnight attack on a beachfront restaurant in Mogadishu AP In pictures: Mogadishu attack A Somali soldier walks past wrecked cars in front of the Lido seafood restaurant following an overnight attack on the beachfront restaurant in Mogadishu Getty Images In pictures: Mogadishu attack A general view through a broken glass shows government forces patrolling on Lido beach following an attack at beachside restaurant Beach View Cafe in Somalia's capital Mogadishu Reuters In pictures: Mogadishu attack In pictures: Mogadishu attack Ambulance workers stand by near the Lido beach where gunmen exploded a car bomb and opened fire at a restaurant in Mogadishu EPA
In addition to being part of al-Qaeda, Hassan Ali Dhoore was a member of al-Shabaab's Amniyat (security and intelligence) wing and was heavily involved in high profile attack planning in Mogadishu.
He is said to have planned and overseen atrocities that killed more than 30 people, including an attack near Mogadishu Airport saw one American killed alongside peacekeeping forces as they celebrated on Christmas Day.
The Pentagon said Dhoore was also directly responsible for a massacre at the Maka al-Mukarram Hotel in March 2015, where 15 people died.
He was believed to be planning further attacks targeting Americans living in the Somali capital.
The strike came weeks after the US targeted an al-Shabaab training camp in an air strike that killed more than 150 fighters, according to officials.
US drone kills al-Shabaab leader Garaar in Somalia Pentagon
That operation, using both fighter jets and unmanned Reaper drones, targeted al Shabaab's "Raso" facility, about 120 miles north of the capital.
Al-Shabaab was pushed out of Mogadishu by African Union peacekeeping forces in 2011 but has continued its insurgency against the enemies of Islam in Somalia, launching frequent attacks in its bid to overthrow the Western-backed government.
The group, whose name means "The Youth," seeks to impose its strict version of Sharia law in the country, where it routinely targets security and government forces, as well as hotels and restaurants frequented by foreigners.
It has also orchestrated deadly attacks in Kenya and Uganda, which both contribute troops to the coalition fighting its militants.
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A Muslim man who shielded Christians in an Islamist attack has been posthumously awarded one of Kenyas most prestigious honours.
President Uhuru Kenyatta awarded Salah Farah the Order of the Grand Warrior of Kenya "in recognition of his remarkable act of valour" in defending his fellow citizens.
Mr Farah died from his injuries in January after being shot on a bus which was attacked by al-Shabaab militants in December 2015.
As is sometimes the case in al-Shabaab attacks, Muslims were offered the chance to escape.
"They told us if you are a Muslim, you are safe, Mr Salah told the BBC after the incident.
There were some people who were not Muslim. They hid their heads."
However, Mr Salah refused to be moved. We asked them to kill all of us or leave us alone, he said.
He was hit by a bullet in the ensuing chaos.
President Kenyatta praised his actions in a State of Nation address.
"He died defending people who he did not know. This is because he believed in their right to freedom of worship and he knew that every single life - irrespective of faith - is sacred," President Kenyatta told politicians.
"He is a powerful symbol of our country's ambition to attain the full expression of secure and cohesive nationhood, and he is a costly reminder that we all have a role to play in protecting our freedoms.
"I want to tell his children that their father's sacrifice will never be forgotten - and will be long admired."
The award comes following a social media campaign calling for official recognition of Mr Salahs actions and to raise money for his family.
Using the hashtag #HeroSalah, nearly 600,000 Kenyan shillings (around 4,150) was donated and will be used to build a house for his surviving relatives.
The activist behind the campaign, Abudallahi Derow, told al-Jazeera: Salah died serving the country, defending his Christian brothers.
"He chose to die and save the lives of his countrymen. He is a symbol of unity and strength and his action is an inspiration to many."
While in hospital, Mr Salah explained his actions by saying "people should live peacefully together".
World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty
"We are brothers, he told Voice of America.
"It's only the religion that is the difference, so I ask my brother Muslims to take care of the Christians so that the Christians also take care of us... and let us help one another and let us live together peacefully."
Militant group al-Shabaab are an extreme Islamist group linked with al-Qaeda.
They have been conducting an insurgency aimed at establishing Islamic rule in Somalia, which sometimes spills over the southern border into Kenya.
In January, dozens of Kenyan soldiers were killed in an attack on an African Union military base in Somalia.
Kenya marks Garissa university attack anniversary
The group is also responsible for the Garissa University attacks which took place in April 2015, killing 148 people.
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Despite extensive scans on the tomb of the ancient Egyptian king Tutankhamun, more work is need to establish if newly discovered chambers hold the remains of Queen Nefertiti, archeologists have said.
The tomb, at the Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt, is believed by some to conceal a wider network of ancient structures and tombs.
Several leading figures believe that the remains of Queen Nefertiti could lie beyond the walls of Tutankhamuns tomb.
It was speculated last month that the hidden spaces could house organic or metal material, leading to speculation that ancient royalty could lie within.
Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anani said experts worked for 11 hours overnight to obtain 40 scans of five different levels of the area behind Tutankhamun's burial chamber.
British Egyptologist Nicholas Reeves has been prominent in advocating the idea that Queen Nefertiti, who died in 1331 BC, could be hidden in the Luxor site.
"I believe and I still believe" that King Tutankhamun's tomb is "simply the outer elements of a larger tomb that is of Nefertiti," he said.
Mr Reeves told reporters the latest scans had presented "the most detailed data" so far on the secret chambers.
World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty
More scans will occur later in April. After, archeologists will be invited to Cairo to view the findings.
If it is deemed appropriate, a small hole could be drilled in the wall of the tomb and a camera passed through to give researchers a clearer perspective of what lies on the other side.
Queen Nefertiti is one of the most famous symbols of ancient Egypt and classical beauty.
King Tutankhamun's reign lasted from around 1332-1323 BC. The discovery of his complete, undisturbed tomb in 1922 by Briton Howard Carter remains one of the most sensational archeological discoveries of all time.
The discovery of the hidden chambers has ignited massive interest among the archeological community and beyond. It could also renew excitement in Egypt's antiquities and help reinvigorate the country's flagging tourism industry.
Tourism has been hit hard in Egypt in recent years by political violence, an insurgency in the northern Sinai Peninsula, and persistent attacks since the military's 2013 overthrow of an elected but divisive Islamist president.
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At least "17 burned bodies" have reportedly been found by investigators searching for tens of missing college students in Mexico.
The team, who took over from the government in investigating the disappearance of 43 teacher college students, claimto have found evidence of a large fire where bodies were dumped.
But experts at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), who approved the new team, said they had not seen the report and the new announcement had been made without their agreed consensus.
Other experts have also expressed concerns about the way the investigation into the Rural Normal School at Ayotzinapa is currently being handled.
Yet tests are being conducted to see whether all the students were killed at the site in the town of Cocula in Guerrero state - a claim similar to that previously made the government.
Ricardo Damian Torres, from the offices of Mexico's attorney general, did not say when such a fire occurred or offer any explanation as to how the team conducted its research and reached its conclusion.
"There is sufficient evidence, including physically observable, to affirm that there was a controlled fire event of great dimensions in the place called the Cocula dump," he said.
Ricardo Damian Torres, from the offices of Mexico's attorney general, did not check the report with the IACHR
The students at the all-male college are believed to have been intercepted having hijacked buses to attend a commemoration of a 1968 massacre of students, at some point being kidnapped and killed.
An independent investigation into the events was re-launched after relatives of the students refused the government's official finding that a corrupt police unit had handed the young men over to a local gang who were responsible for killing them.
Vidulfo Rosales, a lawyer representing the families, said he had not been given access to the report and was concerned about the way the attorney general's office was handling the investigation.
Inside Mexicos top drug lord El Chapos hideout Show all 4 1 /4 Inside Mexicos top drug lord El Chapos hideout Inside Mexicos top drug lord El Chapos hideout Inside El Chapo's hideout Pictures reveal how the Mexican drug lord had been living since his escape Getty Inside Mexicos top drug lord El Chapos hideout Inside El Chapo's hideout The inside of a house searched by marine special forces where Guzman was hiding Getty Inside Mexicos top drug lord El Chapos hideout Inside El Chapo's hideout Inside a house searched by marine special forces during the military operation to recapture Guzman Getty Inside Mexicos top drug lord El Chapos hideout El Chapo's attempted escape A marine stands guard next to a manhole of the sewer system through which drug kingpin Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman tried to escape Getty
Family members have also queried the role of soldiers at a nearby barracks, whom the government have only allowed to be interviewed by its own prosecutors.
The following month, the Argentine Forensic Anthropology team - brought in at the families' request - said evidence did not support the government's version that the students were burned at the site.
Mexico's national human rights commission also raised a number of questions about the government's original investigation, which has dogged the administration of President Enrique Pena Nieto.
The police and military were also monitoring the students' movements before they were attacked, according to experts sent by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).
Yet now the IACHR has said its collaboration with the team who announced this new evidence of burnt bodies is "broken", because that team has not passed the findings over to them for assessment.
The IACHR said in a statement that there was not even a consensus among fire experts about the possibility of a dump where all the students were killed.
Associated Press
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New York lawmakers have reached a budget agreement that will increase the states minimum wage to $15 per hour, making it the second US state to to do so this week.
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the agreement reached by state legislators as part of the 2016-2017 budget, which includes the gradual, calibrated wage increase, meaning the wage will rise in different regions over time.
New York City will see a wage increase from the states current minimum, $9 hourly, to $15 in three years; four years for small businesses.
Wealthier suburbs like Long Island and Westchester County would rise to $15 in six years.
Wages would climb more gradually in the rest of New York, reaching $12.50 hourly in six years, increasing to $15 at a rate yet to be determined by the state based on the economic needs of the different regions.
This minimum wage increase will be of national significance, Mr Cuomo said Thursday night. Its raising the minimum wage in a way thats responsible.
New York follows California, which announced a good faith agreement between politicians and labour unions to raise its minimum wage from $10 to $15 per hour.
Democratic governor Jerry Brown is expected to sign the bill on Monday in Los Angeles.
The wage increases follow years of protest from the "Fight for $15" activists a movement which began in late 2012 when New York City fast food workers began demanding higher pay.
New Yorks move to increase the minimum wage is expected to affect some two million workers in the state.
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New York City officials have revealed new proposals that would ban taxi and hire car drivers from flirting with passengers or initiating any kind of unwanted physical contact.
The Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) has set out specific rules that include taking away licenses and imposing fines for drivers who touch or ejaculate on their passengers, and recommends fines and suspensions for drivers who comment on their passengers appearance or even talk about their own or their passengers' love lives.
Current TLC guidelines put threat, harassment or abuse in the same category, and punishment is a $350-$1,000 fine and a 30-day license suspension.
The new so-called clean-up package, which is set to go to a vote on 21 April, would enforce a fine of $1,000 for sexual harassment and 30-day license suspension.
The fine encompasses engaging in any conversation related to sexual acts and sexual contact, or any other matter relating to... gender, physical appearance, expressing a desire to see or touch another person's body or expressing a desire to enter into any type of relationship with another person.
Even what some would call "innocent flirting" is absolutely inappropriate and no passenger should be subjected to that environment, TLC spokesman Allan Fromberg told Gothamist.
The review of the guidelines comes on the back of a significant increase in the number of complaints from passengers, from around 17,000 per year in 2014 to about 21,000 per year in 2015.
Mr Fromberg said the 23 per cent increase in complaints is proportionally lower than the 40 per cent increase in drivers over that timeframe.
Passengers would also not be allowed to touch drivers or initiate any kind of inappropriate behaviour.
In 2015 alone, 14 out of 166 reported rapes in the city were committed by hire car drivers. In March, two women reported sexual assaults in an Uber car in Brooklyn and a taxi in Queens.
New York officials are also considering installing a panic button inside taxis and mandatory sexual assault prevention training for all hire car drivers.
In January New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton recommended a buddy system instead of women going out or traveling alone, but critics have said the advice leans towards victim-blaming.
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If Europeans were the electorate for the US Presidential Election 2016, Hillary Clinton would beat Donald Trump by a landslide margin.
Ms Clinton would take 46 per cent of the voters' support to just six per cent for Mr Trump a 40 point lead, according to an average of YouGov's polls in Britain, Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland.
Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders would beat Mr Trump into second place, with 14 per cent of Europeans saying they would vote for him if he was on the ballot. The polls suggest Republican candidate Ted Cruz would receive two per cent voters' support.
It is in stark contrast with the latest national polling figures from YouGov in the US. Mr Trump would receive nearly four times as much of the share from US voters, at 23 per cent. But the Republican frontrunner would still be narrowly beaten by Ms Clinton, who 27 per cent of respondents would prefer. Nine per cent favour Mr Cruz, and 19 per cent would opt for Mr Sanders.
Nonetheless, Hillary Clinton has the highest unfavourable rating 53 per cent of any Democratic candidate in the past 30 years.
The findings reveal a radically different political landscape between the two regions, with the the centre-right in Europe closer to the centre-left in the USA. While Obamacare struggles, the NHS is a source of national pride.
The YouGov poll also found Europe is fearful of the prospect of Donald Trump becoming president. When asked to say how they would feel if Mr Trump were elected, the most likely response is fear (46 percent), then disappointment (40 percent), while 27 per cent of respondents said they would be both sad and angry.
The most common responses to Ms Clinton becoming president are relief (40 per cent) and optimism (40 per cent).
In pictures: US Elections 2016 Show all 15 1 /15 In pictures: US Elections 2016 In pictures: US Elections 2016 Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Bernie Sanders speaks to supporters after rival candidate Hillary Clinton was projected as the winner in the Nevada Democratic caucuses Reuters In pictures: US Elections 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton takes photos with workers at her campaign office in Des Moines, Iowa AP In pictures: US Elections 2016 Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, second from left, prays before lunch with supporters at Drake Diner in Des Moines, Iowa Reuters In pictures: US Elections 2016 Democratic presidential candidate and former Maryland Governor. Martin O'Malley, speaks during a campaign stop in Waterloo, Iowa AP In pictures: US Elections 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders speaks, as his wife Jane OMeara Sanders looks on, at a campaign event at Iowa State University Getty In pictures: US Elections 2016 Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio speaks at St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa Reuters In pictures: US Elections 2016 Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson speaks at a campaign event at Fireside Pub and Steak House in Manchester, Iowa. Getty In pictures: US Elections 2016 Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum visiting supporters at a house party in West Des Moines, Iowa Reuters In pictures: US Elections 2016 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a campaign event in Cedar Rapids, Iowa AP In pictures: US Elections 2016 Republican candidate Ted Cruz campaigns at Greene County Community Centre in Jefferson, Iowa AP In pictures: US Elections 2016 Senator Rand Paul speaks during a Caucus rally at his Des Moines headquarters in Iowa Getty In pictures: US Elections 2016 Republican candidate Jeb Bush speaks at a campaign event in Des Moines, Iowa AFP In pictures: US Elections 2016 Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin introducing the arrival of Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Reuters In pictures: US Elections 2016 A portrait of Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders at his campaign headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa Getty In pictures: US Elections 2016 Campaign badges on sale ahead of a Trump rally at the Ramada Waterloo Hotel and Convention Centre in Waterloo, Iowa Getty
When asked about topics such as climate change, the economy and terrorism, Europe sees Ms Clinton as the most competent candidate. Only 12 per cent say Mr Trump's presidency would be best at tackling international terrorism.
But despite the support for Ms Clinton in Europe, the results do not show there to be much excitement about her. Only 43 per cent of the European countries polled say she would make a good president, 30 per cent say she would be average and 9 per cent say she would be bad. However, she fares much better than Mr Trump, who 71 per cent of Europeans say would make a bad president.
Ms Clinton and Mr Trump are on course to go head to head for the US presidential election on 8 November 2016.
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Donald Trump often says one thing when he is getting at something quite different. So when midway through a speech in a hotel ballroom in Janesville, Wisconsin, one afternoon last week, he said he felt guilty about the thousands stuck outside, he was really boasting. So many people who love me!
Then, as he does, he veered into another theme. I feel so bad, we are going to come back to the area, he offered. (The Wisconsin primary is on Tuesday.) You guys cannot come. Okay? All of the ladies can come, but the guys cant. Translation: I realise I have a lady problem and flirting might help.
After their 2012 election loss, an autopsy by the Republican Party emphasized exactly that issue. Mitt Romney had lost women to Barack Obama by eleven points, partly because the Democrats had been able to depict the Republicans waging a war on women. That was thanks to people like Todd Akin, a US Senate candidate in Missouri, who, you may recall, stood by banning abortion in cases of rape, because, if its a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.
This year, they would have to do better. Advice in the report included, make a better effort at listening to female voters, directing their policy proposals at what they learn from women, and communicating that they understand what a woman who is balancing many responsibilities is going through.
You would think they would have something else to worry about: if Hillary Clinton becomes the Democrat nominee female voters would rush at the chance of electing Americas first woman president. But you might be wrong. Bernie Sanders, disheveled at 74, is doing just fine attracting female voters.
Hillary Rails on Trump in His Home State of New York
The morning after Mr Trumps Janesville appearance, his closest rival in the race for the Republican nomination, Ted Cruz, was settling into a more intimate campaign event forty miles north in the state capital, Madison. Seated in comfy chairs around him were his wife, Heidi, his mother and also Carly Fiorina, the only woman in the Republican nomination race until she dropped out a few weeks ago.
Mr Cruz is as unctuous as Mr Trump is chauvinistic. Were here because we love our families, he averred smoothly. "Women are not a special interest. Women are a majority of the United States of America. And every issue is a womens issue.
It is not just that there are more women than men in the country, they are also much more likely to vote. In 2012, there was a gap of four percentage points in turnout. While 63.7 percent of women went to polls that year only 59.8 percent of men did. So Mr Cruz is right. We are not talking a niche constituency here, we talking about the biggest single constituency that there is.
Also in Madison later that same day, Senator Sanders addressed a full house in the musty Orpheum Theatre that sits in the shadow of the State Capitol. The orchestra, where this reporter was sitting, was packed with men and women with a median age, I am guessing, of about twenty nine. (I am not counting the few babies who had been smuggled in.) It turns out that so far in this race women under forty five are siding with Mr Sanders over Ms Clinton by a difference of nearly thirty points.
People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Show all 8 1 /8 People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Miley Cyrus 'God he thinks he is the f***ing chosen one or some shit! Honestly f*** this sh*t I am moving if this is my president! I dont say things I dont mean!' Jemal Countess/Getty Images People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Whoopi Goldberg 'I dont think thats America. I dont want it to be America. Maybe its time for me to move you know' People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Samuel L. Jackson 'If that mother**er becomes president, Im moving my black ass to South Africa' People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Raven Symone 'My confession for this election is, if any Republican gets nominated, Im gonna move to Canada with my entire family. Is that bad? I already have my ticket. I literally bought my ticket, I swear' People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Cher 'If he were to be elected, I'm moving to Jupiter' People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Neve Campbell 'Im terrified. Its really scary. My biggest fear is that Trump will triumph. I cannot believe that he is still in the game ... [I'll] move back to Canada' People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Jon Stewart 'I would consider getting in a rocket and going to another planet, because clearly this planets gone bonkers' People who will flee America if Donald Trump wins Randy Blythe 'He could just be a clown. If he is the president, though, I am leaving America 'till he's gone'
I would love to see the first woman president, but Bernie just more clearly articulates everything that I stand for, Erin Loiselle, 41, a Montessori teacher, explained. I think Hillary has devoted her whole life to moving forward in politics and I honour that, but I think she had to make certain sacrifices as concerns her beliefs. She has compromised.
The gender of the candidates has nothing to do, with who she likes or doesnt like, Linda Arndt, 63, a retired veterinarian also in the Orpheum, said, adding that if Ms Clinton becomes the nominee, she may or may not support her in the general election. I think Bernie has pulled Hillary some way to the left and depending where she ended up landing on some of the issues, I would have to think about that.
Man pepper spraying a teen girl at Wisconsin Trump rally.mp4
Ms Arndt, sitting with her husband, Jack, a retired police officer, is certain of one thing: her utter disdain for Mr Trump. Am I allowed to say this? she asks him, almost rhetorically. We have discussed moving to Canada if Trump were elected president. Its a short skip from Wisconsin.
It was almost surreal to witness how swiftly and completely Mr Trump dug his hole with women in just two days in Wisconsin this week. He had started the process a week earlier when he posted an unflattering image of Heidi Cruz next to a flattering one of his wife, Melania, a Slovene-American who was once a model on Twitter with a threat to spill the beans on the Senators wife.
Mr Trumps Janesville rally began just hours after his campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, had been charged with battery for allegedly grabbing a female reporter, Michelle Fields, at a campaign event in Florida and bruising her. He did not apologise, he did not offer to fire his aide, but rather Mr Trump implied that Ms Fields had overblown the whole thing. Video of the altercation released by police proved it, he said, because at the moment in question she hardly seemed to flinch.
Wouldnt you start screaming or something? Did you see a change in her face? he asked the crowd, to which one women cried she hadnt seen any reaction from Ms Fields either. I ran it on wide screen, she yelled to the candidate from the back of the room. There was nothing! The crowd roared.
But then it got much worse. Taping an interview with MSNBC on Wednesday, Mr Trump suggested that in the event that abortions were made illegal in America women who had them would have to face some form of punishment. He later walked the comment back, saying it was the doctors who would have to be punished and not the women, but the damage was already done. By Friday some commentators were likening Mr Trump to the aforementioned Mr Akin (who was not elected).
The women who already support Mr Trump are unlikely to be fall out of love him even now, but after a week like this one, it is hard to see how he could win over those additional female voters he will need if he has any hope of building a coalition broad enough to win in November, including independents.
Three quarters of all women voters view him negatively, according to a new ABC-Washington Post poll, as well as two thirds of all independent voters. An NBC-Wall Street Journal poll found half of all female Republican voters unable to imagine voting for Mr Trump. His standing with women is also bleeding into perceptions of Republicans as a whole. A CNN survey found that while 51 per cent of women had a negative view of the party in January, it had climbed to 62 per cent by mid-March.
This is a single, but huge component of the nightmare that Donald Trump has become for the Republican Party. (How is he doing with that other crucial constituency, Hispanics?) The one who will benefit, of course, will be the Democrat nominee, regardless if it is Ms Clinton or Senator Sanders.
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A Beijing couple, whose 36-year-old daughter would not leave the family, obtained a court order to force her to move out.
Mr and Mrs Chen, criticised their daughter, who was not named in Chinese media, who was not named by the Chinese media, for taking for granted all they had done for her but admitted they may have spoilt her a bit too much.
The parents explained their daughter refused to leave their home because she wanted to care for them, even after they gave her 150,000 yuan (16,200) to buy a house, hinting it was time for her to go.
According to the Shanghaiist website, the pair said their daughter had become increasingly rude as she grew older and the trio argued more often, leading the Chens to suggest going through mediation to reconcile their differences. But she refused.
As a last resort, Mr and Mrs Chen filed a court case against their daughter, claiming that her behaviour was exhausting them and damaging their health.
A Beijing court ruled the couple were the legal owners of the house and were entitled to exclude their working daughter from their house, forcing the 36-year-old to leave her parents' home.
The judge from the Haidian district court added children have a duty to care, obey and respect their parents and that he hoped the family would resolve the conflict and value their relationship better in the future.
China has the fastest-ageing population, with the number of over 60 soon expected to overtake the entire US population, which is putting increasing pressure on young generations to take care of their relatives.
April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Show all 20 1 /20 April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Nigel Farage has horrified some Ukip supporters with an April Fools Day joke announcing his backing for Britain to stay in the European Union. I've decided that today is the perfect time to announce that I'll be supporting the campaign to Remain in the EU, he tweeted from his account. While most Twitter users noted the timing of the announcement, several of Mr Farages supporters seemed concerned April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks WWF has launched a new campaign 'Adopt a Unicorn today' to help protect mystical creatures: "In recent years, demand for unicorns spiral horns and loss of their rainbow-spangled habitat have led to a catastrophic fall in numbers of the mythical creature, to the point where these incredible animals now exist only in our imaginations" April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks The Virgin Trains has announced that customers will soon be able to catch a steam train to work, as its revealed that the original Flying Scotsman locomotive will be joining its fleet later this year April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Dominos has unveiled its latest robot innovation The Domimaker, a state-of-the-art pizza creation robot that transports customers live into the Dominos kitchen to take pizza personalisation to the next level. It allows rookie pizza makers to connect to the Domimaker LIVE via their webcam where they can direct the robots swivel-tech rotating arms and twin-jet sauce dispensers to create their own pizza April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks The German Embassy has done its own April fool, featuring chickens 'laying rugby eggs': "The German government today announced a new policy aimed at establishing rugby as the country's new national sport. At the unveiling of the far-reaching measures that will see rugby become an integral part of German culture, including hens that lay rugby 'eggs', government spokesperson G. Flugel stated that the country would "focus all attention and efforts on winning the 7 Nations Championship" April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Google is usually pretty good at April Fools' jokes, but this year's gag may have backfired. For one day only, Gmail users can choose to 'drop the mic' during email conversations. Gmail's 'mic drop' April Fools' joke is costing people their jobs April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Isle of Man has announced plans to erect a dome over the Island, protecting the stunning natural environment for all to enjoy. The pioneering design shows how the Island will take inspiration from structures such as the Eden Project to provide a controlled environment, with key access points around transport hubs April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Wetherspoons, the pub chain, has got in on the fun with claims it was taking over Eastenders local the Queen Vic pub in Albert Square April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks David Cameron has announced his pride in bringing in the long-awaited National Living Wage only for announcement to be dismissed as an April Fools Day joke. The unfortunately-timed tweet was sent from the Prime Ministers official account as the UK woke up to the annual deluge of fake news stories and pranks Getty Images April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks J.K Rowling has been used as the butt of an April Fools' Day joke by the pro-independence Scottish Resistance group. A Facebook claimed the fiercely pro-union author had performed a drastic U-turn and was starting work on The Fall of the House of Westminster April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Virgin Active has launched Personal Trainers...talking trainers. Essentially they are the future of personal training with in built speakers featuring top training tips to help motivate and drive you to the end of your workout. The trainers have loads of other weird and wonderful features including locking laces which cant be removed until 200 calories are burned, a projector that displays over 100 workouts and goal trackers April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Rowse has announced the creation of 'wasp honey' from 10,000 insects on a 'foreign exchange from Mexico'. To ensure the wasps dont feel too homesick during their 10-week stay Rowse Honey bee farmers have created tailor-made hives, complete with UV lamps and heaters which set the temperature to a balmy 23 degrees and fitted mini speakers which play a constant stream of Latin American music including Carlos Santa, Ricky Martin and Enrique Iglesias April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks The Guardian 'exclusively' announced that the royal family was planning to make a dramatic intervention to support Britain remaining in the EU. The report was attributed to an unnamed 'royal correspondent' - an unlikely position at the republican-minded paper April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Following discussion over the prospect of having various stars of The Night Manager as the next James Bond, the Daily Mail announced the role would be going to Olivia Colman. 'Olivia's no fool,' a source was quoted as saying. Indeed April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Simon Cowell is installing a trap door for the latest round of Britain's Got Talent auditions, the Daily Mirror reports April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks The London Eye has announced the conversion of two capsules into 'luxury studio penthouses', complete with constant champagne and a personal pillow fluffer in 'an enviable postcode'. "Arrangements for electricity, phone and postal services are currently in discussion" April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Over at The Times, students at two London universities are apparently planning to rename their historic institutions to 'decolonise and demisogynise' them. Names including Gaia College and Citizen's College were touted April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks The Express claims the stars of the EU flag are to be incorporated into the Union flag April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks The Royal Albert Hall is claiming it will be used as a 'scaled-down version of the Large Hadron Collider': "Since opening in 1871, the venue has proudly celebrated the best of the worlds latest scientific developments...Now, it hopes to make scientific discoveries of its own as particles will be fired around its corridors at high speed in the hopes that some science will happen" April Fools' Day 2016: The best and the worst pranks Pimms, the quintessential drink of the British Summer, has unveiled the result of an unprecedented sponsorship deal to display its logo on the worlds most famous clock tower, the Big Ben
The case caused a stir on Chinese social media with users of Sina Weibo, a hybrid between Twitter and Facebook, debating the behaviour of "leftovers", a term which refers to women reaching 30 without marrying, whether or not they still live with their parents.
"Not getting married is fine, but you're an adult and you need to be independent," said one users.
"My leftover women friends are all independent and own their homes. They are willing to have their parents live with them," wrote another.
The 2010 census showed there were 118 men for every 100 women in China and this severe gender disbalance has put more pressure on men to marry.
Women with and high levels of education and income have been empowered by the trend but there is still an expectation in China women should make compromises and accept the destiny of married life.
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A restaurant owner who put a fridge laden with uneaten food on the street outside her business to help the needy has said she felt compelled to act.
If I kept doing nothing then nothing would have happened, she said.
Minu Pauline, owner of the Pappadavada restaurant, in Kochi, southern India, was moved to combat both food waste and hunger after seeing people scavanging waste food from bins.
The fridge nicknamed nanma maram, meaning tree of goodness began as a place people in need could pick up excess food from the restaurant.
It has now become a community hub, with people from across town donating to it.
Ms Pauline, 28, was inspired to install the fridge after seeing a woman searcing her rubbish bags for food late one night.
It was very sad, she told The Independent.
Minu Pauline, left, as the fridge is opened for use (Minu Pauline/Facebook)
Just imagine being in the situation where you should be asleep but you feel too hungry and you have to go out to find food.
At the same time, she realised how much food is wasted by society, including in her own restaurant.
Money is yours but resources belong to society, Ms Pauline said.
If youre wasting your money, its your money, but youre wasting the societys resources. Dont waste the resource, dont waste the food.
She came to a resolution to do something and hit upon the simple idea of installing a fridge and encouraging her customers to put in it whatever they didnt eat.
The fridge is left unlocked and unsupervised for 24 hours a day, and anyone who needs to can utilise it.
It feeds dozens of people every night.
World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. 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Critics, seeing the idea of a businesswoman installing an attraction deliberately drawing the homeless to outside her source of income as crazy, initially dismissed the idea.
I know its risky, she said.
But its for the good of the community. Nothing has happened before because no one wanted to take a risk.
Nothing has happened yet, but Ill take it out if I need to.
You should stand up for the change you wish to see.
Indeed, it could be that good karma has found its way back to Ms Pauline, as her business is thriving.
I have so many smiling customers, Ms Pauline said.
I can feel the positivity in my shop.
One of the best aspects of the project is that her example seems to be spreading.
I recently saw two kids outside the fridge, said Ms Pauline.
After they left, I went to see what they had been doing and in the fridge was some pomegranates and candy that they had donated.
Im so happy to see the message being spread to the next generation.
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At least 30 soldiers and a boy have been reported killing in heavy fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces in the disputed Nagorny-Karabakh region.
The fighting is considered the worst outbreak since a full-scale war over the region ended in 1994. The mountainous area, officially part of Azerbaijan, has been under the control of the Armenian separatists since the ceasefire.
Russian President Vladimir Putin urged both sides to cease firing and "show restraint", Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian news agencies.
In a statement, Azerbaijan's Defence Ministry said 12 of its soldiers "became shahids" - or martyrs - and said one of its helicopters was shot down.
Remains of a downed Azerbaijani forces helicopter lies in a field in the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region, on Saturday, 2 April, 2016 (AP)
The statement also claimed more than 100 Armenian forces were killed or wounded and six tanks and 15 artillery positions were destroyed. The claim has not been verified.
Armenian President Serzh Sargysyan told his national security council 18 Armenian soldiers were killed and 35 wounded.
Armenia had earlier claimed to have inflicted heavy damage on Azerbaijani forces, but did not immediately give figures.
Smoke rises after clashes between Armenian and Azeri forces in Nagorno-Karabakh region (Reuters)
Each sides blame the other for the escalation in conflict.
The Armenian Defence Ministry claimed Azerbaijan used aircraft, tanks and artillery to capture territory in the Nagorno-Karabkh area, while the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry said the fighting began when Armenian forces fired mortars and artillery shells across the front line.
Clashes have erupted regularly between the two countries since the 1994 ceasefire. The Nagorno-Karabakh war claimed more than 20,000 lives.
Additional reporting by agencies
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Migrants from outside the EU will be made to sign a statement accepting European values under a new law in Belgium.
The proposal is expected to be passed into law over the coming months as the government responds to accusations it allowed Molenbeek to become a hotbed of terrorism ahead of the Paris and Brussels attacks.
Belgium's secretary of state for asylum and migration, Theo Francken, drafted the plan for what is being termed a newcomers statement.
A look at Molenbeek, the small Belgian suburb home to some of the worlds most dangerous terrorists
People moving to the country for more than three months would have to sign pledges including a promise to prevent and report any attempts to commit acts of terrorism.
The statement would not apply to asylum seekers and students, a spokesperson said.
Laurent Mutambayi, a spokesperson for Mr Francken, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation: Many people are coming from countries with other values.
"If they want to build their life here in Europe (we have) no problem with that but they have to sign this statement that they accept our values.
Those who are not deemed to be integrating sufficiently will not be allowed to stay in the country, he added.
Brussels remains tense following Isis terror attacks on 22 March (Reuters)
Integration has become a topic of fierce debate in Belgium and elsewhere as investigations into Isis attacks expose links between domestic and international networks.
Officials said Isis exploited the refugee crisis that saw more than a million people enter Europe last year to send its militants back from Syria, prompting calls for increased security and background checks.
But one of the Belgian organisations working with asylum seekers criticised the proposal, saying it was discriminatory and would fuel prejudice.
"It's an extra tool for the immigration office to keep some people out of Belgium, said Didier Vanderslycke from ORBIT.
"The integration process can start when you have the residence and not when you sign a document that you will integrate. It's really a bad thing as a welcome (for) people.
Belgian police arrest protesters at Place de la Bourse at a conter-protest to a planned far-right rally in Brussels, Belgium, 2 April 2016. (EPA)
He argued that making would-be residents sign a declaration accepting gay rights or equality between men and women suggested that these values were not held by immigrants, and would deepen prejudice against them.
Several countries have introduced examinations loosely termed citizenship tests as part of immigration controls.
The UK, US, Australia, Canada, Netherlands and Germany are among those using examinations at various stages of residence and naturalisation processes. Belgium has no such requirement.
Tensions remain high in the country, with police shutting down both left and right-wing protests in Brussels on Saturday.
Dozens of people were arrested as a far-right group defied a ban on rallying in Molenbeek and counter-demonstrators gathered outside the citys stock exchange.
Additional reporting by the Thompson Reuters Foundation
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Brussels Airport is set to open the first time since Isis suicide bombings ripped through the departure terminal.
Extra security measures will be in place for the departure of three flights on Sunday and authorities hope to increase plane traffic gradually over the following days.
Arnaud Feist, CEO of the Brussels Airport Company, expressed his thanks to staff for returning to work less than two weeks after the 22 March attacks.
Brussels airport bombing
These flights are the first hopeful sign from an airport that is standing tall after a cowardly attack, he added.
That we are able to make this start only 12 days after the devastating attacks is a sign of our collective strength.
While demolition works continue at the damaged departure hall, where two Isis militants detonated suitcase bombs, a temporary check-in area will be used.
Three symbolic Brussels Airlines flights will take off for Faro, in Portugal, Turin, in Italy, and Athens in Greece throughout the day.
Officials then plan to increase traffic to the airports current maximum capacity of 800 departing passengers an hour.
In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Show all 30 1 /30 In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A man carries an injured person in Brussels Airport, after explosions ripped through the departure hall In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Travellers get to their feet in a smoke filled terminal at Brussels Airport after explosions In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A man is wounded in Brussels Airport in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A man speaks on a mobile phone in Brussels Airport, after the explosions ripped through the departure hall In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Belgian police officers detain a man at the Gare du Midi train station in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A police officer stands guard as people are evacuated from Brussels airport, after explosions rocked the facility in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People stand near Brussels airport after being evacuated following explosions that rocked the facility in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Crew and passengers are evacuated from Zaventem Bruxelles International Airport after an attack in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Passengers gather near Brussels airport in Zaventem, following its evacuation after blasts rocked the main terminal of Brussels airport In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Two women wounded in Brussels Airport in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Passengers and airport staff are evacuated from the terminal building after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem near Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Passengers and airport staff are evacuated from the terminal building after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem near Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Broken windows seen at the scene of explosions at Zaventem airport near Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People leave the scene of explosions at Zaventem airport near Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People are evacuated from the scene after two explosions were heard at Brussels Airport In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People wait outside of the Brussels Airport after evacuation In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People leave the airport area after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Passengers comfort each other as they are evacuated from the terminal building after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People react as they walk away from Brussels airport after explosions rocked the facility in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Emergency services attend the scene of explosions at Zaventem airport near Brussels Reuters In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Injured people at the scene at Brussels Airport after two explosions were heard PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport The aftermath of the explosions at Brussels airport PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People wait outside of the Zaventem airport after two explosions were heard PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Emergency services at the scene of explosions at Brussels Airport In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A view of the scene after the explosions at Brussels airport PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Emergency services at the scene of explosions at Zaventem airport near Brussels Reuters In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport The aftermath of the explosions at Brussels airport PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport The view of the Brussels airport after the explosion PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Smoke is seen at Brussels airport in Brussels AP In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A photo shows cars on a blocked highway near Zaventem, Brussels National airport, after two explosions rocked the main hall of Brussels Airport Getty Images
Airport managers did not specify which airlines were slated to return but Mr Feist said he was aware that not all companies can or want to use Zaventem again.
Praising airport staff and emergency services, he said he had the deepest respect for everyone at the scene of the attacks.
I have also seen much courage, pride for Brussels Airport and persistence is being shown by everybody, Mr Feist added.
That makes me very hopeful for the future of our airport and convinces me that we will emerge stronger than ever from this crisis.
Reconstruction is due to start in the departure hall over the coming weeks, with repairs hoped to be complete before the start of the school summer holidays.
Passengers and airport staff are evacuated from the terminal building after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem near Brussels
A new security cordon has been brought in around the terminal, which can only be reached by car or taxi as bus and train services remain suspended.
Passengers are being asked to arrive at least three hours before their flight in preparation for scans outside the airport building, and only travellers carrying their passports and travel documents will be allowed inside.
The precautions were settled as part of a deal between unions and the government after police employees demanded metal detectors, body scanners and x-ray machines for external screenings.
Twin explosions killed 16 people at Brussels Airport, little over an hour before another blast ripped through Maelbeek Metro station.
Thirty-two victims and three suicide bombers died in the attacks, which were claimed by Isis.
A man caught on CCTV with the two airport attackers has not been identified and remains at large.
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More than a hundred unaccompanied children have gone missing since the southern section of the Calais Jungle was demolished last month.
According to a census by Help Refugees UK, 129 unaccompanied minors from the camp have gone unaccounted for. The census found that since the demolition took place in March, 4,946 refugees are still living there, including 1,400 in the shipping containers set up by the French government.
The refugee charity said it was very concerned at the findings. It wrote in a Facebook post: This is simply not acceptable. We call on the French authorities to put systems in place immediately to register and safeguard the remaining 294 lone children in the camp.
Recommended Read more The child refugees risking lives to rejoin their families in Britain
No alternative accommodation was provided for unaccompanied minors during the evictions, no assessment was made by the French authorities of their needs and no systems put in place to monitor them or provide safeguarding. There is no official registration system for children in place In Calais or Dunkirk.
Help Refugees UK added it had shared this information with the UK childrens commissioner Anne Longfield and her French counterpart Genevieve Avenard.
According to the EU police agency Europol, more than 10,000 unaccompanied child refugees have disappeared in Europe in the last two years. Aid workers are concerned at the deteriorating safety conditions and told The Independent teenage boys are being raped in the camp.
Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' Show all 8 1 /8 Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' Heavy rainfall has turned the camp into a 'swamp' The Hummingbird Project Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' Heavy rainfall has turned the camp into a 'swamp' The Hummingbird Project Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' Heavy rainfall has turned the camp into a 'swamp' The Hummingbird Project Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' People gather outside the Eritrean church at the camp The Hummingbird Project Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' Heavy rainfall has turned the camp into a 'swamp' The Hummingbird Project Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' Heavy rainfall has turned the camp into a 'swamp' The Hummingbird Project Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' A fire at the camp destroyed shelters for 180 people The Hummingbird Project Calais refugee camp is at 'crisis point' A fire at the camp destroyed shelters for 180 people The Hummingbird Project
Libby Freeman, founder of grassroots campaign Calais Action, told The Independent the findings were shocking. Ms Freeman said: Nobody knows where these vulnerable children have ended up.
Since the closure [and relocation] of the Women's and Children's centre, they have been uprooted. With so many children missing, its difficult not to think the worst. Its more than irresponsible.
Migrants sew lips shut
And many of the minors have a legal right to join their family in the UK. The government should stop [delaying] the law.
In total, there are 4946 refugees in the Calais camp. There are 4432 adults and 514 children, of whom 294 are unaccompanied minors. Out of that number 1400 adults are living in the containers, 170 women and children in Jules Ferry and 3376 inhabitants in the main camp area living in tents and shelters. In total there are 514 children, 294 of them are unaccompanied.
The average age of the minors in camp is 14.2 with the youngest just one month old. The youngest unaccompanied child is eight-years-old.
You can support the work of Help Refugees UK by donating here.
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Fears are growing that Greece will be unable to manage the task of sending back refugees to Turkey under the European Unions controversial migrant transfer deal which is due to be enforced from Monday.
Humanitarian aid groups have warned that the deal will be impossible for overwhelmed Greek and EU officials to implement. While a top UN official has said that the deal to send Syrian refugees back to Turkey en masse could be illegal, as Ankara is pushing them back over the border into the war zone.
Collective deportations without having regard to the individual rights of those who claim to be refugees are illegal, Peter Sutherland, the UN Secretary Generals special representative for international migration and development told the BBC. Secondly, their rights have to be absolutely protected where they are deported to, in other words Turkey. There has to be adequate assurances they cant be sent back from Turkey to Syria.
There has also been opposition to the move from within both Greece and Turkey. In the coastal Turkish town of Dikili, hundreds demonstrated on Saturday against the prospect of hosting people expelled from the nearby Greek islands, especially Chios and Lesbos. A plan to build a reception centre for returned migrants and refugees in Dikili is unpopular with locals.
"We definitely don't want a refugee camp in Dikili," said the town's mayor, Mustafa Tosun, according to the Associated Press. Demonstrators expressed concern over the impact the EU deal could have on the economy, tourism and security in their town.
Greece is scrambling to prepare returning the first refugees from Syria and other war torn regions back to Turkey under the terms of the deal struck on 18 March at a Turkey-EU summit in Brussels. The agreement is aimed at deterring them from using people smugglers to cross from Turkey to nearby Greek islands, a route which one million refugees have taken over the past year. Under the accord, EU countries pledged to take one screened refugee directly from Turkish soil for each Syrian refugee returned to Turkey.
Refugee rescued standing atop of sinking boat
Human rights group Amnesty International also believe the deal will have an adverse effect on the safety of migrants and refugees. In their desperation to seal their borders, EU leaders have wilfully ignored the simplest of facts: Turkey is not a safe country for Syrian refugees, John Dalhuisen, Amnestys Europe and central Asia director said.
Officials are already warning that the deal face delays as they try to manage the readmission processes and build a new infrastructure for returns almost from scratch. The ongoing stream of refugees continuing to cross the Aegean Sea from Turkey to Greece means that there is already a huge backlog to handle. The United Nations refugee agency has said it will no longer provide assistance at the detention centers in line with its policy against mandatory detention of asylum seekers.
Greek officials say they need a 20-fold increase in personnel to handle the expected claims. They also have to decide how to handle more than 50,000 refugees stranded in the country, unable to move northwards as Greeces neighbours have closed their borders.
Nor has the EUs deal with Turkey had an effect on refugee flows: an estimated 5,000 refugees have landed on the Greek islands since the summit agreement last month. However, unrest has already spread among refugees in anticipation of the returns, with clashes breaking out between police and asylum seekers at Idomeni refugee camp, where over 11,000 people have been stranded since Balkan countries shut down their borders in late February.
In Idomeni on Saturday more than 200 refugees and migrants staged a protest on road linking Greece and Macedonia, demanding that Macedonia open its borders. The protesters blocked trucks from crossing into Macedonia, but not passenger vehicles. In a counter-protest, the lorry drivers blocked the road to other vehicles as well.
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The Hungarian government has claimed there are 900 "no-go areas" across Europe, including in London, that are overrun by migrants.
In an apparent attempt to build domestic opposition to EU migrant quota plan, the government launched a website claiming there are "no-go zones" in Paris, Stockholm and London where "the norms of the host society...barely prevail".
The EU quota plan is to share out 160,000 migrants among each of the member states. Currently, only 1,100 have been relocated, with Hungary taking none.
The website states: "The mandatory European quotas increase the terrorist risk in Europe and imperils our culture
"Illegal migrants cross the borders unchecked, so we do not know who they are and what their intentions are.
"We do not know how many of them are disguised as terrorists."
When asked where the "no-go areas" are in London, government spokesman, Zoltan Kovacs said: "Everything is based on publicly available data and sources."
The Hungarian government claims 751 of these no-go areas are in France, quoting a 2006 blog post as evidence.
How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Refugees protest as Hungarian riot police fires tear gas and water cannon on the Serbian side of the border, near Roszke How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border A refugee throws a bottle of water towards Hungarian riot police after they used water cannon to push back refugees at the Hungarian border with Serbia near the town of Horgos How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Refugees protest as Hungarian riot police fires tear gas and water cannon at the border crossing with Serbia in Roszke How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Hungarian armoured personnel carriers are deployed at the border crossing with Serbia in Roszke How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Hungarian riot policemen are deployed at the border crossing with Serbia in Roszke How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Hungarian police spray water cannon on migrants at the "Horgos 2" border crossing into Hungary, Serbia How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border A refugee reacts after Hungarian riot police use water cannon to push back refugees at the Hungarian border with Serbia near the town of Horgos How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border A refugee gestures as Hungarian riot police use water cannon to push back refugees at the Hungarian border with Serbia near the town of Horgos How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border A refugee throws a stone towards Hungarian riot police after they used water cannon and pepper spray to push back refugees at the Hungarian border with Serbia near the town of Horgos How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Refugees protest as Hungarian riot police fires tear gas and water cannon on the Serbian side of the border, near Roszke How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Migrants shout slogans as they stand in front of a barrier at the border with Hungary near the village of Horgos, Serbia How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Hungarian riot policemen run as they are deployed at the border crossing with Serbia in Roszke Reuters How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Hungarian riot policemen are deployed at the border crossing with Serbia in Roszke Reuters How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Refugees stand in front of a barrier at the border with Hungary near the village of Horgos, Serbia Reuters How Hungary welcomes its refugees - in pictures Serbia-Hungary border Refugees wait at the Horgos 2 border crossing EPA
Viktor Orban, Hungary's Prime Minister, has refused to take part in the EU's quota plan saying last year: "In three years we might not know whether we are in London, Paris or Budapest."
Hungary announced a public referendum on the EU-quota with the question: "Do you want the EU to prescribe the mandatory relocation of non-Hungarian citizens to Hungary without the approval of the Hungarian parliament?"
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Salah Abdeslams brother has claimed he deliberately chose not to blow himself up during the Paris attacks in a decision that saved many lives.
Mohamed Abdeslam, who was arrested in the aftermath of Novembers massacres but cleared of involvement by police, recounted a conversation he had with his brother in his prison cell in Belgium.
He told French television station BFMTV that Salah deliberately refused to blow himself up and had expressed regret over his role in the Isis plot.
Mohamed Abdeslam initially said he had no idea his brothers were members of Isis (Leila Khemissi/AP)
If I wanted, there would have been more victims, he reportedly said. Luckily, I couldnt go through with it.
The 26-year-old is currently imprisoned in Bruges awaiting extradition to France on charges of terrorist murder and participation in the activities of a terrorist organisation, namely the so-called Islamic State.
His exact role in the massacres on 13 November, when his brother Brahim blew himself up on the Boulevard Voltaire, remains unclear but investigators believe he drove a unit of attackers to the Stade de France but backed out of his role among them.
An explosive belt was found dumped in a bin in Montrouge, near where Salah called friends to take him back from Brussels as his accomplices killed 130 people in co-ordinated shootings and bombings.
Paris attacks suspect caught
He remained on the run for more than four months as Europes most wanted man until police finally captured him in Molenbeek in March.
Investigators named Salah as one of the key organisers for the Paris attacks, saying he had a central role in logistical planning, including transporting members of the terror cell around Europe and obtaining cars, remote detonators and bomb-making equipment.
But Mohamed claimed he was not aware of what would happen during the attacks, and was not involved in planning the bombings in Brussels last month.
He knows about the attacks on 22 March because he has a TV in his cell, he claimed, saying Salah would co-operate with French authorities.
In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Show all 30 1 /30 In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A man carries an injured person in Brussels Airport, after explosions ripped through the departure hall In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Travellers get to their feet in a smoke filled terminal at Brussels Airport after explosions In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A man is wounded in Brussels Airport in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A man speaks on a mobile phone in Brussels Airport, after the explosions ripped through the departure hall In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Belgian police officers detain a man at the Gare du Midi train station in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A police officer stands guard as people are evacuated from Brussels airport, after explosions rocked the facility in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People stand near Brussels airport after being evacuated following explosions that rocked the facility in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Crew and passengers are evacuated from Zaventem Bruxelles International Airport after an attack in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Passengers gather near Brussels airport in Zaventem, following its evacuation after blasts rocked the main terminal of Brussels airport In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Two women wounded in Brussels Airport in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Passengers and airport staff are evacuated from the terminal building after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem near Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Passengers and airport staff are evacuated from the terminal building after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem near Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Broken windows seen at the scene of explosions at Zaventem airport near Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People leave the scene of explosions at Zaventem airport near Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People are evacuated from the scene after two explosions were heard at Brussels Airport In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People wait outside of the Brussels Airport after evacuation In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People leave the airport area after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Passengers comfort each other as they are evacuated from the terminal building after explosions at Brussels Airport in Zaventem In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People react as they walk away from Brussels airport after explosions rocked the facility in Brussels In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Emergency services attend the scene of explosions at Zaventem airport near Brussels Reuters In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Injured people at the scene at Brussels Airport after two explosions were heard PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport The aftermath of the explosions at Brussels airport PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport People wait outside of the Zaventem airport after two explosions were heard PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Emergency services at the scene of explosions at Brussels Airport In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A view of the scene after the explosions at Brussels airport PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Emergency services at the scene of explosions at Zaventem airport near Brussels Reuters In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport The aftermath of the explosions at Brussels airport PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport The view of the Brussels airport after the explosion PA In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport Smoke is seen at Brussels airport in Brussels AP In pictures: Terror attacks at Brussels airport A photo shows cars on a blocked highway near Zaventem, Brussels National airport, after two explosions rocked the main hall of Brussels Airport Getty Images
But detectives have already linked him to the Brussels attackers, saying one of the two airport bombers - Najim Laachraoui - was stopped in a car with Salah at the Austrian border in September.
The pair were with a third Isis militant, Mohamed Belkaid, when police raided their safe house in Forest on 15 March and shot Belkaid dead.
The flat and another property used to prepare for the Paris attacks had been rented by Khalid el-Bakraoui, who would go on to blow himself up at a Brussels Metro station.
Salah is expected to be transferred to France within the next week after a Belgian court approved his extradition.
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Two suspected far-right activists have been arrested in Molenbeek with Molotov cocktails and weapons as police shut down protests across Brussels.
Supporters of the anti-immigration Generation Identitaire movement gathered in the district known as the home of Isis militants including Salah Abdeslam, who was discovered hiding out there after four months on the run.
Protesters called a rally in its main square on Saturday, which was swiftly banned by the mayor of Molenbeek, Francoise Schepmans, because of the threat of public order disturbances.
In a statement, Generation Identitaire had dubbed Molenbeek a breeding ground for jihadists and called on people to gather under the slogan Expel the Islamists!.
Minutes after the protest was due to start at 3pm local time (2pm BST) a series of arrests were reported.
Two far-right protesters were arrested in a car containing prohibited weapons and Molotov cocktails, according to RBTF television.
At least one other man was seen being handcuffed and taken away by police, who were out in force to enact a city-wide ban on the Generation Identitaire demonstration and any counter-protests.
Half a mile away in the Place de la Bourse, an anti-fascist rally was also dispersed with at least 10 people arrested, De Redactie reported.
The Ligue des Droits de l'Homme (Human Rights League) had organised the event to condemn Islamophobia, which it said had become a respectable form of racism.
The groups president, Alexis Deswaef, was among the protesters arrested but said he was released after being held in a cell while the square was cleared by riot police.
In a statement, the Human Rights League had said groups like Generation Identitaire were spreading hate speech and fear while camouflaging government failures in social justice, equality and foreign policy.
The far-right movement, formed in 2012 as the youth wing of the far-right Bloc Identitaire, claims to fight the standardisation of peoples and culture and a tidal wave of mass immigration.
Previous events have seen members protest against immigration, the Islamisation of France and occupy mosques.
Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Show all 27 1 /27 Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Wreaths of flowers in front of an entrance of the Maalbeek subway station in Brussels in homage to the victims of a terrorist attack. Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Wreaths of flowers in front of an entrance of the Maalbeek subway station in Brussels in homage to the victims of a terrorist attack. Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims A building illuminated with the Belgian flag colours and a heart in Brussels, two days after suicide bombing attacks of terrorists on March 22 in Zaventem airport and subway Maelbeek. Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims A picture taken on 24 March, 2016 on place de la Bourse in Brussels, shows drawings and a candle, two days after suicide bombing attacks of terrorists on March 22 in Zaventem airport and Brussels subway Maelbeek Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Candles are displayed in tribute to the Brussels attacks victims on 24 March, 2016 on place de la Bourse in Brussels, two days after the suicide bombing attacks of terrorists on 22 March. Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims A mourner lights a candle in Trafalgar Square during a candlelit vigil in support of the victims of the recent terror attacks in Brussels. Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels airport workers pay tribute to the victims near Zaventem Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Activists light candles and hold placards to condemn the terrorist attacks in Belgium, during a gathering in Manila, Philippines Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims A banner for the victims of the bombings reads "I am Brussels" at the Place de la Bourse in the center of Brussels Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, left front center, stands with front row, left to right, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls, Belgium's King Philippe, Belgium's Queen Mathilde and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel as well as members of the European Commission during a minute of silence at EU headquarters in Brussels Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims People join hands in solidarity near the former stock exchange following the bomb attacks in Brussels Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Belgium flags ornate the facade of the Paris Town Hall Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims A woman embraces her children at The Place de la Bourse as she pays her respects to victims of the terrorists attacks in Brussels Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Belgian and European Union flags fly at half mast following the bomb attacks in Brussels Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Candles in the colors of the Belgian national flag are lit inside the Belgian embassy in Madrid, a day after the deadly suicide attacks on the Brussels airport and its subway system Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Servicemen of Azov, Ukrainian volunteers battalion, hold torches in front of floral tributes during a ceremony in front of the Belgian embassy in Kiev, in tribute to the victims of Brussels attacks Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims A refugee boy holds up a placard reading "Sorry for Brussels" at a refugee camp near the Greek-Macedonian border Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes People light candles in tribute to victims at a makeshift memorial at the Place de la Bourse in Brussels Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes A woman holds a drawing by French cartoonist Plantu picturing a character made of a French flag consoling another made of the Belgian flag, in front of the Hotel de Ville in Paris Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes The colours of the Belgian flag are projected on to (clockwise from top left) the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the town council building in Belgrade, Rome's Campidoglio and the Royal Palace at Dam Square in Amsterdam Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes Candles are lit in tribute to the victims, at the Place de la Bourse in Brussels Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes A woman holds a placard reading "Paris hearts Belgium, How much time will it take us to open our eyes and say STOP, Today our hearts are broken, Open your eyes to change the future" at the Place de la Republique in Paris Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes People gather to pay a tribute to victims of terrorist attacks in Brussels Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes People write messages on the ground at Place de la Bourse in Brussels Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes A bouquet of flowers in the Belgian national colours with a card reading 'To our neighbours, to our friends, to our Belgian brothers - an indignant Parisian' is seen next to a French national flag at the fence of the Belgian embassy in Paris Getty Images Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes Solidarity messages are written in chalk outside the stock exchange in Brussels AP Brussels attacks: tributes are paid to the victims Brussels tributes Messages and floral tributes outside the Brussels stock exchange AP
Its latest rally came as investigations continued into the Brussels attacks and a new plot uncovered in Paris.
A 33-year-old Belgian man named only as Y.A. was charged with participation to the activities of a terrorist group, the federal prosecutors office said.
He is accused of playing a role in plans to attack the French capital with Reda Kriket, a suspected Isis militant linked to Abdelhamid Abaaoud.
Paris prosecutor Francois Molins said an "imminent" attack had been thwarted following the discovery of a huge stash of weapons and explosives in the Paris suburb of Argenteuil.
A third man was previously arrested in Rotterdam as part of the case, which is separate from the bombings in Paris and Brussels.
Additional reporting by agencies
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A Holocaust survivor who was told to move seats on a flight so an Ultra-orthodox Jewish man would not have to sit beside a woman has said the rule is "not in the Torah".
Renee Rabinowitz is now suing Israel's national airline for discrimination after being told to change seats after a strictly religious Jewish man requested not to sit next to her.
The 81-year-old retired lawyer said El Al airline would never have agreed to a non-Jewish person saying they did not want to sit next a Jew, and this was "no different".
"I don't believe El Al would move a person in those circumstances," Ms Rabinowitz told The Guardian.
Despite being allocated seats separated by a screen, the ultra-Orthodox man in question asked a male flight attendant to move the pensioner.
After being offered a "better seat" by the El Al flight attendant - which Ms Rabinowitz said clearly was not - she guessed her neighbour had requested the change and confronted him directly.
In particular she said that the Torah does not require opposite sexes to sit separately.
"He started to tell me it was forbidden by The Torah. I interrupted him to say the Torah says nothing about a man sitting next to a woman," said Ms Rabinowitz.
"He conceded I was right, but said there was a general principle that a person should not put himself in a dangerous situation."
The Torah is known to feature important female prophets and to emphasise that God is neither male nor female. While it does refer to men as "the master of woman", this refers to their relationship in marriage.
Similar advice is found in both the Bible and the Qu'ran.
Ms Rabinowitz is being backed by the Israel Religious Action Centre, a pressure group which has already won a court case to end gender segregation on Israel's public transport.
Since her case was made public, almost 7,500 emails have been sent to El Al objecting to requests that women passengers change seats.
A statement by El Al said: "In the cabin, the attendants receive different and varied requests and they try to assist as much as possible, the goal being to have the plane take off on time and for all the passengers to arrive at their destination as scheduled."
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A mass grave including the bodies of women and children has been uncovered in the former Isis stronghold of Palmyra.
Syrian state media reported the grim discovery as troops loyal to Bashar al-Assad and his supporters continued work to clear the city after driving militants out.
The government-controlled Syrian Arab News Agency (Sana) said at least 40 corpses had so far been recovered from the site, with some beheaded and others showing signs of brutal torture.
Palmyra after Isis
The report linked the discovery to a massacre documented in May 2015, when Isis militants were reported to have slaughtered more than 400 mostly women and children in Palmyra just two days after capturing the city.
State employees, their families and those believed to be loyal to the regime were said to be among those targeted.
Isis committed numerous atrocities during its reign over Palmyra, when its world-famous ancient ruins became a favoured backdrop for gruesome propaganda videos showing the execution of prisoners.
The Roman Arch of Triumph and Temple of Baalshamin were among the archaeological sites destroyed by the group, which left the area littered with improvised explosive devices and mines.
Ancient monuments under Isis threat Show all 8 1 /8 Ancient monuments under Isis threat Ancient monuments under Isis threat Isis seizes Palmyra The ancient oasis city of Palmyra Getty Ancient monuments under Isis threat Isis seizes Palmyra A partial view of the ancient ruins Getty Ancient monuments under Isis threat Isis seizes Palmyra The ancient Palmyra theater Reuters Ancient monuments under Isis threat Isis seizes Palmyra A view of the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra Getty Ancient monuments under Isis threat Isis seizes Palmyra The Temple of Bel Reuters Ancient monuments under Isis threat Isis seizes Palmyra Palmyra's famous graves AP Ancient monuments under Isis threat Isis seizes Palmyra The ancient castle Getty Ancient monuments under Isis threat Isis seizes Palmyra A sculpture depicting a rich family from the ancient Syrian oasis city of Palmyra, displayed at the city's museum Getty
Explosions were rocking the former tourist attraction today as operations to safely detonate the bombs continued.
A Syrian officer said more than 3,000 mines have so far been dismantled with the help of Russian specialists.
"They booby-trapped everything, trees, doors, animals," he added.
An Associated Press crew described the city as completely deserted on Friday, saying the remaining civilians who lived under Isis had fled the onslaught by the Syrian Army and militias backed by Russian air strikes.
Assad's forces recaptured the city on Sunday following three weeks of intense fighting (AFP)
They re-captured the city on Sunday after weeks of intensive fighting and aerial bombardment.
Activists reported that most families had either voluntarily fled the city or being forcibly evacuated by Isis to other strongholds including its de-facto capital of Raqqa.
Gareth Bayley, the UK Special Representative for Syria, said he was deeply concerned by reports of pro-Assad militias abusing civilians and carrying out widespread looting.
The recapture of Palmyra was a strategic coup for the Syrian President, through which he hopes to convince the West that his forces are a credible partner in combatting terror as it ramps up the fight against Isis.
Additional reporting by AP
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A series of before and after photos have emerged of the ancient Syrian site of Palmyra showing the extent of the destruction caused by Isis, a week after it was recaptured from militants.
The group was driven out from the site on Easter Sunday, and journalists have been allowed in for the first time since government forces took over.
The photographs show Isis's vandalism of temples and statues, some of which are thousands of years old.
The series of photos was taken by photographer Joseph Eid, who also visited the site in March 2014, before it was taken over by Isis.
A picture of the Arc du Triomphe (Triumph's Arch) contrasted with what remains of the historic monument after it was destroyed by Islamic State (IS) group jihadists in October 2015 in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images) (Getty)
Another view showing the full extent of the damage at Arc du Triomphe (Triumph's Arch), which was destroyed by Isis in October 2015. (Getty)
A picture showing the Temple of Bel before it was destroyed by Isis in September 2015 in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra. The structure dated back to 32AD. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
Security officials stand around the ruins of the Temple of Bel. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images ) (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
The Temple of Baal Shamin seen through two Corinthian columns at Palmyra, Syria. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images ) (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
A picture taken in the Palymra museum showing defaced sculptures. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
Isis captured Palmyra in the summer of 2015, along with the modern town and some oilfields nearby.
The attacks significantly increased Isis control over Syria.
The group, who follow an extreme version of Sunni Islam, saw Palymra's ancient ruins, predating Islam, as idolatrous.
In addition to destroying ancient buildings, they also defaced and decapitated statues.
Isis have also destroyed ancient artefacts and sites in other areas.
Mosques, shrines and churches in elsewhere in Syria, Iraq and Libya have also been vandalised by the group.
Statues were beheaded in the Palmyra museum. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images ) (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
A an ancient work of art, which may have been shot at by Isis militants. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images ) (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
An ancient tomb has been defaced and lies in the wreckage of the Palmyra museum. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images ) (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
The face of a statue lies on the floor in the Palmyra museum. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images ) (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty)
Syrian troops backed by Russian forces recaptured Palmyra in March after an offensive to rescue the city from Isis militants.
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Saudi Arabia is planning to set up the world's biggest sovereign investment fund, preparing a post-oil era.
The $2tn (1.4tn) wealth fund will be created by selling off state petroleum company Aramco's assets in a dramatic plan to transform the country's economy, which heavily relies on the oil industry.
The megafund will be enough money to buy the four largest US companies, Apple, Google's parent company Alphabet, Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway.
It will also be more than double Norway's sovereign wealth fund, regarded as the largest in the world by assets.
The scheme is aimed to generate state revenue, which will be used to invest abroad and in new industries and tourism to diversify the economy and end the country's dependence on oil.
Ras Tannura's oil production plant, Saudi Arabia (Rex)
The 30-year-old son of King Salman and second-in-line for the throne Prince Mohammed bin Salman set out his vision for the investment fund during a five-hour meeting on Thursday.
IPOing Aramco and transferring its shares to PIF (Public Investment Fund) will technically make investments the source of Saudi government revenue, not oil, said Prince Mohammed in an interview with Bloomberg in Riyadh.
What is left now is to diversify investments. So within 20 years, we will be an economy or state that doesnt depend mainly on oil.
Undoubtedly, it will be the largest fund on Earth. This will happen as soon as Aramco goes public," he added.
World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. 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Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. 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A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. 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The plan is a reaction to the collapse of oil prices and probably also to the realisation the world is making efforts to move away from fossil fuels and adopt low-carbon emission solutions to address global warming.
Shares could be sold as soon as next year, with the country initially planning to offer five percents of its assets but is hoping to increase the proportion of foreign investment to 50 per cent by 2020.
Eight decades after oil was first discovered on Saudi land, the world's largest crude exporter is now looking into the future.
The news comes after a series of measures, including cuts to subsidies and raising fuel and electricity prices, to prevent the country's budget deficit to grow and an announcement is expected within a month for a National Transformation Plan.
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Barack Obama has warned that the prospect of Isis or other terrorists getting hold of a nuclear bomb is among the most serious threats faced by the world.
Speaking during the international Nuclear Security Summit in Washington DC, the US President said it was clear that these mad men would use such a device to kill as many people as they could.
David Cameron, who also attended the meeting, offered British help to other countries to ensure terrorists could not get hold of radioactive materials.
Recommended Read more Obama flashes peace sign at nuclear security summit
It is feared Isis could detonate a dirty bomb in which conventional explosives are used to disperse radioactive particles over a wide area or even make a bomb capable of creating a fission explosion and producing the dreaded mushroom cloud.
Mr Obama said the risk of Isis or other extremists getting a nuclear weapon remains one of the greatest threats to global security, adding that Isis had already used chemical weapons and that al-Qaeda had long sought nuclear material.
Fear and frustration: The Nuclear Security Summit The Nuclear Security Summit in Washington is the fourth and final of Barack Obamas presidency. It is not certain whether the meetings, which he established, will continue after he leaves office next year. For the dozens of world leaders assembled in Washington this week, the harrowing risk of nuclear terrorism has been at the forefront of their discussions, alongside concerns about North Koreas nuclear weapons programme. Frustration over the slow pace of reducing nuclear stockpiles has shadowed this years summit, Mr Obamas last major push on denuclearisation. The absence of key players especially Russia further underscored the lack of unanimity still confronting global efforts to deter nuclear attacks.
There is no doubt that if these mad men ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material, they would certainly use it to kill as many people as possible, he said.
Security concerns at civilian nuclear infrastructure were raised after reports that two of the Brussels bombers may have carried out surveillance on the home of a security official at a Belgian nuclear facility.
Mr Cameron said British expertise would be offered to other countries to secure nuclear facilities.
We know that the terrorists we face today would like to kill as many people as they possibly could, using whatever materials they can get their hands on, Mr Cameron said.
So obviously the security of nuclear materials, for those countries that have nuclear programmes, is incredibly important.
A British government source said there was no credible evidence that terrorists were targeting British facilities.
Dr Beyza Unal, a research fellow in nuclear weapons policy at Chatham House, said there was currently no evidence that terrorists could build a nuclear weapon.
But she added that world leaders needed to act to strengthen security not just at civilian nuclear facilities but also nuclear weapons sites, and warned of an insider threat at nuclear facilities. Psychological assessments and cyber-security training for employees should be considered to mitigate risks, she said.
Technological advances, including the advent of 3D printing, have added to the challenge of preventing terrorists obtaining radioactive or chemical weapons, a Government strategy document warned last week.
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The battle between the FBI and Apple over the unlocking of San Bernardino gunman Syed Rizwan Farooks mobile phone would have piqued the interest of many in Israels flourishing technology industry.
Not least because at the American government's request, a recent court hearing in the FBIs legal fight to force Apple to unlock the iPhone was cancelled, with the FBI saying a third party had emerged with an alternative method to get into the phone. According to local media, that third party was potentially from Israel.
Citing ''actors in the sector who know the subject well'' Israel's Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported that the Israeli company Cellebrite, which offers forensic mobile phone services to major law enforcement agencies abroad, helped the FBI in its efforts to crack the phone's security. It had signed a contract with the US law enforcement agency in 2013, Yedioth reported.
Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, shot dead 14 people in their attack on an office Christmas gathering in San Bernardino, California, on 2 December. They were killed in a shootout with police later the same day. Farooks iPhone was subsequently recovered from a black Lexus that was parked outside his home in nearby Redlands.
In its legal battle with Apple, the FBI has insisted it needed to unlock the phone to determine whether the couple had contact with terrorist groups or individuals.
Cellebrite did not respond to questions, and the FBI has also not commented on the reports. But some are convinced. Achiam Alter, manager for Cyber Security at the Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute, told the Independent: ''I personally think that these reports are accurate.''
But whether or not they are borne out, the reports are focusing attention on Israel's cyber security sector, which, drawing on a talented manpower pool including army cyber warfare veterans, is positioning to become a world-leading industry. Last year the sector reached a record $3.5 billion (2.46bn) in exports according to government figures and there has been an accelerating trend in recent years of foreign firms, including British ones, purchasing Israeli companies and building hubs in Israel. Within this overall growth Cellebrite is expanding and last year added seventy workers to its team.
According to Haaretz's economic section, the Marker, Cellebrite develops capabilities to extract from a mobile phone not only pictures, contacts and SMS histories but also information about GPS locations and even information the user erased or thought was erased. The company has technology enabling it to restore information from ''phones that have been completely destroyed, burned or thrown into water,'' says Haaretz.
The military connection is vital to understanding the capability of the Israeli cyber security industry and companies like Cellebrite, although government backing and universities also play a role. Screening for the army tech units that provide young Israelis with vital cyber experience starts as young as fifteen - three years before actual enlistment. ''The difference between Israel and the US and UK is that we have mandatory military service,'' says Gadi Tirosh, Managing Partner of Jerusalem Venture Partners, a venture capital firm focusing on cyber security. ''This means the military has access to the best talent. You have technical units with the best hands on experience and education, people being trained on the job.''
In its recruiting Cellebrite has put an emphasis on drawing young veterans of unit 8200, the military's large signal intelligence unit that gathers data on Israel's enemies - and likely its friends - and engages in Cyber warfare. Three years ago, the company named as its deputy director general Amir Lahar, a veteran of six years in 8200 who, according to the company, steered a range of projects there.
It was another 8200 veteran, Gil Shwed, CEO of the Tel Aviv based Check Point company, who developed Fire-Wall-1, one of the first protection solutions for Internet-connected computers.
Israel's military industries draw on the battle tested nature of their equipment as a selling point abroad. Likewise, Israel's high tech industry is now engaged in branding Israeli cyber brainpower as having the edge of being battle tested. ''Israel is at the front line of cyber warfare and when you are at the front line you get to learn quite a bit,'' Mr Tirosh says. ''We've been attacked by all kinds of nation states, countries like Iran are actively engaged in attacking Israel through Cyber warfare and being able to detect and defend against these attacks puts you at the forefront of cyber technology.''
Jonathan Medved, CEO of the Jerusalem based OurCrowd, which backs startups in raising money from investors adds: ''The bottom line is the army is expected to do phenomenal work under huge pressure with short delivery times and it's got to work. If it doesn't there is a real risk. Being in that environment is very positive training for going into the commercial world where you have to work fast and get products done but the stakes are less high.''
Israel's young army tech veterans, Mr Medved says, ''are people who come with the most relevant and best kind of training. Would you rather rely for your cyber security on someone from such a unit or someone who came out of university?''
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Every day, our travel correspondent Simon Calder tackles your questions. Just email s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder
Q I'm planning to get to Cuba before the Americans take over. Is May a good time?
A No. The heat and humidity are rising ahead of the Caribbean storm season, which usually begins in June and continues to early November. You may also find that air fares are rising. Far better to wait until late November, in my view easily the best time to be in Cuba: the weather is usually sunny and fresh, the tourist crowds have abated and you can find good-value air fares and package-holiday prices. While it is certainly true that the number of US visitors is increasing rapidly, and outbidding the Europeans for accommodation, if you sign up for a trip organised by a British tour operator in November I believe you will have a smooth, good-value and fascinating trip. Meanwhile, if you want a cultured, beautiful and friendly island in May - let me recommend Malta, Madeira, Mallorca, Sicily or Crete. They are all perfect at that time of year.
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With no Doctor Who on television at Easter for the first time since the Late Cretaceous, and having found the key to the Tardis in the pocket of an old coat, I thought I would do my own time travel. Let me take you to Friday 8 May 2020, just to see how Boris Johnson is getting on.
Strangely enough, the former Prime Minister has just been accosted by journalists, coming out of his north London house, and is blustering away. He refused to answer questions about the confusing financial scandal that prompted him to resign in 2019 or whether he hoped to return to government. I have only one thing to say, he said, and then, if you dont mind, I shall return to the bosom of my family. I want to congratulate Mark Harper on his thumping victory in yesterdays election and to offer him my unconditional support.
It would not take the time-traveller long to discover, by reading the digital newspapers, that Harper had been returned as Prime Minister with the largest Conservative majority since Margaret Thatchers in 1983. The blue-collar message from the state-school-educated Tory the same message that had carried him to victory in the Tory leadership election against Michael Gove, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the previous year had crushed a confused and divided Labour Party.
As is traditional, Labour sentimentalists were full of admiration for the way the Labour leader, Heidi Alexander, had fought the hopeless fight. Indeed, since she had defeated Jeremy Corbyn six months ago, in the fourth Labour leadership election in four years, she had showed great skill in neither fully renouncing nor standing by her predecessors programme.
Much was made of Sir David Butlers assessment that, on the new parliamentary boundaries, she had probably saved Labour 100 seats. However, she had already resigned and Fritter, the new social media craze, was full of speculation that Wes Streeting, the shadow chancellor, was about to announce that he would be a candidate to succeed her.
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At this point I would be trying to avoid the pitying glances as I struggle with a primitive iPhone. Fortunately, the Tardis has upgraded the software and I could Google the EU referendum of 2016. Thought so, I tell myself, as I discover that the British people voted to leave the EU by a tiny majority, a figure that was right in the middle of the wide range of opinion-poll estimates.
Afterwards, all the pundits who had confidently predicted that the fundamentals were in David Camerons favour said that they had always thought that the triple whammy of the euro meltdown, the refugee crisis and the terrorist attacks would be decisive. Just for fun, I looked up the article I had written in April 2016, in which I pointed out that polling by James Morris of Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research found that, as voters are exposed to the arguments, they become more likely to say they intend to vote Leave.
From there it was fairly easy to trace the chain of events to the Conservative leadership election in September, in which Boris Johnson defeated Stephen Crabb, and the endless stories about the new Prime Ministers negotiation of the terms of the UKs departure from the EU in 2018. Within a year, of course, everyone complained that the economy was going down the toilet and that immigration was out of control. Opinion polls suggested that, if there were another referendum, people would vote to rejoin the EU.
Tory party members, though, adored Prime Minister Johnson, even when, or perhaps the more so because, he unintentionally insulted President Clinton at the White House. The surreal exchanges between Johnson and Corbyn at Prime Ministers Questions became a cult internet hit in the huge new online market in India.
For a while, Corbyn enjoyed a boost to his popularity. In December 2016 he was re-elected as leader against a challenge from Jamie Reed, the Blairite MP, with an increased share of the vote. But, after Johnson was forced to stand down a year before the general election, and was replaced by Harper, the popular Health Secretary, Labours poll rating dropped to the low 20s. Each year, a different candidate stepped forward to challenge Corbyn, and in 2019 Heidi Alexander, who had been Harpers shadow at Health, finally succeeded.
Harper had been lucky to be in the right place at the time when Johnsons financial scandal broke. As Chief Whip after the 2015 election, he had learned how to count, he said, and understood the interplay of faction, interest and ideology among Tory MPs. He benefited from the rosy glow of not being Jeremy Hunt when he became Health Secretary, and paradoxically from Goves generosity as Chancellor in fully funding the New Deal for Doctors.
By the summer of 2019, Tory divisions over Europe had started to heal, and Harper had led those who sounded more enthusiastic about making Brexit work than some of the Outers. His coded attack on Camerons long-running sulk the British people are never wrong came at just the right time.
Then the Tardis started making that funny noise, and I didnt even have time to get that weeks lottery numbers.
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A letter-writer in a national magazine in Britain recently demanded one example of a good British intervention in the Middle East. My reply cited two: the liberation of Kuwait and the no-fly zone over the Kurdistan region. Tuesday 5 April is the 25th anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 688 which enabled the no-fly zone and protected the Kurds for 12 years.
Two million Kurds who fled from Saddam Hussein's air force to the mountains overlooking Turkey and Iran then returned home from their frozen and barren eyrie to rebuild society. British public opinion was crucial in answering appeals for blankets and food and encouraging British action. My small role was helping persuade Iran to provide a 747 to take such supplies to the Kurds.
The British Prime Minister, John Major, was also shocked and persuaded his Cabinet to support action by coincidence on Kurdish new year in 1991 and then took the lead internationally. He deserves credit for persuading George HW Bush's reluctant administration to police the zone despite enforcing aircraft being shot at almost every day by Saddam.
The current Chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Kurdistan Region, Jason McCartney MP, was an RAF officer who visited Kurdish villages to reassure people that overhead planes were friendly. Those who served have every reason to be proud of what they did.
The Kurds had every reason to fear Saddam would resume his genocidal campaign. Instead, they were able to embrace democracy, and establish many new universities. Despite the harsh impact of sanctions enforced by the UN and by Saddam, and their own bloody civil war, they laid the foundations for a dynamic society that took off when Saddam was overthrown in 2003. Both Sir John Major and Tony Blair are widely revered in the Kurdistan region.
This success story should make those who believe that our involvement with Iraq has been an unmitigated disaster think again. Liberal intervention averted genocide and saved the Kurds. They now play a pivotal role in helping roll back Daesh, whose forces face them along a 650 mile front with daily fighting. The Kurds have, with western air strikes, secured their territory and will help push against Daesh in Mosul.
But their biggest enemy is now what one Kurdistani MP calls their economic heart attack. The cost of war and the strain of hosting nearly two million refugees and internally displaced people have combined in a perfect storm with the oil price slump, and an unsympathetic government in Baghdad cutting off budget payments.
Vast and fast economic growth has spluttered to a halt with civil servants enduring pay arrears and cuts. The cranes on city skylines that once symbolised massive investment in infrastructure are still while unemployment and poverty have soared.
In 10 years of fact-finding visits to Kurdistan, I have seen a massive disconnect in attitudes to liberal intervention between Kurdistan and the UK. The Kurds will fight for their survival and will get through, having suffered much worse in their history. They share western values of democracy, tolerance and pluralism though they have major political divisions to overcome in unpromising conditions and they embraced British intervention. Many British people despair about such intervention because they see it through the prism of the Iraq war in 2003 deemed a disaster here but a liberation in Kurdistan.
The lack of appetite for interventions including, if necessary, the use of combat troops will prolong the rule of Daesh. In an over-reaction to Iraq 2003 we are neglecting the great good we did in 1991 and in 2003, despite the errors of the occupation, and could yet do.
We need a nuanced approach to British foreign policy in the Middle East rather than cherry-picking to sustain a general theory. I could, for example, focus on Sykes-Picot, the secret agreement between representatives of British and French imperialism that led through twists and turns to denying Kurdish nationhood, and selfishly carving up countries. Or how great powers cynically used Kurds as pawns in the Cold War. Or how the West saw the monstrous Iran-Iraq war as one between two four-letter countries that they hoped would exhaust each other. Or the willingness, even when Saddam's genocide was known, to sell arms to Iraq. In the balance, however, must be the decision to save the Kurds.
The anniversary allows us to reflect on that and on how to help the Kurds we saved to save themselves, and on how to construct stronger secular politics and economic dynamism that can defeat Daesh, and ensure it is not reinvented in some new form. Major's successors should also be brave and far-sighted. The West does our friends no favours by believing we can never do the right thing.
Gary Kent is director of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Kurdistan Region. This article is adapted from Rudaw, the Kurdish media network
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While David Cameron was in Washington for the Nuclear Security Summit, it may well have struck him that this was one of his last visits to Barack Obamas America. In only seven months time, someone else will be sitting in the Oval Office and both the Prime Minister and most other Western leaders surely do not want it to be the erratic and isolationist Donald Trump.
Mr Trump, in predictably loose-tongued mode, fired off another of his hastily improvised foreign policy announcements during the summit, saying it would be no bad thing if Japan and South Korea obtained nuclear weapons. They should start defending themselves; everyone has nuclear weapons days, the Republican mused, so why not the South Koreans? Mr Trump doesnt know much about foreign policy or nuclear policy or the Korean Peninsula or the world generally, Mr Obama responded.
The prospect of a Trump America distant as that remains slamming the door, retreating behind fences and leaving the rest of world to do what it wants, as long as it does not directly affect America, is the stuff of nightmares for leaders in Europe, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Israel and elsewhere. They have all spent so long sheltering under Americas strong arm that the prospect of that arm disappearing is traumatic. Whatever they or we think of the disastrous invasion of Iraq, or of Americas highhandedness generally, the idea of it abdicating its role as the worlds policeman is every bit as disturbing as the collapse of the Roman Empire to the civilised world was some 1,700 years ago.
Mr Trump has tapped into a deep vein in America with his talk of retreat and consolidation, however. Many Americans are feeling pessimistic and blame their countrys vast foreign commitments for a host of domestic ills, from the neglect of manufacturing to the so-called hollowing-out of the middle class. Whether these phenomena are truly connected is another matter, but there are plenty of hearers for Mr Trumps message that America must look after itself, not the world.
For all that, Mr Trumps chances of taking the White House, assuming he wins the Republican nomination, remain almost non-existent. Not one poll puts him within a mile of the probable Democrat nominee, Hillary Clinton. His ratings among minorities, women and the under-thirties are dire. Moreover, with another Clinton at the helm, it will be business as usual for Western leaders. Indeed, she will engage with them more willingly than did Obama, who initially talked enthusiastically about leading a strategic shift away from the Atlantic and 'Old Europe' towards the Pacific.
In reality, this great sea-change never happened. Mr Obama kept America out of Syria and was far less trigger-happy than most pre-Trump Republicans would have liked, over Ukraine especially. Yet, as his second term draws to a close, America remains just as stuck with its old entanglements and its old alliances as when he came to office. In the autumn of his presidency he is poised to bolster the presence of US forces in Iraq in the hope of nudging the Iraqi army into the ISIS-held city of Mosul. So much for the Asian Pivot.
Of course, the unthinkable could happen in November. Over the campaign, Mr Trump could miraculously mend fences with all the domestic constituencies that he has alienated and the Democrats could implode. However, even if Mr Trump wins and it is a huge if he will not be the political reincarnation of Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, the two Republican presidents most closely twinned with the idea of American isolationism.
For America to be isolated in the 1920s meant little more than not joining the League Nations. Almost a century on, pulling up the drawbridge will not be so simple.
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In my lifetime I have seen a nation that once governed an Empire, ruled the waves and manufactured everything from knives and forks to great ocean going liners, reduced to little more than a satellite of the bureaucrats of Brussels.
Over the years, various governments have sold the family jewels for short term expediency and allowed great names in British manufacturing to be purchased by foreign companies, usually for the benefit of the board and shareholders.
Today, we no longer own the railways, the ports, the utility companies and many great names from our past such as Cunard. Now the steel industry is in trouble and the Government has a meeting to say all avenues are open, except nationalisation.
When the banks were in trouble, the Government did not hesitate; it acted immediately and saved the situation. Where are the politicians with the necessary nerves of steel who should immediately step forward and save our last great industry? Have they considered for just one moment the seriousness of this country depending for its steel from overseas?
When the railways were in trouble, they hired Dr Beeching, who decimated our once wonderful railway network. Other countries, experiencing the same problems, decided just to mothball some railway lines because they may be needed in years to come.
Our politicians are incapable of thinking years ahead. They consider only the next election and their job. In years to come, historians looking at the record of this country will be amazed at how much we have lost. After some simple research, blame will be placed fairly and squarely on the shoulders of politicians who could see no further than the noses on their faces.
Colin Bower
Nottingham
Obama's nuclear legacy is disappointing
Hosting a nuclear security forum of world leaders offers President Obama a rare opportunity to follow through on his earlier pledge to reduce the stockpile of nuclear weapons. Thus far, his efforts have been disappointing. According to the Federation of American Scientists, Obamas record has been abysmal compared to earlier presidents.
Surprisingly, President George Bush achieved a 50 per cent nuclear stockpile reduction during his tenure, a percentage higher than all other presidents since 1945. Comparatively, Obama has achieved a disappointing 10 per cent reduction of 507 warheads.
In his 2009 foreign policy address in Prague, Obama pledged to seek a world without nuclear weapons. In 2011 he achieved a groundbreaking treaty with Russia which mandated significant nuclear weapons stockpile reductions and inspection verification protocols. Since taking office Obama has persuaded the international community to reduce their stockpiles. But, following the 2011 treaty, the momentum has been lost.
His administration has slashed the National Nuclear Security Administration non-proliferation budget by $339m. To appease a Congress hostile to the treaty, he pledged a significant increase in weapons modernization to the tune of $1tn over 30 years.
This is a tragic mistake. Obama could do far more to fulfill his Prague promise before his term expires.
Jagjit Singh
Los Altos, California
EU membership is at odds with British values
The warning from the Bishop of London about the danger of the government promoting its ill-defined "British values", whether in the context of schools or elsewhere, is to be welcomed. We need a well-informed spiritual input to other aspects of the government's wider agenda.
We are regularly reminded by David Cameron and others that the spiritual foundation of this country is a Judeo-Christian one. Why then is the government looking to further embed this nation into a direction that Europe, with its non-democratic, humanist and pluralist philosophies, is leading, rather than supporting the Brexit campaign?
J Longstaff
Buxted
Corbyn's Britain would be equal to Trump's America
The achievements of the Blair and Brown Governments were fully supported by all members of the present Shadow Cabinet. Some of them opposed other aspects of those Governments programmes. That opposition has been vindicated by events.
Jeremy Corbyn has brought world class economists into the British political debate for the first time in 35 years. He has ended the hegemony of neoconservative foreign policy. He has forced the media to include the left-wing critique of the European Union. He has broken the silence around the renewal of Trident, which was not discussed in England at the 2015 General Election. He has exposed this Prime Ministers ties to Saudi Arabia, the centre of global terrorism.
Under any of last years other Leadership candidates, Labour would not have opposed the cuts that have caused Iain Duncan Smith to resign. Tom Watsons Deputy Leadership makes Corbyns a balanced ticket. Corbyns Britain would be a significant counterweight to the America of Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Hillary Clinton or, although he is the best of the bunch, Bernie Sanders.
With the SNP expected to win most of the constituency seats at Holyrood, all opponents of any one or more of George Osbornes failed austerity programme, of neoconservative wars, of Trident, and of the Saudi regime, ought to give Labour their list votes. The Labour lead in Wales is welcome, and a riposte to Lynton Crosbys propaganda. At the English local elections, now that the Liberal Democrats have collapsed, Labour is the only way to vote against cuts to jobs, services and amenities.
David Lindsay
Lanchester, Co Durham
Campaigning for May's Holyrood elections, Nicola Sturgeon tells us she believes Scotland will be independent within her lifetime. Let us all wish her longevity.
Martin Redfern
Edinburgh
Refugee crisis requires rational thought
Oxfam, while commending the UK's outstanding financial contribution to supporting Syrian refugees in Lebanon and Jordan, has condemned our resistance to settling substantial numbers of such refugees here. There is at least some recognition in this that these are both approaches to the same problem. Isn't it reasonable then that money for the two strategies should come out of the same pot?
This raises the question of how to share out that finite resource. What would be the ethical basis for our directing higher per capita spending to refugees in the UK than those in Lebanon or Jordan, or maintaining them in less austere conditions?
The emotional basis is one of narcissism; that the significance of suffering depends upon how visible it is to us, because we are the centre of moral universe. But this can cut little ice with those who lose out under such an arrangement.
There is a social argument that provision for refugees here must be comparable with local living standards. Yet we are told that supporting migrants at the lower end of the economic spectrum has been the root cause of intense and violent disaffection in France and Belgian. If this is to be avoided by rapidly integrating them across that spectrum of affluence then the diversion of funds from the great majority kept on survival rations at a distance becomes so damaging as to be morally indefensible.
If, instead, we take an ethical position of even handedness in allocating resources then we may find we have removed the incentive to come here.
John Riseley
Harrogate
National Living Wage has unintended consequences
Yet another Tory con: the introduction of the Living Wage. A little has been commented on the burden on employers. Lots has been written on the so called benefits for the working class. But the millions who will benefit from their rise in pay may also be hit by a higher National Insurance levy and an increase in tax deductions. Who loses? The people who employ the workers. Who wins? The Treasury mandarins.
Terry Duncan
Bridlington
The jokes we'll never write...
While it was bad enough to read that the comic genius Ronnie Corbett has died, even worse was the news that he was to be knighted in the Queen's Birthday Honours List. All those jokes that the headline writers can't now make about 'the shortest (k)night of the year'. Makes you want to cry.
Colin Burke
Manchester
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You may not like him. Indeed you may flat-out loathe him. But if youre into politics as a craft, youve got to admit it. Senator Ted Cruz is running a terrific presidential campaign.
Consider where he was when he announced the first Republican candidate to do so back on 23 March last year. He was a long shot, an ultra-conservative who had engineered a deeply unpopular government shutdown, and on the Senate floor had called his own majority leader a liar. His colleagues couldnt stand him (and mostly still cant).
Yet here he is. Of the 17 original contenders for the Republican nomination, Cruz is one of just three still standing. Hes the closest rival of Donald Trump, and poised to secure a win in Wisconsins massively important primary on Tuesday. Trump, meanwhile, is coming off the worst week yet in his campaign, on the wrong end of a string of controversies and beset by growing evidence that he would lead Republicans to disaster in November.
A shellshocked party establishment casts around for a saviour. And who do their eyes light upon? Their erstwhile nemesis Ted Cruz.
On paper, Cruz is one of them. He had an Ivy League education at Princeton and Havard Law School. He worked for the George W. Bushs Justice Department in Washington, and is a US Senator. What could be more establishment? Cruz, however, sensing early on what would be the driving emotion in this astonishing election cycle, has pitched himself as a man against the traditional order.
But thats not the main reason why so many of his fellow Republicans in the Senate detest him. Rather, its his arrogance, his naked ambition, and his abiding obsession with himself. Why, runs a quip, do people take an instant dislike to Ted Cruz? Because it saves time.
Cruz reminds one of Denis Healeys line on David Owen, as the former chancellor reflected on Labours civil wars of the 1980s. The good doctor, said Healey, was blessed with pretty much everything you need for success in politics: handsome looks, charisma and high intelligence. Alas, along came the bad fairy, who tapped him on the shoulder and said, But you'll be a shit.
The curled lip semi-sneer that seems his default expression clearly bars Cruz from matinee idol status. But hes a brilliant debater, lightning quick on his feet, and with a mind like a laser. The problem is that, for his Senate colleagues, the bad fairy was spot on.
Indeed, the bad impressions stretch back a long way. Craig Mazin, an old roomate of Cruz at Princeton has said publicly that he would rather have anybody else as president of the United States: Anyone. I would rather pick somebody from the phone book.
Most revealing has been the behaviour of Lindsey Graham, another leading Republican Senator who himself was briefly in the White House race. In February he joked that, if Cruz were murdered on the Senate floor and the Senate held the trial, there would be no conviction. But now even Graham is holding his nose and reluctantly backing his colleague as the last best hope of staving off a Trumpian apocalypse.
Cruz, of course, has had some luck along the way. The candidacy of Rand Paul, another Republican Senator with an anti-establishment message, never caught on. Meanwhile he just had to watch as Trump steam-rollered into oblivion most of the establishment candidates not just Jeb Bush, but also Marco Rubio, once seen as Cruzs most probable rival in a two-man Cuban-American showdown for the nomination.
But skilful politicians make their own luck. Long before he announced, Cruz had his game plan to win the White House. It was posited on the theory, contested by many experts but not disproven, that the key to victory is bringing to the polls the missing millions of white voters who passed on 2012 and the uninspiring candidacy of Mitt Romney. Forget courting independents or even Hispanics (his hard line on immigration had made Cruz few friends in that community). The priority was to mobilise the base.
Next came money. In the so-called invisible primary of fundraising he raised more than anyone except Bush. His finances secure, he then had to knock out rivals vying for conservative and evangelical support, vital in places like Iowa, the first state to vote. To this end, he built a ground organisation recalling that of Barack Obama in 2008, with campaign chairmen in every county of key early voting states.
CRUZ -HOW LOW WILL SLEEZY TRUMP GO- (2-25-16).mp4
Cruz duly won the Iowa caucuses. Separately, he studiously avoided confrontation with Trump and Ben Carson, another non-politician in the field who was then high in the polls. His calculation was that, assuming they dropped out, Cruz would pick up a fair chunk of their support. As much seems to have happened already with Carson. And all the while, he was running by far the best ground game of any candidate, already looking ahead to a convention where no-one entered with a majority of delegates, and where mastery of procedure would be crucial.
Thats why, thanks to knowing the local rules inside out, Cruz may emerge from Louisiana whose primary was won by Trump with the largest number of delegates. And thats why you can be certain his campaign is already doing its utmost to ensure that as many convention delegates as possible are sympathetic to their man. These may be pledged to another candidate in the first ballot, but after that they are no longer bound, and all bets are off.
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And so to Wisconsin. The inevitable clash with Trump has come, culminating in the squalid battle of the wives, in which Cruz earned at least a draw. But that is now overtaken by new rows, over the property moguls views on abortion, and his refusal to sack his campaign manager charged with manhandling and bruising a female reporter.
Just maybe, we are approaching the moment when the Trump express finally plunges off the rails. But whatever his sins, Trump has indisputably brought fresh voters to the polls, including Republicans who sat out 2012 exactly the people Cruz seeks to galvanise this time around. Trump may have done the Texas senators work for him.
Cruz is still the underdog. Every pundit says hes too conservative to win a general election. Bookmakers, not opinion polls, are the most reliable forecasters and PredictIt, which operates a leading predictions market, has Trump at 43 cents (the amount you must bet to win $1), and Cruz at 34 cents, to be the Republican nominee.
As for President Ted Cruz, thats an even longer shot, at just 14 cents (Hillary Clinton, the strong favourite, is at 60 cents). Right now, though, why not set personal and ideological misgivings aside and watch a real political pro at work?
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It is a sign of the changes that have occurred in the way British society views same-sex relationships that Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdales casual remark that her partner is a woman has caused no more than a ripple.
Scroll back a few years and such an admission would have been a death blow to even the most promising political career. That is why, in the sad-old, bad-old, days, so many gay politicians had to equip themselves with an understanding wife (for they were mostly men) to keep speculation about their sexuality at bay. Ms Dugdale, meanwhile, has received nothing but praise from her fellow country-men and women, thanking them for their lovely messages of support.
The underwhelming response to Ms Dugdales sotto voce disclosure is a reminder that, as being lesbian, gay or bisexual becomes less and less noteworthy, the whole business of coming out as an important rite of passage is starting to fade and lose its significance. In that vein, the next episode of the Simpsons features a form of non-coming-out by Springfield resident Waylon Smithers, whose unspoken, unrequited love for his boss Mr Burns has been a long-running theme of the show. Simpsons writer Rob LaZebnik said they had decided against a big moment of 'Im out and had gone for just big a big embrace - like everyone knows it."
In the meantime, Ms Dugdale joins a veritable line-up of gay leaders in tartan. The Scottish Tory leader, Ruth Davidson, the Scottish Green leader, Patrick Harvie, and the Scottish UKIP leader, David Coburn, are all out LGB, making Scotland the only country in the world where most big parties are led by gays, lesbians or bisexuals.
It is an ironic development in the land that brought forth the fire-breathing Calvinist John Knox and which once was famous, or notorious, for its puritanism. Some traditions, however, are best laid to rest. The fact that most Scots clearly do not see Ms Dugdales remarks about her private life as news at all is, in a way, the best news.
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On Monday the National Assembly for Wales will meet, following my official request for a recall. There is no doubt in my mind that the steel crisis constitutes an exceptional circumstance, and I wanted to give the opportunity for all political parties to discuss this openly, and ask questions of us as a Government.
Its perhaps unrealistic, this close to a Welsh General Election, to expect Wales to speak with one voice on this issue. There are genuine disagreements about the best way forward. But the country will be looking to us for leadership and action, not point scoring and finger pointing. It is important that we rise to this challenge.
I have been an Assembly member since the outset of devolution, and this is without doubt one of the biggest crises we have faced in that time. I was there as Minister for Agriculture during the Foot and Mouth crisis, when a whole industry was threatened. Those images of burning pyres are seared into my mind, as they are many others. But we got through that, working together for Wales.
Today, we are looking at another crisis and as in 2001, we need a UK Government working with the Welsh Government to make this work.
I grew up a few short miles away from the Port Talbot steelworks, and I know how this industry has shaped communities across Wales in Llanwern, Shotton in North Wales and Trostre in Llanelli.
I dont want to talk about the history, rich though it is. I want to talk about an industry that deserves a future in this country. We are talking about plants that have, at different times in the last 12 months, all broken even or turned a profit. Things at Port Talbot have become tougher of late, due to the global conditions we all understand, but this is a cyclical industry. I want to reassure the workers and the surrounding communities that were not sitting on our hands. No one has defended the steel industry more than the Welsh Government and we will continue to do so.
But, I want to be honest and to say there are some things we cannot do. We cannot nationalise the steel industry in Wales. Even if we hard the powers and resources to do it, this isnt what the trades unions are asking for they know that this isnt a reasonable, or sustainable solution for steel in Wales. What we do support, along with the unions, is state intervention at UK level.
When the banks went bust, Gordon Brown stepped in. He was bold. He did what prime ministers need to do in those situations, and whatever judgements history will make of his premiership, nobody will ever deny that he made the right call at that time. We need some of that boldness from the UK Government today. Having supported the banks, there is a moral, economic and strategic case to do the same for steel.
For our part, we made a financial package available to Tata Steel to support a turnaround plan and that package is potentially still available depending on a buyer coming forward. Or we are ready to work with the UK Government on an alternative plan. I know that steel has a future in the UK, and it the industry will not fail for a want of effort and support from Welsh Government.
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It is important to note that we have not just been jolted into action in the last few days. The Welsh Government has been working closely with the steel industry for many years and we are very aware of the challenges facing the sector. In recent years, we developed support based around those things that are within our gift, from research and development, skills and training, to aid for environmental protection.
We have supported both Tata and Celsa with tailor made packages including training and skills interventions that are recognised by industry and unions at UK scale as being best practice. Just this month we also established an additional Enterprise Zone in Wales covering Port Talbot. This sends an important signal, creating a growth environment for established and new businesses.
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We have had a good relationship with Tata Steel. Ive met with them in Mumbai and I had a frank and open discussion with them lasting some 30 minutes earlier this week. During the conversation, I questioned the timescale of the sale process and called on the compnay to allow for months, not weeks, to secure a sale. I sought assurances that Tata would keep operations going during the sale process. Tata was unable to confirm this but provided assurances that it would keep assets in a saleable condition to give the best chance for a buyer to come forward. Most importantly, I emphasised the need for Tata Steel to demonstrate its corporate responsibility to the country and our workers.
We have faced tough times before, and we will always stand in solidarity with our brilliant, skilled workforce and with our communities. We will continue to work tirelessly to look at all viable options to keep a strong British steel industry at the heart of our manufacturing base. With the right support, we can help ensure that steel has a sustainable future in Wales.
We stand ready; it is now time to see a bold vision from the UK Government.
Carwyn Jones is First Minister of Wales
George Best Belfast City Airport is about to be sold as part of a deal worth nearly 500million the Belfast Telegraph can reveal.
The international fund which owns the airport is on the verge of selling up to another consortium.
A spokesman for the airport said it would not be commenting on the deal.
Current owners Eiser Global Infrastructure Fund, based in London, bought the airport for 132.5m in 2008.
They are thought to have spent around 20m on improvements over the last eight years.
Now a consortium led by 3i Infrastructure is expected to make a final binding offer over the next few weeks.
According to news service InfraNews, the consortium is expected to pay around 600m (480,769,000) for the fund, which also includes UK gas business ESP Utilities, Spanish road company Autovias de Peaje en Sombar and Spanish solar firm ASTE.
3i had made a non-binding offer for the fund late last year but refused to comment on the latest developments in the process.
"I'm afraid we don't comment on speculation regarding our future intentions," it said. Eiser also refused to comment on the deal.
It took control of ABN AMRO, which bought the airport from former Spanish owners Ferrovial Group. Ferrovial had paid 35m for the airport in 2003.
More than 2.6 million people used Belfast City Airport last year - an increase of 5.4% on 2014, according to figures from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
In 2015, numbers using rival Belfast International Airport were up 8.9% to almost 4.4 million. Belfast City has links to sun destinations like Faro, Palma, Malaga and Alicante.
UK regional airline Flybe is its biggest airline tenant, while British Airways, Aer Lingus and Dutch airline KLM also fly from it. BA sister airline Vueling withdrew last year after running a Barcelona route for less than a year.
Belgian airline Brussels Airlines last month launched a flight to Brussels from the airport.
There are also two direct Heathrow flights operated by Aer Lingus and British Airways and a London City Airport link by Flybe.
The consortium which is expected to bid for the airport and other assets is made up of 3i, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and other institutional investors.
Speaking earlier this year, Belfast City Airport chief executive Brian Ambrose said he hoped the airport would reach 4 million passengers annually within the next decade. He said he was not bruised by the decision of Ryanair to set up in Belfast International Airport, six years after withdrawing from Belfast City after a dispute over a runway extension.
"We believe that even with that new competition we will continue to grow," Mr Ambrose said.
GROWTH in the Irish economy will continue at a robust rate into 2017, the Central Bank has forecast, but risks including a UK exit from the European Union could scupper projections.
If Britain does vote to go-it-alone in June it will damage the economy here, the Central Bank thinks.
"It's unambiguous. The effect would be negative on the Irish economy," chief economist Gabriel Fagan said yesterday.
The real growth rate in the Irish economy is around half the 7.8pc level of gross domestic product (GDP) quoted in official statistics, according to the Central Bank's Quarterly Bulletin.
That assessment confirms the view of many economists who say Ireland's officially world-beating growth statistics are massively exaggerated.
The Central Bank revised up its forecast for GDP growth this year to 5.1pc, but adjusted expectations for 2017 down slightly.
Stripping out factors such as buying and selling of aeroplanes by firms based here, the true pace of growth was 4pc last year, and likely to be the same in 2016, it said.
Growth in the domestic economy will continue at the same pace in 2016, assuming Ireland's relationship with Britain continues unchanged, officials said. Domestic demand not exports is now the main driver of growth, and the jobs recovery is probably the most significant driver of that, according to the report.
With debt still high and true growth lower than the headline GDP figures suggest the bank said an incoming government will need to adhere to European budget rules and ensure progress towards a balanced budget by 2018. With wages now rising across much of the economy, and strong demand from any sections for further increases, the Central Bank called for moderation.
The latest overview of the economy points to a generally positive outlook, but that excludes unknown risks, including the potential impact if Britain votes to leave the European Union.
Data from specialist bank Investec yesterday showed that Ireland is so far shrugging off any headwinds already from the so-called Brexit debate in the UK.
Investec's Manufacturing PMI for Ireland showed an uptick in the rate of growth in March, with jobs up on the back of strong new order, including from Britain.
That's despite pressure from a cheaper pound sterling.
Headline PMI tracks growth on a scale either side of 50, where 51 shows an increase and 49 a decline.
It registered at 54.9, an eight-month high, in March.
Job creation accelerated for the third month in a row to the fastest since July 2015.
Investec's Philip O'Sullivan said the results mean that so far at least, Ireland is weathering the Brexit risk storm.
"Our mantra for some time has been that 'Ireland will not be immune to any slowdown in international trade'.
"However, with the sequence of growth in the Quantity of Purchases index now extending to 26 months and firms continuing to recruit staff, it is clear that Irish manufacturers are confident that they can safely navigate through choppier waters," he said.
RTE chair Moya Doherty, Miriam OCallaghan, Dee Forbes and INM Group Business Editor Dearbhail McDonald at the Women In Media conference in Ballybunion
She commutes from London to west Cork on a weekly basis, describes Munster Rugby as her first passion, and refuses to open work emails at the weekend - meet RTE's new director general.
Dee Forbes will be the first woman to hold the most senior role in RTE after the State broadcaster's board recommended the appointment of Discovery Channel Europe's managing director.
The 47-year-old grew up in Drimoleague in west Cork, where her family ran a pub.
She helped her mum run the family's East End Bar, while her father taught at Ardscoil Phobail in Bantry. The Cork woman is close to her siblings Eamonn and Aideen, who continue to live in Ireland.
She has previously spoken about how her childhood included memories of 'standing on crates and washing glasses' when she was about six years old - and gave her a great grounding in hard work and dealing with people.
She and her partner own a seaside home in Glandore, with the businesswoman commuting from her London office to her Cork home every weekend. She stressed how she keeps her home life very removed from her hectic work life, praising west Cork for allowing her to recharge her batteries each week.
"I try to keep my weekends sacred," she previously told the The Southern Star, adding that her team have an informal rule that no emails or texts should be sent at weekends, with phonecalls made only if something is urgent.
After finishing school in the convent in Clonakilty, Ms Forbes went on to UCD where she studied politics and history. But she spent her summers at home working in the pub.
She found her true passion while fundraising for college societies and approaching businesses for advertising for publications. After a week of work experience at an agency in Dublin, she opted for a career in advertising and moved to London in 1989 at the age of 21.
Going for her first job, she was asked about her experience in selling advertising, and pointed out the thousands of pints she had sold over the counter in west Cork.
She started working at Young & Rubicam, dealing with clients such as TWA and Johnston & Johnston. She later moved to media consultancy Media Audits and helped open a Dublin office.
But after a mentor told her the future was in television, she took "a leap of faith" and moved to Turner Broadcasting, where she spent 14 years in a range of roles, including head of advertising sales for Europe and general manager in the UK and Ireland.
In 2010, she joined Discovery Networks and is currently president and managing director of the Western Europe division, covering 27 TV brands in 18 markets.
Despite her hectic work schedule she is a non-executive director of 'The Irish Times' and is also on the board of Munster Rugby, which she describes as her first passion in life.
"Although it was a tough professional decision to leave Discovery, the personal decision to return to Ireland and lead its biggest broadcaster, RTE, is an opportunity of a lifetime," she said yesterday.
Her appointment as director general is expected to be ratified by the acting government next week after a meeting of the RTE board yesterday.
Ms Forbes will replace the current director general Noel Curran, who is due to step down from the role next month after serving for five years.
Chair of RTE's board, Moya Doherty, said she was delighted to announce the appointment, adding: "Not only is this the first director general in almost 50 years to be appointed externally, but she will also be the first female to hold the role."
Joan O'Connor, chairperson of Women in Media, said she was "thrilled" with the appointment.
Britain's special relationship with China is becoming more expensive by the day. It now threatens to destroy the British steel industry, a foundation pillar of its manufacturing economy.
Britain is not alone. Most of Europe's steel foundries are heading for annihilation under the current EU trade regime, with unthinkable consequences through the network of European and British supply chains.
It is hard to pin down the moment when British Chancellor George Osborne's love affair with China turned into a Faustian Pact.
What we know is that the British government has for the last three years been blocking efforts by the EU to equip itself with the sort of anti-dumping weaponry used by Washington to confront China.
The EU trade directorate has been rendered toothless by a British veto. So much for the canard that the UK has no influence in Brussels. "The British are sacrificing an entire European industry to say thank you to China for signing up to the nuclear power project at Hinkley Point, and pretending it is about free trade," said one official in Brussels bitterly.
What they are blocking is a change to an EU regulation intended to beef up Europe's 'trade defence instruments' (TDI), enabling it to respond much more quickly to Chinese dumping and to impose much tougher penalties. The British have cobbled together a blocking minority in the council, much to the annoyance of the French, Italians, Spanish and Germans. The UK view is that the Commission mixed up good changes with bad changes, and that punitive tariffs merely hurt your own consumers.
Yet the outcome is that it still takes Brussels 16 months to crank up full sanctions, twice as long as it takes the US. It is why the EU limits itself to a 'Lesser Duty' regime that often fails to reflects the full injury. While Washington has slapped penalties of 267pc on Chinese cold-rolled steel, the EU peashooter has so far managed just 13pc.
Redcar has already paid the price for this ultra-free trade ideology, and the Port Talbot plant in Wales is about to follow. There will eventually be little left if the current drift in trade policy is allowed to continue.
China's share of global steel output has risen from 10pc to 50pc over the last decade. It has installed capacity of 1.2bn tonnes a year that it can never hope to absorb as the construction boom deflates. On OECD estimates it has built up 400m tonnes of excess capacity, twice the EU's entire steel production. China's unwanted steel is finding its way systematically into Europe, greased by export subsidies, tax breaks, cheap state credit, and the panoply of measures used by a mercantilist power to rig global trade.
China has captured 45pc of the UK market for high fatigue rebar steel, from near zero four years ago. The price of hot rolled steel in Europe has fallen to $369 a tonne from an average of $650 from 2009 to 2013.
This is why Tata Steel has been losing 1m a day in the UK, not helped by Britain's punitive power costs.
Germany shelters its energy-intensive industries by cross-subsidies under its 'Energiewende'. The UK left its steel mills to face the full shock of green taxes, until a partial rebate was agreed in December.
China's Communist Party plans to slash steel capacity by 100,000-150,000 tonnes and eliminate 400,000 jobs over the next five years. The steel-making heartland of Hebei around Tianjin and Tangshan aims to shut 240 of its 400 mills by 2020, and has banned all new plants until the province slims down to 200m tonnes (alone equal to Europe). That at least is the theory.
Premier Li Keqiang may genuinely want to purge the Chinese economy of its excesses before the country crashes into the middle income trap, but his views are routinely ignored by the Politburo whenever they clash with party imperatives. The fact remains that China is still adding extra capacity, albeit of a greener kind than the dirty micro-mills of the smog bowl.
The giant state producer Sinosteel - with $16bn of debts - was rescued from bankruptcy in October. The reforms failed their first big test. UBS estimates that the 100 biggest steel producers in China lost $11bn in the first ten months of last year. The state plugged the hole.
The politics of trade in Brussels are complex, and it is not just Britain that is rolling over.The Commission is oddly pushing ahead with 'market economy status' (MES) for China at this delicate moment, and doing so on the quiet, prompting an angry reaction from MEPs who have launched their own MES China Action Group.
"China is not a market economy. It has chosen a dumping strategy that is ravaging European industry. The EU itself risks imploding if Europe persists with the error," says Edouard Martin, a French MEP leading the revolt. A report by the Economic Policy Institute concludes that unilateral MES status for China would endanger 3.5 million jobs in EU industry by limiting anti-dumping tariffs. Almost all the EU's 350,000 steel jobs would be a risk.
If this is correct, and if allowed to run its course, Europe would be finished as an industrial and military region. It would be civilisational suicide.
One can applaud Mr Osborne's push for amicable trade with China as a general principle, for to do otherwise risks turning the world's rising superpower into a hostile challenger. Yet the suspicion in Brussels is that he has become a Fifth Columnist for Beijing, either because he is dancing to the tune of London bankers angling for yuan trade, or because he thinks China can breathe life into his Northern Powerhouse, or because the UK government has painted itself into a corner over Hinkley Point.
The steel crisis has in any case gone too far. It was possible to look other way when China destroyed the European solar industry - with pirated German technology. There was a larger prize to think about. Steel is another matter. It is strategic.
Britain's Labour Party has floated the idea of a temporary nationalisation of Port Talbot and Tata's UK operations to keep British steel alive until the cycle turns. But the problem is not cyclical. The sheer scale of Chinese excess capacity has turned it into a structural deformation of the world market. Besides, an intervention rescue policy runs straight into EU state aid rules. We may have to face the unpleasant truth that free trade has limits. Even Adam Smith conceded you can't disarm yourself entirely against a mercantilist power. He meant 18th Century France, of course. Anti-dumping duties are the only way to preserve our industrial core in a 1930s world.
This is the moment we have long feared. China's investment-led growth model has created a monster that's too big for the international system. Last year Chinese fixed capital formation was over $5 trillion, as much as in Europe and North America combined. The excess capacity is staggering and is likely to flood our economies with a fresh wave of deflation in the next global downturn. Protectionism is the dog that never barked after the Lehman crisis. Bark it will. ( Daily Telegraph, London)
The Journey depicts the harsh journey that faces many immigrants who try to enter Australia's borders by boat. Photo: The Journey / YouTube
Australia, which has accepted thousands of refugees from Afghanistan in recent years, has issued a controversial move to dissuade others from seeking refuge within its borders.
The country's Immigration Department commissioned a television movie, The Journey, which depicts the harsh realities that face refugees who pay to be transported to the country by boat.
The fictional movie follows a group of Afghan asylum-seekers as they encounter smugglers, treacherous waters and inhumane conditions on their journey to Australia.
According to the Guardian, The Journey cost AUS $6million (4.4million) to produce and distribute.
It has been screened on two different channels in Afghanistan, the world's second-largest source of refugees in 2015, after Syria.
It was previously broadcast in Iran and Iraq in February and Pakistan in mid-March.
The movie will be broadcast in five languages, Farsi, Dari, Arabic, Urdu and Pashto, but not in English.
Put It Out There Pictures, who produced the film, says on its website that the movie aims to inform people about the futility of investing in people smugglers, the perils of the trip, and the hardline policies that await them if they do reach Australian waters.
The Australian Department of Immigration has said that "telemovies are a proven way to reach and influence the target audience" and they described the reaction to the movie as largely positive.
However, The Journey has come under criticism from some audiences.
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Phil Glendenning, president of the Refugee Council of Australia, said after the film was announced: I dont think the government understands why people are on the move if they think a TV drama will be a deterrent.
Australia has recently introduced stricter immigration policies which have seen the number of Afghanis and other legitimate asylum seekers attempting to get to Australia by boat drastically decline.
The government also has distributed ads carrying somber warnings.
Afghans make up the largest percentage of asylum-seekers arriving in Australia by boat. More than 7,200 Afghans resettled in the country from 2008 to 2013, according to data collected by Australia's Parliament.
At sombre and official events, it seems all you ever hear is the flap and flutter of a stiff flag as the breeze catches and snaps in its folds.
In Dublin's O'Connell Street last Sunday, that sound had an undeniably affecting quality as Fr Seamus Madigan led the nation in prayer at the State Commemoration of 1916.
After the national flag was lowered, the head chaplain of the Defence Forces began a Centenary Prayer of Remembrance.
"We remember the men, the women and the children of 1916 whose short lives and big dreams extended the horizons of our hopes. In your mercy the faithful departed find rest."
His words echoed across the street. A few heads gently lowered and tears rolled down faces. "As we reflect on our past, we thank you for all the courageous people of Ireland who dared to hope and dream of a brighter tomorrow for our country and all of its citizens," added Fr Madigan.
I certainly agreed with that. Sitting in O'Connell Street with my father, Tom, we represented the Byrne family as we remembered his father, Patrick Joseph Byrne, who on Easter Monday, April 24, 1916, walked in to seize Boland's Mills with his colleagues in A Company, 3rd Battalion, Dublin Brigade of the Irish Volunteers. And, remarkably, among his fellow volunteers in Dublin city that day were his three brothers, Christopher, Joseph and Henry. A band of brothers indeed.
The events of last weekend provided a remarkable experience for not just our family, but for thousands of others from across Ireland and the world, as the Easter Rising Centenary Commemorations, perfect in tone, reached a climax.
And perhaps that was the beauty of the 1916 Centenary; for many it was the opportunity to properly acknowledge, for the first time in many cases, the roles played by our relatives in changing the course of Irish history all those years ago.
Easter Sunday 2016 was an extraordinary, inclusive occasion in so many ways, offering as it did a means for people unsullied by misguided allegiances to remember and reflect on what happened in 1916. It was a day for citizens, not 'causes', it provided depth and context, and allowed different stories to be heard. Even the politicians played their part, taking a back seat and allowing the pomp and ceremony to dominate.
Ask anyone about last weekend and the one word that resonates is pride; pride in remembering our relatives' sacrifices, pride in President Michael D Higgins's eloquent and conciliatory speeches delivered at various sites over the Easter weekend, and pride in the Irish republic, imperfect as it is.
It's still very much a work in progress, as it should be.
It was a uniquely Irish occasion, like an All-Ireland Sunday with people 'up' for the day, full of chat and eager to explain their links. 'Who are you connected to?' was a familiar refrain.
There were relatives of The O'Rahilly up from Kerry sitting next to some of Joseph Plunkett's people, who had come from Sligo, distant cousins of Patrick Pearse from Wexford and us Byrnes, in our case representing family in Cork, England and the US. Everyone had a story, it really was a people's commemoration and even in the parade of military hardware, there was a clear theme of Irish peacekeeping, not Irish conflict, at its heart.
I have no idea what my grandfather felt as he faced into the tumult of Easter Monday of 1916, followed by the prospect of a brutal internment in England, Frongoch and Ballykinlar.
When he and his comrades first heard that the senior leaders were to be executed in Kilmainham jail, I suspect he was heartbroken. But as he was frogmarched through the streets of Dublin with hundreds of his fellow volunteers and loaded onto a ship for England - and prison - I imagine he was indefatigable.
Of course, I'll never know these things for certain because I never met him. Granddad died in February 1962, 10 years before I was born, and not living long enough to see the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising in 1966.
How I wish I had known him. It would be fair to say that growing up I knew very little about his involvement in 1916 and his subsequent successful career in the Defence Forces, partly because I never really asked my father much about him, and even for the wider family, there was little then available in the way of public records.
But plain old curiosity, technology and the onset of the landmark anniversary changed that for everyone.
And that has been one of the other great triumphs of the Centenary; the opening up of archives that have helped to shape a fuller picture of what happened and bring to life the stories of the people at the heart of these seismic events.
All over Ireland and the world, advances in online research and digital tools have allowed millions of people to discover detailed official records and understand their relatives' roles in historic events.
Children, especially, are energised and engaged with Irish history like never before, thanks to the Centenary programme.
Digitisation, led by Military Archives in the Defence Forces and other initiatives such as the placing of the 1911 Census online, has resulted in huge volumes of information becoming available to better understand why people did what they did 100 years ago.
"Remember where you come from," my father has always told us. Last Sunday, us Irish did exactly that, and it's to the great credit of the Centenary's organisers that people were able to do so on their own terms.
Items on 1916 on display at the exhibition. Photo: Gerry Mooney
Two women look at images of hunger strikers as part of the 1916 Revolution exhibition at the Ambassador Theatre in Dublin. Photo: Gerry Mooney
A Sinn Fein-led exhibition on the 1916 Rising makes the leap to a tribute to the Provisional IRA.
The widely publicised exhibition on the Rising includes an exhibition on the hunger strikers.
Fianna Fail TD Thomas Byrne has questioned why the party-led exhibition has been allowed to be heavily advertised on the national airwaves.
"If it is for a political purpose, it begs the question: should it be allowed to be advertised on the national airwaves? Because political party broadcasts are not allowed on the airwaves," he said.
"This was organised by Sinn Fein as part of their 1916 celebrations.
"It should be made clear the purpose of it and if money is being used for political purposes, that should be disclosed to the public," he added.
The exhibition, which opened in February and has a 15 entry fee, includes an original Proclamation and a revolver once owned by Michael Collins. However, it also features material relating to the Provisional IRA hunger strikes of 1981, including a shirt worn by Kieran Doherty, who died after 73 days of protest.
In a bizarre twist, Sinn Fein yesterday insisted it was not actually running the exhibition.
When asked about its involvement in the event at Dublin's Ambassador Theatre and why the more recent hunger strikes are included, Sinn Fein directed questions to its own separate company, Ireland 1916 Commemorations Ltd.
The party said the event was being run by Ireland 1916 Commemorations Ltd.
Sinn Fein referred questions on why the hunger strikes were included to the firm, which shares an address and phone number with the party. "Sinn Fein is of the view that it is appropriate to remember the hunger strikes in this 35th anniversary year," a spokesman stated.
When contacted, a spokesman for Ireland 1916 Commemorations Ltd, Bartle D'Arcy - who has an email address that includes the party's name - said the exhibition was "organised and run" by Ireland 1916 Commemorations Ltd and "not by Sinn Fein".
Mr D'Arcy also said it was the 35th anniversary of the hunger strikes and that "all proceeds - if any - after costs" would be reinvested by the company in commemoration events it carries out.
Mr D'Arcy is Sinn Fein's '1916/2016 National Programme Co-ordinator'.
His office address is listed as Sinn Fein headquarters.
The 'contact us' section of the website lists the address of the Sinn Fein offices at Parnell Square, the contact phone number directs to the office and the email address is 1916@sinnfein.ie.
Underneath these details it reads: "for information on Sinn Fein the political party and how to join see here www.sinnfein.ie". The revolution1916.ie website lists Sinn Fein HQ as its address.
A 15-year-old boy has been remanded in custody charged with the murder of a young Dublin man following a fatal Halloween stabbing last year.
Lorcan O'Reilly (21), from Robert Emmet Close in south inner city Dublin, was stabbed in the nearby Oliver Bond flat complex in the early hours of November 1 last.
The incident happened at approximately 2.30am when he had been at Halloween festivities with friends. He sustained a single stab wound to the heart and was rushed to St James's Hospital but was pronounced dead a short time later.
Detectives arrested the 15-year-old boy on Thursday morning and detained him at a Dublin Garda Station. The teenager, who cannot be named because he is a minor, was held overnight and brought before Judge William Hamill at the Dublin Children's Court yesterday.
The boy, from south Dublin, is charged with the murder of Lorcan O'Reilly on November 1 at Oliver Bond flats, contrary to common law. He was aged 14 at the time of Mr O'Reilly's death.
Dressed in a blue and yellow anorak, a red top, blue bottoms and runners, the teen entered court 55 of the Children's Court and sat listening to Det Sgt Adrian Whitelaw give evidence.
The boy, who showed no emotion during the brief hearing, has not yet entered a plea.
Det Sgt Whitelaw, who is attached to Kevin St station, told Judge Hamill that at 12.05am on Friday at Kilmainham Garda station the teenager was charged. He asked for a one week remand in custody. The boy was accompanied to court by his mother and his grandmother who hugged and kissed as he was taken from courtroom.
The boy will have to apply to the High Court for bail because he faces a murder charge.
A judge has said the father of a 15-year-old boy charged with murder should attend his next court hearing.
The teenager appeared before Dublin Childrens Court yesterday charged with the murder of Lorcan OReilly (21), of Robert Emmet Close in the south inner-city, last November 1.
Mr OReilly (pictured), who sustained a single stab wound to the heart, was rushed to St Jamess Hospital but was pronounced dead a short time later.
Detectives arrested the 15-year-old on Thursday and detained him at a Dublin garda station.
The boy, who cannot be named, was held overnight and brought before Judge William Hamill yesterday.
He was accompanied by his mother and grandmother who hugged him as he was taken from the courtroom.
Both were visibly upset and spoke to him quietly for a few seconds before he was led off to await transfer to the Trinity House detention centre.
Parents or guardians are legally obliged to attend cases at the Childrens Court.
Judge Hamill said that perhaps due to the gravity of the charge, it would be entirely appropriate, in his interest, to have both his parents attend.
Defence solicitor John Quinn said he would contact the boys father about attending when the case resumes next Friday.
An application was made for legal aid and Judge Hamill was told by Mr Quinn that neither of the boys parents was employed and were not in a position to fund their defence.
Det Sgt Adrian White- law had no objection and legal aid was granted.
The teenager, who showed no emotion during the brief hearing, has not yet entered a plea.
Det Sgt Whitelaw told Judge Hamill that at 12.05am on Friday at Kilmainham Garda Station the boy was charged.
Judge Hamill noted there was a space at Trinity House and remanded him there.
The boy spoke briefly when asked to confirm the name of the solicitor he wanted to represent him.
Drugs mule Michaela McCollum Connolly is spending time with her mother following her release from Peruvian prison.
The 23-year-old model from Dungannon, Co Tyrone, walked free from Ancon 2 prison in Northern Lima yesterday afternoon but may have to remain in the city for four years on parole.
She is now spending quality time with her mother, Norah, who flew to Lima in anticipation of her early release.
She has also already arranged a job and accommodation.
Bishop Sean Walsh, a Lima-based priest, said Ms McCollum will volunteer with his Eastern Catholic Church in the city. And he revealed he will provide a bed for her in his own home.
"She has been granted parole to my very great surprise," he said. "She's going to be granted parole for the remainder of her sentence. I visited her several days ago. She is, of course, quite relieved and thankful to God that the course of life has gone this way. Probably, she will remain in Lima. She will be allowed to work and study if she wants to do that.
Expand Close Michaella McCollum with Melissa Reid from Scotland. Photo: AP Photo/Peru's National Police / Facebook
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Whatsapp Michaella McCollum with Melissa Reid from Scotland. Photo: AP Photo/Peru's National Police
"She is also going to work as a volunteer for my church and for Fr Cathal Gallagher, who has an Aids charity here. Being on parole means that she only has to check in with the clerk and the prison system office for special and psychological questioning and to ensure that she remains in the country."
"She opted for getting out on parole in Peru. The fact is she is blending in better in this culture than the majority of foreign prisoners so she will fit in comfortably to life in the city," he added.
A judicial hearing will now be held to determine the conditions of her parole. She also owes a sum of money to the prison authorities in Peru.
Bishop Walsh was in court on Tuesday, March 29 when she was granted parole, he added: "I did not expect this. This is great news. I think the judge was wooed by her age, in my opinion.
"Michaella has been an exemplary prisoner. She learned Spanish. She has shown that she is intelligent, innovative and productive. I met with her on the day of her court appearance. She looked great and, of course, she was a little nervous until the announcement."
Michaella and Melissa Reid, from Scotland, were imprisoned in 2013 for six years and eight months after admitting trying to smuggle cocaine worth 1.9m from Peru to Spain.
Former Sinn Fein and Labour Dublin City Councillor Killian Forde (pictured in 2010) Photo: Gareth Chaney Collins
A former Labour and Sinn Fein Dublin city councillor has denied making 100 nuisance telephone calls of "drunken gibberish".
Killian Forde (45) is also alleged to have told the two victims "you'll be got".
He previously pleaded guilty to making the nuisance calls - but following legal advice he has now changed his plea to not guilty.
Mr Forde was a councillor with Sinn Fein from 2004 to 2010, before switching to Labour. He resigned his seat on Dublin City Council in 2011 when he was made Chief Executive of the Integration Centre.
Judge Bridget Reilly accepted Mr Forde's change of plea to not guilty and adjourned the case for hearing to a date in June.
Tallaght District Court heard Mr Forde is currently unemployed, and defence solicitor Richard Young was assigned on free legal aid.
The accused, with addresses at Carndonagh Park in Donaghmede and Sutton Park in Sutton, is charged with making 100 hoax telephone calls to two individuals, both with addresses in Tallaght.
The hoax calls were allegedly placed over a 48-hour period between October 6 and October 7, 2014.
The court heard that the DPP has directed the case be heard in the District Court.
Outlining the allegation for jurisdiction purposes, Garda Sergeant Michael Ahern alleged the first victim received 40 calls and voicemail messages from a mobile phone number which was registered to the accused.
Sgt Ahern alleged the second victim received 39 calls on his mobile phone and 21 on his landline.
The sergeant also alleged the voice messages and calls were of a threatening and intimidating nature, and were along the lines of "you'll be got".
Sgt Ahern alleged a lot of the messages were "drunken gibberish".
Judge Reilly accepted jurisdiction, meaning the matter stays in the District Court. The case will be heard in June.
Essie Spence (centre, in black) is supported by her daughter-in-law Andrea, wife of Graham Spence and her daughter Emma Spence (far right) with other family members at the funeral of her husband Noel Spence and sons Graham and Nevin at Ballynahinch Baptist Church, Co Down, yesterday
Nevin Spence died along with his father and brother at their farm on the outskirts of Hillsborough
Emma Spence, sister of late Ulster rugby star Nevin (below) with one of the paintings from her new exhibition, Their Fields
To the non-believer, it's almost unbelievable that Emma Spence's faith hasn't been shaken by the farm tragedy that killed her father and two brothers and almost took her own life too.
"I wouldn't be standing here today if it hadn't been for my faith. My only way of coping has been God, who has held me up. There have been times when the grief and the pain have been so huge it has been hard for me to breathe," said Emma, who has been practising what the Bible preaches with regular visits to Moldova to help impoverished people there.
But one journey which has been too difficult for Emma to make since the September 2012 accident has been to watch a rugby match at the Kingspan stadium in Belfast where her brother Nevin was fast establishing himself as an exciting new hero with the Ulster team.
"I used to go on Friday nights with my Dad to see Ulster and Nevin. We are all big rugby fans but there's not too many understand what it's like for Nevin to be missing off the pitch.
"For a long time I thought I would go back, but now I doubt if I ever will. Rugby is very different from when Nevin was alive. It's etched with pain.
"I can't even turn on the TV for Ulster's matches or Ireland's games because I would be thinking about whether our wee Nev would be playing in a green shirt. I do follow the scores, though."
Emma, her mum Essie and sister Laura did attend the Kingspan stadium in August last year for the opening of an impressive new educational centre which was named in honour of Nevin and which features a massive painting of him by his artist sister who talked publicly at the time about her pride in the facility.
"Every time somebody walks into Ulster's ground they will see Nevin's name above the door and it's a privilege that he's been given such a legacy," she said.
The Spences had paid a lower profile visit to what was still called Ravenhill a week after the accident and to attend a memorial service for Nevin, his father Noel and brother Graham, who died after they tried to rescue a dog and subsequently each other from a slurry tank on their farm near Hillsborough.
The Spence women watched from the sanctuary of a private hospitality box as rugby stars and officials went onto the Ravenhill pitch for the event, which was part religious and part tribute.
At the end of the service, 6,000 fans sang their favourite rugby anthem Stand up for the Ulstermen like never before.
"It was a very emotional day. The players are all good men and Ulster Rugby officials and supporters have been excellent to us," said Emma as we sat at the kitchen table of the Spence farmhouse at Drumlough Road not far from the scene of the accident.
It was in the kitchen that Noel Spence used to hold sway in a house which was always filled with laughter and where banter was a constant, especially for Nevin, of whom the family were immensely proud but used to keep his feet on the ground by referring to him tongue-in-cheek as "superstar".
But that isn't to say that the Spence family took everything in life lightly before tragedy cruelly struck almost four years ago.
Religion was always - and still is - a cornerstone of Magheraconluce farm as Emma highlighted at the moving funeral service in Ballynahinch Baptist Church where in an address she said of Noel, Graham and Nevin: "They were Godly men. They didn't talk about God, they just did God. They were just ordinary but God made them extraordinary"
And despite everything that has happened to her menfolk, Emma still cherishes her faith, though she told me she didn't want to come across as what she called a "Holy Roller".
Which is the last way anyone that knows Emma, who has a keen sense of humour and enjoys a busy social life, would describe her. She did, however, speak to me with a stirring conviction and passion about her Christianity which has clearly been a rock for her in the last few heart-breaking years.
And what has also helped her through the turmoil has been the intractable belief that she will one day see Noel, Graham and Nevin again.
"But there's more to it than just going to Heaven to meet them. I'm certain that it's a place where there will be no more suffering and no more pain.
"People might say that's all a crutch that keeps me going, but I've had to experience stuff that very few people have had to deal with - and hopefully never will - and when the rubber hits the road it's all I have.
"Throughout it all my only help has been God, who has given me the strength to continue with my life.
"After I started back to my job at Wallace High School it took every bone in my body to face work and walk down the corridor. The only time I had to myself was in the car on the journey to and from Lisburn and I used to listen to hymns or Psalms on audio tapes.
"They were the old songs that everybody knows like The Lord's My Shepherd and the words suddenly became very real to me.
"I never knew what dramas, crises, decisions and questions I would be coming home to and I remember one day setting God a 12 o'clock deadline to give me answers. And as I left a friend home just before midnight she suddenly remembered that she'd bought me a wee 1 plaque from a charity shop which she could have given me anytime.
"It said 'Be Still and Know that I am God' from Psalm 46; Verse 10. I took that as the Lord telling me that He'd got things completely under control for me.
"And I also keep in mind a line from a poem which a cancer sufferer quoted to me two days after the accident. It said 'In Acceptance Lieth Peace'."
The message resonated with Emma, who shared it with her mother Essie. w"I told Mum our only way of coping was to accept what had happened and not to fight it and that way we would find peace. I didn't like it but I accepted that this was the path that God has chosen for me.
"I nearly died four years ago. And while people say to me it's nearly four years since the boys were killed, in my head I tell myself that they're four years I've had that I mightn't have had."
Emma admitted, however, that as she thought back to the 'hurricane' of the accident, there were days she felt she was sitting on a knife-edge.
"I don't know how I would be able to deal with anything else," she said candidly, adding that her admiration for her mother is boundless.
"I didn't think that Mum could cope after the accident, but when I see her four years on I'm so pleased that she is still standing too and that shows me that there very definitely is a God."
Emma said that she and her mother had their bad days but added that they needed each other for support. "Mum is a very intelligent woman and she has questioned everything about the accident. I sometimes pity ministers who engage her in conversations about the whys and wherefores," she laughed.
Emma's visits to Moldova in Eastern Europe with her church have opened her eyes to the suffering of other people and she said she received a major boost in her life from assisting people whenever she can.
"There's poverty and pain everywhere in Moldova and drink is a massive issue. We have camps and do building work there and generally help in the villages where we see children who have absolutely nothing in situations where bleak is not even the word.
"We came across one woman whose husband was a heavy drinker and he returned one night and threw their baby against a wall, killing the child.
"Later on the wife hurled acid at him and set him on fire to keep him away but he broke her legs in so many places that she can't walk anymore.
"Compared to that woman who was sitting weaving tobacco for some ridiculous amounts of money in one of the poorest countries in Europe, I am really privileged here in Northern Ireland."
Turning to her exhibition, which opens in Belfast next week, Emma said she was convinced that an unseen guiding hand played a role in the show, which is called 'Their Fields' and which was inspired by the land that her Dad and her brothers worked and adored at their farm.
" I didn't go looking for a gallery to put on the exhibition. The approach came to me."
"And I think that also shows that life can go on and that there is hope."
Where to see her work
Their Fields, an exhibition by Emma Spence, runs from April 7 to April 30 at the gallery of James Wray and Co, 14-16 James Street South, Belfast. www.jameswray.ie
Gangland target John Gilligan has been moving between a number of safe houses since returning to Ireland.
The ageing criminal was pictured by the Herald outside a Lucan pub this week.
It is believed Gilligan (64) was celebrating the birthday of a deceased relative with a number of friends and family.
Members of the Special Detective Unit (SDU) have been keeping close surveillance on the pint-sized criminal since his return.
At least three undercover garda vehicles were in the vicinity of the west Dublin premises.
It is the second time Gilligan has returned to Ireland since fleeing in fear of his life in 2014.
He previously returned to Dublin in March of last year, and stayed in the capital for a number of days before returning to his UK bolthole.
Gilligan fled to Ireland from the British city of Birmingham this week in fear of his life.
It is believed he had become involved in a dispute with a Traveller gang.
After being pictured in the Lucan premises on Thursday afternoon, he was driven to an address in Clondalkin along with members of his family, where he partied until the early hours of the morning. Relatives did not wish to comment when approached at the home last night.
Senior sources previously told the Herald that his return was a surprise to gardai.
"He has been sighted in the city centre and west Dublin over the last number of days, but it is a surprise to say the least to see him return.
"There have been attempts to kill Gilligan, and detectives will be keeping a close watch on him as long as he stays in the country," the source said.
"However, the fact that he is walking around carefree and without protection would indicate that he feels perfectly safe," the source added.
During the search, gardai discovered cocaine with an estimated street value of 170,000 and diamorphine, otherwise known as heroin, with a street value of 40,000 (Photo: Garda Press Office)
A 35-year-old woman has appeared in court this afternoon charged in connection with the seizure of cocaine and heroine with an estimated street value of 210,000 last night.
Gardai seized the drugs during a planned search of a house at Harelawn Park, Clondalkin at around 9.30pm.
Cocaine with an estimated street value of 170,000 was seized, as well as diamorphine, otherwise known as heroin, with a street value of 40,000.
The 35-year-old woman was arrested at the scene and was scheduled to appear before a sitting of Dublin District Court at 4.30pm today.
The search was part of an intelligence-led operation tackling the sale and supply of controlled drugs in the west area of Dublin.
A garda spokesperson said its operations use advanced analytical and intelligence methods to "disrupt criminals and dismantle their networks".
Gardai from the Ronanstown Drug Unit were involved in the operation.
GOVERNMENT by senior civil servants. It's a prospect that you will hear more and more about as Irish people share the Western world's malaise of discontent with politicians, which is heightened by the continuing political deadlock at Leinster House.
Belgium went 589 days without a government in 2010/2011 and set a dubious world record for a democratic state. This happened because the opposing Dutch-speaking Flemings and French-speaking Walloons were unable to agree on policy issues and form a coalition government after national elections.
But day-to-day affairs of the country were dealt with by a temporary government run by a former prime minister, while the two main political parties battled on.
This temporary government did not, however, make big decisions regarding budget spending, the national debt, foreign policy and defence.
We might have heard a deal more about it all - as at one stage there were major worries that a debt crisis could occur with fall-out for all of Europe. Happily, it did not happen, as it would have compounded our problems in an already grim period.
But Belgium has more fundamental problems that mean it should rarely be a role model for Ireland. Government gaps of lesser duration than those have added to a general hollowing out of the federal administration there.
In the 36 days since our General Election, with an acting government in a caretaker mode and much occupied with government-making and party politics, more of our fate is in the hands of some very capable and well-motivated civil servants.
Martin Fraser, general secretary of the Taoiseach's Department and John McCarthy in the Environment Department spring to mind as people of talent and integrity.
But it is dangerous and specious to assume senior appointed officials can take the place of those elected by the will of the people to make political decisions that order our affairs and spend our taxes. The reality is that many things, notably appointments, have been put on hold. For example the position of Garda Chief Superintendent for Kerry is now also being assumed by the Chief Superintendent who runs the Limerick division. No full appointment will be made until we get a government.
The world is not going to stop over such things. But the vacancies will pile up before too long. Officials preparing matters for necessary political decision will become more and more frustrated at the lack of necessary political follow-through.
We would also be wrong to assume that Ireland can flourish without an ongoing flow of Dail decisions. Later this month, for example, our TDs are expected to debate the spring economic statement, which is the second most important economic event in the running of the nation, only topped by the Budget.
Without a government there can be no meaningful debate on the economic strategy. Neither can more pressing issues be broached, like a Health Department budget shortfall of hundreds of millions of euro, which is once again the product of inadequate costings and funding provision.
It's not only our health services that are bedevilled by serious problems. Housing is in crisis and we need a major conversation about industrial relations, around sharing the dividends of economic recovery, before we quickly slide back to being a nation crippled by strikes that scare off foreign investors.
Initiatives to address all these matters can only come from government. Caretakers and talented senior officials are not fit for these tasks.
Word from the series of rolling talks at Leinster House and Government Buildings is that sincere efforts are being made to agree broad policy principles which could give us government. But we clearly will exceed our 1992/93 record of 48 days.
Analysis
A cure for HIV and Aids could be just a few years away after scientists proved they can snip away the virus from infected cells and prevent the disease ever returning.
The HIV virus attacks and kills immune cells, leaving patients highly vulnerable to other infections.
But scientists in the US have shown it is possible to use state-of-the-art genetic editing technology to literally cut away the virus from the DNA of cells.
"This is a technology which enables you to change the genes. Effectively you can engineer the body to cure itself from the inside," said Professor Matthew Cobb of Manchester University.
Although the experiments have so far only been carried out in a lab, researchers at Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, are confident that within three years they will be able to start trials on humans.
Experts said the treatment would effectively 'engineer the body to cure itself from the inside' while charities said the breakthrough was 'very exciting.'
Crucially the human immune cells which were tested in the lab showed no alteration to any other parts of the genetic code. There have been fears that altering DNA could trigger a cascade of genetic breaks which would prove harmful or even lethal to humans.
"The fact that for the first time we have been able to completely eliminate segments of the viral genome in the laboratory demonstrates that we should be able to eliminate it in the human body," said lead researcher Professor Kamel Khalili.
"The findings are important on multiple levels. They demonstrate the effectiveness of our gene editing system in eliminating HIV from the DNA of immune cells and permanently inactivating its replication.
"Further, they show that the system can protect cells from reinfection and that the technology is safe for the cells, with no toxic effects. It has huge potential. Based on the findings, we should be entering into clinical trials within three years."
There are more than 100,000 people living with HIV in Britain and around 600 die each year.
Anti-retroviral drugs are now very good at controlling infection but patients need to be on medication for life and if they stop taking treatment the virus replicates rapidly, eventually causing acquired immune deficiency syndrome, or Aids.
The new technique - called Crispr/Cas9 - involves targeting the genetic code of HIV which inserts itself into cells.
Scientists take a protein called Cas9 and modify it so it can recognise viral code.
Blood is then extracted from the patient and the Cas9 protein added where it seeks out the HIV DNA in immune cells. Once it finds it, it releases an enzyme which removes the sequence, effectively snipping out the virus. The healthy modified cells would the be transfused back into the patient.
Scientists believe that replacing just 20pc of immune cells with the genetically altered cells would be enough to cure the disease.
Prof Khalili said it may also be possible to give the protein at the same time as HIV drugs until they were no longer needed.
"It makes sense to incorporate this treatment along with the current antiviral treatment for some period of time with anticipation that upon cessation of the antiviral therapy there will be no rebound due to the eradication of the virus by the excision strategy," he said.
After the viral sequence has been removed from the DNA, the loose ends of the genome are reunited by the cell's own repair machinery. The cleared cells are then pumped back into the patient.
A GP has told how one of his patients, who has cancer, was so distressed at having to attend the emergency department of University Hospital Galway that he said he would prefer to "throw himself in the river."
Dr Greg Kelly, a family doctor in Castlerea in Roscommon deplored the practice of forcing cancer patients to attend a hospital emergency department if they feel very unwell rather than having direct access to care.
The male patient developed complications due to chemotherapy and needed specialist care but he was frightened of having to spend days on a trolley "in the centre of excellence."
The trolley crisis was leading to the abuse of the most vulnerable people in the country, he told the annual meeting of the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) in Sligo.
Dr Kelly said had to try to persuade the man that he needed to attend hospital and he intervened to arrange for him to Roscommon Hospital instead.
Earlier, Dr Peadar Gilligan, emergency consultant in Beaumont Hospital called on fellow medics to support doctors who are highlighting the extent of the trolley crisis.
"This is not an issue to divide doctors. This is not an issue that should be pitching one doctor against another. We need to be united in saying overcrowding in emergency departments must stop."
Blaming an emergency doctor for highlighting the problems is akin to blaming the a firefighter for a fire, he added.
He said it is well known that overcrowding leads to increased risk of death and illness in patients.
Thirty years ago a stroke patient would have had little done for them but now within thirty minutes of arrival they receive a CT scan and other treatments, he added.
Meanwhile,the HSE is to defend a legal action taken by hospital consultants to try to recoup around 250m in pay which they claim was wrongly withheld.
The IMO confirmed it had lodged legal proceedings in the High Court to secure the release of salary increases which were due in 2009 under the terms of the 2008 Consultant Contract.
It said that reports in the media suggest the Attorney General is advising the Government that the HSE action can not be defended.
Dr Gilligan said that "given this reported view of the AG on this matter, we would question why the HSE would waste further taxpayer money by fighting this issue.
He said a recent Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) hearing on this matter and the reported advice of the Attorney General confirms the IMO position that this payment was illegally withheld. The IMO will vigorously pursue this issue and will proceed with legal cases to the High Court unless the matter is settled
The IMO has been in dispute with the HSE on this issue since 2009 when the HSE unilaterally decided to withhold salary increases due at that time under the 2008 Contract.
"A recent Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) hearing on this matter and the reported advice of the Attorney General confirms the IMO position that this payment was illegally withheld. The IMO will vigorously pursue this issue and will proceed with legal cases to the High Court unless the matter is settled.
He termed the HSE's decision to withhold the salary as an abuse of their position as an employer.
He added: is it any wonder that the HSE is struggling to recruit doctors given their record as an employer. Incidents like this feed the general crisis in morale amongst Irish doctors and directly contribute to the current exceptionally high emigration levels amongst Irish doctors."
Children who need biopsies to find out if they have cancer or tubes inserted to help them breathe are being put under unnecessary risk, doctors have warned.
Dr John Donnellan, a paediatric radiologist in Temple St Hospital said the failure to hire specialists with the necessary expertise means these children are having to undergo a general anaesthetic instead of a local anaesthetic.
Children who are subjected to recurrent general anaesthetics are at risk of developmental disorders.
An interventional radiologist could carry out this work using a local anaesthetic but there are none of these specialists employed in children's hospitals.
In the case of children a surgeon is involved and it is a much bigger procedure, taking a few days to organise, he told the annual conference of the Irish Medical Organisation in Sligo.
In contrast, there are 58 interventional radiologists employed in adult public hospitals.
It means adult patients can have a minimally invasive local anaesthetic as part of a day procedure.
"If you are an adult in Ireland and you need a biopsy or central line placed it is a twenty minute procedure. It has a very low complication rate.
"If you are a child and you need the same procedure you need a general anaesthetic with all the complications that arise.
"Developmental delay has been linked with multiple general anaesthetics in children. There is undeniable risk to children getting recurrent general anaesthetics," he added.
"Apart from the developmental delay a child who gets a tube placed so they can breath risks aspiration.
"All of these procedures can be performed under local anaesthetic or light sedation with image guidance.
"You have to make a two centimetre cut in the child's neck to lift up a vein. A paediatric interventional radiologist can do that with no scalpel.
"There is no potentially disfiguring wound in the child.
"These children can range in age from 24 hours of age up to 16 years in the Irish setting.
"We may be trying to diagnose solid organ tumours like kidney cancer, liver cancer or the child may have developmental delay or neurological problems.
"They could be children with swallowing problems or spina bifida or cerebral palsy."
Dr Donnellan said a local anaesthetic is performed on an ad hoc basis on some children by one or two of the radiologists working in the children's hospitals who have training.
"There is cohort of people trained and we should not be denying this to the children of Ireland."
Meanwhile,the conference was told that some parents are now objecting to having their daughter receive the vaccine to protect against cervical cancer in school because of unfounded "scare stories" about its side effects.
Dr Ann Moran, a public health doctor in the mid-west said they recently received a "fair few phonecalls asking that their daughters not be given the second dose of the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine.
These are girls who received the first dose last September and who are now due the second dose. There has been about a 10pc drop off at two large schools in the Midwest, she told the annual meeting of the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) in Sligo.
The fear was linked mostly to a television programme which examined side effects which some parents were attributing to the vaccine including a form of chronic fatigue syndrome.
An expert group set up the European Medicines Agency has dismissed any such link.
Dr Ilona Duffy, a GP in Monaghan said the risks of " scaremongering" in relation to vaccines had already been seen in previously in unfounded fears over the Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) vaccine, which had wrongly linked it to autism.
We know this vaccine (HPV) works, the international evidence is there. We need a strong, loud message to tell people this is a safe vaccine, she said.
Dr John Duddy, incoming IMO president said peoples fears were based on ignorance and lack of knowledge. Children who need biopsies to find out if they have cancer or tubes inserted to help them breathe are being put under unnecessary risk, it was claimed yesterday.
Keith Collins who was stabbed while on a date in Sydney
Tributes paid to 'amazing man' Keith Collins (inset). Main picture: The scene of the attack in Sydney
Players at the rugby league club where tragic slain Irishman Keith Collins was once a president and coach will pay their respects to him today as his family have thanked the public for their support.
Mr Collins died after he was stabbed during a first date in a Sydney restaurant on Wednesday night.
It is understood that single dad Keith met Jovi Pilapil, a care nurse and also a single parent, on a dating website.
The date took a sinister turn however when Ms Pilapil's ex-husband, Alexander Villaluna, allegedly stabbed the successful businessman in his neck and chest. Ms Pilapil was also stabbed but managed to escape to an upstairs shop where she collapsed.
Mr Collins' sister Audrey Jenkins has thanked the public for their support in the days following her brother's murder.
"Seriously cannot even begin to find words to say how grateful we are for the beautiful, loving and caring people in our lives," she said on social media.
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"[We are] so humbled by the kindness as we try to navigate the loss of Keith. We feel enveloped in your love, from visits, to phone calls, messages, flowers and everything else - just know that we are truly grateful and your love is so comforting."
Meanwhile, the Terrigal Wamberal Sharks Junior Rugby League Club have asked that all of their players wear black armbands as a mark of respect for Keith (53), along with a minutes silence.
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It is the second tragedy for the family as Mr Collins' adult son Aaron died after a car accident in 2013 aged just 23.
Dramatic footage from the moments after the harrowing attack show Villaluna being arrested as he sat calmly nearby after stabbing the couple.
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The 44-year-old was later charged with murder and attempted murder and will appear again in court on May 26.
Australian police told the Irish Independent that Ms Pilapil is recovering after minor surgery.
Investigators are gathering statements and examining mobile phone footage of the killing.
The charred remains of rubber matting in a play space in Hermitage Green, Lucan. Photo: William Lavelle
Gangs are melting razor blades into playground slides and vandalising play equipment making them unsafe for children.
They are also reportedly loosening screws on swings and smearing dog excrement into play equipment, according to one local councillor.
The vandalism was spotted in Galway where concerned parents raised the issue with city councillor Niall McNelis.
"It's sickening but we've heard reports that teenagers are melting razor blades into slides. That could cause serious harm to any child playing there," Cllr McNelis told Independent.ie.
"We've seen broken bottles in playgrounds, reports of syringes lying around and then there are people loosening screws on swings and smearing dog excrement on the children's play equipment."
Cllr McNelis said that the problem is not unique to Galway.
"It's a nationwide problem. I've spoken to councillors up and down the country who have heard reports of similar incidents in their local areas."
A playground and skate park in Knocknacarra has been closed for nearly three months due to the vandalism, as well as wear and tear.
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It is due to be reopened in a fortnight after Galway City Council ordered 80,000 worth of state-of-the-art equipment.
Cllr McNelis is hopeful that deterrents can be put in place to stop the acts of vandalism damaging the facilities.
"Proper lighting in these [play] areas might discourage teenagers from hanging around there after hours.
"Another solution would be the Mosquito (a white noise, anti-loitering device) which emits a piercing high pitch that affects teenagers more."
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He continued: "In Galway our playgrounds are inspected daily by a warden. We've now highlighted the issue and we hope people will keep an eye on it a lot more.
"What should be a fun place for children to enjoy themselves in has become unsafe," he said.
"One of the issues is that there just isn't enough [recreational] facilities for teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17.
"You've got a bunch of young people trying to show off to each other and they think it's funny until someone gets hurt.
"Just imagine if it was your little brother, sister, next-door neighbour or even your own child who was playing there and was injured."
Gardai are not investigating any specific incidents but Cllr McNelis has urged people who witness any acts of vandalism to report it to their local gardai.
In Lucan, rubber matting was set alight and destroyed by a gang of youths in a play space in Hermitage Green on Thursday evening. The charred remains pose a potential health and safety risk for locals and the cost of repairing the damage is considerable.
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Local councillor William Lavelle called the act "pure thuggery".
"It's left local residents, including parents and young children, horrified," he said when speaking to Independent.ie.
"It's very upsetting. These gangs of teenagers are not representative of normal teenagers. It's just a handful that have no respect for property or the welfare of others.
"It's a game with them to see what and how much damage they can cause."
Cllr Lavelle has said that the local council is working with the gardai to identify the culprits.
He also expressed his wish to install high-definition CCTV cameras in the area as a deterrent to would-be vandals.
Last September, a solar powered bin at the playground in Ballywaltrim, Wicklow was set on fire.
The playground, which is located on Schools Road, had been recently upgraded, to a cost exceeding 100,000.
The value of the bin which was destroyed by vandals who set the fire was 6,000.
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It was followed by the discovery of broken glass, used condoms, drugs paraphernalia and alcohol bottles at the playground in Kinallen, Co Down in November 2015.
Damage was also done to changing rooms in nearby playing fields.
These are some of the handful of known incidents of the intentional sabotage of a playground, following a similar attack on a facility in Kilkeel where nails were screwed through a plastic slide.
TUV councillor in the area, Henry Reilly, slammed those responsible.
Anyone who would deliberately try to injure a child is a sick and evil person who needs locked away for life, he said.
An Irish news outlet has launched an investigation after an "extremely insensitive" article claiming ISIS had attacked a Kildare landmark was posted to its website.
The April Fool's Day prank caused outrage on social media when it appeared on Kildare Now's website.
The satirical article stated that ISIS had targeted local landmark the Hill of Allen.
However, Kildare Now soon removed the piece and claimed that the article had not been authorised. They described the article as "extremely insensitive".
In a statement it said: ""An article and a photoshopped photograph was posted on KildareNow this morning purporting to be an April Fools Day-type story.
"KildareNow would like to immediately distance ourselves from this posting and point out that the story was completely unauthorised and was not posted by a member of the editorial team.
"The article and photograph have both been completely removed from the Kildare Now website and our Facebook and Twitter accounts.
"But we understand 'screen grabs' of the offending post is appearing on social media which is causing upset but unfortunately we have no control over this.
"KildareNow would like to apologise unreservedly to everybody who was rightly offended by the article which was extremely insensitive especially in light of recent tragic events in Brussels and elsewhere.
"A full internal investigation is now underway into how the KildareNow site was accessed by an unauthorised person in this way."
Many viewers assumed it was a April Fool's prank from the site itself and it was not well received on social media.
The article claimed that "Irish security forces have placed a ring of steel around the Allen area and road diversions are in place until further notice after a male calling himself Paddy Jihaddy said he had rigged the area with explosives and that he was renaming the locality the Hill of Allah."
The website posted a picture of a local landmark with an ISIS flag photoshopped on top of the building.
The Huffington Post and BBC News are among the international news outlets who picked up on the story.
Irish drugs mule Michaella McCollum has admitted in her first interview since her release from prison in Peru that she wasn't sober when she agreed to fly out of Ibiza.
In an interview on RTE tonight, Michaella admits her decision to take part in smuggling 11kgs of cocaine was a moment of madness.
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Ms McCollum was arrested two-and-a-half years ago for possession of almost 2m worth of smuggled cocaine.
She and Scottish national Melissa Reid were arrested at Lima airport with the cocaine hidden in their luggage.
Sporting a new blonde hairstyle during the RTE interview, Ms McCollum expressed regret at her actions, saying: I made a decision in a moment of madness.Im not a bad person.. I want to demonstrate that Im a good person.
I potentially could have hurt a lot of people. I potentially could have filled Europe full of a lot of drugs, she said.
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If the drugs had of got back [to Europe] what could have happened, I probably would have had a lot of blood on my hands.
I potentially could have filled Europe full of a lot of drugs," she says in the interview produced by the RTE Factual team.
I could have potentially killed a lot of people, not directly but I could have caused a lot of harm to people.
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Michaella said she had been partying for days before she left Ibiza and she vaguely remembers boarding the flight for Mallorca. In Mallorca, she met Melissa Reid and a Peruvian man. She spent her time there sleeping because she hadn't slept for days, she said.
I was partying for days... I wasnt sober leaving on that plane... I wasnt sober leaving the apartment.
Once I landed in Peru, I kind of had that feeling that I was going to get caught and I was questioning life, questioning everything.
"It wasn't actually only until the night before we left that we knew that we were taking back cocaine."
"I felt sick, sick with nerves, sick with worry, and I remember after I went back to my room, I remember asking 'should I do this?'."
The convicted drug smuggler described the moment she knew she had been caught red handed, when the airport police opened her bag and saw the packages of cocaine. She was taken into a room and strip searched and handcuffed to a chair.
It was as clear as day what was there I started panicking, I didn't know what to say, what could you say? I had no idea about the Peruvian justice system, how bad and how many years you get for a drugs sentence. I had no idea what I was getting into.
I was so scared. I just wanted to curl up into a ball and die It didnt feel real.
Michaella said the hardest task was telling her mother that she was in Peru in prison.
Im only 20Thinking about how I could be here for 15 years
To have to break that news was probably the hardest thing Ive ever had to do in my life.
"The guiltits something I have to live with for the rest of my life of course that was never my intention to let that happenand when I think about it I try not to think about it because it makes me hate myself to be capable of causing that much pain and suffering to the people that I love."
She said to her family: Im sorry. Im sorry for making you suffer because that was never my intention and I hope they can forgive me.
Michaella initially withheld the truth about her visit to Lima, upon her arrest and lied about being kidnapped at gunpoint by drug lords who threatened her family.
I was scared to take responsibility because I didnt know what would happen then," she said tonight. It can easily happen to anybody whos been on vacation and has been misled."
Michaella said she's spent a lot of time in prison over the last three years reflecting on what she's done.
I thought Im just picking up something and bringing it back, I never thought of the contents and whats inside and what it could do to people
I was very naive, I was so young very insecure, a lot of times I didnt know how to say no to someone."
Michaella said she plans to demonstrate to everyone she has disappointed that she has changed and matured.
"I'm totally grateful for my mother... and everything that she has done for me."
"I'm not a bad person. I want to demonstrate that I'm a good person... Myself and my family, we're not the same as we used to be. We're a lot more close-knitted," Michaella said.
Michaella, who plans to study psychology, says she wants to go home to Ireland and help young people who are in difficulty.
She said she plans to "be a help to young people to prevent them from committing this kind of crime there are young people that after a bad decision you can turn your life around.
RTE has said it did not pay Irish drugs mule Michaella McCollum for the interview.
A spokesperson for RTE told independent.ie today "Michaella McCollum was not paid by RTE for the interview".
The spokesperson added: "Any other staffing/production costs would be commercially sensitive and not for disclosure."
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The 23-year-old was holidaying in Ibiza in 2013 when she disappeared before turning up a week and a half later in Lima airport where she was arrested. Having been originally imprisoned for six years and eight months, Michaellas solicitors have secured her release after less than three years. She said: Ive forgotten the things that everybody takes for granted in life.
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Seeing the sun, seeing the darkness, seeing the moon and the stars, things I havent seen in almost three years.
A new deal on sharing information has been finalised by the Irish and British governments in a major boost to the fight against international terrorism.
The agreement, which has now been signed by Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald, gives the go-ahead for exchanging details of passenger lists for all airlines and ferry companies operating within the common travel area.
It will allow law enforcement and immigration authorities in the two jurisdictions to be aware of passenger movements before they start their journeys.
The minister is due to brief her Cabinet colleagues on the move next week, but has already finalised the regulation, which provides the legal basis for the exchange of data.
The measure underlines Ireland's commitment to enhancing international co-operation in the war on terror and follows months of negotiations between the Department of Justice and the UK Home Office.
It will become operational shortly after the Cabinet has been briefed.
A senior security source told the Irish Independent last night: "This is a big step forward for us as the common travel area allows free movement between the two countries.
"It is an arrangement which is of critical strategic importance, and we cannot allow it to be abused by anybody wanting to inflict harm in our countries."
The authorities believe it is crucial for all EU member states to be in a position to strengthen border controls through sharing information on suspect passengers before they travel from one jurisdiction to another.
In the wake of the Paris terror attacks last year, the European Parliament's Justice and Home Affairs Committee approved the setting up of a terrorist tracking programme, but it has yet to be sanctioned by the full parliament because of privacy fears expressed by some MEPs.
Ms Fitzgerald has already called on all Irish MEPs to support the early adoption of the directive on passenger name recognition and described it as an important element in the struggle against terrorism.
The Irish-British deal comes amid fears that terrorists returning from Syria could use this country as a backdoor route to the UK to carry out attacks there.
It is estimated that more than 2,500 Europeans have travelled to Syria to fight, and later returned to Europe.
The threat level here remains moderate, which means that a jihadi terror attack is possible but not likely. However, Garda anti-terrorist units and military intelligence are monitoring the activities of a small group on a watch list. They are suspected of providing logistical support, such as forged passports and identity cards, or acting as recruitment agents for outfits such as Isil.
And since the Paris atrocities, members of the elite counter-terrorist sections, including the Garda Emergency Response Unit and the Army Ranger Wing, along with other key components such as the military ordnance section, have been training together on how to deal with the jihadi threat.
The level of preparation and planning, as well as participation in EU responses, will increase further in the coming weeks.
President Higgins was forced to introduce himself at event. Photo: Damien Eagers
One of the original volunteer workers who restored Kilmainham Gaol is "disappointed" that his board were not introduced to the President at an event last week.
Damien Cassidy (74) was part of a group of volunteers who began working on the prison in May 1960, in order to ensure the buildings did not fall into complete disrepair.
This included replacing a full glass roof and helping transform the prison into the tourist attraction it now is.
It was passed on to the State in 1987 and Mr Cassidy is on the board of visitors for the famous prison.
Mr Cassidy told the Irish Independent that board members were present at a wreath-laying event on Easter Sunday, at the Stonebreakers Yard in Kilmainham Gaol, but were not introduced to either acting Taoiseach Enda Kenny or President Michael D Higgins.
The President is believed to have introduced himself to the board of his own accord.
"The protocol was wrong. The voluntary workers should have been paramount," Mr Cassidy said.
"I think it was the wish of the minister that that should happen, but it didn't happen."
Mr Cassidy said the situation was compounded when he looked at the surrounding buildings at the event.
"I looked at the wall behind me and remembered I was up the scaffolding there to repair the roof on the building that adjoins with the Stonebreakers Yard," he said.
The opening of the Court House at the prison on Tuesday will be much more inclusive of volunteers, Mr Cassidy has been told.
The Government was contacted on the issue but no response was made available before going to print.
Sinn Fein has been rocked by the resignation of a councillor who accused the party of "nepotism and misogyny".
The former party representative will now become an Independent after characterising the local party organisation as "jobs for the boys".
The resignation is just the latest by a Sinn Fein female politician as it comes just months after a sitting TD stood down saying efforts to "undermine and malign" her made her job impossible.
Poll-topping Tyrone councillor Sorcha McAnespy will now run in next month's Northern Ireland Assembly elections as an Independent.
The mother of three claimed she was being "undermined" and "marginalised" within the party.
Ms McAnespy (36) said she did raise concerns with the party hierarchy but did not get adequate support.
"There's too much nepotism and misogyny present in the party locally. It's jobs for the boys. It is not open and transparent.
"Sinn Fein needs to support their elected representatives. They need to find mechanisms to support people who feel this way," she told 'The Irish News'.
"I just felt you were being restricted whatever way you went. It wasn't nice.
"I was hoping things would get better. I was hoping that I would be able to find another way around this."
Former Cork East TD Sandra McLellan described a "vicious" campaign in the party.
"I wanted to go for another five years because I felt I had much more to give and polling suggested I had a very good chance of being re-elected. I am now unemployed. So why would anyone who loves their job so much give it up voluntarily? Efforts to undermine me were particularly vicious and I had a decision to make regarding my family. When it affects the people you love and your close supporters so much, it's time to say enough is enough," she told the 'Evening Echo'.
Ms McLellan decided not to stand again after being "consistently and persistently undermined" by a number of Sinn Fein members locally.
A Sinn Fein spokesman said: "We are disappointed at Sorcha McAnespy's decision to leave Sinn Fein. We thank her for her service.
"Sinn Fein's team of candidates for West Tyrone in the upcoming assembly election were selected by the delegates of the party at an open and democratic selection convention."
Outgoing Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin is actively seeking support for a tilt at the Labour leadership - as pressure grows on party leader Joan Burton to announce her decision to step down as early next week.
Mr Howlin held a meeting with Cork East TD Sean Sherlock in Leinster House on Thursday, during which the pair discussed the prospect of an immediate challenge to Ms Burton's leadership.
Mr Sherlock is understood to have agreed to support Mr Howlin, according to party sources.
The pair are also believed to have reached a consensus that Ms Burton should announce her intentions to step down as party leader in the coming days - instead of waiting until after a Government is formed.
Several party sources last night said Ms Burton faces the prospect of being told next week to step down and that her position is no longer tenable.
"Joan knows the writing is on the wall and, although she feels bruised, it is time to step aside sooner rather than later. That message will be made clear to her possibly as early as next week," a senior party source told the Irish Independent.
The meeting between Mr Howlin and Mr Sherlock took place just 24 hours after Ms Burton's leadership came under attack at a party meeting in Dublin.
Several defeated TDs, including Emmet Stagg, Anne Ferris, Michael McCarthy and Ciaran Lynch, all demanded a change of leadership.
But following the meeting, Ms Burton is believed to have told colleagues that she felt "set up" by Mr Howlin.
The Wexford TD sat back for most of the meeting as members queued up to criticise the party leadership.
During Ms Burton's own contribution, which lasted almost 30 minutes, Mr Sherlock stood up and walked out.
He later expressed deep frustration to colleagues that the meeting did not discuss how to put in place new structures so the party can move forward.
But in a further development last night, sources confirmed that Alan Kelly, the outgoing Environment Minister, has begun seeking support for a leadership bid.
However, in order to do so, the Tipperary TD will require the support of at least one other member of the parliamentary party.
He is now expected to speak to the remainder of his colleagues - Jan O'Sullivan, Brendan Ryan and parliamentary party chairman Willie Penrose - to determine whether he can secure their support.
The news of Mr Kelly's interest the leadership will surprise many in the party, who believe he has been damaged following his claim that "power is a drug" during a recent Sunday Independent interview.
Labour's deputy leader told the meeting on Wednesday that he regrets the remark.
Sources last night pointed out that Mr Kelly is far more popular among Labour's grassroots than his national profile would suggest.
There is also bad blood between Mr Kelly and Mr Sherlock that is widely known about within the party.
Meanwhile, relations between Mr Kelly and Mr Howlin have also soured during the lengthy government row over rental regulation.
These strained relations are seen as a factor in encouraging Mr Kelly to put himself forward for the leadership so as to ensure Mr Howlin is not treated to a 'coronation'.
The issue of the Labour leadership is now likely to come to a head at the Labour parliamentary party meeting on Wednesday.
The party's national executive did meet on Thursday - however, the issue of leadership was not discussed.
Instead, party figures discussed staffing and the need to relocate its headquarters to a more modest venue.
A 16-YEAR-old schoolboy appeared briefly in court yesterday charged with the murder of a teenager.
The accused, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was arrested by gardai in Claremorris, Co. Mayo, at 7.35am yesterday and conveyed to the local Garda Station where he was later charged with the murder of Dovydas Jenkas (17), Claremount Manor, Claremorris, on December 19.
Sergeant James Carroll told Judge Mary Devins at a special court sitting in Castlebar that when he charged the accused at 11.10am he replied, "Nothing to say."
The accused was in the company of his mother when charged, Detective Sgt Carroll said.
Judge Devins remanded the accused in custody at Osberstown House to appear again at Ballina District Court on Friday next, April 8.
Mother laid to rest
A YOUNG mother who died following childbirth had an "unconditional" love for her family, her funeral has heard.
Tracy Campbell Fitzpatrick died shortly after delivering her third son, Max, on Easter Monday.
Yesterday, a photo of her newborn son was carried to the altar by her husband Bernard.
In a message read on his behalf, he told mourners that "from the moment I first laid eyes on Tracy my life was never the same."
In the message read at St Anne's Church in the deceased woman's home village of Shanvaghera, Knock, Co. Mayo, the young widower described his late wife's love as "unconditional", adding that she had "a get-up-and-go attitude to life".
"Friend, wife, mother, I will love you always," the message concluded.
Ms Fitzpatrick, who lived with her husband Bernard and children Jamie and Adam, in Nurney, Co. Carlow, died at St Luke's Hospital, Kilkenny, after giving birth to a healthy baby boy.
Mourners were led by her husband, sons Jamie and Adam, parents James and Pauline, siblings Alan, Amanda, Paula and Diane and grandmother, Rita.
An internal inquiry is under way into the 36-year-old's death at St Luke's Hospital.
It was a dreary January Wednesday morning in 2013. I was sitting in a room nestled away from the public eye with a small group of others, of whom five others and I were the invited guests. We were an unlikely bunch: men, women; young, old; some with a family member, or a friend.
Within about ten minutes of starting her presentation, the woman at the top of the room told us that one of us wasnt going to make it. Well, she put up a slide that said 18 per cent of people in need of a liver transplant wouldnt get one in time. I remember the hairs standing up on the back of my neck. I swallowed and glanced around. There were six of us at the compulsory transplant education day who were newly listed for a liver transplant: statistically, one of us wasnt going to make it.
Having been diagnosed with cystic fibrosis-associated liver disease at the age of six, the slow development of liver disease meant that I didnt really notice the symptoms: they were all part of 'my normal', slowly worsening over the course of 20 years. It wasnt until the summer of 2012 that I realised how serious my condition was.
In May of that year, I awoke in the middle of the night and threw up about half a litre of blood; six weeks later, it was a litre of blood; and two days after that, it was almost my full blood supply over the course of a few hours. The veins in my oesophagus had ruptured because of very high pressure as a result of a dysfunctional liver. A leading transplant consultant stood at the end of my hospital bed one day, and voiced his opinion: Its time to start considering transplant. My future vaporised with those words: my liver was slowly dying, and without the generosity of a stranger, I would die, too.
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Thus began the hardest battle of my life: recovery after a summer of constant illness not to be 'better', but to be 'better enough' to qualify for, and survive until, transplant. The awful irony of life on the transplant list is that, due to the shortage of organ donors, you have to be sick enough to be on the list, but well enough to survive the wait. The lack of organs means that medical teams have to make excruciating decisions on who makes it to the list, and who doesnt.
Early on a bright September Tuesday morning, eleven months after that information day, the phone rang.
Aoife, we have a liver for you.
I sat at the edge of my bed, in a trance, as the woman on the phone explained that I needed to come to the hospital within an hour. It was supposed to be an ordinary Tuesday; I was supposed to go to work and reply to emails. And nownow, I was on my way to everything, and to the rest of my life.
The short ten-minute taxi ride to the hospital was like no other. I watched the world as it appeared in slow motion; as people prepared for their ordinary days: sipping coffees at bus stops; unloading goods from trucks; walking briskly with headphones. Never in my whole life have I felt such a longing for ordinariness than I had that morning. The banality of the everyday seemed like the greatest prize of all. And in that taxi, I knew that, soon, all of that could be mine, too, because, now, above all else, I had hope.
That all became a reality soon after waking up. I discovered I had energy that I never had before. The months that followed exposed other improvements, including a significantly better lung function, despite still plagued by CF complications. I became aware that my liver transplant had dramatically transformed me in ways I could never have contemplated previously. I had gone on the list with the hope and expectation to survive, but what I received was so much more.
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So I decided to make the most of it. In January 2015, just two years after that education day, I left my job for a life of travel. I swapped hospital wards for hostel dorms; ambulances for airplanes, and surviving for living. The months that followed were a frenzied global adventure, where my biggest problem was deciding where to go next. I went by train from London to Beijing, travelled through parts of the US and Central America, backpacked across Japan, New Zealand, Australia, and even took on parts of southern Africa.
Of course, I still had cystic fibrosis, which meant I had to carry approximately a lot of medication and equipment, as well as returning home for check-ups, but I was thriving and felt unstoppable. I stuck to my regime of treatment -- but I was in places as far-flung as the Mongolian steppe, the Australian Outback and the Namib desert.
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My donor was never far from my thoughts throughout my travels. I never lost sight of the fact that because of their decision to donate, I was able to swim with sharks in the Caribbean, see Uluru at sunset, climb the Great Wall of China, and make it to the top of Table Mountain. But more importantly, they gave me the stability that I yearned for: my life was my own again, and the banality of the ordinary was mine to enjoy once more.
In their darkest moment, my donors family knew that something awful could become something positive; they knew that in death, there could be new life; and their despair could give hope.
I will never be able to put in words how thankful I am for the generosity of a stranger: it is an unspeakable gratitude. If you had a chance to give someone everything, after you weren't even alive any more, would you? This week is Organ Donation Awareness Week: its time to think and talk with your family about just that.
Organ Donor Awareness Week 2016, which is organised by the Irish Kidney Association, will take place from 2nd 9th April
Organ Donor Cards can also be obtained by phoning the Irish Kidney Association LoCall 1890 543639 orFreetext the word DONOR to 50050. Visit website www.ika.ie
American Airlines is to resume its seasonal services from Dublin to Chicago and Charlotte, it has announced.
The world's largest airline will resume the routes from May 6, as well as re-commencing its flights from Shannon to Philadelphia from the same date.
American will use Airbus A330-200 aircraft on the Charlotte and Chicago routes, it said, with a Boeing 757 flying between Shannon and Philadelphia.
All three routes will run through to late September.
The continuation of the seasonal flights is the latest boost to connectivity at Dublin Airport, which is increasingly positioning itself as a European hub for transatlantic travel.
Transatlantic travel was up 17pc at the airport last year, with a record 2.5 million passengers travelling to/from North American destinations.
This summer, Dublin will have over 290 flights per week to/from nine destinations in the US with five airlines, said its MD, Vincent Harrison.
One in ten transatlantic visitors to Europe now pass through Ireland, according to Tourism Ireland. North American visitor numbers are up 13pc in the latest CSO figures, which tallied overseas visits from December to February 2016.
Aer Lingus is set to launch new direct flights to LA, Newark and Connecticut this summer, while Delta - which restarted its Dublin to Atlanta route on March 28 - is offering an extra 2,600 seats per week, as compared to 2015.
Last month, United Airlines announced that its second Dublin-Newark service would operate year-round from May 26. It was previously a seasonal service.
American also operates year-round flights from Dublin to Philadelphia, as well as a seasonal service from Dublin to New York (to late October).
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What will it take to unite Ireland? Opinions are divided
There are those for whom Northern Ireland is a geographical fragment of the UK holding true to empire on its western flanks, and those for whom partition is a century-old wrong that must be overturned. Somewhere in the middle are the persuadables people willing to accept either unity or union, so long as the justification is logical. One way or another, the unity conversation is in the air.
The threat of an all-out Luas strike is looming after the row over pay deepened when Siptu called for the resignation of the State's chief mediator.
Passengers must endure another strike this weekend as there appears to be no end in sight to the disruptive row.
Siptu general president Jack O'Connor yesterday accused the director general of the Workplace Relations Commission, Kieran Mulvey, of bias against unions and said his union would not deal with it while he was at the helm. He said it was not credible for someone in his position to "attack" one of the parties to an industrial dispute.
As the bitter dispute took a personal twist, Mr O'Connor said: "Someone who is paid the amount of money that Kieran Mulvey is paid by the taxpayer doesn't have an entitlement to indulge himself in the way he did."
He was responding after Mr Mulvey said most union officials would have received a standing ovation if they had brought back the pay proposals to their members that were brokered at the commission.
It is understood that Mr Mulvey's comments were made in a bid to get the union and Transdev to refer the issues that could end the dispute to the Labour Court.
Workers have overwhelmingly rejected the proposals for pay rises between 8pc and 18pc in up to five years in a ballot.
Mr Mulvey said he had no intention of resigning, and he was acting purely in the public interest by commenting - as he has done in a number of disputes.
"It's affecting 90,000 people every time there's a stoppage," he said. "What I was indicating to everyone who wanted to listen, was that there wasn't much more to be done in this dispute.
"The parties need to convey to us what is wrong at the moment. I also did say, on both sides, we need leadership."
He also responded to a claim by Mr O'Connor that he had intervened prematurely in the dispute. Mr Mulvey said he had intervened following requests from Siptu, Transdev, and acting Transport Minister Paschal Donohoe.
Mr Mulvey said he was unaware of any initiative by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, headed by Patricia King, to resolve the dispute as Mr O'Connor had mentioned.
The leader of the National Bus and Railworkers' Union, Dermot O'Leary, said Mr Mulvey should not resign.
"Without wishing to get involved in the minutiae of the Luas dispute, I would say that if Kieran Mulvey was to resign for making critical comments about employer or employee representatives, his 26-year tenure as chief of the commission since its inception in 1990 would have been considerably shorter," said Mr O'Leary.
However, the Anti-Austerity Alliance backed Siptu's stance.
Fianna Fail spokesman on Transport, Timmy Dooley, has called for a special taskforce with members from the Government, Ibec and Ictu, similar to a body that intervened in a dispute at Dublin Bus three years ago.
Transport Minister Mr Donohoe has not ruled out setting up a special body to resolve the dispute - but said it would have to be signed off by the Workplace Relations Commission.
I was asked by the historian, Ruth Dudley Edwards, to speak at the London launch of her book, 'The Seven: the lives and legacies of the founding fathers of the Irish Republic', a collective biography of the 1916 leaders', and one of the many books published this year to mark the centenary of the Easter Rising. The other speaker at the launch was the Nobel Prize recipient and former First Minister of Northern Ireland, David Trimble. Here is a summary of what I said at the launch. Ruth does not know this, but the first time I ever spoke publicly, at a student history conference in the late 1970s, my paper on the poet and political journalist, George Russell (AE) was chaired by her late father, Robin Dudley Edwards.
Ruth's biography of Patrick Pearse: 'The Triumph of Failure', was one of the first serious books I ever bought - in 1977, the year it was published, when I was a post-graduate student at University College Cork.
I am not an academic historian, but I have published one book on early 20th century Ireland and have recently co-edited a collection of essays, 'The Shaping of Modern Ireland': a centenary assessment, which focuses on some of the many fascinating personalities from the Ireland of the late-19th and early 20th centuries, who in their different ways influenced modern Ireland.
In my approach to Irish history, I suppose I am a liberal nationalist, proud of our Irish traditions and of the achievements of the independent Irish state I have served for close to four decades now. These achievements include a century of political stability and, after many economic ups and downs, the creation of a prosperous society with a high GDP per capita, 12th in the world according to the IMF, and 6th on the UNDP's Human Development Index. We also have a proud international record, characterised among other things by a deep commitment to UN peacekeeping and a highly-regarded development cooperation programme, Irish Aid.
I have no difficulty, however, in recognising that there are many different, even conflicting analyses of 1916. That is the way it should be. The past is multi-faceted and it is susceptible to multiple, competing readings. I welcome Ruth Dudley Edwards' contributions to the understanding of our history, even if her perceptions and interpretations can differ from mine. For me it is important to commemorate 1916 as a vital event in the emergence of modern Ireland. This does not mean that I have a starry-eyed appreciation of what happened in Dublin in 1916, or a hagiographical approach to its leaders. I do not attribute independent Ireland's achievements, nor its failings, to the men and women of 1916. Each generation makes its own choices and leaves its own legacy. The seven signatories of the proclamation would hardly recognise today's Ireland, even though they helped bring it into being, and that's as it should be. Things tend to change during the course of a century.
The Proclamation signed by the seven leaders was, for its time, a progressive document, whose principles retain their relevance today. It promised religious and civil liberty, and equal rights and opportunities for all. It contained a commitment to pursue 'the happiness and prosperity of the whole nation and of all its parts', and to cherish 'all the children of the nation equally.' It also promised universal suffrage at a time when the principle of votes for women was still contested.
Fundamentally, the seven signatories were men of their time. Pearse's sacrificial rhetoric may sound strange to our ears, but is it any more exotic than Rupert Brooke's thinking:
If I should die, think only this of me; That there's some corner of a foreign field
That is forever England.
Although they ended up leading an insurrection, the seven signatories were not a homogeneous group. They fall into three sub-groups: the cultural nationalists (Patrick Pearse, Thomas MacDonagh, Joseph Plunkett, all published poets, and Eamonn Ceannt), the Fenians (Thomas Clarke and Sean MacDiarmada) and the socialist (James Connolly). I have a particular interest in the first group, who were drawn into public life on the back of their enthusiasm for the revival of the Irish language.
WB Yeats once wrote about the 'stir of thought' that gripped Ireland from the early 1890s onwards and, in Yeats's opinion, paved the way for Irish independence. This new mood placed more of an emphasis on Irish identity than on Irish interests. Founded in 1893, the Gaelic League became an obsession for the rising generation of Irish nationalists. Thomas MacDonagh, who wrote poetry in English and taught literature at University College Dublin, called the League a 'baptism in nationalism' and the same would apply to Pearse, Plunkett and Ceannt.
When the crisis surrounding the Irish Home Rule Bill erupted in the years before the outbreak of war, all four cultural nationalists became members of the nationalist Irish Volunteers set up in 1913 in response to the emergence of the Ulster Volunteers. This meant that by August 1914 there were two rival militias in Ireland, which had mobilised hundreds of thousands of men, for and against Home Rule.
The Irish Volunteers split in 1914 and Pearse, MacDonagh, Plunkett and Ceannt (who was more radical than the others at that stage, having already joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood) sided with the minority who opposed Irish participation in the war. In the following 18 months, the poet-patriots, coalesced with the dedicated separatists, Clarke and MacDiarmada, and the socialist James Connolly, who had been radicalised by his experience during the Dublin workers' Lock-out of 1913. They all became part of the secret Military Council of the IRB which organised the Rising and, as signatories of the Proclamation, all faced the firing squad in May 1916.
This year's commemorations have been designed to acknowledge and respect the many strands of Irish experience that came together during that fateful year. There is no desire to simplify our history.
On the contrary, the centenary offers an opportunity to broaden understanding of our multi-stranded past. This pursuit of understanding does not require us to abandon our loyalties, but to be open-minded and inquisitive about the past.
Inevitably, there are different views about the rights and wrongs of the Rising and the motivations of its leaders, but we commemorate what actually happened and its effects on our times.
In an inclusive spirit, our commemorations will remember those who fought in the rebellion, but also the innocent men, women and children who were caught up in the fighting in Dublin, and indeed the members of the British Army and the police who lost their lives.
In Ireland, we will also commemorate the centenary of the battle of the Somme, in which so many Irishmen fought and died. That commemoration will build on our involvement in recent years in events to remember the First World War, including my own participation at the Cenotaph on Remembrance Sunday this past two years.
There will always be those who seek to use history to justify what can never be justified and we must be resolute in our rejection of such spurious claims. Ireland's path to self-determination was a complex and difficult one. The achievements of the past 100 years, including the cherished peace and reconciliation built in Northern Ireland and the warm, friendly partnership that has developed between Ireland and the UK, are important parts of the Irish story that we are encouraged to reflect upon during this centenary year.
Daniel Mulhall is Ireland's Ambassador in London. This is an edited extract from his speech at the launch in London of Ruth Dudley Edwards's book 'The Seven: the lives and legacies of the founding fathers of the Irish Republic, a collective biography of the 1916 leaders'. He is the co-editor (with Eugenio Biagini) of 'The Shaping of Modern Ireland: a centenary assessment (Dublin 2016)'. He is on Twitter: @DanMulhall
Teacher conferences were short on the usual histrionics this year. The absence of a minister removed an important actor from the stage and with it, the loss of a dynamic that gives rise to the displays of amateur dramatics that we have come to associate with these events.
Over the years, ministers attending the annual Easter conferences have been confronted with attention grabbing behaviours such as stony silences, boos and walkouts, designed to exert maximum discomfort on the incumbent and gain maximum exposure in the media.
Sometimes, the minister plays no small part in stirring things up, even if somewhat inadvertently. A few years ago, while addressing the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) congress, then minister, Ruairi Quinn suggested that poor maths performance in Ireland was linked to having a highly feminised primary teaching profession, who were not required to have honours maths in the Leaving Cert in order to get into their training course.
The minister received an unscripted, rapid-fire, Oscar-winning response from INTO general secretary Sheila Nunan, who reminded him that it was the boys who did honours maths who brought the country to financial ruin, bringing the audience to its feet.
The one that everyone remembers best was megaphone man, a delegate at the annual conference of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) two years ago, who pulled out a loud-hailer to roar his disapproval at Ruairi Quinn. It was an unacceptable low in audience participation.
So, without delegates, or the minister, behaving badly to dominate the headlines, more of the routine debates filled the media space in the past week.
A common theme across the three conferences was the huge sense of injustice among newly qualified teachers, who are on lower pay rates than their more senior colleagues arising from austerity-era cuts to salary scales. Now that they have moved beyond the initial euphoria of getting a job, and are settling into their career, they are wondering out loud why the hell they are being paid less than everyone else in the staffroom. We will be hearing more of this from young gardai and prison officers.
Teacher also got to vent disquiet over other issues that they see need highlighting, such as the impact on schools of inadequate State funding, and how it forces principals to prioritise paying utility bills over enriching their classrooms with more education resources.
So, there was a certain coherence to the conference messages and coverage this year.
Except, what are parents, pupils and politicians to make of a decision taken by the Association of Secondary Teachers' Ireland (ASTI) that is intent on unravelling progress already achieved between the union and the Department of Education on the issue of junior cycle reform.
Last year, after painstaking negotiations, the ASTI hailed as a "significant achievement" the demise of the most contentious proposal associated with the new junior cycle, which would have seen teachers assessing their own pupils for State certification. It was replaced with a dual system, allowing for classroom-based assessments (for school certification) and traditional June exams (for State certification), which ultimately would be stapled together for parents.
An Irish solution to an Irish problem, and enough for members of the Teachers' Union of Ireland to drop their opposition and get off a hook that many found uncomfortable. TUI members are now being trained in the new junior cycle and by all accounts are lapping it up.
A lack of engagement by ASTI members in union affairs (it has internal problems too, with staff taking a case against the union, as an employer, to the Workplace Relations Commission) was evident in a low turnout for its ballot, which delivered a "no" vote.
While, in any deal, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, there was an understanding that the assessment hurdle had been crossed. Union hardliners are now rewriting that script.
And that is only one of four fronts that the ASTI has opened up with the Government.
This is the time of year when the bodies begin to wash up on the sandy beaches of western Libya.
During winter, rough weather conditions make the Mediterranean crossing from Libya more difficult for those desperate for a new life in Europe. The flow never stops completely, and with the approach of better spring weather and calmer seas, more rickety boats crammed with migrants will set off.
Many such vessels capsize en route - their human cargo returned, bloated and lifeless, to the picturesque shores along Libya's western flank. Almost 100 migrants may have drowned off Libya on their way to Italy this week after their dinghy sank, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). They said two vessels, one with 140 on board and the other carrying an estimated 120 people, left the Libyan coast the day before. The larger dinghy was intercepted by Libyan naval authorities, but the other capsized.
"Thirty one migrants were saved by the Libyan authorities, so that leaves 89 possible victims," an IOM spokesman said.
The Italian coastguard said it had rescued almost 1,500 migrants - including many women and children - in a dozen operations off the coast of Libya over just two days this week.
This follows figures released by the UN refugee agency UNHCR last week, showing that nearly 14,500 migrants had arrived in Italy via the perilous sea route from Libya since the beginning of the year, up 42.5pc on the same period in 2015.
After the controversial migrant swap deal between the EU and Turkey came into effect this week, aiming to stem the flow of people taking the Aegean Sea crossing to Greece, there are fears more will now attempt the even more dangerous route from Libya.
The Greek government has reported falling numbers of people arriving on Greek islands this week, though it is not clear whether this is a direct result of the EU-Turkey agreement, or other factors like inclement weather. Similarly, it is too soon to detect the impact of the deal on the numbers crossing from Libya.
Last month, French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian claimed that 800,000 migrants were waiting in Libya to get to Europe, but Libyan sources rejected the number as exaggerated, saying the figure was less than half that.
Most of those attempting the journey from Libya are not Libyan - in fact, most are from sub-Saharan Africa mixed with a number from other parts of the Middle East. Libya's role in the multi-million dollar human trafficking business goes back to the Gaddafi era.
Many of the networks and personalities involved today existed under his rule. After Gaddafi was ousted in a popular uprising aided by a Nato-led intervention in 2011, the turmoil that followed allowed smugglers of all sorts to flourish - but the business of trafficking humans was considered one of the most lucrative.
Today, Libya's smuggling networks are, in several cases, entwined with powerful local figures, including militia bosses.
EU officials hope that better management of migrant flows from Libya may come with the establishment of a unity government aimed at ending an almost two-year-old power struggle between the country's rival parliaments.
The resulting political and security vacuum has empowered an array of unsavoury elements - including smugglers and Isil, which has built a stronghold in Gaddafi's home town of Sirte.
Reports from Libya suggest Isil is trying to muscle in on the human trafficking business - as well as claims they have tried to lure desperate migrants into their ranks by paying them to join the group. Isil has already carried out a number of attacks in Libya, including a suicide bombing that killed more than 60 people earlier this year.
This week, the first layer of that UN-backed unity government, known as the presidency council, arrived in Tripoli after being based in Tunis since its inception. The unity government faces a host of challenges as it tries to take shape and attempts to impose its authority on a capital - and a country - where several armed groups are hostile to it.
The fact the presidency council was forced to travel to Tripoli by sea, after factions there prevented its members from flying in, shows the challenges they face.
It will be some time before this unity government will be in a position to meaningfully tackle the question of migration flows from Libya. In the meantime, Europe can expect more reports of deaths in the Mediterranean.
Donald Trump has discovered that in America there is one issue that even he cannot fool with. The bloviating billionaire asserted this week that, in a Trump presidency, there would be "punishment" for women who choose to have abortions.
It was a classic move by a Republican presidential candidate for whom espousing extreme solutions to key policy issues has become a trademark: America should kill the families of jihadists (foreign policy); it should torture its prisoners (national security); ban Muslims from entering the country, and build a wall on its southern border (immigration).
And as his frontrunner status shows, his tactics have helped.
Not so with abortion. Barely had the words left his mouth before Mr Trump faced a firestorm of criticism from all sides of the American political debate. Democrats, Republicans, pro-choice and pro-life groups alike launched attacks so fierce that, like a wounded animal, Mr Trump was forced to retreat.
Mr Trump should have known better than to meddle with this topic. More than national security, more than healthcare, more even that guns, abortion is the issue in America that can bring neighbours to blows.
It's a ferocious battleground that has once again reached the Supreme Court, with a Texas case now being heard which has the power, potentially, to render obsolete the breakthrough 1973 Roe v Wade decision which struck down abortion bans.
Many states are already doing their utmost to bypass that landmark ruling, putting up legal barriers that hamper an abortion clinic's ability to operate and a woman's access to it. But why is this topic so uniquely febrile in the United States?
Religion, you say. This is a Godly country, yes, but its one in which the religious right is actually losing strength. Last year, remember, America became a liberal standard bearer on gay marriage, legalising same-sex unions. And all the statistics point to a singular fact: America is becoming more secular. Even the fundamentalist Christian bloc is shrinking, with 22pc of white evangelicals born in the 1980s now saying they have no religion, almost double the number of the decade before.
The real answer is that in an increasingly partisan country, abortion is uniquely, and perfectly, divisive. Abortion, opinion polls show, splits America, and has always split America, into two equal halves. So political parties can win the argument for a time, but they can never settle it forever.
It's no surprise, then, that a recent poll found that, for a record number of Americans, a politician's stance on abortion is the single most important factor in shaping how they vote.
His reaction to the fallout was telling: humility, apology, backtrack - the kind of compromises that the career politicians he so derides make all the time.
As we move towards the sharp end of this presidential campaign, it shows how he will behave when his usual bluster doesn't work.
He will behave like everyone else.
This may be the first political U-turn for The Donald, but if he goes much further, it will certainly not be his last.
And it shows why he may not be as iconoclastic - or invincible - as his passionate supporters believe. ( Daily Telegraph London)
The extraordinary attack by Siptu president Jack O'Connor on disputes troubleshooter Kieran Mulvey was a pretty low blow.
The director general of the Workplace Relations Commission is a revered figure in the industrial relations landscape, due to his strong track record as an honest broker. Mr Mulvey has also served the trade union movement with some distinction over his long career.
Mr O'Connor's call for Mr Mulvey to resign was a kneejerk response without merit. However, the call did highlight how tensions have risen as a result of the ongoing Luas dispute.
Mr Mulvey's offence was to highlight how the deal agreed for Luas workers was, by the standards of any independent observer, reasonably generous and appeared to go towards meeting demands on the table. It is unclear why Siptu believe a better offer will come about through another round of mediation, after further disruption to services for the public.
The overwhelming rejection of this deal by Luas drivers begs questions about what this dispute is really about.
On Easter weekend, Siptu was quite satisfied to take the brickbats of hampering public transport for the commemorations of the 1916 Rising. The counter-argument was that James Connolly and the Irish Citizen Army fought for workers' benefits and strike action is a right in any democracy.
Nonetheless, one wonders is this a dispute about pay or an ideological protest against the privatisation and outsourcing of services to companies like Transdev, which operates Luas?
It appears to be about far more than the pay, terms and conditions of the drivers of trams. The industrial relations climate in the public transport sector has had a long and colourful history. The rejection this week of changes to the frequency of the Dart timetable reiterated the slow pace of change in an area that is heavily subsidised by the taxpayer.
If Siptu's real objection though is dealing with a private company operating in this sector, then let them come out and say so rather than using the public as collateral damage.
Without a shadow of a doubt the best day I've spent in Dublin City with my young family was Easter Monday 2016.
We began our adventure by train from Dunboyne to Pearse Station, (the older children had wanted to go to Tayto Park and grumbled a little, but luckily resigned themselves). Along with a picnic, we strolled to Merrion Square to be completely uplifted by what surrounded us.
Dublin City opened itself to us and there was a real sense of freedom. Money was not required as activities were offered by the artists who kindly shared their talents with our children.
Musicians filled the streets with music for all ages alongside actors and volunteers who dressed in 1916 attire. The army and historians educated us all in different ways on the deep and meaningful history of those who suffered for this land. One really noticeable difference was how clean Dublin looked and how safe the streets were. Despite the huge numbers of people visiting the city we didn't encounter any antisocial behaviour. The atmosphere was pleasant, enjoyable and instilled in our children a sense of pride in their capital city.
Merrion Square oozed a sense of simple fun, peace, calm and enchantment. Children wrote with chalk on old grids that had been laid out, flew tiny kites in the breeze or played skipping. They busily wrote their names and drew pictures on a large cardboard replica of the GPO - most parents had to drag the kids away from the area, which had been laid out with basic arts and crafts materials for them to glue, colour and stick to their hearts' content.
Children ran on the hill with giant balls, played under a coloured parachute and sang songs of their choice (many of them Irish) in a tent with a very kind presenter with a microphone.
Merrion Square - having been home to Oscar Wilde, Daniel O'Connell and WB Yeats in times gone by - became a hub of family activity, sharing, fun and games in the spring sunshine, and a mirror of how the past has shaped the blessings we have today.
A century ago, the children played similar outdoor games with simple materials, often turning the old into new in this very city. There was a sense of community among the Irish. On Easter Monday we were so privileged to fill the now peaceful square with our families and enjoy all that our ancestors wanted for the country - freedom, and that which makes us Irish.
With our children we explored the traditions of art and music, our creativity and our sense of family and togetherness, which binds us to those in 1916 and before.
This was a day to be proud of Ireland and where we have arrived, collectively and as a community. The children of 1916 may have lived in dark times, but the vibrancy of the city today, the rainbows that nature offered over the weekend, the effort the people of Ireland put into creating this event, along with the smiles on our children's faces reflect how the essence of being Irish is still as important to us now as it was to the families of 1916.
Name and address with editor
The nation needs new heroes
On the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Rising, I find it difficult to let the event pass without comment.
Does anyone really believe that the Republic of Ireland is an independent country? As far as I can see, we have just substituted the British flag for the EU one.
With a 200bn government debt, we have lost our financial independence and the ability to govern ourselves. We cannot even conclude a national budget without referring to the ECB and the IMF. With every man, woman and child in the country owing circa 45,000, what kind of a future are we inflicting on our children? The current Government's corrective action is to give us hand-outs so we can buy new cars, take second holidays - and to hell with the debt. Do we really believe any prospective government would act any differently? They obviously cannot do anything that would put their cushy jobs at risk.
Our independence has not, as people might think, been squandered in recent years, it has been heading in this direction since the 1960s - and it is the Irish voter who has made it so. It is not altogether the electorate's fault. Typically, we do not have an alternative party or candidate to vote for. As we say, "Shur, they are all the same." The problem is that we have had very few competent men and women putting themselves forward for election to the Dail.
What we need is 80 high-calibre people in the Dail, men and women at the top of their professions who care enough about Ireland and its people to give up five years of their lives (ie, put their careers on hold for just one term in government) to put the country back on its feet and restore the independence that the people of 1916 gave their lives for.
I would ask the question: Are there 80 such people in Ireland? And, if there are, would the Irish people elect them if given the opportunity? If not, we should ask the UK to take us back into the Union and accept that the Irish race cannot govern themselves.
Declan Malone
Celbridge, Co Kildare
TDs and tram drivers, behave
Memo to TDs and Luas drivers: When you applied for your jobs, it was on the basis that (a) you wanted to help govern the country or (b) you wanted to drive a tram, and the terms and conditions (of both jobs) were attractive to you.
If you now think your driving skills are no longer adequately recompensed, or if the thought of participating in the government of the country scares you, then please seek alternative employment more suited to your ambitions and abilities. The electorate recently voted for a government, not for an opposition. TDs should respect the views of the people as expressed in the composition of the Dail, and if they are unable or unwilling so to do, they should resign their seats and not be allowed to stand in the resultant by-elections.
Roger Blackburn
Abbey Hill, Naul, Co Dublin
Remembering Ronnie Corbett
After watching Ronnie Corbett on TV over the years, I will remember a lovely, lovely jolly wee man, with a big heart, who brought laughter and joy to millions. "It's good night from me." "And it's good night from him."
May he rest in peace.
Brian Mc Devitt
Glenties, Co Donegal
Stonewalling on so-called 'fall'
I heard Tommy Sands singing that Humpty Dumpty was pushed. Let us congratulate Tommy for raising the subject - for years a wall of silence has surrounded the issue.
Tom Gilsenan
Beaumont, Dublin 9
Louth's housing crisis, where there are almost 5,000 people on the council housing list, was raised by newly-elected TD Imelda Munster and Fine Gael TD Peter Fitzpatrick during the brief Dail session last week. Ms Munster criticised the lack of concerted action for social housing building and highlighted how 70 acres of land zoned by the Louth County Council is lying idle.
She said: 'There are almost 70 acres of land banks zoned for social housing in Louth. The council is paying over three million euro in interest only loans per year out of the local authority budget. Despite these lands lying idle, there has been no concerted effort to roll out of a social housing programme.
'The obligations of developers that required them to incorporate 20% of social housing into their build has been slashed to 10%. This has helped to contribute to the current housing crisis of unprecedented proportions.
'What sort of person of conscience, let alone a minister with departmental responsibility for housing, would turn a blind eye to a crisis of such magnitude?'.
Meanwhile Mr Fitzpatrick said the issue is 'one of the biggest challenges facing not only the government but also society as a whole'.
But, he added, there is no quick fix solution. He said: 'We all need to work together in order to find a solution that will not only provide a short term solution but also prove to be a long term sustainable answer.
'I agree that it is simply not acceptable that in 2016 we have families that are in emergency accommodation. I met this week with Denis McArdle who is the Housing Officer in Louth County Council. I also note that 12 new units are due to come on stream in the Linenhall street area of Dundalk very soon, which is very welcome news
'Louth County Council are also one of the few authorities who have a 24 hour contact number for people at risk of homelessness.
Louth officially does not have any people sleeping rough or homeless which I believe is a result of the measures already mentioned and also the good work of people like Mr McArdle and Joe McGuinness the present Director of Services in Louth County Council.
'It is quite clear from speaking with people like them, people who dealing head on with the housing and homelessness on a daily basis, that a workable and sustainable solution can be found if we can work together'.
Captain Peter Kelleher from the 27th Infantry Battalion, reading the Proclamation at the GPO, O'Connell Street
The army officer chosen to read the Proclamation outside the GPO on Sunday was Dundalk based Captain, Peter Kelleher.
Captain Kelleher has received widespread praise for the manner in which he carried out the reading at the event led by President Michael D Higgins and relatives of the 1916 leaders.
'It was a very very humbling experience and I was very, very proud to be standing there in front of the people and delivering the proclamation,' he told the Argus.
Cpt. Kelleher has been based with the 27th Battalion at Aiken Barracks for the last two years, and is married and living locally.
He told of his pride at his family being at the parade on Sunday, including his wife Orlaith and eldest son Senan, to watch him read the historic document aloud.
'It was a day I will never forget. I really wanted to do the document justice.'
Originally from Douglas in County Cork, he revealed that he had auditioned for the role last year, and was one of two members of the 27th Battalion shortlisted to the final three.
'When I was informed that I had been chosen, I was very excited, and I just wanted to do my best.'
Although he has no family links to the 1916 rebellion, Cpt. Kelleher's grandfather and grand-uncle later fought in the War of Independence.
Keenly aware of the importance of his role in the 1916 commemorations, he told how he had practiced considerably before walking out in front of the GPO.
Despite initial nerves, he said he was 'immensely proud' when he began to read the historic words first spoke by Padraig Pearse outside the GPO ion 1916.
He added: 'The feedback since has been great. The coverage captured how you could have heard a pin drop when the Proclamation was being read out. It was a special moment.'
'The whole day went so well. I soaked up the atmosphere and I must say, I really enjoyed the entire experience.'
As the Cross Border Orchestra of Ireland continues to reflect on successful performances in Washington as part of the St Patrick's Day celebrations, the search is now on for new members.
The CBOI's trip to America included playing at the White House for President Obama, and the time spent Stateside has been described as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the young musicians that will live in their memories forever.
The orchestra is now in recess until August to facilitate members doing exams.
However, applications for membership are being accepted.
There is no audition. All orchestral instruments except piano may join. Bagpipers/highland pipers are also welcome.
The orchestra performs up to 15 concerts in spring of each year. These take place in the Odyssey Arena, Belfast; the RDS, Dublin; City Hall, Cork; the Hub, Kilkenny; NUI Galway; NUI Limerick etc.
Rehearsals are held on Sundays from 1 - 5pm in Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT), from September to January. A week-long workshop takes place in August and at Christmas.
Members must attend all rehearsals, workshops and performances and participate in all international tours.
New applicants should be in a position to join from August. A full schedule and more information can be found on www.cboi.ie
Those interested in joining should email: enquiries@cboi.ie giving name, age, address, phone number and instrument, or phone 042-9370494 for details.
Meanwhile, the CBOI wants to extend its thanks to all sponsors and to everyone who donated to the Washington fund, 'especially Ruth Thompson, Elaine Foley, Pauline Donoghue, Grainne Conachy, Wenlin Sng, Damien O'Connor, Helen Johnston, Aileen Reynolds, Siobhan Winston, Jenny Ni Dhoibhilin, Gerry Martin, Wioletta Charko, Greg Beardsell, Cllr Marianne Butler, Cllr John McGahon, Mary Sadlier of Coole Swan, Brian Britton, Cllr Liam Reilly, Kildare county council, John and Michelle Freise, HaggleRock drama group, Maureen O'Toole and Louth county council.
'We hugely appreciate your generosity and simply could not have got to the White House without you!
'Special thanks to Larry and Kate Goodman and the Goodman Foundation for their extremely generous donation on this occasion, and for all their support over many years.
'A huge debt of gratitude is owed to everyone who made this possible. Thank you to Minister Heather Humphreys who wrote to the White House endorsing the CBOI and recommending that we perform there, and to everyone at the Department of Arts Heritage and the Gaeltacht for supporting the CBOI for many years.
'Thank you to the CBOI's Chicago Co-Chair Mr. Mark O'Malley who was very influential in getting us to the White House and who looked after all our arrangements on the ground in Washington D.C.
'We are eternally grateful to Mark for his tireless efforts on our behalf.
'Thanks to United Airlines who part-sponsored our flights and to Ted Spero, owner of the Mansion Hotel on O Street, who part-sponsored our stay there.
'Ted made us feel completely at home in his unique and magnificent retreat hotel which can only be described as Alice in Wonderland meets Louis X1V!'
On Saturday night we headed for the Lisdoo where a rather special 50th birthday party was taking place for Pauline McGuinness from Mountpleasant and there to make sure she had a fantastic night was husband Tommy and kids Katie, Megan and Lauren and a huge collection of family and friends.
I wasn't too long in the door when I met up with Pauline's brother John and Audrey Gillespie from Ardee who were with aunty Pauline McMahon also from Ardee who were looking forward to a good night and wanted to wish Pauline all the best on her big night.
They were sitting with Seamie Walsh and Yaffim Ting also from Ardee who were definitely up for making it a real night to remember.
Heading for an adjacent table I caught up with Lisa McCoy from Faughart who was there on the night with Laura Ferrigan also from Faughart and Lisa told me she knows the family really well because she used to babysit Katie, Megan and Lauren.
Next I got talking to Sean and Bridgie Crilly from Ravensdale who were with Angela and Malcolm Begley from Faughart. Pauline whom, along with raising her kids also works in Crilly's Londis in Ravensdale and they were delighted to be there to support her on her big night.
I then got talking Eoghan and Carol Jones from Faughart who assured me that Pauline was definitely going to have a wild and crazy night for sure.
Not too long later I met up with daughter and mother Teresa Ludden and Maisie McKenny from Ardee. Teresa said that she and Pauline were next door neighbours growing up and she has been friends with her since she was three. They went on to tell me that when Pauline and Tommy were 'stepping out' together, when they were outside Pauline's house late at night Maisie used to go and switch the outside light on just to annoy them!
Making my way over to another table I then got talking to Declan and Noreen Delaney from Faughart and Noreen told me she that I've been out and about since she was 16 (not that long ago, eh Noreen?)! They also wanted to wish Pauline a very happy birthday.
Headed for another table I then had the pleasure of talking to Geraldine Murphy from Lower Faughart and Una Byrne from Newry Road who told me they've been friends with the birthday girl for years with all their kids at school together. They said it was going to be a major night of fun with none of the ladies holding back from making it an epic celebration.
After this I had the pleasure of meeting up with Joan Tyrell and Marie Kelly both from Mountpleasant who are neighbours of Pauline's and they assured me the youngsters would find it hard to keep up with them, it was going to be a wild and crazy night.
After this I got a word with Joe Finnegan from Bellurgan who was having a laugh with Jacqueline Clarke from Ardee who wanted to wish Pauline all the best on her big night and they were having a good laugh with everyone there.
Not too long later I caught up with Pauline's daughter Lauren who was up for making the best of the night with her mates Sinead Quigley and Lucy Murphy both from Faughart.
At an adjacent table I then got a word with 'in-laws' Elaine and Brian McGuinness from Lower Faughart, Helen and Declan McGuinness from Carrickfergus, Aine McGuinness and Paul O'Connor over from Galway and parents-in-law Amy and Tom McGuinness who all wanted to make sure that Pauline had an excellent time on her big celebration night.
Next I got a word with Maria and Claire McArdle from Kilcurry, Elish Quigley, Stephen Begley with Pauline's daughters Katie and Megan McGuinness all from Faughart who were there to party the night away as best they could.
Finally before I departed I caught up with Pauline and Francis O'Reilly from Omeath who were with Julia and Joe Keenan from Mountpleasant as well as Daryl and Carmel McElroy form Carrick Road who all wanted to wish Pauline a very happy birthday and hopes she had a brilliant night with everyone there.
On Thursday night I headed for Herity's Bar in Dromiskin for somewhat of a different night's fun. The night was the culmination of their Almost Operation Transformation fundraiser, where three of the local lads had endeavoured on a sponsored weight loss programme to raise money for the Louth branch of Multiple Sclerosis and the Gary Kelly Cancer Fund.
The idea came from a bit of craic in the pub earlier in the year and was organised by David Murtagh from Bushfield Interiors whom along with the intrepid trio of Eamonn McElroy, Donal Costello and Jim Byrne had their first 'weigh in' back on February 4th and last Thursday night was the culmination of their weight loss programme and a totting up of all monies raised on the night.
I wasn't too long in the door when I met up with David Murtagh who told me it had turned out to be a fantastic idea and everyone had really got behind it and it was for such a good cause too. He was sitting having a laugh with his brother-in-law and son Michael and David Sharkey who were up for having a laugh on the night.
Seated close by was one of the transformers Jim Byrne from Dromiskin who told me it had been tough but the two charities were the winners at the end of the day. He was with his wife Gemma who said she was looking forward to a big dinner; she was bit sick of all those salads. They were with her sister and her husband Bernadette and Liam Dullaghan from Dowdallshill who were there to lend moral support to Jim on the night.
Meanwhile over at another table I then got talking to Eamonn Gorham from Dromiskin with Gerry Woods from Stonehill, Eamonn and Rosemary McElroy who told me it was definitely a cause for celebration after the great fundraising work done by the lads although Eamonn wouldn't be giving it too much of a lash because the thoughts of the 7.30am start was looming!
After this I headed over for a chat with Marian Conlon from Castlebellingham who was with Loretta Yore and Donal Costello from Green Road, Briege Yore from Haggardstown. Donal told me it is wonderful to have done it, it was well worth it, it wasn't easy, it was all simple changes that had helped him. He was going to have a few on the night but was determined to keep it up. The ladies also wanted to wish their brother Paddy Yore a very happy birthday on the night too.
Not too long later I met up with Patrick Toner from Church View who told me he thought the lads were just great raising money for MS and Gary Kelly Caner and wanted to wish them all the best with their final total.
Patrick was sitting having a laugh with Angela Carolan from Church View and Ambrose Doyle from the Village and they both agreed that it was a credit to everyone who had got involved.
Making my way over to another table I then met up with Harry Reynolds from Kilsaran, Alan Uzell from Dromiskin and Mark Gracey from Darver who told me they were there to support Jim and work with him in East Coast Suppliers and they hoped that he had the following day booked off!
Not too long later I then met up with Michael and David Sharkey from Dromiskin who were with Stephen Hanneffy and Annmarie Breen both from Dromiskin who were there to cheer the lads on and have a bit of craic.
Meanwhile up near the bar I then got a word with Eric Doran and Rebecca Clarke both from Dromiskin along with Frank Clarke who were there for the lads but wanted a special mention for Jim and his great work.
Also there and up for a good night were Kevin Lennon, Ciaran McParland and Noel McCarthy all from Dromiskin who described themselves as Jim's manager and roadie and Noel said they expected him to be on the missing list from work the following day.
After this I caught up with Jason Mulligan from Church View and Damien Babington from St. Ronan's Villas who were also Jim supporters and told me he's a great Man Utd fan too.
After this I met up with Martin McMahon and Melanie O'Neill from St. Ronan's Villas who were having a laugh with Mark Bourke from Inner Mongolia who were already making a mad night of it and wanted to wish the lads all the best with their final figure.
A special mention had to be given to Ian Casey and Robert Samson who were in top form and having a laugh with everyone there.
Finally, before I departed I met up with John O'Connor and Nicola Mathews both from Dromiskin who were having a laugh with Paul Yore who told me it was going to be a brilliant night and the lads had to be commended for raising over 2,500 between them. we
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is a condition of the inner ear. It is a common cause of intense dizziness (vertigo), especially in older people.
- Benign means that it is due neither to a cancerous nor a serious cause. (The symptoms of BPPV may be unpleasant but the underlying cause is not serious.)
- Paroxysmal means recurring sudden episodes of symptoms.
- Positional means that the symptoms are triggered by certain positions. In the case of BPPV, it is certain positions of the head that trigger symptoms.
- Vertigo is dizziness with a spinning sensation. If you have vertigo you feel as if the world is spinning around you, and you feel very unsteady. Often you will also feel sick (nauseated), and you may be sick (vomit).
CAUSES
It is thought that BPPV is caused by tiny solid fragments (otoconia) that develop and float about in the fluid of the labyrinth. These fragments are made up of calcium carbonate crystals which are thought to have broken off from the inside lining of the labyrinth.
It is not clear why these otoconia form or drop off from the inside lining of the labyrinth. Most cases of BPPV occur in people over the age of 40. Therefore, it may be an age-related thing.
BPPV is one of the most common causes of vertigo in older people. However, some younger people develop BPPV following an injury to the ear, or following a previous infection in the inner ear.
Sometimes it occurs in younger people for no apparent reason. Women are affected about twice as often as men.
SYMPTOMS
The main symptom is intense dizziness (vertigo). The vertigo lasts just a short time - typically just for 10-20 seconds and usually no longer than a minute. It then goes away completely. The vertigo is usually triggered by a change in head position. For example, getting out of bed and rolling over in bed are two of the most common movements that trigger a short episode of vertigo. Sometimes just looking up triggers an episode of vertigo.
With each episode of vertigo you may feel sick (nauseated). The nausea may last an hour or so even though the vertigo lasts just seconds.
Between episodes of BPPV you feel well. Many people who develop BPPV realize which head movements trigger their symptoms and so instinctively avoid doing those movements.
In most cases, the symptoms clear away within several weeks or months. The solid fragments (otoconia) may dissolve or float out from the posterior semicircular. However, after the symptoms have gone, some people have recurrences of symptoms months or years later. In some cases, symptoms persist for years.
TREATMENT
The Epley manoeuvre
This simple cure may be tried by your doctor. It often works if you have fragments of debris (otoconia) at the bottom of your posterior semicircular canal (the most common situation). This is done by a series of four movements of the head. After each movement, the head is held in the same place for 30 seconds or so.
The movements of the head basically cause the posterior semicircular canal to rotate around in such a way that gravity moves the otoconia fragments out from the posterior canal and into the vestibule where they then settle and cause no symptoms.
If symptoms return at a later date, the manoeuvre can be repeated.
Brandt-Daroff exercises
You may be recommended to do these if the Epley manoeuvre does not work. These exercises involve a different way of moving the head compared to the Epley manoeuvre. Your doctor will advise you on how to do these if they are recommended.
If the Epley manoeuvre or Brandt-Daroff exercises are not successful, or not done, you can still remain optimistic. BPPV is a condition that often goes away on its own after several weeks or months without any treatment.
The otoconia are thought either to dissolve or move to a place in the labyrinth where they cause no symptoms.
KEEP SAFE
You should stop driving if you develop sudden, unexpected and disabling attacks of dizziness.
You should inform your employer if dizziness could pose a risk to yourself or to others in your job. For example, if you use ladders, operate heavy machinery, or drive.
To avoid falls around the home, get out of bed slowly and avoid jobs around the house that involve looking upwards.
Mr Jonathan Graham will be the new Headmaster of Dundalk Grammar School from 1st September 2016 when Mr Cyril Drury steps down from the post.
Mr Graham joined the Grammar School earlier this school year when he was appointed as Deputy Principal in September 2015.
A native of County Down, Mr Graham is a BA (Hons) graduate of the University of Plymouth. His Post Graduate Certificate in Education was undertaken at Goldsmith's College London. Mr Graham also holds a Diploma in Educational Management from the University of Ulster and a Masters in Education degree from Trinity College Dublin.
Mr Graham brings extensive experience to the position having previously taught in schools in England, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Prior to joining Dundalk Grammar School last autumn, Mr Graham was with St Vincent's Secondary School in Dundalk from 2001-15. During his time at St Vincent's, he gained significant experience in a number of different roles including Guidance Counsellor, Transition Year Co-ordinator and Acting Deputy Principal.
On announcing the news, Ms Alison Bothwell, Chairperson of the Board of Governors, said "This appointment is the result of a thoughtful investigative process that began last December when the Education Committee of the Board of Governors commenced a search to recruit the best-matched candidate for our school. The recruitment drive yielded significant interest and Mr Jonathan Graham has been unanimously selected by the Board of Governors to be our next school Headmaster.
Mr Graham's passion for teaching-and-learning excellence and his commitment to Dundalk Grammar School's enduring values and culture make him a compelling choice to lead the school in our next chapter. Mr Graham brings the qualities of an experienced teacher, a collaborative administrator, and a caring leader.
Mr Graham is married to Jayne and they have two children. He is an active member of the Clermont Chorale and enjoys walking, reading and keeping fit. He said that he is delighted with his appointment as Headmaster and is eagerly looking forward to the new challenges ahead.
The popular children's play facility Pirate's Den celebrated ten years entertaining kids with a special charity bash in their Coes Road premises week.
Pirate's Den confirmed that they nominated two local charities to benefit from the party, which featured face painting, all important play time and even a birthday cake!
Speaking at the event, owner Raymond Kelly said; 'I would like to thanks the parents and children of Dundalk and the surrounding towns for their great support of Pirate's Den over the last 10 years. I hope that they will continue to support us for another 10!'
He explained that the idea to mark their tenth anniversary with a charity day was the brainchild of Assistant manager Carol Savage. 'I would like to say a big thanks to Carol and all the staff for making the party such a great success.
The manager revealed that the two charities which are set to benefit from the event are SNAP and Links.
Both charities do amazing work in the community, and we hope this fundraising will help them continue that.'
The 27th Battalion take to the streets
The Defence Forces took centre stage in 1916 commemorations across the country last weekend, with Dundalk soldiers proudly marching in the national parade in Dublin.
Almost 200 troops from the 27th Battalion took their place in the Easter Rising commemoration parade which marched along a 4.5 kilometre route across Dublin.
With hundreds of thousands of people lining the streets of the capital to observe the parade on Sunday, it was an extraordinary day for the 27th Battalion and the entire Defence Forces who honoured their heroic founders.
The Dundalk soldiers were among some 3,700 personnel drawn from across the Army, Air Corps, Naval Service and Reserve Defence Forces, all who marched to honour the memory of the 1916 volunteers.
A spokesman for the 27th told how local troops had a early start, assembling at 4am in Aiken Barracks on Sunday morning in preparation for the major national event.
'The local battalion's contribution to the parade included marching troops, pipers, armoured car crews and marshals,' said the spokesman.
They assembled at St. Stephen's Green, proudly taking their first marching steps at 10am, in what was the biggest armed services parade in the history of the state.
He added: ' Each of us were elated to have taken part in such a momentous event.'
A car parts business carried on without planning permission and employed eight people, despite having an application for retention turned down by An Bord Pleanala.
In a prosecution brought by Louth County Council, Anthony Meegan, (49), Drumbilla, Kilcurry, was convicted on two summonses related to a site at Kilcurry and has been ordered to pay costs and fines.
The council's barrister, Carol O'Farrell told Judge Flann Brennan that the case involved the development of two commercial sheds for a vehicle business and car storage on agricultural lands. The council served enforcement noticed in April 2014 requiring Meegan to halt the business within 14 days and to restore the land to pasture within eight weeks.
Ms O'Farrell said 'no steps' were taken and 'it's now almost two years on'. She said Meegan was guilty of a 'flagrant breach' of the planning acts and claimed the defendant was 'aware that planning permission was needed for the operation he was running on the site.
Ms O'Farrell said Meegan applied for permission in 2011 and was refused. He put in a retention application after it was discovered he was operating a business from the site and it was refused in 2014.
An Bord Pleanala refused his appeal against the refusal in January of this year and cited a number of reasons for their decision, including the size and scale of the development, which they described as 'large-scale commercial development' which they considered inappropriate for the rural setting it was situated in as it would 'detract from the visual amenities' and cause 'noise and disturbance' to neighbouring properties.
Ms O'Farrell said that in addition, the council believes 'that since the enforcement notice was issued, income is being derived from the commercial development'. She said it was open to the court to not only impose maximum fines of 5,000 along with a five month prison term, but to also require Meegan to take steps to stop trading and restore the land to the way it was within a certain amount of time.
Meegan's barrister tried to argue for the case to be adjourned as there had been a significant judgement handed down in a higher court on March 16 regarding planning permissions and granting the applicant a stay on any orders while a planning application was still under consideration.
The barrister said his client has an appeal pending before An Bord Pleanala which is not due to make its decision about it until May and he asked Judge Brennan not to make any orders in this case until the outcome of that appeal.
But Judge Brennan said the Court of Appeal case cited didn't relate to a prosecution like the one before him now and he was ready to impose penalty.
The barrister said Meegan is 'attempting to regularise the situation through and extant application'. The barrister also revealed that from 1993 to 2012, Meegan paid Louth County Council rates in relation to his business and 'they accepted the rates from him. He said: 'The local authority made money itself from the enterprise though commercial rates'.
The barrister told the judge that Meegan, who has no previous convictions, employs eight people in the business and has debts of 300,000.
Judge Brennan fined Meegan a total of 6,000, and ordered him to pay costs of 7735 and expenses of 3400 which, he said, were 'completely justified'. He also ordered that Meegan comply with the council's enforcement notice in full, forthwith, which means immediately.
He allowed Meegan to appeal in his own bond of 500.
A student who allowed his bank account to be used to lodge a fraudulent cheque as part of a nationwide orchestrated fraud had the case against him adjourned at the district court in Dundalk.
Cassius Mpame, (19), 3 Lennonstown Close, admitted a charge of theft which arose out of an incident on February 16. Judge Flann Brennan heard how Mpame had been detected as part of a nationwide Garda investigation into cheques being lodged into various accounts and it is estimated that around 40 accounts were used.
Gardai said they believed the cheques had been stolen by a postman in another part of the country who gave it to a man who altered the cheques and lodged them.
The scam involved stolen or altered cheques lodged through the quick lodge automated machines in banks and the money was never recovered.
Mpame was arrested in Dundalk on March 2 under the Criminal Justice Act and Gardai alleged that his account was used to process one of the cheques, which was for 4,400.
Solicitor Niall lavery said his client was not involved in the theft or alteration of the cheques and was guilty of being reckless. Mpame didn't know the cheque had been stolen and 'foolishly allowed his account to be used by someone else'.
Mr Lavery said the defendant 'got very little out of it' and from the 4400 lodged into his bank account in Galway, he received 200. When he was questioned by Gardai, Mpame admitted fully his part in the incident and told them he didn't know it was stolen. He admitted he had been used for the use of his bank account.
Mr Lavery said if his client hadn't been so co-operative, it would have been difficult for the State to prove the case. Gardai confirmed the defendant had 'no part in stealing, lodging or withdrawing the cheque' and he has no previous convictions.
Mr Lavery said Mpame is a student in Dundalk and assisted Gardai. He was 'not the perpetrator of the fraud'. Gardai have arrested the person who lodged the cheques, through the accounts of young people like Mpame. The case was adjourned to July 13 for a probation report.
A Dundalk man has been charged with a number of fraud offences, which, it is alleged, relate to thousands of euro worth of items.
Patrick Dunning, (37), 35 Cherryvale, Bay Estate, is accused of dishonestly inducing someone to accept a cheque for 500 at Michael Briscoe, Donore Road, Drogheda on September 20 and for 1300 on October 1.
He is also charged with a similar offence at CTI in Dundalk relating to an alleged cheque for 490 for a laptop and printer on September 21 and for 535 for a man's mountain bike and lock at the Cycle and Trophy Shop, Clanbrassil Street on September 26.
The final charge relates to arranging the delivery, to Ath Leathan, Racecourse Road of a cardboard baler, worth 7749 on August 20.
At the district court, evidence of arrest, charge and caution were given to Judge Flann Brennan. Solicitor Frank McDonnell asked for statements in the case to be sent to him.
The DPP directed that the case could be heard at the district court.
Mr McDonnell said his client is on emporary release and is returning to prison. He is due for release in June and Mr McDonnell asked for the case to be adjourned to May 18 when a plea will be entered or a date for hearing will be fixed.
Failed to make good impression
A man who was one of two who tried to break into a property in Castlebellingham has been given a suspended sentence after he 'didn't make a great impression' on the probation service.
Dalton O'Brien, (30), 10 St Oliver's Park Kilsaran was before the court on charges arising out of an incident at Maineway in the village on July 10. The judge heard how Gardai were called to the scene after a report two men were trying to break into a property there. The resident saw them from an upstairs window and identified O'Brien, who was arrested across the road, as one of those involved.
On August 21, a phone alarm company alerted Gardai about another break in at another premises in the village. Gardai went to the scene immediately and found O'Brien 'sweating profusely' around 100 yards away. His description matched that of the suspect and he was arrested.
O'Brien has 12 previous convictions, including for assault and public order. Solicitor Frank McDonnell said it had been 'quite some time' since his client was in trouble', though the defendant has a problem with drink and was 'inebriated' these times.
The case had been adjourned for a probation report, but Mr McDonnell said his client 'didn't make a great impression' on the probation service and the report reflected that.
He said O'Brien had 'no memory' of these incidents and added that the defendant's social welfare payments have been stopped as the department 'is concerned whether he was seeking work'.
Mr McDonnell added that O'Brien 'lives with a family member who helps to keep his body and soul together' while he has no income.
Judge Brennan imposed a nine month sentence, but suspended it for nine months. He allowed O'Brien to appeal in his own bond of 200.
Stole make-up samples from display
A woman who stole make-up samples from a display in a Dundalk chemist has been given a three month sentence.
Caroline McDonagh (24), whose address was given as Apartment 5, Barrack Street, Baileboro, Co. Cavan, admitted stealing the make-up samples from a display at McCabe's Pharmacy, Adelphi Court on December 23 2014. The items were stated to be worth 248 and while they were recovered, they were not fit for resale.
Barrister Irene Sands said her client, who has 31 previous convictions, is married with four children and her past convictions were 'full of this type of behaviour. Judge Brennan imposed a three month sentence and allowed McDonagh to appeal in her own bond of 100.
Got involved when she shouldn't
A woman who 'got involved in something she shouldn't' had the public order case against her dismissed when the judge was told she had no previous convictions.
Aine Breen, (21), whose address was given as Rahylin, Glebe, Ballybane, County Galway, was found by Gardai at O'Hanlon Park on August 1 last year as they responded to a call. Breen was intoxicated, Gardai said, and she told them she was trying to sort something out 'rather than let the Gardai deal with it'.
She was told a number of times to stop, but she didn't and was arrested for being intoxicated. Solicitor Niall Lavery said his client lives at home with her father and has never come to the attention of Gardai before.
Breen 'got involved in something she shouldn't have'. Judge Brennan found the facts proven and dismissed the case.
Husband refused to move bin
A woman whose husband refused to move a bin and tape that Gardai claim was part of an ongoing problem with their neighbours has been fined for criminal damage.
Kathleen McKevitt, (31), Ballaverty, Riverstown, was found guilty of causing damage at a neighbour's property on November 12 2013 and December 2 2013 and of being threatening or abusive on December 2 and 4 2013.
The case had been adjourned for the payment of damage and witness expenses, which came to a total of 248, which, barrister Irene Sands, had been paid and also for the judge to see how matters progressed between the parties.
When the case was last before the court earlier this month, Sgt. Jim Kilcoyne had reported that there is still a problem with a gateway on the land and it is alleged a scrap car, with two bins tied to it, had been put near the gate, preventing it from opening outwards.
Ms Sands said her client doesn't own the car, which has been there since these allegations were made. In addition, she said the case: 'screams of a civil issue' and there was nothing criminal being alleged about McKevitt and this car.
Inspector Beggy said the case had been adjourned to see how the parties were getting on and 'things were good until this arose with the scrap car'.
Ms Sands said there is nothing further against her client before the court and added there are 'husbands and wives involved here on both sides'. There was 'nothing to say that this matter' with the scrap car involves McKevitt.
The case had been adjourned to last week for the bin and car to be removed but McKevitt told the court she had asked her husband to do it and he had told her it was his property and his land and 'he wouldn't move it'.
She said he was aware of the fact the judge had expressed concern about it the last day and she confirmed there had been 'no further difficulties between me and the injured parties'. McKevitt said the items were not her property and 'I can't move it'.
Judge Brennan said he had to finalise the matter and imposed a fine of 500. He allowed her to appeal in her own bond of 100.
Crashed BMW and ran off
A young driver who crashed a newly-bought BMW in North Louth has been fined for minor traffic offences.
Matthew Coburn, (19), Gaultrimsland, Riverstown, admitted being the driver of the 2000-registered BMW that was found by Gardai crashed into a hedge at 9.30pm at Mountpleasant. The engine was still running, but there was no sign of the driver.
Coburn later came to the Garda station and admitted he was the driver, saying he panicked when he saw the Gardai arriving. In addition, he admitted changing the plates on the vehicle, though he could offer no reason as to why he did. He admitted having no insurance, no NCT and being an unaccompanied learner driver.
No-one was injured in the incident and no damage was caused to property. Coburn had insurance on another vehicle, but not on this one. Solicitor Niall Lavery said his client, who works as a chef in Carlingford, had purchased the BMW the week before. He has since passed his test and is fully licensed and insured and the loss of his licence would be 'devastating' for him because of where he lives.
Mr Lavery asked Judge Brennan to be lenient as the only damage cause was to Coburn's own car. He added the defendant 'has learned a serious lesson in all this'.
Judge Brennan imposed fines totalling 200 and struck out the no insurance charge.
Bench warrant issued
Judge Brennan last week issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Michael Bradley, (21), whose address was given in court as 4 The Malthouse, Castlebellingham, after he failed to appear in court or be represented having been charged with cultivating cannabis at that address on April 8 2014.
Man has 'changed his life'
A Dundalk man before the court on a number of offences has 'changed his life' after his wife told him 'enough is enough'.
Michael O'Brien, (31), 251 Cedarwood Park, admitted being drunk and abusive when he was stopped by Gardai on September 21 2014. Gardai said he told them to 'f**k off' at around 1.30am. He was also summonsed for driving offences which arose out of an incident on November 5 2013 when Gardai spotted a Citreon driving erratically on the northbound hard shoulder of the M1.
O'Brien has 22 previous convictions including for assault and traffic offences and is serving a six month sentence.
Solicitor Eleanor Kelly said her client, a married father of one, had started taking drugs following his brother's death in 2007. But he has since been helped by the Freedom Ministries after his wife, whom he is still with, told him 'enough is enough'.
Ms Kelly said O'Brien's wife 'accepts that he's changed his life' and is availing of the treatment services in Mountjoy Prison. She said: 'He wants to prove himself to you and show that he is clean and sober. He can see the error of his ways' and he is due for release in July.
Judge Brennan said he would consider community service instead of a jail sentence and 'will see at that stage' about whether to impose a further terms of imprisonment. He told O'Brien: 'It is essential that you remain sober and drug free and maintain the support you have. And I still have to get a good report'.
Disorder in Carlingford
Five men from South Armagh who admitted their parts in a public order incident in Carlingford last year have escaped convictions after each of them paid 500 to the court poor box in aid of the Louth Hospice.
Gerard Donnelly, (42), Tullinavall Road, Cullyhanna was charged with intoxication and threatening or abusive behaviour at Market Street, Carlingford on November 29.
Kevin Donnelly, (40), Dundalk Road, Newtownhamilton was charged with intoxication on the same occasion, while Aidan McCreesh (42), Slate Quarry Road, Cullyhanna, was charged with intoxication and threatening behaviour.
The fourth man was Neil McCreesh, (40), Finnegans Road, Cullyhanna, and was charged with intoxication while John Carraher, (50), Kiltybane Road, Cullyhanna, was charged with intoxication.
Judge Brennan heard how Gardai arrived at around 1.40am while the men were trying to get back inside a pub. Gardai said the men were aggressive towards them and members of the public were present. Carraher was stated to be 'unable to comply' with Gardai and later apologised to Gardai for his actions.
Four of the men have no previous convictions, while Meil McCreesh has a previous for assault causing harm. The men's solicitor, Paul Tiernan said McCreesh's involvement in the incident was 'very minimal'. All five are 'middle-aged, respectable men' who were part of a group of 15 who had been socialising.
One of the group had been 'detained in a pub and savagely assaulted which required him to have two operations on his face after he was admitted to hospital'. All five of the defendants are, Mr Tiernan said, very apologetic for their actions and are keen to avoid a conviction.
They were willing to pay a donation to the court poor box. The matter has been 'hanging over them and they have all learned a salutary lesson', Mr Tiernan said.
Judge Brennan ordered that each pay 500 to the court poor box for the Louth Hospice and after this was done, the facts in all cases were found proven and the charges dismissed.
Assault case adjourned
A 24-year-old who was involved in a row with two other men in what Gardai said was part of an 'ongoing issue on both sides' had the assault case against him adjourned to see there are no any further problems between them.
Stephen Grimes, 237 Greenfield Court, Tom Bellew Avenue, admitted the offence, which happened at the Long Walk on January 22. Judge Brennan heard how Gardai went to the scene after a report of three men involved in an altercation. Grimes was in a row with two brothers, one of whom alleged the defendant had assaulted him.
Gardai said one of the men had a cut to his lip and statements were later taken, including from Grimes. Barrister Irene Sands said the brothers involved in the incident were 'known to Gardai' and one of them admitted to taking his top off during the altercation.
Ms Sands said the incident was 'part of a wider family problem' and there is 'an ongoing issue on both sides'. And she said her client had 'taken blows to the face'.
Grimes has a previous conviction for drugs possession. Ms Sands told the judge the incident was 'part of a wider picture' and the altercation began 'with verbal slurs and escalated from there'. Grimes 'apologises for his part in this incident' and she asked the judge to give him a chance.
Judge Brennan said he would adjourn the case to September 14 'to see there are no further incidents'.
PayPal celebrated a major win at the Irish HR Champion Awards, where they scooped the 'Diversity Champion' prize last week.
PayPal employs 2,400 people in Ireland across its European operations centres in Dundalk and Ballycoolin Business Park, Dublin.
The company was lauded for its 'diverse, multi-cultural team which is integral to PayPal's international business. that currently spans over 179 million PayPal users in 203 markets across the world.
At the awards, Paypal were recognised for providing staff with diversity and inclusion training.
Their role in not only supporting women in business, but also publicly backing a 'yes' vote in the 2015 Marriage Equality Referendum was also central to the company's diversity.
Paypal were also further recognised for their commitment to hiring from the Live Register and having a 'vibrant multicultural workforce.'
Speaking about the award, Louise Phelan, Vice President of Global Operations for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said:
'Winning this award is an incredible honour for all of us at PayPal.
Inclusion is a core value of ours, and we place real importance on valuing uniqueness and diversity of thought.
That is why we invest in programmes like our tailor-made Diversity and Inclusion workshops and continue to develop other new inclusion initiatives.'
She added: 'PayPal is an extremely diverse workplace because we support our customers and merchants through 12 languages from our centres of excellence in Dublin and Dundalk.
'I'm really proud that we have been recognised as a company that leads the way when it comes to diversity and inclusion.'
Vital to attracting foreign direct investment and jobs to Louth is having a turn-key facility available, members of the county council have been told.
The availability of a site or piece of land is not enough to entice businesses to locate here.
During a debate on the Louth local economic and community plan, Cllr Richie Culhane suggested that funding be sought to buy the Coca-Cola site in Drogheda as a potential location for a large factory or a number of smaller units.
'If we had it (Coca-Cola), it would go a long way to addressing unemployment,' he contended.
However, chief executive Joan Martin pointed out it is not simply a matter of a site. What is required is a ready-to-run facility.
She referred to PayPal, which was able to set up in Dundalk at the former Xerox.
'A site or a piece of land alone, is not enough in order to attract FDI.'
Anyway, Ms Martin continued, getting grant aid is also a big problem.
Thomas McEvoy, of the Local Enterprise Office, spent 15 years at the IDA, and he said having a turn-key facility is essential.
Towns which have, tend to win the projects.
The chief executive said Louth is 'months behind' schedule in adopting its economic and community plan, compared to other counties, pointing out is second last of the 12 in this region.
Responding to a question by Cllr Edel Corrigan, she said there is nothing to stop members delaying a decision, but she would prefer to get on with it.
The Sinn Fein representative remarked she hopes the consultation process continues.
'My biggest concern is that we are constantly putting plans on paper that are not being fulfilled,' she added.
Cllr Pearse McGeough lent his support to deferring a decision. He believed it is a reasonable request given the amount that is in the plan, and that it was only received in hard copy some days before the meeting.
Cllr Colm Markey, chairman of the Local Community Development Committee, said rather than defer a decision, they should get on with implementing the plan.
'There is an enormous amount in it. The challenge is to deliver the plan. Staff resources and public awareness are key.'
Cllr Mary Dearey, chairman of the Economic Development and Enterprise SPC, said the plan is a new tool to develop economic and social policy.
'Dundalk and Drogheda should not be quarrelling. They are sister towns and need to be given equal opportunity,' he added.
Cllr Tommy Byrne feels 'the IDA heads for the hills and into Dundalk. We have the infrastructure in Drogheda.'
How do we track how well we are implementing the plan?, Cllr Pio Smith asked.
Senior executive officer Mary T Daly said there is a constant monitoring 'to ensure we are delivering.'
Cllrs Conor Keelan and Kevin Callan both supported calls to recommend the plan.
Cllr Keelan added there is a review method, while Cllr Callan said 'move on, adopt it and get it done.'
Winding up the debate, Cllr Dearey said plans can gather dust, but there are opportunities to ensure that doesn't happen in this case.
'The LCDC will ensure it is delivered. There is a review process, and we can look at the plan again in due course,' Cllr Markey added.
A Sinn Fein amendment to defer a decision was defeated on a 14-10 vote, and the plan was then formally approved.
Some of the relatives of the Dundalk Volunteers who mobilised on Easter Sunday 1916 made the trip to the Hill of Tara at the weekend to fulfil a wish expressed by Patrick Pearse 100 years ago.
Commandant Pearse had wanted the Proclamation to be read at the Hill of Tara, the ancient site of the high kings of Ireland, just as it was recited at the GPO in Dublin.
Donal O'Hannigan, the leader of the Irish Volunteers in Louth for the Rising, had been asked by the Proclamation signatory to organise the document's reading at Tara at 6pm on Easter Sunday 1916. But due to the Irish Volunteer leader, Eoin MacNeill, countermanding the orders for the Rising, his wish was not fulfilled.
However, a number of people from Dundalk joined an event at the Hill of Tara on Easter Monday, organised by the Comhaltas na Mi County Board where the Proclamation was finally read, 100 years after Pearse had willed it.
It was originally planned that the Dundalk Volunteers would gather arms in the town and march towards Tara, picking up comrades in Ardee and Dunleer, where the Proclamation was to be read.
After that, they were supposed to make their way towards Blanchardstown in West Dublin to be joined by Volunteers from Meath and Wicklow who were to throw a cordon around the city.
The Louth Volunteers were supposed to help intercept the British Army who were expected to come from the major garrison in Athlone and the local Volunteers were also help create an escape corridor from the city centre into the countryside for the Rising leaders.
And while the Dundalk men mobilised as planned, the countermanding orders were received in Dundalk later on Easter Sunday afternoon. Confusion reigned after that, with none of the plans carried out and only Sean MacEntee from Dundalk, who later became a TD, making it to the city centre for the Rising.
In addition to the poignant Tara event, the Dundalk relatives also took part in the State commemorations in Dublin over the weekend. Padraic Agnew, whose great grandfather was Dundalk Volunteer Hugh Kearney, was a member of the Garda Reserve on Easter Sunday in Dublin and film-maker, Marcus Howard whose grand-uncle Arthur Greene was also a Dundalk Volunteer, was in the relatives' section at the front of the GPO for the historic occasion.
A man who denied presenting himself at a social welfare hatch to sign on with another man's card has been given a suspended sentence after he denied being the person filmed on CCTV.
Tolulope Oladunjoye, 26 Tain Court, Bridge Street, Dundalk, claimed he was not the person in the footage taken from the social welfare office in Dundalk on October 21 2014 and claimed that he had been 'woken up early' by a Garda who came to his house asking him about the incident.
It was later revealed that the officer called to the property shortly after noon and brought Oladunjoye to the station where he made admissions and claimed he had been trying to collect the welfare, which would have been 752, for a man who was in Canada on holiday.
Evidence was heard at the previous hearing from Fergal Morrissey, who works at the department of social protection. He said on 21 October, 2014, a man came to the hatch to sign on with one of the old cards, which didn't include photo ID.
Mr Morrissey told the man to wait, while he went to tell his supervisor there was a person signing on for someone else but this man was gone when he returned.
The following week, Oladunjoye signed on as himself, with the correct card. 'I am satisfied it was him on both occasions,' said the witness.
CCTV footage was shown in court of the queue to the hatch on each date. The case had been adjourned to last week and Oladunjoye denied it was him in the footage and claimed he didn't understand what the Garda was talking about when questioned. Judge Brennan said he didn't have the slightest doubt the defendant was guilty and said the 'misunderstanding' was a 'load of nonsense'. He imposed a 12 month sentence, but suspended it for two years.
St Oliver's Scout Group are organising a special Disco Night on Friday, April 1, from 8.00 until late.
The disco, featuring music of the 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's, will take place in the O'Raghallaigh's Club on the North Road, Drogheda.
Admission will be 10, tickets payable at the door, and is restricted to over 18's only.
Talk in The Mill
On March 30th, Connor Sweeney of InterTradeIreland will speak about the opportunity to win up to 100,000 as part of the Seedcorn Investor Readiness Competition. Louth companies have a strong tradition of competing - Mcor Technologies were the first overall winner ten years ago, and Aphix Software won the Leinster region in 2015.
The InterTradeIreland Seedcorn competition is aimed at independent ventures incorporated on the island of Ireland (Ireland or Northern Ireland) in the seed, start up or early stages of business development and ideally targeting international markets.
The event is on at 12pm on March 30th, you are welcome to come for a coffee and a short talk on how the application process operates. Tickets are free, however, bookings are necessary as places are limited. For more information call 041 980 2444 or email admin@themilldrogheda.ie.
Bellewstown hosts bingo
Duleek Bellewstown GFC 5K Fun Run takes place on Sunday 3rd April at Bellewstown Race Course. Registration from 10am - Start time 11.am - Cost 10 (U16 free). The Drive-in Bingo is also on Sunday 3rd April at 3.00pm at Bellewstown Racecourse - Jackpot 1,000 - must go on the day!
For Proclamation Day, Third and Fourth class from Ardee Educate Together N.S performed a play based on the 1916 Rising. The children demonstrated their excellent acting skills and their home made costumes really looked the part. Alison Gough painted a backdrop of the GPO which looked magnificent.
For one Fourth Class pupil the play was especially significant, as Christopher Mulholland played the part of his own Great Grandfather Peter Clifford. Peter Clifford was one of the few Louth men who was in the GPO during the Rising, having been sent there to receive orders. Third and Fourth Class were especially honoured to perform their play for Peter Clifford's daughter Angela. Afterwards a number of poems were performed by Fifth and Sixth Class and the flag was raised by Angela, David and Christopher Mulholland.
Big day for all at Ardee CS
On the 15th March Ardee Community School celebrated Proclamation Day as part of the 1916 centenary celebrations.
The Head Girl, Niamh McBride, Head Boy Lee Hamill and Chairperson of the Student Council Isabella McCormack all had crucial roles to play.
An oration was given from Isabella McCormack as traditional Irish music was performed in the background. Malachy McKenna, the school caretaker, was then invited to raise the tri-colour flag. This was then followed by a reading of the proclamation from the Head Girl and Head Boy.
Other events through the day included a remembrance of the children who died during the rising with forty white ribbons. Plaques were placed on seven native Irish trees to commemorate the seven signatories.
The celebrations were a dignified remembrance of the birth of our proud nation.
Proclamation Day in Saint John's Junior School Rathmullen
Tuesday March 15th was a special day for all the children, staff and parents of Saint John's school as the Proclamation Day ceremony was held at the front of the school. The 1916 Proclamation was read by Mandy Shevlin, an S.N.A.in the school who was a pupil in Junior Infants when the school opened in 1974.
A New Proclamation for Saint John's school was read by Alesha Leslie, Armandas Sukys, Eleanora Kalpina, Aleks Dembouskis, Eoin Martin, Favour Evans, Saoirse Cassidy, Amelia Stewart, Amy McCabe, Craig English and Alex Jordan from Second Class. All classes in the school contributed to the writing of this document. The Irish flag was raised by Mrs Marie Malocca, Deputy Principal, with the help of Grofogkina Pohlodkova and Kathleen Augustin who are the most recent pupils to enrol in the school. Amhran na bhFiann was sung by all and accompanied by Miss O Hare on the violin and Ms Smyth on the accordion.
Parents and children watched a lovely video showing all the amazing work the children had done about 1916 and also activities from other days throughout the year. Parents also toured the school looking at the art work on display.
The children had lots of fun activities in their classes, and a chance to see and hear some Irish instruments in the library with Miss O'Hare and Miss Smyth. A memorable day was had by all.
Presentation NS celebrate day
Proclamation Day dawned dry and bright for the girls of Presentation. It marked the culmination of many weeks of History lessons, project research and writing, poster making, art work and searching for that perfect costume for the 1916 era.
Guests on the day included members of the Board of Management and Parents' Association as well as Sisters from Presentation, Greenhills and our special guest of honour was Senator Mary Moran.
The day's ceremony began with 3rd and 4th class girls singing "Grace" by Jim Mc Cann while a group from 3rd class performed a very poignant freeze-frame drama to accompany the song. The "7 signatories" along with "Countess Markievicz","Margaret Skinnider" and "Elizabeth O'Farrell" introduced themselves to the audience and this was followed by a reading of the school's Proclamation 2016 which was written by the girls from 5th and 6th class.
Next it was the turn of 5ths and 6ths to perform a powerful rendition of that very old song "A Nation once again".
All of the 5th class girls got an opportunity to display their talents at Irish dancing when, under the direction of dance teacher, Maureen Wynne they performed three dances...The Walls of Limerick, The Siege of Ennis and Celtic Circles...a new dance for a new century composed by Maureen herself.
Our national flag was blessed by Sr. Agnes and this was followed by a procession to the school yard led by Quartermaster Brian Guilfoyle from the Parents' Association.
Outside as the flag was raised by Senator Moran and Eimer Campbell (B.O.M.) all 300 plus voices of the Presentation girls were raised skywards as they proudly sung Amhran na bhFiann.
A Beatles fan has been left devastated by the theft of a precious piece of his extensive collection which appears to have been stolen from the wall of his office in Baldoyle in north Dublin.
Frank Snowe, who lives in Drogheda, recently made one of his regular trips to Australia where he and his wife often go to visit their daughter.
When he returned to work in Baldoyle after the trip, Frank knew there was something different about his office space but could not quite put his finger on what was missing.
After rifling through some photos of the office he noticed that a piece of Beatles memorabilia he had purchased in the 1990s was no longer on the office wall and now he is appealing for help in recovering the rare item.
Frank explained: 'These are first day issue Beatles stamps that were released in 1999. I purchased them in advance of the release and the deal was that the Liverpool post office would then post them on the first day of their release, some clean and some with the Liverpool franked stamp on them. I put a frame around them when they were posted out.'
Frank is a self-confessed 'Beatle nut' and has an extensive collection of memorabilia, including fan club magazines dating back to the early 1960s.
He has no idea how valuable the stolen item is but said: 'I would never sell it, so it is priceless to me.'
The Old Drogheda Society and Drogheda Museum Millmount have announced their plans to commemorate the 1916 Easter Rising.
They will launch their 1916 commemoration exhibition on Sunday April 24th, the 100th anniversary of the start of the Rising, at 3pm in the museum and this will be followed at 5pm by a recital by well known composer Michael Holohan and the Drogheda Orchestral Collective and their will be poetry reading and an exhibition by local artists.
There will be lunchtime lectures in the Tholsel, and there will be an evening lecture on Wednesday April 27th in the Governor's House, Millmount at 8pm .
On Saturday April 30th the Society will launch it's latest publication in the Tholsel at 12 noon. " Aspects of the Easter Rising" .
Anam Cara meeting
Anam Cara is an organisation that supports bereaved parents, Anam Cara support groups are situated throughout Ireland and provide parents a safe, comfortable environment where they have the opportunity to connect with other bereaved parents.
Anam Cara is an inclusive organisation where parents do not identify themselves by their children's age, how they died, or if their death was recent or many years ago. What Anam Cara provides is a safe place for bereaved parents to connect with others who understand the intensity of the grief and loss. Although Anam Cara does not offer counselling, each group has a lending library and information on the other services available to parents and families in the local community.
Anam Cara is holding its monthly Parent Evening on Wednesday 30th of March 2016 from 19:30 to 21:00 in the Armagh City Hotel, 2 Friary Road, Armagh, BT60 4FR (Weather Dependant). Anam Cara Services are available free of charge to all bereaved parents.
For further information please see website at www.anamcara.ie, email at info@anamcara.ie or call 02895213120
A rare company pennant dating back to just after the 1947 Emergency has been presented to Wexford Barracks by a former member of the FCA.
Dermot Fitzgerald, from Gobbinstown, presented the Barracks with the A Company 'Rathgarogue Centre', New Ross An Forsa Cosanta Aitiuil (FCA) Battalion Company Pennant from 1947.
Mr Fitzgerald was a proud member of the FCA in Rathgarogue and served under Captain Jim (The Moat) Murphy.
This is a very rare piece of Wexford history from a time just after the Emergency when there was over 110,000 members in the FCA and they were in every parish of the county. County Wexford had three FCA Battalions, the Wexford Bn, New Ross Bn and North Wexford Bn. Each of these Battalions comprised of fice Companies based in rural Areas. The New Ross Bn had centres in Rathgarogue, Caim, Cushinstown, Campile with the Headquarters in New Ross. In 1957 the Wexford Bn, New Ross Bn and North Wexford Bn became A, B and C Companies of the 10th FCA Battalion. An Forsa Cosanta Aitiuil was stood down in 2006.
The present incarnation of the part-time soldier in the county is the Army Reserve which are now integrated which is part of Permanent Defence Force Battalions as a single force. County Wexford is home to E Company of the 3rd Infantry Battalion and is headquartered in Wexford Army Barracks.
OC, Comdt Enda McDonald, along with members of E Coy 3 INF BN expressed his sincerest thanks to Mr. Fitzgerald for protecting this piece of Wexford's military heritage.
He said the pennant will be protected and put on display in Wexford Barracks as a reminder to future generations of both Permanent & Reserve members of the Defence Forces of Country Wexford's proud military history.
The pennant can also be seen as part of the 1947 New Ross Parade on YouTube (at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kyx-urR711g).
The widow of a Killorglin man who was the focus of a now viral tribute in his local pub last Thursday has said she hopes the unprecedented attention the online video has received can be used to highlight the importance of organ donation.
Grainne O'Sullivan lost her husband Ger Foley to Cystic Fibrosis last week - and within days his friend Brian O'Sullivan's musical tribute atop the bar counter of Falvey's Bar became an internet sensation.
Brian decided to pay tribute to his friend with a rousing rendition of The Killer's Mr Brightside and within days of it being posted online, it had received over one million views.
Even the American songwriters themselves took to Twitter to congratulate Brian on his tribute to Ger, known as 'Farmer'.
This week, Ger's wife Grainne said that while she was gobsmacked at the attention the video - and indeed unassuming Brian - had received, she said it would be fantastic if it could be used to highlight organ donation.
Grainne explained that Ger - who was a cousin of renowned CF campaigner Billy Burke - received a double lung transplant in 2003 which transformed his life and that it was while waiting for a kidney transplant that he eventually lost his fight.
"The word transformation doesn't even come close to what that transplant did for Ger and our family," she told The Kerryman. "We had Isobel and Peter, we travelled to Australia and all over Europe. I couldn't even begin to describe the difference it made -100 per cent.
"I spoke at Ger's funeral about how lucky we were to have been given those extra 13 years and when I saw the video I couldn't help think how, under other circumstances, he'd have been in the midst of it all."
Grainne said that organ donation allowed Ger to leave an amazing legacy - his two children - and she encouraged everyone to carry a donor card to allow other families experience the amazing years they did.
Brian, meanwhile, has said that while he is shocked at the attention, he too will use it to echo Grainne's message.
One Kerry primary is taking its first steps in an interactive digital programme that's revolutionising the teaching of Irish - thanks to the past pupil who devised it.
Head of the Department of Language, Literacy and Mathematics at Mary Immaculate College Sean de Brun returned to his alma mater of Ballyfinnane National School as part of the Proclamation Day activities to present pupils with the extraordinary Bua na Cainte.
Back in the classroom where he was once taught by Susie Daly - a wife of former Kerryman editor Con Casey - Sean set the interactive digital programme in motion as the children's eyes widened in realisation of how much fun Irish can be.
Sean devised Bua na Cainte with fellow Mary Immaculate lecturer Martina Ni Fhatharta and it is currently in use in up to 70 per cent of the nation's primaries.
The reaction has been nothing short of astounding according to scores of independent testimonials.
Bua na Cainte (loosely translated as the 'gift of the gab') and its lively, colourful animations with which pupils can interact on screen has seen youngsters making an incredible journey in the subject.
Rather than disdaining Irish, as was the case for years, many are now to be heard asking teachers 'when are we doing Irish?'
One child is even reported as having asked Santa Claus for a home copy of the digital experience.
"It's a simple premise really behind it. Like anything in life if you don't enjoy it you won't succeed in it," Sean told The Kerryman.
"Starting at junior infants level, Bua na Cainte presents animated versions on screen of stories the children would already know in English. You can explain things in words until the cows come home, but nothing engages young children as effectively as images."
Already, the programme has won the European Language Label Award 2015 and 2016 Accenture Digital Media Awards.
It is even helping the children of immigrants to this country come to terms with the tongue as successfully as their native Irish peers.
"Martina and I never anticipated the scale of the reaction to it and the level of success. It's just wonderful to see so many children enjoying Irish through it," Sean added.
Anyone who caught RTE's Grand Tour series last year will have seen for themselves how much Francis Brennan enjoys sharing the delights of Kerry.
Having lived here for over 40 years, there is no doubt that the Kingdom is now the native Dubliner's beloved home. In fact, so adept is he at highlighting its attractions, he has launched his own bespoke Grand Tour of Kerry, which will kick off in April of this year.
Francis, who became a firm favourite with the Irish public following the hit television series At Your Service, will be joined by his brother John in guiding a small group of people around an intimate, entertaining tour of south Kerry.
"Everyone was very enthusiastic about the Grand Tour and it was a wonderful success last year, but the television crew and their equipment often made the logistics tricky. So we've decided to do it without the cameras this time." John told the Kerryman.
The tour begins on April 4, when the Brennans will meet guests off the 16.16 Dublin train in Killarney - then it's off to The Park Hotel, Kenmare, for check-in and, later, the party will be treated to a warm, welcoming reception hosted by the brothers.
"Francis loves spending time with the guests, but especially on the tour bus; he likes the banter and the craic but most of all, he really enjoys pointing out lesser known aspects of Kerry, and he usually has a funny or interesting anecdote to go with his tales." John said.
The new holiday package includes 3 night's bed and breakfast in the five star hotel with dinner included. Francis will guide guests along the Ring of Kerry, promising some colourful insights along the way.
John Brennan picks up the reins on April 6, taking guests on a tour of his own personal favourite place to visit from Kenmare; the Ring of Beara.
Having lived here for 25 years, and with Drumquinna Manor and The Park Hotel, Kenmare, under his managerial belt, John is no stranger to these parts, and is very encouraged by the recent up-turn in the travel sector.
"Irish tourism is in a much better place now than it was five years ago," he said.
"The reduction in VAT has helped enormously and many hotels have re-opened following an uncertain period. Things are very positive."
But of the many products and packages Ireland has to offer as a tourism destination, John is most excited about the Wild Atlantic Way.
While most people living in this country will be aware of the breath-taking beauty on offer from Kinsale to Donegal, the simple decision to give the scenic drive a name has made an enormous difference.
"This is something that already existed. We had the roads; all we needed was the signage. The Wild Atlantic Way is the longest costal route in the world. This is a very unique asset we have right here in Kerry."
It's an asset the brothers, like so many in the tourism industry here, will capitalise fully on in the coming years, it is hoped.
Meanwhile, a farewell dinner and talk wraps up the holiday package, before check-out on April 7.
"If it all goes well, we'll be delighted to host one or two other trips like this throughout the year," John added.
The IDA's plan to build a new advance technology plant at Kerry Technology Park is moving ahead and the plant is on track for completion early next year.
Planning permission for the facility - which will be offered as a ready made turn key location prospective investors - was granted last month.
Last week the four week appeal period expired - with no appeals lodged against the proposal with An Bord Pleanala - and the IDA is now free to move the project to its next stage.
The tendering process for the appointment of a contractor to build the plant has been underway for some time.
With the planning process now complete the contractor will be appointed as soon as the IDA receive formal notice of the final grant of planning permission.
Work on the building is due to begin within months and it is planned to have the facility completed and ready for tenants by the end of March 2017.
Details of the project status were given by Jobs Minister Richard Bruton after enquiries by Kerry Fine Gael Deputy Brendan Griffin.
While the facility may be completed early in 2017 the example of similar facilities built by the IDA suggest it may be considerably longer before a tenant is found.
As previous reported in The Kerryman two IDA Advance Facilities in Athlone and Waterford - both completed in 2014 - still remain empty some 15 months on.
Given the 20 million price tag for the Tralee building the IDA will be under pressure to fill it however Richard Bruton acknowledged that finding a tenant may not be easy.
"While IDA Ireland actively incentivises and encourages investors to consider a range of potential locations in Ireland (such as Kerry) the ultimate locations selected are always decided by the companies themselves," he said.
"IDA Ireland is also keen to work in partnership with other stakeholders in the delivery of effective marketing of County Kerry as a location for Foreign Direct Investment," Minister Bruton said in reply to Deputy Griffin's questions.
Tara Morris of Taoglas and Jim Hughes, CEO of Innovate, are pictured at the Tech Founders Summit in the Amber Springs Hotel, Gorey
Over 65 people involved in the tech sector recently attended Wexford's first Tech Founders Summit which was held in The Amber Springs Hotel in Gorey.
The event was organised by Wexford County Council's Local Enterprise Office to bring together the county's growing tech business community. Those present included companies involved in software, web design, hardware, and ICT specialists. Tom Banville, Head of Enterprise at Wexford County Council opened the event.
Some of the county's top tech businesspeople shared their stories in panel discussions. The supportive nature of the tech business sector in Wexford was noted by Jennifer O'Brien of 2Cubed who was on the first panel with Rory O'Connor of Scurri. Paul Hayes of Beachhut PR was MC, and he was joined for the second panel by Lisa Stacey from web development and design company, WebArt and Chris Horan from Sonru, which provides a web-based interviewing product.
In the third panel was Tara Morris of Taoglas, and Jim Hughes of Innovate who discussed the new 'IT HUB@M11 - Gorey' facility being built by Redmond Brothers beside the Amber Springs. An architectural model of the development was displayed. Innovate will be the anchor company in the facility which will also feature an innovation space supported by Wexford County Council. It will be used by up-and-coming technology companies as they start and grow their businesses.
The final speaker was Dr David Dempsey from Salesforce, the number one CRM and enterprise cloud computing company in the world. Cllr. Malcolm Byrne, Cathaoirleach of Gorey Municipal District gave a closing address, thanking everyone involved in the event.
A nurse from Rathnure has highlighted the appalling dearth of services for hundreds of Wexford people suffering from lymphoedema.
March is Lymphoedema Awareness month and nurse Sarah Barron has appealed for more services for people suffering from the painful condition. Currently sufferers who do not have cancer have nowhere to go in the county to receive treatment. 17,000 people are affected by this incurable condition in Ireland.
Lymphoedema is a chronic swelling which can affect any area of the body, most commonly the limbs.
It results from poor drainage of the lymphatic system.
Throughout her nursing career Ms Barron has come in contact with a lot of clients struggling to cope with Lymphoedema and the psychological effects of this condition.
'As a result of this I was inspired to study lymphoedema and manual lymph drainage in the UK,' she said.
'This is such a difficult condition and one that is not hugely recognised or funded.'
Ms Barron, who was the first trained therapist in The Fluoroscopy Guided MLD in the Republic of Ireland, has written to all the GPs, public health nurses, hospital consultants and Oncology staff in the South East and in Dublin advising them of the services available and to raise awareness about the condition.
Sarah qualified as a Registered General Nurse at St Vincent's University Hospital, Dublin. From there she travelled to Australia where she worked extensively and qualified as an Orthopaedic and emergency care nurse.
She studied Reflexology and works one day a week in Hope Cancer Support Centre in Enniscorthy as a reflexologist and at a GP practice in Wexford.
Ms Barron qualified as a lymphoedema nurse and manual lymph drainage therapist from the Lymphoedema Training Academy.
She is a full member and is accredited by the Manual Lymph Drainage Ireland. If anyone has any queries about lymphoedema please contact Sarah at 087 2035740.
O'Reilly's SuperValu in Bunclody was announced as finalists in the running for the highly-coveted 'SuperValu Store of the Year 2016' title, making them among the top 12 SuperValu stores in Ireland. The Wexford store fought off stiff competition from 221 SuperValu stores across the country.
The store was presented with their finalist award by Martin Kelleher, SuperValu Managing Director, Michael Morgan, SuperValu Sales Director and Eoin MacManus, Director of Three Business, the competition sponsors.
SuperValu stores throughout the Republic of Ireland were assessed and adjudicated by independent competition judge, Paul Ellison to determine the most deserving winner. The audits focused on product range and innovation, store presentation, fresh food offering, customer care and store quality and hygiene standards.
SuperValu Managing Director, Martin Kelleher praised the store's success.
'This is a tremendous achievement for O'Reilly's SuperValu, as they have maintained exceptionally high retail standards across all areas of the store. SuperValu stores work hard to succeed in a very competitive market and it is the passion of the independent entrepreneurial retailers and their enthusiastic teams that is pinnacle to their success. SuperValu Bunclody stood out as an exceptional store, demonstrating our true brand credentials of Real Food, Real People,' he said. On receipt of the finalist award, Store Owners Joe and Catherine O'Reilly of O'Reilly's SuperValu paid tribute to their team acknowledging their dedication, professional approach and attention to detail. Joe O'Reilly added 'We are delighted with this recognition as it reaffirms the work we have done over the year to provide our customers with a top-class local shopping facility.
'We are a small store achieving great things and would like to thank our local suppliers in helping us bring the best to Bunclody. We are thrilled to have been recognised for our efforts, not only by our customers but by our colleagues throughout the SuperValu network. We are looking forward to continuing to grow and improve in 2016.'
The N25 exiting New Ross on the Wexford side is to remain in darkness as funding has been refused for new street lights by Transport Infrastructure Ireland.
Transport Infrastructure Ireland informed New Ross councillors in a letter that the section of road is not part of its list of works presently.
Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) spokesperson Olivia Morgan said: 'It should be noted that there are many competing demands for funding and TII has to prioritise applications across all of the network's activities. Lighting comprises both capital and ongoing maintenance and supply costs and given the need for funding must understandably be justified.
'This rationale is further supported by the National Energy Efficiency Action Plan which requires all public bodies to target 33 per cent energy reduction by 2020. In this case, therefore, there is no proposal to provide funding for the installation of lighting on the N25 at New Ross at this time.'
Cathaoirleach Cllr Michael Sheehan said 700 walkers use the road many nights of the year, adding that an urgent solution must be found to the problem.
The scale of the problem of teenagers taking psychoactive drugs in New Ross has been highlighted by New Ross Gardai.
The drug Bonzai is one of the most commonly used drugs among teenagers in New Ross and is causing havoc in homes in the town, according to Sergeant Eddie Wilde.
The drug, which is a chemical substitute for cannabis, is available to buy online and is being sold for as little as 20 per gram.
Community Drugs Project worker Ann Lacey, who works with drug addicts and their families in the New Ross area and in Wexford, said: 'It's a substitute for cannabis and is chemical rather than natural so nobody knows what's in it. We are finding that it's laced with other stuff.'
The drug has emerged as one of the most popular head shop drugs in Europe and has been illegal in Ireland since head shop drugs were banned in summer 2010.
Among the medical complications the Bonzai drug causes are vomiting, nausea and weight loss.
Sgt Wilde said: 'There is a problem in New Ross with these psychoactive drugs and even this week again people need to be conscious of what their children have access to. We have an ongoing problem with some of these drugs which are affecting people mentally. Bonzai is highly popular in New Ross and it's causing serious damage to young people.
'We, in An Garda Siochana, are working with agencies to increase people's awareness of how dangerous these drugs can be.'
New Ross councillors vowed to support Nolan Transport in its campaign to get a roundabout at the Campile junction, at the meeting.
Cllr Willie Fitzharris raised the matter, pointing out that there is a big groundswell of support for a campaign by Nolan Transport to get the roundabout.
Cllr Fitzharris said: 'I wholeheartedly agree with this. It's clearly required.'
District Director Eamonn Hore said the more petitions the better.
He said: 'We have the roundabout in our development plan and it's in our three year capital works programme. We will be back onto Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), (formerly the National Roads Authority), about this. We're pushing it at national level now. We have a three year window where TII will pay for it. I suggest we don't fund it ourselves as it's still a national road.'
Cllr Fitzharris asked if there was anything councillors can do to advance the process. Cllr Larry O'Brien said a record of accidents is often sought, but there is no record of near misses and close calls on the busy road.
Cllr O'Brien said drivers pick up speed after passing Kent's Cross. 'Motorists don't understand how long it takes a 54ft lorry to come across the main road. Trucks are slow taking off.'
Cllr O'Brien warned that a serious accident will happen at the junction. 'It's up to everyone here to push this,' he said.
He added that hauliers are delayed getting to the ferry in Rosslare Europort because of the crossing, adding that the haulage companies are putting together a technical case, with detail on delays for the minister.
Mr Hore said the roundabout would cost more than 1m. Cllr Martin Murphy said in that case the TII should pay for it.
Cathaoirleach Cllr Michael Sheehan said: 'We were told that it would take a serious accident at the junction for there to be any works and there was a serious accident there a few weeks ago.'
Cllr Fitzharris pointed out that the speed limit signs are located very close to the junction.
Mr Hore said trucks travelling at 80 kph can easily reduce their speed to 60 kph in the distance allotted, but said the council will look at moving the signs in their speed review as a temporary measure.
The councillors agreed to meet with the transport minister as part of a delegation on the matter.
'Don't tell the wife' is - as the name suggests - a light hearted comedy about to take to the stage at the Hawk's Well Theatre. The play is the latest work from the Everyman Productions Sligo Drama Company. Written by the late Sam Cree (who also wrote scripts for the Carry on films) this is a hilarious take on marital life set in Belfast.
Director Manus Shields explains: "Edna Willis is the woman of the house, a strong forceful character who feels she has reason to believe that her husband is playing away from home. Events get out of hand with the arrival of Georgette, a young French student not to mention Basil, a male escort. The man of the house is buying a new greyhound called Bridget but Edna thinks the dog is another woman."
With laughter from the start, this is a comedy not to be missed says Manus, who directed his first play in 1975.
"The cast and crew make up about 12, with 8 actors on stage. The standard of performance is excellent with well seasoned local actors. I believe audiences will have a great laugh, I certainly enjoyed directing it," says Manus.
The Everyman has been running plays annually since its inception in 1981. It covers a variety of work including some more serious drama from the likes of Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams and Emile Zola. Manus says Sligo audiences have always been supportive with loyal patrons coming to every show but for a wider appeal, comedy is the best draw. These days people seem to look for escapism as Manus says: "In modern times people just want to have a laugh."
So for a guaranteed giggle, don't miss this latest side-splitting production running at The Hawk's Well from Thursday 7th to Sunday April 10th.
They've been threading the boards now for a quarter of a century and those behind the Blue Raincoat Theatre Company in Sligo intend to keep "doing what they love to do."
It was in 1991 when a then 26-year-old Niall Henry first got the idea to open up a theatre in his home town. He says: "I wanted to work in theatre and didn't want the uncertainty of months of no work or having to always look for work. I just wanted to work. So Malcolm Hamilton (a fellow Sligonian) and myself set up the theatre company so that he could write plays and I could direct them."
Their first play was performed in the Hawk's Well Theatre but then the group acquired The Factory on a 35 year lease - a derelict building on Lower Quay Street which they quickly set about restoring as a unique theatre space.
For five years "the dole office was the funding" jokes Artistic Director Niall who admits social welfare helped when no grants were available. Now the company gets 200,000 in funding a year from the Arts Council and is one of only a handful of professional ensemble theatre companies left since the recession hit. Niall explains: "There were about 25 independent theatre companies nationwide before the recession - now there are only five or so still getting regular funding, including the Druid in Galway and Blue Raincoat in Sligo."
So how did they weather the storm where others have failed? Reputation and the drive to keep producing plays despite cuts certainly helped.
"I would like to think that we worth keeping," says Niall, "A lot of people who live in Sligo all the time work with us so we could keep doing a lot of plays during the recession. Productivity during a downturn is a big deal. We were able to keep putting on the plays so that kept us in the mix."
From humble beginnings in Sligo Blue Raincoat is a touring theatre company and has travelled extensively throughout Europe and beyond. They have been to the States and now want to put more shows on in "particular smaller theatres in New York that would be a good fit."
They enjoyed a 5 year residency in Edinburgh and Niall reports that many of the tours "pay for themselves." Of course touring also serves to strengthen the strong reputation of this imaginative creative company from the North West. From Istanbul to Romania, Spain to Poland Blue Raincoat is putting Sligo on the map. But playing to a local audience is important too and the company is always grateful for the support it gets from the people of Sligo.
They've also performed in unusual locations and Sligo audiences recently got to see them on the top of Knocknarea (pictured right) and on Dorrins Strand Beach as part of the Yeats Summer Festival.
The Easter weekend saw crowds across Ireland celebrate 100 years since 1916, and in Strandhill, there was another important anniversary being remembered.
It was 50 years since a group of surfing fanatics begun what is known as the emergence of the sport.
Among them was Kevin Cavey (74) from Cabinteely who was a member of the Bray Ireland Surf Club, which had been formed a year earlier.
Along with three other surfers, the group decided to go on a surf safari around the country at Easter.
Kevin was joined by his brother Colm, Tom Casey and Patrick Kinsella, who all shared a love of surfing and wanted to encourage people to take up the sport.
Setting off from Dublin in a Vauxhall Victor 101 station wagon with a stack of surfboards on the roof, they arrived in Strandhill on Easter Sunday 1966.
Their great surfari marked the bringing of surfing to the West. The surfari was one of a chain of events initiated by Kevin Cavey in 1966 that led to the establishment of the Surf Club Of Ireland, a club representing the whole island, that later became Irish Surfing, the National Governing Body of Surfing today.
Kevin discovered surfing in 1962 when he saw a picture of a Hawaiian surfer in a Reader's Digest. This picture was his inspiration for a life-long passion for surfing.
The sport has brought him around the world and he has also represented his country. For the next few years Kevin experimented with making his own boards, connecting with other surfers and forming Ireland's first Surf Club.
Kevin decided it was time to tell Ireland that surfing had arrived. He took a stand at the Boat Show, titled Bray Ireland Surf Club, and was inundated with interest.
Following the success of the Boat Show Kevin, who had just received delivery of his first custom fibreglass surfboard, decided it was time to expand the sport's interest among Irish people.
He said as it was fifty years since the little group headed off to the Northwest coast, it was a good way to remember this anniversary at the weekend.
The group met at the canon in Strandhill on Saturday afternoon where they signed a commemoration document. There had been plans to paddle out together, however weather conditions hampered this. Kevin's family were also there and fifty years since the group first arrived, there were many more surfing enthusiasts around, inspired no doubt by the actions of Kevin and his fellow surfers in 1966. On Sunday, the Surfari moved on to Rossnowlagh.
It's a part of his life which Brian Stewart had probably thought was behind him.
When he took a call from The Sligo Champion on Good Friday he was receiving dialysis at Sligo University Hospital one of three four hour sessions a week he has to undergo.
It's a very busy unit and its machines are constantly on the go.
Brian, from Seaview Park, Sea Road has been receiving dialysis treatment for almost six years since his kidney transplant which lasted just under 10 years failed.
He was 28 years old when he was diagnosed with kidney failure and he began haemodialysis treatment at hospital.
The father of two (ages 13 and 23) is married to his childhood sweetheart Shirley.
His daughter was very young when he became ill. Brian continued with this treatment for two years until a deceased kidney donor became available in September 2000.
This transplant gave him a good quality of life for ten years and his is grateful to the family of his kidney donor for this.
However, his kidneys started to fail again and he had to return to dialysis treatment.
Initially, as the dialysis unit at Sligo University Hospital was full he had to travel to Omagh for the first few months for his hospital dialysis treatment which was tiresome as it was a journey that had to be made a couple of times a week.
He was then was moved back to Sligo which is only a short drive away from his home, which eases the burden of travel that some other haemodialysis patients might have to endure.
This August he will be six years back on dialysis and he says he is very fatigued most of the time because of his kidney failure.
He says a second transplant would make a huge difference to his quality of life.
"I'm back on the waiting list and I'm back to hoping again," he says.
The last transplant was carried out at the Beaumont Hospital in Dublin and that's likely where another would be carried out if he's lucky enough to get the call once more,.
Two Sligo men who live and work in Brussels have recalled their experiences of last Tuesday's terror as two bombs detonated in the Belgian capital killing 34 people and wounded about 250 others.
Alan Gilligan from Rathcormack and Heber Rowan a native of Cartron both work at the EU Quarter a short distance from Maelbeek Metro station where the second explosion occurred. Jihadist militant group ISIS have since claimed responsibility for the attacks which are understood to be a reaction to the capture of Salah Abdeslam who was arrested in the Molenbeek district of Brussels four days previous. The 26-year-old is believed by French authorities to have masterminded last November's Paris attacks which killed 130 people.
Alan who works at the European Commission was in his office at the time of the first blast at Zaventem Airport at approximately 8.10 am (7.10 am Irish time). The second bomb was detonated an hour later at Maelbeek Metro Station, just a five minute walk from his workplace.
The 27-year-old told the Sligo Champion: "To be honest there is usually plenty of noise, plenty of sirens at rush hour in the morning but I gradually began to notice that something was different. Particularly given what I had already read and heard about what had happened at the airport. So, after a short time I was looking out the window watching police car after police car drive past, followed by fire brigades and then ambulances. You could tell something had happened."
Although he was aware that a second attack may have taken place near to the EU district, he did not think it took place so close to his office.
"I didn't realise it was the metro station just down the road until I saw the fire brigades stopped outside."
Alan, a former Sligo Grammar School student admits that the primary concern suddenly became his own safety and that of the hundreds of people employed in his office. "A lot of us had never experienced anything like that before and given what had already taken place at the airport, there was genuine concern that any of our buildings could be a possible target. As it turns out the building next to mine was evacuated in the afternoon."
The facility was placed on lock down for the remainder of the afternoon as security officials deemed it too risky to allow anyone to enter or leave the building such was the threat. Inside staff exchanged stories and followed the events online and through social media.
Alan explains: "Essentially we weren't allowed to leave the building until we got the green light in the late afternoon around 5 pm. A lot of my colleagues gathered to discuss the events and to trade their experiences. One of the girls had heard the metro bomb as she walked to work."
Here at home and as Ireland awoke to news of the bombings, the families of those with loved ones in the Belgian capital made panicked phone calls to make sure all was well. Alan continues: "I was actually on the phone with my family just after they had heard about the airport bombing. They were supposed to fly over here for Easter but the attacks have put plans up in the air slightly."
Having been cleared to leave the building that evening Alan returned to work on Wednesday morning greeted with more stringent security measures.
"You usually have to go through scanners and show badges and that kind of thing. It's normal. But Wednesday was a little different and you would expect that. More security inside buildings and soldiers on the street. You felt that bit safer going about your business."
Heber, also a member of the Grammar School alumni works in the EU quarter. Heber's commute to work for a training day brought him past Maelbeek Metro Station. At the time he was not aware of the tragedy which had unfolded.
"Blacked out cars screeched by me and something was happening further down, I just didn't know what. I thought it was just part of the overall increase in security for the day after the attack in the airport."
Security was tight around the station as it was in the building where Heber's training was due to take place. "Inside my classroom I glimpsed a scene of collective shock. Everyone was huddled on their phones searching for the latest information. We discussed what was happening as we received sporadic official messages from our respective institutions. All we knew was that a class on European institutions was the last thing on our minds."
The 28-year-old tried in vain to contact his parents to notify them of his safety. "The phone signals were blocked amid the storm of traffic. The official advice was to stay inside and await further instructions. So we waited. My call wouldn't connect so I posted an update on social media to reach the most amount of people the fastest all the while it was really touching to know who reached out to check if I was okay."
It was not until late that evening that Heber and his classmates were allowed leave the building. "At that stage the yellow alert (elevated) security posters had all changed to 'orange alert' (high). Walking down the street the first thing that hit me was the silence. Normally Rue Belliard is a torrent of traffic but last Tuesday it was silent, surreal. Occasionally the odd police car ripped through but it was mostly silent. Walking home was a labyrinth, street after street was blocked by police and soldiers. I noticed plenty of media outside the EU Council. I heard Chinese, Japanese, British, Arabic, French and a few tongues I don't know."
He describes the whole experience which he describes as "surreal and terrifying.
He says: "Some people cannot be reasoned with. Some cannot be bartered with and some cannot accept the idea of living in peace. I was working from home the day after the attacks and every five or ten minutes you could hear police helicopters hovering around the skies. This is a city ill at ease."
A 41 year woman facing a number of assault charges was a vulnerable person who needed support both legal and from the HSE, stated Judge Kevin Kilrane at Tubbercurry District Court.
He made the remarks about Susan McMorrow of 35 Highfield, Tubbercurry who is charged with asasaulting Jaswinder Singh at Super Valu in the town on January 21st and with engaging in threatening behaviour.
She is also charged with assaulting John Truelove at 35 Highfield on January 30th 2015, Mary McHugh and Mary Pilkington at the National Learning Network in Tubbercurry on April 2nd 2013 and Bridget Quinn and Geraldine Brennan at Mountain Road on March 13th 2014.
A medical report along with another from a HSE social worker were handed in to court, the latter stating that the defendant was capable of living independently.
It was stated she was best placed in the community and that she knew right from wrong. From July 2004 to December 2004 she had been in residential care but has maintained independent living since 2008.
Judge Kilrane said it appeared to be essential in order to keep things in balance that the defendant take her medication.
The Judge also noted in the report that a male acquaintance of the defendant was described as both a source of support and of stress to her.
The defendant told the court she was taking her medication and that the man mentioned was out of her house and she didn't want him back.
The Judge remanded the defendant on continuing bail to April 27th "to see how things are going."
He asked the defendant's solicitor, Mr Declan Gallagher to assist, if he can, with the matters outlined by the defendant regarding keeping the man mentioned away from her home.
The winner of Sligo's biggest ever National Lottery jackpot is keeping everyone guessing. The winner of the 8.2 million prize on Saturday, March 5th has yet to come forward.
"It hasn't been claimed yet but like all winners they have 90 days in which to claim," said a spokesperson for the National Lottery.
The winning ticket was sold at XL Shop and Stop, Stephen Street owned by former Fine Gael councillor and Mayor, Matt Lyons.
The winner of the 8,244,502 prize bought a 20 Normal Play ticket and the numbers were 2, 8, 16, 24, 33, 42 with the bonus number 47.
It's not the first time a multi-million jackpot was won at Mr Lyons' shop.
He sold a 4m winning ticket at his shop in Stephen Street in Sligo in 2009.
Mr Lyons speculated at the time that it might be a local winner but he added that the town was very busy that Saturday with Sligo Rovers hosting Shamrock Rovers in The Showgrounds while there were also a lot of hen parties in town from outside the area.
"My advice to anyone who was in my shop at all over the past few days would be to check those numbers because it could be any of them."
He says he is getting a reputation for having a 'lucky shop'.
"It was a huge thrill to sell a winning ticket six years ago, but it's even more special to see another one and for such a big jackpot too," said Matt, a former Mayor of Sligo.
Ashford's Ferdia Walsh Peelo delighted fans as he arrived at the Omniplex in Arklow
Ashford's Ferdia Walsh Peelo delighted fans as he arrived at the Omniplex in Arklow
Happy cinema-goers queuing up to see one of the most hotly-anticipated Irish films in years got a pleasant surprise recently as none other than the star of the show came to join them.
Ashford's Ferdia Walsh Peelo delighted fans as he arrived at the Omniplex in Arklow on the opening night of his new movie 'Sing Street' on St Patrick's Day.
In the film, Ferdia plays 14-year-old Cosmo who, growing up in 1980s Dublin, falls for a girl in school and asks her to be in his band's music video. The only problem is, he doesn't have a band...yet!
Ferdia and, indeed the film itself, have been receiving rave reviews and no doubt his fans in Arklow will be adding to those now!
Staff at Omniplex Arklow have sent a heartfelt thank you to the young actor for joining them on the night and were full of praise for the up-and-coming star.
'Proving himself to be a true gent, he spent a lot of time with members of the audience after the show signing autographs and chatting,' they wrote on their Facebook page.
'Thanks for making it an evening everyone will remember!'
Keen to spread the love around, Ferdia also make a surprise appearance at the Omniplex in Wexford, the town where his mother Toni hails from.
Although relatively new to acting, Ferdia has been moving in creative circles for years.
He started studying as a boy soprano when he was seven years old, winning all sorts of plaudits for his voice, appearing on the Late Late Toy Show and singing solo at Wexford Opera House.
At the mere age of 12 he secured his first professional contract with Ireland's national touring opera, the Opera Theatre Company.
He lives in Ashford with his mum Toni, dad Mick Peelo and siblings Tadhg, Oisin and Siofradh.
A musical family, Toni is a soprano and teaches at her former alma mater, the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama, while Tadgh and Oisin are also talented musicians and the youngest, Siofradh, is learning to play the violin.
'Sing Street', which got its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah earlier this year, has been receiving rave reviews and has been hailed as a 'wonderfully authentic and sweet natured tale of how music can save your life'.
RNLI lifeboat volunteers from Wicklow lifeboat played their part in commemorating the events of 1916 on Sunday as they took part in the state parade through the streets of Dublin.
Crew members from the two County Wicklow stations travelled to Dublin to take part in the Easter Sunday 1916 centenary commemoration among 700 emergency service representatives.
The six RNLI representatives from Arklow and Wicklow RNLI and joined 50 of the charity's volunteers and staff who came from lifeboat stations around the Irish coast and inland to parade through Dublin city centre to mark the centenary of the Easter Rising.
Representing Arklow RNLI were former Lifeboat Operations Manager Jimmy Tyrell, station Coxswain Brendan Dillon and Fundraising Chairperson Michael Mordaunt.
Wicklow RNLI was represented by Second Coxswain Ciaran Doyle, his son and lifeboat crewmember Matt Doyle along with lifeboat helm Barry Spencer.
The RNLI contingent was accompanied by a new Atlantic 85 lifeboat, which following its debut in the parade, will be transported to Youghal in Cork to go on operational service, and two RNLI landrovers used in the launching of inshore lifeboats.
Commenting on the commemoration RNLI Divisional Operations Manager Owen Medland said, 'It is a huge honour for the RNLI to take part in this historic event.
'It is an acknowledgement of the role our volunteers have played in saving lives at sea and on inland waters in Ireland since the RNLI was established in Ireland in 1826.'
A team of musical students from Colaiste Bhride Carnew certainly hit a high note recently as they won the GAA's national 'Song to Commemorate 1916' competition.
The folk band and their ballad 'The Last Gun Fired' came up against stiff competition from schools across the country but was deemed the overall winner on Tuesday, March 22.
Four members of the group - which includes Jacqui Whelan, Ciara Jordan, Roisin O'Keeffe, Josh McGrath, Paddy Doyle, Stephanie Hale, Vinny Murphy, PJ Barnes, Fiona Doyle and is guided by Mr David Callanan - made the trip up to Croke Park during the Easter holidays to attend the awards presentation.
The event was attended by 230 students, teachers and parents from across Ireland who submitted entries and the President of the GAA, Aogan O Fearghail, presented the prizes.
The Carnew group were thrilled to receive their prize, which includes a cash sum to invest in the group and the chance to record their song for a commemorative CD to be published by the GAA.
The folk group came together last September from the various musical strands within Colaiste Bhride, including the trad group, the concert band, the choir and as competitors and winners in the annual school Xmas Factor. Since then they have performed at school events and at Christmas they appeared in Rathwood and Kilkenny Castle.
Staff and fellow students at the school have sent hearty congratulations to this talented group.
In all, the song competition attracted almost 70 entries from 47 schools.
Arklow Pipe Band taking part in the 1916 commemorations in Dublin last weekend
Arklow was well represented at the 1916 Centenary commemorations at the weekend.
Arklow Pipe Band was one of just four bands from Ireland to participate in a special commemoration event at Arbour Hill, burial place of the executed leaders, and members travelled to Dublin on Easter Saturday for the occasion.
The purpose of the commemoration on Saturday was to remember those of the 1916 leaders who were involved in pipe bands and also to remember numerous members of pipe bands who fought and subsequently died during Easter week.
A total of 25 pipe bands in total took part including Arklow Pipe Band, and those from overseas travelled from as far as America, Canada and England.
The Arklow group was proud to be in attendance and to represent their town at such an important and poignant event.
Keith Walsh (in green check shirt) and Hollywood's Susie Edgeworth at the vigil at Place De La Bourse in Brussels
A Hollywood woman who flew into Brussels airport the day before the terrorist attack which claimed 31 lives on Tuesday morning, returned home on Saturday after her ordeal.
Susie Edgeworth, 23, flew into the airport with her boyfriend Keith Walsh from County Wexford on Monday evening last.
At least 31 people were killed and around 270 injured in the Islamic State bomb attacks at Brussels airport and a metro station on Tuesday.
Susie said: 'When we got into the airport we were worried as there were so many officers carrying guns. When we got into the city it was very quiet even at rush hour. I woke up the next morning to a text from my dad and that was the first I knew of the explosions.'
Following Embassy guidelines, Susie and Keith remained in their hostel on Tuesday.
'We went downstairs and news broke about what had happened at the metro station and everyone was freaking out. Keith and I are very laid back and we didn't feel there was any risk to our safety.'
On Tuesday evening they went to the main square, the Place de la Bourse, where a large crowd had gathered for a vigil. Susie said Keith wrote a message of support: 'Sending Love from Ireland'.
'There were pictures of the victims and people were paying tributes. It was absolutely choc-a-block and people were lighting candles. There was an Irishman there and when he saw Keith leaving the message he burst out in tears. He had been living in Brussels for five years working at a high level. It didn't hit home for us until we saw that.'
She said the atmosphere was calmer on Wednesday as people returned to their workaday lives.
'We met some friends at the hostel and that's what kept us going. If you were on your own you'd start thinking the worst. The city was dead and there were cops with huge guns everywhere. We didn't know what to do.'
Describing herself as a cautious traveller, Susie said: 'We have been traveling to cities for a number of years together and we know how to look after ourselves and not to be stupid.'
A daughter of Frank and Eileen Edgeworth, of Hollywood, Susie said she and Keith had to get a bus to Paris on Good Friday before flying home late that night.
'Our first ever experience of Brussels was a terrorist attack. It's been a weird few days. We hadn't even seen the city before it happened.'
She said she couldn't wait to get home.
The price of the average three-bed semi detached house in Wicklow has increased by 0.75 per cent to 225,000 in the last three months, a nationwide property survey has found.
The REA Average House Price Survey which was released in recent days, outlines that house prices in Wicklow have remained the same in the east of the county while the market appears to be stagnant.
The survey concentrates on the sale price of Ireland's typical stock home, the three-bed semi, giving an up-to-date picture of the property market in towns and cities countrywide to the end of Q1 this week.
'We have found the east Wicklow market to be stagnant over the last three months and prices have remained virtually the same across the east of the county,' said Matt Forkin from REA Forkin in Delgany.
'The current market demand is showing a significant fallout from the current political instability,' said Simon Murphy from REA Murphy in Baltinglass.
'Activity in the market places is still solid but nothing like the level of late 2015, with viewing numbers currently low,' he added.
The average three-bed semi nationally now costs 191,194, a rise of 2,824 or 1.5 per cent on Q4 2015 while the average price of a three-bed semi in Dublin City and County has risen by 0.6 per cent from 332,000 to 334,000 in the first three months of the year.
Donald Trump with his wife Melania: The leading Republican candidate has had a difficult week even by his own controversial standards. Photo: AP Photo
Donald Trump faced a barrage of condemnation over his comments that women who have abortions should be punished, highlighting his struggles with female voters and damaging his chances in a crucial upcoming contest.
The Republican front-runner has fallen behind rival Ted Cruz in Wisconsin, where the next primary election will be held on Tuesday, and a recent poll showed that nearly three quarters of all women now have an unfavourable opinion of him.
Those shortcomings were on full display as he struggled to make an elegant about-face after his remark that there must be "some sort of punishment" for women who have abortions if he gets his way and the practice is banned.
The comments were vehemently rejected from Democrats and Republicans alike, with even pro-life groups distancing themselves from Mr Trump.
The property mogul released a statement two hours later backing a ban on abortion and advocating punishments for abortion doctors, but reversing himself on the question of women themselves facing repercussions.
Mr Trump then travelled to Washington to meet with his foreign policy advisers and remained out of the public eye for more than 24 hours, a lifetime by his standards.
Instead of appearing himself, he dispatched a succession of aides to TV news sets to explain that his position on abortion had not been fully formed, and that he simply "misspoke".
The void left by the retreating Mr Trump was filled by his opponents, who took turns questioning his suitability for the presidency.
"It just shows that he's really not prepared to be president of the United States," said John Kasich, a fellow Republican candidate, noting that Mr Trump had made "wild-eyed suggestions" about a variety of important issues before changing course.
Celebration
Mr Cruz remained on the campaign trail in Wisconsin, holding an event that he called a "celebration of women".
Mr Trump's difficulties with female voters had come to the fore earlier in the week, after his campaign manager was charged with battery on a female reporter.
The billionaire subsequently mocked the reporter, and refused to reprimand his adviser.
After a week filled with gaffes and spent mostly on the defensive, Mr Trump has seen Mr Cruz open up a 10-point lead in what had been a neck-and-neck race in Wisconsin.
While Mr Trump holds a commanding advantage in the Republican race, even some within his own party have suggested his weakness with women could be his undoing in a potential general election match-up with Hillary Clinton.
Polls show the former secretary of state leading Mr Trump by an average of 11 points in such a scenario, with the gap widening to 16pc among women.
Mrs Clinton, for her part, has slammed Mr Trump's comments on abortion as "outrageous and dangerous".
Tensions
The BBC reported that Mr Trump was holding anxious talks with party leaders as tensions grow over his loyalty and policies in his presidential bid.
His meeting at the Republican National Committee (RNC) in Washington lasted 30 minutes but details were scant.
Earlier in the week, Mr Trump said he would not back the eventual Republican candidate, breaking an RNC pledge he signed in the autumn.
"I have been treated very unfairly. By basically the RNC," Mr Trump told CNN.
Sources present at the RNC meeting on Thursday afternoon told CNN and Bloomberg that it focused on the summer convention ahead, and the pledge and abortion remarks were not discussed.
"The chairman and Mr Trump had a productive conversation about the state of the race," said RNC spokeswoman Lindsay Walters.
Mr Trump tweeted after the meeting that it was "very nice".
Mr Trump is desperately trying to avoid a brokered convention in July, which would take place if he does not receive the 1,237 delegates needed to secure the nomination.
In such a scenario, party delegates would choose the nominee at the convention, meaning Trump could lose out on the nomination despite earning the most delegates.
Ohio Governor John Kasich or Mr Cruz could win the nomination this way, with many in the Republican party uncomfortable with Mr Trump's performance on the campaign trail.
Some insiders feel that the unprecedented explosion of criticism over the abortion remarks could be a goof too far for even the Donald. ( Daily Telegraph London and agencies)
Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Saltwater crocodile attacks are not uncommon in Indonesia, but it is rare for a tourist to be killed. Stock photo
A Russian tourist has been killed by a crocodile while visiting Indonesia.
Sergey Lykhvar, 37, was reported missing last Friday while visiting the Raja Ampat islands of West Papua, where he had been planning to snorkel around the remote Minyaifun island.
Prasetyo Budiarto, head of search and rescue in the region, told reporters that rescuers had spotted a large saltwater crocodile trailing behind Lykhvars body when he was discovered.
We believe he was killed by a crocodile judging from the missing body parts and the extent of his injuries, Budiarto said.
Lykhvars body was found in a remote location, he added, where there were strong currents and sharp rocks.
His remains were transported by boat from Raja Ampat to Sorong. His body has been cremated, at his familys request.
We are still communicating with the Russian embassy, from what Ive heard his family would come to pick up his ashes in Indonesia, Budiarto said.
Saltwater crocodile attacks in Indonesia and Australia are not uncommon, but tourists are rarely killed by the species, which can grow to more than five metres in length.
Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
This photo released on Sunday March 27, 2016, by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows a general view of Palmyra citadel, central Syria. Palmyra is an archaeological gem that Syrian troops took back from Islamic State fighters in central Syria. The amount of destruction found inside the archaeological area in the historic Syrian town of Palmyra was similar to what experts have expected but the shock came Monday from inside the local museum where the extremists have caused wide damage demolishing invaluable statues that were torn to pieces. (SANA via AP)
The amount of destruction found inside the archaeological area in the historic Syrian town of Palmyra was similar to what experts have expected but the shock came Monday from inside the local museum where the extremists have caused wide damage demolishing invaluable statues that were torn to pieces. (SANA via AP)
Syrian troops have identified 45 bodies so far in a mass grave found in the city of Palmyra after it was recaptured from Islamic State, a military source has said.
Syrian government forces backed by heavy Russian air support drove Islamic State out of Palmyra last Sunday, inflicting what the army called a mortal blow to militants who had dynamited the city's ancient temples.
The communal grave, on the north-eastern edge of Palmyra, is the only one found so far in the city by the Syrian forces, the source said. It held the bodies of both civilians and Syrian army members captured by Islamic State.
Syrian state news agency SANA said yesterday the grave contained many women and children and some of the bodies had been beheaded.
In May last year, as Islamic State took control of Palmyra, the hard-line Islamist militants were reported by Syrian state media to have killed at least 400 people in the first four days of control.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the five-year-old Syrian conflict through a network of sources on the ground, said that Islamic State had killed a number of people at an earlier time and buried them on the outskirts of the city.
The Observatory reported on Saturday that fighting between Syrian forces and Islamic State around Qaryatain to the west of Palmyra. It also reported, and Russian and Syrian air strikes in the same area and to the east of Palmyra around the town of Sukhna.
Attacks by government forces against Islamic State positions to the around Palmyra are aimed at moving east across the desert to Islamic State-held Deir al-Zor near the Iraqi border, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said.
In a 1950 photo before a major renovation, Bailes' shoe store is separate from the main department store.
SHARE Contributed PHOTOS by the ANDERSON COUNTY MUSEUM George Bailes Sr. (left) and George Bailes Jr. (center) pose with a men's department employee in the 1950s. Contributed by the ANDERSON cOUNTY MUSEUM In a 1920 photo, the A&P Tea Company-operated storefront that later became the home of George Bailes' department store. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Bailes Building storefront on South Main after its last renovation in 1952 CONTRIBUTED PHOTO In the 1920s, the name of George Bailes' first venture, The Bee Hive, towered over South Main Street.
By Abe Hardesty of the Independent Mail
Earline Fowler Simpson drove very slowly past the Bailes Building on Monday, hoping to catch a fleeting glimpse of history.
In its last days, there was little to see a somber, gray contrast to an energetic, colorful past.
Its place in history was molded by George Hamilton Bailes, whose optimism and leadership inspired the city to new heights in the 20th century.
The Bailes Building was a century-old reminder that George Bailes was well ahead of his time as a marketing professional. It was once the bustling home of a spacious department store that lured shoppers with its 4-story escalator. The store was a locally-owned success story that dueled and thrived and thrived against national retailers J.C. Penney, Sears & Roebuck as well as regional chain Gallant-Belk.
Its emergence reflected the rise of Bailes, who left poverty and a third-grade education in his native Fort Mill to take a job as a salesman in Charlotte in the 1890s.
He came to Anderson in 1902 to open a small retail clothing store The Bee Hive and nurtured it for the next 20 years at two locations on the square. It is not known why Bailes chose Anderson. His first wife, Florence Funderburke, died young. His second wife, Gertrude Sanders, was an Anderson native.
In 1922, Bailes moved into the building at 107 South Main, behind the Anderson County Courthouse, on what was often called "Granite Row." Major renovations that year and in 1952 made the store a regional shopping destination.
Like the building, Bailes had a magnetic quality. Known well for his service to the Kiwanis Club and as a deacon at First Baptist Church, integrity was a high priority.
Even today, 63 years after his death, the Bailes Ring is presented to the T.L. Hanna High School senior whose integrity has made the greatest impression on the faculty.
Integrity was also a primary focus of Bailes' writing. During the last dozen years of his business career, he used an Independent Mail ad each week to publish "Ode to a Rose," in which Bailes described what he admired and appreciated in a specific Anderson resident.
The popular article reinforced Bailes' already-strong connection to his adopted hometown.
An ambitious entrepreneur, Bailes often restocked his store shelves with bargains buys from stores that had closed. When he heard that the L.C. King shirt factory was soon to close in Bristol, Tennessee, Bailes and son Charles made the 190-mile trip only to find that the factory was going strong (and remains in operation today).
As they planned the return home, George Bailes spotted what he described as a group of the largest mules he had ever seen. He soon discovered that a canceled shipping order had left that railroad depot with 150 mules.
Although Bailes lived in the city (209 Calhoun Street), he bought every mule, over the protest of his son, and scheduled their shipment to downtown Anderson.
A few weeks later, the Great Bailes Department Store Mule Auction packed the square. He sold every mule, at a tidy profit, and on that day, sales skyrocketed at his store and others.
Steve Bailes grew up in Anderson, hearing a lifetime of such tales about his grandfather.
"He was quite a character," Steve Bailes said. "He'd do things to stimulate the local economy. He believed that you had to spend money to make money."
The prominent example, for the past century, has been the Bailes Building. Bailes moved the Bee Hive into one of its storefronts in 1922, and by 1952 his expansions left only the G.H. Bailes & Co. and F.W. Woolworth (a national discount chain) on Granite Row.
With his health in decline, Bailes retired shortly after the renovation. After his death in 1953, George Jr. operated the store for about a decade. When a fire damaged the building in the late '60s, the family which had gravitated to other professions closed it. It was eventually purchased by Anderson County, and for the last 30 years has served as the voter registration and elections office.
Simpson, a lifelong Anderson resident, was a Girls High sophomore when Bailes completed that 1952 renovation. She operated the register in the baby department her favorite during that grand reopening.
"It was so exciting, that first day," she said. "I loved working there. It had that escalator, and there was nothing like it around here."
Simpson was part of a staff that was trained on modern cash registers at the 40,000-square-foot store that was the talk of the region, and remembers a customer-friendly philosophy.
"Mr. (Thomas) Bailes wanted us to know how to run those registers well because he didn't want customers to have to stand and wait while we tried to figure them out," she remembered. "And he didn't want lines to get long."
The baby department was on the third floor. She also worked often in the toy department, which shared the basement level and McDuffie Street entrance with the men's department. Jewelry, perfume, and women's clothing dominated the main floor. Housewares were offered on the second floor.
"People came from everywhere to ride those moving stairs," remembers Steve Bailes. "It was a pretty big deal at the time."
It was a big part of a thriving downtown in the 1950s.
"People came to shop for everything downtown in those days," Simpson said. "On Saturdays, people dressed up like they were going to church. Women came to shop in high heels," she said. "And as a shopper, I can remember walking from Manning Street in high heels, pushing a stroller. It was the way everyone dressed."
Carole Poole Nixon of Pendleton remembers the large second-floor display window that gave the remodeled storefront a distinctive look.
"Going to Bailes was quite a treat," said Nixon, who shopped there as a child with her mother. "I was always fascinated by that big display window."
When both Bailes and longtime school administrator Elliott McCants died a day apart in October 1953, a newspaper columnist called them "men of high integrity and principles ... and builders of a greater Anderson."
In his history of Anderson County, Roy Ethridge preserved a quote from a newspaper article that said, "As long as the streets of Anderson hum with business activity, there will be a monument to Mr. Bailes," the article said.
A few items from the store are part of a permanent Anderson County Museum exhibit called "Trade Street: The History of Commerce in Anderson County."
Bailes also formed partnership stores in Seneca, Westminster, Greer, Inman, Greenwood and north Georgia. The family connection to all the stores ended not long after George Bailes' death.
Three of Bailes' descendants became prominent Upstate physicians. Son Charles, an Anderson internist, retired in 1985 and died in 1996. Grandson Steve is a family physician in Spartanburg. Great-grandson Christopher is a family physician at AnMed Health.
One retail legacy remains: Harris Carpets on Civic Center Boulevard Extension was once the Bailes Department Store carpet department. Tom Bailes converted it into a stand-alone business in 1956.
The Bailes writing legacy lives through two granddaughters. Sisters Ginny Bailes Fretwell and Julie Bailes Johnson are co-publishers of twice-monthly Electric City News, which has circulated throughout Anderson County since 2009.
"We started it as a good-news newspaper and we enjoy doing it," Ginny Fretwell said Wednesday, "but I had never thought about the connection to our grandfather. I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."
Follow Abe Hardesty on Twitter @abe_hardesty
BMW announces $1.7 billion investment to build all-electric vehicles
The $1.7 billion investment includes $700 million to build a high-voltage battery assembly plant with 300 new jobs in Woodruff.
Marc Bounds, who prefers to be called by the name of his ministry Just Call Me Paul, carried a cross through Anderson this week as part of a cross-country journey to preach to people.
SHARE After eating a gas station biscuit for breakfast, Marc Bounds talks theology and his mission at the pumps. Marc Bounds carried his cross on wheels down U.S. 29 on Wednesday as he passed through Anderson on a trip around the country to preach. Marc Bounds, who prefers to be called by the name of his ministry Just Call Me Paul, carried a cross through Anderson this week as part of a cross-country journey to preach to people. Marc Bounds ate a biscuit at the Hickory Point gas station on U.S. 29 as he took a break from his cross-country, cross-carrying trip.
By Mike Ellis of the Independent Mail
Marc Bounds decided one day about a year ago to give away everything he had. He set off with $250, a 8-foot-tall wooden cross and a mission to walk around the nation.
He shouldered the wheeled cross and pulled it as he walked on the shoulders of highways and byways in Anderson this week.
It was the latest leg on a winding figure-8-shaped trip that will end up taking more than two years. With more than 1,300 miles and three pairs of shoes, Bounds has already covered much of the Southeast with plans to make it to Texas by New Years.
He spoke this week at Real Life Church in West Pelzer and at a Christian drug recovery group run out of Kahlers Auto Sales on U.S. 29.
On Wednesday, Bounds stopped for a biscuit and protein drink at a Hickory Point gas station on U.S. 29.
As he ate the biscuit, a customer greeted him and noted the cross, which has a hinged top and can hold a tent, a Bible, a toothbrush, clothes and a few other odds and ends inside.
Bounds talked about avoiding hell as he chatted with the customer, Kendrick Jackson, a youth minister with NewSpring Church.
Jackson said he appreciated the talk but prefers to focus on reaching for the happiness of Jesus instead of running from hell.
The two faithful men quickly came together, appreciating each others work and sharing encouragements.
Do you need a drink or anything? Jackson offered as he went inside the store.
Bounds said he was set. He had a backpack full of water and Gatorade slung over one arm of the cross.
Thats pretty much what it is, all day every day, Bounds said, witnessing to people when they initiate it. I dont ask for money, I dont ask for food, I dont ask for shelter. I dont ask for water. I dont ask for anything but I ask God for everything. He blesses me and continues to bless me and theres no need for me to worry about today or tomorrow.
Jackson later said it was a great leap of faith for Bounds to walk with a cross and witness to so many people.
Bounds, who prefers to go by the name of his ministry, Just Call Me Paul, said he plans to keep walking for another year and a half.
He was on his way to Spartanburg on Friday and has another year and a half to go on his trip, which began when he became focused on several Bible verses that call for people to carry a cross for the Lord.
I was working. I was drinking, whoring. I was a degenerate gambler, said Bounds, who was living in Arkansas at the time.
Luke 14:27 goes as far to say that you cant be my disciple if you dont pick up your cross to follow me, he said. Im carrying the cross physically to remind people that they should be carrying the cross spiritually. Now, I know the Scripture didnt tell me to pick up a physical cross and carry it across the county, but I do that as a witness, as a testimony, as a praise. Its a reminder to other people. Its a sermon on wheels. They cant unsee the cross. Thats mainly my mission.
Bounds set out in October 2013 and was delayed for five months after injuring his leg trying to carry the cross with no wheels. He recovered with a crutch at his fathers house, spending all of the holidays of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day with his father for the first time in decades.
With the help of friends, he put wheelbarrow wheels on the bottom of the cross and a small bicycle wheel and a steering mechanism on the front.
Its not about the miles you walk its about the lives you touch, Bounds said. Ive gotten to feed the homeless in New Orleans on Bourbon Street. I shared my testimony and a guy got saved. I have a great day every day and Ive got a story about every day. But the most important story is the story of Jesus.
Follow Mike Ellis on Twitter @MikeEllis_AIM
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By Charlie Bauder, WNEG AM-/Special to Independent Mail
TOCCOA, Ga. Stephens County is searching for a new E-911 and Emergency Management Agency director.
Current E-911/EMA Director Denny Folsom has resigned effective April 8, County Administrator Phyllis Ayers said.
The resignation letter did not provide a reason for Folsom's action, Ayers said.
"The job has been posted and will run for two weeks," Ayers said. "It will be in the Toccoa paper and a couple of websites that we use for posting and our county website, and then we will begin the interview process."
No interim department head will be selected to serve until a new person is hired.
"There are some strong supervisors on both of the shifts that have gone through this turnover before and I will stay connected with them, but they are fully capable of running the day to day operations," Ayers said.
She also said she wants the position to be filled quickly.
"As quickly as possible, so I would definitely be shooting for about a month," Ayers said.
Folsom has been the county's E-911 and EMA director since August 2013. He came to Stephens County from south Georgia, having previously been the Cook County E-911 and EMA director.
Terence Roberts
By Nikie Mayo of the Independent Mail
Innovate Anderson, an organization tasked with marketing this part of the Upstate to economic development prospects, received at least $90,000 in taxpayer money this fiscal year alone. But are taxpayers getting enough bang for their bucks?
That's the question leaders of this public-private partnership say they will try to answer in the next 60 days as they determine where Innovate Anderson is headed.
Anderson Mayor Terence Roberts, the chairman of Innovate Anderson's board of directors, said he believes the partnership could do a better job of reaching out to smaller towns in the county.
"I don't know all the history of the organization, but I believe it was intended to supplement the economic development efforts of Anderson County and all of its municipalities," Roberts said. "I think the county is focused on manufacturing and industry. We, as the city of Anderson, are large enough that we have been able to start some of our own citywide economic development initiatives to try to control our own destiny, so to speak. But the smaller towns can't always do that. They need help getting things like retail, restaurants and housing."
Key leaders in at least two county towns Belton and Williamston said they have little understanding of what Innovate Anderson is and what it does.
Belton City Administrator Alan Sims, who has been in that position for two and a half years, said he had never heard of Innovate Anderson.
"It hasn't helped us with anything in my tenure as far as I know," Sims said. "We get help from the county directly and from the Anderson Area Chamber of Commerce, but I don't know of anything that this Innovate Anderson has done directly for us. We could certainly use the help. We are a wonderful bedroom community for people who want to commute to work in larger cities, but we need help showing that."
Williamston Mayor Mack Durham said last week he is unaware of any project Innovate Anderson touched directly to help his town in its recent redevelopment efforts.
"That group itself hasn't really reached out to us," Durham said. "But let me say that we haven't reached out to Innovate Anderson, either. I think one of the big problems we have in small towns is trying to build those relationships. Small, local governments tend to be introverted. We would all benefit from more volunteer engagement and more corporate citizenship. But getting there is a struggle."
In the 2015-16 budget year, Innovate Anderson received $50,000 from the city of Anderson and another $40,000 from the county. It also annually receives funding from private companies and larger corporations.
Since Innovate Anderson began as a concept more than 20 years ago, it has played a role in some key projects. The organization helped create the Anderson Convention and Visitors Bureau, now called Visit Anderson. Innovate Anderson also owns land at Clemson University's Advanced Materials Center, a research park off S.C. 187 in Pendleton. The organization also committed $150,000 to help the county construct a speculative building.
But for the past year, Innovate Anderson has struggled to define its mission and future.
Its former president, Mike Panasko, left the job in March 2015 to take a position as the business-development manager in the city of Greenville's economic development office. Days later, Burriss Nelson, the county's economic development director, was named temporary president of Innovate Anderson. By early May, Jennifer Norman had resigned as leader of Visit Anderson.
Nelson remains in his temporary role and Neil Paul, a sales manager at Visit Anderson, has been that organization's interim director for the last 10 months.
Nelson recently refused to answer questions about the direction Innovate Anderson is taking. He said he was not allowed to stay in an executive session of Innovate Anderson's board of directors held Tuesday in which staffing was discussed, so he would not comment on the organization's future.
For his part, Paul said he believes Visit Anderson "is as good and strong as it has ever been." He cited the county's success in recruiting fishing tournaments to Lake Hartwell and getting other events to the Civic Center of Anderson.
County Council Chairman Tommy Dunn, who is on Innovate Anderson's board, said the organization will use the next couple of months "to make sure we are all on the same page."
"We at the county have a responsibility to our taxpayers to make sure their money is being spent on things that will make a difference," Dunn said. "By the same token, every private company represented here has some owner, some boss, some CEO that wants to know that their money is being spent on things that will matter in the long run."
Mike Wooles of First Citizens Bank led a committee last year to determine the viability of keeping Innovate Anderson going.
"We determined that Innovate Anderson needed to continue to exist," he said. "And we also gave an affirmation that we are on a marketing path and need to stay on a marketing path."
That finding was ready before the end of last year, he said. So it's not clear why there is continued discussion about where Innovate Anderson is headed and why its mission is still muddy.
Kirk Oglesby, the former president and CEO of AnMed Health, was one of the founding members of Innovate Anderson.
"I think our initial goal was to develop information that would be shared in any way that was reasonable and appropriate to market this area," Oglesby said. "We said we would ask the South Carolina Department of Commerce for help. Jobs and businesses that paid good wages were right at the top of our list. But right under that, of course, was to reach out to our towns and help them if we could; to make sure they were all at the table.
"I'd say our mayor is right to think we should reach out to small towns," Oglesby added. "This may be a good time for Innovate Anderson to say: 'Where did we come short?' and 'Where do we think we can pick up the loose ends and weave them back together?'"
Follow Nikie Mayo on Twitter @NikieMayo
Wishing one of the most refined actors of B-Town, Ajay Devgn, a very happy birthday!
The dreamy-eyed star, who turns 47 today, recently got his birthday gift, well in advance. Ajay early this week received the most prestigious Indian award, Padma Shri, from the hands of President Pranab Mukherjee. The actor has been shooting in Bulgaria for his most ambitious project, 'Shivaay' and he had specially come down to Delhi for attending the award ceremony. Quite elated over his win, Ajay was quoted saying that "It is an amazing feeling".
So, we know, this birthday will be very special for this 'Drishyam' star and we hope he has an amazing celebration with his family.
Once again, IndiaGlitz wishes Ajay Devgn a very happy birthday!
Utah Republicans cast their ballots on Tuesday in one of the largest Internet voting experiences in U.S. election history.
By leveraging Smartmatics custom-built i-voting solution, the State Republican Party of Utah brought a new, secure and convenient option to participants in its Presidential Preference Caucus.
Nearly 90% of voters registered to vote online participated in Tuesdays caucus, marking an extremely high turnout rate. Voters of all ages, from millennials right through to people in their 80s, chose to cast their vote online. Participation was strongest amongst voters aged 56-65.
The online system also made the election more inclusive as Utah Republicans voted online from over 45 countries, including places as far away as French Polynesia, South Africa and Japan. In addition to strong demand among those voting online, thousands called Smartmatic and Utah GOP helplines on Election Day seeking to register to vote online.
Commenting on the online voting experience in this first-ever Caucus held in Utah, James Evans, Chairman of the Utah Republican Party stated: We are proud to have taken a leading role in election modernization. By offering online voting, we expanded the number of options citizens have to participate and made voting as convenient as possible. Technology proved key in engaging citizens and bolstering democracy.
After making their selections, online voting participants were asked to provide feedback on their experience:
94% of respondents described the online voting experience as good.
97% would consider voting online in future elections.
82% wanted to see online voting implemented nationwide.
The vote comes on the heels of new research suggesting that 81% of American voters felt changes needed to be made to the US voter experience and voting system.
We know old systems and long lines reduce participation and hurt the democratic process, said Antonio Mugica, Smartmatics CEO. Voter feedback is clear. Online voting in the Utah GOP caucus demonstrates how efficient, cutting-edge technology-based solutions help make elections more inclusive and the voting experience easier and more accessible.
About Smartmatic
Founded in the USA in 2000, Smartmatic is the leading provider of voting technologies and solutions worldwide. Today, out of the eight countries pioneering election automation Smartmatic provides technology and services to six of them: Belgium, Brazil, Estonia, the Philippines, USA and Venezuela.
The company has managed elections across five continents, processing over 2.5 billion votes. It serves customers through an organization comprising over 600 employees across 12 offices around the world.
Smartmatic is headquartered in London, UK. For more information, visit www.smartmatic.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160323006612/en/
Mighty Jets, one of the oldest Transport Squadron of Indian Air Force with its motto of Ishtam Yatnen Sadyet that translates into Achieve Goals through Perseverance, celebrates its 55th Anniversary on 31 Mar 2016. It was raised in Chandigarh with AN-12 aircraft in 31 Mar 1961 under command of then Wing Commander TN Ghadiok in support of Indian Armed Forces in J&K region. It actively took part in 1962, 1965 and 1971 wars. During 1971 war, the unit was bestowed Battle Honours for Offensive Operations for its successful bombing missions against the enemy, a rare honour for a transport Squadron. The Squadron was awarded the presidents Standard in March 2011.In April 1985 re-equipped with IL-76 Gajraj aircraft and rechristened Mighty Jets, it relocated to Agra (April 1985) and to Nagpur (March 2003), before finally relocating back to Chandigarh in August 2011. All these years it continued to fly in support of J&K forces as well the civilian population- being a harbinger of peace and bringing progress to the state. The only IL-76 Squadron in the IAF, it has logged more than one lakh flight hours on the four engined IL-76 aircraft.Being equipped with heavy lift aircraft, the squadron has a long list of firsts to its credit. A T-72 tank can be directly driven into the IL-76 for an airlift, or three 6.5 ton trucks, and a host of heavy and outsized vehicles and equipment can be carried over long distances. The notable firsts and credits include: The only Indian unit to circumnavigate the world. Fly over North Pole, Land in car Nicobar on a damaged runway after 2004 Tsunami. The first woman multi engine jet pilot of the IAF (then Sqn Ldr Veena Saharan).Mighty Jets have been the Messiah of relief during various natural calamities within the country (Bihar-Purina, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, J&K-Srinagar & Leh, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Andaman & Nicobar, UP etc.) and abroad (relief to USA- Katrina Hurricane, Iran, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Yemen, Nepal, Male, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Oman etc). Its operations have so far spanned Asia, Europe, North America and Africa.Being a legacy fleet, IL-76 maintenance poses enormous challenges, however through professionalism and dedication of its personnel, the squadron has risen to the occasion meeting all its assigned tasks. It has earned One MVC, Four VRCs, One YSM, Two BAR to VMs, Thirty nine VMs, Three VSMs and Five M in Ds.Presently, the unit is commanded by Group Captain Sunil Katoch commemorate 55 years of its glorious service to the nation. The celebrations are being attended by many serving and retired officers of the Squadron. The Commodore Commandant of the unit Air Marshal SRK Nair AVSM VM, AOC-in-C, Training Command will preside over these events.
Chandigarh became the second kerosene-free city on Friday, after Delhi on the back of increased supply of cleaner cooking fuel like liquified petroleum gas (LPG) and progress in rural electrification, reports a business daily.
Subsidised kerosene will not be supplied in Chandigarh from 1st April, as an intense campaign has managed to issue LPG connections to 15,249 households in the city, including to 1,574 poor ones, the Oil Ministry said.
Ahmedabad, Baroda, Puducherry and some cities in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will be declared kerosene-free very soon, another official has been quoted as saying.
Kerosene is primarily used for cooking and lighting.
Increased use of LPG and electrification of villages have helped to bring down kerosene use from 11.3 million tonne (MT) in 2000-01 to seven MT in 2014-15.
LPG consumption has increased from 7 MT to 18 MT.
According to the 2011 census, 65% of urban households have access to either LPG or piped natural gas (PNG), only 11.4% of rural population have access to these sources of energy.
About 65% of rural households still depend on firewood for cooking.
The Oil Ministry is in the process of issuing another 100 million LPG connections in three years, half of which will go to poor women.
Fuel retailers are also in the process of adding another 12,000 distribution units to the existing network of 17,000 outlets.
Naoto Matsumura, a Japanese farmer, lives in the ghost city of Tomioka, situated six miles away from the Fukushima-I nuclear power plant.
boredpanda
After the Fukushima tragedy in 2011, over 150,000 people left their homes and shifted to safer areas. The Japanese government order to leave the exclusion zone, meant Naoto along with his parents left his farm. But he missed his home terribly and couldnt stop thinking about all the animals that were left behind. Naota then took the best decision of his life.
Facebook
Facebook
He returned to Tomioka to lend support to abandoned animals as they struggled to live. And the world now knows him as a hero. He took a tough call of choosing between whats easy and whats right. He chose the latter. Today, Naoto Matsumura is the guardian of Fukushimas animals because he is the only person who decided to live in the contaminated zone.
Facebook
He searched the entire town, looking for as many animals as he could and left them with sufficient food and water so they could survive. While he was doing this, he found 120 dead cows in one of the barns. Sadly, the authorities at Fukushima launched a campaign to kill the surviving animals. But Matsumura stood up for them and took it upon himself to save his four-legged friends.
Weve seen Hubble Space Telescope capturing great pictures previously. But the new image is something absolutely incredible. The new image looks into the center of the Milky Way, showcasing the star cluster at the center.
NASA
According to NASA, the photo contains more than a half-million stars. The star cluster is the densest in the galaxy.
Journey to the center of our Galaxy! Peering deep into the heart of our Milky Way galaxy, our Hubble Space Telescope... Posted by NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration on Thursday, March 31, 2016
The light caught by those heavenly bodies is in the form of infrared radiation, so the scientists had to translate Hubble's handiwork into visible colors. Not only that, the image shows great clouds of gas and dust so thick that even Hubble's infrared capability could not penetrate them, a NASA press release noted.
The amazing star cluster is 27,000 light-years away, and the Hubble photo which was stitched together from nine different images covers a distance of 50 light-years, or about 300 trillion miles.
Magical, isn't it?
A 13-year-old boy was stripped and brutally beaten, before being forced to drink urine by his neighbour for allegedly stealing 30 kg of wheat at Sirauli village in Uttar Pradesh.
Kidspot
The incident took place on Tuesday after Sunil, 13, was accused of theft by his neighbour Gajendra Gangwar. Gangwar also reportedly thrashed Sunil's elder brother Mahendra, 14, when the latter tried to rescue Sunil.
kidspanish
Confirming reports, circle officer Manoj Pandey said, "It is a serious crime and our probe is on." Medical reports have, in the meanwhile, confirmed serious injuries to Sunil who is undergoing treatment at a local hospital.
With the enforcement of new liquor policy in the state from Thursday midnight, the excise and prohibition department destroyed 2,66,455 litres of country liquor in Patna district. Thirty specialised teams were formed by the excise office of Patna district for the sole purpose of destroying every drop of country liquor,
Youtube
Assistant excise commissioner, Patna, Krishna Kumar said the 30 teams, each consisting of one excise officer, one police officer and one magistrate, were responsible for the destruction of left-over country liquor, sealing of old shops and taking back the unsold stock of IMFL (Indian Made Foreign Liquor) and beer to the Bihar State Beverages Corporation Limited (BSBCL) depots.
Indiatimes
He said the teams continued to work till the wee hours of Friday for the enforcement of the new liquor policy in the district. He also said that now, with the closure of all old liquor shops, four dedicated teams with officers of excise department along with Patna police have been activated to ensure that illicit liquor is not sold anywhere in Patna district.
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"Our workload has decreased, as now the number of liquor shops has become one- third from April 1 in the district. But at the same time, we have a bigger responsibility to enforce the ban and ensure no one indulges in illegal liquor trade, especially in rural areas," said the assistant excise commissioner.
"We have granted operating licence for 50 shops in Patna district to BSBCL," said Kumar and added that licence for the rest 71 new liquor shops would be granted within a day. However, he said the permit for these 50 shops were yet to be given to BSBCL, only after which the shops could be opened.
Meanwhile, Patna SSP Manu Maharaaj said extra police personnel have been deployed at the police station across the district. He also said that special police teams have been formed and QRTs (quick response teams) for enforcing the ban in rural areas surrounding Patna.
The executive of the Bayelsa state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Saturday suspended former governor of the state, Chief Timipre Sylva from the party.
State chairman of the party, Timipa Tiwei Orunimighe and the secretary, Daniel Marlin announced the decision of the party in a statement made available to Vanguard in Abuja.
Sylva had allegedly sold the states ministerial slot to Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri.
Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Timi Frank, who said earlier in the week that the APC is now divided into two factions commented on the allegation against Sylva. I spoke in Bayelsa (about the impending crisis) but they did not take me seriously. Very soon, it (crisis) will happen at the national level too. If anyone tells you that there is no crisis in the national APC, it is a lie.
Today I am a very happy man because when I came out before the governorship election in Bayelsa to say that Timipre Sylva cannot do the job for the second time in Bayelsa because he was not liked by the people and was very unpopular at that time, nobody took me seriously, including the leadership of the party in Bayelsa State at that time. But today, I am happy and I am thanking God that he has shown Nigerians what I knew then.
It is a total disgrace if our party cannot act or investigate this allegation and just allow it to go under the carpet without taking action on it. Nigerians and the opposition party are waiting to see what we are going to do.
A bullet lodged in a Brevard County mans testicles after he was shot by his 60-year-old wife in an argument over an affair, according to authorities. Victoria Reid was arrested Wednesday on charges of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon domestic violence and aggravated assault domestic violence.
According to the Brevard County Sheriffs Office, Reid had a gun and confronted her husband of 16 years to discuss his affair. Reid demanded that her husband sit on the couch and told him that she was going to maim him and give him post-traumatic stress disorder, which she said she also suffers, according to deputies.
Reid taunted her husband and threatened to shoot him in the face and chest and kill him, officials said. Reid shot her husband in his left knee, but the bullet traveled up his thigh and lodged in his testicles, according to the Sheriffs Office. The mans condition is not known. Reid was arrested in Rockledge and was taken to jail.
COrlando.
Forte Oil is an indigenous petroleum marketing company with structured operations and strategic policies to continuously improve product delivery to its customers.
Forte Oil is renowned for her ability to offer her consumers a wide range of products from the oil value chain; PMS, diesel, aviation fuel, kerosene, commercial gas and a wide range of lubricants for various automobiles and machines.
A major player in the downstream sector of the Nigerian oil and gas sector, Forte Oil prides itself on delivering prompt, quality and effective services to our customers nationwide.
We are a foremost indigenous major marketer of refined petroleum products with a strong presence in the thirty-six states of Nigeria and Abuja.
With well over 500 Forte Oil owned, dealer-assisted and dealer-developed retail outlets spread across the country, a major fuel storage installation at Apapa, Lagos, another major storage depot at Onne, Rivers State, an aviation joint users hydrant in Ikeja, Lagos, and joint aviation depots in Abuja, Port Harcourt and Kano, we are indeed a major marketer of choice in Nigeria.
We also have 8 retail outlets in Ghana under the trade name of AP Oil and Gas Ghana Limited (APOG).
In the midstream sector, we have also established a reputation of effectively servicing the upstream sector under our trade name of AP Oilfields Servcies Limited (APOS).
Job Title: Human Resource Officer
Purpose Statement
To contribute to the implementation, coordination and provision of an efficient administrative support to the delivery of the Human Capital strategy which is aligned with the business objectives of Forte Oil.
Key Accountabilities
Provide Human Capital administrative support to all employees in the assigned business units.
Work with line managers to deliver agreed recruitment and training plans required by the assigned functions.
Monitor and verify that departmental records are stored in compliance with the companys record management policy.
Provides support in ensuring that performance Objectives processes for all assigned business units employees are aligned with company objectives.
Implement Human Capital employee service function across all business units including but not limited to managing documentations on Medical, Leave administration, Confirmation, Records management etc.
Collate reports/feedback on Human Capital processes e.g. recruitment, data sheet information on monthly basis on new employee resumption, disciplinary hearings, re-designation, transfer, salary increase, exits, training plans etc.
Provide support through the use of the HRIS to significantly enhance the effectiveness of the Human Capital process.
Support functional units in ensuring units compliance to Human Capital policies and procedures.
Knowledge, Skills and Experience
The position requires an HR professional with a first degree in social science or similar field and at least 2 years work experience in a relevant role.
The incumbent needs to be able to think strategically and be able to find solutions to address the unique needs in the company.
The following skills are essential:
Ability to work with extremely confidential and sensitive data.
Good interpersonal and communication skills.
Good computer skills.
Active member of at least one relevant professional body.
Sound knowledge of oil and gas industry/downstream sector.
Working Relationships:
Internal: The Human Resources team, All assigned business units staff, Other internal colleagues in other functional areas across all locations
External: Service providers
How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should send their CVs with subject HCA Officer FO/HCA/SD/0316 to: [email protected]
Integrated Oil and Gas Ltd. on Saturday, said its $116 million modular refinery would come on stream before the end of 2016.
Group Managing Director of the company, Mr Anthony Iheanacho, told newsmen in Lagos that the company had been given provisional licence to commence preliminary work for a 20,000-barrel capacity modular refinery.
Iheanacho, who conducted the newsmen on tour of site of the proposed refinery at Tomaro Island Port, off Takwa Bay, Lagos, said that the preliminary approval was received from the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR). According to him, work had commenced on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and other necessary requirements to facilitate the final approval for the refinery.
He said that funds for the project would be sourced from local and foreign financial institutions
Iheanacho explained that the refinery would produce Automated Gas Oil (AGO) otherwise known as diesel, kerosene, export quality aviation fuel and fuel oil. But it does not have the capacity to produce Petroleum Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol.
However, Iheanacho said that the company was still awaiting some documents to start construction on the island, contrary to claims by one resident of the area, who petitioned that work had commenced at the site.
We have not even started construction by the way; we are just going through the pre-application process, he said.
Iheanacho appealed to the Federal Government to support indigenous oil companies which are striving to grow the oil and gas sector, adding that government should also support local companies with funding.
North Korea pledged to pursue its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes in defiance of the United States and its allies with a top envoy saying there is now a state of semi-war on the divided peninsula. So Se Pyong, North Koreas ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, made the statement on Friday as the US and South Korea held military exercises, which he said were aimed at the decapitation of the supreme leadership of the DPRK [Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea].
If the United States continues, then we have to make the counter-measures also. So we have to develop and we have to make more deterrence nuclear deterrence, So said in an interview with Reuters news agency. The ambassadors statement came as North Korea fired a new short-range missile into the sea on Friday and tried to jam GPS navigation signals in South Korea, according to Seoul officials.
The latest missile firing took place just hours after US, South Korean, and Japanese leaders agreed to work together to counter North Koreas nuclear threat. US President Barack Obama joined South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday in vowing to ramp up pressure on North Korea in response to its recent nuclear and missile tests.
The three leaders warned they could take further steps to counter threats from Pyongyang. In January, North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test and in February launched a long-range rocket, angering even its closest ally China, and prompting the UN Security Council to impose more sanctions on the reclusive state.
As this election season has blossomed, I have watched, first, with irritation, then with frustration and now with alarm as the press regularly uses the term evangelical Christian with its implied fundamentalist and Republican subtitle, as the banner under which all who follow Christ will vote.
It is not that I decry fundamentalism or thumb my nose at Republicans. My issue has to do with statements such as these: Evangelical Christians support Donald Trump"; All the evangelical Christians will, of course, back Ben Carson because he is a believer; and, Sen. Ted Cruz represents the concerns of the evangelical Christians. Such statements make me feel erroneously profiled, lumped in and railroaded into following a crowd that I never agreed to follow. I am almost embarrassed to say that I am an evangelical.
At age 8, I made an intentional decision to follow Jesus Christ. As far as I was concerned, the only definition of my faith that meant anything was that I was a Christ follower. As I grew older, somehow it was communicated to me that all Christians were also fundamentalist, evangelical and Republican.
Those monikers seem as inextricably linked as the Holy Trinity itself. It feels like an algebraic equation. D = A + B + C. Christ follower = fundamentalist + evangelical + Republican. The equation does not work for me.
Who knew that at 8 years of age I would not only begin my faith journey, but also be joining a political preference at the same time? I did not meet a Christian Democrat until I was in my 30s.
While there are many definitions of evangelical, the press regularly uses evangelical as a synonym for conservative church-goer. Research says that the evangelical population is a largely white and Protestant group. It includes some conservative Catholics and is supported by those in the mainline, Jewish and Mormon faiths.
Evangelicals rose from being just pawns in the political schematic to something more influential, like a bishop or a rook, in the political chess game some time ago. The Christian Right came into influence in the 1940s and active in the 60s, decrying communism. They addressed issues of racial justice in the 1970s and grew most influential in the 1980s, as Catholics and evangelicals banded together to address abortion rights.
The most significant rise of the Christian Right began in the 1980s, with the influence of TV and eventually the Internet. The Rev. Pat Robertson used television to unite believers to causes through the Christian Coalition of America.
Currently the Family Research Council and Focus on the Family are used as test tubes for what the evangelical will say, do and vote. Evangelicals are major players in the political arena. Pastors openly endorse candidates, and the candidates pander to them, competing for the vote of the faithful.
So how was it that the prolix Donald Trump, an espoused faithful Presbyterian, when asked what his favorite verse was has nothing to say; Dr. Ben Carson of the Seventh-day Adventist Church; or Sen. Cruz, who seems to use an element of fear to herd followers, gain the trust of the evangelicals? I do not know, and frankly, it baffles me because so far I have not found a candidate I am thrilled with. I suspect I am not alone.
As the political season bumps along, in order to find clarity it has become important for me to find individuality rather than commonality. Groupthink will not control my vote. I will vote with the simplistic reasoning of my 8-year-old self who just wanted to follow Jesus, who I believe does indeed care about people and their angst. Including elections. I will place my debatably meaningless vote in whatever hands follow most closely with my spiritual, ethical and moral convictions evangelicalism be damned.
With strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.
The Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) has said that Radio Biafra, which was proscribed by the Federal Government, is back on air.
Late last year, the Federal Government announced it had successfully taken the satellite-transmitted radio station off air.
But in a press statement issued by its Media and Publicity Officer, Emma Powerful yesterday, IPOB announced the return of the radio station.
Radio Biafra is based in the United Kingdom (UK) but its radio signals are received in different parts of the South East and South-South regions.
The executive director of the radio station, Nnamdi Kanu, is presently in detention, standing trial for treasonable felony.
According to IPOB, the television wing of the organisation will soon come on stream.
The statement read in part: Right now we are back on shortwave after the Nigerian government spent millions of dollars of tax-payers money trying to stop Radio BiafraWe are unstoppable because Chukwuka Okike Abiama is on our side.
Meanwhile, in continuation of its struggle to actualize Biafra Republic, IPOB has said that its next move will shake the whole world.
In a press statement issued yesterday by its spokespersons, Dr. Clifford Iroanya, and Emma Nmezu, in Umuahia, Abia State, the group said: We are IPOB and we do things in a unique way, so our next outing will shake the whole earth. The worst mistake this government made is to arrest our leader and now they are beginning to discover how formidable we are.
The pro-Biafra group, which last week threatended to resume its suspended protests, said the decision to keep the date for the fresh protests under wraps was deliberate and strategic.
Our resumption of protest is imminent but for understandable reasons we cant give you details yet, the statement said.
IPOB also advised its detained leader, Mr. Kanu, to stop eating every food brought to him including the ones by close family members, alleging it might be poisoned by those who want him dead.
Cyclists given access to insurance products and services and other benefits
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Se il Coronavirus ha messo in ginocchio Paesi come Cina, Stati Uniti e Italia, quali effetti potra avere su quei Paesi dove il sistema sanitario e sempre in difficolta e dove lindigenza, la poverta, lo sfruttamento sono i protagonisti?
Il rischio dei bambini in Nigeria
In Nigeria la pandemia di Covid-19 rischia di trasformarsi in una grave crisi dei diritti dei bambini, dal momento che centinaia di migliaia di minori vulnerabili potrebbero essere esposti a una pericolosa combinazione di estrema poverta, malnutrizione e fame a causa del virus. Save the Children, lorganizzazione che da oltre cento anni lotta per salvare i bambini e garantire loro un futuro, teme che limpatto socioeconomico della pandemia spingera molte famiglie povere a fare di tutto per sopravvivere, distruggendo le speranze di una generazione di bambini, che potrebbero essere maggiormente a rischio di lavoro minorile, sfruttamento sessuale o matrimoni precoci per aiutare a sfamare le proprie famiglie. Save the Children esorta le autorita nigeriane ad aumentare le misure di protezione sociale come la fornitura di denaro e lassistenza alimentare per i bambini e le famiglie piu vulnerabili, per mitigare urgentemente limpatto della pandemia di Covid-19 nel Paese.
Le parole del direttore di Save The Children
Mentre il numero di casi positivi sale in Nigeria a 782 e il virus si sta diffondendo in diversi Stati, stiamo lavorando duramente per ridurre gli effetti negativi che tutto questo avra sui bambini piu vulnerabili, specialmente nelle comunita piu fragili. I minori sono gravemente colpiti e senza la protezione che necessitano qualora i genitori e gli operatori sanitari risultino infettati dal virus e portati via per le cure. Stiamo lavorando a stretto contatto con il governo per sostenere gli sforzi per contenere il virus e mantenere i bambini al sicuro e protetti durante la pandemia, ha dichiarato Mercy Gichuhi, direttore di Save the Children International Nigeria.
Il commento del presidente del Parlamento dei bambini dello Stato di Katsina.
Il coronavirus sta minacciando il nostro diritto alla partecipazione, alla protezione, alleducazione e alla vita sana. Temo un possibile aumento degli abusi sui minori poiche i bambini delle famiglie povere potrebbero rivolgersi ai ricchi della comunita col rischio di essere sfruttati emotivamente, fisicamente o sessualmente, in cambio di cibo e supporto finanziario. Ce chi si approfitta delle famiglie povere e della pandemia. Questo puo avere un impatto molto negativo e a lungo termine sui minori, ha detto Ibrahim Maharazu, presidente del Parlamento dei bambini dello Stato di Katsina.
Lappello di Save the Children
Save the Children lavorera con tutte le parti interessate per garantire servizi di protezione sociale piu accessibili per le persone vulnerabili, anche attraverso il potenziamento e la riforma dei programmi di protezione e di sussistenza esistenti. LOrganizzazione esorta il governo a fornire cure e protezione adeguate a tutti i bambini, soprattutto a coloro che sono rimasti orfani o soli perche chi si occupa di loro e in ospedale a causa del virus. Attraverso i programmi per assicurare una rete di sicurezza sociale, il governo dovrebbe anche fornire un reddito immediato e mezzi di sussistenza alle famiglie vulnerabili, per ridurre il rischio che la disperazione li induca a mettere a rischio i minori, in particolare le ragazze. Dobbiamo agire subito e aumentare rapidamente il sostegno ai bambini, che vivono in comunita fragili e il cui reddito familiare e insicuro. E necessaria una maggiore protezione per i minori, in particolare per le ragazze, i bambini sfollati e gli altri gruppi vulnerabili. I nostri sforzi collettivi e le azioni sostenibili nel rispondere alla pandemia dovrebbero garantire che nessun bambino venga lasciato indietro, vulnerabile o non protetto, ha aggiunto Mercy Gichuhi.
Le protezioni individuali, listruzione. Difendere il futuro dei bambini
Save the Children sta acquistando materiali come dispositivi di protezione individuale (DPI) e prevenzione e controllo delle infezioni (IPC) che verranno donati alle agenzie governative competenti che coordinano la risposta COVID nel Paese. Inoltre, e in corso ladattamento dei programmi esistenti di Save the Children, al fine di rispondere allepidemia di coronavirus attraverso la sensibilizzazione delle comunita e lofferta dei dispositivi di protezione e di prevenzione per il controllo delle infezioni. E importante che i bambini e gli altri gruppi marginalizzati non siano esclusi dalle attivita di risposta al Covid-19. Dovrebbero essere tenuti al sicuro ma anche consultati in merito alle adeguate misure relative allistruzione e alla protezione da mettere in atto, ha affermato Maryam Ahmed, ambasciatrice della gioventu di Save the Children International Nigeria. Save the Children, che lavora in Nigeria dal 2001 ed e attualmente presente in 12 Stati, apprezza gli sforzi del governo per realizzare diversi programmi di sensibilizzazione per educare la comunita riguardo al coronavirus e alle misure preventive, ma fa appello a tutte le parti del governo, sia a livello nazionale che locale, affinche garantiscano che le voci dei bambini siano ascoltate e che siano al centro dei piani di preparazione, risposta, prevenzione e controllo del coronavirus.
La situazione illustrata da un ragazzo di 14 anni
Il Covid-19 e un disastro. Ha influenzato il nostro modo di vivere e interrotto la nostra routine, inclusa la frequenza scolastica e la regolarita delle entrate. Conosco bambini i cui genitori sono piccoli commercianti che in questi giorni hanno difficolta a procurarsi il cibo. Potrebbero non essere in grado di permettersi nemmeno un pasto al giorno. Queste famiglie vivono alla giornata, non hanno scorte di cibo o risparmi su cui contare. Pertanto, il governo deve fornire assistenza finanziaria o prodotti alimentari sufficienti, che possano raggiungere le persone nellimmediato. Questo potrebbe ridurre il rischio di sfruttamento, violenza domestica e abusi sui bambini, in particolare sulle ragazze , ha detto Purezza Oriaifo, 14 anni.
Nearly all major colleges, including Ivy League schools like Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and MIT, run some of the largest and most successful endowments in the world. In fact, the top 20 university endowments grew by more than 9% annually, on a real basis, between 1992 and 2005. But after ushering in negative returns in the wake of the 2008 U.S. economic crisis, many university endowments have re-jiggered their investment strategies.
A Successful University Endowment
University endowments are traditionally funded by donations. The size of each endowment depends on how shrewdly a given university spends on its current student population. But rather than putting their entire principal to practical use, most the universities invest the lion's share of their endowments, in an effort to generate future income. In fact, universities on average annually withdraw only 4% to 5% of their endowment funds for current use. Interestingly, 2008 was a remarkable year, where endowment withdrawals averaged 15% to 20% of college revenues, according to a study by the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO).
Key Takeaways Nearly all major university rely on donor-funded endowments to pay for daily operations.
The majority of an endowment's portfolio is invested, to generate continuous income.
Asset allocation models are usually determined by an endowment's investment committee.
Endowments allocate the largest percentages of their portfolios to alternative asset classes like hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, and real assets like oil and other natural resources.
Endowments strive to meet two chief objectives. First and foremost, they attempt to generate high enough real returns to cover their yearly withdrawals, without dipping into their principals. Secondly, colleges aim to preserve the real value of their principals, which actually entails augmenting principal amounts, in an effort to combat inflation. In fact, endowments heavily rely on their own inflation measurement metric known as the Higher Education Price Index (HEPI), which factors the prices of goods and services specific to higher education expenses. It is generally believed that the HEPI exceeds the consumer price index for all urban consumers, by 1%.
Eating Your Cake With One Hand and Baking With the Other
Between 1985 and 2008, Harvard University's endowment generated 15.23% returns, while Yale pulled in 16.62%. Both endowments handily outperformed the S&P 500, which only grew 12% during that same time period. But there is no magic formula behind any one school's success. In fact, each university describes its unique investment story in its annual report, which details overall asset allocation models, although they seldom divulge individual investments within a given asset class.
An Eye Towards Alternatives
In the decades leading up to the economic crisis, from 1985 to 2008, endowments with assets of US$1 billion and above generally invested a small portion of funds in traditional stocks and bonds and a larger portion in alternative assets such as hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, and real assets like oil and natural resources. Many of these alternative investments outperform traditional stocks and bonds, but typically have longer gestation periods and impose higher minimum investments--especially in highly illiquid markets. Such investments suit bigger endowments, capable of locking in billions of dollars for long periods of time. This gives the bigger players an edge over smaller endowments, who are unable to exploit such non-traditional asset classes.
Put Everything in Writing and Leave it to Others
Endowments strictly follow well-documented investment policies mandated by investment committees, which traditionally comprise university alumni. Endowments have their own staffs that are led by chief investment officers, and have in-house investment managers on the payroll, to handle day-to-day portfolio management tasks. Endowments must also follow the written donor guidelines, regarding the allocation of endowment earnings for current use.
Invest Like Endowments
Those seeking to mimic a university endowment's investment strategy should bear the following points in mind:
Endowments earn vastly different returns from one another, although funds with asset north of US$1 billion generally outperform smaller endowments, mainly because their chosen investment strategies require economies of scale. University endowments benefit from the expertise provided by investment committees, which is typically unavailable to individual investors. Universities boast vast social networks which give them greater access to many crucial investment opportunities. Endowments are exempt from government taxes. The best performing endowments access alternative investments, which require longer gestation periods and higher minimum investments than most individual investors can afford.
The Bottom Line
A successful endowment can helps reduce the financial burden of a university by generating a consistent flow of income. Although endowments broadly disclose their asset allocation breakdowns, investors may not be able to duplicate the success endowments have historically achieved.
[Important: Many economists believe the 23% drop endowments collectively suffered in 2008 was the worst decline since the 1970s.]
What Are Financial Institutions?
In todays financial services marketplace, a financial institution exists to provide a wide variety of deposit, lending, and investment products to individuals, businesses, or both. While some financial institutions focus on providing services and accounts for the general public, others are more likely to serve only certain consumers with more specialized offerings.
Within a capitalistic economic system, financial institutions are vital for regulating the economy, ensuring fair financial practices, and facilitating prosperity. To know which financial institution is most appropriate for serving a specific need, it is important to understand the difference among the types of institutions and the purposes that they serve.
Key Takeaways There are nine major types of financial institutions that provide a variety of services from mortgage loans to investment vehicles.
Financial institutions are vital for regulating the economy, ensuring fair financial practices, and facilitating prosperity.
As financialization continues to permeate our lives, it is increasingly likely that you will have an account or product offered by several of these types.
Nowadays, an increasing number of financial institutions operate online, which in some instances may reduce some of their service fees.
The major categories of financial institutions are central banks, retail and commercial banks, internet banks, credit unions, savings and loan (S&L) associations, investment banks and companies, brokerage firms, insurance companies, and mortgage companies.
Here we take a look at these, from central banks to neighborhood banks and everything in between.
Why Financial Institutions Are Important
At the most basic level, financial institutions are important because they allow people to access the money that they need. For example, although banks do many things, their primary role is to take in fundscalled depositsfrom those with money, pool them, and lend them to those who need funds. Banks are intermediaries between depositors (who lend money to the bank) and borrowers (to whom the bank lends money).
This works because while some depositors need their money at any given moment, most do not. That enables banks to use shorter-term deposits to make longer-term loans. This applies to almost every entity and individual in a capitalist system: individuals and households, financial and nonfinancial firms, or national and local governments.
Domestic capital formation is the driving force behind any countrys development, and effective domestic financial institutions are one of its most important facilitators. They are the key channel between savings and investment, and their efficiency is a key determinant of a countrys economic growth.
The Function of Financial Institutions in Capital Markets
Capital markets are important for the functioning of capitalist economies. These markets are where savings and investments are channeled between suppliers and those in need. Suppliers are people or institutions with capital to lend or invest and typically include banks and investors. Those who seek capital in this market are businesses, governments, and individuals.
Financial institutions play an important role when it comes to capital markets, because they direct capital to where it is most useful. For example, a bank takes in deposits from customers and lends the money to borrowers. This ensures that capital markets function efficiently.
Regulatory Frameworks for Financial Institutions
Governments consider it imperative to oversee and regulate banks and financial institutions because they do play such an integral part in the economy. Historically, bankruptcies of financial institutions can create panic. The health of a nations banking system is a linchpin of economic stability. Loss of confidence in a financial institution can easily lead to a bank run.
In the United States, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) regulates federally chartered banks and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) insures regular deposit accounts to reassure individuals and businesses regarding the safety of their finances with financial institutions.
1. Central Banks
Central banks are the financial institutions responsible for the oversight and management of all other banks. In the United States, the central bank is the Federal Reserve Bank (Fed), which is responsible for conducting monetary policy and supervision and regulation of financial institutions.
Individual consumers do not have direct contact with a central bank; instead, large financial institutions work directly with the Fed to provide products and services to the general public.
2. Retail and Commercial Banks
Traditionally, retail banks offered products to individual consumers while commercial banks worked directly with businesses. Currently, the majority of large banks offer deposit accounts, lending, and limited financial advice to both demographics.
Products offered at retail and commercial banks include checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs), personal and mortgage loans, credit cards, and business banking accounts.
3. Internet Banks
A newer entrant to the financial institution market is internet banks, which work similarly to retail banks. Internet banks offer the same products and services as conventional banks, but they do so through online platforms instead of brick-and-mortar locations.
Under internet banks, there are two categories: digital banks and neobanks. Digital banks are online-only platforms affiliated with traditional banks. However, neobanks are pure digital native banks with no affiliation to any bank but themselves.
4. Credit Unions
A credit union is a type of financial institution providing traditional banking services and is created, owned, and operated by its members.
In the recent past, credit unions used to serve a specific demographic per their field of membership, such as teachers or members of the military. Nowadays, however, they have loosened the restrictions on membership and are open to the general public.
Credit unions are not publicly traded and only need to make enough money to continue daily operations. Thats why they can afford to provide better rates to their customers than commercial banks.
While members can access better rates, credit unions may provide fewer services than traditional banks and have fewer brick-and-mortar locations than most banks, which can be a drawback for clients who like in-person service.
5. Savings and Loan (S&L) Associations
Financial institutions that are mutually owned by their customers and provide no more than 20% of total lending to businesses fall under the category of savings and loan associations. They provide individual consumers with checking and accounts, personal loans, and home mortgages.
Unlike commercial banks, most of these institutions are community-based and privately owned, although some may also be publicly traded. The members pay dues that are pooled together, which allows better rates on banking products.
6. Investment Banks
Investment banks are financial institutions that provide services and act as an intermediary in complex transactionsfor instance, when a startup is preparing for an initial public offering (IPO), or in mergers. They can also act as a broker or financial advisor for large institutional clients such as pension funds.
Investment banks do not take deposits; instead, they help individuals, businesses, and governments raise capital through the issuance of securities. Investment companies, traditionally known as mutual fund companies, pool funds from individuals and institutional investors to provide them access to the broader securities market.
Global investment banks include JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Bank of America, Credit Suisse, and Deutsche Bank. Robo-advisors are the new breed of such companies, enabled by mobile technology to support investment services more cost-effectively and provide broader access to investing by the public.
7. Brokerage Firms
Brokerage firms assist individuals and institutions in buying and selling securities among available investors. Customers of brokerage firms can place trades of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and some alternative investments.
8. Insurance Companies
Financial institutions that help individuals transfer the risk of loss are known as insurance companies. Individuals and businesses use insurance companies to protect against financial loss due to death, disability, accidents, property damage, and other misfortunes.
9. Mortgage Companies
Financial institutions that specialize in originating or funding mortgage loans are mortgage companies. While most mortgage companies serve the individual consumer market, some specialize in lending options for commercial real estate only.
Mortgage companies focus exclusively on originating loans and seek funding from financial institutions that provide the capital for the mortgages.
Many mortgage companies today operate online or have limited branch locations, which allows for lower mortgage costs and fees.
What is the main difference between a bank and other financial institutions? The main difference between banks and other, nonbanking financial institutions is that the latter cannot accept deposits into savings and demand deposit accounts, whereas these are the core business for the former.
What is a financial intermediary? A financial intermediary is an entity that acts as the middleman between two parties, generally banks or funds, in a financial transaction. A financial intermediary may lower the cost of doing business.
How do banks make money? Commercial banks make money from a variety of fees and by earning interest from loans such as mortgages, auto loans, business loans, and personal loans. Customer deposits provide banks with the capital to make these loans.
Are all financial institutions safe? Yes, barring an economic catastrophe. Banks and credit unions are generally safe places to keep your money, because they are insured by the federal government via two agencies: the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) and the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). This insurance covers your principal and any interest youre owed through the date of your banks default, up to $250,000 in combined total balances.
The Bottom Line
There are nine major types of financial institutions that provide a variety of services from mortgage loans to investment vehicles. Financial institutions are vital for regulating the economy, ensuring fair financial practices, and facilitating prosperity.
The major categories of financial institutions are central banks, retail and commercial banks, internet banks, credit unions, savings and loan associations, investment banks and companies, brokerage firms, insurance companies, and mortgage companies.
Irish police have estimated that more than 750,000 came into Dublin city center for Reflecting the Rising on Easter Monday, while several hundred thousand people attended the Easter Sunday parade and regional State commemorative events.
The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys paid tribute to all of those who helped to make such a success of the Easter weekend commemorative events, which were attended by more than one million people.
Humphreys said The series of events staged over Easter weekend were the culmination of a huge amount of work across Government and indeed all arms of the State. The State commemorative events, attended by hundreds of thousands of people over the course of the weekend, went better than any of us could have imagined.
Ireland 2016 was and continues to be a huge team effort. I would like to particularly thank our Defence Forces, who took center stage last weekend, and all of the members of An Garda Siochana (police), who ensured the events passed off without any major incidents. I would also like to thank RTE for the huge creative and logistical operation that was Reflecting the Rising. An estimated 750,000 people came into the city center to take part, making it the largest ever civic event staged in the capital. Thank you also to all of the artists and creatives who made the day so special.
These were the citizens commemorations, and it is thanks to members of the public, who embraced the commemorative program so readily, that the events were such a resounding success. It was wonderful to see so many young people and families enjoying the public events over Easter weekend. The fact that so many people were able to participate in and enjoy the events is also a testament to efforts of the hundreds of volunteers who helped out, and to groups like the Civil Defence who were on hand to assist if needed.
Of course, the commemorative events extended well beyond Dublin, with communities right across the country hosting their own ceremonies and celebrations, including the solemn wreath-layings which took place at a number of regional locations on Monday. It is my hope that the 2016 commemorations will leave a lasting and positive legacy. Last weekend, we all experienced Ireland coming together as a country which is incredibly proud of its national identity.
The Ireland 2016 Centenary program will continue through 2016. Many more commemorative events are planned in the coming weeks and months, and as we move into the latter part of the year, we will look forward, to re-imagine our future and ask ourselves what we want for Ireland in the next 100 years.
Irish drug mule Michaella McCollum Connolly has been released from the Ancon Dos jail in Lima, Peru, after serving only a third of her sentence, but the 23-year-old may have to remain in the country for six more years on parole.
Melissa Reid, the other half of the so-called Peru Two,' remains in prison.
In August 2013, McCollum Connolly, from Dungannon, Co Tyrone, and Reid, from Scotland, were arrested at Lima Airport for trying to smuggle cocaine worth 1.5 million ($2.1 million) from Peru to Spain.
The women initially claimed that drug lords threatened them and forced them to board the plane to Madrid with 11kg of cocaine hidden inside food packets in their luggage, but the two later pleaded guilty to the crime.
McCollum Connolly and Reid were both sentenced to six and eight months in prison.
McCollum Connolly was released on parole on Thursday night after serving two years and three months.
I can confirm Michaella has been released from jail and I'm waiting to hear the outcome of the judicial process, Kevin Winters, McCollums attorney, told the Press Association.
At this stage it remains unclear when Michaella may be eligible to return home, he added.
That will be a matter for the court and a pending judicial hearing to determine the conditions of her parole.
We are working with her lawyers in Peru and hope to be in a position to clarify further, as soon as possible.
Irish American Bishop Sean Walsh, who recently visited McCollum Connolly in prison, told the Irish Independent: She has been granted parole to my very great surprise. Shes going to be granted parole six years and six months.
I visited her several days ago. She is of course quite relieved and thankful to god that the course of life has gone this way.
Probably she will remain in Lima. She will be allowed to work and study if she wants to do that.
Being on parole means that she only has to check in with the clerk and the prison system office for special and psychological questioning and to ensure that she remains in the country."
Meanwhile, Reid, who has asked for a prison transfer to Scotland rather than parole, remains in prison, the Belfast Telegraph reports.
A Foreign Office spokeswoman said on Friday: "We continue to provide consular assistance to Melissa Reid. We remain in contact with her family and with the local authorities."
Malachy McAllisters last day in the U.S. could be April 25, unless theres interim action on his 20-plus year quest to achieve political asylum in the U.S.
McAllister received a letter from the Department of Homeland Security last week ordering him to appear at its office in Newark on the 25th to surrender for removal. McAllister, a native of Belfast who has lived in New Jersey for 20 years with his children, left his home after it was attacked with gunfire by Loyalists in 1988. McAllister is a former member of the paramilitary group the INLA.
Speaking to the Irish Voice on Tuesday, McAllister said that there isnt a day that does by when we dont think about the case, and now its more urgent than ever.
All I want is closure, he added. I love America, my family loves America and all the freedoms this county has given us. We just want to be able to stay and keep on doing what we are doing.
McAllisters quest for political asylum has been in the U.S. courts for more than 20 years. Each year around this time he receives notice from the Department of Homeland Security informing him of a grant of prosecutorial discretion that allows him to remain in the U.S. for the next 12 months. This years letter was chillingly different.
McAllister points out that since leaving the North hes been a staunch supporter of the peace process, including the Good Friday Agreement and the leadership of Sinn Fein. We have moved on, McAllister says of the days when he was a member of the INLA.
I of course know many people in the North of Ireland who have suffered. We just want to move on. I am very supportive of all the work that Senator George Mitchell did in the North.
McAllister says he and his legal team headed by Eamonn Dornan in New York have received word from the Norths RCMP watchdog agency that the investigation into the shotgun attack on his home in Belfast has been reopened. He has also been made aware of declassified military documents indicating that the attack on his home resulted from collusion between Loyalists and the Norths security forces.
Read more: McAllister's son deported
Why the Department of Homeland Security seeks to deport McAllister now is a question that he has no answers for. He owns a successful masonry business in New Jersey and recently opened Wolfe Tones Irish Pub and Kitchen in Manhattan. McAllister, who lost his wife Bernadette to cancer 12 years ago, is also actively involved in several local Irish organizations including the United Irish Counties. He marched with the group on St. Patricks Day in New York, and served as an usher for morning Mass at St. Patricks Cathedral. In 2010, McAllister served as an aide in the parade to that years grand marshal, then New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.
This is awful to endure this uncertainty after all these years on a daily basis, McAllister says.
His two older children are currently availing of President Obamas executive order, DACA, which allows for deferred action for those brought to the U.S. as minors with a parent. McAllister also has a four-year-old U.S.-born son, the light of my life, he says.
His legal team is seeking relief that would return his case to the Board of Immigration Appeals before the April 25 appearance date in Newark. But time is of the essence.
I love this country and Ive always done the right thing since me and my family came here, said McAllister, whose case has attracted substantial political support in Congress from legislators such as Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey and Charles Schumer of New York.
Im asking the Irish American community to continue to support me and my children in our desire to stay in America for good.
Jeremy Clarkson has revealed the results of his "most dangerous stunt" ever: a bloodied nose and blackened face.
The former Top Gear host is currently filming his new Amazon Prime motoring show.
Warning fans on Thursday night, he wrote: "Tomorrow morning, I'm doing the most dangerous stunt I've ever attempted. This may well be a goodbye."
Tomorrow morning, I'm doing the most dangerous stunt I've ever attempted. This may well be a goodbye. Jeremy Clarkson (@JeremyClarkson) March 31, 2016
Clarkson, 55, clearly was not joking, as he shared a photograph with his six million Twitter followers on Friday evening showing blood dripping from his nose.
He wrote: "I survived the day. Just."
I survived the day. Just. pic.twitter.com/I9IB9OGwv1 Jeremy Clarkson (@JeremyClarkson) April 1, 2016
In response to one fan, who accused him of using make-up to create the effect, he wrote: "You're going to feel silly when you see the show. It so isn't make-up."
The stunt appears to have taken place in Jordan.
Clarkson joked: "My first time in A man. It hurt, but I liked it," before clarifying several hours later: "Small typo last night. When I said I'd been in 'a man', I meant Amman. Apologies."
Small typo last night. When I said I'd been in "a man", I meant Amman. Apologies. Jeremy Clarkson (@JeremyClarkson) April 2, 2016
Clarkson's new show, which he will present alongside Richard Hammond and James May, is scheduled for an autumn release date.
This will follow the launch of the BBC's revamped Top Gear in May, with Chris Evans at the helm.
In its latest quarterly outlook, the bank said such was the momentum driving the economy last year that it had raised its GDP growth forecast for this year to 5.1%.
That forecast suggests the Government will easily meet its tax revenue targets this year.
The bank clipped back its growth outlook slightly, to 4.2%, for 2017.
The forecasts, however, are based on the UK staying in the EU and on other threats to the world economy being avoided.
Bank officials yesterday were reluctant to further assess the effects on GDP here if the UK were to vote to leave the EU in its in-out referendum on June 23.
They noted, however, that uncertainty over the Brexit vote was already playing out here through the slide in sterling against the euro which has led to a slump of 14.5% in the price advantages for Irish firms selling into Britain since last November.
Longer term, it would be difficult to predict the effects of a further large drop in sterling against the euro.
Chief economist Gabriel Fagan said that while the banks overall scenario was favourable, there were nonetheless substantial risks facing the economy at home and abroad, because of the legacy of the banking bust.
Sovereign, household and corporate debt had fallen significantly since the worst of the crisis years, but there was still a strong case for prudence because of a number of vulnerabilities, he said.
After falling across the economy by 5% from 2008 to 2013, wages are growing at over 2% a year across the private and public sectors helping to spread the benefits of the recovery.
Costs are already elevated in Ireland and even here caution is required, Mr Fagan said.
On the current political stalemate, officials noted the modest effect on Irish bond yields since the uncertain election result.
Political uncertainty could in time harm growth if investment projects were delayed, he said.
Credit was contracting across the economy but in some areas such as car finance it was growing.
And officials stood by their own mortgage lending rules, which some analysts and many in the mortgage industry say need some sort of surgery.
Citing a speech in January by the new Central Bank governor Philip Lane, officials yesterday said a review of the rules would be based on hard evidence. The rules were designed to make households and banks more resilient and any changes would need careful consideration.
The Central Bank has said that the lending rules which came into effect over a year ago will be studied at the end of this year.
Separately, Central Bank research released earlier this week showed that SMEs in Ireland face the costliest loans in the eurozone. A lack of competition in the Irish banking industry was among the factors making small business credit here so costly, the researchers found.
Mr Fagan said yesterday the ECB had taken a number of steps to prevent such fragmentation, which he said was not desirable in terms of setting monetary policy.
The chief barometer of the sectors health the monthly manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) from Investec Ireland showed a reading of 54.9 for March; up from 52.9 in February. Anything above the neutral 50-point mark constitutes a sector in growth mode.
The rise was driven by a strong growth in new orders, while employment levels grew for the third straight month and by their fastest since last July. Investec, however, noted that the recent pace of growth is slower than that seen in 2014 and the first half of 2015.
The warning by Mohammed bin Salman, 30, who has emerged as Saudi Arabias leading political force, leaves the outcome of a meeting between Opec and other big oil producers this month in question. Iran has already said it plans to boost its production after the lifting of sanctions following a deal to curb the countrys nuclear program.
If all countries agree to freeze production, were ready, bin Salman said in an interview.
If there is anyone that decides to raise their production, then we will not reject any opportunity that knocks on our door, he said. In London, Brent crude oil fell below $40 a barrel after his comments, declining as much as 2.1% to $39.50 a barrel at one stage.
In New York, West Texas Intermediate crude fell as low as $37.42 a barrel, almost erasing all its gains for the year.
After the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries abandoned its efforts to boost oil prices in November 2014, focusing instead on protecting its market share, Saudi Arabia increased production to an all-time high of more than 10.5m barrels a day, claiming that customers were asking for more oil.
The meeting of oil producers in Qatar on April 17 follows a gathering in February between Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Russia, and Venezuela in which the quartet tentatively agreed to cap their production at Januarys level. The deal, which helped to lift the price of benchmark Brent crude above $40 a barrel from a 12-year low of $27.10 a barrel in January, was contingent on other countries joining it.
Iranian oil minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh will attend the Doha discussions but wont join a production freeze, according to a person familiar with the nations policy. Tehran will maintain its policy of regaining market share lost during years of sanctions, said the source.
The International Energy Agency said that Iran, in its first full month freed of nuclear sanctions in February, lifted its oil production to a four-year high of 3.22m barrels a day.
Energy Aspects, a London-based consultant, said Iran boosted oil exports by another 100,000 barrels a day in March.
The latest comments from Riyadh mean the Doha meeting was looking more and more pointless, said Abhishek Deshpande, oil analyst at Natixis in London. What is becoming very clear is that Saudi Arabia is serious about moving away from the traditional play of adjusting prices by cutting or freezing supplies by itself, he said.
The Department of Interior recently announced a comprehensive review of federal coal leasing and a pause in most new leases. This has been done twice before during the Nixon and Reagan administrations. Then, like now, those reviews and moratoria arose from concerns the public was being denied a fair return on the coal it owns. Seems like every time the system is fixed, it turns up broken again, leaving taxpayers on the short end of full and fair payment from the coal companies profiting from the peoples resources. How could that keep happening?
History is a good teacher. Over much of Montanas history, hard-rock mining companies removed the mineral wealth of the state, but paid little or no taxes to the state and its people similar to the federal coal issue.
Historian K. Ross Toole documented how, back in 1888, Northern Pacific Railroad, the Montana Improvement Company (big timber cutters), and mining barons Marcus Daly and W.A. Clark, avoided federal indictment for illegally stripping huge areas of federal timberlands in western Montana to feed their lumber needs, while underpaying the federal government for all the timber. The way the incident played out in Montana helped set off the War of the Copper Kings between Clark and Daly. But in Washington, D.C., the result was a political quashing of the potential federal prosecution, a notorious early example of getting away with plundering natural resources of the federal government here in Montana without paying fairly for them.
1889 Constitution
A year later, when Montana became a state, mining interests led by the same W.A. Clark, who was convention president, controlled the Constitutional Convention. Not surprisingly, Montanas 1889 Constitution was tilted to the advantage of mining and other extractive industries. Little or no taxes were the rule of the day. Mining companies were protected in the constitution by limiting taxes on them to net proceeds, which allowed manipulation of the tax to pay little or nothing.
After 30 years under the net proceeds law, the truth finally came out, but at a high price for the truth-teller. A 1919 newspaper headline tells the tale: Copper Trust Expels College Teacher: Dr. Louis Levine Removed from Position in Montana University for Book Which Exposed Unequal Taxation of Mines and Farm Property. Levine had exposed the manipulations of the giant Anaconda Company in paying little in taxes on huge amounts of copper and other minerals. This expose cost Levine his job and, although it was later restored, he quickly left for another state where his academic freedom was protected.
Anaconda wins again
In 1920 Joseph Dixon was elected governor of Montana against Burton K. Wheeler in a lesser-of-two-evils choice for the company. But, once in office, Dixon proposed a metal mines tax to secure something out of the minerals leaving the state. According to historians Michael Malone and Richard Roeder, Dixon boldly pointed out the glaring fact that under Montanas net proceeds laws, Montana metal mines produced over twenty million dollars in 1922 but paid only $13,559 in state taxes an effective tax rate of seven one-hundredth of 1 percent of the value of the mining virtually nothing. Anaconda beat Dixons bill in the Legislature and then defeated Dixon in his re-election bid.
With the Copper Collar of constitutional net proceeds taxation tightly in place, Montana remained short-changed until Montanas 1972 Constitution removed the restriction. Then in 1977 the Legislature passed a gross proceeds tax, making it more difficult for Anaconda and others to cheat on hard rock mining taxes.
Over the years, in Montana and other western states, coal companies made lease and royalty payments to the federal government that were far below-market-value. Estimates are that American taxpayers have been shortchanged tens of billions of dollars in these sales. Since a portion of every dollar of under-payment would have gone to the states, Montana lost millions upon millions.
So, with an eye towards history, keep a watch on this Department of Interior process. Actively participate so that we dont again end up with a system that cheats the public. And dont accept a new fox guarding the henhouse approach or the fox will surely end up fat and the henhouse will be empty.
Lorcan OReilly, aged 21, from Robert Emmet Close in south inner-city Dublin, was stabbed in the nearby Oliver Bond flat complex in the early hours of November 1.
The incident happened at approximately 2.30am when he had been at Halloween festivities with friends.
He sustained a single stab wound to the heart and was rushed to St Jamess Hospital, but was pronounced dead a short time later.
Detectives arrested the 15-year-old boy on Thursday morning and detained him at a Dublin Garda Station. The teenager, who cannot be named because he is a minor, was held overnight and appeared before Judge William Hamill at Dublin Childrens Court yesterday.
The boy, who is from south Dublin, is charged with the murder of Mr OReilly on November 1 at Oliver Bond flats, contrary to common law. He was aged 14 at the time of Mr OReillys death.
The boy has not yet entered a plea.
Detective Sergeant Adrian Whitelaw told Judge Hamill that at 12.05am yesterday at Kilmainham Garda Station the teenager was charged. The boy was handed a copy of the charge and was cautioned, after which he had nothing to say.
The boy was accompanied to court by his mother and his grandmother who hugged him and kissed as he was taken from the courtroom. Both were visibly upset and spoke to him quietly for a few seconds before he was led off to await transfer to the Trinity House detention centre.
The boy will have to apply to the High Court for bail because he faces a murder charge. Judge Hamill said the Childrens Court does not have the power to deal with the bail application. Parents or guardians are legally obliged to attend cases at the Childrens Court. Judge Hamill said perhaps due to the gravity of the charge, it would be entirely appropriate, in his interest, to have both his parents attend.
John Quinn, defending, said he would contact the teens father about attending when the case resumes on April 8.
An application was made for legal aid and Judge Hamill was told by Mr Quinn that neither of the boys parents was employed and they were not in a position to fund their defence.
Det Sgt Whitelaw had no objection and legal aid was granted.
The boy spoke briefly when asked to confirm the name of the solicitor he wanted to represent him.
A book of evidence will have to be prepared on the nature of the charge, and the teen will be tried in the Central Criminal Court.
The figures are up 10.5% for the first three months of the year on the back of 12 new route announcements in recent months, airport management said.
And they said Iberia Expresss new Madrid service launching on June 18 will help drive further passenger growth.
This is one of nine new routes out of Cork this summer alone. Were forecasting growth of between 8 and 10% so this new route will augment and accelerate hopefully that growth over the key summer months. Having come through some challenging years, we are now back in growth, airport spokesman Kevin Cullinane said.
He was speaking as Iberia Express and the Spanish Tourism Office briefed the regions travel industry on the new service at a special event in Cork. The low-cost carrier will begin the twice weekly service on Wednesdays and Saturdays on June 18. It will operate until September, with fares from 49 one-way.
Thanks to Tourism Ireland promotion in Spain, the route is already proving popular with inbound visitors.
In recent months, Cork Airport has announced new routes including Dusseldorf with Aer Lingus, London City, Nantes and La Rochelle with CityJet, Cardiff with Flybe, Southampton and Leeds Bradford with Aer Lingus Regional as well as Menorca with Lee Travel and Stein Travel.
Aer Lingus, Aer Lingus Regional operated by Stobart Air, and Ryanair have also increased capacity on key routes. The combined effect had added some 400,000 seats to the airports capacity.
Mr Cullinane said efforts are continuing to secure the required US approvals which would clear the way for Norwegian Airs proposed Cork to Boston service.
The airline also plans to operate a Cork to Barcelona service and a New York service soon after.
He and fellow Today Show presenter Maura Derrane welcomed Monaghan native Ceejay McArdle, 3, and his mother Susan, to the set in Cork to be the programmes Hero of the Week.
Ceejay was diagnosed with leukaemia at the age of two and is undergoing treatment at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda.
Susan explained that the family had a strong connection with Casteblaney Garda Station. Ceejay and his grandfather would often sit on a wall watching patrol cars going to and from the station. The officers there got in touch with headquarters to tell them about the young boys love of the gardai and about his illness.
We have Ireland's youngest Garda Ceejay arresting @daithi_ose later on the show today! Our hero of the week @RTEOne pic.twitter.com/KhiCixGFOm Today (@RTEToday) April 1, 2016
To help him through his chemotherapy, an exemption was sought through the Garda Community Relations Bureau to make him the youngest member of the force and, last September Ceejays wish to become an officer became reality when he visited Garda headquarters with his parents Susan and Marcus, as an official Garda sergeant.
He was given a customised Garda uniform which he proudly wore on yesterdays programme and his first duty was to conduct the Garda Band. He also received the Garda bravery medal engraved with Our Hero Ceejay McArdle.
He regularly receives goodwill messages from gardai, especially during his hospital stays, and messages from forces around the world, including the NYPD.
Ceejay had already collared a speedy motorist in March, and during yesterdays TV broadcast, he got to make his second arrest. He received intelligence that Daithi O Se had not been eating his greens, and swiftly slapped the cuffs on the Kerryman.
While in Cork, the family were honorary guests at Anglesea St Garda Station, Haulbowline Naval base, and Fota Island.
Ricardas Cegelis, 33, and Irmantas Kalendra, 35, had a heavy session of drinking before arriving at the Corner House in Carrigaline, Co Cork. Inspector Ronan Kennelly said the duo were served for a while but they were refused further service after it became obvious they were intoxicated and annoying other customers. Insp Kennelly said the two were effectively ejected from the pub because of their behaviour.
The two gentlemen had been in the bar and had been served but were refused further service. Asked to leave, they became aggressive and they were ejected from the premises. After the doors had closed the damage was done to the side window of the premises, Insp Kennelly said yesterday at Cork District Court.
Jack OConnor, president of Siptu, which represents the Luas staff, said he saw no further role for the Workplace Relations Commission in the dispute while Kieran Mulvey remains its director general. That was after the Siptu leader accused Mr Mulvey, who is due to retire in June, of attacking the workers in an interview on RTE radio yesterday morning.
During that interview, Mr Mulvey said it was extraordinary that Siptu had not contacted him after its members almost unanimously rejected WRC-brokered proposals which would have seen staff paid increases of up to almost 19%.
He also said that most union officials and most union members, if they had got those kinds of proposals from the commission would go back to their members and receive a standing ovation.
We need to understand when to depart the field having had considerable success, said Mr Mulvey. By any mark, the proposals of the commission are considerable in the context of other agreements we have negotiated. I think that leadership has to come from both sides. But I think there is a particular onus here, if the service is being disrupted it is not being disrupted by the company.
The interview was barely concluded before Mr OConnor went on radio to call for Mr Mulveys resignation.
It is simply not credible for someone in that position of responsibility to come out and attack one of the parties to an industrial dispute, to attack workers...and still remain credible as a mediator, said Mr OConnor. His presence there now will damage the perception of the institution he is heading up. Someone who is paid the amount of money that Kieran is paid by the taxpayer doesnt have an entitlement to indulge himself in the way that he did this morning.
Mr OConnor said that Mr Mulveys intervention in the dispute which he said yielded a ridiculous proposal had been premature as there had been speculation the Irish Congress of Trade Unions had been about to seek a resolution.
He said no self-respecting trade unionist in the country would vote for the section of the WRC proposals which envisaged lower entry scales for new employees in the Luas. Mr OConnor said Mr Mulvey had discredited himself and the whole institution which he heads up, adding: I mean nothing personal against him but he has arrived at a time when it is appropriate to depart the stage.
Mr Mulvey was back on radio by lunchtime, clearly indicating he had taken the comments personally. He said he knew nothing about any proposed ICTU intervention.
If we dont respect the outcome of disputes then we are in a difficult environment, he said. Over the last 12 months, I have seen the erosion of the institutions by parties and I am not talking exclusively about unions employers as well. In all my career, 41 years, I have a track record of defending workers interests and rights. I wont be told by anybody, irrespective of the position they hold, that I am biased.
South African cleric Shaykh Fakhruddin Owaisi al-Madani said extremism was the first step to violence and was often driven by foreign speakers.
The chair of the Council of Sunni Imams in Cape Town said this happened in South Africa and, he feared, was at risk of happening here.
He was in Dublin to back an Anti-Extremism Declaration, drawn up by the Irish Muslim Peace and Integration Council (IMPIC), outlining five principles foreign speakers agree to comply with.
Shaykh al-Madani, the first to sign the declaration, was speaking at an event organised by IMPIC and TCD Irish School of Ecumenics, attended by many foreign dignitaries.
They included US ambassador Kevin OMalley, Belgium ambassador Philippe Ronald, Pakistan ambassador Syed Rizwan, Iran ambassador Javad Kachoueian, and French counsellor Philippe Ray.
Shaykh al-Madani said the Muslim community was very well integrated in South African society, with members present at the highest levels of politics, the courts, and sport.
However, he said that, in the last few years, that has changed and some extremist elements have come from elsewhere.
This has resulted in Muslims youths joining Islamic State (IS), some of whom have since come back.
That was a wake-up call for us, he said, adding: Do not think your [Irish] society is immune.
The Shaykh, who is also head of the department of religious studies at the International Peace College in Cape town, said the State needed to stop speakers coming to the country now.
We need prevention, it is better than cure, he said.
On the declaration, he said: It is a Muslim initiative to protect the Muslim community. I hope to see the Irish government respond to this. I dont want you to respond when it is too late.
He said that there were preachers of hate in Islam who targeted non-Muslims and Muslims alike.
They are a common enemy, he said, adding that the first step to violence was extremism.
You cant say we dont want the violence but not do anything about extremism.
He said the silent Muslim majority cant remain silent anymore.
IMPIC chairman Shaykh Umar al-Qadri, head imam of the al-Mustafa Islamic Centre in Dublin, said that more than 200 innocent people had been killed recently by various Islamic extremist groups in Brussels, Lahore, Baghdad, Istanbul and Ankara.
These attacks are happening in the name of my religion, he said. They are distorting the teachings of Islam. We cannot stay silent any more.
He said there were many factors feeding Islamic extremism: Political, social, and religious.
He said the extremists adopt a literal interpretation of the Koran, abandoning the 14 centuries of scientific interpretation.
He asked the Department of Justice to include the declaration in the granting of visas to foreign speakers.
US ambassador Kevin OMalley praised the work of the two imams for bringing a mature discussion to a difficult set of issues.
The city council has confirmed it has received an average of three reports daily of interference with a parking meter since 2013.
The local authority also revealed it has spent 3.57m on repairs and maintenance to the equipment over the same period. There are over 1,000 parking meters in the area controlled by Dublin City Council.
The frequency of damage to the machines has led gardai to believe the stealing of cash from the meters is being done on an organised basis.
City Council chief executive Owen Keegan said the reports of interference with parking meters involved incidents of vandalism, attempts to jam the coin slot, attempted robberies and robberies.
Mr Keegan said gardai at local and senior level had been fully briefed on the issue on a regular basis.
A number of covert operations have been carried out successfully with numerous arrests and convictions, he said, in a report prepared for Independent councillor Mannix Flynn.
Some perpetrators have also been ordered to pay compensation to the council as repairs to meters in some cases can cost up to 7,000.
Mr Keegan said a number of other cases are also due to come before the courts.
However, the council has refused to provide details about the location of damaged meters and the amount of money stolen from them on the basis it could reasonably be expected to prejudice or impair the prevention of offences and the security of property.
Mr Flynn said yesterday it was unacceptable the council was failing to provide a detailed report about the scale of the problem.
Im very concerned about the under-reporting of this theft which is probably costing thousands of euro each year, said Mr Flynn.
Criminals are using parking meters as cashpoints and nobody seems to be doing anything about it. These thefts are consistent but are certainly not random and seem to be organised.
Parking costs up to 2.90 per hour in high-demand zones. The council collects about 2m from meters each month.
In 2012, gardai set up an operation to catch a Romanian gang suspected of stealing coins from parking meters in the city after it was estimated they had netted close to 100,000 by unlocking meters and skimming the contents.
Detectives believed the culprits only took a fraction of the money in the meters to avoid arousing suspicion. The nature of the crime only came to the attention of gardai after information about suspected tampering of parking meters was collated into a single database.
Sources in Fianna Fail say that fresh exchequer figures, expected on Monday, could help allow both sides resolve their demands when leaders Micheal Martin and Enda Kenny begin talks. Increased employment, more taxes and potentially a bigger fiscal space to spend in the immediate years would allow for a broader agreement, including possibly breaching differences on Irish Water, say party sources.
Fianna Fail will continue talks with Independents on Monday and Tuesday, to try to form its own minority government.
However, party sources say the real talks will start after a fresh vote for Taoiseach in the Dail on Wednesday, at which another stalemate is expected when neither side wins enough votes. Fianna Fail finance spokesman Michael McGrath yesterday suggested a full financial picture was needed for negotiations, in light of the fact the acting government has yet to supply the EU with its budget blueprint as part a stability programme update.
This must be submitted to Brussels by the end of this month. There are doubts this will happen under a caretaker government.
The last detailed spending projections were in October.
It is important that new fiscal space projections are now made which will take account of updated assumptions, as well as changes to Irelands medium-term budgetary objective.
This would provide vital information which would help inform discussions on government formation without tying the hands of a new government in relation to policy initiatives it wished to take, he said.
Fianna Fail will continue talks with Independents next week. However, talks between Mr Martin and Mr Kenny will quickly indicate whether a second Tallaght Strategy can be achieved, mirroring in some way the 1987 deal where Fine Gael supported a Fianna Fail government.
Irish Water is expected to be the main stumbling block. However, further positive exchequer figures on Monday could give both parties space, when it comes to either sides wishlist, say party sources. While there still will be pressures from trade unions for wage costs, an addition to the limited 500m spend for next year would help.
The decision means that Culann Cashmans parents can now use all the money raised by a major campaign to pay for an intensive two-year regime of vital post- operative physiotherapy.
An emotional Yvonne and Garry Cashman, from Midleton, Co Cork, said they were absolutely delighted that the Central Remedial Clinic (CRC) has sanctioned Culanns surgery for funding under the HSEs treatment abroad scheme.
Being able to fund the specialist physio will ensure that their four-year-old warrior son will get the maximum benefit from the specialist surgery which will be performed in England, they said. They also said the funding decision could pave the way for similar decisions on other children who might benefit from the same kind of surgery.
Previously, the couple was planning do most of the physio themselves, with the trust providing for just one professional physiotherapy session a week.
We are now in the fantastic position of knowing we can use the portion of his trust fund which was previously allocated to the surgery cost to now pay a qualified physiotherapist to deliver sessions three to four days per week as part of the daily intensive physiotherapy regime he will require in order to maximise his potential and success of the surgery, Garry said.
Culann, one of a set of triplets, and his brother, Darragh, both have cerebral palsy. Their triplet sister is Anna May and they have an older brother called Gearoid.
Darragh has hypotonic cerebral palsy, which results in low muscle tone. Culann has hypertonic cerebral palsy, which makes his muscles very stiff, with the spasticity mainly affecting his legs and, to a lesser extent, his right arm. Both boys have daily physiotherapy needs and Darragh has benefited from all of them, strengthening his core and increasing his function and ability.
But Culann, who uses a power-based wheelchair and a dynamic movement orthoses suit to prevent his hips from dislocating and to keep his legs and pelvis aligned correctly, cant stand or walk independently. He cant roll over and needs to be turned two or three times at night.
After extensive research, the couple established that selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) surgery would give Culann the best chance of walking and of leading an independent pain-free life.
The specialised procedure pioneered in the US involves surgeons treating muscle spasticity by identifying and severing a select number of nerves which run to the legs.
Last August, the couple met SDR expert John Gooden at Leeds Childrens Hospital, who described Culann as an excellent candidate for the surgery, which, were the funds available, could have been undertaken immediately. But at the time, Culanns condition didnt meet the criteria for the surgery to be funded under the HSEs treatment abroad scheme.
The couple launched the Culann Wants to Walk trust last September to raise 75,000 to cover the cost of the operation, travel and accommodation expenses, the vital pre and post-op physio and costly essential specialised equipment.
As a committee, we always believed that we would achieve our initial target but not in our wildest dreams did we think the fundraising would be as successful as it was, said Yvonne and Garry. We couldnt have anticipated just how enthusiastically people would take Culann to their hearts.
The couple reached their fundraising target some weeks ago. But following a gait analysis at the CRC, its experts said Culann would be a good candidate for SDR surgery which would now qualify under the treatment abroad scheme.
The Culann Wants to Walk fund trustees, Anita Bane, Adrian Cotter, and solicitor Alan McGee, said that following the committees final fundraising event on March 19, the trusts fundraising activities have now ceased.
However, a number of events, organised by independent fundraisers and which have been in the pipeline since last year, will take place in the coming weeks.
All of these funds and every cent donated will be kept in trust to be spent on Culanns immediate, mid-term and longer term medical needs, the trustees said.
They commended the CRC, Enable Ireland, and the HSE for committing to Culann and others like him, and said it would help these children maximise their potential and make them less dependent on disability and health services.
Yvonne and Garry thanked everyone who donated, attended events or gave up time to help them: Our initial expectations were blown apart and the love and support Culann has received has been overwhelming, we simply cant thank you all enough.
We have had to refuse a number of recent kind offers of additional fundraising from some wonderful people. Some have been disappointed but we are conscious of other children who may be in need of SDR surgery and urge anyone still considering fundraising for Culann to consider these other families.
While those behind the Whats In The Powder? campaign say they are not advocating drug-use, the promotion will see factsheets circulated to students. The sheets offer tips on when and how to take drugs, and what to do while high to ensure a safe experience.
The factsheets tell students that it is always safest not to take illicit drugs, but gives practical advice to those who take powdered substances such as cocaine, amphetamine, MDMA, ketamine, 2C-B and N-Bomb.
Authorities believe that N-Bomb was the hallucinogenic substance taken by Millstreet teen Alex Ryan, who died following a house party last January in Cork. Mr Ryans sister Nicole Ryan has since campaigned to raise awareness of the dangers of taking drugs.
Lysette Golden, Clare OConnor, and Conor Clancy who are welfare officers for DIT, UCS and Trinity College launched the campaign with Dublins lord mayor Criona Ni Dhalaigh yesterday.
We do not condone the use of illegal drugs, but if a student chooses to do so, they need to be educated about what they are putting into their bodies, and as welfare officers that is exactly what we have to do: educate, Mr Clancy said.
The campaign is also backed by the Ana Liffey Drug Project, and its director Tony Duffin said the advice to students could prevent serious harm or death.
Each year students arrive through the doors of their third-level institutions full of life and looking forward to the future, Mr Duffin said.
Part of this experience is to fully embrace this new-found freedom. For some people, this will involve taking illicit drugs. Those people need clear, accurate and evidence-based communication on this subject. That is what this campaign provides, he said.
Students are warned to wait two hours for the substance they have taken to have an effect; to only snort off clean surfaces; to rinse out their noses with water after taking powdered drugs; and to rehydrate carefully.
The new initiative follows a campaign last year. The Whats In The Pill? campaign was backed by drugs minister Aodhan O Riordain and has now been introduced to 15 third-level campuses across the country.
Ms Ni Dhalaigh said the next government needs to prioritise the drug problem.
I personally know families that have seen three successive generations blighted by drugs, lives devastated by chaos, disease and death, she said.
Dr Greg Kelly, a GP from Roscommon, said his patient had developed complications as a result of chemotherapy and had to be referred back to University Hospital Galway (UHG) for intravenous treatment.
But he had such a bad experience of the hospital when he was referred back on a previous occasion that he said, I would prefer to drown myself in the river than go back, said Dr Kelly.
His patient was so distraught that Dr Kelly made contact instead with Roscommon General Hospital and asked if it would accommodate him.
It was not a case I would normally send to Roscommon but I said Id take full responsibility for any breach of protocol, said Dr Kelly, adding that he had been motivated to act for humanitarian reasons.
Dr Kelly said that at UHG, instead of being treated expeditiously as someone with advanced cancer, the man had to be admitted through the emergency department, facing substantial delays.
He said this was a serious flaw in the handling of cancer cases and that the man had opted instead for a lesser centre of excellence where, at least, he could get a bed.
Its completely disgraceful you wouldnt treat an animal like that, he said.
Dr Kelly was speaking to a motion at the Irish Medical Organisations agm in Sligo calling on the HSE, the health minister, and the public expenditure and reform minister to acknowledge it is not appropriate to treat the sickest patients on trolleys, chairs, or in the corridors of emergency departments. The motion was carried.
A motion calling on the Department of Health to ensure that all medical devices be approved by the Health Products Regulatory Authority was also carried.
Mayo-based GP Dr Ken Egan said: We have all sorts of quacks pulling up in Claremorris setting up machines to measure this and that. There is no supervision and we dont know what is going on.
Health Minister Leo Varadkar, who was due to attend the conference, pulled out due to involvement in talks to form a government.
Meanwhile, Dr Peadar Gilligan, chair of the IMO consultant committee, confirmed it has commenced legal proceedings in the High Court to secure the release of salary increases due in 2009 under the terms of the 2008 consultant contract which it alleges the HSE has unlawfully withheld.
Research conducted by Dublin City University puts the incidence of autism in Ireland at 1% of the population at least, similar to rates in the UK and US.
Researchers from the universitys School of Nursing and Human Sciences have completed a study, entitled Autism Counts, which sheds new light on the prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders in Ireland.
Funded by Irish Autism Action, the study is the first of its kind in Ireland and the findings are published today to coincide with World Autism Day.
Parents of almost 8,000 national schoolchildren in mainstream and special education schools across Cork, Waterford, and Galway cities were administered an ASD screening questionnaire on behalf of their child. The total number of children identified with a diagnosis of ASD was 63, giving a prevalence rate of 1%.
Within special education schools in the study regions, 36 children were identified with an autism diagnosis, giving an estimated 52% prevalence rate for this population.
Dr Mary Rose Sweeney, one of the lead researchers, said the process of screening and diagnosing ASDs is complex, requiring input from multiple social, educational, medical, and psychological services.
Standardising the diagnosis process across all these stakeholders will allow us to better determine prevalence rates across the country and, correspondingly, deliver more effective policy responses to autism spectrum disorders, she said.
Recommendations made in the report include the continued monitoring of prevalence rates over time in Ireland, a register of all children diagnosed with ASD and economic evaluation of the costs and benefits of ASD intervention.
The DCU study team of principal investigators, Dr Sweeney and Professor Anthony Staines, and co-investigator Dr Andrew Boilson, is currently collaborating on a three-year European autism research programme.
The research will determine the prevalence of autism in Europe. It will also analyse the economic and social costs of autism and develop proposals for early detection of the condition.
Meanwhile, to mark World Autism Awareness Day, the Irish Guide Dogs organisation is calling on people to support its assistance dog programme.
The charity is also launching a national lobbying campaign to deliver a tax allowance for families of children with ASD who utilise a working dog in Budget 2017.
Speaking on the difference the tax allowance would make to their family finances, Brian Galvin, an assistance dog owner, said: As parents we have many extra costs to help Adam with his ASD. We have found Nikita (their dog) to be an essential aid for Adam and we could not imagine our lives without her. Every little helps and an assistance dog allowance would certainly be a big help to Nikitas food and vet care.
Chief executive Padraig Mallon added: Our visually impaired clients have been in receipt of this tax allowance and we now feel that it is time for our families of children with autism to be treated in the same way.
Extending this allowance to families working with an assistance dog would be a very powerful gesture from government that would not have a massive expense on the taxpayer.
All week the sunny south-east had been living up to its name, but as soon as theres a whiff of EastEnders in the air a show not noted for its sunny disposition things turn gloomy.
Pity those hundreds of soap hopefuls who turned out yesterday afternoon in Dunmore East to queue in the rain. Not even a sighting of Jesse Wallace or Shane Richie to lighten the atmosphere.
Well, if you want to be part of a spin-off of EastEnders, you gotta be prepared to hang in there when the going gets miserable.
And to be fair to the masses as they huddled outside and, after some time, inside the Waterford Harbour Sailing Club for the casting call, they tried to remain on the positive side of life. Novices, eh? You wouldnt catch Ian Beale being positive.
The call went out for people of all ages and sizes, colours and appearances, and they duly showed up to become part of Red Water, the BBC production due to film six episodes around Dunmore East in the coming months.
A second casting session for extras takes place at noon today at Central Arts in Waterford city.
Les Brown of the sailing club reckoned the production will be great for the village and will showcase the beauty of Dunmore East, nestling on the western edge of Waterford Harbour, to the world: It could be very good for tourism.
At the Eastenders auditions at Waterford Sailing Club are front row from left; Mary OConnor, PJ and Jina Cronn, Ruth Daly; back row: Pat Phelan and Kieran Cronin. Picture: Mary Browne
Ruth Daly, a local in the queue, agreed that everybody is just so excited about it, and was herself hoping for an opportunity in front of the camera.
Im waiting to be discovered, she laughed, before replying to the Irish Examiners question about her dramatic experience: My whole life is a drama!
Pat The Goat Phelan surely had a good chance of catching the eye of producers with such a nickname.
Singing and a bit of blackguarding, was the extent of his experience of the dramatic arts while his nickname came from the goats on the hill in Passage [East]. My grandfather came from Passage.
Anne Healy from Tramore emerged from the process unscathed and said there was no indication, yea or nay, from those involved about her prospects.
You had to fill in the form and just give your details and they took photos of you. They will be making a decision.
Martin and Lisa Girdwood travelled together from Waterford city.
Its amazing how many vain people there are, said Martin. I said to the wife, would George Clooney ever have to do anything like this?
Asked about any experience that would help their chances for an EastEnders spin-off, Martins reply was on the money: Were married, if thats any good.
The next Kat and Alfie?
However the illness, which is caused by a bacterial infection, continues to be a threat.
So what do you need to know?
WHAT IS SCARLET FEVER?
Anyone can get scarlet fever, but young children are most affected.
Scarlet fever is a bacterial illness that is most common among children under the age of 10, says Dr Adam Simon.
Key symptoms include a sore throat, skin infection and the bright pink rash that gives the condition its name.
This usually starts as red blotches before turning into a fine pinky-red rash that feels like sandpaper.
There might be a high temperature, headache and swollen tongue too, usually in the day or two before the rash develops, and nausea and vomiting.
HOW DO YOU CATCH IT?
Its highly contagious, he says, and can be passed on by coughing, sneezes, skin-to-skin contact and handling contaminated objects, like bath towels or bedding.
Most cases occur during winter and spring. Good hygiene paying attention to hand-washing, and avoiding sharing potentially contaminated items can help reduce spreading.
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IF YOU THINK YOUR CHILD HAS IT?
In the past, an outbreak of scarlet fever was a very serious concern and families affected were often quarantined. Its still important its properly diagnosed and treated, and steps are taken to avoid passing it on.
In the majority of cases, scarlet fever will clear up of its own accord, but its always recommended to see a GP if you think you or your child may have it, says Dr Simon.
HOW IS IT TREATED?
The usual course of treatment is antibiotics which will help you to recover more quickly and lower the amount of time youre contagious for and reduce the risk of complications occurring, he says.
Its usually a 10-day course, and children should start feeling better after 24 hours, with symptoms clearing up completely after a few days (but its still vital to complete the full course of treatment).
Doctors generally advise that anybody infected stays home from nursery, school or work for at least 24 hours after starting on antibiotics.
CAN IT BE SERIOUS?
In the past, scarlet fever was a leading cause of infant death.
Better hygiene and treatments mean it generally isnt the terrifying illness it used to be and, in the vast majority of cases, will clear up quite quickly and cause little more than a few days of feeling poorly.
But, as with many conditions, complications can still potentially occur.
Complications are rare and especially easy to avoid if symptoms are spotted and treatment begun early. However, in some scarce cases, potential complications can occur, ranging from relatively simple issues like an ear infection, to blood poisoning and liver damage in more serious cases, says Dr Simon.
As ever, if concerned about your childs health, or if symptoms suddenly worsen or change, get them checked by a doctor.
Full of design and interiors shops which I love to haunt in spring time, its very different to the general shopping experience in a city as big as London.
With its village feel despite being a three-minute walk from noisy Oxford St theres a surprising number of French eateries for all-important pit-stops.
One is the dinky Orrery Epicerie serving coffee you could stand your spoon up in and which I find to be an effective mitigator of cranial dullness brought on by that extra thimble-full of wine the night before. Its also where I plan my retail attack before launching on The Conran Shop next door.
Conran has three floors of modern furnishings, one-off vintage pieces, and accessories. Where once it failed to impress me with its soulless collections of furniture trying too hard to be cool, a recent refurbishment has brought about an engaging transformation.
Think luscious gem-coloured upholstery on elegant sofas and dining chairs, and the surprisingly chic combination of navy blue crockery and yellow water glasses. The stock is high end, no question one of those navy blue side plates is 35 but the ideas you can pick up here are free, plentiful, and inspiring.
Across the street is Skandium, my home interiors mecca, where everything is a perfect balance of practicality and loveliness. Just one object like a teapot could keep my home interiors habit and wallet satisfied for a long time.
Highlights are occasional furniture, lighting and general kitchenalia, but standout items include Arne Jacobsen s coffee set which, like the stock in general, is pared-back simplicity. You get what you pay for here and the quality and design are excellent.
Bookworms pass Daunt Books at your literary peril. No red signs here screaming 3 for 2 offer but elegant archways swept with a black sign-writers brush to read, Through to books arranged by country, which are shelved along oak galleries under vaulted Edwardian glass ceilings and William Morris prints. Here youll find a considered, if not curated, interiors section and another on design.
Talks by well-known authors are also part of the Daunt culture: Just last Thursday it was Tracy Chevalier of Girl with a Pearl Earring fame chatting about her latest volume.
For workaday household linens, The White Company is the epicentre of all things pale and interesting in towels, table textiles, and bed linen, and where its impossible to resist fondling the cashmere throws and high thread count sheets.
Although the shop is very white and minimal inside, theres something traditional about the products that suggests I should also add a picket fence round my house to match.
Designers Guild, on the other hand, is just a few doors along and has the same type of product offering but is more a nerve centre of colour. Lovely duvet covers in on-trend florals and gemstone hues strike a balance between taste and bright colours.
Wholesome, organic skincare product makers, Neals Yard, has branched into home fragrances based on natural essential oils. Most interiors shops on the street sell this type of thing but Neals Yards extensive range of oils has the edge.
Admittedly, theyre more expensive, not helped by a harsh exchange rate between the euro and sterling, but a little of this stuff goes a long way and doesnt have synthetic oil added that can set off a migraine or watery eyes.
When lunch beckons, try the Natural Kitchen, a friendly, bustling delicatessen, cafe and take-away serving everything from soups and salads to complete hot meals.
Mixing food fashion with wholesomeness means you can have a bowl of nourishing bone broth or, as I chose, a seductively aromatic Moroccan sweet potato and chickpea soup, accompanied by a nod from the server to help myself from the contents of an old enamel bread bin.
This yielded two large chunks of excellent artisan quality crustiness which I sprinkled liberally with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar condiments which youll find on each table.
Marylebone High St is definitely not a tomato ketchup sachet type of place. Copmbing nourishment with style, Natural Kitchen is a delicious choice and also offers lovely home interior accessories on Marylebone High St.
Heres a quote to ponder: A group of pampered students supported by a consortium of belted earls and their ladies and left-wing intellectuals who can afford the time to stand and contemplate in ecstasy the unparalleled beauty of the corners of Hume St and St Stephens Green, that was Kevin Boland, Minister for Local Government, 1970, on the protest and occupation of two condemned period houses, by students in Dublin.
There are few quotes from recent Irish history (outside the seriousness of political violence), so muddle-headed.
If you cared for an old building and stood in the way of progress in mid-century Ireland, then this spit of venom crystallises the malicious disdain you could expect from government quarters.
When an address was perceived as a vulnerable totem of British rule, or a faltering playhouse of the upper classes regardless of historical or architectural merit, without private intervention, its fate was largely sealed. Bolands description of the supporters of Hume St as the Guinness aristocracy said it all.
Deliberate dereliction of duty was enough to let something fall down or be passed onto the developer or speculator. Stranger still, a building did not have to be actually demolished to lose its soul take a look at any mid-Victorian townhouse blinded by the flat planes of 1980s PVC windows.
Irelands build heritage whether told by standing stones or a floating pediment of a Regency townhouse, is complex and its a story that belongs to all of us because it is us.
Author William Derham studied architecture at DIT, and building repair and conservation at TCD. For the last eight years he has worked as a curator and guide at Dublin Castle.
His new book Lost Ireland 1860-1960 offers a fascinating, if deeply poignant, edit of photographs taken of a vast range of building types, from primitive rammed-clay huts capped in mouldering vegetation in the West of Ireland, to the little known thatched mansions of the well-to-do farmer, and many mortally-diseased ascendancy palaces.
Photographs might be tightly focused, but Derham argues they do not interpret whats before the lens as the brush or pencil might do.
For that reason, he determined on a range of photographic sources many pictures are from the highly valuable Irish Architectural Archive assembling a unique look through the curtain of time to our built heritage county by county.
Many of these buildings fell to the slings and arrows of a particularly Irish and outrageous fortune.
While some of the ruinous happenings were certainly personal or commercial, many were torn to pieces by deliberate socio-political forces working in Ireland following the Second World War.
Irelands culture after Independence was accepted as the Celtic, the ancient, and included only a few colonial temples drenched in Republican blood like the Four Courts and the GPO, in this opus. In mitigation, however, Derham explains in an introduction that should be obligatory reading for second-level students, that Ireland, rightly or wrongly, fostered positive attitudes towards internationalism, to modernism, shaping the future and very look of the country.
Many of the buildings that had plotted our past for the previous 400 years from cabins to castles and classical manors, were regarded as redundant, worthless, and anachronistic to a new dignity and were swept off the face of the country without a backward glance. Derham adds that OConnell St (Sackville St, as was), never recovered from the physical assaults of 1916.
Take a look at how it looked before the Rising, lined in modestly beautiful red brick Georgian townhouses (page 51).
From the 1950s, roads were widened to accommodate cars, progressive design manners were laid down on medieval towns and cities, and suburbs stopped the heart of many former market capitals.
All over the 26 counties, the officious indifference of the Land Commission to a measured case-by-case survey, sliced landed estates with moral smugness to an untenable demesne a mean boundary of land caught behind barbed wire and concrete posts.
Although there was a strong moral argument for this redistribution of planted land, the results were the decimation of middle and upper class families living in the house, the obliteration of precious local employment, and the silencing of the agricultural engine vital to the survival of the big house.
The tender aesthetics of symmetrical Palladian facades, the ancient intricacies of cage-wall construction, or the accrued story of a fortified house that established an vital continuity of settlement in one place these fey considerations were not priorities for our infant State, and the work of the Commission continued, largely unchallenged by anyone, but the determined warriors of the Irish Georgian Society until as late as 1983.
The fate of some of our national gems is well illustrated by Derham in the scandalous treatment of Shanbally Castle in Co Limerick, razed by dynamite though in habitable condition by malice and indifference in 1957.
Industrial sites, bridges, town terraces, churches and all sorts of amateur-designed vernacular oddities are all carefully included in Derhams selection, taken from early collodian prints and glass-plate negatives of the period. The evolution of the shop-front through a range of images with smoky Victorian figures going around their business is alone worth the price of the book.
I found the many examples of Dutch styles which strained through from abroad in the 17th and 18th centuries particularly interesting.
I can now recognise the line of a Dutch Billy gable, still pertly drawn against the Cork City sky, and the occasional busty determination of an 18th century bowed projection squeaked in between glaring plastic shop fronts.
This work is a valiant effort to not only illustrate what we have already lost, but to bring the plight of a few ruinous veterans to public notice before they too, melt into memory.
* Lost Ireland 1860-1960 by William Derham. Hyde Park Editions
The patter of establishment calls for Vermont senator Bernie Sanders to end his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination has built into a hailstorm.
Bye, bye, Bernie, The Washington Post editorialised prematurely, echoing numerous talking heads. Politico reports Democratic pols are quietly urging him to pack it in. Even US president Barack Obama suggested to deep-pocket donors that its time to fold in behind former secretary of state Hillary Clinton. (They already have, Mr President, they already have.)
Some of this is sowed by the Clinton campaign. But most is simple foolishness. It would be inconceivable for Sanders to stop now.
After all, he still has a chance to win the nomination. Sanders just swept through the West, winning five of six contests by stunning margins. In addition, he isnt just a candidate hes a cause. Sanders seeks to build a movement that can make the political revolution needed to transform the country, not simply win the White House. That means a political movement powerful enough to both get big money out of politics and pass Sanders agenda. His supporters want and expect him to drive that effort right through the Democratic National Convention and beyond.
Admittedly, the odds against Sanders winning the nomination are long, but they are far better than when the relatively unknown democratic socialist launched his insurgency. Nearly half of all voters have yet to cast a ballot. Sanders continues to introduce himself to more and more of them. Hes already won 15 primaries and caucuses, and lost four more by the barest whisker. And he keeps rising.
For the first time, the most recent Bloomberg poll shows him edging ahead of Clinton among registered Democratic voters. Other polls consistently show her once forbidding lead continuing to narrow. Sanders draws large and mostly enthusiastic crowds and continues to rouse young people across the country. His supporters are eager to fuel his campaign. He out-raised Clinton dramatically in February $43m to $30m, as his 2m small donors contributed more than her deep-pocket investors. In fact, more than 70% of Clintons donations have come from large donors, who are maxing out in increasing numbers.
The sceptics groused that Sanders would have to swamp Clinton in caucuses and races out West to be competitive, not simply win by 55% to 45%. He won 70% of the vote or more in Washington, Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, and Utah. Sanders continues to whittle away at Clintons lead in pledged delegates.
Meanwhile, Clinton, the prohibitive favourite who has been backed by virtually all the gatekeepers, big donors, and skilled campaign operatives, isnt exactly sealing the deal. More than half of all voters view her unfavourably; only Republican frontrunner Donald Trump ranks worse. No one else in a presidential campaign has come close to those negatives since CBS polling began asking the question in 1984.
Americans have doubts about Clintons honesty and trustworthiness. Her strength has been experience and electability, but polls show Sanders running consistently better than she does against every potential Republican candidate, largely because he fares far better among independents. Add to this the not insignificant likelihood of drama erupting in Clintonworld whether from federal investigations, the endless well of stories about the Clinton Foundation, transcripts of her speeches to Wall Street fat cats, her Wal-Mart board meetings, or whatever.
Sanders still has a shot. His support is growing, his opponent is increasingly unpopular, and his supporters will finance his race. No regular candidate would leave the race in such a position. Ohio governor John Kasich and Senator Ted Cruz, the GOP candidates trying to best Trump, would give their left arms to be where Sanders is.
Sanders has no illusions about how hard it is to build a political revolution. One presidential campaign, no matter how fervent its followers, can offer little more than a Paul Revere call to action. The actual struggles have only begun.
So, again, why in the world would Sanders shut down his insurgency? Hell never have this kind of reach to a massive audience again. Hes gaining supporters, triggering activism, spreading his message.
That effort has already reaped benefits. Hes proved that presidential candidates do not have to be dependent on big donors. In every race from here on, there will be an insurgent slot waiting to be filled. Hes driven the debate in the campaign, forcing Clinton to adjust her positions and recycle some of his rhetoric. On trade, on Wall Street, on corporate tax dodges and CEO pay, on criminal justice, on the minimum wage and unions, money and politics his campaign (plus movements such as Black Lives Matter and Fight for $15) is opening new ground.
The longer Sanders stays in the race, the harder it will be for Clinton to abandon her new populist pledges.
Even if he doesnt overtake Clintons lead, Sanders can go to the Democratic convention in Philadelphia with virtually as many pledged delegates as she has. Hellpush for breaking up the big banks, balanced trade, rebuilding crumbling infrastructure, national healthcare, tuition-free college, and more.
Coming out of the convention, he and his supporters will be able to fight for reform, expose corruption, and support insurgent movements and candidates. Hes unleashed an energy that wont die with the election.
The keepers of the failed consensus are aghast, Democratic officialdom nervous, Wall Street donors aflutter. Get used to it. There isnt a whit of reason for Sanders to end his campaign. As the old gospel song puts it, the road ahead is hard. But hes come too far to turn back now. And he is in no ways tired.
What a week it has been.
We came from all parts of the country, day after day, in a bid to see if we could help form a government. Many of us left our homes at 5.30am to be in Dublin in time to start the meetings, stayed there for up to 12 hours and more before returning home that night. We, as Independents, repeated that process for several days in a genuine attempt to play our part. But things did not get off to a good start.
The first meeting Independent TDs had was with Enda Kenny and some of his ministers in the Sycamore Room in Government Buildings. I felt it was very unstructured in the beginning, because there wasnt a chairperson. Enda tried to chair the meeting but we felt that was not acceptable as we wanted to put direct questions to him.
And you can imagine with a load of Independents in the meeting, nobody seemed to know who would speak first, what was going to be presented, or whatever.
I then suggested the Taoiseach should not be chairing the meeting as we wanted to put direct questions to him; so they got in official Lucy McFadden to chair the meeting. The whole thing was a bit chaotic for the first 10-15 minutes.
I sensed there was an unreal urgency on behalf of Fine Gael to get the Independents on board to form a government. I think they felt that, by gathering all of the Independents all together, that would work. I have to say from my side, it was a mistake. You see, I dont know what way other Independents feel about Irish Water or where they stand on issues such as housing, health, or unemployment.
For example, my view on Irish Water would be different to Michael Fitzmaurices, which could be different to Noel Grealishs. Fianna Fail want rid of Irish Water but Fine Gael want to keep it. How do you marry all those differing views? We could be three days debating that alone. So I think lots of Independents kept things close to their chest, as they did not want to give away their main bargaining chips. I got the impression many people didnt want to put forward ideas that would be taken up by everybody else. As a result, the meeting did not allow for free expression from the Independents.
The meetings should have been run differently: We were approached by Fine Gael and Fianna Fail about forming a government. What they should have done is present us with a Programme for Government to agree or reject, or tweak etc. We should have identified much earlier the things we had in common and those issues we disagreed on. That would have been preferable for the first meeting. Instead we were presented with a document entitled Policy Areas On a Structural Discussions For a Programme For Government. It was incredible when you think of it.
For example, in housing, we were presented with different headings A-K, in health it was A-P. In total it added up to 86 discussion points. It was crazy.
From that first meeting with Fine Gael from the outset, we in the Independent Alliance had to tell them on seven occasions when they mentioned their manifesto that their manifesto had been rejected by the people. We had to be blunt about it and we said there was no point of them referring to it, but they had it in their heads that it was the way to go. And things did not improve.
We spent the entirety of the first meeting talking about housing. We had the Secretary General of the Department of the Environment come in and tell us for over an hour why there is a housing crisis. Sure, we knew that already. Any TD worth their salt knows what the problems are so we didnt need that in my view.
We would have preferred some practical proposals as how to deal with the problem, which eventually did come yesterday.
The lack of reality from the officials side was startling. I dont think they are on top of the problem, if they were, we wouldnt be in the problems we are in today. Later in the week, we moved onto issues such as mental health, climate change, education, and justice, and yesterday we heard from Michael Noonan on the economy.
But things moved incredibly slowly. Maybe as an amateur, someone who has never negotiated a Programme for Government before, this is the way it goes, but it has been very frustrating. Throughout all of this, there was an uneasy feeling among us about where were Fianna Fail and would all of this matter in the end. Would all of our time be wasted?
We, as Independents, put pressure on Kenny to contact Micheal Martin, because we all feel, and had been made well aware, that whoever does a deal with the Independents still needs the tacit support of the other main party.
But we were asking Why are they not speaking?. Some of us felt an annoyance that we were doing our best and talking to all and anyone who wanted to talk but the two big parties were sitting on their arses while we were going the extra mile. It was a major issue that, because of some old Civil War nonsense, they werent prepared to speak to each other. That was an annoyance for people. But other reservations existed.
All the Independents also were quietly saying to themselves that we are being asked to prop up Fine Gael, who have been roundly rejected by the people and we have to be very careful on that. Are we going to be sucked into a whole heap of promises, only to find out in a year they cant be delivered?
Lots of us have been getting it in our constituencies from voters who tell us we did not vote for Fine Gael, so there is a dilemma for many of us.
But there is the other dilemma that Fine Gael and Fianna Fail werent talking to each other. I have said to both parties: You want us to be in Government but you have not told us fully what part you want us to play.
Whatever else happens now, at least we as Independent TDs have stepped up to the plate and tried our best in the national interest when others, such as Sinn Fein and the Social Democrats, have refused to play their part and instead chose to sit on the sidelines. That is not being fair to the people of Ireland. I dont like to describe the past week as a fools errand but I am not as optimistic as I would like to have been.
Am I afraid to go into Government? No I am not. But I am also not going to go into Government to sell my soul or make promises I cant keep.
John Halligan is an Independent TD for Waterford and a member of the Independent Alliance.
IF THE events of the past week have taught us anything, it is that there are times when it is necessary to place the nations interests before those of the individual.
Thankfully, the vast majority of us will never find ourselves in such a position. We will never be asked to prove our patriotism, apart perhaps from waving the flag or singing Amhran na bhFiann. Almost certainly we will never be called upon to sacrifice ourselves for the greater good but, then again, neither were the men and women of 1916.
They were not expected nor indeed requested to lay down their lives for Ireland. No one told them the time had come to break the chains that bound us to Britain, nor ordered them to leave their families, homes and jobs to take up arms on behalf of their country.
However, they were people of principle and did not shirk the responsibility. They understood what had to be done and were compelled to do it. They believed they had an obligation as citizens, as leaders, as Irish men and women to do the right thing, even if it meant the ultimate sacrifice. These ordinary people decided to commit extraordinary acts.
And we should be eternally grateful that they did not shirk the responsibility and leave to others what they felt, what they knew, to be their duty. One hundred years on and the call to sacrifice, so selflessly answered by the generations before us, sounds out once more, inviting patriotic men and women to put aside personal interests for the good of Ireland.
Every one of us was asked during the poignant Easter commemorations to remember, reflect and re-imagine, Well, we have rightly remembered and we have suitably reflected. Now, the time has come for all of us to turn our thoughts to re-imagining the Ireland we want for ourselves and for our children, just as our forefathers and did when they laid down their lives a century ago.
As a self-employed businessman, responsible for the livelihoods of more than 1,500 colleagues in my company, Voxpro, I am no stranger to sacrifice.
Together with my wife Linda, we have, on many occasions over the past 20 years, placed the interests of the organisation before our own, making personal sacrifices along the way. Trust me when I say that some of them caused us many a sleepless night, but we knew, ultimately, they were for the greater good.
It is therefore with some authority that I now call upon our present leaders to step up, take action and put our country before personal and party interests.
How many times over the past few years have we heard our politicians praise and thank the people of Ireland for the sacrifices made during the difficult times we have endured? How often have they stood upon the steps of Dail Eireann and commended us for our willingness to support the difficult decisions they had to make? Unlike other nations, we, as a people, stoically accepted the cost of our mistakes in the interests of national stability. We understood that steadfastness and prosperity go hand in hand. And when called upon to do so, we, the Irish people, proved our patriotism. It is high time our politicians followed suit.
The decision of the electorate in Februarys General Election was abundantly clear. The people want change and stability. And there is only one possible political combination which can provide both. Fine Gael and Fianna Fail must answer Irelands call and form a coalition government. And they must do so immediately, even if it means signing their political death warrants.
Now is the time to build on the inter-party co-operation they have shown over the years at local authority level. Now is the time to repeat the consensus they displayed during the Marriage Equality Referendum.
Now is the time to recall shared legacies of the past, while embracing a shared vision for the future. Now is the time for patriots.
Business abhors uncertainty. And the people from Google, Airbnb, Nest and Stripe with whom I deal on a daily basis make strategic decisions months, if not years, in advance. They have chosen to operate out of Ireland and with companies like Voxpro because of this countrys stability and predictability. Even during the turbulent times of the recent economic crisis, Ireland shone like a beacon of constancy in a sea of global turmoil. Our measured response as a nation to everything that was thrown at us merely enhanced that reputation abroad. Conversely, the present period of uncertainty, brought about, primarily it has to be said, by the very people we entrusted to steer our ship of state, is doing this countrys interests some disservice and may yet have adverse economic consequences for years.
As a nation, we face pressing social and economic problems that require, nay demand, the immediate formation of a stable, cohesive national government, capable of seeing out its full term. I, and doubtless most of my fellow countrymen and women, care little about who holds the title of Taoiseach. We do care, however, that our cities have adequate quality housing to accommodate those who wish to set up home and contribute to the economic growth and prosperity of the nation. We do want imaginative leadership capable of creative solutions around education, health and planning. We desperately need inspirational men and women to build on Ireland Incs incredible reputation abroad and guide us through the uncertain times ahead. And we are entitled to expect that the sacrifices we have made as a people collectively, be reflected in the courage of the decisions made by those we have elected.
And so, I challenge our parliamentary representatives to ask themselves one question. A century hence, what will be said by our great-great grandchildren about the class of 2016? That like their forebears, they too were a generation of Irishmen and women prepared to rise up and sacrifice themselves in the cause of their nations interests? Or that they failed to answer the call to duty, abrogating their responsibilities in the process.
Vox populi, vox dei the voice of the people is the voice of god. Ireland has spoken and those who have inherited the mantle of leadership from our dead heroes would do well to heed what she has said.
Dan Kiely is chief executive of Voxpro
SO it finally happened. It only took 34 days; significant pressure from independent TDs; and one Irish Examiner front-page story to bring temporary Taoiseach Enda Kenny and his new love interest Micheal Martin together.
On Thursday, Martin made a call to Enda, who promptly called him back with the all- important suggestion that they might hook up for a chat. But like two teenage boys afraid of looking foolish in front of their mates, a rather pathetic spat occurred over who made the first move.
Juvenile antics aside, at least a sense of reality has entered the proceedings. As I have been saying since the result of the election was known, a deal of some form between Fine Gael and Fianna Fail is needed. It is that or a second election, which could take place before the end of May.
That deal is needed for several reasons.
Firstly, the decision by the third-biggest block of votes in the Dail, Sinn Fein, to absolve itself of the grown-up business of trying to form a government, has put the onus on the two other big parties to step up. The hard left Independents and so-called anti-austerity TDs have also ruled themselves out.
Catherine Murphy, Stephen Donnelly, and Roisin Shortall of the Social Democrats. The party bowed out of what it deemed a sham process of talks.
Others, such as the Greens and Social Democrats, gave initial glances at talks but have since bowed out. I have some sympathy with the position of the Social Democrats, who refused to partake in what they rightly called a sham process, because Fine Gael and Fianna Fail were refusing to speak to each other.
Secondly, as we well know by now, no matter what possible combination was being speculated about by Fine Gael ministers, Enda Kenny was still a long way short of the numbers needed to become Taoiseach.
As things stand, Kenny has the confirmed support of 50 Fine Gael TDs plus Michael Lowry a full 28 short of a Dail majority.
The support of 15 Independents would make it 66, and there is no guarantee of keeping all of this diverse group on board.
Martin was and is even further behind. A month on from the election, he has only the 43 Fianna Fail votes confirmed and so far not one extra vote has been added to his list.
When the first vote happened on March 10, and Martin only got the 43 FF votes, that reality certainly fixed the boundary to the march of his partys victory claims.
However unlikely a Fine Gael minority Government may be, a minority Fianna Fail one will be virtually impossible to achieve.
Kenny and Fine Gaels approach has been to turn over every stone, going to any possible length to try and secure the support of the Independents. This was evidenced in their description of talks as being a genuine partnership, rather than his party being propped up by other TDs. It was also evidenced by Kennys 45-minute chat with Kerry TD Michael Healy-Rae on Wednesday, after a nasty spat with Health Minister Leo Varadkar during the talks. Kenny felt he could not afford to lose anyone.
Eamon Ryan and Catherine Martin of the Green Party, which gave an initial glance at the negotiations on forming a government, before bowing out.
Similarly, the journey to Waterford on Wednesday night by Defence Minister Simon Coveney to meet TD John Halligan and his team was significant.
Halligan, who writes in the Irish Examiner today, indicated earlier in the week that he wasnt happy with the way things were going with the talks, and clearly Coveney and FG felt it was worth the trek. That trek came after 10 or so hours of talks in Government Buildings, so was no mean feat.
Lets ask an important question.
Just why are Fine Gael and Kenny acting in what appears to be a desperate way?
Bristling at suggestions that he and they are squatting in Government Buildings, it is clear that they want to stay in power and are willing to concede almost anything to achieve that.
Over the past month, Kenny has made several overtures to Martin both in the Dail and at the White House, but has had the door closed firmly in his face on every occasion.
There is some feeling that Fine Gael is also trying to insulate itself should a second election be necessary so that it is the party which has done everything possible to form a Government. Yet Kennys insistence that the party wouldnt support a Fianna Fail minority government smacked of the arrogant high-handedness which lost it the election. It also opened him to accusations of hypocrisy.
If he was not willing to support a FF-led administration from Opposition, why then permit them access to civil servants in Government Buildings during their talks with the Independents, when they begin on Monday?
The only way a Martin-led government could work is if Kenny and Fine Gael support it. If they are ruling that out, why then facilitate the talks? It doesnt make sense.
But what does all of this mean for Martin?
He was spurred on to ring Kenny on Thursday after our lead story that morning which suggested Kenny was thinking about deferring the vote for taoiseach, due to take place next Wednesday.
He has insisted that no talks between himself and Kenny will begin until after Wednesday, when he has concluded his talks with the Independents.
Mary Lou McDonald and Gerry Adams of Sinn Fein. The partys decision to absolve itself of the business of trying to form a government put the onus on Fianna Fail and Fine Gael.
Martin is in something of a bind, as several of his chief lieutenants, including Barry Cowen, Sean Fleming, and Thomas Byrne, have said that whoever gets more votes on Wednesday should be allowed room to form a government.
So, should Kenny maintain his lead if the vote is taken, will Martin then do as his underlings have suggested and sign up to support a Fine Gael minority government?
There are obvious benefits in doing so. He can contain the opponents in his own party who are opposed to a full coalition.
Although in opposition, Fianna Fail would have a huge influence on government policy, particularly in the drafting of a budget in October.
It would also help them keep Sinn Fein from becoming the lead party in opposition, which would happen were a grand coalition to be formed.
It would also put Fianna Fail in a strong position going into an election in 18 months to two years.
If Martin and his enlarged party fail to support a minority Fine Gael government, they will stand accused of forcing a second election because they put their party interests ahead of the countrys needs.
Post-Wednesday, should the vote for taoiseach go ahead, and Kenny comes out ahead, Martin will have no choice but to support his re-election or force that second election which nobody wants.
THE centre of gravity of the next government will be outside the M50, and markedly less metrosexual or metropolitan than its predecessor. The demise of Labour is one reason. Based on policy papers from Fine Gael, for independent TDs, this government will address the regional imbalance that was partly responsible for upending its Lets Keep the Recovery Going campaign. With the departure of two Green Party TDs, the remaining Dublin presence in talks with Fine Gael is limited to Maureen OSullivan, Katherine Zappone, Finian McGrath and Shane Ross. Geography, however, is only shorthand for changing priorities.
Enda Kenny and Fine Gael require support from the mainly rural TDs they are still talking to, before they engage with Fianna Fail after next Wednesday. If a Fine Gael-led government, based on external association with Fianna Fail, is viable, will Micheal Martins concerns bring a different emphasis to government priorities? His partys gains notwithstanding, it remains much less urban than the country generally. What stands out in Fine Gaels proposals is less their content than a glaring omission.
What is absent is any overarching vision for the country. Instead, there are policy offerings marked more by nostalgia for the noughties than for the future. There is little sense that what went before, in terms of spending or politics, was a false economy and fundamentally unsustainable. It seems to be a policy conversation based on getting back to where we were, not setting out how to do things differently. This cannot be laid at the door of the independent TDs alone. The sluice gates on public spending were left swinging open before the election. It is astonishing that yesterdays economic discussion with Michael Noonan came after, but not before, all else. This is a process predicated on retrofitting economic fact to political necessity. After a campaign that never recovered from Enda Kennys bombast about ordinary people not understanding economic jargon and a louche offer to abolish USC, little has been learnt.
Time and money are both critical political ingredients in government. The complexity of civil-service structures is being perilously underestimated by independent TDs who have no experience of it. The civil service is gluey, centred in silos that have often radically different cultures, and much less homogenous than its common structure supposes. This fact of government is important in negotiations that presume that the setting up new departments for housing or rural affairs is an event in itself. There is good reason for setting up new departments to deliver on priorities, but they take considerable time to assemble and bed-down. Just how much time will the next government have? An 18-month to two-year time frame will hardly justify the cost of short-term disruption, as against potential longer-term gain.
A Department of Housing worthy of the name must include not only that function, but planning and local government, too. There is also a serious argument for including transport, since land-use policy cannot be influenced without it. However, that would be a colossal change. In creating additional departments, under a constitution that allows a cabinet of 15 only, existing ones must be extinguished. If transport is not to be included with housing, it could be merged with the energy and climate change functions of the existing Department of Communications, Energy, and Natural Resources. The inclusion of broadcasting, from that department, in a new Department of Culture and Community (this could include arts, sport, heritage and Gaeltacht) would be a credible attempt to deliver on the promise inherent in the centenary commemorations, which otherwise is destined to disappear. The creation of a second new department, for rural affairs, for example, would significantly challenge the system further.
These are complex legal changes, too, as well as administrative ones. Expenditure votes must be moved around. There has to be clarity about functional boundary lines, or turf wars will begin and will last for months. Personnel, IT, and cultural differences between departments have to be addressed and overcome. A government that cannot last a year cannot leverage benefit from those kinds of change.
An end-game, beginning after next Wednesday, will result either in new government or an election. A hope is still the yet-to-be-substantiated commitment to Dail reform. Here, Fianna Fail can demand what it asked for immediately after the election, namely a Programme for the Dail, as distinct from just a Programme for Government. In a political situation where all sides are looking over their shoulder, one major reform, the introduction of a fixed-term Dail, would be decisive.
Applying the UK model, a fixed, five-year Dail term could only be dissolved in two ways. First, if a two-thirds majority of TDs demanded an election. Or, secondly, if a motion of no-confidence in the government were passed, and no new government won a vote of confidence within 14 days. A fixed-term Dail would be possible under our constitution. It would transform the politics and possibilities of the 32nd Dail. A Fine Gael-led government would be able to do little without support from Fianna Fail, thus preserving that partys influence. It would allow time for fundamental administrative and political changes to deliver. There are understandable concerns about matters heading towards the precipice. There were always going to, however. No agreement was ever likely, until, and unless, all concerned stood at its edge and looked out over it. There are very real choices to be made, which do not involve an improbable grand coalition or an unwanted election. Some of them make sense, given time.
Costly work at former Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertones flat contrary to Pope Franciss recommendations that Church officials live as modestly as he caused a scandal when it was alleged that the Bambino Gesu (Baby Jesus) Hospital foundation had helped foot the bill.
Giuseppe Profiti, former manager at the Vatican-owned Bambino Gesu, and its ex-treasurer, Massimo Spina, are being investigated, Vatican press officer, Greg Burke, said, confirming a report in Italian magazine, LEspresso.
The two men no longer work at the hospital. A lawyer for Bertone, who is not being investigated, said the cardinal had never asked for, or authorised, any payment from the hospital foundation in relation to his apartment.
Pope Francis has prioritised Vatican finances, as allegations of crimes have continued to emerge, including two major investigations, begun in late 2014, into the handling of real estate and investments.
Vatican investigators are looking into allegations the former hospital managers were involved in embezzling and misusing funds, according to LEspresso. The work on Bertones residence cost 422,000, the magazine reported.
Burke did not confirm the details of the LEspresso story.
Its author, Emiliano Fittipaldi, published a book last year that included the allegations that money meant for sick children had been spent on Bertones flat. The book, Avarice, was also at the centre of what media dubbed a Vatileaks trial into the leaking of Church documents.
In another case involving the Bambino Gesu, Italian media reported in June that magistrates suspected a cardinal might have diverted 30m in state funds, which was intended for the hospital, towards saving a different, Church-owned institution.
Bertone said last December that he would pay 150,000 to the Bambino Gesu, which says it is the largest paediatric hospital and research centre in Europe.
Hospital director, Mariella Enoc, was quoted saying, at the time, that Bertone had not received the money directly, but wanted to make amends for damage suffered by the hospital.
The North American native was spotted in the wild by a camera trap set up to record images of the elusive Scottish wildcat.
Instead, the footage revealed a raccoon foraging in woodland near Garve in the Highlands.
Conservation body Scottish Natural Heritage said it plans to trap and rehome the raccoon, and warned members of the public not to approach it as the animals have a nasty bite.
Taxidermy class
USA: A Michigan high school is offering a taxidermy course for the first time, and its a big hit.
Sixty students enrolled in its first two sections, and about a dozen had to be turned away. Each student in the class is asked to bring in an animal that he or she hunted, trapped or found dead. Road kill counts.
Rocket find
ENGLAND: Six Second World War anti-tank rockets have been found behind a bus stop.
Police were called to Coopersale in Essex, after the rockets were found near the stop on the B181 Epping Road. An Essex Police spokesman said: The army Explosives Ordnance Disposal Unit attended and disposed of the rockets nearby and confirmed they were six live anti-tank rockets from World War Two. We are appealing to find the person who left these items at the bus stop and to find out whether they have any more.
Name on a plane
ENGLAND: Members of the public will be able to have their name written on an RAF Red Arrows Hawk jet throughout the 2017 display season.
The campaign offers people who donate 30 (37) or more the opportunity to have their names displayed on the underside of one of the jets. Five naming packages are available with the option of donating up to 25,000.
The Names On A Plane campaign will raise funds for the RAF Museums centenary programme in 2018.
Lockdown
USA: A report of armed men near an Arkansas pre-school led to a campus lockdown before police confirmed the trio were actually pest control employees chasing squirrels.
A teacher at Gardner STEM Magnet School in Hot Springs saw the men and notified administrators. According to a statement from the Hot Springs Police Department, the teacher said it looked like three men carrying rifles were running toward the school.
Officers determined that the men, who were carrying pellet guns, were employees of a pest control company hired to eradicate squirrels at a neighbouring apartment complex. Police said the employees fired a shot at a squirrel, missed, and chased the creature on to school property.
Counting sheep
USA: US police in suburban Atlanta found themselves counting sheep after a flock escaped from an enclosure and blocked a road.
Brookhaven police said about 20 grazing sheep and their security dogs were spotted along a road.
Police said they were able to contact the herder, who used a sheepdog to corral them back into their nearby enclosure.
Snoring suspect
USA: A suspect found a creative place to hide during an Alabama drug raid, but investigators say it was the snoring that did him in.
Brookside police said that about one hour and 45 minutes in to searching a house, investigators heard a snoring sound coming from the clothes dryer and found Michael Christopher Davis curled up inside the appliance.
One of his worst weeks of the 2016 campaign is colliding with a state sceptical of his politics.
A big loss there for Trump would greatly reduce his chances of securing the delegates he needs to clinch the Republican nomination before next Julys national convention. It could also offer hope to rival Ted Cruz, and to outside groups that see Trump as a threat to the party.
I think the whole country is looking to Wisconsin, right now, to make a choice in this race, and I think the choice Wisconsin makes is going to have repercussions for a long time to come, Cruz said.
Trumps view is rosier: If we win Wisconsin, its pretty much over. But nothing has gone right for him since Wisconsin stepped into the primary spotlight. Even before he arrived, Trump was skewered in interviews with a trio of Wisconsins influential conservative talk-radio hosts. On Tuesday, just hours before his first campaign stop, Wisconsins two-term governor, Scott Walker, threw his support behind Cruz, of Texas.
Much of the trouble that followed was of the Trump campaigns own making. Corey Lewandowski, Trumps campaign manager, got slapped with a charge of simple battery for an altercation with a reporter. Then Trump rowed back on his assertion that women should be punished for getting abortions, a comment that had united both sides of the abortion debate against him.
As soon as he stepped foot in Wisconsin, the mask finally came off, said Jim Steineke, the Republican majority leader in the Wisconsin Assembly. Part of it is just the Wisconsin nice. We dont take too kindly to people who act the way Donald Trump acts.
Republican voter, Linda Ruddy, a 48-year-old dental hygienist, from Oshkosh, agreed. Hes rude. Hes arrogant. Hes a loose cannon. Hes insulting to women, Ruddy said.
A poll run by Marquette University Law School had shown Trump holding steady, at 30%, in Wisconsin, which had given him a lead in the state last month. But the latest survey, this week, showed Cruz surging past the real estate mogul, topping him by 10 points.
Everybody is going to want to write that he got taken down, Cruz campaign manager, Jeff Roe, said of Trump. The fact is he didnt get taken down. The fact is that were consolidating.
If Cruz sweeps all the delegates in Wisconsin, Trump will need to win 57% of the remaining delegates, in other states, to collect the 1,237 he needs to clinch the nomination. So far, he has won 48% of all delegates.
Wisconsin offers 42, putting it in the middle of the pack of primary prizes. But the states stature in Republican politics and its position on the calendar no other state votes until April 19 have elevated its importance. Though the state has voted for Democrats in the past several presidential elections, it boasts prominent Republican national party leaders, including Walker, House Speaker Paul Ryan and National Committee chairman, Reince Priebus.
Anti-Trump groups say they have benefited from the primary calendar. Super PACs and rival campaigns have focused narrowly on Wisconsin for nearly two weeks. Planned Parenthood, and Priorities USA, two groups working to elect Hillary Clinton, have teamed up for their first anti-Trump advertisement of the election year, a 30-second spot, playing on websites, that features Trumps abortion comment.
When it comes to women, the Republican front-runner is demeaning, insulting, and dangerous, the ad reads.
Clinton is hardly silent. She said: Donald Trump is showing us exactly who he is and we should believe him. But lets remember this: All the Republican candidates want to make abortion illegal.
Trumps rival candidates, and outside groups opposing him, are to spend a combined $3.8m in advertising in the state. That includes $1.7m from Our Principles and Club for Growth Action, a conservative group that has endorsed Cruz.
The diminutive star died on Thursday aged 85 as British officials were reportedly considering honouring him with a knighthood.
It is understood a panel that bestows the titles had received letters from famous names in support of his nomination, and if approved the actor and comedian could have become Sir Ronnie in the Queen of Englands 90th birthday honours.
Tarbuck, 76, fought back tears as he told Good Morning Britain he was aware of Corbetts illness.
Asked if he knew he had motor neurone disease, Tarbuck said: Yes I did know he wasnt very well, and I knew exactly... sorry Im getting a bit choked... what he had.
And he didnt want to see you. He said I dont want to see you like this, but Id speak to him on the phone. And when you did anything with him or for him, you always got a letter from him, thats how correct he was.
But yes I did know, unfortunately, that he wasnt very well.
Writing in the Daily Mail, a friend of the entertainer, Michael Thornton, said he contacted the UKs Cabinet Office to propose a knighthood several months ago.
He said there was a virtual stampede on the part of celebrated figures when it came to gathering letters in support of the nomination.
At the time Corbett was fighting to survive after being diagnosed with suspected amyotrophic lateral sclerosis a form of motor neurone disease, Mr Thornton said.
According to the Daily Telegraph, a low-key campaign led by comedian David Walliams to include Corbett on the honours list was launched amid concerns over his deteriorating health.
Corbett was made a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) in 2012 but the knighthood eluded him.
Turkey agreed with the EU to take back all migrants and refugees who cross illegally to Greece in exchange for financial aid, faster visa-free travel for Turks, and slightly accelerated EU membership talks.
But the legality of the deal hinges on Turkey being a safe country of asylum, which the rights group said in a report was not the case. Amnesty said it was likely that several thousand refugees had been sent back to Syria in the past seven to nine weeks, flouting Turkish, EU, and international law.
Turkeys foreign ministry denied Syrians were being sent back against their will, while a spokesman for the European Commission said it took the allegations seriously and would raise them with Ankara.
Separately, the UN refugee agency UNHCR said it had asked for access to Syrians returned to Turkey from Greece to ensure people can benefit from effective international protection and to prevent risk of refoulement, referring to unlawful deportations of refugees at risk of persecution.
Ankara said it had maintained an open-door policy for Syrian migrants for five years and strictly abided by the non-refoulement principle. None of the Syrians that have demanded protection from our country are being sent back to their country by force, a foreign ministry official told Reuters.
But Amnesty said testimonies it had gathered in Turkeys southern border provinces suggested authorities had been rounding up and expelling groups of around 100 Syrian men, women, and children almost daily since the middle of January.
In their desperation to seal their borders, EU leaders have wilfully ignored the simplest of facts: Turkey is not a safe country for Syrian refugees and is getting less safe by the day, said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty Internationals director for Europe and Central Asia.
Under the deal, Turkey is supposed to be taking in migrants returned from Greece on April 4, but uncertainty remains over how many will be sent back, how they will be processed, and where they will be housed.
The aim is to close the main route by which 1m migrants and refugees crossed the Aegean Sea to Greece in the last year before heading north, mainly to Germany and Sweden.
Stefan Appleton, 17, was fatally stabbed with a 25in long serrated blade.
An Old Bailey jury deliberated for 14 and a half hours to convict the 17-year-old defendant of manslaughter but clear him of murder.
His alleged getaway scooter driver was cleared of murder while another youth, also 17, was acquitted of conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm.
As the jury delivered its verdicts, there were gasps from Stefans family before they left the courtroom in tears.
The conviction comes just days after Home Secretary Theresa May announced plans to ban the sale, manufacture and importation of Zombie Killer knives which she said glamorise violence and are clearly targeted at young people.
The trial heard how student Stefan had been playing a game with friends by Nightingale Park in Islington, where children were enjoying the summer evening on the swings and slides on Wednesday June 10 last year.
His 17-year-old attacker jumped off the back of a stolen scooter, pulled out the machete-like blade and chased after Stefan and his friends, the court heard.
When Stefan tripped and fell, he was stabbed by the boy while on the ground. He died later in hospital.
As the killer rode off on the back of the moped, he allegedly shouted out RP, standing for Red Pitch, a rival to another gang in the Nightingale Park area.
He fled to Bristol and tried to arrange a flight to Malaga in Spain before returning to lie low in London, but he was arrested within days.
In his defence, the youth, who cannot be named, said he had come under attack when he went to snatch back his bicycle which had been stolen by another boy.
Sentencing was adjourned until April 21.
Business The Irrawaddy Business Roundup (April 2, 2016)
Raft of 11th-hour investment approved; Mandalay power deal sealed; ex-American diplomat pushes sanctions lift; new player in mobile payments; and a Japanese mall-builder eyes Burma.
Outgoing Government Wraps Up Unfinished Business
In almost its last act in power, the previous governments main investment body approved a raft of new projects in a meeting March 25, according to local reports, adding a barrage of deals that appear to have been pushed through in the lame duck period since the formerly ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) lost Novembers election.
Last week the Port Authority announced that it had awarded a potentially lucrative wharf concession in Rangoon to a subsidiary of Kaung Myanmar Aung Group, a conglomerate owned by Khin Maung Aye, an advisor to the now former President Thein Sein.
But, according to a report from Eleven Media this week, that project was also one of five of the groups projects approved by the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) during a bumper final meeting just five days before the handover.
In total 48 projects27 involving local companies, 16 foreign and five joint ventureswere approved by the MIC, a body that oversees large scale investments and has been chaired by ministers in Thein Seins close circle since 2010.
Other approved projects included a cement plant by Shwe Taung Group, owned by tycoon Aike Htun, Eleven Media said. The Myanmar Times said industrial parks, an airline joint venture and beach resorts were also among the investments approved.
The outgoing government also rushed through approvals for Chinese company CITIC to build a port and industrial part at Kyaukphyu in Arakan State, and handed two inland port concessions to a subsidiary of Hong Kong businessman Robert Kwoks Kerry Group.
Also on March 25, the Joint Venture Formation and Tender Selection Work Committee announced that Vietnamese military-owned telecommunications company Viettel was the preferred foreign partner for a fourth mobile phone license the government is planning to award.
Viettel, which made a failed bid to win a telecoms license earlier in the previous governments term, will team up with a local public company named Star High Public Company Limited. This company is under the supervision of the Ministry of Defence as the Government Shareholder, according to the announcement.
It goes on to say that this firma consortium of little known local public companiesowns up to 1,000 towers and around 13,000 kilometres of fibre-optic network, leading many to believe that the existing military phone operator MecTel will be rolled into the fourth license.
22-Year Deal for Mandalay Division Power Plant
The Burmese government has signed a deal to buy power for 22 years from a new gas power plant under development by a Singaporean company.
Sembcorp Utilities announced in December that it had signed an agreement with the Burmese governments Ministry of Electric Power to develop the 225-megawatt plant in Myingyan, close to the Irrawaddy River in Mandalay Division.
The World Banks International Finance Corporation and the Asian Development Bank have both approved financing for the project, which is estimated to be worth a total of about $300 million.
US industrial giant General Electric recently disclosed that it was awarded the contract to supply gas turbines for the project.
Sebmcorp said in a statement on its website Wednesday that it had signed a purchase agreement with the state-run Myanma Electric Power Enterprise to provide 225 megawatts of power to the national grid for 22 years.
The PPA will come into effect upon the fulfilment of certain conditions precedent, including the execution by Myanmars Ministry of Electric Power (MOEP) of the build-own-transfer agreement for the project, pursuant to which MOEP agrees to provide all support for the implementation of the project and guarantees MEPEs payment obligations under the PPA, the announcement said.
Former US Diplomat Joins Calls for Sanctions to Be Relaxed
With power transferred to a democratically elected government this week, a former US chief of mission has added her weight to calls for the American government to ease its sanctions against Burma.
Some sanctions were frozen after the previous administration of President Thein Sein initiated reforms after coming to power. But the measures have not been completely removed from US legislation, and sanctions on individuals and companies said to be linked to the former military regimethose on the so-called Specially Designated Nationals listremain in place.
Priscilla Clapp served in the American Embassy in Rangoon from 1999 to 2002. In a report published last week, she called for a thorough rethink of sanctions against Burma.
Continuing to rely on a sanctions regimedesigned primarily to inhibit US participation in and assistance to Myanmars economy and governmentno longer makes sense, particularly when Western allies and others observe no restrictions on their activities in Myanmar, she said in a report for the Washington-based Council on Foreign Relations.
Washington should therefore restructure the remaining financial sanctions and restrictions to carefully target individuals and entities to promote better behavior, rather than punish bad behavior.
In order to keep the sanctions in place, the US government must renew the International Emergency Economic Powers Act in May. Advocates of sanctions argue that they enable the US government to incentivize continued reforms, but critics like Clapp say the reality on the ground in Burma has changed.
A collection of five US business groups, including the United States Chamber of Commerce, in February wrote to the US Treasury, Commerce and State departments making a similar argument.
The remaining US sanctions are a significant reason why US investment in Myanmar remains modest and Myanmar entrepreneurs cannot truly take advantage of their putative access to the American market, their letter read.
London-Listed Tech Firm Reports on Mobile Money Plans
Burma-facing tech company MySquar says it is moving ahead with plans to set up a service that will allow mobile phone users to transfer cash using a chat applicationincluding across national borders.
The company operates in Burma through apps like MyChat!, which it claims had a combined total of 2 million usersabout 600,000 of them activeas of the end of 2015. It listed on the London Stock Exchanges Alternative Investment Market last yearraising 1.67 million, or about $2.4 millionand therefore submits regular filings.
In its half-yearly report on Wednesday, MySquar said work on a new mobile payments service was progressing well.
In October, MySquar and related company MyPay teamed up with Singapore-based Fastacash, which operates mobile money systems elsewhere in Asia, and will provide similar technology to MyPay.
Once the payment features go live, which is anticipated to commence in Q3 of the calendar year 2016, MyCHAT will offer various additional services to its users, the filing said.
Additional services are expected to include cross-border money transfer [millions of Myanmar people who work overseas in Thailand, UAE, Malaysia, Singapore among other countries send millions of dollars every year to their families in Myanmar], domestic money transfer, payment services for digital products and games, payment services for voice calls, points of sales, and coupons for marketing and promotion purposes.
Several companies have announced mobile money services to capitalize on growing smartphone usage in Burma, although clear regulations have not yet been announced by the government.
Japanese Mall Builder Looks to Burma: Report
Japans largest retailer, Aeon, is reportedly considering an expansion into Burma, as it increases its presence in Southeast Asias growing consumer market.
Subsidiary Aeon Mall already has 24 stores in Malaysia, one shopping center in Indonesia and one in Cambodias capital. It is opening five more new in Indonesia, four in Vietnam, and a second mall in Phnom Penh, The Nation reports.
Citing a company executive, the Bangkok-based newspaper said the company has a 2020 strategy to become the No. 1 retailer in the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) bloc, where nascent efforts toward economic integration are now underway.
That could include building malls in Burma.
The company is also studying the feasibility of business development in Thailand, Laos and Myanmar, and hopes to have its first Aeon Mall property in Thailand by 2020, Mitsugu Tamai, director and executive general manager for Aeon Malls Asean division, was paraphrased saying.
Microsoft's Windows, which in 2015 fell to third place among the world's operating systems, will continue to lose share this year to both Android and Apple's combined OS X and iOS, Gartner said today.
Not until 2017 will Windows begin to recoup some of the losses it's sustained since 2013, Gartner said in its latest device forecast.
The continued decline of Windows makes Microsoft's job of pivoting to explorations of cross-platform opportunities all the more pressing. And it goes a long way to explain Redmond's drumbeat of new strategies, including this week's announcement that it will pursue a "conversations as a platform" initiative that aims to put automated assistants, or "bots," front and center on not just Windows, but also Android and iOS.
According to Gartner, which provided Computerworld with its forecast broken out by operating systems, Windows will power about 283 million devices shipped in 2015, a 3.4% year-over-year decline. The 283 million represents 11.7% of the total of 2.4 billion devices shipped, over 80% of that number smartphones, and the majority of those smartphones running Google's Android. Six months ago, Gartner's forecast had pegged Windows in 2016 at 308 million devices, or 12.9% of the total.
Gartner regularly downsized its estimates of both total devices shipped and Windows' portion of those shipments throughout 2015. The trend continued into 2016.
In fact, last September, Gartner predicted that Windows would not slip behind Apple's combined OS X and iOS until 2017. But according to the research firm's latest data, Windows dropped to No. 3 in 2015, thanks to Apple shipping 297 million OS X/iOS devices -- 4 million more than Windows -- and grabbing the second spot behind way-way-out-there Android and its leading 1.3 billion devices.
In Gartner's current forecast, Windows will dip 3.4% in 2016 to 283 million devices shipped while Apple's OS X/iOS will climb 2.1% to 303 million. By the end of the forecast window -- the calendar year 2018 -- Windows will be even farther behind, shipping 298 million devices compared to Apple's 334 million.
If Gartner's prognostications are on target, Apple will ship more OS X/iOS devices in 2018 than OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) did of Windows systems in 2013.
Overall, Gartner's latest forecast continued the trend of pessimism not only for Windows, but for all device shipments. The researcher now believes 2.41 billion computing devices will ship in 2016 -- 80.4% of them smartphones -- compared to a same-year prediction of 2.46 billion made in the fall of 2015.
Not surprisingly, the majority of the forecast reduction was pegged to smartphones, whose growth will slip into single digits for the first time.
"The double-digit growth era for the global smartphone market has come to an end," said Ranjit Atwal, a Gartner analyst, in a statement. "Historically, worsening economic conditions had negligible impact on smartphone sales and spend, but this is no longer the case. China and North America smartphone sales are on pace to be flat in 2016, exhibiting a 0.7% and 0.4% growth respectively."
Traditional PCs, more mobile designs, and tablets will also take beatings of various kinds this year, Gartner asserted.
The most bruised? Traditional personal computers. Shipments of those machines will slump to just 228 million, a 6.6% decline. Although what Gartner called "ultra-mobiles" -- such as Apple's MacBook and MacBook Air notebooks, and Microsoft's Surface Pro 2-in-1 -- will climb 26.7% to 57 million this year, even that hot design category won't make up the difference. Together, the two categories are expected to result in 285 million shipments, 1.4% fewer than in 2015.
Gartner, like Microsoft and Windows OEMs, bet on Windows 10 to drag the ever-broader "PC" category out of the doldrums next year. Analysts assumed that in 2017, shipments will increase by 3.9% to 296 million.
"In 2016, the PC market will reach its last year of decline before returning to growth in 2017," Atwal said. "The biggest challenge, and potential benefit for the PC market, is the integration of Windows 10 with Intel's Skylake architecture. It has the potential for new form factors with more attractive features."
If that sounds vaguely familiar, it should. Nine months ago, Gartner forecast that 2016's PC + ultra-mobile shipments would rise 3.7%. Then, Atwal hedged his bet on Windows 10, saying, "Windows 10 could boost replacements during 2016 [emphasis added]," but anticipated that growth would return to the PC business in the year.
Nope.
is never one to shy away from a good experiment. It looks like the latest is a new group messaging app called Spaces.
According to Android lice, the app appears to be a mini-social network that a group of friends or family members could use for shared conversations inside of a splashy interface.
Android lice A leaked product shot reveals what could be a new messaging app from .
The leaked screenshots show photos, social invites, web links, other content shared among all of those involved in the chat. It appears the angle is to better organize different groups of those you have frequent conversations with: one for co-workers, another for the children, perhaps one for close friends. Its a decent idea, but Android is awash with plenty of messaging apps.
us, the ubiquity of the phone number still makes SMS the easiest method.
y this matters: Hangouts has been kind of a bust, as many users complain of its bugginess inconsistent performance across platforms. Messaging is more about sharing media these days, particularly with the success of apps like Snapchat Facebook Messenger. is always one to go after a new idea, even if it doesnt turn out to be a final product. So we may see this one day, or it could never make it out of the lab.
The Canadian phone maker BlackBerry Ltd has just released its financials for its fiscal fourth quarter, and the results show that the company only managed to sell 600,000 units of its smartphones over the three-month period, almost 30% drop in revenue underscores its struggles to revive its handset business.
The 600,000 unit sales fall short of Wall Street's expectations, which predicted that BlackBerry would hit 850,000 units for the quarter. Furthermore, the latest results also mark a decrease from the 700,000 units BlackBerry sold in the previous quarter.
Chief Executive Officer John Chen built a turnaround plan on acquiring security software companies and selling their products to businesses and governments. Though Chen insisted the hardware side of the business would reach profitability by September with the help of a new handset and selling smartphone applications, he admitted the Android-based Priv. phone wasn't selling as well as he'd hoped.
Chen still believes BlackBerry is in no immediate danger and the phone business can return to profitability later in the year. Whether he's right is very much an open question - BlackBerry's total revenue for the 2016 fiscal year fell to $2.1 billion, down from $3.3 billion in FY 2015.
Seeking Alpha notes that "A healthy balance sheet means BlackBerry still has a sizable runway to pursue its turnaround efforts," and that's true - but it's also worth noting that to date, BlackBerry's turnaround efforts simply haven't yielded the fruit the company needs if it wants to remain in the business of designing and selling smartphones.
"People do like our Priv., but there's a much more limited audience and that segment seems to be saturated at the moment," Chen said on a conference call. "The number-one goal that the company has is to continue to ramp the software and services."
"I truly believe that we are very close in being able to break even or start to make money in device[s]," he added.
DOUGLAS Cody Barney, single father of three, leaned against the side of his pickup, took a drag of his cigarette and summoned the strength to lose his job.
It was shortly before 8 a.m. in the Holiday Inn parking lot, and the April wind was bitter cold. Barney spent 15 years working in field maintenance at Peabody Energy's North Antelope Rochelle Mine.
But instead of reporting to work, as he would have most mornings, he steered his red Ford Super Duty to the hotel here along the West Yellowstone Highway. Nothing about what waited inside appeared welcoming.
Earlier in the week, Barney was one of 235 miners to receive a letter telling him not to return to work on Friday. Then, on Thursday, the public announcement came. Peabody was cutting 15 percent of its 1,385-person workforce at America's largest coal mine.
"All right, boys," Barney said, with a flick of his cigarette, to three miners idling by a truck nearby. The group gathered, shared a brief laugh and disappeared inside.
Barney returned alone an hour later, a thin blue envelope in hand.
"It's not a good feeling," he said. "You have to move on. Look for work."
For Wyoming, the question of where laid-off miners like Barney find their next paycheck is now a pressing one. The state's oil and gas fields are dormant. Its machine shops are quiet. Unemployment is on the rise.
And coal, Wyoming's bedrock industry, is now in serious decline. Arch Coal joined Peabody in making a massive cut to its Cowboy State payroll on Thursday, letting 230 employees go from its Black Thunder Mine near Wright.
Coal accounted for roughly 14 percent of Wyoming's gross domestic product, 6 percent of its labor force and 11 percent of all government revenues in 2012, when the coal market was near its height. The average Wyoming miner's salary is $85,000.
At a news conference Thursday in Cheyenne, Gov. Matt Mead was asked if he was concerned about a mass exodus from the state.
"Obviously it is a concern," the governor said. "People need to be able to work and feed themselves, feed their families and have insurance. And when good jobs at the coal mine are lost and there isnt available immediate jobs that satisfy the career goals of those folks, its understandable that they may look elsewhere."
Mead deployed a rapid-response team to help prevent such an exodus. The Department of Insurance will be helping laid-off miners go over their health care options, including those available to them under the Affordable Care Act. The Department of Workforce Services is helping with unemployment and alerting miners to potential job openings and other resources. And community colleges will be honing their programs to offer additional job training.
The governor spoke of trying to bring a large-scale industrial park to the state. Yet even those plans, he conceded, are little consolation to those who lost their jobs.
"Those are longer-term solutions, and for the miners today who are feeling the impact, that may be a long-term help to them," Mead said. "But I dont want to create false hope that there is going to be an industrial park opened up there next week."
Louise Carter-King, the mayor of Gillette, said she was not worried about a mass departure from her city. Its schools, parks and other public amenities make Gillette a desirable place to live, she said.
The mayor spoke of reimagining Gillette and bringing new industry to the city. But she provided few details of what that might entail. Carter-King instead cited the coordinated economic development efforts of local officials in northeast Wyoming and noted Gillette's pool of skilled laborers now in need of work.
A new business that would create 120 jobs could be coming to town, she said. The details, the mayor added, were confidential.
Many miners interviewed Friday said they preferred to stay in Wyoming. Their families are here. They like the schools and said it is safe for their kids.
But they said they would pursue work where they found it.
Eric Winslow, a Douglas resident and father of two who was laid off Friday after 10 years at North Antelope Rochelle, said he planned to go back to Casper College. His wife has a good job, but it won't pay the bills.
"Im going to have to find something today, or tomorrow or the next day. Even if it's 10 bucks an hour," Winslow said. "Im definitely going to retrain myself into something else. This boom and bust sh** now that I got kids."
He trailed off. Winslow grew up in Cheyenne and moved to Colorado after school before heading to Douglas to work for Peabody. The Wyoming native said he didn't see himself leaving his home state again, but he isn't against moving on if an opportunity presents itself.
"Id pull up in a heartbeat," he said. Later, he added, "This place is going to be a dust bowl. Drive through here and look at all the houses for sale here. So thats why Im going to have to scratch out and survive here, go to school, wash dishes, do whatever a guy's got to do."
Barney, the single father of three, sounded a similar note. He grew up on a ranch in Medicine Bow.
"Those of us from Wyoming would prefer to stay," he said. "But those of us raising kids, we have to look for work."
During an address to the League of Women Voters Greater Verde Valley March 21, at Yavapai College Verde Valley Campus, David Wells offered a highly personal story one that cast himself and his family in a vulnerable light.
I did not want to put my son in the position of being a felon, the Arizona State University professor and research director of the Grand Canyon Institute said. But thats what Ive done.
The story began innocently enough. Recently, Wells son stole various items from Wells household and sold them for $110 to a pawn shop. Looking to teach the young man a lesson, Wells reported him to the police, resulting in an arrest.
Wells expectations that his son would be charged with a class 6 misdemeanor, the least severe criminal charge in the state quickly proved unfounded: Due to prior minor convictions and the trafficking of items at a pawn shop, Wells son was charged with a class 2 felony.
For context, Wells added, first class murder is a class 1 felony, only one place removed from the category in which his son was placed for stealing and selling $110 in goods.
It just seems way overboard, Wells concluded.
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Such alleged injustices were the topic of Wells presentation, Prison Crisis: Why is Arizona in the Top 10 States in Incarceration?
According to Wells, In 2002, Arizona spent 40 percent more on higher education than it did on prisons. Today, Arizona spends almost 60 percent more on incarceration than for higher education. Private prison contracts lock the state into 20-year occupancy agreements.
The state guarantees to nearly fill the facility or pay as if it were nearly full. Meanwhile, states like New York have half the incarceration rate of Arizona and have cut crime rates at the same time.
This reality has inspired Wells to assert that Arizona needs to rethink its priorities to focus more on alternatives and transition services aimed to reduce recidivism, especially for nonviolent offenders and drug-induced crime.
Wells focused on more than these priorities, however, delving into the specifics of the states legislative process.
Currently, Arizona is the only state in the union to retain Truth In Sentencing laws for nonviolent offenders guaranteeing that every individual sentenced to prison will serve at least 85 percent of their term.
Wells would like to see a move toward Earned Release programs, which allow inmates to reduce their prison sentences through good behavior and continue with probation.
Sponsored probation with drug treatment options would cost one-fourth as much, and theres no loss to public safety and likely reduced recidivism, Wells said, adding that the intractability of state legislators makes such changes difficult. But these are peoples lives that are impacted.
Wells also criticized lawmakers for adding new criminal laws without substantial oversight to determine if punishments fit crimes.
For instance, if you collect and turn in a neighbors ballot at a polling place, you could be found guilty of a class 6 felony and sentenced to up to one year in prison.
For advocates like Wells, that eventuality is unacceptable for something he views as so minor and it reveals how indebted lawmakers are to an ideal: Generally, they think, If Im tough on crime, Im doing a good thing . Lesgislators generally dont take crimes off the books; they only add.
Here in North Dakota, simply traveling from town to town is very time-consuming. Distances are long here, and while those long stretches of highway provide plenty of business for my paving company, it also means managing different jobsites is time-consuming. On top of that, we have a short work season and work throughout the region, on jobs in North Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota and Minnesota, which adds even greater distance.
Fortunately, my company has its own aircraft, a Cessna 206, that makes getting to multiple places quickly a lot easier. At least once a week, sometimes more, I fly to our jobsites to meet with engineers, inspect progress, bring critical parts that would otherwise hold up work, or bid on new projects.
Recently, after being hit by lightning, our asphalt plant in Redshirt, S.D., near the Black Hills, was out of commission. I flew to the plant through the night with our mechanic (and his specialized tools and parts) in order to minimize plant down-time in the morning. The unmatched versatility of general aviation allowed us to get the plant operational without losing the next workday.
I am not alone. General aviation in North Dakota alone represents $856 million in total economic output, and airports in the state support more than 12,000 jobs. It also makes a considerable difference in the lives and communities of North Dakota. I volunteer with Angel Flight, which provides flights to patients to receive specialized medical care in other regions of the country at no cost. I also volunteer with LightHawk, which lends aerial support to conservation efforts. During the 2014 saltwater pipeline spill near Bear Den Bay, I took a student from the University of North Dakota to document the extent of damage, particularly to the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara tribes (MHA Nation).
But on the other side of the country inside the beltway, some interests are now pressuring Congress to privatize the air traffic control system. Theyve proposed removing congressional oversight of our aviation system and giving control to a private board. While this all sounds good and well enough, the biggest commercial interests the same ones that have already cut service to towns by 20 percent would be running our air traffic control system. You can imagine where this will leave small businesses, airports and rural communities last.
We should be investing in our communities and small businesses, and we should all be investing more in our national aviation infrastructure. Lets ensure that our aviation system continues to serve communities of all sizes, not big commercial interests.
In the last few columns, I have concentrated on Lent, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection, but I had several questions I did not cover. So I am catching up this week.
Q: Why is Easter called Easter? And would Jesus, his disciples, and Paul eat pork to celebrate?
Answer: We do not know with certainty why the day Jesus was resurrected is called Easter. The word Easter was not mentioned in the earliest scriptures. It is, however, used in The King James Version in Acts 12:4, And when he (the King) had apprehended him (Peter), he put him in prison and delivered him to soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.
Some feel that this was not an accurate translation.
The New King James Version gives a different word for Easter used in the passage, Pascha, Latin, or Pesach, Hebrew, which means Passover. Passover has been celebrated since the time of Moses, when the Jewish people were delivered from bondage and their first-born child was spared. It is also true that Jesus was crucified during the annual Jewish Passover.
Since the word Easter was only used in one version of the Bible, we look to the popular but unsubstantiated theory that the name was taken from an Anglo-Saxon goddess, Easter, Eastre or Eostre whose symbol was a hare signifying fertility or new life.
The first available reference to this point is in the writings of the English monk, Bede (672-735). Bede wrote that Easter was named after a goddess and that it celebrated the coming of Spring and new life. We find similar stories and legends that do not come with proof, but do present common threads of beliefs.
In our celebration of Easter, many are offended by the commercialization of Easter. We must remember that rabbits and eggs have long been significant symbols of new life; yet the emphasis on that sometimes overshadows the message of Jesus resurrection. Christians should be careful to emphasize the empty tomb and our hope of life everlasting.
As to the second part of the question about eating ham, it is clear that Judaism forbade the eating of pork. It is interesting that Jesus said in Matthew 15:11, Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.
Q: After reading the first half of the Islamic Koran and finding many of the same characters, including Jesus, that are in the Christian and Jewish scriptures, I have reached the conclusion that Jews, Muslims, and Christians all worship the same God. What do you think?
Answer: Christians claim that the New Testament is the fulfillment of the Old Testament and that the God of Israel is the Father of Jesus Christ. Muslims acknowledge many of the prophets found in the Old and New Testaments, including Jesus. They affirm that Muhammad was the last and greatest prophet.
A big difference in these religions and their understanding of God is that Judaism and Islam accept the prophets as spokespersons for God, and Christianity claims Jesus was God in human form. Thus, to worship God is to worship Jesus Christ. Judaism and Islam do not accept the divinity of Jesus. In that sense, they do not worship the same God.
All three religions are monotheistic, believing there is one God. In this sense, it is easy to say all three worship the same God, but call him by different names.
I do believe from all I have read in sacred scriptures that religion should unite us, not divide us. A realization that there is a supreme creative force and that we are all the product of that force would engender a sense of oneness; therefore, I ask a theologically question.
Is there one Creator God?. If so, we are all children of that God, and we are brothers and sisters. If we affirm this in our daily lives, all wars, hate, and hostility would be reduced to family spats.
RALEIGH If Republicans have been attempting to suppress the vote in North Carolina, they must be the most incompetent tyrants in modern American history.
On March 15, some 2.3 million North Carolinians cast ballots in the Democratic, Republican, and Libertarian primaries for president, governor, U.S. Senate, and other offices. That comes to about 36 percent of all registered voters. The turnout rate was similar to the 37 percent who voted in the 2008 presidential primaries and the 35 percent who voted in the 2012 primaries. During the 1990s and early 2000s, presidential primary turnouts in North Carolina ranged from 16 percent to 31 percent.
This years primaries were the first to be held under a set of new election rules that included both a more compact early-voting schedule and a requirement that voters either show a photo ID or sign an affidavit attesting to one of several specified exceptions. It was also the first time in decades that North Carolina held its primaries earlier than May.
None of these changes appears to have had a substantial effect on turnout. None suppressed the vote. Under the new early voting rules, North Carolinians may have fewer days to cast ballots but there are also more early-voting sites and more hours in each day to vote. The truth is that there has never been a strong empirical relationship between early voting and voter participation. Some states with early voting have seen substantial gains in turnout. But states without early voting have seen comparable gains.
As it happens, this years primaries have demonstrated precisely why North Carolinas new policy is better than its old one. In many states, voters have cast ballots weeks early for presidential candidates who then dropped out of the race before Election Day. These voters might well have chosen to vote for a different candidate, which in some cases would have resulted in a different winner and delegate allocation.
Early voting is a convenience, certainly, but it also prevents voters from reacting to late-breaking developments in a campaign. Its probably wise for states to strike a balance, to offer a relatively short early-voting period but one in which there are many sites and long hours. Thats what North Carolina has done.
It should be noted that two other election-law changes from 2013 getting rid of same-day registration during early voting and limiting out-of-precinct voting on Election Day were not in force this year because of a federal injunction. But these provisions were in force in 2014. Again, they didnt have a notable effect on voter participation. Indeed, getting rid of out-of-precinct voting, while causing some inconvenience for voters who show up at the wrong precinct late the day, will otherwise increase voter participation in district-level elections, because theyll have the proper ballots for their precincts.
According to early reports, about 40,000 North Carolinians cast provisional ballots in this years primaries. In a quarter of the cases, they claimed to be registered voters but there seemed to be no registration record for them. In other cases, registered Democrats attempted to vote in the GOP presidential primary, or vice versa. Obviously, many of the provisional ballots wont be counted.
Was the new voter ID requirement responsible for a significant percentage of these provisional ballots? No. Approximately 2,400 North Carolinians voted provisionally because of problems with ID compliance. Thats about one-tenth of one percent of all the voters who showed up.
By all means, the state should continue good-faith efforts to assist those who lack acceptable IDs. If that means straightening out preexisting problems with birth certificates or other paperwork, fine. Those without valid identification lack access to many other institutions and services. Addressing such problems will benefit them greatly.
As to the larger issue, Im sure that the Left will continue to allege voter suppression. It fits their preferred narrative and advances their preferred political agenda. But it doesnt comport with the facts. Voter turnout after the 2013 enactment of North Carolinas election reforms has been at or above previous levels.
This weeks event: State Attorney General Roy Cooper says he won't defend 'the bathroom bill,' House Bill 2, in court.
Suzanne Carroll: 8. Good for him, it should be repealed not defended.
Tony Gagliardi: The story and the situation rates a 0. The AG is a loser again for refusing to do his job.
His legal excuse is that HB 2 is in direct conflict with two state-level departmental policies. Here's a newsflash: A law will overrule a policy every time. Every state employee is charged with doing their job. If they don't like it, find a job you can do.
Kristen Machado: 10. Kudos to Cooper for taking a stand against this discriminatory legislation that has proved to be a tremendous embarrassment to the state of North Carolina, with long-lasting economic consequences as more and more companies restrict travel or refuse to do business here. It is not a bathroom law, but rather a concerted effort to rescind equal rights protections for the LGBT community. I'm proud to have an attorney general who won't kowtow to the hate-mongers.
Keith Lyall: Cooper should either recuse himself or resign. The AG is sworn to uphold the law.
His opposition, while I assume genuine, is clearly driven by his personal political ambi-tions and should not be allowed to override his taxpayer-paid job to advocate on behalf of the people of N.C. and their elected officials in Raleigh.
David McMahon: 6. While I abhor the regressive, restrictive nature of HB2, I also feel that Attorney General Roy Cooper is not allowed by the North Carolina Constitution or state law to decide which laws to defend. He is making this statement as a political maneuver to build support for his campaign for governor. Coopers statement that HB2 is a national embarrassment is, sadly, too true and Governor McCrory and the Republican-led General Assembly seem bent on beating out Mississippi in a race to the bottom in every measure of political, economic and educational quality of life.
Anne Wilson: This latest N.C. General Assembly/McCrory debacle is in the same cate-gory as the voter suppression law, which Roy Cooper also refused to defend. He knows it is unconstitutional, short-lived, and not worthy of defense. The continued idiocy of our elected officials is astounding, and hopefully will be a wake-up call for the November election. I give our attorney general and next governor a generous 10.
Charles Francis Wilson: We as citizens of this once great state should be proud. We have again made national news. Our legislature has managed to make us the number one discriminatory state in the nation. Roy Cooper deserves our applause and appreciation for refusing to defend this senseless, unconstitutional law. He gets a 10.
JoAnn Dunn: 0. Slowly but surely, the LGBT group, with financial support from liberal groups, is using the courts and the enormous costs involved to deprive woman and children of the right to use bathrooms and locker rooms without having to watch men undress and use the facilities. The finger pointing is always at those who do not understand the trauma faced by those with different gender identities. What about the trauma of a child being exposed to men and boys while she is using the same facilities? Hopefully this will ensure that Roy Cooper will lose the election.
Shane Thrapp: 8. This is huge. The state's top attorney will not fight for his state over a bill that is discriminatory to the LGBT community. Good for him. I am so glad that he is standing up to Pat McCrory.
This is such a monumentally disastrous bill. While McCrory tells the people so many businesses have approved this Oh really? No backlash? Seriously? Pat McCrory is a failure of a governor.
Don Witte: 10. Absurd HB 2, and very discriminatory, period. Cannot and should not be defended. Let the governor and Senate leader Phil Berger defend it and pay for it themselves.
Derrick Hinson: 8. The leaders of the Democratic Party rejoiced when the institution of marriage definition was perverted after 5,000 years of historical tradition. They want to enforce a court-driven proclamation in the face of religious freedom. Now reason has ruled in the people's legislature to stop the madness of people with confused sexual identities from using whatever restroom/locker room suits them. Attorney General Roy Cooper is derelict in his duty to enforce N.C. laws. We can only hope this is the death knell of his campaign for governor.
Jim Monroe: 0. I guess I'm confused by what the job of the attorney general is. My thought is that it his job to defend whatever craziness the legislature comes up with that happens to be signed by the governor. That makes it a state law, doesn't it?
He's running for the governor's office in November so that certainly gives him the right to personally disagree, but it doesn't give him the right to decide he's not going to defend a valid law in the state that gives him a paycheck. His choice should be defend it or re-sign.
John Harrison: 10. Public ambivalence over the 'bathroom bill' was to be expected. The partisan use of this issue to diminish the governing powers of local authorities and further circumscribe the rights and protections of a minority, ignoring the cost to taxpayers and the economic impact it may have on the state, is indefensible. It is hypocritical when en-acted by a party that claims to deplore big, intrusive government. Roy Cooper is right.
Deb Phillips: 1. Beyond all the political gamesmanship, there is a serious concern: To-days steady stream of so-called anti-discrimination initiatives are a blatant assault on the fundamental rights on which free societies are built and remain strong.
As attorney general, if Roy Cooper repeatedly will not protect our most basic rights, why, pray tell, should he become our next governor?
Hayes McNeill: 0. This abuse of power shows the damage unbridled political arrogance can wreak on our state. Drafted in secret, rammed through without discussion or debate, many believe its real purpose was a ploy to create a hot-button issue for incumbents this fall.
The rolling disapproval of citizens and businesses and the shame brought to the state demands we quit such cheap tricks calculated to distract voters -- and return to a robust two-party system with the checks and balances our founders wanted.
Clint Johnson: 0. Why does it always seem to be Democrats who don't want to follow the laws that have been passed by the people's representatives? Remember when Democratic President Obama instructed his Democratic Justice Department not to defend the Defense of Marriage Act -- passed by a huge margin of both Republicans and Democrats, and signed into law by Democratic President Bill Clinton?
Conservatives are told all the time: Sorry, You have to accept abortion because it is the law of the land. Keeping men out of women's restrooms and women out of men's restrooms is the law of the land in North Carolina, but our Democrat attorney general lazily says: I don't care what the law says. I won't do the job I am paid by the North Carolina taxpayers to do.
I am one of those Carolinians who can't keep up with the always-changing definitions of transgender, transsexuals, gender neutral, etc. What I do know, however, is that an extremely tiny fraction of the gay community is always ready to scream bigot if anyone questions the right of a grown man to follow a little girl into the woman's bathroom.
I do find it interesting that on the same day this question is asked, New York City is all atwitter about the rape of a transgender woman in a unisex restroom at The Stonewall Inn, a famous gay bar. Our Carolina-based LBGT activists have regularly assured every-one that kind of attack would never, ever happen. Well, it seems like it just did.
Linda Hill: 8. Here we go again. Attorney General Cooper is a public servant and it is in his job description to defend the state and protect its citizens. I assume that nowhere in his job description is there a clause that allows him to pick and choose what laws he will defend. Does his job offer an a la carte option?
Is this not similar to the case of the public servant in Kentucky who was refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples? If my memory serves me correctly, there was out-rage and off with her head cries from the media and supporters of same-sex unions. I voiced my opinion then that if she could not follow the rules, according to her job description as a public servant, she should either be fired or resign from her position. I feel the same way about Cooper. In fact, the state was forced to hire outside attorneys to sit beside Cooper during the challenge to the state's law banning same-sex unions because he could not be trusted to carry out his direction, per his job description, to defend the state in that matter.
I can think of better ways to spend our tax dollars than hiring attorneys to do a job when we have a perfectly capable attorney, but untrustworthy, one in Cooper. Lack of trust in our public servants is never a good thing.
In the private sector, if an employee decides to not carry out a task assigned to him or her because he or she does not agree with the boss or supervisor; would they not be fired?
Attorney General Cooper's supporters are applauding his announcement that he will not defend the state in a lawsuit challenging the so-called bathroom law. No matter how you or I feel about the law, an attorney general should not be allowed to decide what laws he will defend. End of story.
Ken Hoglund: 1. Attorney General Cooper has sworn an oath to serve in his current role. Considering he is running for governor, and if he truly disagrees with this law, the appropriate thing is to step down immediately or face the equivalence of impeachment for failing to do his job.
Attorneys often defend guilty people and people they don't like or disagree with. This law, legally passed and signed, is entitled to the same vigorous defense. Like the woman in Kentucky who refused to issue marriage licenses, whether I agreed with her or not, she had to choose between her oath of office or her faith.
By of the
Former Wisconsin Sen. Bob Kasten said Saturday he will be part of Donald Trumps foreign policy team.
Kasten planned to endorse Trump and appear with the GOP frontrunner Saturday at a rally in Racine. He said he was supporting Trump because of his job creation background and called him the best hope for economic growth.
Kasten, who served in the US Senate from 1981 to 1993, said he would like to play a role in smoothing things over between Trump and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. Walker has endorsed Trumps leading rival, Ted Cruz, and Trump has bashed Walkers record as governor.
I hope if I stay involved in this campaign I might be one of those who can put a bridge back between Scott Walker and Donald Trump, said Kasten. Its just unfortunate in the heat of politics and debates there has been a little too much back and forth.
Asked about Trumps part in the divisions within the party over his candidacy, Kasten said: Hes never run for public office, and I believe that every day hes learning and getting better. I believe hes going to able to become a uniter.
Kasten said he was invited by Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions to a recent meeting in Washington with Trump and agreed to help on defense and foreign policy.
By of the
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas leads New York businessman Donald Trump among Republicans and former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton leads independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont among Democrats in Wisconsin according to the Loras College Poll that was issued Saturday.
It was the first time the Dubuque, Ia.-based college had conducted a poll in Wisconsin.
The presidential primaries are Tuesday.
Among likely Republican voters, Cruz had 38%, Trump had 31% and Ohio Gov. John Kasich had 18%, survey results that were in line with other recent polls.
Clinton led among Democrats with 47% while Sanders was at 41%. Those results are seemingly at odds with other polls, including the Marquette University Law School Poll that showed Sanders with a 4-point lead.
In the race for state Supreme Court, Justice Rebecca Bradley was supported by 39%,, while Appeals Court Judge JoAnne Kloppenburg had 35% support. Twenty-six percent of respondents were undecided.
The Loras College Poll surveyed 1,000 likely primary voters, Monday and Tuesday with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1%. Among likely Republican and Democratic voters the margin of error was plus or minus 4.8%.
There was a time when Wisconsin's presidential primary offered the state a chance to strut its stuff, with candidates, their entourages and news media descending for a brief but furious Main Street campaign that captured the essence of the Badger State.
This year, with the election set for Tuesday, the circus can't leave town soon enough.
With Gov. Scott Walker serving as a convenient punching bag, some of the major candidates for president have spoken in unflattering (and untrue) terms about the Wisconsin economy. If you're a voter following the Wisconsin primary from afar, you might conclude Wisconsin is a debt-ridden state filled with impoverished, unmotivated people who can't find jobs.
The Wisconsin economy may not be firing on all cylinders, but some of the things being said about the state simply aren't correct.
Take businessman Donald Trump's assertion that Wisconsin's total state debt is $45 billion. When reporters at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel checked that claim, they discovered it's more like $14.1 billion a number that includes all general obligation bonds, road bonds and short-term loans. That number comes from the respected, bipartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau, which is Wisconsin's equivalent of the Congressional Budget Office.
The $14.1 billion state debt is up about $860 million, or 6.5%, from the $13.2 billion inherited in December 2010 by Walker before he took office. If Trump wants to disparage states for their debt, just look at few miles south to Illinois, which has one of the nation's largest per capita debt loads and an unfunded pension liability to match. Wisconsin's state pension system, on the other hand, is one of the nation's healthiest.
Trump also said Wisconsin has an effective unemployment rate of 20%, another claim promptly discredited by PolitiFact. The state's ordinary or "U-3" unemployment was 4.6% in February, slightly less than the U.S. average of 4.9%. The U-3 rate is one of six calculated by the U.S. Labor Department, with the U-6 rate including people who are unemployed and "marginally attached workers." Those are workers who are not in the labor force but available for work, as well as people who work part-time and who want to work full-time.
The U-6 rate is calculated once a year. Wisconsin's U-6 rate for 2015 was 8.3% a lot less than Trump's 20% claim.
Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have also gotten into the act, portraying Wisconsin at times as a state that has lost its way economically, politically and socially. Not surprisingly, much of that ire is aimed at Republican Walker, who must be wondering by now if he's still somehow on the presidential ballot.
Before the rest of the nation concludes Wisconsin is an economic basket case, let's remind ourselves and others beyond our borders there are things to envy about the state's economy.
It's diverse, with sectors ranging from manufacturing to agriculture to tourism to technology, where the combination of information technology, life sciences and engineering accounts for at least 130,000 well-paid jobs. That diversity helps to buffer the state when national and global downturns occur.
Wisconsin companies are selling high-quality products and services around the world. Trade supports 750,000 jobs in Wisconsin, according to one recent estimate, and talk of closing borders will kill far more jobs than it will save. Foreign investment in Wisconsin creates jobs, as well.
Despite budget cuts, the state's higher education system is still strong, with the University of Wisconsin-Madison routinely ranking among the nation's top five research universities. The academic R&D capacity of the Milwaukee region is expanding, as well.
The state is often dinged for not producing enough start-up companies, but there's evidence that tech-based start-ups in Wisconsin are gaining traction and not just in Madison.
Wisconsin has its economic flaws, of course. Parts of the state have yet to fully recover from the 2008 recession; people in many rural communities wonder how and why the global economy passed them by; and people in many urban neighborhoods worry that crime, education gaps and social problems will trap them in poverty forever.
Those are issues in many states, not just Wisconsin, so it's unfortunate when presidential candidates miss that bigger picture and say dumb things that live on in branding cyberspace for years. Tuesday's votes cannot be counted quickly enough.
Tom Still is president of the Wisconsin Technology Council. Its Wisconsin Innovation Network meets in Wauwatosa. Contact him at news@wisconsintechnologycouncil.com.
The Spot 4MKE featured picnic tables, public art and events on a city-owned parking lot along W. Wisconsin Ave., between N. 4th and N. 5th streets. It operated for around six months last summer and fall but has been suspended. Credit: Project for Public Spaces
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When The Spot 4MKE's supporters recently announced the project's suspension, they tied that decision to a possible sale of the downtown site for commercial development.
However, city documents, obtained by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel through an open records request, focus on project sponsor Creative Alliance Milwaukee's inability to raise funds to continue doing events and other activities on part of the city-owned parking lot along W. Wisconsin Ave., between N. 4th and N. 5th streets.
Alliance President Maggie Jacobus, in a Dec. 18 email to Department of City Development officials and others, recommended her nonprofit group be paid $100,000 annually to manage the project for it to continue.
In the alternative, Jacobus said a larger organization or developer could take over the project. The Creative Alliance should then receive a $50,000 exit fee for "the rights to the concept, the name, the brand, the relationships, the leases, etc.," she wrote.
The alliance needs sustained and adequate funding "to move this successful project to the next level," Jacobus said in her memo.
Neither suggestion, nor additional pleas from the alliance, resulted in the group obtaining money. And, by early February, the decision was made to suspend the project.
Jacobus said Friday that the funding and development issues are intertwined. Uncertainty about the alliance having long-term control of the site affects fundraising efforts, she said.
"There's a chicken and egg nuance to this project," Jacobus said.
Meanwhile, there is interest from sponsors to help revive The Spot 4MKE elsewhere, Jacobus said.
However, the public records show unhappiness among sponsors of The Spot 4MKE, which during its short run brought public art, food vendors and outdoor events to the site near the Wisconsin Center convention facility and Grand Avenue mall.
The alliance's fundraising challenges became apparent in December and January, around six months after The Spot 4MKE was launched.
"I remain very concerned with (the alliance's) ability to do this," Stephen Chernof wrote in a Jan. 14 email to city Development Commissioner Richard "Rocky" Marcoux.
Chernof, who declined to comment for this article, is an attorney and chair of Wisconsin Avenue Milwaukee Development Corp., a nonprofit group that leads efforts to improve W. Wisconsin Ave. That group, funded by local businesses, paid the Creative Alliance $15,000 to bring activity to the parking lot, a longtime downtown dead zone.
Also, two March 9 emails to Chernof and Marcoux, who also declined to comment, from Julia Taylor, Greater Milwaukee Committee president, referenced negative comments about The Spot 4MKE from Philip Winn, vice president of the Project for Public Spaces.
That New York-based group in April 2015 said it was providing in-kind support, with an estimated value of $100,000, for The Spot 4MKE. That was combined with a $100,000 grant to the Creative Alliance from Southwest Airlines Inc. and the alliance's in-kind services, valued at $75,000.
Those funds were spent bringing art, performers, vendors and other activities to the lot. In doing so, supporters hoped to enliven the larger area along W. Wisconsin Ave., where development has lagged.
But, according to Taylor's emails, Winn said the Creative Alliance's project "was not a well developed and executed program."
Taylor also wrote about the need to help the Project for Public Spaces save face "without feeling like they had a disaster on their hands."
"I did ask PPS if they were interested in other sites and continuing to be engaged and Phil (Winn) was pretty clear, they were not," Taylor wrote. "They just want a happy ending or at least a non-embarrasing (sic) one."
In an interview, Winn said Taylor misunderstood his comments about The Spot 4MKE.
Winn and Project for Public Spaces President Fred Kent spoke with Jacobus, city officials and others on March 23 and said they remain interested in Milwaukee. Winn said The Spot 4MKE could be done at another W. Wisconsin Ave. location.
"We see this project as quite successful," Winn said.
But, he said, Project for Public Spaces didn't foresee short-term commercial development pressures at the city-owned site when the group agreed last year to help The Spot 4MKE.
An attempt to transform a parking lot into a public gathering space is challenging, Winn said.
"It was a very new place," he said. "And I think these things take time."
JSOnline.com's Land & Space blog broke the news on March 11 that the project was on hold.
That was related to fundraising trouble, according to Milwaukee Downtown Business Improvement District records.
However, Chernof said in March that the main reason the project had stalled was because of questions about the site's development potential. Jacobus said the alliance wasn't raising funds because the city wouldn't renew the group's lease, which expires April 30.
The parking lot is the site of three failed hotel proposals dating to the late 1990s. But Department of City Development officials said there is now increased development potential in the site, which they say was a factor in the decision to not renew the Creative Alliance lease.
An alliance statement issued after the Land & Space blog post said the project served as a successful template for activating other underused downtown parcels.
The statement, which included quotes from Marcoux, Jacobus, Chernof and Kent, also said The Spot 4MKE could be done at another location if funds could be raised.
That plan involves using shipping containers as a relatively inexpensive way to house vendors selling various items. Such shipping container marketplaces have been done in Cleveland, Denver and other cities.
Expanding The Spot 4MKE to include the marketplace, along with power to provide lights, Internet capability and perhaps a coffee hut, would cost around $250,000 to $300,000, according to Creative Alliance.
That estimate includes the $100,000 in annual baseline funding that Jacobus sought in December, which would pay for events, artist programs, insurance and other costs.
By winter, The Spot 4MKE was inactive. It had featured public art and picnic tables, and last summer and fall hosted events, including a karaoke session, dance performances, jugglers, children's play time and food trucks.
However, those activities were often disrupted by windy conditions, Jacobus said.
That's what led Creative Alliance to pursue the shipping container marketplace, which would both house activities and serve as a wind block.
But to do that marketplace, the alliance needs a location with more long-term control than what city officials were willing to provide at last year's site, Jacobus said.
And the alliance, which doesn't have a large staff, needs outside support if The Spot 4MKE is to be revived, she said.
Facebook: facebook.com/JSBusiness
Twitter: twitter.com/TomDaykin
Andrew Bird
Are You Serious
Loma Vista/Concord
Few have doubted the presence of Andrew Bird's mind in two decades of recognizable talents like avian-pure whistling, violin-pizzicato pirouettes and vocals conveyed in a gentlemanly manner. Some, however, might have doubted the presence of his heart, and "Are You Serious" puts that right on his sleeve, where he can watch over it.
Now a besotted married man, Bird channels his too-clever impulses into romantic concerns, and Fiona Apple's pouty scolding in "Left Handed Kisses" coaxes the desire from his doubts.
Emotional lyrics don't suppress musical inventions, such as the multiple definitions of "Beatlesque" in "Valleys of the Youth" or the smooth proliferation of tempo changes, from prairie to parlor, in "Saints Preservus." Instead, they give the inventions a purpose beyond themselves, the way love can redirect human passions beyond individual egos.
Andrew Bird performs April 18 at the Riverside Theater, 116 W. Wisconsin Ave.
Jon M. Gilbertson,
Special to the Journal Sentinel
Weezer
Weezer
Crush Music/Atlantic Records
Two decades after its release, Weezer's sophomore release "Pinkerton" is now viewed as an emo rock masterpiece.
Following a multiyear hiatus and a decade venturing into modern pop stardom, there has been a near-constant longing from the band's 1990s fans to see a return to those early glory days of laid-bare emotions, adolescent angst and classic pop and rock 'n' roll melodies.
Two years ago, Weezer started to signal such a return with "Everything Will Be Alright In the End," a disc that criticizes its own synth and dance pop departure of the 2000s. But, it is with its 10th studio album and fourth self-titled disc that front man Rivers Cuomo and company accomplish the magic of old.
The album is rife with crunchy guitars soaring in bright melodies ("Wind in Our Sails," "King of the World"). Multiple tracks channel the surf-rock vibe of the Beach Boys, including "California Kids," the jangly "(Girl We Got a) Good Thing" and "Endless Bummer."
Weezer performs July 9 at the Marcus Amphitheater, 200 N. Harbor Drive.
Erik Ernst,
Special to the Journal Sentinel
Mamiffer
The World Unseen
SIGE
Some experimental-rock and post-rock musicians rely on abrasiveness as if the harshest cacophony were axiomatically the greatest art. Mamiffer, on its latest album "The World Unseen," prefers intense hypnosis and nearly seamless transitions from track to track, thereby challenging itself to hold a listener's attention.
Because Faith Coloccia and husband Aaron Turner build upon vocal and instrumental drones, they must regularly agitate against somnolence. For example, "By the Light of My Body" opens the album by hinting at the thin border between mesmerizing and irritating, while slowly warping string arrangements unsettle the plaintive lull of "Mara."
There are nervier challenges, such as Coloccia's trilling resemblance to Kate Bush, the lengthy choral processions and the eight minutes of Apollo-rocket static in the first section of the three-part "Domestication of the Ewe." Yet attentive ears gradually detect what can't be immediately seen: the tectonic shifts and unpredictable weather of this "World."
Mamiffer performs Sunday at the Cactus Club, 2496 S. Wentworth Ave.
Jon M. Gilbertston
Bombino
Azel
Partisan Records
Rock 'n' roll's rebellious spirit has been its calling card for decades, even as the genre began its steady march into the mainstream. For the nomadic Tuareg people of the Sahara Desert, that rebellion and the electric guitars that fueled it is much more recent and palpable. Take for example Omara "Bombino" Moctar. In his 36 years, he has lived through two violent rebellions in his homeland of Niger. Through war, exile and reconciliation, he has employed his self-taught guitar skills framed by the sounds and rhythms of his own heritage and enhanced by the influence of Western rock guitar icons like Jimi Hendrix and Mark Knopfler to provide an uplifting voice for his people. On his third worldwide release, "Azel," the artist displays his jaw-dropping guitar dexterity as he blends native sounds with reggae melodies, classic blues riffs and lyrical professions of strength and perseverance in his native Tamashek language.
Bombino performs Thursday at Turner Hall Ballroom, 1040 N. 4th St.
Erik Ernst
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Authorities are investigating an overnight shooting in downtown Milwaukee that injured two men.
Gunfire erupted during an argument between two groups of men about 2:15 a.m. in the 400 block of E. Mason St., Milwaukee police said Saturday.
One of the suspected shooters was arrested at the scene and his gun recovered, according to a police news release.
Two other men, both 36, were wounded and taken to a hospital for treatment of injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening, police said. As of early Saturday, it was not clear if either wounded man was the other suspected shooter, according to police.
Police said their investigation is ongoing.
Lorenzo Beaton is sentenced Friday for his role in an elaborate plot to kill a man who witnessed a homicide. Beaton admitted to police that he was the planned trigger man in the scheme. Credit: Mike De Sisti
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The planned trigger man in an elaborate plot to kill a homicide witness was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison, plus 15 years of supervision.
Lorenzo Beaton, 37, was one of four people charged in November with conspiring to kill John Spivey, who saw the July 2015 murder of Eddie Powe in the 2600 block of W. Port Sunlight Way.
The co-conspirators went as far as posting Spivey's $7,500 bail to get him out of jail where he could be shot, after he rebuffed attempts to buy his silence in jail.
Spivey, still jailed on an unrelated case, spoke at Friday's hearing. He said he assumed his bail had been posted by family down South until he saw the papers and didn't recognize Beaton's name. His family didn't either.
"Thank God those investigators were there to save me and my family," he said.
Beaton, Antonio "Tone" Smith, Shantrell "Peanut" Lyons and Shaheem M. Smith were all charged in November with conspiracy to commit first-degree intentional homicide.
Antonio Smith also is charged with killing Powe, 35, and then killing Powe's girlfriend Breanna Eskridge, 17, who also witnessed Powe's homicide.
Investigators learned of the plot to kill Spivey from Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office jail guards who detected suspicious chatter on inmate calls and intervened to move Spivey as the conspirators waited outside the jail for him to come out.
Circuit Judge J.D. Watts told Beaton his record several prior convictions, prison terms and revoked probation terms was poor, and especially noted that he had two prior convictions for having a gun, yet had one again in the Spivey case.
Watts said the gravity of the offense was aggravated because it was an attempt to subvert the justice system, not just kill someone.
He gave Beaton credit for accepting responsibility and cooperating once he was arrested. Beaton pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to commit first-degree intentional homicide and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court records:
Under direction from Antonio Smith, who was in jail, Beaton posted Spivey's bail Nov. 2 under a cover story that Spivey's parents were ill. He and Lyons were waiting outside the jail to get Spivey. When Spivey didn't appear, they walked around the Safety Building asking about him.
After his arrest, Beaton told authorities that he, Lyons and Smith were armed and ready to shoot Spivey when they found him. Beaton told police his plan was to shoot him "on sight," that he was the "trigger man" and he was going to spend the rest of his life in prison. But Beaton also told authorities he intended to back out of the plan and not actually kill Spivey.
On Friday, after hearing Spivey say the stress of the incident led to a seizure, and scared his mother so much she died from stress, Beaton apologized.
"I never even thought about it from his side, the turmoil, the hardship," Beaton said. "I am truly apologetic about your moms."
SHARE Alfred Bader, seen here with his wife, Isabel, will be given an honor that is intensely personal when Hillel Academy and Hillel High School announce the schools will be renamed after him. Its the first time that Bader has lent his name to an institution in Milwaukee. Handout
By of the
Alfred Bader, 91, wants to make one thing perfectly clear: He is not retired.
The chemist, philanthropist and art collector and dealer is still on the hunt in search of the big catches, old master paintings.
Yet Bader, who co-founded Aldrich Chemical Co. in 1951 in Milwaukee, long ago reached that stage where others honored him for a career of accomplishment. He has received 12 honorary degrees and more than two dozen top prizes.
On Monday, Bader will be given an honor that is intensely personal when Hillel Academy and Hillel High School announce the schools will be renamed after him. It's the first time that Bader has lent his name to an institution in Milwaukee.
The new school names of Bader Hillel Academy and Bader Hillel High, to be used beginning with the next academic year, will be unveiled during a community concert at Vogel Hall at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts.
The schools are operated by the Chabad-Lubavitch of Wisconsin, a Jewish group. The schools are not restricted to Lubavitch children.
Bader was among those who helped found Hillel Academy in 1960. Bader's two sons attended the school. In more recent years, the school struggled until it was taken over by the Lubavitch group, which has been supported by Bader.
"I've been badgering him to allow us to name the school the Bader Hillel Academy for years," said Lubavitch executive vice president Rabbi Mendel Shmotkin said. "He's a very close friend. He is a major supporter of Lubavitch of Wisconsin. And he has said, 'I don't believe in naming things, never wanted to.' And finally, after literally years of badgering, he acquiesced."
With a shrug, Bader explained why he long sidestepped such a move, using a Yiddish phrase about not chasing after an honor.
"If the school feels it would be good for the school, I guess I don't mind, provided Isabel doesn't mind," Bader said during an interview.
"Isabel is the world's best wife," he added.
Although he suffered a stroke in 2010, Bader remains deeply involved in his philanthropic work. Bader and his wife have given tens of millions of dollars and three prized Rembrandt paintings to his alma mater, Queen's University in Canada.
"There are only six Rembrandts in Canada," Bader said. "And Queen's has three. They also have the best. The school was very good to me when I came out of the internment camp."
Bader said his art collection will eventually go to the school.
Bader's life story is a remarkable journey from pre-World War II Vienna, where he was born, to Great Britain, Canada and finally, the United States.
Bader was just 2 weeks old when his father, who was Jewish, died. His mother was the daughter of a Catholic-Hungarian count. His father's sister adopted him and raised him as a Jew, and he later formally converted. She later died in a concentration camp.
Bader was part of what became known as the Kindertransport. Just 14, with a small suitcase, a five-pound British note and his stamp collection, he left Vienna. He was among 10,000 mainly Jewish youths allowed into Britain after the Nazis' 1938 Kristallnacht attack of Jewish-owned businesses, buildings and synagogues across Germany.
In 1940, Bader and other German-speaking refugees were rounded up by the British as enemy aliens. He was sent to an internment camp in Canada, where he stayed for 1 1/2 years.
"I didn't know it at the time but it was a useful time. I got a very good education. No girls to distract me," he said of his life in the camp.
Bright and well-read, Bader was ready for college.
"McGill (University) wouldn't accept me. They had a Jewish quota," he said. The University of Toronto was doing sensitive research and didn't want enemy aliens, Bader recalled, adding: "That's foolish; I'm not an enemy alien."
Queen's University in Ontario accepted him, creating a lifelong bond. He studied chemistry and history there, and later went to Harvard University, where he earned a PhD in organic chemistry.
As a young research chemist at Pittsburgh Plate Glass, he was given an assignment in research in Milwaukee. With a partner, he created Aldrich Chemical Co., a manufacturer of fine chemicals. The firm later merged to become Sigma-Aldrich Corp. Bader, who was the firm's chairman emeritus, left the board in 1992.
Bader said he enjoyed running a large company.
"Because it was chemistry and I'm a chemist," he said. "And I knew a great many chemists around the world. Isabel and I traveled all over Europe, visiting chemists and asking for ideas."
Bader said his strength as a businessman was "paying attention to detail."
Isabel Bader said her husband is "passionately interested in what he's interested in," art, chemistry and philanthropy.
Bader's largess will reach future generations through Bader Philanthropies Inc., which last year brought together the philanthropic interests of Bader and his wife, with those of his first wife, the late Helen Bader. The foundation is led by Bader's son, Daniel.
But it's clear that art, which first captured Bader's eye when he was 10, continues to be a driving force in his life. He still pores over auction catalogs.
"Why did he like it? Why did some kids like this, that and the other? It just is," said Isabel Bader.
"There were paintings all around the house" where Bader grew up in Vienna, she said. "He liked looking in the shop windows in Vienna, and they were filled with paintings. And he knew which paintings he liked."
Bader collects Dutch 17th-century paintings, with some Italian and Flemish works.
"When I started buying paintings, they were very inexpensive," Bader said.
Asked if stamp collecting prepared him for art collecting, he said with a smile, "Well, paintings are so much more interesting than stamps."
Lori Hartz, a nurse practitioner with the Greater Milwaukee Center for Health and Wellness Inc. holds a PrEP pill. The pill is recommended for people at very high risk for HIV. When taken daily it lowers their chances of getting infected. Credit: James E. Causey
Ronnie Grace was 28 years old when he discovered that he was HIV positive.
Thirty years later he is still living with the disease and, thanks to advancements in antiretroviral therapy, Grace could live another 30 years.
That's how far HIV treatments have come over the past three decades.
In the mid-80s things were different. HIV was called a "death sentence," and Grace lost more than 50 friends to the disease.
Grace told me that when he lived in Los Angeles, he even participated in "search parties" to find people who were suffering from AIDS-related dementia. When he moved to Atlanta years later, things were not much better.
During this time, there was much ignorance, denial and silence around HIV and AIDS. The gay community for the most part had to deal with the death and trauma of losing loved ones by themselves because many people blamed them for their condition.
It was a scary time, and while tremendous strides have been made in treatment, the stigma associated with the disease remains.
Grace said a lot of young gay people living with HIV today were not even born when people were dying daily from the disease. "They have no idea what it was like to go to a club and ask where's Charles and have someone say he's sick or he's in the hospital," he said.
A newly diagnosed 22-year-old can live another 50 years with HIV and not spread the disease if he or she is on treatment and understands the seriousness and diligence it takes to manage the disease.
The disease is not viewed as a death sentence today, and young people are more prone to take risks.
This lack of history makes Grace's job as a public health HIV prevention program coordinator with Diverse & Resilient that much more difficult.
Bevan K. Baker, Milwaukee's health commissioner, said the Internet has made it easy for young people to hook up. People can post that they want to have a sex party at a location and within 30 minutes, they can have people there participating.
HIV still disproportionally impacts young black gay men of color. In Milwaukee, 40% of young black men who have sex with men are HIV positive. Nationally, one in eight Americans with HIV don't even know they have the virus.
To stop the spread, it's important for people to know their status and have access to condoms. And if they are at high risk for HIV they need to get on medicine such as pre-exposure prophylaxis, (PrEP) to protect them from getting HIV.
Last week, I was invited to Diverse & Resilient to find out more about the PrEP. The blue pill, which is about the size of an 800mg Motrin, has been called the miracle drug because it can reduce the risk of getting HIV by 90% when taken daily. While PrEP has been around for nearly two years, those at the greatest risk still don't know about it or don't know it's available here.
Lori Hartz, a nurse practitioner with the Greater Milwaukee Center for Health and Wellness, who attended the meeting, said HIV infections can be reduced if those at the highest risk young black males who have unprotected sex with men and those in the transgender community are placed on PrEP.
She also noted the importance of privacy at her practice. No one knows if you are in the waiting room because you have a bad back or if you are there to get HIV medication.
This helps in reducing the stigma associated with the disease.
PrEP works by stopping the virus from entering cells and replicating. This prevents HIV from establishing itself and the person remains HIV negative.
PrEP with condoms offers the best protection for those sexually active. PrEP alone offers no protection against other sexually transmitted infections such as gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphillis. Milwaukee is ranked in the top 10 in the nation in STIs and Milwaukee County experienced one of the largest gonorrhea outbreaks ever in 2015 with 1,200 new cases.
The state and community partners are building a website that focuses on PrEP. The site will list doctors who provide PrEP, rank doctors, provide personal stories of those on PrEP and tell people how to best connect with a physician near them on bus routes.
This is a positive step in getting information out, but the media needs to help spread the word, too. HIV is a community health issue, and I was a bit disappointed that I was the only reporter who attended.
The only drawback to PrEP is the cost. At $200 a pill, somebody is profiting big and that's ridiculous.
Hartz said her agency works to keep costs down through insurance, grants and other programs. That's fine but it should not cost $73,000 a year to keep a person from contracting or spreading HIV.
Until we come up with a cure for HIV, efforts to get those at the highest risk on PrEP need to be a priority. The website will provide privacy to help connect people to the best doctors and services making it more likely that they seek help and get on treatment.
Getting the word out is just the beginning, stopping the spread needs to be the goal.
James E. Causey is a Journal Sentinel editorial columnist and blogger. Email jcausey@journalsentinel.com. Facebook: fb.me/james.causey.12 Twitter: twitter.com/jecausey
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump tries to rebound from two tough weeks on the campaign trail in hopes of catching Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in Tuesdays Wisconsin primary. Here, he speaks at an event Saturday in Rothschild one of eight campaign stops he has planned from Saturday through Monday. Credit: Charles Rex Arbogast
By of the
Rothschild After two bad weeks on the campaign trail, real estate baron Donald Trump is going all in on Wisconsin leading up to Tuesday's presidential primary.
Trump got in a feud with rival Ted Cruz over their wives, said women who get abortions should be punished before backtracking, vocally defended his campaign manager after he was charged with battery for grabbing a reporter and attacked Gov. Scott Walker after the one-time presidential candidate endorsed Cruz.
A further sign of the national front-runner's troubles is his standing in recent Wisconsin polls. A survey released Wednesday by the Marquette University Law School found him 10 points behind Cruz. Cruz had 40%, Trump 30% and Ohio Gov. John Kasich 21%.
As he tries to make up lost ground, Trump is crisscrossing the Badger State.
On Saturday, he was making stops in Racine, Eau Claire and Rothschild, just outside of Wausau. On Sunday, he will be in West Allis and on Monday he is visiting La Crosse, Superior and Milwaukee.
"I'm self -funding," he said during the Rothschild stop. "I hope people appreciate it. It means a lot. It means a lot. It means I don't owe anybody anything."
In another move to regain his footing, Trump told New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd it was a mistake to retweet a photo of his wife, Melania, a former model, alongside an unflattering shot of Cruz's wife, Heidi, that said the two images were "worth a thousand words."
Trump who earlier had tweeted that he might "spill the beans" about Heidi Cruz was responding to an ad an anti-Trump group ran in Utah that showed a risque photo of Melania Trump.
"If I had to do it again, I wouldn't have sent it," Trump said of the retweet in the column.
The acknowledgment came after Trump quickly backed off his abortion comments, saying if the practice is banned, doctors who perform the should be punished, not the women who receive them.
In Rothschild, Trump was introduced by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who told the northern Wisconsin crowd, "You even dress like Alaskans."
Trump used the nearly hourlong speech to hit familiar themes, arguing for persuading Mexico to pay for a border wall, getting more money from allies around the world for protecting them and negotiating better trade deals.
"We use political hacks third-rate political slobs to negotiate with the smartest people in China, the smartest people in Japan," he said.
He was not as harsh about Walker and how Wisconsin has fared under him as he was earlier in the week, though he did again mock Walker for frequently wearing Harley-Davidson gear.
"He doesn't look like the bikers supporting me," Trump said. "The bikers love me!"
He took a tougher tone when he brought up his testy exchange with WTMJ-AM (620) host Charlie Sykes, whom Trump called a "whack job." Trump said he thought he'd done well in his interview with Sykes.
"Everybody who would listen to that show would vote for me," Trump said.
Throughout his speech, he leavened his comments with Wisconsin references, praising Wausau Windows and saying he had once met famed Green Bay Packers Coach Vince Lombardi.
Trump's opponents are seizing a moment when he is down in the polls in a key state, seeing Wisconsin as an opportunity to shift momentum to Cruz.
"I think Wisconsin is likely to become, and be seen as, a pivotal point in this primary season," said David McIntosh, president of the Club for Growth. "Republican voters are finally digesting what it would be like if Trump were the nominee...He is not at his core a conservative."
McIntosh's group is backing Cruz and has spent about $1 million on ads in Wisconsin against Trump.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a speech to Milwaukee County Democrats Saturday night is to make comments critical of state Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Bradley (left) who is running for a 10-year term in Tuesdays election.
By of the
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton took aim at state Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Bradley during her Saturday night speech at the Founder's Day Dinner in Milwaukee.
Clinton argued that there's no place on any court for someone like Bradley, citing the justice's comments about women, survivors of sexual assault, and gays and lesbians.
Clinton also criticized Bradley's track record and compared it to the speech used in the Republican primary, especially by national GOP front-runner Donald Trump, according to an aide for the Democratic front-runner.
"There is no place on any Supreme Court or any court in this country, no place at all for Rebecca Bradley's decades-long track record of dangerous rhetoric against women, survivors of sexual assault and the LGBT community," Clinton said.
She added, "No to discrimination, no to hate speech and no to Bradley."
She also drew connections between Bradley and Republican Gov. Scott Walker, who appointed Bradley to three judicial positions in three years.
A spokesman for Bradley accused her opponent, Appeals Judge JoAnne Kloppenburg, of turning to Clinton to carry out her attacks.
"Kloppenburg's claims of independence have fallen flat with the voters. Now that multiple polls show her losing, she's turned to one of the most partisan figures in the nation, Democrat Hillary Clinton, to carry on Kloppenberg's personal attacks," spokesman Luke Martz said. "It seems that JoAnne Kloppenburg's hypocrisy knows no bounds."
Bradley has come under fire for columns she wrote in college, including some calling gay people "queers," and victims of AIDS "degenerate drug addicts."
The columns were among those that Bradley wrote in a student newspaper 24 years ago. In them, she said she had no sympathy for AIDS patients because they had effectively chosen to kill themselves, called gays "queers" and said Americans were "either totally stupid or entirely evil" for electing President Bill Clinton.
In one piece, she wrote people would be better off getting AIDS than cancer under Clinton because it would get more funding.
"How sad that the lives of degenerate drug addicts and queers are valued more than the innocent victims of more prevalent ailments," wrote Bradley, who then had the last name of Grassl.
Her writings from her college years were released by the liberal group One Wisconsin Now.
Bradley recently said she regretted her college writings and attributed them to her youth.
A Marquette University Law School poll last week showed Bradley leading Kloppenburg 41% to 36%, with 18% undecided.
Early Saturday evening, Clinton made a brief appearance at a campaign rally held by the Service Employees International Union in Milwaukee.
Dian Palmer, president of SEIU Health Care-Wisconsin, said the union members knocked on 2,300 doors Saturday in support of Clinton.
"It's all because we believe that you are going to do the right thing for working families, the right thing for poor people, the right thing for African-Americans and Latinos," Palmer told Clinton.
Clinton told the crowd of about 100 union members that she would make sure the Affordable Care Act works for them.
"I will fight for you, I will work for you, because we have to knock down all of the barriers that stand in the way of any American getting ahead, getting a chance to have the best possible life," Clinton said.
Republican presidential candidate, Ohio Gov. John Kasich greets his supporter as he leaves at a campaign stop Saturday at Veterans Terrace in Burlington. He later appeared in Janesville. Credit: Nam Y. Huh
By of the
Janesville - Ohio Gov. John Kasich on Saturday brought his presidential campaign to Janesville where he took questions from an enthusiastic crowd for more than an hour.
Kasich, who spoke earlier in the day in Burlington, continued to tout his experience and electability during the campaign stop.
Polls released last week showed Kasich still trailing behind U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and real estate mogul Donald Trump in the Wisconsin primary.
One of the first questions Kasich received was about criminal justice reform. Kasich said he believes people can be rehabilitated, but that public safety must come first when deciding who will be put behind bars.
"It's really easy when somebody is a criminal to just disregard them," Kasich said. "The only thing I try to remember is there was a time when a mother held a baby in her arms and thought that he or she was going to grow up to be special."
He also highlighted his signing of a statewide "ban the box" law that prohibits public employers from requiring job candidates to disclose prior criminal convictions. Later at the town hall, Kasich was asked about how he would improve police-community relations.
"It's respect for everybody," Kasich said.
Kasich pointed to an Ohio task force and advisory panel he convened in the wake of the fatal police shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice in a Cleveland park. The panel's recommendations led to Ohio's first statewide police standards on deadly force and police recruiting and hiring.
When it came to foreign policy, Kasich continued to hit Cruz and Trump on their rhetoric and policies related to Muslim communities.
"If you want to know what's going on in a Muslim neighborhood, who do you think is best to ask?" Kasich said. "So what if we just bash them and polarize them, how do you think they're going to feel?"
"We all have to work together because our life is at stake, our culture is at stake," he added.
Kasich sprinkled quips and jokes throughout the event, drawing plenty of laughter, but the biggest came when he closed the town hall by playing "Sorry" by Justin Bieber.
"I happen to like this song," he said.
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Maan News Agency |
BETHLEHEM (Maan) In ongoing efforts to hold Israel accountable for gross violations of international law, Palestinian legal rights group Badil has published key findings on alleged war crimes during the 2014 Gaza war that the group submitted to the International Criminal Court earlier this month.
The report documents in detail the accounts of Palestinian victims of Israels large-scale military offensive on the besieged enclave and charges high-level Israeli officials with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
In the report, No Safe Place, Badil focused in particular on Israels mass forced displacement of some half-a-million Palestinians at the height of hostilities, around 28 percent of Gazas population.
Badil documents extensively Israels failure to establish protected humanitarian areas within the Gaza Strip where those displaced by Israels massive military onslaught could seek refuge.
Given the limited physical dimensions of the Gaza Strip and sheer scale of its square footage targeted by Israeli fire, there existed no safe place to which to flee, Badil said.
More than this, Israel actively targeted Palestinians during and after the process of flight, and the very buildings designated by humanitarian organizations as shelters for the displaced home to some 300,000 displaced Palestinians at the peak of hostilities were subject to Israeli attack.
Israels 51-day assault killed at least 2,250 Palestinians, including 551 children and 299 women, according to Badil. Over 11,000 were physically injured, and the civilian population was left marred by acute mental trauma following the tens of thousands of tank and artillery shells that bombarded the tiny coastal enclave.
Over half of the hospitals in the besieged enclave were damaged six of which were forced to close down entirely and 26 schools were completely destroyed, Badil reported.
Badil joining other international right bodies called for the desperate need for intervention by the ICC on the grounds that Israels internal investigative processes are structurally inept at delivering genuine accountability or justice.
Palestinian leadership initially moved to the ICC last year amid ongoing violations carried out by Israel across the occupied Palestinian territory.
The Palestinian committee in charge of following up with the ICC met with court representatives in Jordan earlier this month to arrange a visit to the Gaza Strip. The ICC began conducting a preliminary probe in January last year examining available information to decide whether there was a reasonable basis to proceed with a full investigation.
The impossible task of holding Israel accountable
While Palestinian leadership has pursued bringing justice for Palestinians in the international arena through UN bodies in particular Badil said the ICC may have the potential to bring such justice to fruition when other bodies prove unable.
Simon Reynolds, lead researcher and author of the recent Badil report, told Maan that the ICC in theory is less prone to political interference than the UN General Assembly or Human Right Council, which operate on the basis of votes and behind-the-scenes negotiations.
Reynolds said that while the workings of the ICC are not entirely insulated from external influence, the ICC as a formal criminal tribunal provides processes that are far more rigid and transparent than other international forums used by human rights defenders to seek protection of Palestinians human rights.
In addition, Reynolds said, The ICC also allows us to consider the criminal responsibility of individuals, rather than than the unlawful practices of States, which forms the focus of UN resolutions.
This could prove an extremely potent tool to achieving accountability for Israeli-perpetrated war crimes and crimes against humanity, as it forces offenders to acknowledge that they may personally have to answer for their crimes, rather than hiding behind the anonymity that comes with state responsibility.
Reynolds, who was a major actor in submitting the Badil report to the ICC earlier this month, told Maan that utilizing international avenues to hold Israel and its citizens accountable for unlawful policies and actions was inherently difficult due to a lack of political will among relevant actors.
Many powerful states and regional bodies have significant political and economic interests tied up in the fate of Israel, and Israels projected image of a law-abiding, democratic state in the midst of the turmoil of the Middle East is essential to the maintenance and development of these interests, Reynolds said.
The difficulty lies not in documenting and reporting Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity; such evidence is abundant.
Rather, the difficulty is found in persuading those in positions of power to take notice, and to realize their legal and moral obligations to intervene.
Via Maan News Agency
-
Related video added by Juan Cole:
PressTV: Palestinians meet ICC officials in Amman
VANCOUVER, BC--(Marketwired - April 01, 2016) -
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION OR DISSEMINATION DIRECTLY, OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES
GoldQuest Mining Corp. (TSX VENTURE: GQC) (FRANKFURT: M1W) (BERLIN: M1W) ("GoldQuest" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Company has closed its previously announced private placement (the "Private Placement") and has issued 14,710,000 common shares in the capital of the Company (the "Common Shares") at a price of $0.20 per Common Share for gross proceeds of $2,942,000.00.
In connection with the Private Placement, the Company has paid a finder's fee to Foster & Associates Financial Services Inc., Raymond James Ltd. and Cormark Securities Inc. (together the "Finders"). The finder's fee consisted of a cash payment equal to 7% of the aggregate proceeds from subscriptions arranged by the Finders for an aggregate total of $135,940. GoldQuest expects to use the net proceeds of the Private Placement for funding its exploration programs and for general working capital purposes.
"Completion of this modest financing with no warrants allows the company to adequately fund both the exploration program that is generating results in terms of target generation along the full 50 kilometer Tireo belt, as well as, for the Romero Development Project, completion of both the Pre-feasibility Study (due Q2 2016) and the full Feasibility Study (due Q4 2016), which form a significant part of an Environmental Impact Study," said Bill Fisher, Chairman of the Board.
All securities issued pursuant to the Private Placement are subject to a hold period under applicable securities laws, which will expire four months plus one day from the date of closing of the Private Placement. The Private Placement remains subject to the final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.
The securities issued under the Private Placement have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws, and accordingly, may not be offered or sold within the United States except in compliance with the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities requirements or pursuant to exemptions therefrom. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of GoldQuest's securities in the United States.
About GoldQuest
GoldQuest is a Canadian based mineral exploration company with projects in the Dominican Republic. GoldQuest is traded on the TSX-V under the symbol GQC and in Frankfurt/Berlin with symbol M1W. GoldQuest has moved its Toronto office to 133 Richmond Street West -- Suite 501, Toronto, Ontario M5H 2L3 which has reduced corporate general administration expenditures.
Additional information can be viewed at the Company's website www.goldquestcorp.com.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors of GoldQuest Mining Corp.,
"Bill Fisher"
Chairman
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 Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this news release are "forward-looking" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements can generally be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may", "will", "expect", "intend", "estimate", "anticipate", "believe", "continue", "plans" or similar terminology. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to the receipt of final approval from the TSX Venture Exchange and the expected use of proceeds from the Private Placement. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon the current belief, opinions and expectations of management that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and other contingencies. Many factors could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. These factors include, among others, the timeliness and success of regulatory approvals, market prices, metal prices, availability of capital and financing, general economic, market or business conditions, as well as other risk factors set out under the heading "Risk and Uncertainties" in the Management's Discussion and Analysis dated September 30, 2015, which is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.
Vancouver, British Columbia / TheNewswire / April 1, 2016 - Nevada Clean Magnesium, Inc. (TSXV: NVM; Frankfurt-M1V; OTC Pink Sheets: MLYFF) (The "Company") today announced that it closed the second tranche of the non-brokered private placement of unsecured convertible notes (the "Convertible Note") previously announced on January 8, 2016 in the amount of $200,000.
The accumulated total from the two tranches collectively raised $250,000; no finder's fees were paid in connection with the second tranche of the financing.
The Principal Amount of the Convertible Note will bear interest at 20% per annum, and any accrued but unpaid interest, will mature on the date that is one (1) year following the Closing Date (the "Maturity Date"). Each Convertible Note will be convertible into common shares (each, a "Share") of the Company at a price of $0.05 per Share and any accrued but unpaid interest thereon will be convertible into Shares at the price per Share which is the greater of (i) $0.05 and (ii) the Market Price (as defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange")) on the date of a conversion notice.
In connection with the private placement, the Company may, subject to regulatory acceptance, pay a finder's fee to certain arm's-length parties on the proceeds raised.
The securities issued will be subject to a 4 month hold period from the date of issue of, as the case may be, the Convertible Notes, or the Shares. The completion of the private placement and payment of any commission and fees remains subject to the receipt of all necessary approvals, including the approval of the Exchange. In additon, the TSX Venture Exchange has granted a 30 day extension for the non-brokered private placement of unsecured convertible notes.
Proceeds of the non-brokered private placement will be used for working capital.
About Nevada Clean Magnesium, Inc.
Nevada Clean Magnesium is focused on becoming a major U.S. producer and distributor of primary, high grade, low cost magnesium metal extracted from its 100% owned Tami-Mosi property located in North Central Nevada. Based on the Company's NI 43-101 Preliminary Economic Assessment Report published in September 2011 and amended in July 2014, the Tami-Mosi Project has an inferred resource of 412 million tonnes with an average grade of 12.3% Mg for a contained metal content of 111 billion pounds of magnesium using a 12% cut-off grade contained within a high purity dolomite block. For more information, please visit www.nevadacmi.com.
This news release was reviewed by James Sever, P. Eng. a qualified person recognized under NI 43-101.
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 Statement
Statements in this news release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements in this news release include that we will conduct and close a private placement and that we can become a a major U.S. producer and distributor of primary, high grade, low cost magnesium metal. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors, including the Company's dolomite reserves may not be mined because of technical, regulatory, financing or other obstacles, the market price for magnesium may make our resources uneconomic, we may not be able hire and retain skilled employees, and other risks associated with being a mineral exploration and development company. We may not be able to close with interested investors on our intended private placement because of perceived risks or market conditions. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information except as required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release.
To Reach Nevada Clean Magnesium Please Contact:
Edward Lee, CEO at (604) 210-9862
For additional information please visit our website at http://www.nevadacmi.com or view our profile at http://www.sedar.com.
You may also follow us on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
Copyright (c) 2016 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts (ACLUM) [advocacy website] filed a motion [motion, PDF] on Tuesday to request that the federal court unseal any docket sheets associated with a government request to unlock an iPhone in Massachusetts. The ACLUM says no formal applications or orders exist in the docket in connection with the governments request, but that it was referenced in a publicly docketed affidavit filed by an FBI special agent. This suggests, the ACLUM claims, that if documents for the request exist, they are held separately in sealed dockets. The motion argues that these should be unsealed because the public has a First Amendment right to access materials relating to criminal proceedings as well as common law right to access judicial documents. ACLUM conducted research with the national ACLU finding over 60 cases in which the government sought assistance from Apple or Google to unlock electronic devices.
This motion was just days after the US Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] dropped [JURIST report] its case seeking to compel Apple to assist unlocking the San Bernardino shooters iPhone, saying the DOJ has accessed the data itself. In February Apple filed [JURIST report] a brief in the US District Court for the Central District of California in opposition of the US governments request for the company to unlock the iPhone of San Bernardino shooter, Syed Rizwan Farook. Counsel for Apple called the case unprecedented after the DOJ filed a motion to compel [JURIST report] Apple to unlock the encrypted iPhone. In response to the legal conflict, Apple asked [JURIST report] the US government to create a panel of experts to discuss issues of security versus privacy. These developments came after Apple refused the initial court order to assist the government in unlocking the iPhone from one of the San Bernardino shooters. That court had required [JURIST report] Apple to supply software to the FBI to disable a self-destruct feature that erases phone data after 10 failed attempts to enter the phones password.
Following a court decision in Brussels Thursday, Belgian authorities agreed to extradite Paris attack [NYT timeline] suspect, Salah Abdeslam, to France. Abdeslam was captured in Brussels four days before terror attacks [NYT report] struck an airport and metro station in the capital. He is being held in Brussels, pending questioning by Belgian authorities about the Brussels attacks. The extradition [BBC report] could take a number of weeks. Abdeslam originally objected to the extradition, but is now cooperating.
The attacks in Paris began on November 13, 2015, with a suicide bombing at the Stade de France around 9:20 PM local time. Soon thereafter, individuals riding in a Seat brand car opened fire on individuals outside cafes around Paris. At around 9:40 PM, assailants fired on concert-goers at the Bataclan concert hall, killing 89. Molins related that these individuals were using war-type weapons and explosives, further indicating association with the Islamic State. Speaking about the attacks generally, French President Francois Hollande called [BBC report] them an act of war, and vowed that the French will lead the fight, and we will be ruthless.
The Supreme Court of Brazil ruled Thursday that it will take over the corruption probe against former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva instead of returning the case to federal Judge Serio Moro. Senior officials are not immune [Business Standard report] from prosecution, but can only be tried before the Supreme Court. Judge Sergio Moro has been leading the corruption case relating to the Petrobras scandal and has been accused of unfairly targeting the former president. Current President Dilma Rousseffs appointment of Lula as the formers chief of state, has remained in limbo [AP report] for weeks awaiting a decision by the Supreme Court to authorize and lift the injunction that is currently preventing Silva from taking office. Lulas appointment as Chief of State would afford him greater legal protections under Brazilian law, granting the Supreme Court the only institution to authorize an investigation, detention and indictment of a Cabinet member.
Last month, a judge for the Brazilian Supreme Court upheld [JURIST report] a ruling blocking Lula from taking a cabinet post. Brazils political establishment has been in turmoil as many powerful politicians including former presidents have been recently brought to the center of embarrassing corruption investigations. Also in March, Brazils Supreme Court unanimously authorized [JURIST report] the corruption charges against member of Congress Eduardo Cunha to proceed. Eduardo Cunha was implicated in the Petrobras scandal. Rousseff herself has been implicated in that very same scandal and has been at the center of impeachment proceedings [JURIST report] for months. She spoke against the accusations against her earlier this week, stating that she will take legal action [JURIST report] against the senator who made statements against her for defamation. More than 100 individuals and 50 politicians have been arrested in connection to the Petrobras scandal.
Mexican immigration authorities are returning children that might qualify for formal protection from violence in Central America, Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] said [press release] Thursday in a report [text]. The report states that by law Mexico offers protection to refugees as well as to others who would face risks to their lives or safety if returned to their countries of origin, but that less than 1 percent of children who are apprehended by Mexican immigration authorities are recognized as refugees or offered other formal protection. The report also found that Mexican authorities apprehended 55 percent more children last year than in 2014 and 270 percent more children than in 2013. In addition, HRW found [Guardian report] that children are not guaranteed legal or any other assistance and those who are face prolonged detention in either closed facilities or prison-like settings. HRW found that a part of the reason why Mexican immigration authorities have apprehended more migrant children than before is that the US government has provided increased financial support to Mexico for immigration enforcement since mid-2014.
The rights of migrant populations has emerged as one of the most significant humanitarian issues around the world. Last month HRW announced the filing of an amicus brief [JURIST report] in a US federal court arguing that the failure of US government officials to appoint lawyers to represent migrant children facing deportation violates their basic rights under international law. Also last month the Court of Justice of the EU ruled [JURIST report] that Germany may place residence conditions on refugees. Also in March a judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of Indiana blocked [JURIST report] Governor Mike Pences order keeping Syrian refugees from settling in Indiana. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Indiana originally filed a lawsuit [JURIST report] on behalf of Exodus Refugee Immigration in November after Pence announced his plans to suspend resettlement of Syrian refugees in the state as well as assistance from state agencies.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad Al Hussein [official website] expressed his deep concern [press release] about the latest reports of sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers in the Central African Republic (CAR). The High Commissioner is seeking an investigation into the alleged conduct of the UN and French troops. He said the UN is taking these allegations very seriously, aiming to stop the vicious cycle of abuse. The Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), comprising experts on human rights, children and womens protection and conduct and discipline took action launching a full ground investigation. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official website] stated that it is important to address the issue that the troops sent to protect the area acted in a despicable manner with a depraved and dark hearts. In order to restore trust in the institution and provide justice these allegations must be promptly addressed in an open manner.
Violence has persisted in the CAR since the predominately Muslim-based Seleka rebels ousted former president Francois Bozize [BBC profile] in March 2013. More than 400,000 people remain displaced due to the violent overthrow, with over a half million more people seeking refuge in other countries. In November UNICEF [official website] called for [press release] aid to approximately 1.2 million children distressed by conflict [JURIST report] in the CAR. In January of last year members of a UN investigatory commission reported that crimes against humanity have been widely committed by all parties to the conflict in the CAR, prompting the commission to call for the establishment of an international court [JURIST report] to objectively investigate and prosecute crimes. Earlier that month the UN published a report stating that violent acts committed in the CAR constituted war crimes and crimes against humanity [JURIST report], but not genocide. Despite this finding, members of the international community maintain that there is much work to be done [JURIST op-ed] in the nation. In 2014 the International Criminal Court [official website] opened a second investigation [JURIST report] into CAR war crimes.
The UN Security Council [official website] requested on Friday that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official profile] consult with the government of Burundi and members of the African Union about an option that would enable the council to deploy a UN police component to Burundi. The resolution expressed concern [press release] over increasing violence in Burundi and the humanitarian consequences that may arise and seeks to obtain a list of options from Ban within the next 15 days. The council is also urging Ban to increase engagement between the UN and Burundi and expressed an intent to take measures against any violence contributing to the violence or hindering peacemaking efforts.
Violence in Burundi began in the wake of President Pierre Nkurunzizas announcement that he would seek a third term of office, for which he was elected [JURIST report] in July. Last month UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and UN High Commissioner Zeid Raad Al Hussein also expressed concern over increased violence and rights violations in Burundi, and called for an inclusive political dialogue [JURIST report] to end the 11-year struggle. Speaking to the council about his trip to Burundi last month, the secretary-general stated, I cannot stress enough the profound humanitarian consequences that political unrest, violence and impunity carry for the population. In January the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights released a report stating that Burundian authorities barred entry [JURIST report] into Burundi to independent rights experts dispatched by the UN Human Rights Council to investigate violations in the nation. Also in January Zeid warned [JURIST report] of increasing violence in Burundi. In December the UN Human Rights Council approved [JURIST report] a resolution to dispatch experts to investigate human rights violations in Burundi, condemning violence in the country, use of excessive force by officials and restrictions on freedoms. In November the UN Security Council unanimously adopted [JURIST report] a resolution condemning the political violence and killings currently afflicting Burundi.
A collapse of ethics, jihadist terrorism and the nation-state. A search of a new path towards transnational citizenship?
by Evangelos Areteos
I have to open my suitcase while a policeman is doing a thorough body search on a man next to me. Around us are policemen with dogs and heavy-armed soldiers with their fingers on the triggers of their guns.
I am at the railroad station just below the European Parliament in Brussels, almost twenty-four hours after the terrorist attacks. The big square in front of the Parliament is always full with people. Now its empty. The few people passing by look around them with fear.
For some moments I have the feeling that I am in another dimension, that I lose the sense of time and space. The heart of Europe resembled The Waste Land of T.S. Eliot, this complex long poem about the psychological and cultural crisis that came with the loss of moral and cultural identity after World War I.
While a helicopter was flying over us in the EU neighborhood in Brussels, I suddenly felt like as if, in the last two weeks before the attacks in Brussels, I had been traveling in a vast waste land, from Turkey to Greece and back to Turkey and then to Brussels. A vast land dominated by deep disillusionment and a dramatic collapse of ethics.
My trip in this land started two weeks before the Brussels attacks, on the Greek island of Lesvos next to the Turkish shores. I followed the track of refugees crossing the Aegean Sea and then to Greece, up to its northern border with Macedonia.
That first night of my journey I was on the beach next to the airport of Lesvos. At one oclock in the morning, the volunteers whom I was accompanying had spotted a boat with refugees coming from Turkey. It was first a dim light in the darkness of the Aegean Sea, only experienced volunteers saw it first, then the light of the boat grew and, at the end, a voice tore through the air: Boat! Boat!
The volunteers were from Greece, other European countries and the US. They were mostly young people, but among them there were also some elders and more professional volunteers like Nasos, a veteran of the Greek Marine, or like Jose, a professional firefighter from Spain who had gone to Lesvos to help refugees, taking a two-week leave from his job.
The landing of the rubber dinghies packed with people is very dangerous; the refugees are terrorized, most do not know how to swim and when the boats reach the Greek coast they are exhausted. No representative of the state nor of the EU were around to be found, only volunteers who were there to save lives.
When the rubber dinghy approached, volunteer lifeguards entered the water to stabilize it amongst the violent waves and to pull it closer to the beach. Then a human chain formed to bring the refugees from the rubber dinghy to the beach. I was not a volunteer, I was just a journalist who happened to be there. But the power of this human chain was so mesmerizing that I went in the cold waters to become part of it.
At first I thought that she was lightweight and I didnt put much strength into lifting her from the rubber dinghy and carrying her to the beach. But once I lifted her and she let herself fall in my arms, I suddenly felt like her weight pulverized me. Her body was petrified, her clothes soaking wet.
I put all my strength into it as I began to walk, carrying her through the water to the beach. I repeatedly told her OK, stupidly thinking that this would reassure her. Her eyes were hollow, empty, as if she didnt see what was happening, as if she was not present in all these things happening to her. It was raining heavily that night in Lesvos, loud voices came from everywhere, the faces around me were dancing frantically between the darkness of the night and the violent light of the flashlights.
Rain was falling into my eyes and at times obstructed my vision. But now I know that it was not only rain that was preventing me from seeing clearly throughout the night. It was something deep inside me that was resisting the reality and was slyly whispering that all this cannot be real in Greece and in Europe in 2016.
The young woman I was trying to carry onto the beach suddenly started shouting at me in a language I couldnt understand persistently pointing to the rubber dinghy. She was shouting and she pinned herself down on the wet sand while I tried to pull her to the point further up the beach where volunteers provided first aid and blankets. Abruptly, a man holding a small child in his arms came towards us and hugged the woman. It was her child that the man was carrying.
I went three more times to the boat, once to carry an old woman who seemed to be so incredibly heavy that she required the help of another volunteer to carry her belongings ashore. When the boat was empty and its wreckage was ingloriously lying on the sand, I distanced myself a bit. I fell on my knees and I cried in the darkness out of shame as a human being in front of all this suffering and out of rage as a citizen in front of all this moral breakdown of our Europe.
* * *
Three days before the terrorist attack in Brussels, the EU had finally reached an agreement with Turkey on the refugee issue. After several hours of haggling and political-diplomatic bargaining, the deal that was decided erected the tombstone of any moral superiority that was left in Europe and our contemporary European civilization.
The agreement is ethically disgraceful as it institutionalized a bargain between European member states in order to keep all these people fleeing the horrors of war and extinction away from our Europe. Also, because the EU remains silent in front of the growing authoritarianism under Erdogan, it has shamelessly betrayed all those in Turkey who believed that the EU and its ideals will serve as a beacon for democratic reforms in their own country.
The agreement is legally disgraceful because it violates the basic principles and values of human rights and humanity.
Last, but not least, the agreement is politically offensive. It promises Turkey certain things that the EU does not want to deliver and it asks that Greece and its failed state build an asylum system from scratch that even the most advanced countries in the Union do not have. It is equally shameless because it turns Greece into a huge refugee camp, contradicting once again the idea of European solidarity.
Every political leader had his own agenda, his or her own fears that in their own country they will be threatened by the spectacular rise of nationalist and xenophobic forces as well as the desire to avoid doing anything in order to keep the barbarians at their countrys gates.
This agreement should not be a surprise. It is yet another symptom of the ethical decay of our continent and of the tragic dereliction of our human values and principles. But it is not the only one.
The decay goes even further, with Donald Tusk begging refugees via his Twitter account to not cross the Aegean Sea because Greeces northern borders have been sealed. After the disreputable management of the economic crisis, the EU took the last steps that separates it from complete delegitimization.
Europe has raised new walls at its external borders and institutionalizes them with the vain hope that they would protect its societies and its eroded systems from their contemporary barbarians. We spent five days with these barbarians and with the photographer Eleni Papadopoulou, following them from Lesvos to Piraeus and then from Athens to the hell that is Idomeni, right on Greeces border with Macedonia. There, behind the walls donned with barbed wire, the EU is sinking into a pool of mud and human feces.
In Idomeni, when we initially entered while the nightfall was approaching and a light rain was persistently soaking humans and tents, we thought that we were in a science fiction movie, this kind of end-of-the-world expensive Hollywood blockbusters. During these last two weeks that I have been traveling in Greece, Turkey and then ultimately in Brussels, I have often felt like I lose the dimension of time and space. It is as if all that I see around me, in my own country and in the EU I so strongly believed in, reemerge directly from our bloody past or come from a nightmarish future.
Idomeni is filled with broken lives and devastated humans, but still enough strength to fight for survival and hope. Volunteers are everywhere, states and institutions represented only by police and about fifteen thousand men, women and children anxiously awaiting the EU Summit on 18 March. Hoping that Europe will open the border and will accept them. That humanity and those ethics are still part of Europe. In vain.
Waste Land was also Istanbul the weekend before the attacks in Brussels. On Saturday morning, a suicide bomber from the Islamic State was killed as he was blowing up tourists on the pedestrian avenue of Istiklal, in the heart of Istanbul. This event was yet another terrorist strike in a series of deadly attacks that began last summer.
All through the weekend, the center of Istanbul was empty, people were afraid that all this was just the beginning. This same fear, although the immediate reasons may be different, paralyzed Brussels the day I arrived from Istanbul. With thorough security checks everywhere, people were filled with suspicion and fear. The tall buildings of the EU institutions surrounded by policemen and soldiers were almost empty and suddenly looked like wreckages from an unachieved past.
* * *
From the ashes of this ethical debris of the European civilization and the European project that were born after the Second World War and, in reaction to all the ignominies of that past, the nation-state and its populist hubris are emerging as the big winners.
After the shallow euphoria of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the victory of cosmopolitan progressivism, Europe, under the weight of a broader and profound moral crisis, returns to nationalism, xenophobia and same blood, same culture utopias. The nation-state does a violent come-back and is promoted by increasingly larger segments of European societies and elites as a panacea for all problems, legitimizing the corrosion even the blunt violation of human rights and fundamental principles of liberal societies.
The nation-state, together with an unbridled populism, sets the pace for political and social life in Europe and its neighbors, ferociously resisting the only common solution we should all push for: more Europe.
Tayyip Erdogans Turkey is not an exception, there is no Turkish exception or Turkish specificity. What is happening in Turkey today is the same as what is happening, albeit in different ways and rhythms, in Europe: an extreme strengthening of the nation state and its exclusive idea of community, an extreme cultural introversion that, in Turkey, has taken on a Sunni-Turkish character while in European countries it has gradually taken a Judeo-Christian-national character, and an authoritarianism that has roots in western authoritarian traditions and methods. This cocktail is heavily spiced with rampant populism, not different in its essence from what is happening in Hungary or Poland, these two countries far from being the only European examples.
The deep moral decadence plaguing Europe and the world around is deeply rooted in chronic economic and social inequalities, but most of all in the prevalence of a broader culture of populism and fascism, as described by Rob Riemen in The Eternal Return of Fascism, dominating the mass culture and extinguishing any prospect or aspiration to higher values and ethics.
However, European leaders and a large part of European society continue to lie and to be blind, always putting the blame elsewhere: Refugees, Islam, integration models
While I was opening my suitcase for inspection at the police and army check point at the train station below the European Parliament, I wondered if behind all these terrible attacks in Brussels lies Islam and Islamism and the Belgian integration model.
Or I wonder if the horrible dystopia of the Islamic State that attracts many young people from Europe is a drug for people lost in the dominant nihilism and self-destructive egocentrism promoted by the ethical collapse of the European culture that turns them into apocalyptic aggressors of innocent lives. They are disoriented youth, deep in our contemporary culture of violent egocentrism and immediate gain and recognition, marginalized and full of hate for the society. The become easy prey for the messianic message of the Islamic State and its promises of ultra-violence and aggressive lust. Beyond all that, there is also an undeniable factor of individual free will and responsibility, that those people who join the Islamic State are responsible for their awful choice and their dreadful acts and there are absolutely no excuses.
The fact that the message has an Islamic cover seems to attract more people who come from Muslim families, but this has little to do with Islam per se.
What happens in the case of the Islamic State is not about Islam, but about a universal collapse of ethics and the victory of emptiness. And in that sense, Islams role is not lesser than secular or enlightened Europes not in the sense of what some people wrongly argue as religion of violence and intolerance but as a culture that, despite a deep humanistic tradition, failed to promote a wider ethical superiority, just like the European culture fails to do today.
* * *
The apocalyptic terrorists of the Islamic State and its ideology are operating in the growing space of darkness created by this universal collapse of ethics. Europe, Turkey, the Balkans we are all on the same course, in the same rubber dinghy crossing dark waters even if we continue to lie to ourselves. But our rubber dinghy is not alone. Somewhere, on a beach through the darkness, there are people trying to help.
All these thousands of young people from across Europe and the world increasingly fill the gaps left by the EU and the nation states. There are numerous activists, new generation ideologues who help refugees in Lesvos and Idomeni, who protest in Brussels against the disgraceful agreement, who demonstrate in Cairo and in Tehran and in Istanbul for more democracy
These new generations of active and activist transnational citizens are well conversed with social media and the internet and forge on despite the thousands of kilometers separating them, exchanging views and ideas. Of course, all these people are the minority, not all those who ascribe to this new generation are like them, far from it.
After all, the modern jihadis are also part of that same new generation and that is the darkest part. But history has taught us that the road towards humanity is forged by enlightened minorities, not from majorities.
Along with the universal ethical collapse and its various forms, history gives Nemesis and the return of an extreme nation-state as the new antidote: an innovative form of bottom-up transnational citizenship, a progressive and active citizenship that knows no borders, neither geographically nor culturally. And that has already started to make a small difference.
This article by Evangelos Areteos was originally published on 26 March 2016 in Dutch, in the Dutch daily de Volkskrant, and on 27 March 2016 in Greek in the Cypriot daily Politis, as well as on the Roving Correspondents blog. The pictures are courtesy of Eleni Papadopoulou, The article is reproduced here with the authors permission.
I am responding to Thursdays letter discussing K-12 funding that Katie Linehan sent on behalf of Educate Nebraska. Linehan said, We cannot continue to omit student outcomes from the discussion about K-12 funding and spending. Its irresponsible to taxpayers and unfair to students. She goes on to state that, Over the past 25 years, Nebraska has raised taxes significantly to fund K-12 schools, but student outcomes have failed to keep pace with states that tax citizens less and have higher rates of student poverty.
Shes absolutely correct that property taxes have been raised significantly and that its irresponsible to taxpayers. Many school districts like York have had to raise local property taxes in order to fund their schools because the state has decreased their amount of budgetary support. In 1998-1999, K-12 education accounted for 32 percent of the states general fund budget. That total has now shrunk to 27.6 percent in 2015-2016 and will be even lower in the coming years. The state of Nebraska ranks 49th in the nation for the percentage of its general fund budget allocated to K-12 education. As a direct result, the state ranks second in the nation for the reliance on local property taxes to fund K-12 education.
York received $3.7 million in state aid in 2008-2009 and is scheduled to receive less than $500,000 in 2016-2017. How else are we going to fund our school district without an over-reliance on local property taxes? Our board of education wants to provide property tax relief more than anyone can even imagine.
While I agree with Linehan about the property tax dilemma, I cannot support her claim that Nebraskas student outcomes have failed to keep pace with states that tax citizens less and have higher rates of student poverty.
Nebraska public schools have a 90 percent graduation rate. More than 86 percent of Nebraska Public High School students took the ACT in 2014 and their average composite score of 21.7 was the highest in the nation for the 17 states that had 80 percent or more of their students tested.
Educate Nebraska and a few others are trying to paint the picture that public schools overspend and underperform. They want to bring in charter schools to use public money to fund privately run organizations that dont have to follow all the guidelines that public schools have to follow.
Mike Lucas, York
EDITORS NOTE: The author is the superintendent of York Public Schools.
PASCAGOULA, Mississippi-- A windy, but beautiful Saturday morning greeted the more than 1000 people in attendance as Ingalls Shipbuilding christened its 30th Aegis-class destroyer, the Ralph Johnson (DDG 114).
The event began with presentation of colors by the Naval Mobile Construction Battalion One Color Guard. Next came the musical honors for U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker. Ingalls President Brian Cuccias welcomed family, friends, and spoke briefly about the new Aegis destroyer and to celebrate the freedom DDG 114 will help to defend.
Saturday's ceremony was not only about the christening of a new battleship, but also a remembrance of the man for whom the ship is named. Johnson was a member of a 15-man reconnaissance patrol manning a post in enemy territory during the Vietnam war. On March 5, 1968, Johnson performed a courageous act when a grenade landed in the hole he and his fellow comrades occupied. Johnson yelled to his comrades to evacuate while he jumped on top of the grenade, sacrificing his life in the process.
Johnson's selfless act saved the lives of his fellow Marines and prevented enemies from penetrating the perimeter occupied by him and his comrades. Speeches given on Saturday spoke to the selfless act Johnson performed as well as the pride Ingalls takes in building the world's best warships.
"Without a doubt, the greatest shipbuilders on earth are right here in South Mississippi," said U.S. Rep. Steven Palazzo. "While the rest of the country is focused on becoming great again, the men and women here at Ingalls have never stopped."
"Ingalls continues to make America stronger," Wicker said. "Ingalls also continues to make our economy strong with over 12,000 employees and I am proud to represent Ingalls not only in Mississippi, but also in Washington, D.C."
Nieces, nephews, and grandchildren were present for the christening of the Johnson DDG 114, along with Johnson's sister, Helen Johnson-Richards. An emotional day for her, Johnson-Richards was at a loss of words, but shed light on the type of man her brother was.
"I just want to thank those of you who planned the program, the shipbuilders, and everyone present. I'm sure Ralph is in Heaven saying, 'why make such a fuss over me?'
"Ralph was quiet and hard-working," Johnson-Richards said. "When we were younger, he would always go out and do all of the work while we stood around laughing and playing. He would never tell that we were not helping him to work, but one day, our granddaddy got smart. He asked, 'Who all worked today?' Ralph responded, 'I did granddaddy.' Granddaddy asked Ralph, 'did they work today?' Ralph responded, 'I don't know' so we had to open our hands and Ralph's hands had callouses and ours did not, so we got our share of whippings."
The audience chuckled as Johnson-Richards continued to talk about her brother.
"I'm sure Ralph will say his prayers in the morning and in the evening for those of you who will be serving aboard his ship. I love and miss my brother and I wish he were here, but I just want you to know the life Ralph lived speaks for him. Hopefully we will be around to see the real Ralph Johnson go to sea."
Vincent Williams was among the many who worked on the Ralph Johnson and served as Johnson-Richards escort for the ceremony.Williams spoke about the pride he took in helping to build the warship.
"I met Mrs. Helen and she was just a beautiful person," Williams said. "I'm a retired military veteran and it has been so long since I have come here and viewed a christening. To meet such a beautiful person like that, I can just imagine what her brother was like.
"Building these ships is a great honor. I was telling one of the guys earlier, 'when I was over in Iraq and we saw one of these enter the Persian Gulf, I felt a sense of accomplishment because I helped to build one of these.' It reinforces the feeling that someone has my back and it was just a great feeling to be a part of this ceremony."
The ceremony concluded with the christening as a bottle of champagne was broken against the ship. Cuccias discussed the pride he felt in christening another ship as a result of the shipyard's efforts.
"Anytime you can celebrate the christening of any ship, particularly a ship Ingalls builds is a proud moment," Cuccias said. "To be a part of the finest shipbuilders in the world and building a ship such as this is a special moment."
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Stunning athlete cats purring in acro style
With his action hero cape billowing behind him, this seven-year-old moggy is the undisputed star of a troupe of French 'acrocats' captivating audiences on their first visit to the UK with Zippos Circus. As well as Felix, there is Rundi, three, who jumps through a hoop between two stands nearly 5ft apart; nine-month-old Junior who negotiates a 'tightrope' walk across a rope; Pattatina, six, who manages by a whisker to balance on top of a ball; and agile Valentina, one, who weaves between glittery pedestals. Read More...
Annuity sales are exploding as baby boomers shift their focus from saving for retirement to creating an income stream that will last a lifetime. Some annuities are simple and straightforward. For example, with an immediate annuity, you pay a lump sum to an insurance company, which pays a fixed amount every year for life, starting -- that's right -- immediately. Deferred-income annuities (also known as longevity insurance) are a close cousin: You pay a lump sum in exchange for a higher payout that starts several years in the future.
But variable annuities and fixed-index annuities introduce higher fees and complicated formulas that many investors don't understand. And some salespeople take advantage of the complexity, focusing on the benefits while glossing over the fees, surrender charges and complicated rules that can limit access to the guarantees.
Last fall, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) released an investigation of the annuities business that found that 13 of the 15 insurers her office queried offered salespeople perks and kickbacks -- including expensive vacations and other prizes -- to push their products. Such incentives create conflicts of interest, Warren warns. Plus, sellers earn commissions that can be 7% or more of your investment.
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Many states have already enacted rules designed to stop some of the most egregious practices. And a proposed Department of Labor rule is likely to tighten the screws. It would likely set a fiduciary standard for anyone who gives financial advice about IRA investments. (More than 60% of variable annuity sales in 2015 were in retirement plans.) That means advisers would be legally bound to act in your best interest, even at the cost of their own, when making recommendations to you.
How variable annuities work
A variable annuity is part investment, part insurance. You put your money in mutual-fund-like accounts, and gains are tax-deferred until you withdraw the money. Withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income rather than at lower capital-gains tax rates, just like payouts from traditional IRAs.
As more people invest in variable annuities inside their IRAs, the appeal of tax deferral clearly isn't the incentive. Rather, it's the income guarantees that draw IRA investors. The cost of these guarantees varies by insurer but typically ranges from 1% to 1.5% of the amount you invest.
How the guarantees work varies by insurer, too, but usually the insurer promises that you can withdraw a certain amount of money every year for the rest of your life, even if the investments you choose lose value or you run out of money. The calculations are complex. The balance that your guarantee is based on (called your benefit base) may grow by 4% or 5% per year or by the highest point your investments have reached during the year (sometimes on the anniversary date of your investment), whichever is higher. The guaranteed step-up means that the value of the benefit base can grow more than the value of your underlying investment.
Say you're 60 years old and your actual investments are worth $350,000 but your benefit base has grown to $500,000 over a number of years. If you withdraw 4% of the benefit base every year, which is $20,000 per year, it will take you 17.5 years (to age 77.5) to withdraw more than $350,000. If you live longer than that, the rest of the payouts will come from the guarantee.
How can you lose? "One of the challenges is that there are an awful lot of guarantees that come with big asterisks that are never fully explained," says Tim Maurer, a certified financial planner in Charleston, S.C., and author of Simple Money. "You have principal protection or high-water-mark protection, but the only way you can take advantage of that is if it's paid out over the course of many years, and that, to me, is not a real level of assurance." Not only that, but you can't access your benefit base as a lump sum; if you cash out your annuity, you'll get only your actual investment value.
Another knock on some variable annuities is the high fees. Basic annuity fees (called mortality and expense fees) can run 1.2% or more per year. You could also pay more than 1% in investment fees for the underlying funds. If you decide to cash out the annuity, you may pay a surrender charge, which generally starts at 7% to 10% and gradually decreases over the first seven to 10 years you own the annuity.
There are variable annuities with lower fees. Vanguard sells one directly to investors that costs 0.75% or less per year for the annuity and investments, plus an extra 1.20% if you add an income guarantee. The guarantee locks in the value of the investments on the policy's anniversary each year and bumps up the benefit base if the value of your investments on that date has increased. You can take 4% of the benefit base each year for the rest of your life if you start taking withdrawals between ages 59 and 64, or 5% if withdrawals start between ages 65 and 79. Similar low-expense products from Ameritas, Jefferson National and TD Ameritrade are sold through advisers who charge separate fees for their services.
Is one right for you?
Reasonable-fee variable annuities with guarantees can be appropriate for some people in their fifties or sixties who fear retiring in a down market and running out of money later in life. Matt Sadowsky, director of retirement and annuities for TD Ameritrade, says you generally should consider investing no more than 30% of your liquid net worth in an annuity -- total assets minus the value of your personal residence. "Annuities should provide a floor of guaranteed income to supplement Social Security and pensions to meet the expenses you need to cover for the rest of your life," he says.
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Before buying a variable annuity, check its prospectus for information about fees and investment choices, and make sure you understand exactly how the guarantee works. "Ask questions and compare alternatives," says Gerri Walsh, senior vice president of investor education for Finra, which has issued investor alerts about annuity sales. "What is your goal in seeking out this annuity? Are you considering it only because somebody recommended it to you? Is this the most efficient way to achieve your goals?" She recommends getting a second opinion from someone who doesn't have a financial stake in your decision.
Be careful about adding costly perks. For example, you may want an income guarantee but not a feature that boosts the death benefit. Be leery of agents who want to add all kinds of riders. It takes more money out of your account and puts more money into their pockets, says Barry Lanier, chief of the bureau of investigations for the Florida Department of Financial Services.
Strategies for getting out
If you discover that you didn't really need an annuity or that yours is charging particularly high fees, getting out can be complicated.
If you change your mind right away (within about a month in most states), you may be able to get your money back. (For your state's rules and protections, see the links to state insurance departments at www.naic.org (opens in new tab).)
After a free-look period, you'll have to pay income taxes on any gains, and you may have to pay a surrender charge. If you decide to switch to a lower-cost annuity, you can avoid the tax bill by making a tax-free transfer (called a 1035 exchange). You won't avoid surrender charges, but you will continue to defer the tax bill until you withdraw the money from the new annuity. (Vanguard offers a tool that calculates how much money you could save by switching to its annuity; see www.vanguard.com/annuity (opens in new tab) and click on "transfer an annuity.")
Before you switch to another annuity company or take any withdrawals, be sure you aren't giving up valuable guarantees. If the investments are worth less than the guaranteed value, you'll lose the benefit for which you may have been paying thousands of dollars each year. Plus, the guarantees on annuities sold before 2010 tend to be more generous than those available on new annuities, says Mark Cortazzo, a CFP in Parsippany, N.J. His Annuity Review service (www.annuityreview.com (opens in new tab)) charges $299 to analyze up to two annuities you're considering or already have.
Cortazzo recently worked with David Palay, 51, who owns a medical-device sales and marketing company in Milwaukee. Palay bought an annuity in 2003 with a lifetime income guarantee. He was happy with it, especially after the stock market downturn in 2008, but began to question whether it was the right choice after he started working with a new financial adviser, who recommended that he get out of the annuity and pay him to manage the money instead.
"I was looking for a third party without any skin in the game who could give advice about whether the annuity was appropriate," says Palay. Cortazzo found that the annuity's benefit base was worth 30% more than the actual account value and that Palay could lose tens of thousands of dollars in income benefits if he cashed it in. Also, the guarantee was less expensive and more generous than guarantees on new annuities.
"Ultimately, I decided to keep the annuity but stop adding new money," says Palay, who figured he had already locked in enough guaranteed income from the annuity to cover his expenses in retirement.
Florida's annuity reforms
In January 2007, Kiplinger's featured an 85-year-old Florida woman who was sold an annuity with surrender charges that lasted until she was 101 years old, including a 25% surrender charge for the first five years. In 2009, the Florida Department of Financial Services opened 431 annuity investigations based on consumer complaints. Some reported surrender charges of up to 25% of the account value for withdrawals in the first 15 to 20 years, says Barry Lanier, chief of the bureau of investigations for the Florida Department of Financial Services. "We've collected millions of dollars in restitution for consumers, much of it in the area of annuities," says Lanier, who helped the Florida woman we wrote about.
From 2008 to 2010, the Florida legislature passed a series of laws that established suitability requirements for annuity sales plus capped surrender periods at 10 years and surrender charges at 10% for annuity sales to buyers who are 65 and older. Annuity complaints have dropped significantly since then. Most states have enacted similar laws for annuity sales over the past few years.
Hidden fees, so-so results
Fixed-index annuities are even tougher to decipher than variable annuities -- but sales are taking off. Formerly called equity-index annuities, these products promise to accumulate interest based on the performance of certain indexes, with a minimum guarantee (such as 90% of your initial investment plus 1% to 3% in annual interest). You won't lose money in these products, but if the market does well, you'll earn much less than you would have by investing in a fund that replicates the index.
The fees for fixed-index annuities are embedded in the interest rate calculations rather than disclosed in a prospectus. Those calculations vary by annuity. Some offer a percentage of the performance of the index (called the participation rate), such as 80% of the growth of the S&P 500, not counting dividends. Or they may subtract a certain amount from the annual growth of the index -- perhaps 2.25 percentage points. Or they may cap the growth of the index at, say, 8%. They generally do not include dividends in their calculations. Some index annuities impose several limitations, and they may change after you purchase the annuity.
Note that a securities license is required to sell variable annuities but usually not to sell fixed-index annuities, so a salesperson may not be able to offer or compare both options.
TOD Accounts Versus Revocable Trusts Which Is Better?
savings Both help you pass down assets while avoiding the time and expense of probate, but one comes with a lot more flexibility than the other.
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COMMUNITY
Bremerton resident wins state pageant
Margie Perry, of Bremerton, was crowned the official titleholder of Mrs. Washington International 2016 on March 13 in Bellevue.
Perry will spend her year as Mrs. Washington promoting her platform, Make-A-Wish, helping children battling life-threatening medical conditions. She began her service with the charity in 1997.
Perry also volunteers for the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women program, for which International Pageants is a national partner, and will be traveling this year to Haiti with Soles4Souls, committed to wearing out poverty through the gift of used shoes.
She will compete in the Mrs. International Pageant, July 22-23, at the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts in Jacksonville, Florida. Mrs. Washington and Mrs. International showcases married women 21-56 years old and includes their husbands as an integral part of the event. For more information, visit www.mrsinternational.com.
Two elected to tribal council seats
The Suquamish Tribe elected two council veterans to serve as treasurer and vice chairman of the Tribal Council on March 20.
Robin Sigo, 40, has been re-elected treasurer. Sigo spearheads Grants and Philanthropy programs for the tribe. Bardow Lewis was elected vice chairman, filling the seat of incumbent Wayne George, who chose not to run for re-election. Lewis has served on the council since 2009 and is a lifelong fisherman and a former 33-year employee of the city of Seattle.
The Suquamish Tribal Council is the governing body of the Suquamish Tribe. Other members are joint Tribal Council Chairman Leonard Forsman, Secretary Nigel Lawrence, Rich Purser, Sammy Mabe and Luther "Jay" Mills Jr. The Suquamish Tribe has approximately 1,100 members.
LETTERS OF THANKS
Great concert in Port Gamble
Letters to the editor often contain something negative, but I need to offer some praise.
I recently attended a concert at the Port Gamble Theater, a classical guitar performance by Craig Dell. Kitsap is truly blessed to have such a talent for us to enjoy. He studied Spanish classical guitar in Barcelona and it shows deeply. The selections were beautiful, including even some very old Scottish ballads. Few guitarists show such a mastery and depth.
I hope he performs more concerts, and that theater's a perfect venue. Bravo!
Colleen Taylor, Poulsbo
Stand Down a community success
On behalf of the Kitsap County Veterans Advisory Board, and the Kitsap Area Veterans Alliance (KAVA), and all veterans in Kitsap County, I want to thank you for your charitable donations that enabled us to hold the Veterans Stand Down in 2015.
Your generous support allowed us to provide much-needed access to free goods and services to low-income and homeless veterans in Kitsap County. We were able to provide VA enrollment and access to health benefits, free dental care, homeless services, legal counseling, clothing, groceries, haircuts, a hot meal, vision screening and much more.
Dean Hearing, Kitsap Area Veterans Alliance
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Taste Washington, which wraps up today, is the largest wine tasting I've ever attended except one. That tasting happened in San Francisco over 30 years ago. It was held in a huge lavish hotel ballroom where wines from every major wine-growing region at the time filled hundreds of tables. The amount of glassware used at the event was mind-boggling.
With fewer than 60 wineries, Washington was a speck on the world's wine map at that time. But, my oh my, how things have changed! Today, there are over 890 wineries in this dynamic fruit-growing region. On average, a new winery opens every 30 days, making the number of wineries in Washington second in the country behind California.
The first recorded winery operating in Washington was founded by an immigrant from Baden, Germany, in 1874 in East Wenatchee. When John Galler first moved to Washington, he made a living trapping with the Indians before settling down to farm and ferment. He had an orchard and planted 20 acres of grapes, producing wines for 36 years before retiring.
In the 1900s, the wine industry was based on American grapes such as the concord, which took to the climate of Eastern Washington quite well. Grandview Winery and the National Wine Company or Nawico, for short was the biggest along with Seattle's Pommerelle and Upland out of Sunnyside.
There were also wineries popping up in Selah, Vancouver, Vaughn, Wenatchee, Bellevue, Lake Stevens, Edmonds and Dockton. Even Grapeview had one, Stretch Island Winery, operating from 1935 until 1947.
These wines were very much like the wine coolers of the early 1980s. Sweet, fruity and with not even a hint of complexity nothing like the wines produced today. Except for the three larger wineries, most of the smaller, community wineries made wine with whatever fruit they could get their hands on. Grape varieties used were island belle, Campbell early, concord, muscat, Alicante bouchet and zinfandel. But apples, cherries, pears, blackberries, gooseberries, loganberries and currants were also used. One adventurous vintner even made a melon wine.
The change from concord to cabernet was gradual. It started in 1937 at the Irrigated Agricultural Research and Extension Center. Dr. Walter Clore was hired to evaluate the apple irrigation project and other fruits, including grapes, raspberries, strawberries and blackberries.
A trial block of grapes was planted with both American and European varieties. This grew over the next six years to 45 American, 71 European and a dozen hybrid varieties. By 1974, over 300 varieties had been established at the research center.
Today, over 350 wine grape growers have over 40 varietals planted on some 50,000 acres all across Washington State. The record harvest year was 2014 with 227,000 tons of vinifera grapes harvested. And those 890 wineries produced 16 million cases of wine from all those grapes.
In 2015, Washington's wine grape harvest totaled 222,000 tons, down 2 percent from the record harvest of 2014. Many grape growers attributed the decrease to unusually warm weather, which resulted in a much smaller berry size. The upside of this is more concentrated aromas and flavors.
There are 13 recognized American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) in Washington State. The first to be recognized was Yakima Valley in 1983. In 1984, Columbia Valley and Walla Walla Valley joined the club. Eleven years later, Puget Sound joined the ranks.
The turn of the century brought Red Mountain into the fold, followed by Columbia Gorge (2004), Horse Heaven Hills (2005), Rattlesnake Hills and Wahluke Slope in 2006 and Snipes Mountain in 2009. Naches Heights and Ancient Lakes were added in 2011 and 2012 respectively.
Washington's average 16 hours per day of summer sunlight and alluvial soils produce some of the best-growing conditions for vinifera grapes. Cabernet sauvignon was the top producing red variety at 47,400 tons. Riesling was ranked second, at 44,100 tons. The latest economic impact numbers for the wine industry is $4.8 billion in 2013.
No wonder Taste Washington is the largest single region wine event today. There are so many wines from so many varieties to choose from. There are still tickets available for today's Grand Tasting. This is a great opportunity to learn more about Washington's wineries and what delicious bites pair well with them. For more information, visit TasteWashington.org.
And don't forget, Yakima has its Spring Barrel Tasting right around the corner. This is another opportunity to learn about some of the wineries in Washington's oldest AVA on April 23-24. Tasting from the barrel is a unique experience. Many wineries have local food pairings, live music and festivities.
And right here on the Kitsap Peninsula, Bainbridge Island wineries have schedule a special event for April 23-24. You'll taste locally made cheeses with locally made wine. More information at www.bainbridgewineries.com/winerytours.
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By Rachel Pritchett
The family of a woman who died in 2010 three days after knee surgery is suing WestSound Orthopaedics, alleging her husband's off-hour phone calls for help went unanswered.
WestSound Orthopaedics of Silverdale, started in 2005 and today among the region's largest group of orthopaedic surgeons, issued this statement:
"As longtime members of this community, everyone here at WestSound Orthopaedics were saddened by the passing of Linda Sperber. ... Our hearts and prayers go out to her family. Because of a pending legal inquiry, we are unable to provide any other information at this time."
According to a suit filed last week by Sperber's family in Kitsap County Superior Court, Sperber received arthroscopic knee surgery May 27, 2010, from Dr. Donald Bliss of WestSound Orthopaedics.
The 70-year-old woman was sent back to her Port Orchard home the same day, with instructions that if she experienced any problems to call a WestSound Orthopaedics number to reach the doctor on call.
On May 28, Sperber started feeling shortness of breath three times as she used her walker to get to and from the bathroom. At 7 that evening, her husband, John, called the WestSound Orthopaedics number and left a message. The Sperbers received no reply that evening.
On May 29, Linda Sperber awoke very early with shortness of breath. John Sperber called 911, and she was taken to Harrison Medical Center.
The next day, she died.
The Kitsap County coroner ruled the death was caused by pulmonary embolism, a blockage of a heart artery caused by a clot or foreign matter.
The suit alleges that WestSound Orthopaedics lacked an adequate phone-message system and had an insufficient protocol in place to handle after-hours patient calls. The suit also accused WestSound Orthopaedics of failing to adequately diagnose and manage Linda Sperber's condition or tell her of the risks of treatment, and the family lost their wife and mother as a result.
Family members, who could not be reached by the Kitsap Sun for additional comment, are seeking an undermined amount in damages.
Bliss, the physician, died in February of pancreatic cancer.
Shenandoah, IA (51601)
Today
Sunny and windy. High 87F. Winds S at 25 to 35 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph..
Tonight
Windy with increasing clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 57F. Winds SSW at 20 to 30 mph.
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By Kathryn Justice Leache, Chapter16.org
Brack Pelton widower, Afghanistan War veteran, bar owner, part-time vigilante, and hero of David Burnsworth's second action thriller, "Burning Heat" is leaving his buddy Mutt's bar after a night of the blues. The "ramshackle watering-hole" is in a rough part of Charleston: "I'd been on this street enough times to know not to stop for anything," Brack remembers. "So I didn't for two blocks. Even in the bad part of town, it could be hard to find convenient parking." Before he can climb into his Ram pickup, he spies what looks to be a domestic dispute. When the man starts to get violent and a little girl suddenly appears on the scene Brack intervenes.
After tussling with the man and knocking him unconscious against the roof of a parked car, Brack realizes that the woman is gorgeous and that he has met her before. But before they can reminisce about the connection, the woman's abuser comes to and guns her down. Brack is left with a crime scene, a lot of questions, and a six-year-old girl. "The shooter, whoever he was, ought to be thankful I didn't still have the M4 rifle and night-vision glasses the Marines had taught me to use," he thinks. "He deserved a Bin Laden special two shots and a splash."
Brack, an on-the-wagon renegade type, lives alone with his mixed-breed dog in an inherited shack on Isle of Palms, one of Charleston's barrier islands. He's unlucky in love (though not for any shortage of appealing women) but gets by with the help of an awful lot of friends old and young, male and female, black and white. He's part Patrick Kenzie, part Jimmy Buffet, and part Rambo.
The murder victim's name is Willa Mae, and her pastor, Brother Thomas, asks Brack to look into her murder. It turns out to be a good thing that he's there to snoop: the police don't seem particularly eager to publicize the shooting or to solve the case. Whether their reluctance stems from racism or sexism or classism (the victim is an African-American woman with a sketchy past who lives on the wrong side of the tracks), or a conspiracy of some sort isn't clear to Brack. Aided by a host of well-connected friends in places high and low, his own investigation quickly turns up some very juicy, and potentially damning, connections in this tight-knit Lowcountry community.
Brack's having trouble at his day job, too. Somebody seems to have it out for his ocean-side tiki bar, the Pirate's Cove ("an elevated structure...covered with green planks, the whole thing in the shape of an old Spanish frigate" that "flew her flags proudly in defiance to the high-end hotels and beach shops surrounding her"), and his preoccupation with finding Willa Mae's killer is causing tension among his anxious bar staff.
The investigation brings the short-fused Brack into contact with some true scum-of-the-earth types, and the closer he gets to uncovering the truth, the harder it gets to remain mindful of Brother Thomas's wise words: "Man can't afford to lose his own soul while he trying to do right." Can he bring Willa Mae's killer to justice before the collateral damage includes his conscience?
David Burnsworth is a graduate of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. "Burning Heat" is his second Brack Pelton thriller, a sequel to "Southern Heat."
For more local book coverage, visit http://chapter16.org/, an online publication of Humanities Tennessee.
FICTION
Southern Heat by David Burnsworth (Five Star Publishing, 286 pages, $25.95)
DISCUSSION/SIGNING
Who: David Burnsworth
Where: Barnes & Noble Booksellers
When: 2 p.m. Saturday, April 9
SHARE Contributed Photo Cody Cummings and Reilly Bonner attended South Doyle's prom at the Sunsphere last spring.
PEARL HARBOR IN TENNESSEE
Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies in Gatlinburg announced the opening of the new Pearl Harbor exhibit.
Pearl Harbor is the first three-gallery changeable exhibit that Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies has installed. It is an interactive and educational exhibit on the history of event that prompted the U.S.'s entry into WWII. Go through the timeline of world events leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor and experience the environmental impact that continues to this day.
The Pearl Harbor exhibit features models of ships and planes, an interactive map of the attack, life-sized figure of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, a crawl through replica of the USS Arizona BB-39 Forward Magazine, a theater with memorabilia from the 1940s, as well as various aquatic animals native to Hawaii and invasive species now living in Hawaii that were brought in from the Japanese ships during the attack.
Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies, Ripley's attractions and Guinness World Record Museum in Tennessee offer 50% off for military personnel and 30% off for all dependent family members year round.
The aquarium is located at traffic light #5 on the Parkway in Gatlinburg.
Info: 888-240-1358 or www.ripleysaquariumofthesmokies.com
GIRL SCOUT REUNION
The public is invited to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Girl Scout Camp Tanasi from 1-5 p.m. Sunday, April 3. Camp Tanasi is located on 461 wooded and lakefront acres at 123 Dark Hollow Road North in Andersonville. The open house is free, with no registration required.
Camp Tanasi's summer resident program is open to all girls, even if they aren't Girl Scouts. Details and registration may be found at www.girlscoutcsa.org.
Open house activities include: camp tours, a scavenger hunt, climbing tower demonstration, crafts, trail mix station and campfire songs.
There will also be a contest to create the camp's 60th anniversary patch.
PROM PHOTOS PLEASE!
Few things are as common in April as flowers and showers, but school proms come pretty close.
Schools in and around Knoxville will hold these annual dances in the next several of weeks, and the News Sentinel wants to feature your prom photos online and in its community section, Your News, that runs on Thursdays.
Send the photos to features@knoxnews.com. In the email, include the names of those pictured in the photo, where the photo was taken and which school's prom the subjects attended. Please put "Your News prom photo" in the subject line.
CAITIE MCMEKIN/NEWS SENTINEL Susan Dakak, a civil engineer and native of Iraq, stands in her office in Knoxville.
SHARE CAITIE MCMEKIN/NEWS SENTINEL Susan Dakak, a civil engineer and native of Iraq, stands in her office in Knoxville. Submitted photo Susan Dakak, right, with Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, commanding officer of troops in Iraq in 2003 and 2004. The picture was taken during a celebration of the signing of the constitution on March 8, 2004.
By Georgiana Vines of the Knoxville News Sentinel
Susan Mishu Dakak is an Iraq expatriate who uses her skills as a civil engineer and love of America to promote women's rights in both the U.S. and her old country.
She's the newly elected president of the Arab American Club of Knoxville. That group's mission is to help Arabs living here connect with Knoxvillians and to educate the public on Arabs here. She estimates some 500-1,000 reside in Knox County, excluding University of Tennessee students.
She's also on the finance committee of St. John Neumann Catholic Church, board member of the UT political science advisory board, treasurer of the Arab Refugee Christians, member of the Executive Women's Association of Knoxville and other local civic groups, and chair of the national Iraq Foundation board of directors.
She particularly enjoys helping refugee Christians, she said.
"The Muslim community has a good support system (for Muslim refugees) but the American community doesn't give (the same kind of) support (for Christian refugees)," she said. "They feel like they're outsiders."
Her enthusiasm for life spills over in discussing her business, Intuitive Technologies, and her family, husband Janan Dakak, a software specialist, and their son, J. Paul, a freshman at the University of South Carolina. Her parents, Fuad and Layla Mishu, and brothers, Sam and Tom Mishu, all live in Knoxville.
Susan Dakak, 57, came to Knoxville with her parents in 1978 from Baghdad, Iraq, and then went to Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville to study engineering. She graduated in 1983 and became a naturalized citizen in 1985.
When the family came, the political and economic situation in Iraq was stabilized but deteriorating, she said. Saddam Hussein became president later and allowed all kinds of atrocities to occur, particularly to women.
Meanwhile, Dakak was working all over the U.S. as a specialist in sanitary engineering. She frequently traveled to Knoxville, and it was on such an occasion that she met Janan Dakak, whom she married in 1989. The couple moved to Knoxville in 1995 and their son was born a year later.
The U.S. helped liberate Iraq from Hussein in 2003 and began helping the country form a new government. In January 2004, Dakak said she volunteered to go to Iraq in a Department of Defense program for ex-pats to use her engineering skills with the Iraqi Reconstruction and Development Council. Her son was 7 at the time and remained home with her husband.
"I stayed in the green zone, a fortified area, very, very high. It was the brain for the new Iraqi that was happening," she said.
Ambassador Paul Bremer, the presidential envoy to Iraq who briefly was Iraq's chief executive, was called upon by Dakak and "old friends" to rescind Resolution 137 which had been adopted by conservative Shiite members in December 2003 that "restricted women from doing anything."
The Iraq Governing Council revoked Resolution 137 on Feb. 27, 2004, "in part due to pressure from women's groups."
"It took less than two months. There were tears, cheers, happiness around the whole country," Dakak said.
She said she returned with a new appreciation for this country.
"(I) have not stopped talking about America the country, American people and the American military," she said.
Iraq continues to be in turmoil with the Islamic State, or ISIS, committing genocide against Christians and others under its control. The U.S. officially helps train, advise and assist Iraqis. The mission is called Operation Inherent Resolve.
Dakak said she considers the current situation to be "very bad."
"However, the new prime minister is trying very hard to fix the mess left by the previous one," she said.
In her spare time, Dakak likes to write. Right now she's writing letters to her college-age son. Some get mailed to him in South Carolina, but most don't, she said.
"When I pass, he'll have a book to read," she said.
Anthony Braxton performs in The Bijou Theatre with his 10 + 1tet during the Big Ears Festival in Knoxville on Saturday, April 1, 2016. (CAITIE MCMEKIN/NEWS SENTINEL)
By Wayne Bledsoe of the Knoxville News Sentinel
The city's ears were open wide Friday as the Big Ears Festival merged with First Friday events in downtown Knoxville. The four-day festival brings music fans from around the world to Knoxville to experience a wide array of critically acclaimed and adventurous music.
At the Square Room at 1:30 p.m., the house was packed for local experimental group nief-norf. The group's combination of piano, xylophone and programmed electronics built its drama in slow waves. The music was gentle and sometimes ethereal and the crowd caught on to its slow vibe.
After the show, Elias Gross, who had come from Lexington, Ky., for the event said it was his second year of the festival.
"I love that you can start with a symphony and end with Sun Ra," said Gross, referring to the shows he had seen on Thursday night.
A few blocks away at the new Depot Street venue the Mill & Mine, the crowd was thick for harpist Zeena Parkins & drummer Tony Buck. The duo's music was loud and primal, strange and inspired.
On Market Square, James Benson said he had come to Big Ears in 2015 primarily to see the band The Swans, but found more music he was impressed with. The experience prompted him to come back again this year.
While most reviews of the music were positive, Benson was in agreement with many patrons disappointed the Thursday late-night set by rock band Yo La Tengo with special guests Bryce Dessner and Sun Ra Arkestra leader Marshall Allen. The band is best known for pop songs, but spent nearly all of the set on an improvisational piece:
"I'm perfectly all right with minimalist music and avant garde music that goes on for hours, but it was like a 45-minute soundcheck. It was like a comedy show that never makes you laugh."
Waiting in line for free barbecue and to see the Brazilian rock band Boogarins at the Standard on Jackson Avenue, Tracey and Matthew Peters and their baby daughter came to the event from Greeneville to see Andrew Bird at the Tennessee, but decided to get a full day pass and check out the other bands as well.
"I can't say I've enjoyed it all," said Tracey, who had seen Anthony Braxton's 10+1 Tet show and heard "Lou Reed's Drones."
"I just get the feeling that I'm not sophisticated enough to enjoy this music ... I just keep feeling like I'm missing something in the more experimental music."
More common, though, was the sentiment from Knoxvillian John Campbell, who had been to Big Ears twice before.
"I've gotten a weekend pass each time. It's a remarkable collection of performers and creative work. ... I can't sample enough. I'm like a kid in a candy store."
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This April 2014 photo provided by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals shows Kristen Collins and her dogs posing for an ASPCA calendar in West Orange, N.J. Collins has been in charge of the ASPCA Behavioral Rehabilitation Center in Madison, N.J., and will do the same when a new $9 million center opens in mid-2017 in North Carolina.
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By Sue Manning, Associated Press
LOS ANGELES Animal Planet will soon celebrate the success of a unique program aimed at second chance dogs, often shy and traumatized victims of puppy mills, hoarders and abandonment.
In an hour-long special, the network delves into the Behavior Rehabilitation Center at St. Hubert's Animal Welfare Center in Madison, New Jersey. It's a pilot program of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals that began in 2013 and will soon be expanded, in time for the ASPCA's 150th anniversary.
Called "Second Chance Dogs," to air April 16 (9 a.m. Eastern), the Animal Planet show starts at the center's beginning, when the ASPCA decided to try rehabilitation for hard luck cases.
Of 259 dogs sent to the center since it opened, 185 have graduated. Of those, 170 were adopted and the majority is doing quite well, said Kristen Collins, a certified applied animal behaviorist who oversees the project and will be the director of a new facility planned as part of the expansion.
Not all the dogs were success stories. Thirteen were deemed inappropriate for the program, including those with health issues, and 28 failed to graduate after months in the program. Some of those were sent back to the shelters where they came from and some had to be euthanized.
But the ASPCA stands firmly behind the center. It will continue to move dogs through St. Hubert's until a new $9 million, 35,000-square-foot facility is finished in mid-2017 in Weaverville, North Carolina.
"While we can't yet answer all of the questions associated with rehabilitating at-risk animals, we continue to witness amazing transformations, dogs that conquer their anxiety and fear despite years of devastating behavioral damage. These transformations change the trajectory of their lives," said Matthew Bershadker, president and CEO of the ASPCA.
Nearly every animal shelter in the country has a shy dog or two, Collins said. The new rehab center will have a dormitory that can accommodate visiting staff bringing in dogs from shelters or seeking training on how to handle their own loads. Shelters will not be charged for sending dogs or staff to the center, she said.
The human training will be offered because the ASPCA feels it's just as important to teach shelter workers around the country how to gain the trust of severely traumatized dogs as it is to rehabilitate the animals, Bershadker said.
"Collecting this insight and sharing it will enable all of us to move more vulnerable dogs from peril to safety," he said.
Collins said the center was the first dedicated solely to abused or neglected dogs. Her dogs, Wink, Juno and Toefu, are part of its workforce as "helper" dogs. They made it into the documentary, done by the production company Dog Files under ASPCA supervision.
Kathryn Klumpp of Watchung, New Jersey, is the proud owner of one of the center's graduates. She adopted Mary Ann after the dog was transferred from rehab to the Butler Town Pound. The mutt, believed to be around 2, adjusted quickly to life with her new family, Klumpp said. Her husband, sons (ages 11 and 13), two other dogs and a cat all made it work.
"When she came home, the family could only scratch her under her chin where she could watch them. Now, they can scratch her back." Klumpp said. "That's how much she has come to trust all of us."
While things went quite smoothly, the family made one serious change: "So now her name is Hope."
SHARE Dr. Sylvia Hart, founding dean of the University of Tennessee College of Nursing, died Tuesday in Knoxville. She is pictured in April 1975 with an architect's model of the college. (NEWS SENTINEL ARCHIVE)
By News Sentinel Staff
Dr. Sylvia Hart came to Knoxville in 1971 to start the University of Tennessee's College of Nursing.
But the nursing school from its very walls to its curriculum, which offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral nursing degrees is only part of her legacy.
Dr. Hart died March 29 after a period of declining health.
A Milwaukee, Wis., native, Dr. Hart began her career as a pediatric nurse and worked her way up to supervisory and administrative positions before she was recruited from State University of New York at Buffalo, where she was teaching, to begin a nursing college at UT. Prior to the college's establishment, mandated by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, no bachelor's or higher nursing programs were available in Knoxville, said Sandra Thomas, director of the college's doctoral program.
"Dr. Hart came from a different part of the country, where nursing was more advanced," Thomas said. "She was imbued with a larger vision."
She hired the college's first faculty, developed its curriculum and secured national accreditation. In 1977, after it had outgrown several spaces on campus, she wrote and received a $2 million federal grant to fund the building at the center of the campus, which still houses the college today, Thomas said. By 1989, she had fulfilled her goal of offering a doctoral program there.
"She was a born leader," said former dean and lifelong friend Joan Creasia. "She had a way with words that could make you really fall in line and do what was best for the college and the profession of nursing. She was very warm, but very direct with her comments. She was complimentary when you did something well, and she could give you another path if you were heading in the wrong direction."
She also pushed her faculty who had only bachelor's degrees to go for master's or doctorates.
"When she called them into her office, they had to fear she was going to send them to school or 'provide the opportunity,' as she would have called it," Creasia said.
Under Dr. Hart's direction, the college received "national prominence," Thomas said as did Dr. Hart, who was a leader in national organizations related to nursing and health, and was a consultant to more than 120 nursing programs in 42 states.
"She developed friendships all over the country," Creasia said. "She really was a person people were drawn to, and they stayed with her for a long time."
Her listening skills, her straightforward manner, her openness to "all points of view in any topic," and a dry sense of humor that could "lighten tense situations" made her likable and approachable, Thomas said. She maintained "an open-door policy as dean," a position she held until her retirement in 1992.
Yet for all her achievements, she was "humble and nonassuming," Thomas said. The advance obituary she wrote herself was bare-bones, containing only basic information. Creasia corrected that later, adding Dr. Hart's achievements and accolades.
Creasia said friends and family can attend a memorial service at 10:30 a.m. April 26 at All Saints Catholic Church in West Knoxville.
There already are two endowments in Dr. Hart's name, she said: the Sylvia Hart Nursing Endowment for Student Scholarship and the Sylvia Hart Nursing Award Endowment for Student and Faculty Awards. Memorials can be made to those via the UT College of Nursing Development Office, 1200 Volunteer Blvd., Knoxville, TN 37996-4180.
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The Sexual Assault Center of East Tennessee has planned events this month hoping to shed some light on its services for survivors.
All services provided by the Sexual Assault Center of East Tennessee, now a program of Helen Ross McNabb Center, are free and confidential.
The Sexual Assault Center of East Tennessee, the only such provider in the area, serves 16 counties in East Tennessee with sexual assault nurse examinations, advocacy, therapy, education and outreach.
Its 24-hour crisis hotline is 865-522-7273.
Awareness events this month include Teal Day on April 13, when the community is invited to wear teal, the awareness color for sexual assault, and share pictures on social media, using the hashtag #TealOut; National Denim Day, April 27, when the community is encouraged to wear denim and share pictures on social media, using the hashtag #DenimDay; and an April 28 "Shatter the Silence" event and open house at the center.
On April 28, members of the community can come to the center, 2455 Sutherland Ave., from 4-6 p.m. for a "Light the Way" ceremony and tour the center with local officials, law enforcement and community organizations.
Guests can view the Clothesline Project, a display of survivors' stories and artwork.
The center also invites the community to participate in the "Light the Way" campaign by donating online to help the center provide clothing, hygiene products, transportation and therapy tools, among other items, for victims of sexual assault.
To learn more or donate, visit mcnabbcenter.org.
Founded in 1973 as the Knoxville Rape Crisis Center, the center also has a Johnson City location at 109 W. Watauga Ave.
Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett
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By Gerald Witt of the Knoxville News Sentinel
Knox County school board members, for the most part, have been silent in the days following a report that the frequency of school bus crashes is twice the recommended guideline and the transportation system is underfunded.
Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett, however, wasn't quiet.
"It's always more funding. Every time there's a bad situation, that's the first thing they say is more funding," he said.
A fiscal conservative who won re-election on the promise of no property tax rate hikes, Burchett said the school system's transportation issues wouldn't be solved by spending.
The report also said training deficiencies for drivers caused bus crashes ranging from light property damage to the Dec. 2, 2014 crash that killed two students and a teacher's assistant. It suggested money is needed for training that could prevent crashes and to pay for upgraded fleets in the aging busing system. It also said bus drivers should be paid more and more of them are required.
"We need to put the hammer down on these buses and these owners," Burchett said Friday. "We need to start yanking those contracts. I think we need to take a look at the responsible drivers and responsible owners."
The study by Missouri-based School Bus Consultants was commissioned in the wake of the 2014 fatal crash. In the 2014-15 school year, according to the report, the school system's crash rate was 2.8 per 100,000 miles. The industry guideline is 1 to 1.5 per 100,000 miles. In the 2014-15 school year, 85 crashes happened, or the equivalent of a crash almost every other school day, the report noted.
Schools Superintendent Jim McIntyre on Friday called the report's findings "unacceptable."
Meanwhile, just two school board members gave interviews.
School board Chairman Doug Harris, vice chair Tracie Sanger, Patti Bounds and Amber Rountree did not return requests for comment made Thursday and Friday. Other members including Karen Carson, Lynne Fugate and Gloria Deathridge each said they need to study the report before commenting.
"I'm going to wait and see what additional recommendations come from (McIntyre) before I make any commitment," school board member Terry Hill said.
"I like the comment about how we have managed, given all the deficits that appear to be out there, including the underfunding and the old buses and a lack of training," Hill said. She praised the report's work outlining both strengths and weaknesses.
The report said the district does a good job handling driver shortages and constantly changing bus routes as well as large amounts of paperwork.
Hill said the fatalities were "tragic, and I would say nothing to take away or minimize that."
HOW MUCH money?
It's uncertain exactly how much funding is needed to bring the bus system up to date.
McIntyre in his 2016-17 budget draft proposed adding $1 million to the transportation fund, which is $16.2 million this fiscal year.
Of that, $800,000 is expected to go to contractors, and $200,000 would expand bus routes.
Mike McMillian, a school board member and former chairman, said a $1 million increase to fund the transportation system could help the contractors and bus drivers. Hill agreed it was a good start.
"It's not enough to do everything we need to do, but it's a step in the right direction," McMillan said. "What we are looking at is contributing that much probably for the next three to five years."
The report said the transportation system needs more money, but didn't say how much. A staff member from School Bus Consultants, which did the study, referred funding questions to the school system.
When asked how much is needed, McIntyre said: "I'm not sure I want to put an exact figure on it at this point in time."
He said increasing transportation funding could happen over the next two to four years.
Overall, McIntyre added, the report raised three primary concerns.
First, he said, "the school system needs to intervene" on bus driver training. Second, transportation needs investment. The county's use of bus contractors makes it nimble, McIntyre noted as a highlight from the report. But it needs more funding, he said. And third, the school system should add staff to help manage busing and contractors.
"We don't have enough personnel to really be able to do everything we want to do," McIntyre said.
Finding public funds for those improvements could be an issue.
The school board, Knox County Commission and Burchett's office entered an agreement in 2015 that only allows funding increases to schools to reflect natural growth in tax revenue. The agreement also issued one-time capital funds for two new schools in Hardin Valley and Gibbs at a total of $64.5 million.
The deal could hinder fully funding the transportation system quickly, McMillan agreed. "Yeah, that would certainly be a factor in it."
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When Gov. Bill Haslam announced in February 2014 his administration's ambitious plan for Tennessee Promise the last-dollar community college scholarship and mentoring program designed to help more Tennesseans attain a college education he heralded a bold investment in the future of our state.
A little more than two years later, we can already see the dividends. Average full-time student enrollment across Tennessee's 13 community colleges increased 6 percent last September, with enrollment at some institutions increasing more than 20 percent. That jump is significant; data show that full-time community college students are much more likely to finish and earn their associate degrees than part-timers.
Tennessee Promise is a key component of the state's Drive to 55, a collection of initiatives aimed at boosting postsecondary degree completion in Tennessee to 55 percent by 2025. Another initiative, Tennessee Reconnect, allows any adult to attend and earn a degree or certificate from any of our 27 Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology at no cost. As pathways open to every high school graduate and every adult in the state, Tennessee Promise and Tennessee Reconnect have garnered praise from leaders in business, government and higher education, as well as from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. The reason for this consensus is clear: For Tennessee to stay an economically vibrant, thriving place to live, more adults will need to enter the workforce with a degree.
Just as Tennessee Promise has built a sturdy bridge for our state's high school students to make the transition to community college, WGU Tennessee the nonprofit online university launched in 2013 as part of the Drive to 55 serves community college students in much the same way. With more than 45 percent of our students possessing credits from a Tennessee community college, we are proud to be a flexible, affordable college completion pathway for so many adults. In Knox County, more than 160 students are enrolled in a WGU Tennessee bachelor's or master's degree program. Of those, 112 matriculated with transfer credits from Pellissippi State. We have agreements in place with all 13 of the state's community colleges to facilitate transfer. In addition, all graduates and staff receive a 5 percent discount on our already low tuition of about $6,000 per year.
As chancellor of WGU Tennessee, I have seen the difference a degree makes in the lives of our graduates. Families who had been struggling to make ends meet suddenly gain access to the middle class, economic opportunity and higher-paying jobs. Parents for whom a college degree always seemed just out of reach find themselves modeling educational attainment for their children. Friends and relatives of graduates become inspired and infected with the idea that they, too, can earn a degree. A Harris Interactive study from a few years ago found that WGU graduates typically increase their annual income by $9,000 from what they made prior to enrolling. For many of them, though, no amount can adequately represent what a degree bestows hope for a better future for themselves and future generations.
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A look at recent events in the news that pleased us ...
Big Ears: The 2016 Big Ears festival kicked off Thursday at the Square Room on Market Square. It has become one of the most prestigious music events in the United States, bringing together cutting-edge modern classical, jazz, avant-garde and a wide variety of critically acclaimed artists. Now in its fifth year, the festival has been praised widely by national and international publications, including Rolling Stone, which called it "arguably the classiest, most diverse festival in the country."
Big Ears concludes on Sunday with a performance of John Luther Adams' work "Inuksuit" at Mead's Quarry at Ijams Nature Center. That final event is free to the public.
Digital archives: Readers, students and researchers soon will be able to access nearly 70 years of searchable archived issues of the Knoxville News Sentinel. The Knox County Public Library Foundation announced Thursday that it has completed a $650,000 fundraising campaign for the project thanks to a newly-formed partnership with the University of Tennessee.
In all, more than 430 people, corporations and grantors contributed to the campaign, chaired by semiretired News Sentinel columnist Sam Venable.
Sacrifices recognized: William "Bill" Robinson, 73, recognized as the longest-held enlisted prisoner of war in American history after more than seven years of captivity in Vietnam, and several other Vietnam War veterans were joined by Knox County and Knoxville mayors Tim Burchett and Madeline Rogero at a flag-raising ceremony outside the City-County Building downtown Tuesday to commemorate Vietnam Veterans Day and the 43rd anniversary of the last day American combat troops were on the ground in Vietnam. Organized by the five local chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Tuesday's event honored each of the veterans on hand with a commemorative pin as a token of gratitude.
Hardee's closes: South Knoxville may be gaining road improvements to Alcoa Highway, but it has lost a popular restaurant in the process. The Hardee's restaurant at 2930 Alcoa Highway, which was the only fast-food establishment for several miles on the highway, closed last week over road plans that would prohibit left turns into the lot and take several of its parking spaces, said Bob Monday of Monday Properties, owner of the property.
By Choi Sung-jin
As a means of stimulating their dormant economies, major countries are trying a new experiment sharply raising their minimum wages.
One of the conventional wisdoms in economics has been that a higher minimum wage means fewer jobs. That time-honored notion is being shaken by bold moves in countries such as Germany, the United States, Japan, Russia and the United Kingdom,
For starters, the U.K. raised the minimum wage for workers 25 and older from 6.7 to 7.2 British pounds (about 12,000 won) per hour, starting this month. The 0.5-pound rise is almost equal to the increases in the past three years. London plans to raise it further to 9 pounds (14,900 won) in the next five years.
In the U.S., New York and California decided last year to increase the minimum wage to $15 (17,000 won). Japan also decided last year to increase its minimum wage by 3 percent a year until it reaches 1,000 yen (10,230) won, as part of its economic stimulus to increase its annual gross domestic product to 600 trillion yen. Russia, which raised its minimum wage by 4 percent in January, made an additional increase of 20 percent in March to 7,500 rubles a month (130,000 won).
Since jobless rates remained low for the past few years in the U.K. and in other countries that have raised the minimum wage, the existing views of economists that a rise in the minimum wage reduces jobs are being shaken, the Financial Times reported. This has pushed other governments, which had refrained from increasing the minimum wage for fear of losing jobs, to more boldly move toward higher minimum wages, it reported.
Germany, which introduced the minimum wage system a year ago, saw its jobless rate remain at 4.3 percent in January, hitting the lowest level since its reunification in 1990.
Some economists are cautioning against adverse effects that hiking the minimum wage will have on the economy. "If we raise the minimum wage too high, it will certainly lead to ill effects," said Alan Manning, professor at the London School of Economics. "The problem is that we don't know when such adverse effects will emerge and how." Other researchers agreed that raising the minimum wage has risks that could be as great as its benefits, and it is all but impossible to predict the results.
"Many advanced countries are turning their attention to increasing the minimum wage as a means of narrowing the wealth gap among their people," the Financial Times reported. "All the world will be watching how the wage hikes progress." The New York Times also reported, "As California has introduced a minimum wage of $15, it has volunteered to become the guinea pig of a bold economic experiment."
Korea is one of the countries which have continued to raise its minimum wage. This year, the nation raised its minimum wage to 6,030 won an hour, up 8.1 percent from last year. The growth rate itself is not low but the overall amount is still small compared with other OECD countries.
Moreover the number of workers in Korea who receive wages below the minimum wage account for 14.7 percent of the total, 2.7 times more than the average of 5.5 percent among 20 major OECD members. Civic groups have long attempted to increase the minimum wage to 10,000 won gradually, which is also one of the campaign pledges of some of the opposition political parties, including the largest opposition Minjoo Party of Korea.
Experts here say it is an experiment worth trying in Korea, too, noting that low-paid workers spend most of their increased income and help bolster domestic demand and economic growth while narrowing wealth gap.
UPDATED
Hundreds of Chicago teachers are expected to picket across the city on Friday as part of a one-day strike to call attention to school funding, poverty, the school-to-prison-pipeline, and other social issues.
Picketing for what is billed as a Day of Action was expected to start at 6:30 a.m., Central Standard Time, with teach-ins, rallies, and other events continuing through 6:30 p.m.
Union members and supporters are calling attention to a number of issues, including public funding for K-12 and higher education and the expansion of charter schools in Chicago.
The union has garnered support from the Service Employees International Union Healthcare Illinois, Fight For 15, the coalition advocating for an increase in the minimum wage to $15 for fast food workers, and others.
The March 23 vote to hold the April 1 Day of Action was 486 to 124 hardly unanimousand Chicago media outlets have cited teachers who appear conflicted about the strike and its purpose.
Chicago District CEO Forrest Claypool has called the action an illegal strike, but so far the district has said it would not punish teachers who did not show up to work beyond docking their days pay.
Teachers who do not join the picketing on Friday could also face sanctions from the union, including being fined or temporarily expelled, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Claypool has urged teachers to show up to work or to one of the 200 or so contingency sites at libraries, park facilities, and churches that the district will use to provide food and activities for students.
The union and the district have been locked in a stalemate over a labor agreement that expired last June. The union rejected a serious offer from the district in early February.
While the majority of eligible union membership voted to authorize a strike last December, it was the districts announcement in March to add three furlough days this fiscal year that immediately preceded the unions vote to approve the Day of Action.
The furlough notice followed a CPS threat to end the long-standing practice of picking up the bulk of the union members pension contributions. The district has since walked back somewhat on the pension pickup.
Gov. Bruce Rauner has called the strike an abuse of power. And Mayor Rahm Emanuel has said that he understands the unions frustration with Springfield, the state capitol, but that the union should not take it out on our students.
The union is expected to be joined by students from Chicago State University and the Black Youth Project for a teach-in at the universitys rotunda. A noon rally is also expected to feature union president Karen Lewis and the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr.
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten is also expected to appear at a teach-in at Northeastern Illinois University between 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
[UPDATE(4:59 P.M.): The school district announced during the day Friday that it had filed a complaint against the union with the Illinois Education Relations Board. The district argued that any strike, no matter the reason, was illegal until fact-finding over the labor contract had been completed in accordance with state law.
The district said in the filing that it was seeking a cease and desist order, damages, legal fees, and sanctions against the union.
The war of words between the teachers union and Gov. Rauner continued during the day. Earlier on Friday, the Governor issued a statement calling the strike shameful and arguing that the citys children were the victims in this raw display of political power.
Walking out on kids in the classroom, leaving parents in the lurch and thumbing their nose at taxpayersits the height of arrogance from those weve entrusted with our childrens futures, Rauner said. By breaking the law in Chicago and forcing passage of a bad law in Springfield, powerful bosses are proving they have an unfair advantage over Illinois families. When we lose the balance between taxpayers and special interests, property taxes go up and the quality of education goes down.
Rauner said that the impasse between CPS and the union would have already concluded if his proposed reforms had been enacted.
The state of Illinois has yet to pass a budget for the fiscal year that started last July.
Lewis, the teachers union president, shot back, calling Rauner bad for Illinois.
Since Rauner has been in office he has failed to govern. Instead he has come in like the venture capitalist he is to slash budgets, restrict funding for critical social services, destroy Chicagos school districtalong with Chicago State University, and hold every citizen of our state hostage to his failed turnaround agenda. Simply put, he is bad for Illinois, Lewis said in a union-issued statement.
Instead of attacking people in public service who have devoted their lives to educating children, he should use his title to make a positive difference in peoples lives, Lewis said.]
Donald Trump
By Jun Ji-hye
Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump says that he would support South Korea's nuclear armament and that he would consider pulling out U.S. troops if he became U.S. president.
During an interview with The New York Times conducted Friday, the entrepreneur-turned-politician said he would be open to allowing Seoul and Tokyo to develop nuclear weapons, rather than depending on the American nuclear umbrella for protection against North Korea and China.
If the U.S. "keeps on its path, its current path of weakness, they're going to want to have that anyway, with or without me discussing it," Trump said.
He stressed that Washington would be friendly toward everyone, but would no longer be exploited.
"We cannot afford to be losing vast amounts of billions of dollars on all of this," he said.
The real estate mogul also said he would be willing to withdraw U.S. forces from South Korea and Japan unless the two substantially increased their contributions to the costs of those troops.
"Not happily, but the answer is yes," he said.
About 28,500 American troops are in stationed South Korea to deter North Korean aggression, and about 50,000 U.S. military personnel are stationed in Japan.
By Choi Sung-jin
On Thursday, a committee of experts, composed by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, selected 10 graphic health warnings, which will be attached to cigarette packages later this year.
The ministry will finalize and present the pictorial warning labels to the public by June and have one of the labels printed on every pack of cigarettes to be sold from Dec. 23, ministry officials said.
The officials point out that various studies, here and abroad, have proved that the graphic warnings raise awareness about the health hazards of smoking and reduce the attraction of tobacco. In Canada, for example, the warning labels have reduced the possibility of people who don't smoke becoming smokers by 12.5 percent. In Australia, 57 percent of smokers said health warnings could motivate them to quit.
In its guidelines, the ministry also said tobacco companies will have to attach all 10 pictorial warnings to its cigarette packages in an even portion. The ministry also stipulates that the pictures should occupy at least 30 percent of either the front or the back side of the pack (50 percent when warning letters are included).
The officials noted that at least 101 countries will be using graphic warning labels by the end of this year, adding that the size of the warnings are far larger in some foreign countries. In Australia, for example, the warning labels should account for 75 percent of the front of the pack or 90 percent of the back.
The committee selected the 10 labels after examining about 800 such pictures throughout the world. They comprise five pictures of body parts hit by the most frequent smoke-caused diseases of lung cancer, larynx cancer, oral cancer, heart disease and stroke, plus five warnings describing other health risks such as second-hand smoke, death at an early age, aging skin, smoking during pregnancy and sexual dysfunction.
By Choi Sung-jin
The North Korean people believe their government will announce policies toward greater, if limited, reform and openness at the Seventh Congress of the Workers' Party in May, Radio Free Asia reported Friday.
"Discontent among the people has risen high because of the closed politics of three successive generations," the RFA quoted a source in Jakang Province. "For North Koreans, reform and openness is no longer just a wish but a must."
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has come up with various slogans that emphasize economy, science and youth, but residents are sick and tired of all the propaganda they have heard from his father and grandfather, too, for decades, the source said.
"As North Koreans watch China's economic development through adopting policies of reform and openness, they know too well that without changes in politics there will be no economic progress or survival for the citizens," the sources said. "Chairman Kim Jong-un who has studied abroad should know this reality."
A source in North Hamgyeong Province said that Kim's hurrying to hold the party congress reflects his judgment that he will not be able to maintain power with the economic situation as it is now.
"If all Kim does is repeat the same old revolutionary slogans without clear commitment to reform and open policy, it will be an irreversible disaster for Kim's stable reign," another source was quoted as saying. "Citizens are now waiting for the seventh party congress, and regard reform and openness the issues for survival that cannot be delayed any longer."
South Korean President Park Geun-hye pledged Friday to join international efforts to develop nuclear security regimes as she called on the United Nations and other international organizations to strengthen their role in nuclear security.
"The U.N. can contribute to the development of a regime for nuclear security," Park said during a working lunch at the summit on nuclear security in Washington.
Her comments came amid growing concerns over possible nuclear and radiological attacks by terrorist groups.
U.S. President Barack Obama said al Qaida has long sought nuclear materials and the Islamic State militant group has used chemical weapons, including mustard gas, in Syria and Iraq.
"There is no doubt that if these madmen ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material they most certainly would use it to kill as many innocent people as possible," Obama said at opening session of the Nuclear Security Summit.
A small amount of plutonium -- about the size of an apple -- could kill and injure hundreds of thousands of innocent people, Obama said.
This week's summit is the fourth and final one since 2000, when Obama hosted the inaugural session as part of efforts to rid the world of nuclear weapons.
The summit has been held every two years to discuss how to tackle the threats of nuclear terrorism and how to strengthen an international regime for nuclear security.
Obama called for better security at nuclear facilities around the world to ensure nuclear material doesn't fall into the wrong hands.
There are roughly 2,000 tons of nuclear material at hundreds of military and civilian facilities around the world, though not all of them are properly secured.
"More work remains to be done to prevent non-state actors from obtaining nuclear and other radioactive materials, which could be used for malicious purposes," the leaders said in a communique at the end of the summit.
Republican front-runner Donald Trump's remarks about allowing South Korea to nuclearize are adding fuel to a simmering debate over Seoul's potential nuclear option to counter Pyongyang's escalating threats, observers here said Monday.
In an interview with the New York Times on Friday, the U.S. real-estate magnet said he would be "open" to allowing the South and Japan to build nuclear arms against the North and China. He argued they would go nuclear anyway if the U.S. keeps its "current path of weakness."
Analysts said that it is noteworthy that the U.S. political heavyweight has raised the possibility of the South's nuclearization. But they dismissed Trump's remarks as part of his "surreal and populist" campaign rhetoric.
"His mentions of the South's nuclear armament and the potential withdrawal of U.S. forces from the Korean Peninsula are quite worrisome," said Chang Yong-seok, a senior researcher at the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies at Seoul National University.
"But that may be just empty talk as he caters to the public opinion in the U.S. that the South should stand on its own feet militarily (possibly with nuclear arms) rather than depending on what he claims to be a costly U.S. security umbrella."
Whether Trump's remarks were part of his aggressive bid for the White House, his stance gave a boost to those who argue that Seoul should consider building nuclear arms or asking Washington to redeploy tactical nuclear arms that were withdrawn from the peninsula shortly before an inter-Korean denuclearization accord took effect in 1992.
Calls for nuclear armament reemerged here after Pyongyang's nuclear test in January and long-range rocket launch in February.
A series of prominent politicians and scholars such as former Saenuri Party leader Chung Mong-joon and the party's current floor leader Rep. Won Yoo-chul have demanded that Seoul consider arming itself with nuclear bombs.
The demand for the South's nuclearization has risen amid growing misgivings about U.S. security commitment. Some observers noted that under the U.S.' "retrenchment" policy of reducing international engagement and expenditures, Washington might feel reluctant to immediately engage in a contingency on the peninsula.
A security expert here said that the South should nurture at least "latent" nuclear weapons capabilities to better deal with the evolving nuclear threats from the North and potential threats from neighboring states.
U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed their commitment to fully implement the new package of U.N. Security Council sanctions on North Korea, the White House said Friday.
Obama and Xi held one-on-one talks on Thursday on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit. North Korea was among the key topics of discussion, along with other thorny issues such as cybersecurity, maritime disputes and human rights.
"Both leaders committed to ... strengthen coordination in addressing the shared threat presented by North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile systems," the White House said in a readout. "Both leaders affirmed their commitment to achieving the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the full implementation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 2270."
China is considered the only country with any meaningful influence over Pyongyang as the main provider of food and energy aid as well as diplomatic protection for the impoverished North.
But Beijing has often showed reluctance to use that influence as it fears that pushing Pyongyang too hard could lead to its collapse, an influx of refugees into the country, instability on its border, and ultimately the emergence of a pro-U.S. nation on its doorstep.
After the North's fourth nuclear test in January, Beijing initially balked at imposing harsh sanctions on Pyongyang, but later signed on to the toughest-ever package of U.N. Security Council sanctions after the North's test of long-range missile technology in February.
The White House readout made no mention of the dispute between Washington and Beijing over the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system that the U.S. is considering deploying to South Korea to better defend against North Korean threats.
But China's assistant foreign minister, Zheng Zeguang, said that Xi told Obama during Thursday's meeting that China is "firmly opposed" to the deployment of a THAAD battery in South Korea. Zheng also said the deployment would "undermine China's security interests."
On human rights, the readout said that Obama reiterated unwavering support for upholding human rights and fundamental freedoms in China. Both leaders reaffirmed the cyber commitments announced during Xi's visit to Washington last year and agreed to ensure their full implementation, it said.
Obama also "urged China to address differences with its neighbors on maritime issues peacefully and in accordance with international law and emphasized the United States' global interest in upholding freedom of navigation and overflight," it said. (Yonhap)
The European Union blacklisted North Korea's state-run insurance company and its branch in London on Friday as it expanded sanctions on the communist nation for its defiant nuclear and missile tests.
The EU said in an official journal that Korea National Insurance Corporation (KNIC) is "generating substantial foreign exchange revenue which could contribute to the DPRK's nuclear-related, ballistic-missile-related or other weapons-of-mass-destruction-related programs."
The EU also said that the firm's headquarters in Pyongyang is linked to "Office 39" of the North's ruling Workers' Party, which takes care of secret funds of the communist regime.
The blacklisting adds to the EU's previous designation of KNIC's branch in Hamburg, Germany.
On Thursday, the EU also imposed a series of sanctions on the North to carry out the latest U.N. Security Council resolution adopted last month in response to the North's fourth nuclear test in January and its long-range rocket launch in February.
The new U.N. sanctions, the toughest ever to be imposed on Pyongyang, require mandatory inspection of all cargo going in and out of the North, regardless of whether by land, sea or air, while banning its exports of coal, iron and other mineral resources, a key source of hard currency that accounts for nearly half of the country's total exports.
It also prohibits all sales of small arms and other conventional weapons to the North, bans jet and rocket fuel supplies to the country, grounds North Korean flights suspected of carrying contraband and denies vessels carrying illicit items access to ports. (Yonhap)
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected the firing of a surface-to-air guided missile in his first military-related public activity in about eight days, state media said Saturday.
Kim was last seen visiting a military unit on March 25 to inspect a long-range artillery exercise. He has since been making field tours in the economic sector apparently to show that he cares about the livelihoods of ordinary people and the country's moribund economy.
Kim "guided the test of a new-type anti-air guided weapon system to estimate its feasibility," the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported without mentioning the date and location of the inspection.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said that the move appears to mention the North's test-firing of a surface-to-air missile into waters off its east coast, conducted on Friday.
The North fired off an anti-aircraft missile at around 12:45 p.m. from South Hamkyong Province in the country's northeastern area toward the East Sea, according to the JCS.
"The test verified that the feasibility of the new-type AA guided weapon system is perfect in the light of the latest military sci-tech requirements," it said, adding that the leader expressed great satisfaction over the "successful" test.
In another dispatch on Saturday, the KCNA said Kim inspected a machinery factory in Hamhung, North Hamkyong Province. It also did not give the date of the visit as it usually does.
Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the Workers' Party, also released 10 photos on the same day of Kim inspecting the missile test-fire. The Workers' Party is the North's only active political party while other parties exist only nominally.
Seen in the pictures were two trucks loaded with three large launching tubes. A guided rocket was launched from one of the trucks. Other images showed the rocket flying obliquely shortly after the launch and then turn vertical before striking the target in the air.
Military experts here say the tested missile is believed to be the North's KN-06 with a range of 100 to 150 km.
Pyongyang first unveiled the KN-06 system during a military parade to mark the 65th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party in October 2010. Experts presume that it is a copy of Russia's surface-to-air missile, S-300. (Yonhap)
The number of subscribers to mobile network services in South Korea is set to top a landmark 60 million by the end of 2016, industry sources said Friday, hovering far above the country's population.
The outlook came as the number of those with mobile network accounts, including those for wearable devices, reached 59 million as of end-February, according to the latest data compiled by the Ministry of Science, ICT, and Future Planning.
As South Korea's population currently stands around 51.5 million, the figure indicates that an increasing number of people have more than one mobile account.
In February alone, the number of new mobile-network subscribers shot up 189,585 on-month, with 70,270 of them being wearable and other Internet-of-Things service users.
The number of combined smartphone users in South Korea came to 44.1 million, up 267,446 on-month, while that of traditional handsets shed 150,965 to 9.66 million. (Yonhap)
To-Do List for Crime Victims
As a victim of crime, you have certain obligations and legal rights. That does not mean that you can personally press charges -- a common misconception -- but you are expected to do certain things to help the prosecution of the matter. You are also entitled to know certain things about the case if you keep the state informed of your whereabouts.
State laws vary but all states do have the obligations and rights of victims outlined. Let's take a look at an example for a better sense of what you can generally expect.
To-Do List
While every state has different statutes, the information listed here is generally applicable. Wherever you are, if you have been the victim of a crime, you will have to take the time to do certain things if you want the perpetrator to face consequences. According to the California Bar Association website, the victim of a crime should first do the following things:
Notify police of the crime and file a police report as promptly as possible. Request the police officer's business card and the crime report number, and keep the officer informed if you recall any new information. Ask to be informed if your case is forwarded to a prosecutor, and make contact with the prosecuting attorney or to the Victim-Witness Assistance program representative. Let them know that you want to be told about how the case is proceeding and when there are hearings. Speak to the Victim-Witness Assistance program about your legal rights. Find out what benefits or assistance you might be able to receive, and apply for crime compensation with their assistance. Report any changes of address or contact information to the police, prosecution, and other appropriate parties, such as your insurer if applicable. As the case progresses, and if the defendant is sentenced, you will also want to keep any probation officers or other authorities apprised of your information. If the defendant is in custody and you want to know about parole hearings, you will have to let the Department of Corrections know how to reach you.
What Now?
What happens next depends on many factors. Assuming that the prosecution is going forward with the case, then you will have to make yourself available as a witness and your cooperation will be key to a successful prosecution, and in collecting restitution if applicable.
Just remember, a criminal prosecution is not "your case." It is the defendant's ... and for that you can be grateful.
Talk to a Lawyer
If you were the victim of a crime -- or have been accused of committing one -- and want to find out more about criminal procedure, speak to a lawyer. Many criminal defense attorneys consult for free or a minimal fee and will be happy to talk to you.
Related Resources:
Is It Illegal to Marry a Third Cousin?
Albert Einstein married his cousin, Elsa Lowenthal, and we can probably all agree that he was a pretty smart fellow. So why is marrying a first cousin frowned upon in this country and outright barred in half of the states?
Some say that this is based on outdated notions that predate modern genetics and that the rules should be thrown out. Indeed, in many other countries marrying cousins is not considered at all problematic. In fact, about 20 percent of marriages, or one in five worldwide is between cousins, according to the Huffington Post. So let's examine the myths and facts about cousin marriages.
Myth and Fact About Marriages Between Cousins
In short, yes, it is legal for second and third cousins to marry in the US. Beyong that, state laws get a little more complicated. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures:
"Twenty-five states prohibit marriages between first cousins. Six states allow first cousin marriage under certain circumstances, and North Carolina allows first cousin marriage but prohibits double-cousin marriage. States generally recognize marriages of first cousins married in a state where such marriages are legal."
These prohibitions are thought to exist for reasons of genetics, which some say is based on a myth that has been debunked.
There is reportedly only a very slightly higher likelihood of genetic defects in children who are born of a cousin couple. The risk of birth defects in children born to first cousins is increased from a baseline of 3-4 percent to 4-7 percent, according to the National Society of Genetic Counselors.
With the genetic screening that exists today, that slightly higher risk rate could be mitigated. For example, pre-marital genetic testing could be mandated. But the National Society of Genetic Counselors reportedly does not consider this necessary and it does not recommend additional testing or screening for cousins.
It should be noted too that the risk of birth defects can rise for reasons other than familial closeness, like having children later in life or marrying into your own ethnicity. There are certain hereditary diseases that arise more frequently in particular ethnicities and are more likely to occur when two people of the same "tribe" marry -- and this applies widely. For example, Ashkenazi Jews have an increased risk of children with Tay-Sachs disease when they intermarry, according to Huffington Post.
Taboos and Truths
The taboo against cousin marriages in this country is strong and some people say that this is to maintain the integrity of the gene pool and human intelligence. But the truth is that many of us are at least distant products of cousin marriages and many people we consider great minds married cousins in their time, including Johann Sebastian Bach, Edgar Allen Poe, and Charles Darwin.
Talk to a Lawyer
If you or someone you know has a legal question about a family matter, like whether cousins can marry in your state, talk to a lawyer. Many attorneys consult for free or a minimal fee and will be happy to discuss with you.
Related Resources:
Obama is touting his record on reducing nuclear arms, but he's been a dismal failure at reducing the US's stockpile, writes Freedom of the Press Foundation's Trevor Timm at the Guardian today.
Ahead of the 50-country Nuclear Security Summit that met in Washington DC this past week, President Obama publicly touted his administration's alleged progress towards "a world without nuclear weapons". In reality, his administration's record on reducing nuclear weapons is largely a dismal failure.
Early in his presidency, Obama famously gave a speech in Prague in which he described "America's commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons". Not only has the administration barely made a dent in the gigantic nuclear arsenal the United States has, it has committed more than $1tn over the next several decades to further entrenching the system into permanence, potentially sparking a dangerous new arms race.
The SLFP does not condone the continuation of the Emergency Regulations (The Public Security Ordinance) more than a day necessary
Read more
This article appears in the April 1, 2016 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.
KESHA ROGERS:
New Meaning to Why People
Have To Live
[PDF version of this article]
The following remarks are taken from the March 23, 2016 LaRouche PAC New Paradigm Show:
Kesha Rogers: I think that we must look at where we are today from the standpoint of the degeneracy in the culture and the fact that the sense of optimism that was really the basis of what President John F. Kennedy set into motion has really been ripped from the population. The U.S. cultural collapse is the result of the continual attacks on real creativity and real science.
This has now been magnified by the collapse of the trans-Atlantic system.
I think that we can look at where we are today from a clinical standpoint, understanding the significance of the fact that today is the thirty-third anniversary of the Strategic Defense Initiative developed by Mr. LaRouche.
What that really represented was a continuation of the vision of President John F. Kennedy, because the intention of that policy was what Kennedy had set in place, which provided a mission for mankind to come together in the common interest of mankind. It wasnt merely just to set foot on the Moon, to land a man on the Moon, and only that.
Think about what President Kennedy had introduced: He understood that we had to actually create new frontiers of scientific development. He talked about producing satellites and nuclear power. A lot of people dont even remember that this was the vision of Kennedy, that we had to actually go much further with our investigation into the Moon, and then to make these breakthroughs and new frontiers in scientific development that were going to actually change the paradigm and change the direction from what had been seen earlier with Truman: The collapse, and the attack on the FDR policy.
The same thing actually took place later with the policy of attack against Mr. LaRouche after he had gotten President Reagan to adopt the Strategic Defense Initiative. You look at this, clinically, from the standpoint of what were seeing today with the insanity of the Bush-Obama policies to continue to put nails in the coffin of the real economy of the nation, driving the entire nation into utter collapse, and to instead represent the imperial policy that goes against what our nation was founded on, the identity which was put forth with a sense that we had a mission to fulfill, which was our destiny, especially under President Kennedy.
One of the things Ill just make note of right now is that youre seeing just how much this has completely demoralized our society. You have a society that has actually committed itself to death, a culture of death that is killing people, a culture where people dont see that they have a future, a future they can actually define. Why has this come along?
Well, its been since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, and since the jailing of Mr. LaRouche, and the shutdown of the Apollo Mission, and the shutdown of what was to be the continuation of that, through the Strategic Defense Initiative, that this demoralization has developed.
Now youre seeing the long-term effects of that. I just attended the 47th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. These conferences are held every year, so this shows you that the conference has been taking place, focusing on lunar and planetary exploration since the Apollo Mission. A lot of the people at the conference were crucial and key in the development of the Apollo Mission. There were also many young people there. It was heavily focused on the Moon, and what struck me about it, is that obviously, since the shut-down of the Constellation program by Obama and Obamas attacks on the space program, on the policy of going back to the Moon, that that policy has been eliminated.
Now what kind of mission, or what kind of vision do these people have? You had a sense of real demoralization and hopelessness that had set in, or people were really angry about the fact that they worked all of their lives based on the conception that we had an obligation, the mission to return to the Moon. But it got deeper than that. I also think that people are recognizing that its our obligation to, as a scientific community, actually give people a sense of what it is that we are actually contributing to the further progress of humanity.
One of the things that came up, and we can discuss this more, is the fact that in 2008-2009, as a part of the rolling out of the Constellation program, prior to the Constellation being shut down by Obama, you had what was called the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) that was put in place to orbit the Moon, to actually show a direction, with the intention of possibly organizing getting back to the Moon, but that was never realized. Today, the LRO is still sending back spectacular images of the Moon, but the mission for a planned manned return to the Moon was shut down by Obama.
NASA/Chris Meany 2008
The key thing right now, is that what is missing in the discussion is a fight, not just over whether or not somebody thinks we should get back to the Moon. Thats not the fight.
The real fight is that there has been a loss in our identity in the United States that we are acting on a mission for all of mankind. We have lost a sense of a national-international mission. And that is what people at the conference understood and started to really pick up on, as I was making certain interventions into the discussions about what China is doing.
And China is not just going to investigate the far side of the Moon, and is not only organizing a Moon mission because it is just something to do. What they are doing is to actually identify a new direction, a new paradigm for mankind, and are saying that this is going to benefit the future existence of mans identity and mission in space. And, obviously, everybody knows that the Moon is the first place for the launching pad for cislunar space, the discoveries that are being made there, and will be made there, are going to benefit all of mankind.
We have to actually get a sense in the United States that the targeting of the space program by this President is completely unacceptable. He should have been, and must still be, removed, now! The reality is, we have to get people within the scientific community, as Ive continued to state, to actually stand up and fight, because this is what is at stake.
The Mission for Mankind
Megan Beets: I had just re-read Krafft Ehrickes essay, The Extraterrestrial Imperative, and right at the beginning, he says, The way to solve problems is to forge concepts which permit one to look beyond the problems, which I think is just a beautiful way of thinking about that, that you actually have to put your stake in something which is beyond the current system, which is ahead of the current system, which is only something that mankind can do.
Rogers: It was interesting at this conference, that there is this urge and eagerness for this human identity, that people know that this is what they got involved in. Its not just about peoples pet peeves, as though they are actually presenting high-school science experiments to show off or something. But, they know that what these scientific breakthroughs represent is a contribution to further advance and change all mankind.
This actually came up from one of the scientists at the conference, who was saying that NASA has a responsibility to work with other nations. It has a responsibility to recognize itself as not just a U.S. internal operation thats making some scientific experiments on the side. Rather, what we do is going to benefit and affect the progress of all mankind. Also, scientific discoveries that are made by other nations are not just going to benefit those nations, but they are going to benefit the existence of our nation, as in the example that one of the scientists used in remembrance of the Apollo Mission, that when Neil Armstrong stepped on the Moon, he said that it was One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind. But that giant leap, everybody knew, had to continuethat the breakthrough and the optimism that was achieved with that was not to end there, it was to move forward.
You think about the threat that we are faced with right now: The threat to the existence of mankind coming from a British imperial system; A collapsing trans-Atlantic system, A collapsing Wall Street system that has to be brought down. You think about how far away we have gone from President John F. Kennedys vision.
Instead, we see today the threat of war, as nations are being pitted against each other, instead of actually fighting to achieve the common aims of mankind. People should go back and really reflect and look at President John F. Kennedys first inaugural address, where he speaks on the threat that was posed against the powers of the United States and the Soviet Union, or Russia.
This question still stands today. People have to say, lets put our differences aside, as John F. Kennedy did. We have a mission for mankind. He said:
Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science, instead of its terrors. Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths, and encourage the arts and commerce. And let both sides unite to heed in all corners of the Earth the command of Isaiah, to undo the heavy burdens, and let the oppressed go free.
How do you do this? How do you free people? Well, you free people by giving them a sense of human identity, that we have a mission as human beings to discover mankinds role in coming to know better who we are as human beings. The best way to do that is to go out into space. To go out and to come to know what is out there, what we can actually learn and discoverto actually explore the Universe. We have a mission in the Galaxy, and that mission is being stifled right now. Its being stifled by war; its being stifled by economic collapse, and being stifled by Obama. So all those things that President Kennedy put forward, the way you are going to eradicate disease, and green the deserts, and so forth, is by going out and investigating the Galaxy.
Ben Deniston: Much of the general population gets a lot of propaganda about China this, China that. Anybody whos serious, knows China is where things are going on. Education, science, development, investment in new technologies, the space program, infrastructure, nuclear power, rail, water developmentyou can go on and on and on. This space program is kind of typifying it. Kesha, you are saying that if we want a future, if we want to actually be human, these are our allies. Theyre not attacking us. We have an insane person in the White House, following the orders of a dying Imperial system. Thats the problem. We have an ally there that we should be working with in China. And yes, space is the place to do it.
Rogers: I think this question that Mr. LaRouche continues to get back to, as far as the commitment, and the understanding of mankind, and human beings, and Americans, that we have an obligation to be actually acting for the futurethat is what has been taken away. Why do we make new discoveries? Why do we make new breakthroughs? We are not making the breakthroughs so that somebody can feel comfortable, or can say that something is happening thats going to improve their immediate conditions and their immediate lives. Some people say, well, what is that going to do for me? How is that going to do something for me right now? This is backwards thinking in terms of economics. The method of LaRouches economics has been to actually drive an advancement for the progress that is going to actually impact future generations that havent even been born yet. Think about it from the standpoint of the destruction in society today, where people are reduced to thinking about the individual, me. What am I going to get out of this? How am I actually going to survive, myself? There is no conception, and no commitment to what is it that were actually doing to better and further the progress of future generations. Youve lost that in society. So, now, you have a situation where you look at the conditions of the young people in society, they have come out of a generation, and theyre continuing to be told, well, youre just on your own. You are going to have to deal with this collapsing society, and this mess.
We dont have to deal with it in that way! This is the older generation to the younger generation. The key thing is that we have lost this identity of a commitment to those not yet born, to identify a future for them, as the grandparents used to state to the grandchildren I built this for you. Or, those people who didnt even get a chance to meet the next generations, who may have died beforehand, had a sense that they were leaving something that was going to, as I said, better the progress. So, thats what we have to get back to. Thats the identity that has to be restored in a mission for mankind, that would be exemplified through the space program, as a key component of that.
Global Cooperation for the Future
Deniston: And weve got our insane President looking for asteroids to go jump onto. Weve got this total joke of a program thats part of the destruction of NASA, on this crazy wild goose chase, on this supposed asteroid mission, which is going nowhere. We need to get a shift, and this is where we want to go. This is the next target.
Rogers: It really requires that there is a change in the identity and the thinking of the American people. Take the scientific leadership: They have to be the start of that change. They have to overcome and be rid of this fear that says that they have to go along with these insane policies, when they know that it is an attack on real creativity, real science, and on a commitment to a driver thats going to further the progress of mankind.
People are asking, how are we going to inspire the population? How are we going to bring a sense of optimism back? That was the subject of discussion that came up many times with some of the participants in this conference. They know that there is no sense that the role of the scientific community in the United States should inspire the population with an idea that they are participating in something great. So, they have a responsibility, and that is why we are actually fighting with these scientific leaders, to come together and recognize that we have to define a new direction for the space program, with what we could be doing if we were acting to collaborate with China, with Russia.
Yes, I know that there is an idiot policy in the Congress that says we cant work with China. Well, kick the idiot Congress members out that say this. The scientific community has more power, and more clout, over the idiot Congress members who dont know one single thing about science or about where the direction of mankind should be going.
Thats a further subject of discussion, but I think this question of the attack on the scientific community, the fear that has set in, and the fact that you have taken away the ability to really do what we are passionate as human beings about doing, about making discoveries, about being creativepeople are just frustrated by the fact that they have to go through all the bureaucratic insanity, and that they have to go along with what is forced upon them.
But they shouldnt accept that any longer. One thing I do want to say is that this is going to be the nature of the upcoming conference that is going to be held on April 7, and that we have to bring the best minds and thinkers within the scientific community, within the international community, together to say, let us map out a new course of direction for mankind, as we are seeing with China, with Russia leading the way right now. The United States has an obligation and responsibility to join in this effort, because if we dont, it will soon be too late.
Either we are going to go down with a collapsing, dying, system, or we are actually going to join with that new direction, in the course thats being set forth for mankind, one that is going to actually give new hope, new meaning, for peoples lives, and actually give people a sense of why they should want to live, and that they might have a purpose to live, and an obligation and a mission to live, because what they are living for is going to continue to bring a new sense of direction, a new sense of meaning for those who come after them. So I think we have a big job in front of us, and looking at some of what we have said here, in terms of the demoralization, the people who are taking their livesthis is the discussion that Mr. LaRouche brought up.
We have an obligation to bring a new meaning to why people have to live, and why people have to have a sense of life, from the standpoint that we as human beings represent something that no other animal could ever achieve, or could ever do. So that should give us hope and happiness.
PRESS RELEASE
A Unified Mission for the Exploration of Space Is the Pathway to Peace for All Mankind
by Kesha Rogers
"We came in peace for all Mankind"Plaque left by Apollo 11 on the first Moon landing
March 31, 2016 (EIRNS)On March 25, 2016, Secretary of State John Kerry gave a press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Following a series of discussions with Lavrov and President Vladimir Putin, and building on a successful deployment led by President Putin in Syria, Kerry defined the key to what is needed to bring about a permanent cessation of hostilities. Secretary Kerry described his meeting with American astronaut Scott Kelly, who had just spent over 340 days in space with his Russian counterpart, Cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko. Kerry said he spoke with the two astronauts, one American and one Russian, who were working together to study the effects of long term spaceflight on the human body. In his remarks, Kerry presented what he encountered in his meeting with the two astronauts as a critical example of what is required to bring about collaboration in international diplomacy, bringing nations to work together in collaboration to solve common problems, and strengthening our understanding of who we are as human beings, just as we are doing on the International Space Station.
Can we bring about such collaboration and peace among nations?
The obvious answer is, we can, provided that we act to rid ourselves once and for all of a dying British Empire and remove Obama from the Presidency, now. Our U.S. space program, NASA, must be restored to its rightful place as the spark-plug for a national recovery. This must be done as a key to bringing the United States into collaboration with the nations of Russia and China, along with other nations, thus defining a new paradigm for mankind. That new paradigm is being demonstrated by Chinas promoting of the New Silk Road development corridors, and cooperation throughout the world, and by its leadership in space, exemplified by the mission to land a rover on the far side of the moon, embarking on new discoveries, and doing what no nation has yet accomplished. President Obamas attack on NASAs exploration programs, has been a complete and utter frontal attack on our nations future. The question is, how long will you allow this murderous policy to continue?
What Secretary Kerry said is right: the basis for global cooperation among nations in solving the problems we face from ISIS terrorism to your once employed neighbors heroin-induced suicide should be modeled on the kind of peaceful collaboration that currently exists in certain aspects of the space program. This collaboration must be broadened to join with Chinas leadership, and must embrace all other nations. Countries must actually unite in common cause against the bankrupt British Empire, and declare that those brave men and women who pioneered our human race off Earth a few generations ago, shall not have lived and died in vain. It is time to take the budgetary and political lid off real human progress, and live up to our destiny as mankind in the galaxy.
As a two-time nominee for U.S. Congress in the district representing Johnson Space Center, and later a candidate for U.S. Senate, I have continued to lead the fight against the continued dismantling of the U.S. space program. I hereby call upon the international space community to heed this call for nations to collaborate politically as we do in space, and pull down the barriers to this progress once and for all. That is why I am happy to announce the initiative for an international space policy roundtable on this subject, to be held in Houston, Texas near the Johnson Space Center. I call upon astronauts, scientists, engineers, and policy-makers to come together to participate in this indispensable discussion, to determine a unified mission for progress, and peaceful relations among nations.
PRESS RELEASE
Breedlove Continues Pushing NATO-Russia Confrontation
April 1, 2016 (EIRNS)NATO Commander Gen. Philip Breedlove was in Riga, Latvia yesterday, where he repeated his assertion of the day before in Vilnius that NATO has to go from a "reassurance" posture to a "deterrence" posture in response to a "resurgent and aggressive Russia."
"We are prepared to fight and win if we have to ... Our focus will expand from assurance to deterrence, including measures that vastly improve our overall readiness,"
Breedlove said following talks with Baltic region NATO commanders, reports Defense News.
"To the east and north we face a resurgent and aggressive Russia, and as we have continued to witness these last two years, Russia continues to seek to extend its influence on its periphery and beyond."
Part of the NATO response, Breedlove noted, is the plan to put an armored brigade in Eastern Europe and the Baltics beginning early next year.
Lyndon LaRouche today called Breedloves remarks "very, very stupid."
Russias ambassador to NATO, Alexander Grushko, warned that the NATO military buildup Breedlove is referring to worsens the military situation along NATOs eastern frontier.
"A surplus armored brigade, which is said to consolidate NATOs eastern flank, runs counter to the letter and spirit of the Russia-NATO Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security,"
Grushko told Izvestia in an interview, as reported by Tass.
"NATO took a pledge to refrain from an additional deployment of considerable combat forces permanently under its provisions and weve said more than once that an indefinite rotation is in no way different from permanent deployment."
He directly cited the two BMD basesone in Romania, which is set to go fully operational, this year, and another in Polandas bases of "strategic significance" that are permanent.
"The decision to deploy an additional armored brigade is announced at a moment when nothing critical is happening to NATOs interests on the eastern flank,"
Grushko went on.
"They continue to disseminate the absurd bogeyman stories that Russia would allegedly attack the Baltic countries had NATO failed to take action and deploy its troops in the region. There is every reason to talk about the serious deterioration of the military situation."
In Washington, there is a relatively sane strain of analysis that agrees with Grushko. In a column in The National Interest on March 30, former CIA analyst Paul Pillar writes that the Russians do have a case that NATOs military buildup in eastern Europe violates the NATO-Russia Founding Act and that making the troop presence rotational doesnt change that fact.
"De facto reneging on previous understandings ought to worry anyone concerned about U.S. credibility,"
he writes.
LambdaConf is a conference for people who are into functional programming. If you don't know what that means, it suffices to say that these are stout, yeomanly Hobbits of computer science. What's news is that they invited Mencius Moldbug to speak at it. Moldbug (real name Curtis Yarvin) is a Hollywood archetype of coders: the programming whiz who has strange and comically retrograde opinions of minorities, slavery, ladies, etc. So. Should he be invited to speak?
LambdaConf founder and chief organizer John A. De Goes wrote in a blog post that the conference decided to keep Yarvin as a speaker in order not to set a precedent of discriminating against attendees because of their beliefs. "LambdaConf does not and cannot endorse any of the wildly different, diametrically opposed, and controversial opinions held by speakers, attendees, volunteers, and vendors," he wrote. Jon Sterling, organizer of LambdaConf workshop PrlConf, decided to cancel the workshop, writing in an open letter: "We cannot possibly organize a workshop under the umbrella of a conference that values the free expression of racist and fascist views over the physical and emotional safety of its attendees and speakers." Not all who oppose Yarvin's views say they will boycott the conference. The writers of a forthcoming book on the programming language Haskell say they are coming to support other speakers and attendees.
There's a passage in one of the Hannibal Lecter novels, probably Silence of the Lambs, where it's made clear that the good doctor, though incarcerated as a serial killer, is still engaged as a professional in his field of study. He writes in respected journals, and for the sake of the advancement of their field, his colleagues affect a level of professional respect for his work that may seem, to a layperson, suspiciously titillated. Nevertheless, he is reviewed by his peers. He is published.
Now, I'm not in a position to peer-review the turd. My code is obviously 100-IQ garbage. But I wrote a functioning, functional CMS once! So I feel vaguely qualified to make sweeping judgments on how things Get Done in the organizational context. And my judgment on the turd is the same as Dr. Lecter's judgment of himself: a civilized society would kill Yarvin or give him his say.
PRESS RELEASE
Obama Nuclear Summit Increases the Danger of Nuclear War
March 29, 2016 (EIRNS)President Obama met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Obama-crafted Nuclear Security Summit, held in Washington, D.C. on March 28-29. The discussions were characterized as "frank and constructive," indicating that there was little agreement on anything but peripheral issues like climate change and nuclear "security."
Obama has used the presence of many world leaders at the summit to move forward his agenda for nuclear war. After a carefully choreographed meeting with Japan and South Korea in the morning, he then got together with the Chinese President. After reiterating U.S. "concerns" about human rights, he then went on to assert the U.S primacy of human rights. Obama then started in on cyber security, which the Chinese have already agreed to cooperate on, saying that the U.S. would be carefully "monitoring" Chinas compliance with the agreement. Obama then preached about the need for China to keep open the door to foreign businesses and to settle the maritime disputes in the South China Sea peacefully, adding that the U.S. had a "global interest" in maintaining freedom of navigation and overflight in the region.
President Xi no doubt listened patiently to the Presidents tirade, and responded coolly but clearly, saying that China was "firmly opposed" to the missile defense plans of the U.S. in the region and considered it a destabilizing measure. He also said that he hoped the U.S. would maintain its declared policy of not involving itself in the South China Sea, and that China would accept no violation of Chinese territorial integrity under the cloak of "freedom of navigation".
The same day, the Chinese Foreign Ministry, in reply to a question at the press conference in Beijing, reiterated Chinas right to declare an ADIZ (air defense identification zone) in the area of the South China Sea. While such a declaration has not yet been issued, U.S. Undersecretary of Defense Robert Work had warned on Wednesday that such an ADIZ would not be deemed legitimate by the U.S.
While the media in China will paint the meeting between the two presidents in bright colors, it is clear that the "nuclear clock" is now ticking more loudly than ever. Russian media such as Sputnik International seem tuned in to that reality, covering March 31 comments by Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujan regarding repeated U.S. naval incursions into Chinas territorial waters in the South China Sea ("As for the US ships which came, I can only suggest they be careful"), under the following headline: "Beijing Ominous Threat to Washington Over South China Sea: Be Careful. "
PRESS RELEASE
Development Minister Gerd Muller Promotes High-Productivity Green Revolution for Africa
April 1, 2016 (EIRNS)Concluding his visit to Kenya with trips to agricultural development projects funded by his ministry, German Development Minister Gerd Muller said yesterday that one of the most important things that should be done is a "new Green Revolution," a strategy to improve the productivity of farming in Africa. The output of African agriculture has to be doubled at least, he said, to relieve 200 million Africans from hunger noting that in many areas, as well as in Kenya, African farming still operates as German farmers did in the 1950s.
The German minister noted that although dairy farming in Africa cannot jump instantly to the productivity levels of German dairy farmers, a lot can and will be done by his ministry to achieve rapid progress in African countries. Muller actually comes from a family in the dairy-producing sector of Germany.
The ministry is presently funding agricultural cooperatives with 140 million annually. That certainly is not sufficient, Muller conceded, criticizing the fact that Germany seems to be the only Western country attempting to address the problem. He said he wished he could take all European leaders and many others to the huge Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya which he just visited, so they could see what the real situation of these refugees is, and what it will become if the Western countries dont act in time.
Education, good professional training in the crafts but also in industrial jobs and investments are crucial, and they must be made available soon, Muller warned, because 50% of the young Africans are jobless, which is a time-bomb if the young generation of Africa has no other option than escaping as refugees to Europe. "Europe needs a totally new Africa policy," he said, "Europe has to see Africa as its neighboring continent, it has to take care," Muller said.
Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk has come one step closer to realizing his long-held dream of bringing affordable, zero-pollution vehicles to the worlds highways.
After months of secrecy, he unveiled the prototype for his planned $35,000 Model 3 battery electric car Thursday night to hundreds of adoring fans, a generally enthusiastic automotive press and a massive global presales response.
By 10:30 a.m. Friday, Musk said, Tesla had received more than 198,000 deposits of $1,000 each for future deliveries of the sleek and low four-door sedan an unprecedented response for a car that hadnt even been shown in photographs when the deposits were made and that wont be delivered to customers for at least 18 months.
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Wall Street liked the new car. Tesla stock traded after-hours at $241, up $12 a share, after closing at $237. But now Musk and his production team face an enormous set of challenges. They must turn the prototype into a working car, find a way to sell it at the stated price point, get their growing auto plant and new battery factory up to full capacity, and bring the Model 3 to market in time to beat the competition.
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For the record
April 2, 8:34 a.m.: An earlier version of this story quoted Fridays closing price for Tesla stock as $241 a share. The stock closed at $237 and rose in after-hours trading. Also, the Tesla Model X was described as seating five. The SUV accommodates seven.
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Critics of the Fremont, Calif., electric car company dont believe any of that can be done. Musk has trouble meeting his own deadlines and building automobiles sufficiently bug-free for a mass market. Musk seemed to realize the monumental task ahead, tweeting Friday: Definitely going to need to rethink production planning.
Some doubt he can produce the Model 3 for $35,000 without losing money on every car he sells.
I dont believe they can make any money selling this car for much less than $50,000, said Mark Spiegel, CEO of the hedge fund Stanphyl Capital Management. Unless something changes, the more Model 3s they sell, the more they will lose.
Tesla has stated it will produce more expensive versions of the 3 first, filling orders for the most heavily option-laden vehicles before building and delivering the base models. Some early recipients of the $81,200 Model X paid as much as double that price for theirs.
Tesla has a history of introducing a vehicle with a reasonably low price and then selling versions that are much more expensive, said Jack Nerad, market analyst at Kelley Blue Book.
But by the time purchases of the Model 3 can actually be made, other inexpensive plug-in battery electrics from more established companies with better production track records and a better capacity to sell cars with low profit margins will already be in showrooms. The $37,500 Chevrolet Bolt is expected to be a strong rival. Other plug-in electrics are said to be coming from BMW, Mercedes, Volvo and others.
Musk himself acknowledged the possibility that the car will not be available in time to meet the promised late-2017 delivery date. At the Tesla Design Studio in Hawthorne, Musk promised delivery of the Model 3 by next year, then drew indulgent chuckles when he added, I do feel fairly confident it will be next year.
Deliveries of Musks much-admired Model X, an elegant, high-performance seven-seat SUV, were delayed by more than 18 months after Tesla experienced production problems with the cars complex falcon-wing doors. The prospect of a delay did nothing to diminish the enthusiasm of the assembled faithful. Eliciting rock star adoration from a crowd of 150 auto journalists and 650 Tesla owners, Musk took the stage Thursday in Hawthorne amid flashing lights and booming techno beats.
To any of you who bought an S or an X thank you for paying for this, Musk told the crowd, saying those more expensive, earlier-generation models helped pave the way for the Model 3.
Many of those present already owned one of those, or both, or more. Jerry Roby of Newport Beach owns a Roadster, an S and an X. Arriving in a branded Tesla cap and windbreaker, Roby had already put down deposits for two Model 3s at the Tesla store near his home.
His friend Paul Norris had also made deposits for two cars having also previously purchased all three Tesla models.
At a bank of computer screens at the evening event, other would-be 3 drivers were placing orders. The father-and-son team of David and Adam Metcalf of Florida had paused to switch credit cards after one maxed out. The Metcalfs had already placed orders for 12 Model 3s and needed to order five more. Some were for the research facility at the University of Central Florida, where the senior Metcalf works. As for the others? I have a list, he said.
In the first 24 hours, Tesla received 180,000 preorders. Estimating that the average transaction price for the vehicle would be about $42,000, Musk estimated his 24-hour haul at $7.5 billion. Future of electric cars looking bright! he tweeted. In fact, the companys take was closer to $180 million nothing to sneeze at, but only seed money in the capital-intensive auto production business.
Even after the unveiling, little more was known about the car except its stated MSRP, its claimed range of 215 miles per electric charge and its ability to accelerate from zero to 60 mph in less than six seconds.
The Model 3 will be built alongside the Ss and Xs in Teslas huge California factory. The company has said it could produce as many as 90,000 vehicles annually this year, and by 2020 could be churning them out at the rate of 500,000 a year a number Musk said Thursday night he was confident Tesla could achieve.
Meeting that production rate will also require Musk to move aggressively forward with his gigafactory, the immense northern Nevada facility where, in cooperation with electronics giant Panasonic, Tesla will build the batteries for its vehicles. Musk told his audience that the factory is now officially operational, and will begin delivering batteries at the end of next year.
Musk acknowledged that selling massive volumes of Model 3s will require more retail outlets and more charging stations. He promised that the current 215 retail outlets globally would double to more than 440 by the end of next year. He also said the companys global network of 3,600 supercharger stations where Teslas can be brought to nearly full charge in 30 minutes or less would also double within that time frame.
Perhaps Musks greatest challenge will lie in selling his chic, environmentally friendly vehicles to a mass audience. As several analysts pointed out, the customer who spends $100,000 or more on a Model S or X probably has two or three other luxury cars in the garage, and is not terribly inconvenienced when glitches require maintenance.
Tesla has had trouble with reliability. Though the Model S won almost every accolade and award in the motoring press, and received the highest possible safety and performance ratings, Consumer Reports later added the 2012-2013 and 2015 Model S to its worst of the worst section of Used Cars to Avoid.
The customer spending $35,000 on a Model 3 probably wont embrace a car that isnt close to trouble-free. That heightens the pressure on Tesla, said award-winning car designer Henrik Fisker, whose futuristic Karma held promise as a stylish electric performance car before financial troubles sidelined the firm.
Teslas advantage is that, being a new car company with a new brand, they have a cool factor the established carmakers dont have, Fisker said. But once you start moving down market, the customers lifestyle is very different. Someone who buys a $35,000 car, this is his only or his primary car. People are still reluctant to have their only car be an electric car.
charles.fleming@latimes.com
ALSO
Elon Musk says Tesla Model 3 pre-orders hit 180,000
Tesla stock surges on Model 3 unveiling but U.S. stocks mostly lower
After Tesla Model 3 unveiling, Elon Musk faces big challenges to deliver cars
On March 23, the San Juan Water District, which serves upper-crust residential estates in the Sacramento area, declared that the drought is over.
After months of El Nino rainfall, Folsom Lake, the districts chief water source, had become so full that excess water was being released over Folsom Dam. That was a very visible signal, says Lisa Brown, customer service manager for the district. Customers, some of whom own spreads as large as 10 acres, wanted to know why they were still being held to drought restrictions. So the district board lifted them, replacing a 33% mandatory conservation cutback with a 10% voluntary cut and eliminating a 10% drought surcharge on water rates, effective April 1.
The abundance of water, says Assistant General Manager Keith Durkin, made it very difficult to defend a continued 33% reduction in use.
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Across Northern and Central California, brimming reservoirs and a recovering mountain snowpack are prompting water users to pressure Gov. Jerry Brown and the State Water Resources Control Board to ratchet back restrictions that have made California a national leader in conservation.
The Placer County Water Agency on March 18 asked state authorities to rescind emergency drought regulations on the grounds that its supply is robust enough to meet demand from its customers through 2017. The Nevada Irrigation District, east of Marysville, cited well above average precipitation, full reservoirs and a mountain snowpack in rescinding its own drought declaration and calling on the state to ease its restrictions.
Districts such as San Juan have taken matters into their own hands by unilaterally removing the most stringent regulations on their own customers. San Juan says its customers met their conservation obligation by reducing usage by 34% from June through February. Not all the protesting districts managed that; the Georgetown Divide Public Utility District in El Dorado County, which last month lifted a drought-inspired moratorium on new water connections, acknowledges that it was upbraided by the state board in January for failing to meet its goal.
The Water Resources Board is looking for ways to ease pressure on water-rich districts without giving them a free hand. It has scheduled to consider relaxing some restrictions at a meeting in May, following a workshop at which those districts will be asked to make the case for more flexibility. In the eyes of Placer County and San Juan the job is over, says George Kostyrko, a spokesman for the board. But water conservation isnt a regional or a siloed issue, he says. Its a statewide issue.
Policymakers are getting the uneasy feeling that public impressions of newfound abundance could undo much of the progress of the last few years. Droughts are really a matter of signals, Jeanine Jones, deputy drought manager for the California Department of Water Resources, told me. When it has rained a lot, people get comfortable.
That would be a mistake. Experts reckon that even if 2016 represents a break from the record dry conditions of the last four years, the damage done by the drought to the states water supply will be lasting. Long-term reserves in groundwater have been drained to the point that years, even decades, of wet weather would be required to replenish them. Weve depleted our savings account in reserves and groundwater storage, Jones says.
A more likely scenario for the future is a change in climatic conditions requiring a permanent change in water usage habits. In the water community, people talk about a new normal, with dry conditions becoming more frequent and more lasting, says Matt Heberger, senior research associate at the Pacific Institute, an environmental think tank in Oakland.
These conditions create a quandary for policymakers, who must tread a fine line between enforcing restrictions that people may feel are no longer necessary while guiding residents, growers and businesses toward enduring changes in usage patterns. Messaging is important, says Ellen Hanak, a water expert at the Public Policy Institute of California. It doesnt make sense to tell people conditions are terrible when theyre not, but it makes sense to tell them that the precipitation weve gotten hasnt put us in a safe spot.
The habits born in the last few years, if they take root, could produce lasting gains in water sufficiency for the future. The emergency atmosphere of the last couple of years has a lot to do with that: In the same sense that $3-a-gallon gas starts turning people off gas-guzzling SUVs, the best weapon against water shortages in the future is a sensation of crisis today.
Since January 2014, when Gov. Brown declared a drought emergency, Californians have met the challenge. Theyve replaced tens of millions of square feet of turf with drought-tolerant landscaping (coaxed by hundreds of millions of dollars in utility rebates) and installed water-thrifty indoor fixtures. The results are remarkable: Statewide average residential consumption of 61 gallons a day in January was nearly 15% below the same month a year earlier. Last summers usage was more than 23% lower than a year earlier.
Indications abound that the regional drought is far from over. The water level of Lake Mead, the reservoir behind Hoover Dam that stores Southern Californias Colorado River supply, stood last week at 1,081.32 feet above sea level a recovery of about 6 feet since it reached a recent low point in June. But thats still the lakes lowest level in any March since 1937, when it was still filling for the first time. Mead is currently at about 39% of capacity.
Although three major Northern California reservoirs Shasta, Lake Oroville and Folsom Lake are currently above their average historical levels, theyre the exceptions, according to the Department of Water Resources.
Reservoirs in Central and Southern California remain well below their averages, with Don Pedro Reservoir in the Sierra foothills at 82% of its average and 60% of capacity, and Perris Lake in Riverside County at 43% of its average and 36% of capacity. While the snowpack is calculated at 87% of normal overall, its depth varies widely across the state rising over recent months to roughly 100% of the average in the far north of the state, but reaching only about 75% of the average toward the south. The U.S. Drought Monitor still shows much of Southern and Central California to be facing long-term exceptional drought.
The problem with giving some parts of the state a pass on water rules while maintaining them elsewhere is that Californias water supply system binds north and south together. The long-term water crisis can only be solved as a statewide effort.
The state has begun to make changes that may well be lasting. There will be a different-looking outdoor space 10 or 20 years from now than there was 10 or 20 years ago, Hanak says. But the mind-set producing those changes could be fragile. The message needs to be that the fact that were easing up doesnt mean were out of drought mode.
Michael Hiltziks column appears every Sunday. Read his blog every day at latimes.com/business/hiltzik, reach him at mhiltzik@latimes.com, check out facebook.com/hiltzik and follow @hiltzikm on Twitter.
Security guard Kenneth Lofton was among the workers who benefited last year when this East Bay city hiked its hourly minimum wage to nearly $15 for employees at large companies.
The jump was almost 50% more than what he used to make in nearby Oakland when he was paid $10 an hour. But its not enough for Lofton, 62, to move closer to work he still has to commute nearly 20 miles from Hayward and back each day.
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FOR THE RECORD
April 2, 1:42 p.m.: An earlier version of this article misstated the percentage of Kenneth Loftons wage increase as almost 70%. It was almost 50%.
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Its somewhat better, but not much, Lofton said Tuesday morning while eating breakfast and manning the security gate at an Emeryville parking lot. The high cost of living here takes a big bite out of whatever monetary increase you get, so its like not getting an increase at all.
But, he said, at least theyre trying.
If, as expected, Gov. Jerry Brown on Monday signs legislation raising Californias hourly minimum wage gradually to $15, the state will become the largest proving ground in the impassioned debate over wage stagnation and wealth inequality.
However, cities such as Emeryville and Seattle, which also enacted a significant wage increase last year, are one step ahead. They could provide hints as to how things play out when pay is sharply increased for the least-compensated workers.
The early takeaway: Many restaurants, which are highly dependent on low-wage labor, are reacting by raising prices.
Otherwise, labor researchers and experts largely agree, its too soon to draw any kind of conclusions about ripple effects such as job cuts or higher spending despite a vast amount of data generated by those claiming to prove otherwise.
If anyones telling you theres meaningful causal data available, theyre manipulating it or are just premature, said Viet Shelton, aide to Seattle Mayor Ed Murray.
After all, Seattle boosted its hourly minimum wage only last April, to $11 from $9.47, with gradual increases to $15 over the next few years depending on the size of the business. Currently, the hourly minimum is about $13, depending on the size of the business and the medical benefits it offers to employees.
And Emeryville just passed its minimum wage ordinance last July, bumping the hourly rate to $12.25 for employees of businesses with fewer than 56 employees and $14.44 for larger firms. That rate will gradually increase until all businesses pay a $16 hourly minimum in 2019. Then it will go up each year in accordance with the rising local consumer price index.
Even if we had an up-to-the-minute picture of whats going on, whats happening now is not going to show you what $15 is like because $15 is not now, said Jacob Vigdor, professor of public policy and governance at the University of Washington. Basically, the sky has not fallen in Seattle.
Vigdor is the principal investigator of the universitys minimum wage study, which is analyzing the effects of minimum wage ordinances in Seattle, Chicago and other areas.
The researchers plan to release a report this month that will look at Seattles data from the last year. The team has also conducted interviews and surveys of both business owners and workers to hear about their current situations.
What emerged were bits and pieces of the larger puzzle.
The message that weve heard is that businesses are making adjustments, Vigdor said. But so far, those adjustments have not involved anything on the order of mass layoffs or mass shutdowns. The most common response is that theyre going to increase prices.
Restaurants have seen the most effect, with price increases of about 7% to 8% since last April, he said.
Seattle restaurateur Tom Douglas high-end establishments and the popular Washington seafood chain Ivars each voluntarily hiked employee minimum pay to the full $15. Ivars implemented the hike the day the law took effect, offsetting the cost with a menu price increase and telling customers they didnt need to tip.
It worked out to as much as a 60% increase for some workers with many customers leaving tips anyway.
Ivars server Rochelle Hann, 25, said shed been living almost paycheck to paycheck. But with an annual pay bump of about $12,000, she recently went on a weekend trip and it was an easy expense.
In a letter to customers in January, Douglas said his two restaurants that opened last year were prospering and have been well reviewed. He said the feedback helped him decide to start paying the $15 wage immediately and add a 20% service charge in lieu of tips at three of his restaurants. The charge goes to the house and is then redistributed to the team through wages and commissions, and adds to their benefits package.
For the customer that pays a 20% tip, nothing is going to change, Douglas told a radio interviewer. If I have to close some restaurants, so be it. If I have to restructure, so be it. I would rather pay a living wage.
So far, customer reaction has been 90% favorable, he added.
Basically, the sky has not fallen in Seattle. Jacob Vigdor, professor of public policy and governance at the University of Washington
A similar scenario played out in Emeryville, where some restaurants have increased prices to make up for the higher minimum wage.
On a Tuesday morning, hip cafe Farleys is buzzing with young professionals from nearby companies. Despite its popularity, the eatery is still subject to the razor thin profit margins common in the food service industry, said co-owner Chris Hillyard.
After Emeryvilles wage increase, Hillyard said he had to increase the price of menu items by 5% to 20%. A roasted turkey and avocado sandwich that once cost $9 is now priced at $10. A latte went up 50 cents, to $4.
Hillyard also had to eliminate two positions from the cafe and end the cafes baking program. Farleys now outsources its baking to a vendor.
The council had good intentions when it increased the minimum wage, but that was one of the unintended consequences, Hillyard said.
He said the additional wage hike this July will be difficult, as hes still trying to navigate where his business is now. Farleys has 12 employees.
Its going to be a challenge because we just raised prices, Hillyard said. At some point, we wont be able to do that because theres only so much people are willing to spend on a cup of coffee or a sandwich.
So far, he said, customers havent minded the higher prices since theyre comparable to those in nearby Oakland and Berkeley.
Down the street from Farleys, prices have also gone up at Los Moles, a popular Mexican restaurant.
Chef and owner Lito Saldana said he bumped up the price of every menu item by 10% to offset rising food and labor costs. Prior to the minimum wage increase, he said, Los Moles servers made $9 an hour, while kitchen staff averaged $13.50 to $14 an hour.
As costs have risen across the board, Saldana said the minimum wage increase hasnt helped his employees.
Even my employees who live in Oakland are saying it is now too expensive for them, he said.
Seattle workers interviewed by the minimum wage study researchers said they were happy to get the higher wages. For some, it made a fundamental difference in their quality of life, said Vigdor, of the university.
At the same time, many workers said they were nervous about whether price increases would eat up their higher paychecks.
The minimum wage, when it works well, is really a tool for transformational change in peoples lives, Vigdor said. And the worry is that it doesnt always work well.
The effect of a wage hike could also vary by region. Emeryville and Seattle are arguably faster-growing and higher-paying areas, and they could be more equipped to handle a pay increase.
Some early analysis in July by the California Legislative Analysts Office predicted that a proposed $15 hourly minimum ballot initiative could reduce the number of jobs and increase prices and the cost of living statewide, but also potentially increase sales tax revenue. The report added that the nature and magnitude of the effects were highly uncertain.
The lower a regions wages, the larger the effects of this measure likely would be, the report said. We expect this measure to have proportionally larger effects in Californias inland regions than its coastal regions.
Whats clear is that it will take more time for any municipality to see the implications of the wage hike.
This is a policy that takes a long time to shake out, Vigdor said. The challenge that you face is that ultimately, the things that you do on the first day the minimum wage goes up dont necessarily tell you whats going to happen in the long run. Its not an instantaneous process.
tracey.lien@latimes.com
samantha.masunaga@latimes.com
Times staff writer Lien reported from Emeryville and Masunaga from Los Angeles. Anderson, a special correspondent, reported from Seattle.
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Downtown has gone to the dogs.
Apartments and condos in the heart of Los Angeles are boasting amenities for pets that would make most humans drool: free treats, spas, concierge services and dog-friendly on-site parks and rooftop decks.
"[Apartment dwellers] were getting the workout facilities, the pool, every amenity they could want. But then they started saying, Oh, I have a dog, said Jim Jacobson, senior vice president of sales for Douglas Elliman Real Estates development marketing.
Currently under construction, the companys sprawling Metropolis development in downtown Los Angeles will boast its own dog park with bathing and grooming facilities.
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The dog park is not just a grassy area, either, said Jacobson. Well have tunnels the dogs can jump on and walk around.
Such pet-friendly offerings are especially important in dense downtown, where green spaces are few and far between.
But theyre also cropping up throughout the city.
At the Camden in Hollywood, a dog den features a dog wash with a drying station and an off-leash gated space on the rooftop for canines and their owners to socialize; water bowls and treats are available throughout the property.
Dog-friendly amenities have become among the most requested [feature] nationwide, said Benjamin Brosseau, vice president of developer Camden Property Trust. And developers are getting smarter about giving tenants what they want.
Here are some downtown properties that extend the welcome mat to mans best friend:
Metropolis
Studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units (in development)
Condos starting at $616,000
Dog park, grooming and washing stations
metropolislosangeles.com
The Emerson
Studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units
Rents starting at $2,495 a month
Dog run, 24-hour pet spa with concierge service option
related.com
Level has a concierge to walk residents dogs and a complimentary Treat Bar in the lobby. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Level
Fully furnished and equipped one- to three-bedroom units (also available for short stay)
Rents starting at $4,700 a month
Concierge to walk residents dogs; complimentary Treat Bar in the lobby; a new luxury dog bed and bowl as welcome gift to new tenants. A dog run is under construction.
stayinglevel.com
The pet-friendly Eighth & Grand features pet washing stations and a grooming area. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Eighth & Grand
One- to three-bedroom units
Rents starting at $2,210 a month
Pet washing stations and grooming area
eighthandgrandla.com
hotproperty@latimes.com
A show about sensuality that dips into the uncanny. A work of theater that packs a 2-D punch. And early images that captured the electric. Plus: Pieces that play with words and a pop-up storytelling show.
Marilyn Minter: Pretty/Dirty, at the Orange County Museum of Art. The New York-based painter and photographer has long played with the tropes of feminine beauty in works that seamlessly stir the alluring with the mildly grotesque. Opens Saturday and runs through July 10. 850 San Clemente Drive, Newport Beach, ocma.net.
Teatrocinema: Historia de Amor, at Redcat. Imagine a comic book as 3-D theatrical experience. The Chilean ensemble Teatrocinema uses set pieces and projections to create a graphic environment for a dark story about domination. Sounds better than Batman v Superman to me. Shows at 8:30 tonight, 3 and 8:30 p.m. Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday. 631 W. 2nd St., downtown Los Angeles, redcat.org.
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Lawrence Weiner, Made to Be, at Regen Projects. Weiner is a leading conceptual artist whose work plays with language and the ideas and images that it conjures. In his ninth solo show at Regen, he once again works with the power of words to tease the viewer in wry and canny ways. Opens at 4 p.m. Saturday and runs through May 7. 6750 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, regenprojects.com.
In Focus: Electric! at the Getty Museum. Electricity: It powers your home, it powers your work and it powers the phone on which you are likely reading this post. This photographic exhibition at the Getty gathers historic images that showcase the allure of light and power. Opens Tuesday and runs through Aug. 28. 1200 Getty Center Drive, Brentwood, Los Angeles, getty.edu.
Pop-Up Magazine, at the Theatre at the Ace Hotel. The critically acclaimed event a lively compendium of hybrid multimedia-performance-talks is rolling into town with a whole new lineup of presenters, including Selma director Ava DuVernay, filmmaker Amanda Marsalis of Echo Park, novelist and Radio Ambulante founder Daniel Alarcon and actor Kumail Nanjiani of Silicon Valley. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 7; tickets $25-$45. 929 S. Broadway, downtown Los Angeles, popupmagazine.com.
FINAL WEEK
A Marcel Duchamp Collection at LA Louver. Over a period of 40 years, a single collector amassed a rich assortment of works and ephemera by the seminal French artist Marcel Duchamp including numerous book covers and magazines that the artist helped design even after hed bid goodbye to art-making in order to focus on chess. The show is presenting these works, as well as editioned objects and prints, ready-mades and collaborative designs. In a separate gallery, LA Louver is also showing an exhibition of the television sculptures of L.A. assemblage artist Ed Kienholz. Through Saturday. 45 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, lalouver.com.
Christian Eckart, post-post, at Wilding Cran. The Canadian-born, Houston-based artists first solo show in Los Angeles features a series of new abstract paintings as well as a curious sculpture titled The Absurd Vehicle, a seemingly enticing objet whose many wheels and impractical body look as if they would simply send a rider scurrying in circles. Through Saturday. 939 S. Santa Fe Ave., Los Angeles, wildingcran.com.
Ed Bereal, Disturbing the Peace: Assemblage, Sculpture, and Painting 1963-2011, at Harmony Murphy Gallery. Bereal became known in the 60s for participating in the infamous 1961 L.A. exhibition War Babies, whose poster featured the artist, along with three others, eating foods that were stereotypical to each of their cultures over a table draped with an American flag. Over the years, he worked as a teacher and writer and also has worked in theater, but he has returned to art-making: primarily collage, assemblage, sculpture and other works that deal with violence, war and racial cliches. Through Saturday, 358 E. 2nd St., Los Angeles, harmonymurphygallery.com.
Robert Cremean: The Beds of Procrustes and The Seven Deadly Sins, at the Pasadena Museum of California Art. The California artist is known for cool, diagrammatic pieces that employ the human figure in ways that riff on bigger questions of art, myth, faith and sacrifice. For his show in Pasadena, one installation examines the legend of Procrustes, the Greek mythological bandit who would torture people in various ways in order to force them to fit onto an iron bed, while another uses human figures to interpret each of the deadly sins. Through Sunday. 490 E. Union St., Pasadena, pmcaonline.org.
ONGOING EXHIBITIONS
Nathan Hayden: Pure Pretty Fever and Tight Ass: Labor Intensive Drawing and Realism, at CB1 Gallery. The downtown gallery has a pair of shows: The first, by Hayden, his debut show at the gallery, features abstracted paintings and ceramics that channel the patterns and colors of the desert. The second is a group show organized by painter Brett Reichman that revels in the act of drawing realistic, labor-intensive depictions that engage the breadth of contemporary life. Through April 9. 1923 S. Santa Fe Ave., Los Angeles, cb1gallery.com.
Martine Syms, COM PORT MENT, at Karma International. Syms has been on a roll, with a recent performance at the Broad under her belt, as well as an exhibit of short videos at Human Resources Los Angeles. Now she is showing a new series inspired by text and film stills. Through April 9. 9615 Brighton Way, Suite 426, Beverly Hills, karmainternational.org.
Lita Albuquerque, 20/20: Accelerando, at the USC Fisher Museum of Art. In an exhibition that melds film, sound and performance, Albuquerque tells the story of a 25th century female astronaut who lands on Earth in the year 6000 BC. The piece is drawn from a text that Albuquerque has been working on since 2003, reimagined in the museum as an impressionistic environment that, among other things, features original music by film and theater composer Robbie C. Williamson. Through April 10. 823 W. Exposition Blvd., Exposition Park, Los Angeles, fisher.usc.edu.
Rebecca Campbell and Samantha Fields: Dreams of Another Time at the University Art Museum at Cal State Long Beach. A two-person show looks at the works of two important Los Angeles-based artists: Campbell, known for her meticulous portraits composed out of broad lines, and Fields, who uses old-fashioned paint to create the sensations of digital blurring. In the permanent collection galleries, the museum will also be displaying a number of prints by renowned painter Wayne Thiebaud. Through April 10. CSULB, 1250 N. Bellflower Blvd., Long Beach, web.csulb.edu/uam.
Lester Monzon, Si vis pacem para bellum, at Mark Moore Gallery. The second solo show at Moore by the Los Angeles artist features paintings that deftly fuse minimalist grids with bold, expressionistic brushstrokes for abstractions that read like sci-fi dreamscapes. The gallery also has a show of the pop-infused abstractions of Jason Salavon on view. Through April 16. 5790 Washington Blvd., Culver City, markmooregallery.com.
Karen Carson, Zip Line, at Rosamund Felsen Gallery. Felsen is showing important early works by the L.A. artist. Namely, her zipper pieces from the early 1970s. These wall pieces part painting, part sculpture were Carsons answer to the industrial materials of 1970s minimalism: Soft fabric connected (and disconnected) by zippers that could transform the geometric nature of a work in question. Through April 16. 1923 S. Santa Fe Ave., Los Angeles, rosamundfelsen.com.
Eleanor MacNair, Photographs Rendered in Play-Doh, at Kopeikin Gallery. This artist takes iconic photographs and renders them in Play-Doh, then photographs them again for images that whimsically recontextualize the tropes of art history. Through April 16. 2766 S. La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, kopeikingallery.com.
Ruben Ochoa, Tripping the Light Fantastick, at Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects. The L.A.-based Ochoa is an artist obsessed by the base materials of construction: Chain link, fence posts, concrete, aggregate, rebar and plywood. For his newest series of works, Ochoa has taken to more traditional canvas but with a combination of acrylic and rust, for paintings that feel like they could be made of Corten steel. The gallery also has a solo show devoted to the bright city scenes of Berlin-based painter Armin Boehm. Through April 16. 6006 Washington Blvd., Culver City, vielmetter.com.
practice, Practice, practice: Abstract Spirituality in Los Angeles Painting, Sculpture and Performance, at Nan Rae Gallery at Woodbury University. Inspired by a seminal LACMA exhibition about the spiritual in abstract art, independent curator Doug Harvey has put together a group show of art that is linked to religious systems and spiritual practice. Through April 17. 7500 Glen Oaks Blvd., Burbank, nanrae.com/woodburygallery.html.
Skin, at the L.A. Municipal Art Gallery. The work of three dozen contemporary artists including figures such as Kara Walker, April Bey and Ken Gonzales-Day examines issues related to race and identity in this new group show. Through April 17. 4800 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, lamag.org.
(En)Gendered (In)Equity: The Gallery Tally Poser Project, at LACE. For three years, artist Micol Hebron has produced a series of installations that look at the issue of gender inequity in the art world and the story these installations tell is not pretty. Of every 10 artists commercial galleries represent, chances are that only three of them will be women. So Hebron has enlisted the help of hundreds of artists from all over the world to produce posters that map gender ratios at galleries around the globe. LACE brings together more than 400 posters produced over the course of this project. You can see some of the images from the project on the Gallery Tally Tumblr page. Through April 17. 6522 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, welcometolace.org.
Hard Edged: Geometrical Abstraction and Beyond, at the California African American Museum. A new exhibition features the work of 46 artists from emerging figures to well-established names working in the arena of geometric abstraction. This includes works by fresh voices and standard-bearers, including well-known figures such as Rashid Johnson, Senga Nengudi, David Hammons and Tim Washington. Through April 24. 600 State Drive, Exposition Park, caamuseum.org.
Zoe Buckman: Every Curve, at Papillion. The British artist takes vintage lingerie and embroiders it with phrases from classic hip-hop tracks by the likes of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. The beguiling installation objects dangling daintily from the ceiling tells a deeper story about the contradictory ways in which women are regarded in the popular culture. Through April 30. 4336 Degnan Blvd., Leimert Park, Los Angeles, papillionart.com.
Hope Gangloff, Benjamin Degen and Yuri Masnyj at Richard Heller Gallery. Hellers gallery is featuring a series of solo exhibitions by a trio of New York-based painters. These include Gangloffs moody portraits, Degens glitteringly surreal landscapes and the diagrammatic paintings by Masnyj, which function as strange inventories of objects and things. Through April 30. Bergamot Station, 2525 Michigan Ave., Suite B5, Santa Monica, richardhellergallery.com.
Julian Schnabel, Infinity on Trial, at Blum & Poe. The bad boy of 80s neo-expressionism is back in Los Angeles with a solo show for the first time in almost a decade. The exhibition gathers works from the mid-1970s to the present, including some of the ceramic shard collages for which he is best known. Also included will be more recent works, such as his Goat Paintings, from last year. Through April 30. 2727 S. La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, blumandpoe.com.
Roy Dowell, Mosaics, at Tif Sigfrids. The Los Angeles-based artist is presenting a series of five mosaics inspired by his own collage work, which are inspired in part by his frequent travels to Mexico. Expect abstract compositions that fuse elements of objects and landscape. Through April 30. 1507 Wilcox Ave., Hollywood, tifsigfrids.com.
Alice Konitz, Los Angeles Museum of Art (LAMOA), at Occidental College. This is a work of sculpture that also serves as a micro exhibition hall. The space was established in Konitzs backyard in 2012 but will be on view at Occidental for the course of the academic year. The inaugural exhibition features work by L.A. artist Alice Clements. Through spring 2016. In front of Weingart Hall at Occidental College, 1600 Campus Road, Eagle Rock, oxy.edu.
High Priestesses, at 323 Projects. The popular phone line gallery (all shows are audio, accessible on your telephone) has a new show going up that is all about aural healing and New Age-y teachings as imagined by a crew of Los Angeles artists: Michelle Andrade, Michelle Chong, Meg Cranston and Bridge Kane. Its the ideal sort of thing for working that artsy third eye. Through May 1 by calling (323) 843-4652, 323projects.com.
Donald Baechler, Lily Stockman, Mike Davis, at Gavlak Gallery. Gavlak is opening a trio of solo shows that feature Baechlers early paintings and collages, Stockmans biomorphic abstractions and a series of funny-wry watercolors by Davis that explore the topics that occupy his thoughts namely, Picasso, artists and Kermit the Frog. Through May 7. 1034 N. Highland Ave., Hollywood, gavlakgallery.com.
Catherine Opie: 700 Nimes Road at MOCA Pacific Design Center. For six months in 2011, Los Angeles photographer Catherine Opie documented the Bel-Air estate of Elizabeth Taylor the clothes, the photographs, the jewelry, the little bits of personal ephemera that make a house a home. Now she is showing the series, one that chronicles a life of wealth and fame, at the Museum of Contemporary Arts West Hollywood space. Through May 8. Pacific Design Center, 8687 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, moca.org.
Wayne Koestenbaum, A Novel of Thank You and Other Paintings, at 356 Mission. Koestenbaum, a poet and cultural critic, is also a painter known for vivid canvases that play with desire and bold patterns to electric effect. Runs through May 8, 356 S. Mission Rd., Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, 356mission.com.
John Divola: Dents and Abrasions at Gallery Luisotti. This exhibition features a series of new works by Divola, who is known for capturing abandoned buildings and their environments in decidedly cool and un-romantic ways. (No ruin porn here.) The pieces continue Divolas tradition of marking the buildings in some way with spray paint or found paintings and then capturing the entire scene in a photograph. Through May 14. An artists reception will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday, Bergamot Station, 2525 Michigan Ave., Building A2, Santa Monica, galleryluisotti.com.
Noir: The Romance of Black in 19th Century French Drawings and Prints, at the Getty Museum. Figures in deep penumbra and sprightly creatures in dim settings. In the middle of Europes industrial revolution, some artists became intrigued by the non-color of the color black, creating prints and charcoal drawings that evoked the nocturnal, the dark and the deep recesses of the cosmos not to mention the not-quite-real state of dreaming. Through May 15. 1200 Getty Center Drive, Brentwood, Los Angeles, getty.edu.
Leap Before You Look: Black Mountain College, 1933-1957, at the Hammer Museum. Black Mountain College in North Carolina wasnt open very long, not even 20 years. But in its short lifetime it brought together bands of seminal artists, musicians, dancers and thinkers John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Cy Twomby, Ruth Asawa, Robert Rauschenberg and countless others as both teachers and students. Key to that dynamism was the presence of Josef and Anni Albers, a pair of Bauhaus artists who fled Germany to join Black Mountain in the late 1930s. This critically acclaimed exhibition, which first opened at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston, shows the far-reaching effects a single institution can have. Through May 15. 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood, hammer.ucla.edu.
Jasmin Sanchez, Flux, at the Grand Central Art Center. The Orange County-based Sanchez is taking over the walls of the art center with drawings that meld landscape with abstraction and mapping to produce images that feel just a little bit magical. Through May 15. 125 N. Broadway, Santa Ana, grandcentralartcenter.com.
Linda Arreola: Architect of the Abstract, at the Vincent Price Art Museum. This one-woman exhibition looks at roughly a 10-year period in the work of this abstract Los Angeles artist. Arreola is known for creating taut, grid-like arrangements using bright blocks of color. Her work extends into the sculptural realm too. Through May 21. 1301 Cesar Chavez Ave., Monterey Park, vincentpriceartmuseum.org.
Portraits and Autobiographies by Kim Abeles, at Post. The Los Angeles artist known for using smog some of her works literally trap particulates onto their surfaces takes a more inward view in this, her latest solo exhibition. The show includes self-portraits, photo-based works, research projects and sculptural works that often employ the body. Through May 21. 1206 Maple Ave., Los Angeles, postlosangeles.org.
PLAN, at the El Segundo Museum of Art. An exhibition organized by the Wende Museum and the El Segundo Museum of Art brings together works by disparate figures from Camille Pissarro to Egon Schiele to Vitaly Komar and Alexander Melamid exploring the idea of plans and planning. This includes references to five-year plans, a map for the projected Soviet invasion of West Berlin and other works that play with the idea of fate versus meticulous intention. Through May 22. 208 Main St., El Segundo, esmoa.org.
A Shape That Stands Up, at Art + Practice. A group show that treads the line between abstraction and figuration features works by Amy Sillman, Henry Taylor, Sadie Benning and a host of other interesting names. Through June 18. 4339 Leimert Blvd., Leimert Park, Los Angeles, artandpractice.org.
Making Waves: Japanese American Photography, 1920-1940, at the Japanese American National Museum. In the early 20th century, groups of Japanese American photographers all along the Pacific coastline launched photography clubs, through which they published and exhibited their work. Their striking imagery ranging from abstract compositions to scenes of everyday life drew the attention of artists such as Edward Weston and Laszlo Moholy-Nagy. Unfortunately, much of their work was destroyed or lost when Japanese Americans were sent to internment camps by the U.S. government during World War II. But examples remain and JANM has gathered more than 100 of these prints for a show that explores the history and legacy of the clubs. Through June 26. 100 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles, janm.org.
Popol Vuh: Watercolors of Diego Rivera, at the Bowers Museum. The Popol Vuh is a nearly 500-year-old Mayan text, written in Quiche, that recounts that cultures creation myths. This sacred text inspired a series of watercolors by Mexican muralist Diego Rivera, an artist who was preoccupied with indigenous themes. Now 17 of these paintings, on loan from a museum in Mexico, are on view at the Bowers. Through May 29. 2002 N. Main St., Santa Ana, bowers.org.
Alex Israel, at the Huntington. In 2012, the San Marino library and museum unveiled the first of its contemporary interventions with low-key works by Ricky Swallow and Lesley Vance. Now the museum is getting bolder, with a series of installations by painter Alex Israel, whose pop-inspired canvases and objects touch on topics such as celebrity, glamour and power. Through July 11. 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, huntington.org.
Jose Montoya, Abundant Harvest: Works on Paper / Works on Life, at the Fowler Museum. Throughout his life, activist, poet and painter Jose Montoya drew on whatever was at hand: napkins, hotel stationery and notebooks. And in those drawings he recorded the quotidian aspects of Mexican American life in the United States: dogs and children, women and sailors, pachucos and pachucas, the architecture of low-lying Central Valley neighborhoods, industrial warehouses and agricultural settings, as well as the glamorous profile of lowrider cars. It is the first comprehensive look at this vital Chicano artists drawing practice. Through July 17. UCLA, 308 Charles E. Young Drive North, Westwood, fowler.ucla.edu.
Robert Mapplethorpe, The Perfect Medium, at the L.A. County Museum of Art and the Getty Museum. A two-part exhibition spread over a pair of L.A. museums explores the photographic legacy of an artist who brought as much grace to images of flowers as he did to S&M. The LACMA portion features early drawings, collages, sculptures, Polaroids, still lifes and archival material. The Getty will present his more formal portraits, along with the infamous X Portfolio, with its elegant S&M imagery. The LACMA runs through July 31. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, lacma.org. The Getty exhibit also runs through July 31. 1200 Getty Center Drive, Brentwood, Los Angeles, getty.edu.
Sam Maloof Woodworker: Life/Art/Legacy, at the Maloof Foundation. The foundation is celebrating the centennial of the birth of the renowned Southern California woodworker, whose elegant objects and furnishings are in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the L.A. County Museum of Art and the Smithsonian. The exhibition will feature more than 60 objects from throughout the artists life, including furnishings, drawings, photographs and other ephemera. The show is part of a years worth of events that will celebrate Maloofs life and work. Through Aug. 27. 5131 Carnelian St., Alta Loma, malooffoundation.org.
Duchamp to Pop, at the Norton Simon Museum. Drawing mostly from the Norton Simons permanent collection, this exhibition looks at the influence Duchamp likely had on generations of artists, from assemblagists to pop painters figures who have appropriated elements of the everyday world and transformed them into art. Through Aug. 29. 411 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, nortonsimon.org.
Revolution in the Making: Abstract Sculpture by Women, 1947-2016, at Hauser Wirth & Schimmel. The debut exhibition at the citys newest gallery tackles more than half a century of sculpture by women, featuring key works by important international figures (Louise Bourgeois, Lee Bontecou) and key California artists (Ruth Asawa, Clare Falkenstein). Pieces range from the ethereal (Lygia Papes golden threads) to downright hilarious (Lara Schnitgers lacy/cat/fur assemblage sculptures). Altogether, the show offers an alternative to the narrative of the macho man postwar painting scene that has so dominated the story of 20th century art. Through Sept. 4. 901 E. Third St., Los Angeles, hauserwirthschimmel.com.
Hito Steyerl: Factory of the Sun, at the Museum of Contemporary Art. A video installation by the German artist takes the viewer into a dystopia where the movements of workers are harvested to create artificial sunshine. The piece, which debuted at the Venice Biennale in 2015, is a mash-up of contemporary communication, told as video game, news report documentary film and Internet video. Through Sept. 12. MOCA Grand Ave., 250 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, moca.org.
MOLAA at Twenty: 1996-2016, at the Museum of Latin American Art. The Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach is celebrating two decades in existence with a show that draws from the museums permanent collection of more than 1,600 objects. These include works by renowned Modernists Joaquin Torres-Garcia and Wifredo Lam, Argentine conceptualist Leon Ferrari as well as contemporary figures such as Alexandre Arrechea and Patssi Valdez. Through Jan. 1. 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach, molaa.org.
Senses of Time: Video and Film-Based Works of Africa, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. For one of its long-term installations, the museum has gathered works of video or film by contemporary African artists that explore the body and the looping nature of time. This includes pieces by figures such as Yinka Shonibare, Sammy Baloji, Berni Searle, Moatax Nasr and Theo Eshetu. Through Jan. 2. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, lacma.org.
Non Fiction at the Underground Museum. An emotionally charged exhibition curated by the late Noah Davis, in collaboration with the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles brings together works that explore issues of race and violence. This includes important works from MOCAs permanent collection by artists such as Robert Gober, Kara Walker, Henry Taylor and David Hammons. Through March 2017. 3508 W. Washington Blvd., Arlington Heights, Los Angeles, theunderground-museum.org.
Islamic Art Now: Part 2 at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Contemporary works from LACMAs permanent collection by 20 artists who live in or have roots in the Middle East look at questions of society, gender and identity. Runs indefinitely. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, lacma.org.
Find me on Twitter @cmonstah
Donald Trump turned the Republican presidential debates into high-rated TV spectacles. But the fate of his quest for the nomination may be decided by a far more intimate televised forum.
The town hall in which a candidate typically has a one-on-one exchange with an anchor and takes questions from voters has become an increasingly popular format on cable news networks. There have already been 24 of them across CNN, Fox News and MSNBC, up from just a handful in the entire 2012 campaign. While town halls dont deliver the same massive Nielsen numbers as the debates, they are still potent from a ratings standpoint and give TV news a chance to drill deeper into the candidates policy positions.
The programs also help mitigate ongoing charges by some critics that TV news is giving the media-friendly Trump too much free airtime and has not subjected him to enough rigorous questioning (a study from MediaQuant said Trump received $189.80 worth of free media coverage for every dollar hes spent on paid advertising through February).
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The Republican front-runner had the rockiest week of an otherwise surprisingly successful campaign largely because of his answer to a question from MSNBCs Chris Matthews during a Wednesday town hall. Matthews asked if a woman should be punished for having an abortion if the procedure became illegal. Trump said yes, but then revised his position after an outcry from both abortion rights activists and abortion foes. He has been dogged by the statement ever since and his favorable rating with women voters has plummeted.
Ive noticed the town hall moderators are getting tougher, especially on Trump, said Larry Sabato, professor of politics at the University of Virginia.
A debate is like three-dimensional chess or a civil knife fight, CNNs Anderson Cooper said. You have people competing against each other with very strict but clear cut parameters on the time they have for responses. The town hall allows you to have a conversation with the candidate.
When Trump gets offered an hour of prime time for a town hall appearance, so do his Republican rivals, which has helped level the playing field. Trumps town halls provide the biggest ratings jolt his appearance with Matthews scored 1.69 million viewers. A session with Cooper on CNN scored 4 million viewers on Tuesday, the highest rated so far. Trump has appeared more frequently, but that has to do with his willingness to go on camera.
I often have to explain to viewers who ask, Why dont you have a town hall with Ted Cruz? said Fox News Channels Greta Van Susteren. I asked him last week to do one in any town in Wisconsin and I got no answer.
What helps distinguish the town hall from other TV campaign coverage is the audience participation. Its a rare time in the campaign when the questions come from the voters and not us, said CNN Washington bureau chief Sam Feist.
Van Susteren, who is moderating a town hall with Trump airing Sunday at 5 p.m. Pacific on FNC in front a group of voters in Milwaukee, believes the candidates can be disarmed more easily by a voter question than one coming from a journalist.
I think they want to answer the questions more for the people than they do for us, Van Susteren said.
While Matthews grilled Trump on his abortion stance an exchange that could go down as a pivotal moment in the campaign the initial question about it came from a 19-year-old University of Wisconsin at Green Bay student in the audience.
You never know whats going to bring out something, said MSNBC president Phil Griffin. She asked a pretty simple question.
Variations of the town hall have been around presidential campaign coverage for decades. Two of the executives who now run cable networks Fox News Channel chairman and CEO Roger Ailes and CNN president Jeff Zucker both played roles in the evolution of the format.
Ailes was a young television producer when he was hired to handle the media for Richard Nixons 1968 presidential campaign. He designed what became known as the Man in the Arena shows in which Nixon took questions from a representative sampling of citizens in cities where the programs were taped with a studio audience of supporters. It was a way to present Nixons policies while making him look more comfortable among regular people, never one of his strong suits.
In 1992, Zucker, then executive producer of Today, latched onto the renegade Reform party candidate Ross Perot the Trump of his time and had him appear for one or two hours to take questions from viewers who called into the morning program. His Democratic opponent Bill Clinton followed suit.
Said Zucker: What were doing today its the exact playbook of what we were doing in 1992 on the Today show.
Twitter: @SteveBattaglio
Jash (YouTube channel); Jashfesht (live performances, Palm Springs, Friday through Sunday). In 2013, Sarah Silverman, Michael Cera, Reggie Watts, Tim Heidecker and Eric Warehmeim loosely joined forces in a YouTube Channel called Jash, sometimes represented in capital letters as if it were an acronym: JASH. (It isnt, as far as I know.) An ironically self-important introductory video, hosted by the president of Google, announced that the company was about to permanently delete all videos from YouTube and start fresh -- with Jash, a comedy network made up of the worlds top comedians, which would henceforth be responsible for all its content. (Silverman: When Google/YouTube approached me about this Jash venture I was like, what? And now Im like, when and why. Cera: Is doing work for the internet a step down for me? Yes.)
In the time since, Jash, like many if not most YouTube channels, has been irregularly maintained, in terms of branded material, serving more as a hub for videos its founders may have posted on their own channels. (It also developed a subsidiary channel, called Buh, which is, significantly or not, hub spelled backward.) Last April, the lack of organized activity was explained by a video purporting to document an internal struggle over the Jash logo (If the logo isnt right, the contents out the window, says Silverman), pitting Heidecker against his fellow founders. (This was followed by, as far as I can reckon, another period of inactivity.) Visiting the Jash Network is, nevertheless, a gateway to lots of great stuff, including Silvermans French film noir trailer Fete des Pets, Tim and Erics highly disturbing Zone Theory meditation video, some ambitious short films starring, directed and/or written by Cera (including this one, Brazzaville Teen-Ager, costarring Charles Grodin and Kelis) and Watts Teach series.
More immediately, its original spirit is also manifesting in the physical world this weekend in Palm Springs with Jashfesht, a three-day festival an aggregation, one might say of live comedy, films and musical performances, what Jash is calling with its usual ironic hyperbole a unique and historic gathering of the comedy community, creating a grassroots experiential vibe for comedys most passionate fans & creators. Running Friday through Sunday at Palm Springs Snapshot Studios, it will feature appearances by all the Jash founders, together and apart, and a host of Jash-approved performers, including Maria Bamford, Brett Gelman, UCB founder Matt Besser running a live version of his podcast Improv4Humans; Hot Tub With Kurt [Braunholer] & Kristen [Schaal], moving over from L.A.'s the Virgil, with guests including Kate Berlant and Jonah Ray; Around the Campfire With Todd Glass (Silverman is a guest), and much more. With music from Yacht, Islands, the Cooties, Honus Honus and Tim Heidecker & His Ten Piece Band. As festivals go, it promises to be chummy, manageable and focused. For more information, including tickets and schedules, go to www.jashfest.com.
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Jash is also developing original content for Verizon Wireless Go90 mobile app, which I have no way to see. Tell me about it, if you do.
robert.lloyd@latimes.com
Follow Robert Lloyd on Twitter @LATimesTVLloyd
It's the hottest album of 2016. And it's about a processed food product.
It's "Watch the Stove," the shockingly good mixtape released by Hamburger Helper for April Fools' Day. Except it's not a joke.
Well, the songs, including "Feed the Streets" and "In Love With the Glove," are about the packaged food product and include lyrics like "if you catch me at the stove, I was whippin' up a bowl" and "hold up I told you I'm servin' that stroganoff." But they're good. Like, really good.
Hamburger Helper was trending worldwide on Twitter just hours after the album dropped.
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"It's really taken off," Taylor Madrigal told me. You know him better as DJ Tiiiiiiiiiip, one of the people featured on the opening track of the album, "Feed the Streets."
I told him I absolutely needed to know everything about how "Watch the Stove" got made. It turns out General Mills (which owns Hamburger Helper) had been planning this for a while. It also turns out the entire collaboration was a local effort.
General Mills is headquartered in Minneapolis, where Madrigal also lives. (He said he went to daycare down the street from the plant where Hamburger Helper products are manufactured.) The people at Hamburger Helper were familiar with his work, including a song called " ... My Baby Mama."
Three months ago, GM approached him, he said, wanting to know if Madrigal and producer Bobby Raps wanted to work on a song with them. Liana Miller, the marketing communications planner for Hamburger Helper, said by email that the team had been kicking around the idea, joking with their Twitter followers (from @helper) about making a mixtape.
"When we saw the demand, we thought, why not?" Miller said in an emailed statement. For the album itself, "We chose to feature artists that were representative of our consumers." That included local up-and-coming talent like Madrigal.
"That's part of why we wanted to get involved," he said. "It's all Minnesota, local culture, local everything."
The duo received a few guidelines: The song had to be family-friendly. Nothing overtly inappropriate. No swear words. Obviously, it had to be about Hamburger Helper. Madrigal and Raps took it from there.
"Feed the Streets" came together over the course of a month. Hamburger Helper reached out to a local music school and asked students to contribute as well. College students are responsible for the tracks "Crazy," "Food for Your Soul" and "In Love With the Glove." Internet celebrity Niles Stewart a.k.a. Retro Spectro contributed the second track, "Hamburger Helper."
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I asked Madrigal point blank: Why is this so good? How?
"We like to take pride in what we do, and we didn't want to give [General Mills] anything bad," he said. "We work really hard but don't take ourselves too seriously. We have fun." (Proof of that hard work: When we spoke on the phone, he was driving across the border into Canada, where he's DJing a show tonight in Vancouver. No word yet on when the official Watch the Stove world tour begins.)
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It's possibly the greatest April Fools' Day prank of all time. Every other corporate #brand can just quit now. Most of these sorts of pranks make people feel stupid for believing something that's too good to be true. This one made people feel the opposite: It sounds too ridiculous to possibly be true.
But it is true. Hamburger Helper has a mixtape. And it's absolute fire.
Send Jessica Roy your mixtape on Twitter @jessica_roy.
John Stamos gets the role of a lifetime for April Fools' Day
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The ACM Awards felt like country music's bummer of the year, y'all
Lilly Wachowski makes first public appearance at GLAAD Awards since coming out as transgender
Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz says the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, could be the worst trade agreement ever negotiated in history. In an interview with CBC News, he recommended that the government of Canada insist on reworking it.
"I think what Canada should do is use its influence to begin a renegotiation of TPP to make it an agreement that advances the interests of Canadian citizens and not just the large corporations," he said in an interview with CBC's 'The Exchange' on Thursday.
Under the TPP, it's easier for big multinational corporations to sue governments. "It used to be the basic principle was polluter pay," Stiglitz told CBC.
"If you damaged the environment, then you have to pay. Now if you pass a regulation that restricts ability to pollute or does something about climate change, you could be sued and could pay billions of dollars."
Stiglitz, a professor at Columbia University in New York, was a keynote speaker at a conference at the University of Ottawa on Friday about the complex trade deal. International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland put Canada's signature on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, but it has yet to be ratified here. The House of Commons trade committee is studying the TPP a process that Freeland said could take up to nine months. Stiglitz described Freeland as "old friend" in an interview with The Canadian Press and said he has explained some of the pitfalls of the TPP to her, among them its potential to reduce workers' rights. Stiglitz takes issue with the TPP's investment-protection provisions, which he says could interfere with the ability of governments to regulate business or to move toward a low-carbon economy.
Video: "TPP 'worst trade deal ever,' says Nobel-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz"
Good morning. It is Saturday, April 2. Heres what you dont want to miss this weekend:
TOP STORIES
When weapons fail: A Times review has found that nearly a quarter of those shot by Los Angeles police last year were wounded or killed after an officer tried to use a Taser but the weapon failed. Of the 1,100 times an LAPD officer used his or her Taser, it worked just 53% of the time. Ive had dreams where I pulled the trigger and nothing happens, said Officer J.C. Duarte. Los Angeles Times
Overdose deaths: Overdoses of a powerful painkiller are suspected in the deaths of nine people in the Sacramento area. Authorities believe a total of 36 people have overdosed in the last week on opiate fentanyl. This is just another face of the opioid epidemic, said Dr. Caleb Alexander, co-director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness. Los Angeles Times
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Young supporters: Trumplicans. Think it will take off? The Westmont College student running Students for Trump in California thinks it might. Mr. Trump, hes single-handedly bringing back freedom of speech. Hes enabled students to voice whatever we believe in a thoughtful way, said Jake Lopez. Los Angeles Times
All of your fans: In Los Angeles, one company is providing crowds. For celebrities. And dignitaries. A growing sector for the business is supplying prolonged protests. When the targets of our actions see that were going to be back, day after day, they get really scared, said Adam Swart, 24-year-old CEO of Crowds on Demand. The California Sunday Magazine
Higher wages: In the fight for $15, most of the gains have been in major urban centers with high costs of living. However, now that California is making the move to increase the minimum wage statewide, the effects could be wildly different than in places like Seattle and Los Angeles. There will almost certainly be both winners and losers, but no one knows how many of each, or whether the benefits will prove worth the cost. FiveThirtyEight
Unaffordable housing: What does it say about a city when its middle-class residents need assistance to afford housing? The pressure to subsidize the middle class by civic accommodation indicates that something, in the Bay Area, at least, is not merely unequal but out of balance. The New Yorker
Its a juicer: In Silicon Valley, investors are getting behind a company that manufactures a $700 juice machine that can produce eight ounces of liquid. Is it a food company? A tech company? Its the most complicated business that Ive ever funded, said David Krane, a partner at GV, formerly Google Ventures. New York Times
Drive to food: Yummy, yummy. Here are five food festivals in Southern California that are worth the drive. Time Out Los Angeles
THIS WEEKS MOST POPULAR STORIES IN ESSENTIAL CALIFORNIA
1. Take a walk down the most beautiful streets of San Francisco. SFGate
2. For $2.75 million, the site of a 1959 murder-suicide could be all yours. The Los Feliz home has been virtually uninhabited since the 1960s. Curbed LA
3. Captured on video: a fight between an African American woman and a white man with dreadlocks at San Francisco State University. Los Angeles Times
4. Firefighters came to the rescue this week when ducklings fell into a storm channel at Cal Poly Pomona. This video shows the happy reunion with mama duck. Facebook
5. The life of 12-year-old Jason Spears was filled with violence in his San Bernardino community. When he was shot and killed last month, the homicide rocked a city already coping with prolonged economic struggles, persistent crime and the tragedy of last Decembers terrorist attack. Los Angeles Times
ICYMI, HERE ARE THIS WEEKS GREAT READS
Marriage material: In Koreatown, parents are spending their nights at matchmaking events in the hopes of setting up their adult children. The fact that many singles dont marry until their 30s or 40s now has been a source of much heartburn for first-generation Korean immigrants, for whom getting their children settled in wedlock is the culmination of their obligation as parents. Los Angeles Times
Funny financing: The Wolf of Wall Street is director Martin Scorseses 2013 film about the debauchery and criminal activity of Wall Street. How was the film financed? Global investigators now believe much of the money to make the movie about a stock scam was diverted from a state fund 9,000 miles away in Malaysia, a fund that had been established to spur local economic development. Wall Street Journal
Dissenting opinions: Justice Goodwin Liu is shaking up the California Supreme Court with a new practice writing dissents when the court declines to hear a case. Lengthy dissents from orders denying review, while rare on the California Supreme Court, are not uncommon on the U.S. Supreme Court. Los Angeles Times
Out in the open: Columnist Robin Abcarian found the worst urinal in San Francisco. Its in a corner of Dolores Park and it doesnt offer any privacy whatsoever. I have never seen anything quite like it, she writes. Los Angeles Times
LOOKING AHEAD
Sunday: Bill Clinton in Los Angeles to campaign on behalf of his wife; Monument for Anaheim polices K-9 team will be dedicated at La Palma Park.
Tuesday: Beverly Hills will unveil revitalized landmark fountain at the corner of Wilshire and Santa Monica boulevards.
Friday: The Queen Mary will begin the three-day FantaSea: Magic Festival in Long Beach.
Saturday: L.A. Times book festival begins.
Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Alice Walton or Shelby Grad.
It was a small Internet firm with big ambitions.
From a storefront in Inglewood, Manchester Community Technologies Inc. went to work and last year declared the firm had created corridors of free public Wi-Fi access for Internet-starved communities from Long Beach to Pasadena.
In a report to the California Public Utilities Commission in March of 2015 documenting what it did with nearly $500,000 in ratepayer fees, the company said it had deployed free Wi-Fi hot spots at eight parks and 16 community Wi-Fi networks, enabling over 100,000 community based unique end-users the opportunity to connect to the Internet.
But today, most of those networks and hot spots dont link to the Internet.
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In an initial survey late last year, The Times checked seven parks and 11 network locations, finding no Wi-Fi at any of them. A follow-up survey in March found network signals at three of the eight parks and 16 community locations but could not obtain a connection on any of them. The best results were on a section of Crenshaw Boulevard in Leimert Park where several businesses were broadcasting free Wi-Fi on a community network.
In response to inquiries from The Times, the Public Utilities Commission visited the sites in January and determined that service was available at only two of the locations where Manchester Community Technologies was paid to provide free Wi-Fi, commission spokeswoman Terrie Prosper said.
No one can argue that Internet access is a luxury -- not when you need to be online to apply for jobs, to access healthcare, to communicate with elected officials. Cal State Long Beach journalism professor Gwen Shaffer
Revlyn Williams, Manchester Community Technologies founder and executive director, said the networks had all functioned at one time. Maintaining them has proved difficult, she said, because businesses that form the backbone of the networks sometimes shut down their routers at night, lose equipment to theft or dont rely on the Internet enough to keep it running.
With the three-year grant now expired, her company will persist in its efforts with Gods help, Williams said.
Manchester Community Technologies struggles to fulfill its promise underscore the challenge of providing universal Internet access in communities where commercial access points such as Starbucks coffee shops are rare and home-based broadband is unaffordable for many families. Free community networks represent one strategy being explored by government agencies in an effort to break the so-called digital divide.
The Times was tipped off to the Wi-Fi problems by Cal State Long Beach journalism professor Gwen Shaffer, who became suspicious while conducting research on community broadband access, which she characterizes as a social justice issue.
No one can argue that Internet access is a luxury not when you need to be online to apply for jobs, to access healthcare, to communicate with elected officials to complete basic daily tasks, Shaffer said. Anyone without Internet access is incredibly marginalized.
Shaffer, who teaches communications law and policy, contends that the case exposes poor oversight by the utilities commission, which failed to see obvious flaws in the firms application and made no attempt to verify the claims in the companys 2015 progress report.
Shaffer criticized the PUC for not doing a more thorough investigation into whether the sites were improving Wi-Fi service. Instead, regulators simply reprint the reports and tout accomplishments.
The PUC said the entire program will be audited this year.
Manchester Community Technologies grant was from the California Advanced Services Fund that directs $315 million in ratepayer surcharges to promote deployment of high-quality advanced communications services to all Californians. Most of the money goes to capital projects to expand Internet to areas of the state that dont have it.
A small portion of that was given to regional groups primarily to promote use of the Internet in areas such as South Los Angeles. According to a recent survey by the Pew Research Center, about a third of U.S. adults do not subscribe to broadband service at home, primarily because of the cost.
Of the funds the PUC set aside for underserved areas in Los Angeles County, the bulk of that money was aimed at education and outreach. Manchester Community Technologies was responsible for the portion of the grant for direct services.
James E. Prieger, a Pepperdine University economist who specializes in the Internet, questioned the goal of deploying free Wi-Fi where large service providers offer Internet access.
It would be more productive, Prieger said, to give subsidies to poor households.
If you just subsidize an area, you are going to be subsidizing a lot of people who dont need it, Prieger said.
On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission endorsed Priegers approach, voting to make all low-income families eligible for subsidies from a ratepayer fund to pay for broadband.
But Prosper, the PUC spokeswoman, defended the expenditure on free Wi-Fi, as a complementary strategy for providing access to those who otherwise couldnt afford it.
Williams said her firm attempted to create free Wi-Fi networks by enlisting business owners and government agencies to share a portion of their Internet bandwidth with the public. The signals from individual businesses, she said, were woven together into Wi-Fi zones up to 11/2 miles square.
Williams demonstrated what the firm called its flagship network during an interview with The Times at her office on Manchester Boulevard. A laptop computer connected automatically to a network called CommunityWiFi.
A page appeared on the screen with local advertisements and listings, and a browse button linked to the Internet.
Returning a week later, however, The Times could find no signal for the network outside the companys office.
Williams also said the hot spots at eight parks were functioning, but not necessarily reaching the buildings where children used computers.
Because the group had not received approval from L.A.'s Department of Recreation and Parks to tap into the citys Internet feed, the routers were instead set up at nearby buildings and broadcast into the park, Williams said.
A spokesman for Mayor Eric Garcetti said the city supports the deployment of Wi-Fi in parks, but because of security concerns does not allow its Internet to be broadcast to the public.
At one of the parks, Fred Roberts Recreation Center in Central Alameda, children in after-school programs sit at computers in several rooms. But they have no Internet connection.
Manchester Community Technologies worked with a nonprofit called LAURA to deploy a Wi-Fi hot spot there.
But Adela Bajaras, LAURAs founder, said she never received approval from the parks department to install the Wi-Fi equipment.
Instead, she carries the router in her trunk and brings it on Thursdays for a youth group meeting she leads.
At nearby Ross Snyder Recreation Center, director Javier Soto said he would like Internet access for the youths who use the facility, but he doesnt have it.
Williams said the park does have a hot spot. It is provided by the Concerned Citizens of South Los Angeles from a nearby building, she said.
The Times could find no signal at the recreation center.
doug.smith@latimes.com
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A police dog that bit through a womans lip as she slept in her office after hours could be viewed as a severe use of force, a federal appeals court ruled Friday, and that question and whether it was appropriate force should be considered by a jury.
A U.S. district judge had found in favor of San Diego police in a 2013 ruling, but Fridays opinion by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reverses that decision and sends the case back to the lower court and potentially to trial.
If the case goes to trial, a jury would be asked not only to consider the specific incident that sent Sara Lowry to a hospital, but also to examine whether the San Diego Police Department as a whole should be held liable for its policies regarding the deployment and training of police dogs.
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Lowry had gone out for drinks with co-workers the evening of Feb. 11, 2010, and after five vodka drinks at two bars, returned to her office in Pacific Beach to retrieve her lunch leftovers, according to court records. She decided to stay the night and fell asleep on the couch of her office.
She awoke shortly after and used the restroom, unknowingly triggering the buildings burglar alarm, and went back to sleep.
Police were called to investigate the alarm. Sgt. Bill Nulton and his police dog, Bak, along with two other officers, found the door to Lowrys office suite open and it was mostly dark inside.
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Nulton said he shouted inside, This is the San Diego Police Department! Come out now or Im sending in a police dog! You may be bitten! He said he waited up to a minute more and, getting no response, yelled the warning once or twice more. He then let the dog off the leash to investigate and followed closely behind him.
With a flashlight, Nulton said he spotted what looked like a person under a blanket. The dog pounced and bit Lowry nearly entirely through her lip. Nulton quickly removed the dog. Lowry required three stitches.
Shortly after the incident, Nulton told Lowry, I just cant believe thats the only damage. Youre very lucky. She could have ripped your face off, according to court records.
San Diego police testified that the officers followed the departments policy on deploying dogs. The department trains its dogs to enter a building, find a person, bite and hold that bite until an officer removes the dog, according to court records.
Nulton testified in a deposition that police dogs are not trained to differentiate between a young child asleep or ... a burglar standing in the kitchen with a butcher knife, and will typically bite the first person they find. He said it is usually up to the officer to decide when it is appropriate to allow the dog off its leash.
The district court, approving the citys request for summary judgment, found that the officers reacted reasonably and objectively to the situation, seeing an office door ajar and not knowing whether there was a burglar, possibly armed, waiting for them in the dark.
In a 2-1 decision, the 9th Circuit disagreed, finding that a reasonable jury could find the departments bite and hold policy to be a severe use of force.
In this case we must not rely on the plaintiffs luck that she only ended up bleeding profusely from a cut lip rather than having her whole face ripped off to excuse the conduct that the officer himself recognized could well have resulted in a far more egregious injury, judges wrote in their ruling.
When we consider both the type and the amount of force used against Lowry and draw all inferences in her favor, we have little trouble concluding that the intrusion on Lowrys 4th Amendment rights was severe, the ruling says.
The three-judge panel weighed several factors about whether the force was excessive, including whether burglary is considered a serious crime, whether Lowry resisted officers and whether the officers had a reasonable fear of danger in the situation.
In a dissenting opinion, Judge Richard Clifton said the ruling could have serious consequences on officer safety.
Thanks to the majority opinion, officers will be discouraged from protecting themselves and encouraged to risk their lives by exposing themselves to any burglar who might be armed and lying in wait, either because they cannot use a dog at all or must remain so closely tethered to the dog that they necessarily have to expose themselves to the potentially armed burglar, he wrote.
Gerry Braun, spokesman for the city attorneys office, said the office is reviewing the opinion and will determine the next course of action.
We are mindful that this decision could impact the future use of police dogs in the city of San Diego and other communities, Braun said.
kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com
Twitter: @kristinadavis
Davis writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.
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Friends and neighbors of a man who has been charged with killing his son because he was gay said Saturday that the young man had a troubled history and was involved in several incidents that resulted in the police being called to the house.
On Friday, Shehada Khalil Issa, 69, of North Hills was charged with fatally shooting his son, Amir Issa, 29, outside the familys home earlier this week because he was gay, according to the Los Angeles District Attorneys Office.
The murder was committed because of the victims sexual orientation and because of the defendants perception of that status and the victims association with a person and a group of that status, prosecutors said in a statement.
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Issa was arrested at the scene and booked into the Mens Central Jail on one count of premeditated murder. He is being held without bail.
The shooting occurred about 9 a.m. Tuesday at the familys residence in the 15000 block of Rayen Street.
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The father admitted that he shot his son with a shotgun, said Sgt. Greg Bruce of the Los Angeles Police Department, who was the incident commander at the scene of the shooting. Bruce said he was not provided with any explanation as to why the man shot his son.
The body of Amir Issa was found outside the home, police said.
The victim was shot once in the abdomen and once in the face, Bruce said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities entered the home and also discovered the victims mother, identified by the coroner as Rabihah Issa, 68, on the bathroom floor. Because of the condition of the bloodied body, it appeared she had been dead for a while, Bruce said.
The nature of her wounds were not immediately clear, but it was obvious there was some sort of foul play, he said.
Police had been in previous contact with the family about a dispute, Bruce said. The mans son had been using the back of the house as an apartment, but his parents were seeking to sell the house and evict their son, Bruce said.
Our detectives were involved in the eviction process to try to get him removed from the property, he said.
The detectives told Bruce that the son had damaged the house and his parents had to hire contractors to fix it.
The sergeant said he was not aware of any disputes related to the victims sexual orientation.
Francisco Gonzalez Jr. said he was visiting his parents next door Tuesday morning when he heard what seemed to be two gunshots.
He said he ran outside to find out what had happened and saw the elder Issa, whom he called Joe, standing in front of his house, holding his cellphone to his ear.
Were those bullets? Gonzalez said he asked the man. Are you OK, Joe? Was that you?
He said the man gestured up and down with his hand to reassure his neighbor and said, Everything is fine now.
The elder Issa didnt seem distraught, Gonzalez said.
He said he had spoken with the man several times before and considered him a great guy.
A few months ago, Gonzalez said the elder Issa told him about his sons troubles.
Drugs can mess up your life, Gonzalez recalled the suspect telling him. My son had a great life, and then he did drugs and it all went away.
The son worked with computers, the father told Gonzalez.
At the time, the elder Issa told Gonzalez that he was trying to get his son to leave the house, but his son refused to do so.
About three months ago, Gonzalez said he saw the elder man standing outside his home. He asked him what he was doing.
Its just my son acting crazy again, the father told him. Its the drugs. I called the cops, so Im just waiting for them. Im just going to wait here.
Gonzalez said he was impressed with how the father handled the situation.
He was very patient and showed no signs of aggression. Thats why its so shocking and sad, he said of the killing. We feel for him. Its a tragedy.
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As prosecution rests, former Undersheriff Paul Tanaka takes the stand
Poor residents were promised Wi-Fi service. They didnt get it
Paul Tanaka, who once wielded great power within the ranks of the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department, took the witness stand Friday to defend himself against charges he interfered with an FBI investigation into jail abuses.
The former undersheriff, who served as the second in command to former L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca before retiring amid scandal, is charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice for the leading role he allegedly played in an elaborate scheme to thwart the FBI.
According to prosecutors, Tanaka orchestrated a group of collaborators who tried to intimidate the FBI agent leading the probe into widespread claims of extrajudicial jail beatings. Tanaka also allegedly concealed the whereabouts of an inmate when his role as an FBI informant was discovered, prosecutors said.
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Tanakas testimony was the opening gambit in his defense, coming after prosecutors for U.S. Atty. Eileen Decker rested their case, which featured a long procession of witnesses from within the Sheriffs Department and FBI.
During more than two hours of questions by one of his lawyers, Tanaka denied the allegations against him and portrayed himself as a tough, but upright leader who was guided by a strict moral compass. Trying to minimize his role in the departments response to the FBI investigation, Tanaka laid blame on Baca, who he said was consumed with anger over the FBI probe.
He recounted Bacas frequent demands for updates on the perilous turf battle sheriffs officials had picked with the FBI. He would always ask, Whats going on? And I couldnt answer because I wasnt involved, Tanaka testified.
Presented with the chance to grill Tanaka, Assistant U.S. Atty. Brandon Fox wasted no time bearing down on the defendant during cross examination. His first question was about Tanakas reported membership in a notorious and violent clique inside the sheriffs ranks.
Tanakas defense team quickly objected to the line of questioning and U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson called an end to the days proceedings, saying he would decide on how much leeway to grant Fox before trial resumes Monday morning.
The trial is likely the last in a series of high-profile prosecutions stemming from 2011, when sheriffs officials discovered and objected angrily to a secret FBI inquiry into the jails. In all, nine members of the department have been convicted or have pleaded guilty.
Last month, Baca himself joined the group of felons when he admitted to lying to FBI agents and prosecutors during their investigation into beatings of inmates and visitors at the nations largest jail system. Under the terms of the deal he struck with prosecutors, Baca, who left office two years ago, will avoid being indicted on more serious charges and can be sentenced to no more than six months in prison. Anderson must still approve the agreement.
Choosing to testify brings considerable risk since Tanaka must now endure what is certain to be intense questioning by Fox. His decision to take the stand and forgo his constitutional rights against self-incrimination, indicated that Tanaka and his attorneys felt they needed Tanaka to try to persuade the jury after the government put on a compelling case.
Over a week of testimony, jurors heard from witnesses who told how Anthony Brown, a convicted felon who began working as an FBI informant while he was serving time in the countys main jail facility, was hidden from agents after his cover was blown.
A records clerk, for example, testified how deputies pressured her to falsify entries in the agencys database to show Brown had been released from custody when, in fact, he remained in a jail cell.
When the clerk refused, the deputies warned her that Tanaka had authorized the move, she told jurors.
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The episode, prosecutors contend, was part of a broader scheme in which the deputies repeatedly moved Brown among various jail facilities under fake names to conceal his whereabouts from federal authorities.
Tanaka, 57, is also accused of being part of the decision to dispatch two sergeants to the home of the FBI agent leading the jail inquiry. The pair confronted the agent outside hrt apartment building and threatened to arrest her for her role in a sting operation that involved smuggling a cellphone into Brown.
Fox played for jurors a recording of a phone call the agents supervisor made to one of the sergeants after the confrontation, demanding information about when the arrest would be made and what the charges would be.
Youll have to talk to the undersheriff, the sergeant responded.
With his attorney walking him deliberately through the planning meetings, conversations, and emails that prosecutors used to incriminate him, Tanaka simply denied the things he was accused of saying and doing.
Did you ever issue any orders that Anthony Brown should be hidden from the FBI? Jerome Haig, one of his attorneys asked.
No, Tanaka replied.
joel.rubin@latimes.com
Find me on Twitter: @joelrubin.
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The cab driver who was kidnapped by three Orange County jail escapees said Friday that he planned to sue the county for discrimination.
Even though he had persuaded one of the three fugitives to surrender, Long Ma said, and had worked with law enforcement sharing information that helped capture the others county supervisors voted not to give him any reward money. The reason, he said, was because he was a humble Vietnamese American who hesitated to brag about his actions.
Four people split the $150,000: a homeless man who spotted two of the escapees in San Francisco, two Target employees in Rosemead who recognized the fugitives on surveillance video and a man whose van they had stolen.
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Standing outside his lawyers office in Fountain Valley on Friday, Ma, 71, said the county was responsible for his suffering.
Ma said that since he was kidnapped and held at gunpoint by Bac Duong, Hossein Nayeri and Jonathan Tieu, he has fought nightmares while helping authorities. He said he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and that fear has kept him close to home.
Hours after they escaped Jan. 22, the inmates called Mas cab service. They took him hostage, authorities said, and forced him to head north eventually winding up in San Jose.
On the first day, I knew they were going to kill me. On the second day, I gave up. My mind gave up, Ma said. But later, I knew I had to do something because they could have hurt a lot of people. So in between beers, burgers and noodles, Ma befriended Duong and quietly urged the fugitive to return to Orange County and turn himself in.
Hoang Huy Tu, Mas attorney, credited his clients empathy for preventing what could have been a huge tragedy when you have people escaping from jail with a weapon.
Its totally unfair. Is there a pattern of discrimination that the only two who were ignored when they gave out rewards are two Vietnamese Americans? Tu asked. Theresa Nguyen, a friend whom Duong described as his little sister, called 911 to alert police that he was in her Santa Ana auto body shop ready to surrender.
When county officials met to distribute the reward, supervisors said the cabbie was a victim. Supervisor Todd Spitzer said that although he sympathized with Mas ordeal, it would be illegal to award him any money.
But, Tu said, victims have rights.
The lawyer said he planned to file the suit to seek compensation for Ma next week. Tu also said he would challenge the state code that says a public entity in this case Orange County cannot be held liable for any injury caused by an escaping or escaped prisoner.
We must charge ahead and maybe we can change the law, Tu said. But its just us, the little guy, David versus Goliath.
anh.do@latimes.com
Twitter: @newsterrier
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Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker suggested Saturday that Ted Cruzs success in outmaneuvering GOP front-runner Donald Trump in internal battles for Republican convention delegates makes him a stronger candidate in fall battleground states like Florida and Ohio.
If you want to defeat Hillary Clinton, you need to have somebody who has an organization, Walker told reporters at a bear hunters convention in this small central Wisconsin town, a few hours before Trump was scheduled to arrive for a rally.
In a clear reference to Trumps trouble matching Cruz in the arcane but potentially decisive fights among party insiders for delegates, Walker said, When you start to see some of the weaknesses of some of the campaigns that really dont have real strong grass-roots organizations thats what it takes to win in a state like Wisconsin.
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In Wisconsin, Ohio and other states with a history of close presidential votes, an army of volunteers knocking on neighbors doors and getting people to the polls is crucial, the two-term Republican governor argued.
Walker, who survived a costly recall election in 2012 and was reelected two years later, has put his substantial political operation to work for Cruz in Wisconsins GOP presidential primary on Tuesday.
A Marquette University Law School poll released this week found Trump running 10 percentage points behind the Texas senator.
A Wisconsin loss for Trump would embolden Republican forces trying to stop the New York billionaire from winning the 1,237 delegates he needs to capture the GOP nomination without a contested party convention in Cleveland in July.
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Barry Bennett, a Trump campaign senior advisor, used an epithet to dismiss Walkers remarks as unfounded.
Our organization has produced 2 million more votes than anybody elses, he said, referring to the once-crowded Republican field.
Trump currently has 736 delegates, compared with 463 for Cruz and 143 for Ohio Gov. John Kasich.
But in some states where Trump won a primary or caucus vote, he could face a threat if he doesnt win the nomination on the first ballot.
In those states, delegates who must vote for him on the conventions first nomination ballot can abandon him and back Cruz or another candidate on subsequent ballots.
Even if its on the second ballot, I think Ted Cruz is in an excellent position to obtain the 1,237 delegate votes that are required, Walker said.
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In Milwaukee on Tuesday, Trump voiced frustration that although he won the Louisiana primary, he might wind up with fewer delegates than Cruz, whose local troops prevailed in an obscure committee brawl.
I call it bad politics, Trump told CNN. When somebody goes in and wins the election and gets less delegates than the guy that lost, I dont think thats right.
In Tennessee, another state that Trump won, his loyalists were fighting at a party gathering Saturday to block a committee of insiders from appointing convention delegates who would not be loyal to Trump after their first vote.
Dan Scavino, Trumps social media director, circulated a flier on Twitter, saying: We won the votes. They are trying to steal them.
Bennett, the campaign advisor, said members of Tennessees GOP establishment had locked themselves in a private room as Trump supporters were insisting the candidate should be able to choose his own delegates.
We want true Trump supporters as our delegates, he said.
For news of the presidential campaign follow @finneganLAT on Twitter.
For more political coverage, go to www.latimes.com/politics.
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Government employees and private businesses in Mississippi could deny services to same-sex couples who want to marry under a bill passed by the House on Friday, one of numerous attempts across the country to enact so-called religious protection statutes after the Supreme Court ruling that essentially legalized gay marriage.
Now, Republican Gov. Phil Bryant must decide whether to sign the bill into law.
Mississippi is among 10 states that have passed or are considering such legislation. Work on this bill started months ago, but the House vote Friday came a day after a federal judge blocked Mississippi from enforcing the last state law in the nation to ban same-sex couples from adopting children.
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Bryant has often said he believes marriage should be between a man and a woman, but would not say Friday whether he will sign House Bill 1523.
I havent gotten to it yet. As soon as it gets to us well look at it and decide, Bryant said as he walked away from reporters after a Capitol news conference about a youth jobs program.
The governors spokesman, Clay Chandler, tried to block reporters from asking questions by saying repeatedly: Not today. Not today.
Bryant said of the bill: Im going to look at it like I do every piece of legislation, and as soon as I make that decision, Ill let you know.
He signed a 2014 bill promoted by gay marriage opponents, saying government cannot put a substantial burden on religious practices. This years bill is similar to the one Georgias Republican governor vetoed Monday amid objections from businesses that said it would permit discrimination.
The Mississippi bill is also similar to North Carolinas first-in-the-nation law that limits bathroom options for transgender people in government buildings. Business executives are urging Republican Gov. Pat McCrory to repeal the bill he signed March 23. The Mississippi bill says people could not be punished for a belief that gender is set at birth. It says schools or businesses can set gender-specific rules about how a person dresses or which bathroom a person must use.
The Mississippi House passed the final version of the bill Friday, 69 to 44, two days after the Senate passed it, 32 to 17. Republicans hold a majority in both chambers. Under the margins for final passage, there would not be enough votes to override if Bryant vetoes the bill.
Some corporations in Mississippi oppose the bill, including Nissan North America, which has a plant near Jackson; MGM Resorts International, which has casinos in Biloxi and Tunica; and Huntington Ingalls Industries, which has a shipyard in Pascagoula. All three are among the states largest private employers.
Republican state Rep. Andy Gipson of Braxton, an attorney and pastor of a small Baptist church, told the House on Friday that reporting about the bill has been biased against it.
Ladies and gentlemen, dont buy the deceptions, the untruths of these articles that youve seen. The talking heads theyre wrong. This is an anti-discrimination bill, said Gipson, chairman of the House Judiciary B Committee and one of the bills sponsors.
Democratic Rep. Christopher Bell of Jackson called the bill an open container for discrimination across the board.
Were asking to legalize discrimination, Bell said. What comes next? Are we going to start discriminating against interracial marriages? Are we going to start discriminating ... against African Americans? Asians? Jews? When does it stop?
The bill says the state could not punish people involved with foster care or adoption who teach children that marriage should only be between a man and a woman, that sex should only take place inside such a marriage and that gender is set at birth.
Burbank resident Matt Fairchild believes a person should not be brought into the world or leave it alone. If it was up to him, he would want to die in his home sitting next to his wife either watching the first movie they saw together or listening to Jimmy Buffet as the aid-in-dying medication takes its course.
Fairchild, 46, a Navy and Army veteran, was diagnosed with melanoma the most serious form of skin cancer in August 2012 and, for about two years, has been living with stage IV of the disease.
There is not a day when Fairchild does not feel some kind of pain all over his body, especially his left side and lower back. He takes about 20 types of prescriptions and over-the-counter medications every day to give him relief. He also gets infusions of a drug called Keytruda, which helps his body fight the tumors.
Im taking all of those medications, knowing that I could go to sleep and not wake up, he said. I do have tumors dead and alive in my brain and body, so I know its a possibility.
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Though Fairchild does not have complete control over what his tumors will do, he can soon control when he dies, due to the passage of a new California law.
In March, the state Legislature closed its special session on healthcare, allowing the End of Life Option Act to go into effect on June 9. The new law, signed by Gov. Jerry Brown in October, will let a patient with six months or less to live request aid-in-dying medication.
California will be the fifth state in the country to legalize medical aid in dying. In 1997, Oregon became the first state to enact such a law. Washington, Montana and Vermont have also made it legal for residents to acquire life-ending drugs.
Fairchild said he is 75% to 95%" certain that he will fill out the paperwork and get the medication, which requires patients to make two verbal requests at least 15 days apart as well as a written request witnessed by two people, with one not a relative.
A physician must determine that patients requesting to end their life have the mental capacity to understand and make the request on their own as well as be able to administer the life-ending drug themselves. The doctor is also obligated to have their diagnosis confirmed by a second physician.
Fairchild said that he will begin the process to obtain the aid-in-dying drug when he gets to the point that his body cannot take anymore more treatment or when he decides that he has fought the melanoma long enough.
Though Fairchild is fairly certain he will request the drug, he said he is only about 50% sure about whether he will take it or not.
It will depend on how things are naturally progressing, he said. I am definitely sure that Im going to fill out the paperwork and have [the drug], because to not have it would be like not taking advantage of something thats in your toolbox.
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Denver, Colo.-based advocacy group Compassion & Choices sees Californias new law in the same light, saying that it is a way for terminally ill patients to have control over how and where they die, said David Grube, the organizations national medical director who practiced family medicine for 35 years.
People are realizing that they dont want to die in an [intensive-care unit] or an institution, he said. They want to be at home with their loved ones and want to be able to make some choices rather than put up with the indignities associated with the end of life.
However, Marilyn Golden, senior policy analyst for the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund in Berkeley, argues that the new state law does not have any safeguards in place. She said she fears that some people might be coerced into choosing to kill themselves rather than opting to fight their ailment because of the high expense of cancer-treatment drugs.
Golden estimates the aid-in-dying drug will cost several thousand dollars, while seeking specialized long-term treatment is going to be far greater, she said.
We want to see the system improved, she said. We dont want people who are underprivileged, whether they are disabled or cant pay, to be offered death instead.
She said she is also concerned that if a physician declines to prescribe the end-of-life drug, a patient might go doctor shopping, until they find one who will.
Fairchild said he will not take the aid-in-dying drug simply to expedite his death. It will only be when he has exhausted all of his options.
I would never say that this is to end or shorten the agony of your family and friends, he said. Its not meant for that.
When that day comes, Fairchild said he will be ready, and so will his wife.
Shes got no problem when and if that time comes, he said. She will not let me sit there and suffer. Shes supportive in that regard, except for the fact that shes a wife and she has to watch her husband go.
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Anthony Clark Carpio, anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com
Twitter: @acocarpio
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ALSO:
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Good morning, 818. Today is Saturday, April 2, 2016. Temperatures for today are forecasted to reach a high of 81 and a low of 53, according to the National Weather Service.
Here are your local headlines:
Civic News and Politics
Funds for Rose Parade entry dont float with Glendale City Council
Glendale will not spend $200,000 on a float entry in next years Tournament of Roses Parade, the City Council decided this week, citing a lack of funds raised for it and disinterest in the community. There are nonprofits that are struggling to do good for children, for seniors, for the disabled, for the homeless, Mayor Ara Najarian said. I just cant see paying this type of money again for a Rose float that is not supported. Glendale News-Press
NEWSLETTER: Stay up to date with whats going on in the 818 >>
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Crime and Public Safety
Vice stings lead to arrests in Glendale
lice busted five suspected prostitutes and a pimp in a series of vice stings this week on the heels coincidentally of the beating and robbery of a self-described prostitute at a Glendale motel, police said. Undercover detectives initiated the undercover operations at two hotels and a motel after finding solicitation advertisements online, according to Glendale Police Sgt. Robert William. Glendale News-Press
Residents look into new public safety methods
The recent staffing shortfalls in the Burbank Police Department have some residents suggesting other methods of patrolling to better ensure safety in the community. In January, Library Services officials received funding to hire three monitors, employees who are staffed at each branch to make sure patrons are following the rules, and some residents have suggested a similar type of service at parks or other at-risk areas in the city. Burbank Leader
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Education
Local student spells her way to a strong finish in county spelling bee
Glendale Unified student who participated in the Los Angeles County Spelling Bee on Wednesday after becoming Glendale Unifieds spelling-bee champion for the second straight year, placed in the top five during the county competition. June Musurlian was one of nine female contestants of the 25 contestants in grades four through six who competed in Downey. June was also the last girl standing in the competition, said her father, Peter Musurlian. Glendale News-Press
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In the Community
Local man hopes to find peace with new right-to-die law
Matt Fairchild, 46, a Navy and Army veteran, was diagnosed with melanoma the most serious form of skin cancer in August 2012 and, for about two years, has been living with stage IV of the disease. There is not a day when Fairchild does not feel some kind of pain all over his body, especially his left side and lower back. Though Fairchild does not have complete control over what his tumors will do, he can soon control when he dies, due to the passage of a new California law. Burbank Leader
Valley Sun celebrates 70 years
Since its inception 70 years ago, the La Canada Valley Sun the newspaper hasnt missed a single publication date. Given the direction to cover La Canada like a blanket, Valley Sun reporters have used any and all available tools to bring readers ongoing coverage of local events and public meetings, writing on-the-spot breaking news as well as longer trend pieces. On Sunday, from 2 to 4 p.m, the Valley Sun welcomes locals to join staff members past and present at a free 70th anniversary celebration at Lanterman House, 4420 Encinas Drive, in La Canada. La Canada Valley Sun
Get your brew on in Montrose
The Montrose Brew Fest will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday in the 2200 block of Honolulu Avenue in downtown Montrose. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Glendale Firefighters Assn. and the Glendale Police Officers Foundation. Glendale News-Press
Lesson with a beat
Dozens of families gathered at the Buena Vista Branch Library Thursday night to learn about drum history from local recording artist Marcus Miller. Children had the opportunity to play different kinds of drums while learning about the role that percussion instruments have played in history. Burbank Leader
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Ryan Fonseca, ryan.fonseca@latimes.com
Twitter: @RyFons
An honest essay has numerous characteristics: original thinking, a good structure, balanced arguments, and plenty more.
But one aspect often overlooked is that an honest essay should be interesting. It should spark the readers curiosity, keep them absorbed, make them want to stay reading and learn more. An uneventful article risks losing the readers attention; whether or not the points you create are excellent, a flat style, or poor handling of a dry subject material can undermine the positive aspects of the essay. The matter is that a lot of students think that essays should be like this: they believe that a flat, dry style is suited to the needs of educational writing and dont even consider that the teacher reading their essay wants to search out the essay interesting. You might want to have online essay editor service to boost your confidence in writing with an error-free output. Academic writing doesnt need to be and shouldnt be bland. The excellent news is that there is much stuff you can do to create your essay more attractive, while youll be able only to do such a lot while remaining within the formal confines of educational writing. Lets study what theyre.
Have an interest in what youre writing about
Dont go overboard, but youll be able to let your passion for your subject show.
If theres one thing bound to inject interest into your writing, its being fascinated by what youre writing about. Passion for a subject matter comes across naturally in your essay, typically making it more lively and fascinating and infusing an infectious enthusiasm into your words within the same way that its easy to talk knowledgeably to someone about something you discover fascinating.
Include fascinating details
Another factor that may make an essay boring maybe a dry material. Some topic areas are naturally dry, and it falls to you to form the article more interesting through your written style and by trying to seek out fascinating snippets of knowledge to incorporate, which will liven it up a small amount and make the data easier to relate to. A way of doing this with a dry subject is to create what youre talking about that seems relevant to the critical world, as this is often easier for the reader to relate to.
Emulate the fashion of writers you discover interesting
When you read lots, you subconsciously start emulating the fashion of the writers you have read. Reading benefits you a lot, as this exposes you to a spread of designs, and youll start to require the characteristics of these you discover interesting to read.
Borrow some creative writing techniques
Theres a limit to the quantity of actual story-telling youll do when youre writing an essay; in the end, essays should be objective, factual and balanced, which doesnt, initially glance, feel considerably like story-telling. However, youll apply a number of the principles of story-telling to create your writing more interesting.
consider your own opinion
Take the time to figure out what its that you think instead of regurgitating the opinions of others.
Cut the waffle
Rambling on and on is dull and almost bound to lose the interest of your reader. Youre in danger of waffling if youre not completely clear about what you wish to mention or havent thought carefully about how youre visiting structure your argument. Doing all your research correctly and writing an essay plan before you begin will help prevent this problem.
Editing is a vital part of the essay-writing process, so edit the waffle once youve done a primary draft. Read through your essay objectively and eliminate the bits that arent relevant to the argument or labor the purpose.
employing a thesaurus isnt always a decent thing
Avoid using unfamiliar words in an essay; theres too great a likelihood that youre misusing them.
You may think that employing a thesaurus to seek out more complicated words will make your writing more exciting or sound more academic, but using overly high-brow language can have the incorrect effect.
Avoid repetitive phrasing
Please avoid using the identical phrase structure again and again: its a recipe for dullness! Instead, use a variety of syntax that demonstrates your writing capabilities and makes your writing more interesting. Mix simple, compound, and complicated sentences to avoid your paper becoming predictable.
Use some figurative language
Using analogies with nature can often make concepts more accessible for readers to know.
As weve already seen, its easy to finish up rambling when youre explaining complex concepts mainly after you dont know it yourself. One way of forcing yourself to think about a couple of pictures, present it more simply and engagingly is to form figurative language. This implies explaining something by comparing it with something else, as in an analogy.
Employ rhetorical questions
Anticipate the questions your reader might ask.
One of the ways ancient orators held the eye of their audiences and increased the dramatic effect of their speeches was by using the statement. A decent place to use a statement is at the top of a paragraph, to steer into the following one, or at the start of a replacement section to introduce a brand new area for exploration.
Proofread
Finally, you may write the top interesting essay an instructor has ever read. Still, youll undermine your good work if its plagued by errors, which distract the reader from the particular content and can probably annoy them.
Ultimate Fighting Championship light-heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, who pulled out of a UFC 197 title fight against Jon Jones because of a leg injury, will be replaced on the April 23 card at MGM Grand by Ovince Saint Preux.
Saint Preux (19-7) last fought Feb. 6 at UFC Fight Night 82, defeating Rafael Cavalcante by unanimous decision.
The Florida native last fought on a major UFC card on June 14, 2014, when he defeated Ryan Jimmo by submission. Saint Preux broke one of Jimmos arms with a kick in that UFC 174 bout.
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Cormier and Jones have built a bitter feud that dates to hostility that erupted when the pair fought onstage at a 2014 news event promoting their 2015 fight.
Jon Jones will fight Ovince Saint Preux for the interim LHW belt at UFC 197! pic.twitter.com/PdnK4pYDxk Dana White (@danawhite) April 2, 2016
After Jones (21-1) was stripped of his belt for crashing his car into one driven by a pregnant woman in New Mexico, breaking her arm, Cormier (17-1) earned the belt by defeating Anthony Johnson, and he successfully defended the title in October by beating Alexander Gustafsson.
Jones was reinstated by the UFC and gained the rematch. He and Cormier again engaged in a war of words at a Las Vegas news conference in March.
Then last week Jones received five traffic tickets, including one for drag racing, in Albuquerque, N.M., and was jailed on Tuesday because he violated probation. A judge on Thursday freed Jones and assigned him to anger management and more community service.
UFC officials were still working to gather the details of Cormiers injury, but reports indicated that he hurt a leg.
See the most-read stories in Sports this hour>>
Its unclear what will happen with the main event for UFC 197, which includes flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson defending his title against former Olympic wrestling champion Henry Cejudo.
Follow Lance Pugmire on Twitter @latimespugmire
Some thought it a gamble to ship unbeaten Nyquist across the country to face the early Kentucky Derby favorite Mohaymen on his home surface of Gulfstream Park.
As it turned out, it wasnt much of a gamble at all.
Nyquist, despite a wide trip, dominated as he pulled away toward the finish line to win the $1-million Florida Derby by 3 1/4 lengths Saturday. In addition, the horses connections got a $1-million bonus because the horse was bought at the Fasig-Tipton sale at Gulfstream last year.
Mohaymen finished a disappointing fourth. Majesto was second and Fellowship was third.
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The race was shaping up to be the battle of unbeatens that everyone expected. Nyquist broke alertly and went to the lead, a position he held except for a few strides on the backstretch when longshot Sawyers Mickey poked his nose in front.
Mohaymen started to make his move on the far turn as the two entered the stretch set for what looked like a match race. But Mohaymen was no match Saturday as Nyquist finished the final 16th with ease for his seventh win.
I saw the gray horse coming from my side, jockey Mario Gutierrez said of Mohaymen. Im running the race with confidence so if he was going to pass me he was going to have to pass me running.
But it didnt happen.
Like [owner] Paul [Reddam] said, I had a little reservation a month or so ago because of Mohaymen being in his own backyard, trainer Doug ONeill said. Do we really want to do something like that? We all very quickly got on the same page. I think we had a very lucky trip. Mario broke great, did a great job of riding. Everything just went right.
Some have been skeptical of Nyquist given that his sire, Uncle Mo, never won a race at 1 1/4 miles, the Kentucky Derby distance. Gutierrez called it a media invention because nothing bothers him.
But ONeill admits he hears the talk.
You never know, going a mile and eighth in only his second time out as a 3-year-old, ONeill said. We would be lying if we all didnt say we were optimistic, but you never know. He exceeded our expectations, for sure.
Two downpours left the track wet but not sloppy. In fact, the track seemed to play in Nyquists favor.
When it rained we were happy, Reddam said. Before the races got going, we thought, Uh, oh, maybe the track will dry out. So I had Dougs son Daniel do a rain dance, and then it started pouring.
Junior Alvarado, Mohaymens jockey, didnt offer any excuses.
I was where I wanted to be the whole race and he didnt fire this time, Alvarado said. Thats all I really can tell you. Theres nothing wrong with him.
Mohaymen, who had won his first five races, went off as the favorite at 3-5. Nyquist was a shade over even money
This is something we drew up, ONeill said of the route through Florida rather than staying at Santa Anita. We thought two preps before the Derby was going to leave him with a lot of fresh legs and hes got a lot of miles underneath him in the morning.
Right now we feel extremely happy, and like all horses you have to keep him injury free. Hes got the mind-set of a champion so now its up to the whole crew and the racing gods to keep him injury free.
Nyquist will fly to Keeneland, Ky., on Sunday morning to finish his training before going to Churchill Downs for the May 7 Kentucky Derby.
ONeill, Gutierrez and Reddam are the same team that took Ill Have Another to the Belmont Stakes after winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness in 2012. Ill Have Another scratched in the Belmont and was retired.
When asked about the comparison, Reddam joked, Like I said, Ill Have Another.
Another Kentucky Derby winner is a tall order. But on this Saturday, its tough to say there is a 3-year-old in the country better than Nyquist.
john.cherwa@latimes.com
Twitter: @jcherwa
Last fall, 30-year-old Luo Rong quit his $30,000-a-year engineering job in Shanghai, moved back to his mountaintop village of Jade Peak with his wife and newborn baby and opened a shop with a big orange and green sign out front.
The store is thinly stocked. There are a few packages of seeds, Skittles candy, some sweaters, sneakers and laundry soap but no lack of customers.
The main draw is Luos computer and the big-screen display perched above him on the wall both provided by the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. From 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., breaking only for meals at his parents house, Luo pecks away at his keyboard, helping his technology-challenged neighbors buy fertilizer, TVs and even electric cars on an Alibaba shopping site called Rural Taobao. Luo arranges the payments, as well as delivery to Jade Peak, and earns a commission from the sellers.
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This is going to change the whole village, said Luo Laibing, a 56-year-old farmer who stopped by on Tuesday to purchase more than 1,000 pounds of fertilizer. Its saving us money and time, and is making life much more convenient.
Rural Taobao is an ambitious effort by Alibaba to turn Chinas 600 million rural residents into online shoppers and sellers at a time when the companys growth in transactions is slowing and Chinas overall economic growth has ebbed to a 25-year
Rural Taobao is an ambitious effort by Alibaba to turn Chinas 600 million rural residents into online shoppers and sellers at a time when the companys growth in transactions is slowing and Chinas economic growth has ebbed to a 25-year low. In the last year and a half, the company has enlisted more than 15,000 village partners like Luo Rong and hopes to have at least 40,000 by this time next year. Alibaba says it plans to invest $1.6 billion in the effort through 2019, with the ultimate goal of opening 100,000 Rural Taobao centers.
But the company is hardly going it alone. Its getting a big helping hand from the government, which is footing the bill to renovate storefronts like Luos, sending officials out to talk up e-commerce to skeptical farmers, providing gratis space for new logistics centers and deploying propaganda workers to promote Rural Taobao.
The ministries of commerce and finance have allocated $300 million to 200 rural counties to spend on warehouses, training and anything else that might push the project forward.
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While its inconceivable that Uncle Sam would offer such assistance to, say, EBay or Amazon, Chinas Communist Party leaders see no problem working hand-in-glove with a company like Alibaba when it suits national aims. Government officials and Alibaba executives say Rural Taobao jibes neatly with national goals such as boosting consumer spending to fuel economic growth, narrowing the income gap between urban and rural citizens, promoting entrepreneurship and harnessing the power of the Internet to invigorate backward regions.
And while China is still expecting an additional 200 million or so people to move from the countryside to its burgeoning cities, the government is aware that it cant urbanize everyone.
The success of rural e-commerce throughout China is due to the top-to-bottom concern from the government starting from the president and the premier down to lower-level officials and departments, Sun Lijun, general manager of Rural Taobao, said in an interview at one of Alibabas modern campuses in the city of Hangzhou. We have 300 counties participating so far, and when we send in one Alibaba employee, the government deploys 10 people.
The outside world
As the crow flies, Jade Peak is just 165 miles southwest of Hangzhou, which has a population of 8.8 million, but the big city and its modern conveniences have long been a world away for the hamlets 800 residents. The village is so insular, many inhabitants share the same surname, Luo, and some are illiterate. They get by raising potatoes, lotus, medicinal herbs and chickens in the fog-shrouded fields up in the mountains of Jiangxi province.
Until last year, a trip to buy something as basic as a faucet meant an all-day expedition to the nearest township, given that bus service over a steep dirt track ran just twice day. A voyage to the more distant county seat required three hours each way. Given Jade Peaks small population and remote location, no package delivery company would serve the village. Many of Jade Peaks youth, like Luo Rong, decamp for urban centers, in search of opportunity and modernity.
But the completion of a new highway, a 1.6-mile tunnel and a winding asphalt road up the mountain last year are starting to change life in Jade Peak. Travel times to the nearest township have been halved, and more sightseers eager for a day trip to the countryside are finding their way to the village. Package delivery firms enticed by subsidies from Alibaba are now making the trek up on a near-daily basis. Alibabas logistics arm makes sure the deliveries are optimized for maximum efficiency.
Luo Bishui, 60, used to just grow potatoes, but now hes opening an eight-room guesthouse for tourists. This week, he popped into the Rural Taobao center to order two more flat-screen TVs for his rooms. Such transactions generate about $770 per month in commissions for Luo Rong, though he made double that in November, his first month on the job, and gets performance bonuses from Alibaba as well.
NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >>
Although he earned more in Shanghai, his money goes much further in Jade Peak.
Already, Luo Rong has plans to move his storefront into a bigger space, which the government will pay to renovate. Rent will be about $500 a year. He envisions adding more services, including printing, copying and video-conferencing, so elderly parents in Jade Peak can chat with their sons and daughters who have moved to big cities.
Next I want to help sell our local products like potatoes and smoked meat online, said Luo Rong. Its long been my dream to contribute to the development of my village.
Hes got neighbor Luo Laizhang, 45, selling eggs online; now, the two are trying to figure out how they can market the farmers special breed of black chickens. We have to figure out the slaughtering, packaging and transport, says Yuan Chunjiang, Rural Taobao regional manager for the eastern part of Jiangxi province. Its a bit complicated.
But local Commerce Bureau official Zheng Zeyang believes theres a huge untapped customer base for such products. There is lots of demand from cities for organic produce, and Rural Taobao can get sellers good prices, he said, touring Jade Peak with a photographer from the propaganda department in tow. Online sales offer more opportunity to sell outside of the hometown market.
Local businesses
About an hours drive away in a village called Baiguo, or 100 Fruits, Qiu Chuan, 28, dons a beekeepers hat and helps his dad lift some honeycomb frames from the familys hives. His mother cuts away some of the comb, then places the frame in a spinning contraption that extracts the honey from each little crevice.
Two years ago, Qiu started selling his familys honey online. Although he has only a middle school education, his e-commerce savvy made him ideal for the Rural Taobao program, said Yuan, and last year Qiu opened a Rural Taobao storefront in Baiguo.
In addition to helping villagers buy things online, Qiu has started selling his neighbors produce over the Internet. He drives around in his tan van, plastered with Rural Taobao logos, collecting ginger and sweet potatoes.
If the villagers sell their ginger in the township, Qiu said, they can get about 27 cents for 18 ounces. He pays about 42 cents for that amount, and sells the same quantity online for 64 cents.
While Rural Taobao is helping farmers sell their produce at higher prices and buy things more cheaply, the introduction of the platform has not been without its effects on local brick-and-mortar stores, Yuan acknowledges.
When Jade Peaks farmers found they could buy fertilizer online for about two-thirds of the price they were paying in the nearby township, the local supplier cut his price and renegotiated with his supplier. It is part of Yuans job to travel around the county and try to manage the frictions that arise. In the case of the local fertilizer dealer, he helped that business start selling online so it could expand its customer base.
Luo Rong says he keeps the peace with the small convenience stores in Jade Peak by focusing his sales on products they dont offer. As for Qiu, he says hes won over local shopkeepers by helping them order products online to resell in their stores.
There is great room to grow e-commerce in rural areas, Alibaba believes. Of the 600 million rural Chinese, only 77 million shopped online in 2014, according to data from the China Internet Network Information Center. In the first quarter of 2015, less than 10% of online purchases made through Alibaba platforms were shipped to rural areas.
Once consumers become Rural Taobao customers, Alibaba will have the opportunity to offer them a wide variety of services, including loans through its affiliate Ant Financial and financial services including interest-bearing accounts. At headquarters, Alibaba has 600 full-time employees devoted to the program now, and will increase that to 1,000 this year.
Sun would not say whether Rural Taobao was making money yet.
We are not considering profits now; we are not doing those calculations, he said. Right now we are just investing a lot in logistics, in hardware.
Sun, who grew up in a small village near Hangzhou called White Ox, says the ultimate aim is to eliminate the urban-rural gap in opportunities, incomes and conveniences.
Many people will return home to be part of this, he predicts. I see this as a revolution.
Twitter: @JulieMakLAT
Nicole Liu in The Times Beijing bureau contributed to this report.
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When author Marcelo Rubens Paiva uses the word coup, many Brazilians listen.
His father, politician Rubens Paiva, was among the hundreds tortured and murdered by the military dictatorship that seized power here in 1964.
The well-known novelist is part of a vocal minority insisting that the current effort to impeach President Dilma Rousseff is nothing less than another coup detat.
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In the history of our fragile democracy, we have repeatedly seen the same conflict between a powerful elite connected with media, industrial forces and the U.S. government, against political movements which are ideologically closer to the left, said Paiva, who has been attending anti-impeachment protests.
Language is often loaded in politics, and in Brazil few words can match the rhetorical power of coup or golpe in Portuguese. Between 1930, when Brazil had its first coup, and 1985, when its second dictatorship disbanded, there were just two decades of democratic rule.
Memories of coups loom large in Brazilian history, said David Fleischer, a political scientist at the University of Brasilia.
He said Rousseff is using the word as part of an aggressive strategy to keep her job. Her supporters have been chanting, There will be no coup! in street demonstrations.
By the standard definition of coup, its difficult to see how the impeachment attempt would qualify.
The word coup usually describes an assault on power, usually in violent form, said Pedro Estevam Serrano, a professor of constitutional law at the Pontifical Catholic University of Sao Paulo. Thats not what this is.
He prefers another term: exceptional measures.
Whatever you call it, the effort to oust the president is part of a stunning chain of events.
Shortly before Rousseffs reelection in 2014, federal investigators began uncovering a multibillion-dollar kickback scheme at the state-run oil company, Petrobras, and arresting politicians and businessmen.
Rousseff has never been directly implicated in the scandal. But as the economy crashed amid falling prices for oil and Brazils other commodities, her approval rating crashed too, and legislators who had once been her allies launched the effort to impeach her.
It is based on accusations unrelated to the corruption scandal that Rousseff broke fiscal responsibility laws by shifting state-controlled funds to cover budget shortfalls, a practice known in Brazil as pedaladas.
What is impeachment without a serious crime? Its a coup. President Dilma Rousseff
The presidents supporters and detractors both took to the streets last month after federal investigators linked Rousseffs predecessor and ally, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, to the corruption probe and she offered to make him her chief of staff. The Cabinet appointment which is now frozen in the courts would move a case against him to the Supreme Court and at least delay prosecution.
At present, an impeachment commission made up of legislators in the lower house of Congress is analyzing the case against Rousseff.
The best argument for calling the impeachment effort a coup goes like this: The Brazilian Constitution says that a president can only be impeached if convicted of a serious crime. The allegations against Rousseff hardly rise to that level, as presidents and governors have long engaged in budget tinkering.
What is impeachment without a serious crime? Rousseff said Wednesday. Its a coup.
Even Serrano allowed that the word could be accurate in the broadest sense if Rousseff is impeached based solely on the current case against her.
Theres no evidence that what shes accused of in the current case rises to the level of a crime of responsibility, as the Constitution requires, he said.
The lawmakers behind the impeachment effort arent the only ones being accused of attempting a coup.
Brazilian journalists have used social networks to deny claims from Rousseffs supporters that they are part of a media coup.
And some impeachment proponents have used the term to blast Rousseffs decision to name Lula to her Cabinet.
Thats a coup, said 27-year-old Bruno Balestrero, who has been organizing protests against the president. She would be practically changing our regime from a presidential system to a parliamentary system with him as prime minister of Brazil.
Thursday marked the 52nd anniversary of the last coup. The military regimes torture victims included a young Rousseff.
While thousands of her supporters were demonstrating against the impeachment attempt, a recent poll showed that 68% of Brazilians were in favor of it.
In 1964 the coup was supported by the majority, too, Paiva said.
Bevins is a special correspondent.
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The Syrian city of Aleppo is suffering an extreme water shortage days after an antigovernment Islamist faction shut down two pumping stations, government officials and a pro-opposition monitoring group said.
The shutdown has left more than 2 million residents struggling to find water in the city, which is divided between sections loyal to President Bashar Assad and those controlled by opposition forces in the countrys civil war.
Aid organizations and the government have been scrambling to find alternative water supplies. Some people, including children, have resorted to scooping up murky water alongside roads. Residents turned to social media for discussions of where clean water could be obtained.
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Al Nusra Front, an Al Qaeda-affiliated rebel faction, shut down the two major water pumping stations serving the city more than a week ago, according to various official and news media accounts. The action caused hundreds of gallons of water to be lost into the nearby Quwayq river, which is normally used for sewage, activists said.
Activists claimed that an Al Nusra Front commander ordered the move in an attempt to deny water to government-held areas of the city.
The Syrian government, which is regularly accused of targeting civilians in Aleppo and elsewhere with massive bombardment campaigns, denounced the water cut-off as a crime and a severe human rights violation.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based pro-opposition group, also called the water cutoff a crime and warned of a looming humanitarian disaster.
It is shameful that they would commit the same practices as the regime, cutting off water from residents, Rami Abdul-Rahman, head of the Observatory, said Monday in an interview with France 24 News.
Al Nusra Front maintained its characteristic media silence and did not comment on the issue.
Differences of opinion have emerged on the cause of the water shutoff, with some people saying the governments bombardment of the city ultimately resulted in the damage to the pumping stations and others maintaining that unauthorized tampering with the equipment seemed to be the cause.
The water crisis comes after an electricity shutdown that had crippled the city for more than a week in April. That incident brought a rare moment of detente between opposing sides in the war, when the government agreed to stop its barrel bombing campaign if rebels would continue to provide power to areas under its control.
The government had also provided diesel fuel required to power the pumping station under the monitoring of the Syrian Red Crescent in Aleppo, although it was unclear whether that deal remained in place when the water problems began.
Activists early Tuesday reported a gradual return of water pressure in areas close to one of the water pumping stations. It was unclear why.
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Ted Cruz has sprinted to a 10-point lead over Republican front-runner Donald Trump in the critical, winner-take-all-the-delegates primary state of Wisconsin for the 2016 GOP nomination.
Fox News reports the Texas Senator now bags 42 percent of the vote to Trump's 32 percent and 19 percent for Ohio Governor John Kasich.
The new poll represents the second straight survey where Cruz has lead Trump by at least 10 points. A recent Marquette Law School poll showed Cruz leading Trump 40 percent to 30 percent, with Kasich at 21 percent.
Wisconsin Viewed as one of the Most Important Primaries
Wisconsin is widely viewed as a state critical to a growing Republican establishment movement aimed at stopping Trump from amassing the 1,237 delegates he needs to win the party's nomination outright ahead of July's GOP convention.
After the April 5, Wisconsin primary, the voting heads east, a region seen as being far more amendable to the outspoken Trump. New York holds its primary on April 19, followed by Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Delaware.
Meanwhile, a recent Quinnipiac University national poll also finds Trump and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton lapping the field in their quests to secure the Republican and Democratic nominations.
The poll finds Trump leading Cruz by 14 points at 43 percent to 29 percent, with Kasich stuck at just 16 percent.
Clinton Leading Sanders in National Survey
On the Democratic side, Clinton leads liberal-minded Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders 50 percent to 38 percent.
Still, hope springs eternal for both Sanders and Kasich, both of whom top all other candidates by safe margins in hypothetical general election match-ups while being locked in a dead heat against one another.
Clinton tops Trump 46 percent to 40 percent and Cruz 45 percent to 42 percent. She trials Kasich by a 47 percent to 39 percent margin. On the other hand, Sanders tops Trump 52 percent to 38 percent and Cruz 50 percent to 39 percent. He trials Kasich by just 45 to 44 percent.
In addition, Trump and Clinton top the "no way" list of more voters than any other candidates, with 54 percent of voters insisting they would never vote for Trump and 43 percent responding likewise about Clinton.
Spyker to show SUV in Los Angeles
Apr 2, 2016, 11:00am ET
The SUV will ultimately be offered with an all-electric drivetrain.
Holland-based Spyker has shed more insight into its upcoming four-door model.
As we reported earlier, the yet-unnamed four-door will take the form of a large SUV whose design will borrow more than a few styling cues from the D12 Peking-to-Paris concept (pictured) that was shown at the 2006 edition of the Paris Auto Show. It will be positioned near the top of the SUV segment, and it will be powered by a V12 engine borrowed from a major European car maker.
Spyker boss Victor Muller told British magazine Autocar that an all-electric version of the SUV will arrive a little later in the production run. The drivetrain will likely be developed with input from Volta Volare, a Portland-based firm that's in the business of designing battery-powered private planes. Spyker merged with Volta Volare shortly after it exited bankruptcy last year.
Going electric is inevitable for Spyker, but Muller explained the company isn't interested in building a plug-in hybrid.
"Think of the complications of one of the best hybrid cars, the BMW i8. It is an amazing car, but it is super-complicated and packaging is a nightmare, as is keeping the heat situation under control. If you use only electric motors, you do not have to deal with these issues," he pointed out.
Spyker's upcoming SUV will be presented to the public later this year at the Los Angeles Auto Show, and the production model is tentatively scheduled to arrive in 2017.
UPDATE: Cause of 3-month-old girl's death unclear, coroner says
Authorities are investigating the death of a 3-month-old girl after she was found unresponsive at a day care in Northampton County.
Lehigh Township police said they responded about 3:30 p.m. Friday to Sharon's Day Care, 4358 Third St. in the township's Treichlers section, for a medical emergency.
The girl was not breathing, township fire Chief Scot Fogel said Friday night.
Police and emergency medical personnel attempted life-saving efforts. The baby was taken by ambulance to the Blue Mountain Health System Palmerton Campus, where she was pronounced dead, according to Fogel.
Police are treating the death as suspicious pending the outcome of their investigation.
Pennsylvania State Police are assisting.
An autopsy is scheduled Saturday.
Fogel said police would not immediately identify the victim or release information on her family.
Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Hackettstown Regional Medical Ce 5233.jpg
Hackettstown Regional Medical Center will now be called Hackettstown Medical Center, its new owners announced Friday.
(Stephen Flood)
A health network has officially acquired Hackettstown Regional Medical Center in a move that it says will bring better services to residents in eastern Warren County.
Atlantic Health System announced the acquisition Friday. The nonprofit's network includes Morristown Medical Center in Morris County, Newton Medical Center in Sussex County and several other facilities in New Jersey. It is headquartered in Morristown.
The acquisition means a slight name change for the 111-bed acute care hospital on Willow Grove Street in Hackettstown. Atlantic Health System is dropping "regional" and calling it Hackettstown Medical Center.
As for more long-term changes, Atlantic Health System says in a news release that it plans to expand outpatient and preventative services in the Hackettstown area. It also expects patients will have better access to specialty care and clinical trials, the release states.
Hackettstown Medical Center's previous owner was Adventist HealthCare, another nonprofit based in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Hackettstown was Adventist's only New Jersey holding.
That network in 2012 put Hackettstown up for sale. Its board of directors at the time said a sale made sense because the hospital's location isolates it from most major medical facilities in the state.
Atlantic Health System announced in 2014 that it was the buyer. The final purchase price came in at about $47 million, an Atlantic Health System spokesman said Friday afternoon.
The network needed to clear a series of regulatory hurdles before the acquisition could go through. The New Jersey Attorney General' s Office signed off on the deal. Superior Court Judge Thomas C. Miller gave his approval last month, according to a New Jersey Herald report.
The Atlantic Health System spokesman said no staffing changes are planned at the hospital as a result of the acquisition.
Nick Falsone may be reached at nfalsone@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @nickfalsone. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
The party ran an essay competition for members of the Liberal Democrats, to submit 1000 words on the theme What it means to be a Liberal Democrat today. The deadline for contributions was in November and the winner was announced at Spring Conference. If you would like us to publish your submission, send it to [email protected] This one ended up on the shortlist, as Essay #9. It was mine. It dawned on me that Id never actually published it on here and, as Im currently en route for a week in the gorgeous Highlands, now seems to be a good time to let you read it. True to form I wrote it in about half an hour and submitted it about 10 minutes before the deadline.
The most important thing about being a Liberal Democrat today is that it is not a spectator sport. Liberalism is under threat from the politics of blame, fear and isolationism. Everyone who believes in freedom, social justice and the need to look after our planet needs to roll up their sleeves and live those values in every aspect of their lives. We need to find ever more creative and effective ways of countering the forces that threaten liberty, scapegoat groups of people and perpetuate inequality.
At the core of our belief, uniquely, is respect for the individual. Enforced or even encouraged conformity makes us weep. Our optimistic view of humanity drives us to create the conditions for all to thrive. While education is the cornerstone of human development, we understand its difficult to learn without food and shelter. We will stand up for the rights of those who dont conform to societys norms and will challenge attitudes which impose an oppressive expectation of behaviour. Unless it harms others, let it be.
A key focus in that must be an acknowledgement that even in affluent parts of the world, women, who make up more than half the population, do not have equal rights. Whether its challenging the idea that only thin women who conform to a very narrow standard of beauty are worthwhile, to championing the rights of women to control all aspects of their own destiny from choice of life partner to the number of children they have, to their career path, we recognise that the fight for gender equality has a long way to go and must be at the heart of all aspects of our work.
We do not accept that people should be confined by their circumstances of their birth. Success should be about the most talented people being rewarded for their contribution to society, not being held back by something as arbitrary as their post-code. While were on about success, we dont define that as purely amassing vast amounts of money. Its about what you give to the world to make it a better place. It might be growing a vast company and employing lots of people, but it might just as easily be a song or a painting or a lifetime of service to your community or risking your life in a foreign field hospital.
Breaking down barriers for people is what we do. That means we need to challenge the establishment whether that be government or corporate. We will always stand on the side of the powerless. We are there to protect people from the excessive abuse of power in all circumstances. Where political systems dont deliver that, we strive to change them. We are at our heart a radical movement which constantly challenges those who hold power. We must never let those who rule us feel that they are entitled to that privilege or to feel that its ok for them to intrude into our lives without very good reason.
We know that achieving all these things means that there has to be a powerful state to make sure that society functions in a way that enables everyone to contribute their best. We recognise that markets are not focused on social justice, yet an oppressive, one-size-fits-all collectivist monolith with an any colour as long as its black attitude is just as harmful. We want a state that ensures everyone has enough to eat and somewhere to live and access to health care, that individuals have a right of redress against abuse of power and which at its heart enables people to use all of their talents, and is flexible enough to meet a variety of needs.
A decent state costs money and to us tax is not a dirty word. We know that you get the public services you pay for. We need to advance the argument that a vibrant, responsive, enabling state investing in the infrastructure that is in the interests of all citizens and not of any corporation, is the best way to ensure freedom, justice and fairness in our society.
We must stand with liberals across the globe against the sort of pernicious nationalism which suggests that only people born in a particular corner of the map have value. That path will always lead to disaster and conflict. Liberal Democrats recognise the bonds which unite us as human beings and have as much empathy with those fleeing war and tyranny in other parts of the world as
we do with those facing poverty and hardship within our national borders.
We take our responsibilities of stewarding the planet seriously and know that it is only by working with others that we secure its future. We cant tackle climate change or human trafficking or international trade alone. We must work with others to ensure that everyone across the world has the same opportunities that we would like for ourselves. Food, clean water, sanitation, healthcare, human rights all matter as much to people in South Sudan as they do in South Shields and it is in our interest as human beings to ensure that the worlds resources and opportunities are shared fairly.
We want decisions to be taken as close to the people they affect as is sensible. That means that its your local government, not mandarins in Whitehall, who should decide when your bin collections take place, but it makes sense for countries across Europe to work together on international trade and global human rights.
Being liberals, we will each find our own way of letting our liberal voices be heard. It is more important than it has been at any point in living memory for us to stand up and be counted as rich powerful people with vested interests fuel the advance of forces of nationalism and small-statism. The future of our planet depends on our success in holding them back.
* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings
InFacts has an article by two senior lawyers about the affect of leaving Europe on UK citizens healthcare rights.
They conclude:
The healthcare rights we enjoy under EU law are specific, practical and make a difference. The risk of losing them illustrate clearly the dangers of Brexit. We might manage to negotiate to keep them as Norway and Switzerland do. But that could not be guaranteed. Other options, such as the Canada model, would have a significant adverse impact on the welfare of British citizens, whether they are visiting or working abroad or simply wanting the option to be treated elsewhere in the EU.
It is worth reading the article in full.
* Antony Hook was #2 on the South East European list in 2014, is the English Party's representative on the Federal Executive and produces this sites EU Referendum Roundup.
Earlier this week, Miriam Gonzalez Durantez took to the pages of the Telegraph to deliver a scathing riposte to those Leave campaigners who seek to scare us into believing that being in the EU increases terrorism.
She started with an insight at her feelings over the Coalition years:
Having felt for five full years the frustration of seeing my husband, Nick Clegg, regularly reversing ill-judged Conservative decisions with little public credit, it is tempting to remain silent on the Brexit referendum yet another ill-judged Conservative government decision that puts at risk the future of all our children just to sort out internal difficulties in the Conservative Party.
She tackles the idea that the EUs freedom of movement is behind a flood of foreign criminals ending up here. In fact, she places the blame closer to home:
These assertions are made despite the fact that the UK is not part of the Schengen area and that, even for those within Schengen, there are exclusions to the freedom of movement on public security grounds. So if the Home Office has allowed criminals and terrorists into this country, it is nothing to do with EU rules and everything to do with the Home Office itself.
Terrorism, she says, is always the fault of hate-filled individuals, but she cites 3 key foreign policy decisions on Iraq, Syria and Libya as enabling ISIL to expand. Surprisingly, she questions her own role:
When I saw how some of those decisions were taken I was a Middle East and North Africa adviser in the office of the EU Foreign Affairs Commissioner. While my role was minor, I too feel responsible for not having done more to avoid them. It beggars belief that people that were much closer than me to those decisions feel they can now simply and cheaply pass the blame on to others.
She does, though, think that the EU could do more to combat terrorism:
But why havent all the prime ministers and governments used those four months to implement strict and meaningful measures to control the financing of Isil? What are the intelligence services waiting for in order to share information with each other? Why havent all implemented urgently the EU measures to control firearms? How many more need to die before all heads of government spend their time on what really matters to us all in Britain or on the Continent instead of on their immediate political preoccupation at hand, be that the forgettable renegotiations of UK membership that have dominated the agenda until February or anything else?
And her conclusion will resonate with many readers:
The fact is that those terrorists appear to be spreading and getting stronger our response to their attacks cannot be to become smaller and weaker.
You can read her whole article here.
* Newshound: bringing you the best Lib Dem commentary in print, on air or online.
A REPLICA of the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, which was blessed last week by Pope Francis in Rome, is being brought to various communities across the city and county, before it starts its nationwide tour next week.
This Monday, April 4, the cherished icon will make its way to St Johns Cathedral, and will then visit 25 other cathedrals around the country for one month. Opening celebrations will take place at Mount St Alphonsus, at 6pm.
Fr Seamus Enright, of the Redemptorist Order, witnessed Pope Francis bless the new icon last Wednesday in Rome. The image was then brought to Mount St Alphonsus on Easter Sunday for the 7.15pm Mass.
As part of their 150 years of devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, the South Circular Road order has erected a new shrine on the grounds. He said that people have been very excited to see the icon in person.
People are very devoted to the icon anyway, because it is very much part of Catholic life in Limerick. But I think the fact that this is a new one, it is bright and very vibrant, and the colours and the newness is drawing people.
People are also very pleased that the Pope blessed it, because when the Pope blessed it, he said to me that, in blessing the icon, he will bless anybody who prayed in front of the icon while it was on its pilgrimage in Ireland.
Fr Enright said that people will visit the icon as they draw comfort from experience of praying to it.
One of the things that you would be hoping, of course, that as people pray, they will grow in faith and that peoples faith is deepened, their concern for other people is deepened as well. I think the icon reminds us that there is more to life than meets the eye.
People come with their own problems and it makes them aware of other peoples problems. It builds up solidarity and a solidarity of empathy. I think people who are feeling down draw comfort from knowing that there are other people praying for them.
Fr Enright told the Limerick Leader that it is a special occasion, as the first icon brought to Ireland was in Limerick, as it was the first Redemptorist church in the country, 150 years ago. Pope Pius IX presented the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help to the Redemptorists for veneration on their church in Rome in 1865.
THERE were celebrations in West Limerick this week, as Carrigkerry native Marie Hennessy brought home the Limerick Rose sash after Saturday nights selection.
Because the regional qualifiers in Portlaoise have been eliminated this year, the 25-year-old secondary school teacher will be heading straight to the Rose of Tralee festival, in a bid to make it to the televised finals. And though she did not show off the optional party piece on the night, she used the on-stage interview as a platform to endorse her hometown.
The starting point for me was Rooskagh and where it was! And I was telling people that you can see five counties from Rooskagh, and it is one of the highest points in Limerick. The view here is just fabulous. You wouldnt believe it until you see it.
Delighted locals have said that this is one of the biggest achievements that the small Rooskagh community, located in the Ardagh-Carrigkerry parish, has had in recent years.
Her father John said that the proud family have been receiving congratulatory calls and messages from relatives, friends and members of the community since Saturday nights success.
It is a great honour for her to represent Limerick and to represent our home parish. I thought the event was fantastic. All the girls and everyone there were fantastic. And the whole family is excited and delighted, he said.
And while photos of the new Rose were being shared on all social media platforms on Saturday night, family friend Kathleen Hayes said that the community first caught wind of the positive news at Mass on Easter Sunday morning.
We were all so thrilled for Marie. She is a very clever girl and she comes from a very hard-working family, and I think she will do very well at the Rose of Tralee.
She is a well-educated girl, and I think she will be well able to articulate herself at the festival. And she is an Irish teacher with great passion for Irish, so hopefully she will be able to say cupla focal to Daithi O Se!
Fr Timothy Curtin, who is the new parish priest, also congratulated the new Limerick Rose, who represented Muscular Dystrophy Ireland during the selection.
The new Limerick Rose was presented with the prestigious sash on Saturday night, after 23 hopefuls from all corners of the county vied for a place in the annual Rose of Tralee festival.
Teacher Marie will be the first Rose in almost 10 years to represent Limerick in the Dome this August, owing to a change in selection procedures.
The 25-year-old said that she was speechless when her name was called out at the end of the evening, at the Bunratty Castle Hotel.
It has always been something that I have wanted to do, she told the Limerick Leader. Its like the cliche every little girl wants to be a Rose, and we always loved meeting the Rose when they visited the town or was passing through. Some of us would get their autographs.
I never, for a second, expected that I would be selected. I was so proud to push my own boundaries and get out of my own comfort zone and to represent Rooskagh. But the girls were so fabulous, they were so well-spoken, and they have all done so much, so the thought of me being selected actually never crossed my mind.
Marie didnt do a party piece on the night, she relished the idea of promoting her small West Limerick locality, during her one-to-one interview with MC Ollie Turner.
She said that she also took the opportunity to discuss her chosen charity, Muscular Dystrophy Ireland (MDI).
Muscular dystrophy affects everyone in different ways. Some people might end up in a wheelchair at a very early stage, or it might not come to that until late into their thirties. It weakens the muscles, whether its the use of your hands, your feet, swallowing, etc. And MDI provide respite and support services for the parents and family members, she explained.
Marie graduated from University of Limerick with an Arts degree in English and Irish, and later went on to receive her higher diploma.
She now teaches English and Irish at Desmond College, and told the Leader she is a Gaeilge enthusiast and is passionate about promoting the Irish language.
I am very active in promoting the language and the preservation of the language, and getting people back to speaking it, including younger people speaking it.
I have spent every summer, for the past 10 years, in Colaiste Bhreanainn, in Ballybunion. That is a huge part of my life. I wouldnt know my summers without it, she enthused.
Marie, who was wearing a green floral skirt and a sequin top, admitted that she was absolutely shaking before she introduced herself to the panel of judges and the packed audience.
Because there are no regional qualifying rounds in Portlaoise this year, Marie will join 67 other Roses at the Tralee festival, in a bid to represent Limerick in the televised final.
Whatever happens over the next few months, it is going to be the time of my life.
Limerick Rose Centre co-ordinator, Denis Griffin said the event at Bunratty Castle Hotel was an absolutely super success and that there was a fantastic representation from the 23 young ladies. He added that Ms Hennessy, who is a teacher at Desmond College, was an outstanding lady and a true Limerick woman.
FINE Gael councillor, Jerome Scanlan, has called for more respite beds to come on stream at St Itas Hospital in Newcastle West in order to reduce waiting times.
There are currently 88 people who avail of respite care in St Itas he pointed out, but there is a waiting list of 27.
His call comes following a meeting of the HSE West Forum in Galway last week when he cited the example of a 92-year-old woman who had been waiting from last October. The woman, he said, was being cared for by her daughter, who was also a senior citizen.
There is nobody else to care for her. I understand she went from October to February without respite care, he said.
But he paid tribute to the staff in St Itas, saying they provide an excellent service for the local community, particularly elderly patients.
There is no complaint whatsoever about the standard of care, it is the waiting period that is causing the difficulty, he explained.
Cllr Scanlan argued that the 92-year-old woman should be entitled to respite three or four times a year. But in her case, it is more like twice a year.
When he raised the matter he said, staff at the hospital seemed to think the lady was unhappy because the people who were in the ward with her suffered from dementia.
It was the case, he pointed out that the majority of those accepted for respite care in St Itas were suffering from dementia.
In reply, Bernard Gloster, chief officer for HSE Mid-West Community Healthcare chief officer, said the hospital had only six respite beds available. Two of these, he explained, were single rooms but the other four are in multi-occupancy rooms, which currently accommodate a gender mix of three males and one female.
However, this gender mix can change depending on the long stay admissions, Mr Gloster added and there could be a higher availability for men compared with women at certain times of the year. Mr Gloster pointed out it wouldnt be appropriate to mix dementia sufferers with other patients in the hospital.
These respite beds were very important to help keep dementia sufferers at home, he argued, and he would like to have more beds because of the demand.
Clients availing of this service have respite on average three or four times a year and others depending on their need have respite six to eight times a year, he said.
There are 88 people availing of respite in St Itas with a waiting list of 27 people. Some have special requests for a specific holiday period and families dont want alternative dates, Mr Gloster told Cllr Scanlan at the HSE meeting.
People do come on and off the list for a variety of reasons. Respite is such an important high demand, when it is mixed with long stay care in very old wards, you have to be very careful about the mix at any one time.
I would never be indifferent to the circumstances of an individual and will try to find creative ways to support a family, he told Cllr Scanlan and offered to discuss the individual case highlighted.
He confirmed the HSE had also substantially increased its funding for the Dromcollogher Respite Centre over the last two years to provide more respite cover in West Limerick.
THE Listowel-born poet, John McAuliffe and Doireann Ni Ghriofa, who grew up in Co Clare, are this years winners of the Michael Hartnett Poetry Award.
And they will travel to Newcastle West, the home town of poet Michael Hartnett, to collect their award and read from their collections on Thursday, April 14 when this years Eigse Michael Hartnett gets underway.
It's both a confirmation and a great encouragement to receive the award, especially since I've been reading and thinking and talking about Michael Hartnett's poems, the lyrics, the narratives, the ballads, for as long as I've been writing, said John McAuliffe when the awards were announced this week.
His collection The Way In (Gallery Press 2015) shared the honours with Clasp (Dedalus Press 2015) by Doireann Ni Ghriofa.
One of this years judges, poet Rita Ann Higgins said of his winning collection: These are well wrought poems that challenge and sing.
The other judge, poet Gerard Smyth said the collection consolidates the promise of McAuliffes other three collections. Keenly tuned-in to particular experiences of his own generation, he is a sharp-eyed poet who catches the moods of domestic space and revels in the daily quotidian. Nothing seems to escape him.
Mr McAuliffe is a native of Listowel but is now a lecturer in poetry at the University of Manchester where he is co-director of the Centre for New Writing.
I'm absolutely over the moon! said Doireann NiGhriofa, who grew up in Kilnamona, Co Clare but now lives in Cork with her husband and four young children. Hartnett is a hero of mine, so this is such a delight for me. Hartnett is a writer who has become very dear to me, and I feel such a deep resonance with Hartnett's work in both languages.
As I wrote 'Clasp' ,my first book in English following two books as Gaeilge, those lines from Hartnett's 'Inchicore Haiku' felt particularly resonant: "My English dam bursts/and out stroll all my bastards./Irish shakes its head, she said.
Im so pleased to accept an award in his name and to wear his muince dreoilini / necklace of wrens, she said.
I trust this voice. I trust these poems. Earthiness and physicality jostle for position in Clasp. She is breaking new ground with her fresh, fearless approach to memory and motherhood, loss and love, Rita Ann Higgins said in her judges citation.
Fellow judge Gerard Smyth said that Doireann Ni Ghriofas versatility, vitality and emotional range are hugely impressive..
On the basis of Clasp, Ni Ghriofa is on course to become a major talent, a poet who seems set to move more deeply into the places from which her poetry comes, he said.
The two poets will share a prize fund of 4000 which is sponsored jointly by Limerick City and County Council Arts Office and the Arts Council.
Previous winners of this prestigious award include Julie O'Callaghan, Vona Groarke, Kerry Hardie, Sinead Morrissey, Paddy Bushe, Maurice Riordan, Aine Ni Fhoghlu, James Harpur, Peter Sirr, Mark Roper and Jo Slade.
The Michael Hartnett Poetry Award will be presented on the opening night of Eigse Michael Hartnett, the literary and arts festival which runs every April in Newcastle West and which takes place this year from Thursday, April 14 to April 16.
This years programme includes high-profile names such as Colum McCann, Donal Ryan, Michael Coady, Rita Ann Higgins and Colm Mac Con Iomaire. Also featuring will be Mary Hartney, Gabriel Fitzmaurice, Jo Slade, Mike MacDomhnaill, Micheal Rowsome and the Stanzas
The award-winning novelist and short story writer, Donal Ryan will launch the Eigse Michael Hartnett 2016 programme in the Red Door Gallery, Newcastle West next Monday. All are welcome to attend at 6pm.
Details of this years Eigse are available on www.eigsemichaelhartnett.ie.
Jeremy Deaton writes about the science, policy, and politics of climate and energy for Nexus Media. You can follow him at @deaton_jeremy. Deaton contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.
Human history is rife with stories of environmental catastrophe and powerful civilizations felled by climate change the Mayans, the Egyptians, the Sumerians. But while countless scholars have scoured the historical record to understand the risks of climate change, few have looked to the past for answers to how modern societies will need to adapt.
"Climate change causes crisis, and a generation of scientists and historians have now reconstructed that essential relationship," said Georgetown University historian Dagomar Degroot. "But very, very few people have looked at stories of successful adaptation or resilience in the face of climate change, and I think those are the stories that we need more than anything right now."
Degroot studies the Little Ice Age, a period of global cooling from around 1500 to 1850, during which temperatures dropped 0.6 degrees Celsius in the Northern Hemisphere. The Little Ice Age wreaked havoc across most of Europe, leading to mass starvation, war and social upheaval but not in the Netherlands. The Golden Age of the Dutch Republic spanned the harshest years of the Little Ice Age.
Floods to lift a siege
"I started researching the Dutch Republic for a few reasons, and one reason was that the Dutch Golden Age coincided perfectly with the period of really dramatic climate change that caused crisis elsewhere," said Degroot. While the rest of Europe faced widespread famine, the Dutch built a trading empire, importing much of their food from abroad. They also leveraged changing conditions to defend against foreign invaders.
In 1574, Spain laid siege to the Dutch town of Leiden (also spelled Leyden). Under siege, the people of Leiden starved. Degroot says some even resorted to eating their pets. William of Orange, leader of the Dutch rebels, sent a carrier pigeon to Leiden imploring citizens not to give in to the Spanish invaders. Had they won, the Spanish would have likely killed every soul in the city, sending a message to the Dutch.
"The Dutch desperately tried to inundate the lands around Leiden in order to drive the Spanish away, but the water was just accumulating too slowly," explained Degroot. "And then finally there was a storm and lots and lots of rain. And the winds shifted in a way that actually was probably more common during a period of climate change That finally brought the waters of this artificial flooding to Leiden and washed away the Spanish troops." [How Dry Will It Get? New Climate Change Predictions ]
The Dutch rebels sailed to Leiden on the newly formed artificial river to dispense with the last of the Spanish attackers and bring relief to the people of Leiden. Degroot says the Dutch demonstrated "a level of comfort with environmental change that other powers around the world actually didn't have."
Conquering adaptation
Across the continent, the Ottoman Empire struggled in the face of global cooling. Unlike the Dutch, the Ottomans relied on domestic agriculturefor their food. Unwilling or unable to recognize the risks of climate change , they waged war against the Austrian Hapsburgs even as dry, frigid weather ravaged their crops.
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"In 1591, calamitous drought hit the Ottoman Empire in fact, the worst drought in 600 years. At the same time it became much colder across Ottoman lands," said Degroot. "They decided to heavily tax the countryside, even plunder the countryside, in order to funnel more money to their soldiers. Their soldiers, many of them anyway, ended up freezing to death in the field."
Degroot believes climate history represents a new frontier in research. For generations, scholars have become more and more specialized, each responsible for a tiny fragment of human knowledge.
Now, researchers are putting those fragments together, finding the links between seemingly disparate fields. Degroot's work connects science and history to explain how small shifts in the global climate can profoundly alter the course of human events.
"I care passionately about climate change, so what I can do to make the world a better place, is I can look at the past," said Degroot. "I can look for examples of adaptation and resilience in the face of climate change."
Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates and become part of the discussion on Facebook, Twitter and Google+. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published on Live Science.
This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.
2016 hasn't been a great year for the selfie.
In February, Argentinian tourists passed around a baby La Plata dolphin in order to take selfies with it. The endangered animal subsequently died from stress and heat exhaustion.
Then, in early March, a swan died after a tourist dragged it from a lake in Macedonia all for the sake of a selfie.
While both animal deaths elicited widespread anger, humans have been more likely to put their own lives at risk in order to snap the perfect photograph. In 2015, Russian authorities even launched a campaign warning that "A cool selfie could cost you your life."
The reason? Police estimate nearly 100 Russians have died or suffered injuries from attempting to take "daredevil" selfies, or photos of themselves in dangerous situations. Examples include a woman wounded by a gunshot (she survived), two men blown up holding grenades (they did not), and people taking pics on top of moving trains.
Heights have also resulted in selfie fatalities. A Polish tourist in Seville, Spain fell off a bridge and died attempting to take a selfie. And a Cessna pilot lost control of his plane killing himself and his passengers while trying to take a selfie in May of 2014.
Putting oneself in harm's way is not the only way our selfie obsession has resulted in death. One male teen who allegedly suffering from body dysmorphic disorder attempted suicide after spending hundreds of hours trying to take an "ideal" selfie.
People who frequently post selfies are often targets for accusations of narcissism and tastelessness. But with social networking apps like Snapchat becoming more and more popular, selfies are only proliferating.
So what's going on here? What is it about the self-portrait that's so resonant as a form of communication? And why, psychologically, might someone feel so compelled to snap the perfect selfie that they'd risk their life, or the lives of others (animals included)?
While there are no definitive answers, as a psychologist I find these questions and this unique 21st-century phenomomenon worth exploring further.
A brief history of the selfie
Robert Cornelius, an early American photographer, has been credited with taking the first selfie: in 1839, Cornelius, using one of the earliest cameras, set up his camera and ran into the shot.
The broader availability of point-and-shoot cameras in the 20th century led to more self-portraits, with many using the (still) popular method of snapping a photograph in front of a mirror.
Selfie technology took a giant leap forward with the invention of the camera phone. Then, of course, there was the introduction of the selfie stick. For a brief moment the stick was celebrated: Time named it one of the 25 best inventions of 2014. But critics quickly dubbed it the Naricisstick and the sticks are now banned in many museums and parks, including Walt Disney Resort.
Despite the criticism directed at selfies, their popularity is only growing.
Conclusive numbers seem lacking, with estimates of daily selfie posts ranging from one million to as high as 93 million on Android devices alone.
Whatever the true number, a Pew survey from 2014 suggests the selfie craze skews young. While 55 percent of millennials reported sharing a selfie on a social site, only 33 percent of the silent generation (those born between 1920 and 1945) even knew what a selfie was.
A British report from this year also suggests younger women are more active participants in selfie-taking, spending up to five hours a week on self-portraits. The biggest reason for doing so? Looking good. But other reasons included making others jealous and making cheating partners regret their infidelities.
This "selfie sombrero" was developed by tech company Acer and fashion designer Christian Cowan-Sanluis. (Image credit: Acer/Facebook)
Confidence booster or instrument of narcissism?
Some do see selfies as a positive development.
Psychology professor Pamela Rutledge believes they celebrate "regular people." And UCLA psychologist Andrea Letamendi believes that selfies "allow young adults to express their mood states and share important experiences."
Some have argued that selfies can boost confidence by showing others how "awesome" you are, and can preserve important memories.
Still, there are plenty of negative associations with taking selfies. While selfies are sometimes lauded as a means for empowerment, one European study found that time spent looking at social media selfies is associated with negative body image thoughts among young women.
Apart from injuries, fatalities and tastelessness, one big issue with selfies appears to be their function as either a cause or consequence of narcissism.
Peter Gray, writing for Psychology Today, describes narcissism as "an inflated view of the self, coupled with a relative indifference to others."
Narcissists tend to overrate their talents and respond with anger to criticism. They are also more likely to bully and less likely to help others. According to Gray, surveys of college students show the trait is far more prevalent today than even as recently as 30 years ago.
Do selfies and narcissism correlate? Psychologist Gwendolyn Seidman suggests that there's a link. She cites two studies that examined the prevalence of Facebook selfies in a sample of over 1,000 people.
Men in the sample who posted a greater number of selfies were more likely to show evidence of narcissism. Among female respondents, the number of selfie posts was associated only with a subdimension of narcissism called "admiration demand," defined as "feeling entitled to special status or privileges and feeling superior to others."
Bottom line: selfies and narcissism appear to be linked.
How we stack up against others
Selfies seem to be this generation's preferred mode of self-expression.
Psychologists who study the self-concept have suggested that our self-image and how we project it is filtered through two criteria: believability (how credible are the claims I make about myself) and beneficiality (how attractive, talented and desirable are the claims I make about myself).
In this sense, the selfie is the perfect medium: it's an easy way to offer proof of an exciting life, extraordinary talent and ability, unique experiences, personal beauty and attractiveness.
As a psychologist, I find it important not only to ask why people post selfies, but also to ask why anyone bothers looking at them.
Evidence suggests that people simply like viewing faces. Selfies attract more attention and more comments than any other photos, and our friends and peers reinforce selfie-taking by doling out "likes" and other forms of approval on social media.
One explanation for why people are so drawn to looking at selfies could be a psychological framework called social comparison theory.
The theory's originator, Leon Festinger, proposed that people have an innate drive to evaluate themselves in comparison with others. This is done to improve how we feel about ourselves (self-enhancement), evaluate ourselves (self-evaluation), prove we really are the way we think we are (self-verification) and become better than we are (self-improvement).
It's a list that suggests a range of motives that appear quite positive. But reality, unfortunately, is not so upbeat. Those most likely to post selfies appear to have lower self-esteem than those who don't.
In sum, selfies draw attention, which seems like a good thing. But so do car accidents.
The approval that comes from "likes" and positive comments on social media is rewarding particularly for the lonely, isolated or insecure.
However, the evidence, on balance (combined with people and animals dying!), suggests there is little to celebrate about the craze.
Michael Weigold, Professor of Advertising, University of Florida
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates and become part of the discussion on Facebook, Twitter and Google +. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published on Live Science .
When mating, tarantulas like these Mexican fire leg tarantulas (Brachypelma boehmei) face each other and elevate their bodies and legs.
With their hairy bodies and large fangs, tarantulas are one of the most recognizable and feared types of spiders in the world. Though their fearsome appearance actually belies a gentle nature they're non-threatening to people and are popular pets throughout the world does this temperament also extend to their partners during mating?
Tarantulas belong to the Theraphosidae family of arachnids and are the largest and longest-living spiders in the world, according to a 2013 review in the journal Arachnology. (Find out why some spiders in this family turn blue.)
These spiders, of which there are nearly a thousand species alive today, generally mate in the spring and summer; but some species are known to mate only in the winter, said Nelson Ferretti, a tarantula expert with the the National Scientific and Technical Research Council in Argentina and lead author of the review.
Once males reach adulthood, they "charge" their two pedipalps, or palps small appendages near the front of their head with sperm. That is, they will spin a small "sperm web," deposit sperm onto it, and take up the sperm into specialized storage structures of the palps, called palpal bulbs.
Charging their palps is energetically costly, but males can typically copulate with numerous females with a single charge, explained study co-author Fernando Perez-Miles, an entomologist at the University of the Republic in Uruguay.
Finding and courting mates
During the mating season, charged males will go out in search of receptive females by zeroing in on their pheromones, or chemical scents, though it's unclear if only receptive females produce male-attracting pheromones.
"We have seen under laboratory conditions that males court on silk threads of virgin, young, old or copulated females," Ferretti told Live Science. "But females that are not receptive do not leave the burrow or they even expel males through aggression."
(Image credit: AMNH\R. Mickens)
Surprisingly, if two male tarantulas come across a single female, they don't appear to show the competitive aggression toward each other that's known to be common in other animals. Ferretti has only seen a confrontation between two male tarantulas, but instead of fighting they tried to mate with each other before going about their separate ways peacefully, he said.
When a male finds a receptive female, the pair will engage in a courtship ritual.
Depending on the species, males may engage in a range of different moves, the most widespread being papal drumming (alternating taps on the female's silk threads or the ground with his padipalps) and body vibrations (high-frequency movement of the legs that also transmits seismic signals).
These behaviors likely inform the female about the quality of the male and his species, Perez-Miles told Live Science, adding that the latter information is sometimes lost in translation (though different species aren't known to copulate).
If the female likes what she feels, she'll respond by tapping her front legs or palps to let him know she accepts him and possibly to direct him toward her burrow. In some species, the female will simply leave her burrow and head toward the male instead.
Careful copulation
To mate, the pair will orient themselves face-to-face with their bodies and front legs elevated.
In some species, the male will perform spasmodic beats on the female with his second pair of legs after coming into contact with her, a behavior thought to relax the female's fangs. In most species, males have specialized spurs that they use to clasp the female's fangs, helping them both elevate their mates to the right immobilizing position and prevent possible bites.
Males of one Brazilian species, Sickius longibulbi, take things a step further by pushing their mates all the way over and onto their backs.
Once in position, the male will insert his charged palps into the female's genital opening one to five times, before leaving to find other mates if he's lucky enough to avoid getting eaten, which is common. [Why Some Female Spiders Eat Males Before Mating]
Importantly, sexual cannibalism in tarantulas probably has nothing to do with hunger level, and instead occurs if the male tries to approach the female without courting, enters her burrow too abruptly, or doesn't leave quickly enough after mating, Ferretti said.
Usually, however, mating leaves the female immobile for a brief time, allowing the male to get away if necessary, at least in the wild. "Sexual cannibalism is really rare in tarantulas, and probably due to captivity conditions of observation," Perez-Miles said.
Editor's Note: This article was updated to correct the university affiliation of Fernando Perez-Miles.
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How can you not love a band who has a song called Diarrhea? Honestly.
Laredos own and finest punk rock band The Moldy Laundry Boys will be celebrating their 6th anniversary Saturday at The Dugout, 1303 Iturbide. Also playing on the night are C-Section Babies (9 P.M.), Cerdo Punk (10 P.M.) and La Mata (11 P.M.)
While you and I were listening to Keshas Tik Tok, on the radio as our ears collectively bled in 2010, The Moldy Laundry Boys were born and were Moldy Laundry infants, if you will. They were Laredos answer to mainstream music and culture.
As clubs such as El Maguey Bar and Club Love gained visitors, ready to listen and dance to Top 40 remixes and EDM, some Laredoans still craved pogo dancing and the authenticity of a band that plays original music.
It is true when it is said that PUNKS NOT DEAD, and a perfect example is a group like MLB. Unabashedly vulgar and kitsch, The Moldy Laundry Boys have a reputation for an aggressive, yet playful live show with, frontman Martin Silva yelling into his mic about topics such as sex and cheeseburgers.
The Moldy Laundry Boys also pay homage to their hometown on their 2011 LP Stinky and Kinky with a song called BorderTown.
Throughout their six years, it is undeniable that the band has cultivated a cult following as loyal members of the audience sing along to every word on every song.
Despite the longevity, the band recently released their first music video for their song, Cheeseburger.
The video, produced by the local production company, Rogue City Media, was shot in 4K (in case any film buffs care to know), and many a cheeseburger were harmed in the making of the video. The video was a concept concocted by the band. It was directed by Cesar Vanoye and local filmmaker, Gj Castro worked on the production as director of photography.
Join the Moldy Laundry Boys as they celebrate their six, music-making years Saturday.
The show will run $4 and will be open to all ages.
MLB has been the sole reason the hardcore punk rock community is still thriving. Their wild style has been captivating to the younger generations helping more young musicians take the stage here in town, and not only do they have the respect of the youth; the older generations highly respect them. I love all those guys deeply.
-Bob Batey, Musician (The Real Man)
Theyre really different from the bands that typically perform at local hardcore shows. ... Theyre super upbeat and silly and theyre cool. I really love ska, and I wish there were more ska bands in Laredo, and I feel like theyre the closest to it.
-Leslie Cortez, Fan
Local Punk rock is alive and well thanks to dem boys
-Chris Contreas, Musician (Archer Crab)
The Moldy Laundry boys arent just any band. Theyre a true staple to Laredo of what punk rock really is, and they live by it. Every single Moldy show is one of a kind, and you never know what to expect from them, except for their catchy tunes and unrelenting energy from both the band and their audience, besides that anything can happen and I mean anything.
-George Juarez, Musician (Quien Sabe)
Their new video is cool. ... Total Descendents worship.
-Jay Hinojosa, Musician
They do whatever THEY want with THEIR own rules and are able to pack bars with that attitude. If that isnt change in our culture I dont know what is.
-Sergio Saenz, Musician (Santo Vicio)
Live Music
Moldy Laundry Boys Sixth Year Anniversary Party
April 2 @ 9 P.M.
The Dugout, 1303 Iturbide St.
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Columnists Press Releases
A spokesman for ISWA addressing the camera
The Islamic State West Africa (ISWA), which is more commonly known by its former name Boko Haram, reaffirmed its loyalty to both its local leader Abubakar Shekau and the overall leader of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi.
In the video, a spokesman for ISWA began by talking about the steadfastness of the monotheists and that the enemies of Allah the Almighty hold conferences and meetings to come up with a solution for the hole into which they fell, thinking that they can rescue their proxies and allies from the assault of the soldiers of the Caliphate, according to a translation from the SITE Intelligence Group. He goes on to say that ISWA will inflict harm on their enemies in Nigeria, the Niger border, Cameroon, or Chad which have all seen attacks perpetrated by the ISWA.
The spokesman then lambasted statements released by the Nigerian government saying that victory is imminent over the jihadist group. Neither the disbelievers nor their apostate henchmen were able to extinguish the light of Allah, so they rushed to use trumpets of hypocrisy from among media personnel and journalists to achieve what they can of fake victory.
Nigerian officials often comment on the fight against ISWA by saying that its defeat is within a few months or that the jihadists have already been technically defeated.
In the face of these claims, ISWA continues to mount a deadly insurgency in the country. While a coordinated military offensive by Nigeria, Chad, and Cameroon has targeted ISWA strongholds in Nigeria and the Lake Chad region, the jihadist group has maintained the ability to launch coordinated attacks and assaults throughout the region. It has shown that it has retained the ability to strike in large cities, like Maiduguri, with these coordinated assaults and suicide bombings. Many of these bombings make use of women and girls, with at least 105 being used since June 2014.
In referring to the insurgency, the spokesman on camera whose identity is shrouded remarked ISWA will not stop fighting until you believe in Allah, Glorified and Exalted be He, through Islam. He then gave an ultimatum to the Nigerian government, referring to Abubakar Shekau as the governor of the Islamic States West African province. If you refuse and remain arrogant, then we go forth under the command of the governor of West Africa Province, Sheikh Abu Bakr al Shekawi, may Allah preserve him, and embitter your lives, make widows of your women, and orphans of your children.
ISWAs spokesman said the conflict in Nigeria will soon be like that of Iraq, Sham [Syria], Libya, Khorasan [Afghanistan and Pakistan], and the Sinai. He also sent a direct message to Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari: the Crusaders will not benefit you, and the atheists will not benefit for you, for they are weak and disabled. They will not be able to achieve what you want, and they will not rush to rescue you if the knives of the mujahideen reach your neck.
Abubakar Shekau has long been the leader of ISWA and its prior incarnation of Boko Haram. Many have speculated what his role is now that the group is subservient to al Baghdadis Islamic State, but the referral of Shekau as governor of the West Africa Province confirms that Shekau still retains operational leadership of the jihadist group. Additionally, Shekau has not been seen in any video production for quite some time, which reignited rumors of his demise. While it cannot be verified he is indeed still alive, the mention by the jihadist group seems to indicate that he is.
The video closed with the reaffirmation of ISWAs allegiance to Abu Bakr al Baghdadi and the Islamic State. We say to the soldiers of the Caliph of the Muslims, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi al Qurashi, may Allah preserve him: Steadfastness, steadfastness, and patience, patience. Victory comes with an hours patience.
Caleb Weiss is a research analyst at FDD's Long War Journal and a senior analyst at the Bridgeway Foundation, where he focuses on the spread of the Islamic State in Central Africa.
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Luton is a large town, borough and unitary authority area of Bedfordshire. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 258,000. Luton is home to Championship team Luton Town Football Club, London Luton Airport and The University of Bedfordshire. You can find us on Facebook and Twitter. For all the latest news from Luton sign up to our newsletter here.
Sea Crest Beach Hotel to Host Yoga Moves Retreat, May 20
Yoga enthusiasts pros and newbies alike are invited to join Cape Cod's quintessential Sea Crest Beach Hotel for a weekend Yoga Moves Retreat on May 20.The weekend retreat kicks off at 4 p.m. on May 20 with an introductory yoga class. On Saturday morning, guests will rise and shine to a pre-breakfast yoga session, followed by an energy-boosting breakfast with views of Old Silver Beach. Guests are free to explore the Cape (sans crowds) before returning for an afternoon yoga stretch. Saturday night winds down with a healthy group dinner at Red's Restaurant and Lounge prepared by Executive Chef Glenn MacNayr. On Sunday morning, the group will meet one last time for yoga, followed by a breakfast buffet in the hotel's Ocean View Room. The retreat is priced at $545 per person based on triple occupancy, $595 per person for double occupancy and $795 for a single room. Rates include accommodations, yoga classes, resort fees, taxes and gratuities. Guests will have plenty of free time between yoga classes to explore the Cape. The town of Falmouth is bustling with quaint shops, museums and restaurants, and ferries to and from Martha's Vineyard are just minutes away.Mary Ellen Goodsir has been a certified yoga instructor for 14 years and teaches Bikram, The Barkan Method and PranaVayu styles. She teaches with a style that speaks to the individual student - finding awareness, fitness and calm through the sequencing of poses and the flow of breath. With her extensive teaching experience, Mary Ellen focuses on alignment to create a safe and open environment for students of all abilities. Using humor and insight, her classes are a haven where all students can learn to thrive and balance mind, body and soul.Guests can register for Yoga Moves at Sea Crest Beach Hotel here . For more information, visit www.seacrestbeachhotel.com or call 800-225-3110.For more information or reservations visit. www.seacrestbeachhotel.com or call 800-225-3110.
The Resort at Pedregal Introduces New Casa Bella Vista
Perched above the entrance to the private 300-meter Dos Mares tunnel, these spacious residential-style suites offer panoramic views of Cabo's glistening marina and nearby downtown and are the perfect setting for family reunions, group retreats or destination wedding celebrations.is the first suite to debut in the new Villa Collection, with the remaining six suites soon to follow. The plush, two-level Casa Bella Vista is one of the collection's 3-bedroom suites, featuring two Master bedrooms and a separate Guest Casita, each bedroom boasting its own en-suite bathroom. Upon entering the 4,391 sq. ft. Casa Bella Vista suite, guests are greeted by a lavishly-appointed living room with floor-to-ceiling windows offering stunning marina views and a full kitchen boasting state-of-the-art appliances.All of the Villa Collection's superior suites flaunt open balconies complete with covered barbecue areas perfect for grilling, fire pits and private infinity pools with relaxing chaise lounges ideal entertaining venues for families, or meetings and leisure groups. The new suites also include an indoor parking space with washer and dryer room and complimentary, dedicated butler service. The Villa Collection starts at $1,700 a night for a three-bedroom suite.Guests of the new Villa Collection are invited to experience all The Resort at Pedregal has to offer across the expansive 24-acre property, set at a highly coveted location at the southernmost point of the Baja Peninsula. The resort features highly acclaimed accommodations, dining and experiences and each guestroom boasts sophisticated design and upscale touches, including hand-selected reading material, luxury amenities and plush bedding.The Resort at Pedregal's four premier culinary venues include the signature restaurant, featuring authentic Mexican cuisine using modern interpretations of old world techniques; the sought-after seafood restaurant, offering the best selection of local catch; casual seafood restaurant, featuring ceviche, a selection of sashimi style dishes and Mexican inspired sushi; and the, featuring delectable sandwiches, salads and light snacks. Guests are also invited to indulge in the, offering an unforgettable Cliffside experience at the entrance of El Farallon. The Champagne Terrace invites guests to enjoy a selection of up to 20 different champagnes by the glass, offering unique curated pairings with exotic salts sourced from around the world.Theis dedicated to offering guests the ultimate in rest, rejuvenation and natural healing, deriving the inspiration for its treatments from the lunar cycle, the sea and authentic Mexican folk healing, utilizing locally sourced ingredients. Every guest of The Resort at Pedregal is also treated toto help make their stay truly memorable.The new Villa Collection upholds The Resort's at Pedregal's guest promise of unprecedented luxury, sophistication and personalized services for guests. For more information, visit www.theresortatpedregal.com or call +52 624 163 4300 for general inquiries and 844-733-7342 toll free.
The lectern Abraham Lincoln stood behind to deliver the Gettysburg Address the same one used by Pope Francis during a trip to Philadelphia in September will be on view in Lynchburg next weekend.
Its featured in the exhibit Lincoln Honors the Dead at Gettysburg, which will be on display from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 9, in the Liberty University Visitors Center as part of the schools annual Civil War Seminar.
The exhibit features artifacts from a private collector and includes things that were on the stage or things that were associated with some of the principal presenters on [the] historic day, said Kenny Rowlette, special projects coordinator for the Jerry Falwell Library
Speakers will talk about topics ranging from Texas During the Civil War and Reconstruction to Rowlettes own look at the Fates of the Secondary Players in the assassination of Lincoln, including the couple sitting in the theater box with him the night he was killed, the family of John Wilkes Booth, and Boston Corbett, the man who shot Booth in retaliation.
William Davis, an author and retired director of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies at Virginia Tech, will cover Grant and Lee at the End of the Civil War and Grant and Lee After The War, while Beth White, the Military Accounts Receivable Representative at Liberty, will talk about The Civil War and PTSD.
It was not known at the time, Rowlette said of PTSD. People didnt begin to think about it until World War I.
The lectures will be held throughout the day on April 9, also at the Visitors Center, following an opening banquet Friday night.
Set for 6 p.m., it will feature live music by The McKenzies and a keynote address by Sue Boardman from the Gettysburg Foundation.
BOSTON - A second arrest has been made in the 2015 murder of 17-year-old D'Andre King-Settles in Mission Hill.
Officers responded to a Shot Spotter activation on Annunciation Road at about 4 p.m. on Dec. 18, 2015, and found King-Settles suffering from several gunshot wounds. He died later. A second victim was grazed by a bullet.
Enrique Auch, 18, of Revere, was arrested on Thursday in Jamaica Plan. He was arraigned Friday on charges including murder and assault.
The other suspect in the case, 20-year-old Tsunami M. Ortiz of Randolph, was arrested in February.
"I'm proud of my detectives for compiling the evidence so quickly and efficiently," said Police Commissioner William Evans. "I hope that this second arrest can bring some closure to the family and friends of the victims."
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the Boston Police Homicide Unit at (617) 343-4470.
BOSTON A Lawrence man who worked in a city school was arrested Thursday in connection with an undercover investigation into the distribution of cocaine and painkillers in the Boston area.
Reynaldo Sanchez, a 4th-grade classroom assistant, was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of attempted possession and intent to distribute oxycodone, a common narcotic painkiller. He was released on conditions after his appearance Friday in a federal courtroom in Boston, according to U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz.
In August 2015, federal agents began investigating Sanchez for his involvement in a narcotics and money-laundering organization that operated in the Boston area, according to the criminal complaint.
During the investigation, Sanchez arranged to purchase 10 to 15 kilograms of cocaine at $33,000 per kilogram, federal prosecutors said. Unbeknownst to Sanchez, the people he was dealing with were actually undercover federal agents.
Between March 29 and March 31, Sanchez sought to purchase what he believed were 11,000 oxycodone pills, for $13 a pill, from an undercover agent posing as a drug courier, prosecutors said. Sanchez was arrested carrying a duffel bag containing $48,000 cash, according to authorities.
If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison, lifetime probation and a $1 million fine, although actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.
PEPPERELL Even though an alleged flasher entered a Middlesex County elementary school Friday, students were not in danger and the school's access and security procedures functioned properly, according to Joan Landers, the superintendent of the North Middlesex Regional School District.
"It appears that the school department's established building access and security procedures work as designed, sending the individual directly to the front desk and preventing access to any students," Landers said in a statement.
The superintendent was referring to an incident involving 54-year-old Charles Jestings, who was arrested after allegedly exposing himself at Varnum Brook Elementary School in Pepperell on Friday morning.
When Jestings walked up to the school's front counter to speak with a secretary, another school employee noticed that he was exposing himself, Pepperell Police Chief David Scott said.
Jestings had gone to the school to inquire about some missing property, according to Landers, who did not elaborate or indicate if Jestings has ties to the school. "His inappropriate actions resulted in his immediate arrest," Landers said, adding that students didn't witness the incident and classes weren't disrupted.
"We want to ensure parents and the community that at no time were students in any danger and that our staff responded quickly and effectively, in conjunction with the Pepperell Police Department, to remove this individual from school property," Landers said.
Arraignment information for Jestings was not immediately available.
MAP showing approximate location of school:
State Police arrest two Maine men in Auburn
Massachusetts State Police arrested two Maine men on charges of heroin possession Friday afternoon after stopping a pickup truck near the toll-area of the turnpike in Auburn. (Photo courtesy: Massachusetts State Police)
AUBURN Massachusetts State Police arrested two Maine men on charges of heroin possession Friday afternoon after stopping a pickup truck near the toll-area of the turnpike in Auburn.
According to state police, 25-year-old Brandon Pelletier of Arundel, Maine, and 33-year-old Michael Tingley, of Waterboro, Maine, were arrested around 2:45 p.m. after a trooper spotted their vehicle merging from Route 290 onto Route 90.
Officers were on the lookout for the red Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck following reports that Pelletier had an active warrant for robbery and trafficking narcotics in Maine, state police reported.
Both men, who were allegedly found to be in possession of a total of 25 grams of heroin, were taken to the Sturbridge Barracks for booking, according to state police.
Pelletier was held on a charge of fugitive from justice on court warrant for being wanted in Maine, police said. He will be summonsed to Worcester District Court on a charge of possession of class A substance (heroin.)
Tingley was also charged with posession of class A substance (heroin), as well as unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, according to state police.
Bail was set at $100 for Tingley and denied for Pelletier.
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Euthanasia is not a cure-all for organ shortage, said the authors. Most of the euthanasia patients suffer from cancer, which is a contraindication for organ transplantation. However, 25 to 30% of them do not, so there is a real possibility of expanding the supply, said the researchers.They also added that the public perception about euthanasia is increasing positively. "Transplant coordinators in Belgium and the Netherlands notice a contemporary trend towards an increasing willingness and motivation to undergo euthanasia and to subsequently donate organs as well, supported by the increasing number of publications in popular media on this topic.""In the context of organ donation after euthanasia, the right to self-determination is a paramount ethical and legal aspect. It is the patient's wish and right to die in a dignified way, and likewise, his wish to donate his organs is expressed. Organ donation after euthanasia enables those who do not wish to remain alive to prolong the lives of those who do, and alsocompared with 'classical' donation after circulatory deathallows many more people to fulfill their wish to donate organs after death."There are some legal barriers in both countries. In the Netherlands, euthanasia is regarded as an "unnatural death" which has to be reported to the public prosecutor. This could delay donations. If the law were changed to allow the cause of death to be reported as the underlying condition, the procedure would be more expeditious.In Belgium, the current policy of determination of death by three independent physicians could be a hindrance to facilitate the procedure.However, it is necessary to maintain a strict separation between the request for euthanasia and the need for the organ. This is also a need to ensure that the donor is not being pressured."Since a patient undergoing euthanasia has chosen to die, it is worth arguing that the no-touch time (depending on the protocol) could be skipped, limiting the warm ischemia time and contributing to the quality of the transplanted organs. It is even possible to extend this argument to a 'heart-beating organ donation euthanasia' where a patient is sedated, after which his organs are being removed, causing death."Tory MP Fiona Bruce said, "The paper confirms the worst fears expressed by Parliament when the House of Commons conclusively voted to stop the legalization of assisted suicide in this country. The possibility of euthanasia achieved through live organ donation, such as by removing a patient's beating heart, as posited in this paper is shocking and chilling."Lord Carlile of Berriew, a Liberal Democrat peer who is a leading lawyer, said, "I have extreme concerns about the ghoulish nature of the combined euthanasia and organ donation systems in the Netherlands and Belgium. Both can result in unbearable and irresistible pressure on an individual to die, and on a doctor to encourage death."Source: Medindia
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For this study, the scientists removed Tregs from blood donated by volunteers to the Canadian Blood Services. The scientists built a gene that makes a protein called CAR (chimeric antigen receptor). They used a harmless virus to insert the CAR gene into Tregs, which programmed the cells to recognize specific proteins commonly found on the surface of transplanted tissues. The normal role of Tregs is to turn off the immune response and prevent an immune response to healthy tissues. The scientists did a series of experiments that proved the modified Tregs could recognize transplanted tissues and protect them from the immune system.A related concept is used in a type of cancer treatment called immunotherapy where the patient's own immune cells are genetically programmed with the CAR gene to mount an immune response against tumour cells. "We took this approach from cancer immunotherapy and we used it for the opposite purpose - to turn off unwanted immune responses," says Dr. Levings."It's a whole new age in medicine, and we're doing cutting edge work right here in BC," says Dr. Katherine MacDonald, the study's first author. The research was the basis of Dr. MacDonald's doctoral thesis while she was a UBC trainee supervised by Dr. Levings at CFRI. "With this finding, it opens up the possibility to build a gene for any disease where the immune system is overactive," says Dr. MacDonald.This includes autoimmune diseases, which develop when the immune system destroys healthy tissues such as the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas in Type 1 diabetes or cells of the intestinal lining in inflammatory bowel disease. The researchers say a decade of further work is needed to develop safe and targeted treatments using modified Tregs.This research was supported by the Canadian Cancer Society Research Institute and BC Transplant Research Foundation. The researchers are supported by BC Children's Hospital Foundation and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Training Program in Transplantation. As part of this study, researchers analyzed blood donated by volunteers to Canadian Blood Services and used CFRI's state-of-the-art flow cytometry facility to examine the samples.CFRI conducts discovery, translational and clinical research to benefit the health of children and their families. CFRI is supported by BC Children's Hospital Foundation and works in close partnership with BC Children's Hospital, the Provincial Health Services Authority and its agencies, and the University of British Columbia.BC Children's Hospital, an agency of the Provincial Health Services Authority, provides expert care for the province's most seriously ill or injured children, including newborns and adolescents. It is an academic health centre affiliated with the University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, and the Child & Family Research Institute. Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children is the provincial facility that offers specialized child development and rehabilitation services to children and youth.The University of British Columbia (UBC) is one of North America's largest public research and teaching institutions, and is consistently ranked among the world's 40 best universities. Surrounded by the beauty of the Canadian West, it is a place that inspires bold, new ways of thinking that have helped make it a national leader in areas as diverse as community service learning, sustainability and research commercialization. UBC offers more than 58,000 students a range of innovative programs and attracts $519 million per year in research funding from government, non-profit organizations and industry through over 8,000 projects and grants.Source: Eurekalert
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"The bottom line is, without significantly increased resources, it is going to be very difficult to do the kind of innovations we need to do rapid testing and rapid control," said Thomas Frieden, chief of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Frieden hosted a summit on the Zika virus Friday, drawing 178 representatives from health departments, dozens of non-governmental organizations and government agencies to Atlanta, along with some 2,000 people watching a webcast about the latest scientific data and prevention strategies.He and other government officials also held a conference call with reporters to discuss the challenges of facing down the first-known mosquito-borne virus that appears to infect the fetal brain, though officials have yet to confirm whether Zika causes microcephaly, a life-long malformation in which an infant's brain is much smaller than normal.Zika has spread quickly to more than 30 places in Latin America and the Caribbean since last year.In the mainland United States, dozens of pregnant women have been infected after traveling to parts of the world where Zika is present, and two pregnant women were infected with Zika through sex, he said.Asked to quantify the risk to the United States, Frieden declined to predict how many Zika cases might be seen in the continental United States in the coming months."We don't want to speculate about what may happen. We want to maximize out preparedness for what we can prevent from happening."Even though the Zika virus was first identified in 1947, the outbreak of birth defects has taken health authorities by surprise.Frieden said it remains unclear how to advise women about the actual risk of fetal abnormalities."There are just too many unknowns," he said.Frieden has warned that Puerto Rico is on the brink of a massive Zika crisis, and may have thousands of pregnant women infected in the coming months.The $1.9 billion requested includes $828 million for the CDC and would be used to accelerate vaccine research, develop a long-term strategy to prevent Zika, expand lab capacity and testing, boost mosquito control, and support low-income pregnant women, officials said.There is no vaccine on the market to prevent Zika and often the virus does not cause symptoms in adults who are infected. When it does, the illness may be mild and includes fever, rash and red eyes.In February, the House Appropriations Committee responded to Obama's request by pointing to $1.4 billion of unused Ebola funds within the Department of Health and Human Services, and another $1.3 billion unused in the Department of State and USAID coffers."Some in Congress have just suggested we use the money we had to fight Ebola to fight Zika," said Amy Pope, White House Deputy Homeland Security Advisor."Even if we take money from other pots, even if we make these very hard choices, the money we have now is not enough," she added."We cannot wait until we see widespread transmission in the United States before taking steps to prepare. It is just too late at that point."Source: AFP
U.S. District Court Judge Avern Cohn on Thursday issued an order saying the department "has met its obligations" for improvements under an agreement with the Justice Department.
Assistant Police Chief James White tells the Detroit Free Press the city now has a "much more organized, constitutional police department."
In 2014, Cohn ended a sweeping 2003 decree that included oversight by a court-appointed monitor after the federal government found substantial compliance with the agreement to reduce excessive force, illegal arrests and improper detention in holding cells.
For the past 18 months, the government still was able to keep an eye on police by reviewing internal audits and other steps.
HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) A man accused of fatally beating his girlfriend's 9-year-old son over a missing piece of birthday cake pleaded guilty to second-degree murder Thursday and was sentenced to 30 years in prison by a judge who likened the boy's treatment to torture.
For weeks before the beating, Jack Garcia was a virtual prisoner in the Hagerstown apartment he shared with his mother, her brother and her fiance Robert Leroy Wilson, a prosecutor said. Jack was routinely deprived of food if Wilson felt the boy hadn't exerted himself enough, and he was handcuffed to a chair or beaten with a bamboo sword if he took food without permission, the evidence showed.
The open invitation to a conference in Cairo in May, issued by the antiquities minister at a news conference just outside the tomb, aims to bring broader scientific rigor to what so far have only been tantalizing clues.
The new exploration was prompted by a theory by British Egyptologist Nicolas Reeves that undiscovered chambers lie behind the tomb's western and northern walls and that they likely contain the tomb of Queen Nefertiti, one of pharaonic Egypt's most famous figures whose bust, on display at the Berlin Museum, is a much storied symbol of ancient beauty.
Preliminary scans whose results were announced last month suggested two open spaces with signs of metal and organic matter. Egypt's archaeologists announced Friday they completed more extensive scanning, sponsored by National Geographic, and the results must now be analyzed.
If chambers whether containing Nefertiti's tomb or not are discovered behind the western and northern walls covered in hieroglyphs and bas-reliefs in Tut's tomb, it would likely be the biggest discovery in Egyptology since Howard Carter first discovered the king's 3,300-year-old burial chamber and its treasures in 1922.
Antiquities Minister Khaled el-Anani, who was appointed to his post last week, counselled caution.
He said Egypt's "scientific credibility" and the preservation of its antiquities were at stake, adding; "We will rely only on science going forward. There are no results to share at the current stage, but only indications. We are not searching for hidden chambers, but rather we are scientifically verifying whether there are such rooms."
"We are looking for the truth and reality, not chambers."
Another radar scan will be carried out at the end of the month. It will be done vertically from atop the hill above the tomb, using equipment with a range of about 40 meters (yards).
Harvard University Egyptology professor Peter Der Manuelian, who is not involved in the project, said the Valley of the Kings is "notorious for containing fissures, cracks" that complicate interpreting the scans. "So the more scans we do, and from different angles and directions, inside and outside the tomb, the better," he told The Associated Press.
Even if the spaces are rooms, they could be undecorated small rooms for holding embalming materials, he said or, more dramatically, "the beginning of a larger floor plan."
"We'll have to be patient. In the meantime, kudos to Nick Reeves for pointing out the presence of these anomalies and for sharing them with the world."
Reeves' theory was prompted by the unusual structure of Tut's tomb. It is smaller than other royal tombs and oriented differently. Furthermore, his examination of photos uncovered what appear to be the outlines of a filled-in doorframe in one wall.
He has speculated that Tutankhamun, who died at age 19, may have been rushed into an outer chamber of what was originally Nefertiti's tomb. Nefertiti was one of the wives of Tut's father Akhenaten, though another wife Kia is believed to be Tut's mother.
"We have a theory, and now what we're trying to do is test it. And, I , if I am right, fantastic, if I am wrong, I've been doing my job, I've been following the evidence trail, and seeing where it leads," Reeves told the AP.
El-Anani said Egyptologists and Valley of the Kings experts will discuss on May 8 the findings of the scans in a previously scheduled conference devoted to King Tut to be held at Egypt's new national museum near the Giza Pyramids outside Cairo. There, they can discuss the findings. The outcome, he said, will guide what course of action Egypt takes.
The Valley of the Kings was one of the main burial sites for ancient Egypt's pharaohs, located among the desert mountains across the Nile River from Luxor, the site of the monumental temples of Thebes, one of the pharaonic capitals.
Tut's was the most intact tomb ever discovered in Egypt, packed with well-preserved artifacts. But he was a relatively minor king ruling for a short period at a turbulent time.
Nefertiti was the primary wife of the Pharaoh Akhenaten, who unsuccessfully tried to switch Egypt to an early form of monotheism. Akhenaten was succeeded by a pharaoh referred to as Smenkhare. Reeves believes Smenkhare and Nefertiti are the same person, with the queen simply changing her name during her rule.
Not long after Tut died in 1323 B.C., his family was overthrown by a general, ending the 18th Dynasty that had been in power for 250 years.
John Darnell, professor of Egyptology at Yale University, said Tut's tomb is "somewhat anomalous due to its small size ... But the question is: Was Tutankhamun's tomb small, or do we have only a portion of a larger tomb?"
The latest scans were carried out over 12 hours along five different levels of the walls, producing 40 scans. The data will be analyzed by U.S.-based experts, but the results would not be known for at least another week.
"Technology is beginning to open doors that were permanently locked, or seemed permanently locked or maybe we did not know it existed," said Terry D. Garcia, chief science and exploration officer for National Geographic. "It is creating a revolution ... and it is going to result in the 21st century being the greatest in exploration in the history of mankind and we are just scratching the surface."
The mystery is also a golden opportunity for Egypt to boost its deeply damaged tourism industry by drawing world attention to its wealth of pharaonic antiquities.
But any benefit from the discoveries may be slow coming, with Egypt still facing turmoil, including a deadly fight against Islamic militants in the Sinai.
Pharaonic sites were once Egypt's main draw. But cities like Luxor have suffered heavily from the plunge in tourism. Now, visits to Egypt's beaches have also been devastated since the crash of a Russian airliner in October over the Sinai Peninsula that killed all 224 people onboard. Russia said it was downed by an explosive device and suspended all flights to Egypt. Britain suspended all flights to Sharm el-Sheikh, the Egyptian Red Sea resort from which the doomed aircraft took off shortly before it crashed.
To the editor:
1. First of all, regarding the flint water: We dont know for sure who is really responsible for their water problem. However, the EPA and DEQ should certainly share some blame since they did tests on the water a year or two ago. What did they do with their reports?
2. Re: Hillary Clintons Money and Corruption: Canadian uranium billionaire Frank Giustra and Bill Clinton flew to Kazakhstan together and then Giustra landed a huge uranium mining deal. He then donated $32 million and pledged another $100 million to the Clinton Foundation. In 2010 a Russian Company, Uraniam One, which had taken over Giustras company and the new Chairman of Uranium One, Ian Telfer, secretly donated $2.35 million to the Clinton Foundation. The $135 million in donations to the Clinton Foundation received from investors in Uranium One were never disclosed, violating Hillarys signed deal with the Obama administration. Thanks to Hillary, Russia now controls 20 percent of U.S. uranium.
3. The Clintons were paid at least $3.4 million for 18 speeches funded by banks invested in the Keystone Pipeline.
4. Twenty countries that donated substantial money to the Clinton Foundation were approved by the State Department to receive $1.65 billion in weapons from the United States.
5. In violation of an ethics agreement Hillary signed with the Obama Administration, the Clintons failed to disclose the names of 1,100 donors to the Clinton Foundations from foreign countries.
6. At least 181 major donors to the Clinton Foundation had business before Hillarys State Department and lobbied Hillarys State Department.
7. Clinton Cash Book: The Qater Olympic Committee donated $750,000 to the Clinton Foundations; the corrupt Islamic regime of Qatar (headquarters for many terrorist organizations) has donated between $1 million and $5 million to the Clinton Foundation, but the foundation wont reveal the exact number.
8. The Clintons have a secret pass through company called WJC, LLC designed to channel secret payments to the Clintons.
9. Long-time political hatchet man for the Clintons, Sidney Blumenthal, received a salary of $10,000 per month from the Clinton Foundation to perform tasks for Hillary and help lay groundwork for her 2016 presidential run. A good example of how the Clintons are using the Clinton Foundation illegally, since the foundation is supposed to be for charity.
10. Entities who are top Clinton donors also paid Bill and Hillary at least $26 million in speaking fees, suggesting the Clinton Foundation acts more as a personal slush fund, than a charitable endeavor.
11. The Clinton Foundation spent just 10 percent of the $1.8 billion it raised on charitable endeavors. Most of the money was spent on lavish travel, staff, overhead, and to pay friends of the Clintons, and acted as a shadow campaign operation for Hillarys 2016 presidential run.
12. After revelations that tens of millions of dollars in foreign donations poured into the Clinton Foundation became public, the foundation announced it would re-file five years of tax returns and in one three-year period, it omitted tens of millions in foreign contributions reporting zero to the IRS. In another year period, it admitted to over reporting government grants by more than $100 million.
The estimated net worth of the Clintons is now over $150 million all gained in the 15 years since Bill Clinton left office. Did they make this money by inventing something, or by manufacturing or building something of value? No. They made their money by trading on their connections in government. Not to mention their FBI Filegate, Emailgate, Chinagate, Whitewater and of course the Benghazi attack resulting in the death of four Americans. Hillary, when pressed on the lies she told to America about the origin of the attack, famously answered What difference does it make?
So, in answer to Jack Jensens Are you a Republican? Why? My answer is Are you a Democrat? Why? Who would want the likes of a person like Hillary Clinton as president of our great country?
Disgusted with both political parties, Ill remain an independent.
(Much of the above information was taken from Liberty Guards Hillary Rodham Clinton: A History of Scandal, Corruption and Cronyism)
Stannette Malosky
Caseville
Nobody in Huron County wants to have their Second Amendment or any other rights limited.
But there are dozens of people in Lake Township tired and frustrated from hearing the sound of loud, automatic weapons on a semi-regular basis.
For nearly four years, residents have been actively complaining about the noise and danger that has spoiled their otherwise idyllic life in Huron County. The spray of gunfire, which they say can surpass more than 1,000 rounds per session, can even come after dark. And, there are claims that stray bullets have struck homes or can be heard passing through the property of neighbors.
The gentle summer breezes and setting sun can mean another pleasant evening in most parts of the Upper Thumb. But for residents of Lake Township, they wonder if gunfire is about to begin and, if so, how long will it last this time?
There are laws to ensure our peace and safety, but apparently none that cover this gunfire, which comes from folks who are legally far enough away from their neighbors to discharge their weapons of choice. But that is little consolation for the Lake Township residents who are concerned about the noise and danger and recently voiced their opinion to township and state Department of Natural Resources officials.
Law enforcement officials say they cannot act without a law being broken.
So Lake Township is asking the DNR to consider changing the firearms law for a portion of its community. The DNR has vowed to research the matter and determine what type of change is warranted.
Local opponents of the gunfire, including 84-year-old Gerry Simmons, have been told their only recourse is to move away. The gunfire is legal and it will continue.
That is true, for now. But if the DNR does see fit to change the law, the tables will be turned and the people who thought they were safely and legally firing their weapons will be doing the complaining.
Nobody wants an injury to a bystander to decide this conflict and lead to action. But fearful neighbors think that, given enough time, it is likely to happen as the result of a stray bullet. And that, of course, could and should lead to consequences.
Otherwise, we see the right on both sides of the issue. The majority finds it a nuisance. The minority love to shoot their weapons.
We think a smart move would be for the shooters to voluntarily limit their gunfire, and try to be better neighbors.
Its like driving through a puddle and splashing someone on the sidewalk. By law, maybe you can do it, but most caring people try not to.
The shooters could work with local residents and inform them what weekends they plan to shoot, or dont plan to shoot, so their neighbors can possibly plan a quiet outing with friends or relatives.
Its not a big thing, but its something you do out of respect for the same neighbors who help pay local taxes, make food available for you at the local grocery store, and perhaps taught you or your children how to read and write. These neighbors also may risk their life if they have to race to your house for a medical emergency or to put out a fire someday.
This is a case for a conflict resolution team to come in and try to resolve the situation. Maybe not a lot can be done. But the situation should be better than it is.
GOSHEN A man who shot and wounded another man outside the You You Asian Restaurant and Bar in the Town of Wallkill because he
Almost 100 people mostly from Haiti who were rescued from an overcrowded boat off the Florida coast had no food or water for...
The U.S. has launched a new and much more modest effort to train "dozens" of Syrian rebels following the collapse last year of the ambitious $500 million program intended to put about 5,000 opposition fighters into the field against ISIS, a U.S. military spokesman said.
Army Col. Steve Warren said the new attempt was taking into account "lessons learned from the ill-fated program of 2015" when rebels trained and equipped by U.S. Central Command either disbanded or fled when attacked by other rebel groups such as the al-Qaeda-affiliated Al Nusra Front.
In an embarrassing appearance before the Senate Armed Services Committee last year, Army Gen. Lloyd Austin, who stepped down last week as CentCom commander, had to admit that the entire train and equip program had put only "four or five" fighters in the field.
Rather than bringing entire rebel units out of the field for training and equipping, the new program was focusing on taking individuals from units and training them in such skills as targeting and coordinating airstrikes with the thought that they could then pass along those skills to others, said Warren, a spokesman for Combined Joint task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve.
The ability to coordinate with U.S. and coalition warplanes "allows us to bring significantly more fires into play in any of these skirmishes, battles, and firefights that are taking place throughout Syria," he said in a video briefing from Baghdad to the Pentagon.
Warren acknowledged that the previous train and equip program "didn't work the way we wanted it to. Now we are trying again with adjustments." He declined to say where the training was taking place. A "few dozen" rebels had been selected for the training but none has returned to the battlefield as yet, he said.
Early last month, Austin disclosed that the Defense Department had asked President Barack Obama to approve the new. "I've asked for permission to restart the effort by using a different approach," the general told the Senate Armed Services Committee.
"The training would be shorter. But again, I think they would be able to greatly enable the forces once they're re-introduced," Austin said.
The new training effort was part of what Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has called the "accelerated" plan to back local forces in retaking the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria's strongholds of Raqqa in northeastern Syria, and Mosul in northwestern Iraq.
To support the Mosul campaign, the artillery unit of about 200 Marines and four 155mm howitzers that was deployed last month to Makhmour about 60 miles southeast of Mosul was being detached from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit and would now be part of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, Warren said.
The Marine artillery unit will stay in place at their new fire base in Makhmour as Task Force Spartan in support of the Iraqi Army's 15th Division when the 26th MEU returns to the East Coast, possibly later this month, with the Amphibious Ready Group led by the amphibious assault ship Kearsarge, Warren said.
-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.
Thin fiber optic strands glowing
Thin fiber optic strands glowing on black background
(sciencestockphotos.com)
HOLLAND, MI -- Holland officials are looking at building a fiber optics network that could cost $47 million.
This week, the city's utility, Holland Board of Public Works, presented a plan for the project along with a potential price tag.
Dave Koster, HBPW general manager, called the report a first step in deciding how to invest in a fiber optics network that could serve the utility's customers, including those who live outside the city.
The plan explores affordability, competition, ownership and control of assets, performance and lays out service model options.
Extending fiber to city residents would be $47.5 million, and to the wide the HBPW service area would be about $63.2 million. The estimate doesn't include customer service drops, which would be an additional $820 per property.
"There's a lot to digest in the plan," said Koster, adding there are still many questions to answer before the BPW can make a recommendation, which is expected in the next few months.
The plan, developed by CTC Technology and Energy, suggests BPW avoid building what is currently available on the market.
Instead, the BPW should provide gigabit data service over fiber along with an open network so other providers could bring additional services to customers.
"We're looking to offer a differentiated service from what others can provide," said Koster.
That system would have the capacity to download and send larger files faster, network with little to no interruption, and quickly stream videos and online games.
City Council has made expanding fiber broadband services in Holland a priority this year.
"Fiber to the premises was at the top of our list at this year's annual council retreat," Holland Mayor Nancy DeBoer said.
Koster said there are other cities with fiber optic systems such as Chattanooga, Tennessee; Huntsville, Ala.; Longmont, Colo. and Sebewaing in Huron County.
"Fiber optic infrastructure brings tremendous opportunities for business development and educational advancement," said Koster. "It can be an important talent attraction and retention tool for the City of Holland."
Holland BPW's current fiber infrastructure has provided fiber broadband services to commercial and industrial enterprises in the greater Holland area since 1992.
The BPW supplies electric, water and wastewater services to nearly 28,000 business and residential customers in the Holland area.
Shandra Martinez covers business and other topics for MLive. Email her or follow her on Twitter @shandramartinez.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - Edgar Hernandez says his original plan for The Oddest Supply Co. did not involve opening a store. The original plan also did not include selling clothing.
But the 32-year-old entrepreneur is rolling with the success he found after opening a pop-up shop selling street wear during ArtPrize, and now he's becoming a long-term tenant in the space he's occupied at the Downtown Market since last fall.
While most of The Oddest Supply Co.'s merchandise is streetwear and coastal styles "with a Michigan edge," Hernandez said he also plans to branch into other lifestyle products aimed at unusual and unconventional tastes.
"Not only is it our goal to become Michigan's premier lifestyle brand, but we also want to continue placing importance on connectivity with the people who inspire us and wear our clothing," said Hernandez, owner and designer at The Oddest Supply Co.
"I want to build a lifestyle brand, not just clothing," he said. "I want to do music, I want to do art."
After four years of selling insurance, Hernandez, a Grand Rapids native and graduate of Northwood University, hoped to start a design and advertising business. "It wasn't a hobby, but it was something I was doing on the side," he said.
Hernandez became enamored with branding and clothing design after he enrolled in a class at Kendall College of Art and Design. Ultimately, he wants to take the brand beyond Michigan-oriented t-shirts and apparel.
"One of the many things people who shop local inside the Downtown Market have in common with those who wear The Oddest Supply Co., is that they both take great pride in where they come from and live," Mimi Fritz, president and CEO of the Downtown Market, said in a news release.
Jim Harger covers business for Mlive Media Group. Email him at jharger@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter or Facebook or Google+.
BAY CITY, MI -- The following are recent business announcements for Bay County.
Roger McIntosh Chevrolet in Linwood is changing its name to Garber Chevrolet of Linwood. Roger McIntosh Chevrolet has been part of the Garber family of dealerships for almost a year.
Bay Future Inc. had its annual meeting recently. Laurie Bush, broker/manager of Century21 Signature Realty Bay City, became a new board member. Mitzi Dimitroff, who is president of RDS Management, and Gary L. Riedlinger, principal (Saginaw) and the director of tax services at Yeo & Yeo CPAs and Business Consultants, were reappointed as board members. Officers for 2016 are Chairman Tim Rokosz, controller of Michigan Sugar Co.; vice chairs Julie Hoffman, enterprise program manager of Global Business Services at Dow Corning Corp., Ryan T. Carley, chief executive officer of Bay Area Chamber of Commerce, and Lynn Stamiris, 1st ward city commissioner, Bay City; secretary/treasurer Larry Ehrlinger, vice president of commercial banking, FirstMerit Bank; president Mark D. Litten, president and chief executive officer of Bay Future Inc.; and immediate past chair Don Tilley, 6th District County commissioner, Bay County.
Meemic Insurance Co., a Michigan-based insurance provider offering personal auto, homeowners, and umbrella coverage to teachers and other educational employees, announced that the Thomson Agency of Bay City and Tawas City, owned by Tony and Joni Thomson and part of Meemic Insurance Co., has been recognized as a 2015 President's Circle of Honor recipient. This designation is the highest acknowledgment within the company, awarded to select agencies who have achieved the uppermost sales achievements.
GiGi's Boutique & Design has opened in downtown Bay City at 806 Saginaw St. The store is owned by Michael and Angela Ricard. GiGi's carries women's clothing, accessories, footwear, home decor and designs logos, brochures, websites, flyers and posters.
Melissa Beckrow and Jim Diedrich have joined Ayre/Rhinehart Bay Realtors Broker/Owner Badger Beall as partners with Beall in the Bay City firm. Beckrow and Diedrich will act as managing partners for the company, which is entering its fifth year. Beckrow has been acting manager since 2013. Diedrich started with Ayre/Rhinehart Bay in March 2015.
Do you have a business announcement to share? Email Alison Taylor at ataylo10@mlive.com.
Just after 3 p.m. the hood and roof of the Durango were at the surface of the river. The family -- who had been at the Flint River bank every day since Wednesday -- began to sob as they saw Robert's vehicle.
Around 3:30 p.m. the SUV was in the process of being pulled and hoisted the rest of the way out of the water. A large crane swung the vehicle over the bridge where it was placed on a flatbed truck.
While police have not confirmed the man's identity, Lillie said it is her son Robert. She said everyone loved him and his sense of humor.
"He's really funny," Lillie said. "My mother has Alzheimer's and he makes her laugh."
Lillie said now that the waiting is over she is relieved. She just wants to move forward with making funeral arrangements for her son.
Amanda Emery is a police reporter for MLive-Flint Journal. Contact her at aemery@mlive.com or 810-285-0792. Follow her on Twitter or Facebook.
FLINT, MI -- Police have confirmed there was one person inside an SUV that has been submerged in the Flint River since Wednesday night.
Flint Police Capt. Collin Birnie said there was one adult male inside the red Dodge Durango. He said there were no obvious signs of foul play and the autopsy is scheduled for Saturday morning.
The Durango was pulled out of the Flint River around 3 p.m. on Friday, April 1.
The vehicle went into the Flint River on Wednesday, March 30.
Search and rescue teams were initially called to the river, south East Fifth Avenue, around 10:44 p.m. Wednesday night after witnesses said they saw a vehicle driving eastbound on Fifth when it left the road and sunk into the river.
Police believe it's the same vehicle that was involved in a hit-and-run crash about a quarter mile away at Fifth and Saginaw Street, just west of the river.
They tried to use the dam to lower the water level and slow the flow of the river, but it did not lead to recovery of the vehicle that night.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- A massage therapist accused of sexually assaulting a client is heading to trial.
John Timothy Ashby, 54, waived a probable cause hearing Friday, sending the case to circuit court on a charge of third-degree criminal sexual conduct.
Grand Rapids police allege Ashby sexually assaulted a 41-year-old woman during a massage treatment Feb. 28 at Massage Green Spa, 3529 28th St. SE.
Ashby was a private contractor who was licensed as a massage therapist in 2014. His license is good through Oct. 31, 2016, according to state records.
Ashby, of Caledonia Township, has posted $40,000 bond.
Angie Jackson covers crime and breaking news for MLive. Email her at ajackso3@mlive.com, and follow her on Twitter.
ZEELAND, MI -- Spectrum Health Zeeland Community Hospital is on lockdown Friday night in response to a chemical leak at a nearby business.
Patients and staff are not allowed to leave the hospital at 8333 Felch St., but new patients are being accepted, spokeswoman Sara Donkersloot said.
The lockdown is in response to a reported phosphorus trichloride leak at chemical manufacturer Vertellus Specialties, 215 N. Centennial St. The spill was reported about 7 p.m. and caused police to close East Washington Avenue between North Centennial Street and North Fairview Road.
Surrounding businesses were evacuated. The scene is in an industrial area and no homes are impacted, an emergency dispatch supervisor said.
Donkersloot said the Ottawa County Hazardous Materials & Technical Rescue Team advised the hospital to go on lockdown about 8:30 p.m. She said the decision follows the hospital's emergency management plan protocol.
At 11 p.m., Donkersloot said the lockdown was expected to be lifted within the hour.
Angie Jackson covers crime and breaking news for MLive. Email her at ajackso3@mlive.com, and follow her on Twitter.
KALAMAZOO, MI-- A 4-year-old boy died Friday afternoon when he was thrown from a minivan that missed a curve and rolled over.
The child was transported to Bronson Methodist Hospital, but did not survive his injuries, according to a news release from the Kalamazoo Township Police Department.
His name is not being released at this time pending notification of family members. The Kalamazoo County Medical Examiner's Office will be scheduling an autopsy.
The other three occupants of the vehicle are all from Kalamazoo as well.
From the information initially available, it appears the minivan was traveling inbound, east, on Business Loop 131 and failed to negotiate the curve.
The driver, a 24-year old woman, is being treated at Bronson Methodist Hospital for what are believed to be non-life threatening injuries. The 32-year old male passenger was treated and released from Bronson with minor injuries. A 6-year old boy, was not injured in the crash, authorities said.
The crash remains under investigation. Township officers were assisted at the scene by personnel from the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety, the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office and a traffic crash reconstructionist from the Michigan State Police.
STURGIS, MI -- A police officer shot a pit bull after it bit the police officer and a mail carrier Friday afternoon.
At about 4 p.m. April 1 Sturgis police were called to the 400 Block of South Jefferson on a report of a mail carrier that was being attacked by a dog.
Officers arrived attempted to help the dog's handler corral the dog, however the dog charged and bit the leg of one of the officers, according to a news release from the department.
The officer made several more attempts to catch the dog, however the dog continued to attack the officer.
The dog was finally shot to prevent further injury to the officer as well as to the mail carrier, authorities said.
The mail carrier and police officer were treated for minor injuries at the scene of the incident and released
Niamey (AFP) - Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou was sworn in Saturday to a second five-year term after being re-elected in a run-off vote last month that was boycotted by the opposition.
With his hand on the Koran, Issoufou took the oath of office at a ceremony in Niamey attended by thousands of people including nine African heads of state.
"On March 20, the people made their choice in a calm vote and renewed their confidence in me for a second mandate," Issoufou said in his speech, referring to the poll results that gave him 92 percent of the votes cast.
But the run-off election was marred by low turnout as the opposition called for a boycott because their candidate Hama Amadou, who since November was in jail over shadowy baby-trafficking charges, was flown to France for unspecified medical treatment just four days before the vote.
A Niger court on Tuesday granted Amadou bail on the charges he claims are politically motivated and his supporters have rejected an offer from Issoufou to form a national unity government.
Issoufou used his swearing-in address to highlight the anti-terror fight in the landlocked west African country which is one of the poorest in the world.
Niger is threatened by jihadist groups in the Sahel region to the north and west, and is also the target of attacks by Nigeria's Boko Haram Islamists to the southeast.
Evidence of the threat was evident on Friday when six soldiers were killed in an attack in the southeast, blamed on Boko Haram.
"Terrorism is an absolute evil," he said, stressing that "as long as terrorism is not eradicated in northern Mali and as long as Libya is not stabilised, we will not be able to sleep in peace."
The heads of state at the swearing-in included Idriss Deby Itno of Chad, Senegal's Macky Sal, Mali's Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, Alassane Ouattara of Ivory Coast and Denis Sassou Nguesso of Congo-Brazzaville. Benin's President Thomas Boni Yayi arrived later due to a problem with his plane.
Kinshasa (AFP) - The United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo said Saturday it had opened an investigation into claims of sexual abuse against Tanzanian peacekeepers.
The allegations "centre on UN personnel from the Tanzanian contingent" of the mission's Force Intervention Brigade serving at Mavivi, a village near Beni in the eastern province of Nord-Kivu, MONUSCO said in a statement.
MONUSCO said it "immediately sent a team to the area... to check on the facts" on March 23 after it received the allegations.
"Initial results suggest that there is converging evidence relating to transactional sex and sexual relations with minors," the mission said, adding that "paternity claims" had also been made. It did not give other details.
"If the cases are proven, punishment will follow," MONUSCO promised.
The allegations follow a spate of similar claims against French and other EU troops earlier this year against the UN's MINUSCA mission in Central African Republic (CAR).
MONUSCO was put in place following a five-year civil war which ended in 2003 and with its 20,000 troops is the world's largest peacekeeping operation.
Claims of sexual misconduct have long cast a shadow on several peacekeeping missions, in Africa and beyond.
In 2005 the UN banned its peacekeepers from having relationships with local Congolese people following allegations that soldiers had abused 13-year-old girls and similar allegations prompted investigations into several other missions including Liberia and Haiti.
02.04.2016 LISTEN
The Chief Justice, Georgina Theodora Wood, has stated that lawyers must at all times assist the courts to dispense justice to all manner of people without fear or favour.
This, according to the CJ, would help the citizens to have confidence in the justice delivery system, nation and government.
Mrs. Wood contended that a lawyer is expected to be a repository of the nation's law and more importantly its conscience.
The CJ's call for professionalism among lawyers comes on the heels of the recent Anas Aremeyaw Anas expose on massive bribery and corruption in Ghana's Judiciary.
She disclosed this when 59 new lawyers, including Yaw Akrasi Sarpong, the Executive Director of the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) in Accra, were called to the bar yesterday.
The Chief Justice said that lawyers cannot succeed without morality.
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To a large extent, what you will put your knowledge to will be influenced by your sense of morality or your personal ethics as shaped by acceptable societal and professional standards; the ability to choose what is right from wrong under all circumstances.
Mrs. Wood, who is also the chairperson of the General Legal Council, noted that the lawyers must develop the moral fiber to ensure credibility and do the right things at the right time, stressing that exercise personal leadership and integrity and resolve not to be mere additions to the legal profession.
According to Mrs Wood, the lawyers must shape the law and make it very relevant.
The CJ congratulated the new lawyers and urged them not to rest on their oars in pursuit of knowledge.
She said lawyers ought to understand the global dynamics in order to offer legal solutions.
By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson
[email protected]
02.04.2016 LISTEN
Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings made the headlines a couple of days ago because her remarks, when she addressed the Greater Accra Regional executives of her National Democratic Party (NDP), represented the concerns of most Ghanaians.
Things are tough and many are unable to make ends meet ran through her remarks and that is what Ghanaians are talking about in their daily lives.
Worsening the situation is the instance of corruption which has permeated all facets of public life, making the state pay more for services and projects. Government appointees no longer find this unusual and are knee-deep in the mess to the detriment of the ordinary Ghanaian.
He is paying more for electricity, fuel, transportation fares, hospital bills and fees for his kids' school because of the looting of the public coffers.
Here is a woman who was close to the presidency talking about the pillaging of the public purse. We cannot wish away such an allegation, especially since it is something we know and appreciate as Ghanaians.
It is regrettable that for a country with a population of under 25 million endowed with so much natural resources and lately oil, we are unable to make ends meet under the circumstances. For how long shall we continue to endure the looting of the state resources? We dread the time when the people of this country, no longer able to endure the government-inflicted challenges, would scream enough is enough spontaneously.
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The provision of infrastructure the basic requirement of every responsible government should not attract the plaudits of the people, yet in the midst of the mismanagement of resources and inflated cost of projects, propagandists are busy displaying a so-called Green Book to a hungry and impoverished populace.
Victims of the mismanagement of the economy and the poor state of governance are in a better position to assess their living standards.
It is lamentable that in this day and age, there are many children unable to access education because their parents are unable to afford the cost involved.
The cost of accessing health delivery is so close to the rooftop that fatalities have visited some families which could not afford the outrageous money.
Those suffering asthmatic challenges as the former first lady and are unable to pay for the constantly appreciating prices of the relevant drugs risk dying. Indeed, many have had to die as a result of the financial handicap.
Unfurling social intervention programmes which impact allow for the enjoyment of essential services such as health care delivery, education, accommodation, among others, are innovations for which governments will be remembered long after they have left the scenes for others to continue; and not the provision of infrastructure which come at inflated costs anyway. Those who challenge the government for this are labelled 'political quantity surveyors.'
Kafui Kuevor in police custody
02.04.2016 LISTEN
Fifty-three-year-old Kafui Kuevor has been arrested by the Kaneshie police for allegedly butchering his step sister.
The suspect, according to police reports, was arguing with his step sister, identified as Alwine Kuevor, over a house left to them by their deceased father at Kaneshie when the incident occurred.
Alwine sustained wounds on her legs, hands and back. She also had her forefinger chopped off.
She is currently at the intensive care unit of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital receiving treatment.
Confirming the incidence to DAILY GUIDE, ASP Effia Tengey, Accra Regional Police Public Relations Officer, said the incident occurred on March 24, 2016 at Kaneshie.
She said the police received a report from the daughter of the victim that her mother had been butchered by her uncle.
The victim, before the report was lodged, was rushed to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital for treatment.
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While investigating the matter, it came to light that the two were fighting over a house left for them by the deceased father.
Before the demise of their father, both Kafui Kuevor and Alwine were living with their father.
But they started having a misunderstanding over the house after their father's death.
On March 24, 2016 around 7:30 pm, the two engaged in a fight, according to the police officer.
In the course of the misunderstanding, Kafui allegedly rushed into his room and picked up a cutlass to butcher his sister.
Daughter of the victim, who went to the rescue of her mother, was also inflicted with cutlass wounds but she was treated and discharged at the same hospital.
Kafui is still in police custody while the matter is under investigation.
By Linda Tenyah-Ayettey
( [email protected] )
02.04.2016 LISTEN
The Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) has instituted investigations into the activities and operations of some Pakistanis who were arrested at Assin Fosu in the Central Region on Thursday.
There are conflicting reports about the number of people arrested so far, even though initial reports said they were seven.
Subsequent reports have quoted figures like 13 and 17 as the number of people arrested, even though that has not been confirmed by the authorities.
The Pakistanis, who were going from community to community supposedly teaching people about the Islamic religion, were arrested after residents of Assin Fosu raised an alarm on suspicion that the foreigners could be potential terrorists.
Their arrest came on the heels of a recent security alert in which government advised the citizenry and residents in Ghana to report any suspicious moves to the police or any of the various security agencies for action following terrorist attacks in some West African nations.
The police arrested and subsequently handed the Pakistanis over to the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) for further investigation since they claimed to have come into the country at the instance of the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu a claim which has turned out to be false.
But on Friday (yesterday), they were transferred to Accra from Cape Coast where they were being held by the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS).
Earlier in the morning, they were spotted at a mosque in Cape Coast and later at the Ghana Commercial Bank area near the Cape Coast Castle.
Later in the day, they were seen at the Mosque after which they were whisked away to Accra.
Fears
However, the Regional Commander of the GIS, Mrs Maud Anima Quainoo, has allayed fears that the seven Pakistanis arrested are a threat to national security.
According to Mrs Anima Quainoo, investigations had revealed that they were missionaries in the country to preach Islam, contrary to reports that they could be Al-Qaeda operatives.
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She noted that the Pakistanis, whose names have been withheld by the GIS for security reasons, were arrested by the police Thursday morning and handed over to the GIS over suspicion that they were in the country illegally.
The Regional Commander revealed that the suspects arrived in the country on February 22, 2016 at the invitation of the National Chief Imam.
She added that they had since been preaching at various villages and communities across the country until their arrest.
Although they were given 30 days' stay upon arrival, they have submitted their passports to GIS headquarters in Accra for an extension of time, she added.
She, however, assured Ghanaians of effective security and emphasised the need for the public to report any suspicious activity of any foreigner to the nearest police station to ensure total peace in the country.
Rejection
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission (AMM) has denied any knowledge and dealings with the Pakistanis, as has the office of the National Chief Imam.
The General Secretary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission in Ghana, Ahmed Anderson, said: The Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission is not aware of any group of Pakistanis having come into the country in the name of Ahmadiyya Mission to preach.
In an interview on Joy FM yesterday, even though he admitted that they had dealings with some Pakistani missionaries in the country, he noted with emphasis, I have checked all our missions in this country since this news broke and we do not have any such group of people doing any such preaching anywhere.
It is not possible at all that there will be any missionaries sent from any part of the world without channelling them through the structured system that we have.
From Sarah Afful, Cape Coast & Charles Takyi-Boadu
02.04.2016 LISTEN
Fr. Andrews Campbell, an Irish-born Catholic Priest based in Ghana, last Thursday provided free lunch to needy kids in the Accra metropolis.
Father Campbell, who has been in Ghana for over 40 years and has acquired the name Nii Lantey, was captured on DAILY GUIDE cameras at the Kanda overpass distributing lunch packs to some of the destitute who looked very dejected.
Obviously not too sure what the whole exercise was about, the children seemed hesitant but later gathered courage and started collecting the food. Soon many others emerged and also went in for theirs.
Father Campbell came fully prepared as the packs he distributed could feed about 500 mouths.
The Rev. Father, who celebrated his 70th birthday, told DAILY GUIDE that he was guided by his role model, Mother Theresa, and had adopted her renowned motto: Do Something Beautiful for God, which had served as a booster to his generosity.
Fr Campbell, who did not say how long such a gesture would last, said he had set up a special kitchen at Christ the King Parish in Accra, purposefully to feed more such kids in the coming days.
He arrived in Ghana at the age of 25, having travelled aboard a vessel for close to 14 days.
His key goal in life is to help lepers, children and the less privileged in society. He has gained nationwide acknowledgment for his support for people living with or cured of Hansens disease in Ghana.
Coming from a home that faced financial hardship, Father Campbell is always out to implement projects which help bring smiles to the faces of people who are in need.
By Solomon Ofori
02.04.2016 LISTEN
Local Government Minister Collins Dauda has conceded that he appended his signature to the letter dismissing District Chief Executive (DCE) for Atebubu, Sampson Owusu Boateng which sparked vigilante action by some activists of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the area.
Alhaji Collins Dauda however insists it is purely ignorance on the part of the embattled DCE and some NDC supporters which resulted in the burning of the partys office amidst gunshots.
According to the minister, it was wrong for the supporters of the embattled DCE to assume that only President John Dramani Mahama could personally sign the dismissal letter of any DCE.
Commenting on the incident on Okay FM's Ade AkyeAbia Morning Show, Hon Dauda hinted that he had signed the dismissal letters of many DCEs on the instructions of President Mahama and that the Atebubu's case is not the first of its kind.
There are some DCEs who have been maintained and others have been removed from their positions by the President. The DCE at Koforidua was removed from his post and I signed the letter; Kintampo South DCE too, I signed the letter for their removal but have you heard any challenges in those areas?
I don't understand what Castro is doing at Atebubu. The President will not sign to remove him but he won't remain the DCE again at Atebubu; the earlier he understands and adjusts the better for him. If this is how he wants his life to be, so be it but as for the DCE position, he won't stay in post again, he emphasized.
The simmering tension between Sampson Owusu Boateng and the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, Sanja Nanja turned violent last Tuesday at Atebubu-Amatin in the Brong Ahafo region.
Police in Atebubu arrested some people but later granted bail to two people in connection with the vandalism which happened in the glaring presence of the Police in Atebubu.
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Several people reportedly sustained injuries following scuffles between supporters of Mr Nanja and Mr. Owusu Boateng.
Reports say Mr Owusu Boateng had been replaced by one Eric Osei.
The tension created uneasiness in the district, especially for members of the Atebubu Traditional Council, as well as members of the NDC and the Atebubu Youth Association.
It was reported that the Brong Ahafo regional commander instructed his district commander at Amatin, Supt. Joseph Jinaku to seize the car being used by the Mr. Boateng.
According to Jinaka, who spoke to the various radio stations, when he got to the office of the DCE to seize the car, the DCE told him that he was still at post, but he insisted on seizing the car.
The DCE told him that he was going home, so he followed up to the house, only to be pelted with eggs by the supporters of the DCE for trying to seize the car.
Though the car was eventually taken away, the police discovered later that some supporters of the ruling party, suspected to be followers of the DCE, had gone to the constituency office of the ruling party to set it ablaze.
The angry supporters reportedly fired a shot at a fire officer, who attempted to douse the blaze.
Newborn infant undergoing (white light) phototherapy to treat jaundice
02.04.2016 LISTEN
Four-year-old Kaa cannot sit by himself. He also has a hearing problem and experiences frequent convulsion.
Kaa's condition started when his mother noticed a change in the colour of her son's eyes three days after delivery.
Kaa's eyes, unlike the normal eyes of babies, had turned deep yellow in colour. His mother, on the advice of her mother, put Kaa under the morning sun for two days as a means of curing her son's yellowish eyes.
His grandmother also provided camelion, a locally made string which is tied on a baby's hand ostensibly to ward off all evil eyes (anibone) and turn every evil into good, as a cure for Kaa's health condition.
By the seventh day, Kaa's mother noticed that her baby had become weak and therefore took him to a nearby health facility which also referred her to a bigger hospital.
Doctors at the hospital told Kaa's parents that their baby had jaundice but he had been brought in too late.
As a result of the delay in seeking treatment for Kaa's health condition at the hospital, the doctors said Kaa suffered brain damage from severe newborn jaundice which would retard his development.
His parents, left frustrated due to the doctor's diagnosis, contemplated how they would manage little Kaa's condition which he had to live with for the rest of his life.
Kaa's condition could have been prevented if he had been taken to the hospital earlier for medical attention.
Newborn Jaundice
Dr Hilda Mantebea Boye, a physician at the Korle Bu Child Health Department, said jaundice is not an illness in itself, but a medical condition in which too much bilirubin a compound produced by the breakdown of haemoglobin from red blood cells is circulating in the blood.
She said the excess bilirubin causes the skin , eyes and mucus membranes in the mouth to turn yellowish in colour.
Jaundice can occur in babies, children and adults. In newborn babies though, Dr Boye said, jaundice is common because they have extra red blood cells that begin to break down soon after they are born and their livers are often slower to process bilirubin.
In the Child Health Outpatient Department of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, no day passes without a baby coming in with neonatal jaundice.
Unfortunately, some of them come in too late and end up with brain damage or even die. It leads to a condition called cerebral palsy, which means the movement of the child is affected, she said.
Dr Hilda Mantebea Boye
Jaundice can also occur in breastfed babies. This is called breastfeeding jaundice, which is believed to be caused by inadequate milk intake. This type is usually not apparent until the baby is a week old and then peaks during the second or third week of life.
Dr Boye said jaundice, during the first 24 hours of life, is not considered normal and will prompt a paediatrician to do some tests on a baby to look for the cause.
She said when the jaundice is severe, the compound that causes the jaundice (bilirubin) can go into the brain and cause serious damage to the baby's brain. It may result in cerebral palsy.
Causes of Newborn Jaundice
Dr Boye, who is also a member of the Paediatric Society of Ghana, explained that any newborn baby can get neonatal jaundice.
It is not discriminatory, she said, adding, Babies born to the rich, poor, educated, uneducated, antenatal care attendants and those who do not attend antenatal care can all develop jaundice after delivery.
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There are several conditions that cause neonatal jaundice. Examples include an infection in the baby, deficiency, and differences in blood group of the baby and mother, among others.
Breast milk jaundice is, however, caused by substances in the mothers milk that reduce the babys livers ability to process bilirubin.
One may have to consider breast milk jaundice if tests for all other causes are negative.
Symptoms of Newborn Jaundice
You will notice yellowing of the white portion of the eye or the skin, Dr Ebenezer Badoe, a physician at the Child Health Department, said.
The baby's stool (pupu) may become pale (almost white), which may be an indication of a very serious condition called biliary atresia. This is an indication that the baby requires immediate medical attention, he added.
Dr Badoe also cautioned against the use of herbal medicine to treat neonatal jaundice.
He said there are a few people who try herbal medications and end up causing brain damage to their babies or even death.
Dr Ebenezer Badoe
[Those babies] may develop brain damage which may affect their growth and development. They may not be able to grow normally.
They may have hearing problems or mental retardation, even if they survive. There are also some who may die from severe neonatal jaundice, he added.
Dr Badoe noted that a study conducted at the Child Health Department of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital found severe neonatal jaundice to be the most significant and preventable cause of cerebral palsy among Ghanaian children.
Remedies
Several tests will be done in the hospital to find the level of the jaundice (bilirubin) and the cause of the jaundice.
This will determine whether a baby will be left alone, be put under blue light (phototherapy), have an exchange blood transfusion or undergo surgery, he indicated.
Dr Badoe said leaving a baby under early morning sun does improve neonatal jaundice. He however added that it is not recommended because the sun also has other rays which are harmful to the baby. The baby's condition can easily get worse and result in brain damage.
Side Bar >>>>>>>>>>>> A Note To Health Workers In Small Centres
Dr Hilda Mantebea Boye and Dr Ebenezer Badoe believe that health workers in small health facilities need to take the following into consideration when they have suspected cases of jaundice.
There are several causes of neonatal jaundice. Just looking at the baby will not reveal the cause. Lab tests and other investigations may be necessary to make a diagnosis.
If you are not trained in the management of neonatal jaundice or do not have phototherapy at your facility, prompt referral to a higher health facility for treatment is the only way to prevent disability from brain damage or death of the baby.
The intensive phototherapy unit (e.g. Firefly), in our experience, is a very effective piece of equipment to manage neonatal jaundice.
In conclusion, neonatal jaundice is common. Its complications are several, severe and preventable. No baby should therefore die or develop brain damage from newborn jaundice.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri
02.04.2016 LISTEN
Litigants, who thronged several courts in Accra and other parts of the country, were yesterday disappointed, as the Judicial Service Staff Association of Ghana (JUSAG) commenced the nationwide strike.
At a news conference in Accra on Thursday, National President of JUSAG, Alex Nartey declared an indefinite strike effective April 1, 2016 over what it described as government's failure to pay their consolidated salaries.
Mr. Nartey stated that the National Executive Council (NEC) of the Association had directed all staff of the Judicial Service to withdraw their services until their demands were met.
At the new court complex, activities were low-key, but security personnel of JUSAG were at post to protect the properties of the court as directed by the JUSAG President.
The heavy vehicular traffic, as well as petty trading, which are commonplace at the precincts of the court were absent.
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At the former high court building, which now houses the circuit courts, the story was similar.
Relatives of accused persons were seen loitering at the premises of the courts.
Prosecutors, lawyers and Court Warrant Officers (CWOs), on the other hand, had virtually no work to do.
Police investigators had no option than to convey accused persons to the various police stations until further notice.
By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson
[email protected]
Huntington Beach Police Department(HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif.) -- This police officer literally jumped to help cheer up an 11-year-old homeless girl who he discovered had been living out of a car with her mother in Huntington Beach, California.
While his partner talked with the mother to help get them housing arrangements, Officer Zach Pricer decided to distract the girl from the "adult people problem" with a game of hopscotch, or as he likes to call it, "copscotch."
Pricer's partner was able to shoot a video of the encounter on Wednesday. It was later posted to the Huntington Beach Police Department's Facebook where it's been viewed nearly 1 million times and has gotten thousands of positive comments.
"I had to check the welfare of the little girl, so I have to earn her trust and get her comfortable with me first," Pricer told ABC News. He explained that he's used other games and toys like Nerf guns as "ice breakers" to gain children's trust.
Pricer said that once he got the 11-year-old to open up, he was "blown away by her intelligence and happy-go-lucky attitude."
"She was very gracious," the officer said. "Despite having nearly nothing, she was offering to me everything she had to play with. She showed me her bubbles and her little pink shoes that were falling apart but that she still loved. It was amazing to see how thankful she was for what she did have."
The police department's Housing Task Force is currently working on finalizing plans to help get the girl and her mother into a housing arrangement, Pricer said.
"And I just want to say that this is the kind of thing a lot of cops in communities across the country do every day," he added. "It just so happened my buddy was messing around and happened to capture it on film."
Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
The Mayor of Accra, Dr Alfred Okoe Vanderpuije, has said his outfit would seek spiritual consultation to determine the frequent fire outbreaks in the capital.
According to him, although the necessary authorities have and are still carrying out investigations into the cause of some fires in the capital, 'we will let the spiritualists, those in that area of operation, dialogue with his.'
Dr Vanderpuije's comment comes in the wake of Thursday night's fire which ravaged the Vienna City Night Club at Circle.
The club is located directly opposite the Goil Filling Station near the GCB Towers which was razed down by fire on June 3, 2015 and claimed about 150 lives.
Speaking to Citi FM, Friday morning after touring the accident scene, Dr Vanderpuije noted that, 'I think the most important thing at this stage is to look at the cause of the fire from the scientific point, the structural point, all the necessary points, aside from the spiritual point; so they will do their job and they will give us the report. Once we get the report, we will go from therewe will let the spiritualists, those in that area of operation to continue to dialogue with us to see what they need to do.'
In the meantime, Dr Vanderpuije said his outfit would await the investigative report from the police and authorities from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), as well as other security agencies.
A magistrate's court in Accra has issued a bench warrant for the arrest of controversial boxer, Braimah Kamoko, alias Bukom Banku for his refusal to appear before it to answer charges of assault against him.
The accused, who was not represented by counsel when the case was called on March 23, 2016, also did not provide any reasonable excuse for his absence.
Nana Densu Dodoo and Eunice Lamptey, the victims of the alleged assault were also not present at court when the case was called.
It would be recalled that Bukom Banku, on October 1, 2015 allegedly used a cutlass to assault one Michael Abbey; a resident of Akoto Lantey in Accra, but he never stepped in court.
A bench warrant was issued for his arrest but he failed to appear before the court throughout the hearing.
The case is still pending awaiting advice from the AG's office.
Presenting the facts of the latest case, the prosecutor, Sergeant Lois Konadu, told the court presided over by Mr James Bota that the victims, Nana and Eunice, an unemployed and a trader, respectively, resided at Bukom, while Bukom Banku also lived in the same vicinity.
He said at 4.30 p.m on March 9, 2016, Nana and Eunice, together with some siblings, were sitting in front of their house chatting when Bukom Banku and his girlfriend came and stood opposite them in a romantic mood.
Sergeant Konadu said without provocation, Bukom Banku started insulting Nana, saying that his girlfriend had nicer breasts than hers.
According to the prosecutor, no one uttered a word until Bukom Banku insulted Nana's mother who was not even on the scene.
He said Nana then told Bukom Banku not to insult her mother, but he became annoyed and assaulted her. Eunice who attempted to rescue Nana was also assaulted.
The two sustained various degrees of injuries and reported the matter to the James Town Police where they were issued with medical forms to go to the hospital for treatment.
On March 11, 2016 Nana and Eunice petitioned the Regional Police Commander in Accra to intervene and Bukom Banku was apprehended on March 15, 2016.
Founder of the Progressive People's Party (PPP), Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, is blaming Ghana's ever-increasing unemployment and underdevelopment on the refusal of the electorate to vote for any other party other than the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
He accused the electorate of being too gullible enough to believe the empty promises of the two main parties even though they have had nothing to show for the many years they've been in power.
Dr. Ndoum also vowed to fight corruption head-on if he gets the chance to be president was delivering a lecture at the Islamic University College of Ghana in Accra.
The 2012 flag bearer of the PPP said he would set up an independent prosecutor to retrieve funds from corrupt government officials.
The move he said is the surest way to fight corruption and ensure sustainable development.
Dr. Nduom also rubbished the 40-year development plan being put together by the National Development Plan and claims by President Mahama that the energy crisis is over.
According to him, contrary to claims by President Mahama in the State of the Nation Address that the worst ever energy crisis to hit the country is now over, the solution is not sustainable with the power now being supplied even more expensive.
He also encouraged the youth to take charge of the future by holding leadership accountable.
Monrovia (AFP) - Liberian authorities on Saturday called for calm following the discovery of a fresh case of the deadly Ebola virus, more than two months after the epidemic had been declared over in the country.
The latest victim was a 30-year-old woman who died on Thursday while being transferred to hospital in the capital Monrovia
The country's health ministry put out a statement urging citizens "not to panic in the wake of the new Ebola case"
There was no news on the origins of the latest case, after Liberia was declared Ebola-free, for a second time, in January.
"We continue to investigate the source of transmission of this newer flare-up," deputy health minister Tolbert Nyensuah told AFP.
Liberian authorities and their partners, including the World Health Organisation, "are on top of this. We know what to do now, we can contain it, we can control it. No need to panic," he said.
The new case in Liberia was discovered days after a resurgence of Ebola in neighbouring Guinea which has killed seven people in the last few weeks.
Liberia briefly closed its border with Guinea following the announcement of new cases there, but it has subsequently reopened it, several Guinean sources confirmed to AFP.
Sierra Leone announced beefed up security measures along with screening and surveillance points at all border crossings with Guinea on Thursday.
Liberia was the country worst hit by the outbreak of the disease which has claimed 11,300 lives since December 2013, the vast majority in the three West Africa countries.
The WHO had said on Tuesday that the Ebola outbreak in West Africa no longer constituted an international emergency, voicing confidence that remaining isolated cases in the affected countries can be contained.
But a significant number of deaths are believed to have gone unreported and "flare-ups" relating to the persistence of the virus in survivors' bodies pose ongoing challenges.
Ebola causes severe fever and muscle pain, weakness, vomiting and diarrhoea. In many cases it shuts down organs and causes unstoppable internal bleeding. Patients often succumb within days.
The virus is spread through close contact with the sweat, vomit, blood or other bodily fluids of an infected person, or the recently deceased.
Some Monrovia residents, showing no signs of panic, told AFP that at first the news of a fresh outbreak of Ebola had seemed like an April Fools' joke.
"It is worrisome to hear that Ebola is back, but I am confident that it will pass. I am sure that it will never be like the first time," said saleswoman Agnes Mulbah.
National Security Advisor, Alhaji Baba Kamara, has confirmed to Joy News he ordered the arrest of the managing director of quarry company Marbles and Granites.
Alhaji Kamara says the yard on which the Mahindra cars were on is his and it was not right for Dr. Edmund Ayo Ani to take pictures, make it viral and accuse him of repainting National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE) pick-up 4X4 trucks for the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
He thinks it is wrong for Dr. Edmund Ayo Ani to just get up, look into somebody's yard and take pictures.
Alhaji Kamara questions what if the publication of the pictures had compromised his security?
The National Security Advisor has hinted that on Monday, he will drag Dr. Ani before the court to explain why he took those pictures.
Also, he would want an explanation from the MD on where he got the information that the cars are NCCE property which has been branded in NDC clours.
Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Abubakar Ibrahim | Email: [email protected]
Accra, April 2, GNA - Capital Bank, an indigenous bank, in a bid to offer more convenient customer-focused solutions, has increased its number of branches to 11, and it is offering comprehensive banking services on Saturdays.
The new additions are located in Dansoman and Ashaiman in the Greater Accra Region and another one in Kumasi.
Mr Daniel Gaikpah, the Chief Banking Officer, said: 'We believe that banking is about convenience so we are adopting a multi-channel approach aimed at delivering convenience across multiple customer contact points.'
He urged prospective customers to come on board and enjoy full bouquet of banking services from Capital Bank that would make them return again.
Mr Gaikpah said customers, who receive regular remittances from abroad could also visit the 11 branches of Capital Bank to receive monies from their relatives and families on Saturdays.
The Chief Banking Officer said currently, plans were also far advanced to make the bank's 'speed banking solution' which allows customers to deposit cash through their mobile phones are available in over 25,000 outlets nationwide.
'Capital Bank is expected to roll out a minimum of three new branches in strategic locations across the country,' he said.
He said the vision of the Bank was to become the local bank of excellence for African markets, providing the standard of measure for stakeholder return.
GNA
02.04.2016 LISTEN
Accra, April 2, GNA - President John Dramani Mahama on Friday received letters of credence from two new envoys who are beginning their duty tour of Ghana for the coming years.
The two envoys are; Pedro Luis Gonzalzes, Cuban Ambassador to Ghana and Umu Hawa Tejan-Jaloh, Sierra Leoonian High Commissioner to Ghana.
Receiving their letters at the Flagstaff House, Kanda, President Mahama said Ghana was positioning herself as the socio-economic hub of West Africa and would do everything possible that would make its position influential.
On Cuba, President Mahama said the two countries have over the years enjoyed massive cooperation especially in the areas of health and education.
He explained that while Cuba has been instrumental in Ghana's health sector through the posting of medical brigades to Ghana over the years, her contribution in training Ghanaian students in several fields has also been tremendous.
President Mahama appealed to the Cuban Ambassador to Ghana to collaborate with Ghana in the continuous fight against the elimination of malaria, which had accounted for the lives of several Ghanaian children in the past.
He commended the Cuban government for their rapid response and support during the outbreak of the Ebola virus disease in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone two years ago.
On Sierra Leone, President Mahama said Ghana would continue to play a leading role that would ensure peace and safety in their country.
He said governments of the two countries are currently engaged in talks on the supply of energy to Sierra Leone, which the government of Ghana would work out for more energy for both domestic consumption and for export to neighbouring countries.
Mr Gonzalzes, Cuban Ambassador to Ghana, expressed his country's willingness to strengthen the existing bilateral relations with Ghana.
He said others had played their part and he would use his tenure of office to touch on other areas that the two countries had the potentials to harness.
Madam Tejan-Jaloh, on her part, commended Ghana for her tremendous support to Sierra Leone during the outbreak of Ebola virus disease and the training of their Public Service officials after their recovery from the war.
In a related development, President Mahama also received Mr John Ruediger, out-going German Ambassador to Ghana.
The German Envoy was at the Flagstaff House to announce the end of his duty tour of Ghana.
President Mahama commended the German government for their support over the years to Ghana especially in the technical and vocational skills training among the youth in Ghana.
The President pledged to support Germany, Europe and other continents in the fight against terrorism in the world.
GNA
Tema, April 2, GNA - An environmentalist has called for the provision of receptacles in all public schools to encourage school children dispose- off refuse properly.
He said most schools do not have skips and bins and refuse are either dumped anywhere or gathered and burnt which bring about respiratory complications among school children.
Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in Tema, Mr Robert Amiteye, President of the Environmental Club, said the Ministry of Education and the various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies need to collaborate to let school children appreciate the effects of the proper disposal of refuse.
He said certain unscrupulous adults make the situation worse by dumping refuse and even defecate on school compounds.
"If we safeguard the school environment, we will be educating people who would detest littering and other bad environmental practices which have blighted the beauty of our towns and cities as well as increased the nation's health bill."
He said, "Schools provide the perfect environment to acquire healthy and patriotic practices and we must use it to make Ghanaians environmentally conscious."
GNA
Accra, April 2, GNA - Mr Marco Nyarko, a research assistant, has called for the teaching of the English language alongside the sign language for the deaf communities.
He said this would enable the deaf community to appreciate and improve on their English language.
Mr Nyarko was speaking at the final dissemination workshop for a prestigious international pilot project on peer to peer deaf literacy being undertaken by Lancaster University Ghana (LUG) and its partners, the UK's Lancaster University and University of Central Lancashire, India and Uganda in Accra.
The workshop was titled: 'Literacy development with deaf communities using sign language, peer tuition, and learner-generated online content: sustainable educational innovation.'
The project funded jointly by the Education and Social Research Council and the Department for International Development is aimed at equipping deaf sign language users with the knowledge and confidence to engage with written English texts, increase their employability status and quality of life.
The project led by deaf research assistants in the three countries, Peer-to-Peer Deaf Literacy will reveal new practices and interventions that policy makers can use to improve education, literacy and empowerment in deaf communities.
He said finding from the research indicates that the use of information communication technology would enhance literacy development among the deaf.
He said as part of the research, a platform would be developed to provide English-Language teaching for members of the deaf communities and also draft a model of effective language teaching interventions to guide policy and further innovation.
'We will also adapt the Common European Reference for Language for use in Ghana,' he said.
He said only three per cent of deaf people have access to education through sign language and in the case of Ghana, the setback to higher education was English Language competencies.
Mr Nyarko said the educational curriculum and traditional methods of teaching does not meet the learning needs of deaf people.
He said because of the English language barrier, most deaf people faced challenges in the bank, at the police station, hospital and in reading of newspapers.
He expressed the hope that all stakeholders would be involved to support the project to enable it go a long way to enhance literacy development of deaf communities in the country.
Dr John Grainger, Provost LUG, said many were happy with the way the project was going to impact on the lives of deaf people.
He said the project, which was being undertaken on a pilot bases would be expanded to run as a full project.
Mr Benjamin Bekoe, a participant, told the Ghana News Agency that the project would go a long way to improve on their English language.
GNA
Kwahu (E/R), April 2, GNA - Mr Jonathan Quaye, Ghana's first Paragliding pilot, has expressed his joy of partaking in this year's paragliding festival after successful training in Pune, India.
This year's festival, which was the 11th in the series, was held from Friday, 25th to Sunday, March 28, and it attracted many visitors, from abroad and across the nation.
As part of the festival, ten seasoned international paragliding pilots from the United States of America, Peru, Japan, France and Belgium came to the country to fly passengers during the event.
There were also fun activities such as food bazaar and indoor games including ludo, draught, oware, playing cards and scrabble as well live band music and cultural performances.
Mr Quaye, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, said he received six months training in paragliding in Pune, India in 2015 after he developed an interest in paragliding.
He urged Ghanaians to develop an interest in this field and also take the needed bold steps to train as a paragliding pilot.
Ms Mavis Ama Frimpong, the Eastern Regional Minister, commended the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) and the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, for their efforts to boost the tourism sector.
The paragliding festival is one of the flagship events on the tourism calendar and it is held every year by the GTA and under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts.
GNA
Accra, April 2, GNA - Ahead of the World Autism Day, which falls on April 2, the winners of the 2014 Tigo Digital Change-makers competition, Alice Amoako and Solomon Avemegah, have announced the launch of their new innovation, an Autism Aid App.
It is the first of its kind in Ghana, and will create awareness, support communication among persons living with autism; and assist parents and caregivers.
The free app can be downloaded from the Google Play store.
It has three main features; a Picture Exchange Communication System that helps children living with autism to improve on their communication skills, an awareness platform which provides information on autism and an SMS Helpline that connects parents and caregivers to doctors and other health professionals with several years of experience in caring for children with autism.
Speaking about the app, the elated Alice Amoako and Solomon Avemegah, reiterated that it is a dream come true project.
'This project started as an idea. We had a lot of enthusiasm and hope that one day we will be able to make an impactful contribution to caring for persons living with autism. With expert guidance and funding from Tigo Ghana, this idea has now become a reality. We are grateful to the entire Tigo team for supporting our dream'.
The Director for Corporate Affairs at Tigo, Gifty Bingley, said Tigo remains committed to leading the digital lifestyle among Ghanaians.
'With partnership from International NGO, Reach for Change, our Digital Change-makers competition supports young entrepreneurs to champion digital excellence'.
The App will be demonstrated live for parents, care givers and volunteers to understand how it works.
There will also be a free health screening for persons with autism.
The launch of the App forms part of the celebrations of the World Autism Day which begins with a walk at 8am on April 2, 2016.
It starts from the Efua Sutherland Children's Park through the principal streets of Sankara to Osu, the Koala lane and back to the Efua Sutherland Children's Park.
Key sponsor for the event is Tigo Ghana, with support from the Royal Bank, Vitamilk, Martha Ankomah Foundation, Accra Ridge Church, Special Ice mineral water, Ebern security, and the Ghana Telecom University College.
After several years of volunteering at the Autism Society of Ghana, Alice and Solomon, then students of the Ghana Telecom University thought about an Autism App and entered the 2014 Tigo Digital Change-makers competition.
They became the eventual winners and received the prize money of GHE60,000.00. They were mentored by the Director for Technology and Innovation at the Grameen Foundation, David Hutchful.
GNA
IVA Struggling with debt? Compare your debt options and write off up to 80% of your unsecured debts from 80 per month Get Started for free
What is an IVA? With an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) you can make affordable monthly payments towards a percentage of your debt for 5 years. At the end of the 5 year plan, your remaining debt will be completely written off.
Benefits of an IVA
Here is a list of the cost common advantages of an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA):
Affordability You will only be asked to pay back what you can afford, with allowances taken into account for food, bills, entertainment, travel, childcare and others. You may be sacrificing certain essential costs at the moment. With an IVA they are budgeted for so they will no longer be neglected
No upfront costs When you set up an IVA, there are no upfront costs whatsoever. This means that you can put a debt solution in place today without spending a penny
You have a finishing line Do you feel like there will be no end to your debt problems? With high interest costs and charges, the balances of your credit accounts may not reduce as you need them to. With an IVA you will become totally debt free at the completion of the IVA (usually 5 years). You can use this as an opportunity to change your financial life, for good
Confidential Your IVA is not advertised in the London Gazette or local newspaper. It is your decision whether you would like to disclose it to other people or not
No more contact from creditors When you are in an IVA, your creditors will no longer have the right to contact you or refer the debt on to debt collectors/bailiffs. This is a great benefit for most people as it will take away the stress caused by constant calls/texts/emails and home visits
Stay in your house Unlike some debt solutions, an IVA will allow you to stay in your current home. This is even the case if the property has a mortgage or is owned outright
Your pension An IVA does not have an impact on your pension. You will not have to surrender your pension or withdraw money from it to pay into your IVA
Risks of an IVA
Here is a list of the cost common disadvantages of an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA):
Equity Release If you own your property and it has value, you may be asked to release the equity in the property
Credit Rating If you have a perfect credit rating, this will be damaged and you will not be allowed to take out more debt whilst in an arrangement
You must keep up with repayments If you do not keep up with your monthly repayments, there is a risk you will be made bankrupt
Who qualifies for an IVA?
There is no office guidelines to who qualifies for an IVA. It is a legally binding, Government legislation designed to help all people. Generally speaking, insolvency practitioners (IP) will look at your situation if they think the IVA proposal they submit is beneficial to both yourself (the debtor) and your creditors. This often restricts people to a certain criteria which you will have to meet:
Over 5000 worth of unsecured debt You must have 2 or more creditors of 2 or more lines of credit Must live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland Must be insolvent Must be willing to pay at least 70 per month into their IVA Must have some type or types of regular income
What debts can I include in an IVA?
You can include a wide range of unsecured debts within your IVA. These include:
Credit card debt/credit cards
Loans/loan debt
Payday loans
Council tax arrears
HMRC debt
Overpaid benefits
Catalogues
Gas and electricity arrears
Overdrafts/overdraft debt
Water arrears
Income tax arrears
Debts to friends and family
Other unsecured debts
Note: If you are a resident of Scotland, you will need to apply for a Scottish Trust Deed (legally binding). Speak to our advisors for Scottish Debt Advice.
What debts cant be included in an IVA?
Secured loans
Your mortgage (if you still live in the house)
Car finance (if you still have the car)
Rent arrears for your current property
Court fines/Police fines
Hire purchase arrears (if you still have the product)
Log book loans (if you still have the vehicle that the debts are secured on)
Student loans
Other secured debts
What does I.V.A stand for?
IVA stands for Individual Voluntary Arrangement. It is a formal way to consolidate your debts into one affordable monthly repayment, resulting in the debtor becoming debt free at the end of their payments.
Can I apply for an IVA online?
Use the IVA Calculator to check your eligibility Prepare your IVA proposal and apply for your IVA. When your IVA is accepted, your creditors can no longer contact you. Pay 60 low monthly payments. After 5 years, you are out of your IVA and completely debt free.
Will an IVA affect my employment?
In most occupations, your credit rating or credit scoring is not a factor and it may never have been checked in the past, it may also be likely that it is not checked in the future either.
There is no law to tell you that you must advise your employer that you have entered an IVA or that you owe money. They will not be notified by your insolvency practitioner. If you wanted to keep it a private matter, in most cases this would be absolutely fine. With some roles such as financial advisors, solicitors or bank workers it may make up part of your contract to advise them of changes like this. In these situations we would advise to inform your employers of your intentions before you enter into any arrangements. This way there will be no nasty surprises for you later down the line. More often than not, we find that your employer would not be concerned by your IVA and that it would not affect your employment status. An IVA is a formal solution and could affect some employments, such as if you were a solicitor or accountant for example. We would always recommend that you receive approval from your employers that your job isnt affected before you sign up for anything.
Will an IVA impact my partner?
There are certain situations where you may not want to involve your partner at all in your IVA proposal due to personal reasons. Insolvency Practitioners are very aware of these circumstances and can operate solely via telephone and email and at your convenience, so rest assured that your matters can be kept completely private.
If the debts which you are looking to place into your IVA are in joint names, then this would be different. Your IP would look to place all of your debts into an IVA, including joint debts therefore you would have to inform your partner of your plans.
If your debts are solely yours, then there would be no negative impact on your partner, their credit score would remain unaffected and they would not be entered onto any registers or be tainted in any way.
Will an IVA affect my credit score/credit file?
Whilst you are in your arrangement, you will not be able to get any credit. An IVA will stay on your credit file for 6 years, so 12 months after a typical IVA. When this time has passed and your monthly payments have ended, you will be able to rebuild your credit rating.
What proof will I need to apply for an IVA?
Proof of ID Passport/driving license/birth certificate/utility bills/national insurance identification/credit agreement Bank statements 3 months bank statements with all transactions displayed Proof of income 3 months payslips/P60/proof of benefits
How long does it take to set up an IVA?
Your initial call will only last around 5-10 minutes. The IVA process will be explained to you and you will be told what further information you will need to provide to proceed with your IVA proposal. Once you have returned the required information, an IVA will usually take between 7-14 days to get into place. You will be protected from creditors within this time, your advisor will provide you with documentation via email.
How long does an IVA last?
Most IVAs will last for a length of five years. The i v a will remain on your credit file for a period of six years and is placed on the Insolvency Register for that period. You can work out what date it will be removed from your credit file, it will be six years from the start date of the IVA term. So if the IVA started on 1 January 2000, it should be removed from your credit file six years from that date, which would be 1 January 2006. When you apply for an individual voluntary arrangement your Insolvency Practitioner (IP) will tell you if you qualify for an IVA, how long it lasts, how much it costs and provide you with any other debt advice which you may need.
How much will debt advice cost for an Individual Voluntary Arrangement?
The advice cost for individual voluntary arrangements is free of charge. Your I.V.A company will tell you if you qualify for an IVA. They will talk to you about your different debts, provide you with free debt advice and check if your creditors are likely to approve your proposal for your IVA for debt.
How does an IVA affect your life?
By taking out an IVA you may affect your overall financial position. You will not be allowed to take out credit for 6 years. You will struggle to get a mortgage or remortgage your existing property. It also may affect any future increase in earnings or windfalls you may receive, as these will need to be paid to your insolvency practitioner. Your insolvency practitioner will take control of your debts for this period, they will deal with all of your creditors and this is legally binding. That means you will not be allowed to take out any more debts whilst in the IVA.
Once the plan is completed, any debts which you accrue will be managed by yourself. Your ability to take out further debts in the future will not be impacted once the IVA has completed.
What is the IVA protocol?
The I.V.A protocol is a voluntary set of guidelines which your Insolvency Practitioner (IP) can sign up for which improves the efficiency of Individual Voluntary Arrangements. When you apply for debt advice, it is important that you understand the steps of the debt solution, so you can decide whether or not the solution is the best one for your circumstances.
How do I know if creditors will accept my IVA?
Generally speaking, most creditors will approve voluntary arrangements for unsecured debt. But some debts can not be included within one formal debt solution. Your Insolvency Practitioner will tell you how likely it is that your creditors will be willing to accept your proposal, based on the voting creditors.
Can I pay in one lump sum?
There are occasions when you may be eligible for a debt solution which is payable in a one off lump sum as a final settlement to your creditors. This is usually when the money is being gifted from some one else, or you have received inheritance or a windfall for example. With a one-off lump sum payment, the advice is usually the same as when you normally apply for an IVA. You wouldnt have to make regular payments into the solution, your IP can provide you with more advice on one off lump sum solutions for your debts. Your IP will provide you with more advice on the debt IVA and explain what is IVA to you.
Who regulates the debt industry?
At present the debt industry is not regulated. Some Insolvency Practitioners offices choose to sign up to the Insolvency Practitioners Association (IPA) or register with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). You can contact the IPA using the contact details or email address on their website. Your creditors do not regulate the debt industry and your creditors will not be able to impact any decisions which the IPA or FCA make. In our experience, the regulators will take assertive action on any advisers or businesses which do not comply with their strict codes of practice. To check if a person is regulated by the FCA, enter their name into the search box in the FCA website.
Should I use a debt charity?
There are thousands of companies which provide debt help in the UK. You may be looking for an alternative to a private company. You should know that charities usually pass their fee charging products to sister companies which charge fees and disbursements, just like private companies. So what you initially thought was a good option, on further analysis could be different to what you originally thought. Charities do have their part to play though. They can help you if you have a problem with your bank accounts, maintenance arrears, living costs, credit reference agencies, child support arrears, bankruptcy, assets, accountancy issues, mortgages, creditor issues, insurance providers, mobiles, your bank account, rates arrears, PAYE contributions or if you want to work out your expenditure. They can make sure that you speak to an adviser or supervisor and look at proposals to offer your lender. A petition has started with the possibility of a debate in parliament about how charities represent themselves and their services.
Which charities help with debt?
You can contact Money Advice Service, National Debtline, Step Change, Shelter or a combination of the three. Charities are particular useful for a low debt level under 1,000. If the debt is high (such as a debt value of 10,000 or more) you would usually seek an assessment from a professional adviser. If you do decide to use a charity to guide you, make sure you check their charity number and the registration number on their website to make sure you are content that their team can answer your questions in the right ways. A lot of clients of charities have a minimum debt level which does not meet the basis for an IVA, so you could always chat to a charity that is happy to act on your behalf for low debt levels.
Although an I.V.A could be the answer to your debt problem, its important to understand the monthly payment so call us on our free phone number. Anyone customers can receive expert feedback on their rights from debt charities, if they cant help they will usually point you in the director of firms which help with IVAs.
We are homeowners, will lenders see my proposal differently?
In some cases yes. In the majority of cases, if you are a homeowner you will not need to remortgage or take out any additional finances that will effect your property. You will need to sign a additional restrictions which remove your ability to take out additional credit tied to your property, which is something that is restricted once you are in an i.v.a. There are exceptions to this, such as when you have a lot of equity in your property/properties. If you own half of a property and another party owns the other half, only your equity will be affected.
If you are landlord and you are in a position of equity, your IP may review your trading position or business to make sure the figures in question are in order. This is usually the case if you have two or more properties, as sometimes the equity can be used to form a repayment to your creditors. But this usually depends on the amount of value built up in your properties.
Banks and building societies will not change the terms of your mortgage as long as a contribution is still being made for the duration of your arrangement. Your mortgage payments will be added to your expenses and accounted for within your budget, as long as you can provide evidence that you can afford to continue to make payments into your mortgage for duration of the plan.
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April 02, 2016 U.S. CentCom History: "2014 - Syrian Terrorist Group ISIS Invades Iraq" Significant parts of the U.S. military, its secret services and its politicians want to deny any culpability in the creation of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Thus they resort to extreme falsifications of historical facts. They create fantasy narratives that completely leave out their own mistakes. The U.S. Central Command created a coalition of several countries' military to wage war on ISIS. The operation is known under the the moniker "Inherent Resolve". CentCom created a website that propagandizes the operation. On the About page of that website we find this "History" of ISIS:
bigger HISTORY In the summer of 2014, a new terrorist group which had risen during the chaos of the Syrian Civil War attacked across the Syrian-Iraqi borders and seized large swaths of Iraqi territory in the Euphrates River Valley and northern Iraq. Several Iraqi towns fell to the invaders, who called themselves The Islamic State. By the end of summer, it seemed that Baghdad itself was threatened by IS. This is not only far away from the truth but an outrageous fabrication to deny and distort what really happened. ISIS was not created in Syria but in Iraq, it existed way before 2014 and its existence has nothing to do with war on Syria. To state that ISIS somehow came from Syria and in 2014 invaded Iraq is like claiming that Hitler invaded Germany in 1944. ISIS was created in Iraq due to the U.S. war on Iraq. The leading ISIS members, former Al-Qaeda in Iraq fighters, found each other and planned the creation of ISIS Caliphate in 2006 in the U.S. prisoner camp Bucca in Iraq: According to a CBS News investigation, at least 12 of the top leaders of ISIS served time at Camp Bucca, including the man who would become the group's leader, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi. CBS News obtained photos of 10 of them in Bucca's yellow prison jumpsuits.
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"I think it's undeniable that one of the main causes of ISIS's explosive growth after 2010 was Bucca. It's where they met, it's where they planned," said Patrick Skinner. Skinner is with the Soufan Group and was a former CIA case officer who spent time in Iraq. It is undeniable that ISIS started in Iraq years before the war on Syria: October 2006 - AQI leader Abu Ayyub al-Masri announces the creation of Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), and establishes Abu Omar al-Baghdadi as its leader. April 2010 - Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi becomes leader of ISI after Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and Abu Ayyub al-Masri are killed in a joint U.S.-Iraqi operation. April 2013 - ISI declares its absorption of an al Qaeda-backed militant group in Syria, Jabhat al-Nusra, also known as the al-Nusra Front. Al-Baghdadi says that his group will now be known as Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). Al-Nusra Front leader Abu Mohammed al-Jawlani rejects ISIS's attempt to merge with the group. The above CNN timeline jumps over 2011 when the Al-Nusra's leader Abu Mohammed al-Jawlani was sent by al-Baghdadi to Syria from Iraq to reorganize Al-Qaeda cells that were secretly established in Syria long before the first demonstrations there took place. Al-Jawlani, who had also been imprisoned in Camp Bucca, came to Syria in March 2011 when the first demonstrations against the Syrian government just started: A leader of Jordans ultra-Orthodox and banned Salafi movement said al-Baghdadi sent al-Golani and Abu Jleibeen, a senior al-Qaeda operative who has a relationship by marriage to al-Zarqawi, to fight in Syria, .. Like Ahrar al-Shams, Jabhat Al-Nusra cells were secretly establishing themselves even before the "revolution" in Syria began: The Ahrar started working on forming brigades after the Egyptian revolution, Abu Zayd said, well before March 15, 2011, when the Syrian revolution kicked off with protests in the southern agricultural city of Daraa. To claim that the Islamic State somehow started in Syria, as CentCom does, is to claim the opposite of what really happened. The Islamic State under Baghdadi sent fighters and leaders to Syria to created and prop-up the "revolution" against the Syrian state. The religious and philosophical roots of ISIS are grounded in Wahhabism and are of Saudi, not Syrian or Iraqi, origin. Another fake history story is build by the CIA elements and U.S. politicians who launched the war on Syria from the "color revolution" side. Witness this astonishingly false CBS headline: Obama Nixed CIA Plan That Could Have Stopped ISIS: Officials The CIA in 2012 proposed a detailed covert action plan designed to remove Syrian President Bashar Assad from power, but President Obama declined to approve it, current and former U.S. officials tell NBC News.
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[The CIA chief] Petraeus and others who supported the plan believe it could have prevented the rise of ISIS, Assad's use of chemical weapons, the European refugee crisis and the tens of thousands of civilian deaths that have happened since, the former officials say. Overthrowing the Syrian government would have created more chaos in Syria which very likely the Islamic State, already established in Syria at that time in the form of Jabhat al-Nusra, would have used to take Damascus and to gain primacy in Syria. Everything else is pure wishful thinking which ignores the military superiority the Takfiri groups like Ahrar, Nusra and ISIS have always had compared to the "moderate" Jihadist rebels that have direct U.S. support. The CBS piece is also about the former CIA man who was the original author of the covert action plan. He seems to disagree with what the CBS headline claims: Looking back, Laux now says he doesn't believe his or any other covert plan could have stopped the rise of ISIS or ended Syria's bloody civil war. "There were no moderates," he says. It is frightening to think that Central Command, which is supposed to fight the Islamic State, might believe its own propaganda, that ISIS came from Syria. One can not successfully fight ISIS when one does not know its real origin: the U.S. war on Iraq and CentCom's own meager to ignorant performance during that war. Posted by b on April 2, 2016 at 15:45 UTC | Permalink Comments
Saudi Arabia will freeze its oil output only if Iran and other major producers do so, the kingdom's deputy crown prince said, challenging the country's main regional rival to take an active role in stabilizing the over-supplied global crude market.
The warning by Mohammed bin Salman, 30, who has emerged as Saudi Arabia's leading political force, leaves the outcome of a meeting between OPEC and other big oil producers this month in question. Iran has already said it plans to boost its production after the lifting of sanctions following a deal to curb the country's nuclear program.
"If all countries agree to freeze production, we're ready," bin Salman said in an interview with Bloomberg. "If there is anyone that decides to raise their production, then we will not reject any opportunity that knocks on our door."
After the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries abandoned its efforts to boost oil prices in November 2014, focusing instead on protecting its market share, Saudi Arabia increased production to an all-time high of more than 10.5 million barrels a day, claiming that customers were asking for more oil.
The meeting of oil producers in Qatar on April 17 follows a gathering in February between Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Russia and Venezuela in which the quartet tentatively agreed to cap their production at January's level.
The deal, which helped to lift the price of benchmark Brent crude to about $40 a barrel from a 12-year low of $27.10 a barrel in January, was contingent on other countries joining it.
Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh will attend Doha discussions but won't join a production freeze, according to a person familiar with the nation's policy. Tehran will maintain its policy of regaining market share lost during years of sanctions, said the person, who asked not to be identified as the talks are private.
The International Energy Agency said that Iran, in its first full month freed of nuclear sanctions in February, lifted its oil production to a four-year high of 3.22 million barrels a day. Oil traders are expecting another increase in March.
Traders and analysts have speculated that Riyadh could be ready to voluntarily cap its output at the current level of about 10.2 million barrels a day even if Iran doesn't join. But asked during the five-hour interview in a royal compound in Riyadh whether Iran needed to take part, Bin Salman said, "without a doubt."
"If all countries including Iran, Russia, Venezuela, OPEC countries and all main producers decide to freeze production, we will be among them," he said.
The prince said that Saudi Arabia was ready to weather the oil crisis by reforming its economy.
"I don't believe that the decline in oil prices poses a threat to us," he said, adding that a rise in prices, while having budgetary benefits for the kingdom, was also a "threat to the lifespan of oil."
Bin Salman suggested prices will rise over the next two years as demand continues to increase, but he made clear Riyadh has very little appetite for the return of OPEC production management that molded the oil industry for 30 years.
"For us it's a free market that is governed by supply and demand and this is how we deal with the market," he said.
A wave of projects approved at the start of the decade, when oil traded near $100 a barrel, has bolstered output for many producers, keeping cash flowing even as prices plummeted. Now, that production boon is fading. In 2016, for the first time in years, drillers will add less oil from new fields than they lose to natural decline in old ones.
About 3 million barrels a day will come from new projects this year, compared with 3.3 million lost from established fields, according to Oslo-based Rystad Energy. By 2017, the decline will outstrip new output by 1.2 million barrels as investment cuts made during the oil rout start to take effect. That trend is expected to worsen.
"There will be some effect in 2018 and a very strong effect in 2020," said Per Magnus Nysveen, Rystad's head of analysis, adding that the market will re-balance this year. "Global demand and supply will balance very quickly because we're seeing extended decline from producing fields."
A lot of the new production is from deepwater fields that oil majors chose not to abandon after making initial investments, Nysveen said in a phone interview.
Royal Dutch Shell is scheduled to start the Stones project in the Gulf of Mexico's deepest oil field this year after approving it in May 2013. Benchmark Brent crude averaged $103 a barrel that month compared with about $41 on Monday. Stones will add about 50,000 barrels a day to Gulf of Mexico output at a peak rate, according to Shell.
Two other deepwater projects, run by Noble Energy Inc. and Freeport-McMoran Inc., are due to commence this year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said in a Feb. 18 report. Anadarko Petroleum Corp. started the Heidelberg field in January.
That will help boost production in the Gulf of Mexico by 8.4 percent this year to a record annual average of 1.67 million barrels a day, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Eni, Italy's largest oil company, started the Goliat field in the Arctic this month and Shell began producing from a new area of the BC-10 project in Brazil on March 14. British driller Tullow Oil plans to begin output from the Tweneboa-Enyenra-Ntomme field offshore Ghana in July or August.
"There is a wide range of upstream projects coming online in 2016, and that is a function of the high levels of investment deployed back when we were in a $100 a barrel world," said Angus Rodger, a Singapore-based analyst at energy consulting firm Wood Mackenzie. "In the short term, they will generate far lower returns than originally envisaged."
Yet, these developments won't be enough to counter the natural decline in oil fields that are starting to suffer from lower investment. A little more than a year after Shell approved the Stones project in 2013, oil prices began their slump, with Brent dropping to a 12-year low below $28 a barrel in January.
That has squeezed budgets of oil producers and project approvals have dwindled. From 2007 to 2013, companies took final investment decisions on an average 40 mid- to large-sized oil and gas projects a year, Wood Mackenzie's Rodger said. That fell to below 15 in 2014 and to less than 10 last year. Neither Rodger nor Rystad's Nysveen expect an upturn this year.
Morgan Stanley estimates nine projects are in contention to get the green light this year, including BP's Mad Dog Phase 2 in the Gulf of Mexico and Eni's Zohr gas field in Egypt. These are among 232 projects, excluding U.S. shale, awaiting approval following deferrals over the past two years, according to a Jan. 29 report.
Companies cut capital expenditure on oil and gas fields by 24 percent last year and will reduce that by another 17 percent in 2016, according to the International Energy Agency. That's the first time since 1986 that spending will fall in two consecutive years, the agency said Feb. 22.
"We see oil investments are declining substantially," IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said in Berlin on March 17. "That we've never seen in the history of oil."
Even after reducing costs for conventional projects by an average of about 15 percent last year, many still aren't competitive, Wood Mackenzie's Rodger said. Shell approved the Appomattox oil field in the Gulf of Mexico last year at a break-even oil price of $55 a barrel, still above current market rates of $41.49 a barrel at 6:19 a.m. in New York on Tuesday.
"The industry has had a real reset, with costs coming down and break-even prices for projects falling," said Brendan Warn, a managing director at BMO Capital Markets in London, said by phone. "But costs will have to come down further."
CUPERTINO, Calif. (AP) Apple turned 40 on Friday, and it's a very different company from the audacious startup that Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak launched in a Silicon Valley garage in 1976.
Today, the maker of iPhones and Mac computers is the world's most valuable public corporation, with 100,000 employees and a new, multi-billion dollar headquarters in Cupertino, California, set to open next year. But despite its astounding financials Apple reported $53 billion in profit on $233 billion in sales last year some critics have suggested Apple's best years are behind it, as it has struggled to come up with new products and match the phenomenal success it has had in recent years.
Not surprisingly, longtime employees like software vice president Guy "Bud" Tribble disagree.
"We still think we're going to change the world," said Tribble, one of a half-dozen Apple staffers selected by the company to briefly reminisce with reporters this week. Tribble started with Apple in 1980 and worked on the original Macintosh team. He added: "We had no idea back then that Apple would grow to the size that it is."
The company now boasts that more than 1 billion Apple devices iPods, iPhones, iPads, Macs and AppleWatches are in regular use around the world. Those products are widely admired and imitated. But Appledepends on the iPhone for two-thirds of its revenue. And after selling a record number of iPhones last year, analysts say sales are leveling off and may even decline this year.
As it enters middle age, Apple may find it difficult to maintain its leadership in the industry. Some experts say it's getting harder to come up with new advances to distinguish Apple's products from those of its competitors.
"Apple is still as good as it used to be, but everyone else has gotten better than they used to be," said James McQuivey, a tech analyst with Forrester Research.
He cited longtime rival Microsoft, once viewed as an industry laggard, but now credited with pioneering tablet computers with detachable keyboards a category even Apple is embracing with the business-oriented iPad Pro. By contrast, he noted, Apple's latest iPhone is a downsized version of earlier models.
Longtime staffers said Apple still has the zeal to create revolutionary products.
"We've done this more times than anybody else," said Greg Joswiak, a 30-year employee and vice president for product marketing. He listed the iPod, iPhone, iPad, iTunes and the company's online App Store, the newApple Watch and recent initiatives to create new health-tracking and medical-research apps for the iPhone and Watch.
Apple is widely believed to be exploring new businesses, from electric cars to virtual reality, but analysts say developing products in those categories could take years.
"We want to go into new industries ... and really challenge the status quo," said Divya Nag, a former medical researcher and entrepreneur hired in 2014 to work on Apple's health projects. Always secretive about specific plans, Apple declined to provide Nag's job title. Her resume shows a track record of helping win FDA approval for new medical inventions.
Apple's growth hasn't been smooth. Jobs was forced out in the 1990s, leading to a revolving door for chief executives until he returned in 1997, as the company he co-founded was on the brink of collapse. "There was a time when you were worried about keeping engineers here," said Cheryl Thomas, a vice president for software engineering who joined Apple in 1989.
And in 2000, when the dot-com bubble burst, Joswiak said Jobs refused to cut spending when competitors were tightening their belts. Joswiak said Jobs pledged to "invest in ourselves more than ever before. We then suffered through 11 straight quarters" of dismal financial returns.
Jobs' death from cancer in 2011 led to the elevation of current CEO Tim Cook, who's intense but softer spoken. Tribble credits Cook with maintaining Apple's focus on quality products, even as Cook has taken his own path in running the company.
Far more than Jobs, Cook uses his prominence to speak out on social issues, from global warming to civil rights and individual privacy. He recently challenged the U.S. government in a high-stakes legal dispute over an encrypted iPhone used by an extremist killer. While that drew criticism from top Justice Department officials and GOP presidential contender Donald Trump, Joswiak said he was proud of Apple for taking what he considers a principled stand.
Apple remains one of the most sought-after brands. BAV Consulting, a firm that tracks brand reputation, said that after reaching a low in 2001, just before the iPod came out, Apple is now in the top 1 percent of American brands. And it's in the top 2 percent of brands "being worth paying more for" which means it can get away with charging more for its products, according to BAV.
Even at 40, the company hasn't lost its passion, Thomas said. She said she wanted to work there since seeing the famous 1984 Macintosh commercial, in which a young woman hurls a hammer at the giant image of a Big Brother figure.
The idea of joining what was then a tech upstart didn't sit well with her father, a career IBM scientist, who advised Thomas: "You need to think with your head and not your heart."
But Thomas said: "I thought with my heart."
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ATLANTA (AP) The government urged health officials around the country Friday to get ready now in case there are outbreaks of the mosquito-borne Zika virus in the U.S. this summer.
A Zika epidemic has been sweeping through Latin America and the Caribbean, and officials think it's likely some small clusters of Zika will occur in the U.S. when mosquito numbers boom.
At a "Zika Summit" on Friday, experts prodded some 300 state and local officials gathered at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters to make Zika response plans now.
When West Nile virus transmitted by a different mosquito moved through the U.S. about 15 years ago, health officials were caught flat-footed, noted Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association.
"This is an opportunity to get ahead of the curve," he told the summit's attendees.
The Zika virus causes only a mild and brief illness, at worst, in most people. But in the last year, infections in pregnant women have been strongly linked to fetal deaths and to potentially devastating birth defects, mostly in Brazil.
The virus is spread mainly by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which also live in parts of the U.S. It was thought to be mainly in the South but the CDC revised its map this week, showing the mosquito has been found in parts of the Midwest and Northeast.
Officials don't expect Zika to be a big problem, though, in the U.S. for a number of reasons, including the widespread use of air conditioning and screens. The Zika mosquito likes to bite indoors. They think the clusters may be small and surface only in a few states most likely Florida and Texas. But they don't know for sure.
So far, there have been no Zika infections in the U.S. caught from mosquitoes. More than 300 illnesses have been reported, all linked to travel to Zika outbreak regions.
About 350 additional cases have been reported in U.S. territories, most of them in Puerto Rico, where mosquitoes are already spreading the virus. Together, dozens or even hundreds of births in the 50 states and territories could be affected in devastating ways by Zika, said Dr. Edward McCabe of the March of Dimes, who spoke at the summit.
"We have a few short weeks to stop the Zika virus from gaining a foothold," McCabe said.
During the summit, state and local officials were encouraged to map where the Zika mosquito lives and breeds in the state and which insecticides would work best in their area.
The Zika response will likely mean workers will go door to door, sometimes asking to go on properties and even spray. That's different from the truck- and aerial-spraying seen in conventional mosquito eradication efforts.
It will be a kind of campaign not seen in this country since efforts to wipe out yellow fever in the 1950s and 1960s, and it will take different kinds of equipment, approaches and more staff, CDC officials said.
Local health officials at the summit said the work ahead is daunting, especially since it's not clear where they're going to get the money. And health departments are already struggling financially, said Dr. Jeff Duchin, a Seattle-based county public health official who was at the meeting representing the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
"Our priority is to make sure we have enough resources to meet the threat," Duchin said.
Paul Ettestad, New Mexico's public health veterinarian, said some of the state's counties only have a handful of people doing mosquito control work the same people who also handle snow removal in the winter
"They don't have much," Ettestad said
The Obama administration in February requested nearly $2 billion in emergency funding for Zika response work. Congressional leaders have not formally voted on the request.
One of the things money is needed for, officials said, is better and faster blood tests for Zika. Now, it takes between a few days to a week to get results.
If Zika starts spreading in the U.S, women of childbearing age are going to be "intensely concerned," predicted Dr. Bill Foege, a former CDC director and expert on global health. "They're going to want to know if they are infected and they're not going to want to wait a week."
Tim Fischer
BRENHAM, Texas (AP) Blue Bell Creameries has told federal inspectors that it believes listeria bacteria spread at its Oklahoma plant through a drainage system.
The Texas-based ice cream company revealed the findings in documents sent to the Food and Drug Administration.
WACO, Texas (AP) The term of a Texas grand jury considering the cases of bikers arrested after a deadly shootout last year at a Waco, Texas, restaurant has expired, giving defense attorneys hope that the 39 people whose cases weren't considered won't be indicted.
But McLennan County District Attorney Abel Reyna said Friday that he could still present the cases to another grand jury and that the criminal investigation continues.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) The parents of a 1-year-old girl say their daughter has died after undergoing general anesthesia to fill cavities at a dentist office.
The Texas State Board of Dental Examiners is investigating the death of Daisy Lynn Torres while the family awaits autopsy results to find out what went wrong.
Daisy Lynn was supposed to have two cavities filled at Austin Children's Dentistry early Tuesday morning. Her mother, Betty Squier, says that after Daisy underwent anesthesia, the dentist came out and told her they needed to do additional dental work. Squier says she trusted the dentist was making the right decisions.
A short time later, Squier was told that Daisy Lynn had gone into cardiac arrest. Squier says that by the time paramedics arrived at the hospital, her baby was brain dead.
For now, the couple is trying to make funeral arrangements in Houston, where their families live.
"I just want everyone to know that we're very thankful for everyone that's supporting us through this difficult time, and everyone's prayers and comments and uplifting words has really made an impact, and it's something that we really need right now," she said.
A Dallas case in which a 4-year-old boy suffered a fatal drug overdose while having cavities treated prompted an investigation published by The Dallas Morning News in December. The dentist's dosage was double what state dental schools approved for sedating preschoolers. State regulators gave the dentist a $3,000 fine, online remedial classes and unsupervised probation.
The 18-month investigation found that state agencies charged with protecting the public often fail to take strong action against dangerous dentists. Even those who are disciplined can find it easy to keep working with little or no oversight.
The boy was one of at least 85 dental patients who have died in Texas since 2010. The newspaper reported that the number of similar deaths nationwide is likely much higher.
Rap lyrics have always faced intense scrutiny from parents, lawmakers and those supposedly out to protect the youth. Whether or not it is censorship is debatable on a case by case basis, but one recent incident has brought the issue back into the forefront. A select group of students at George Washington University, led by Sarah Blugis, the opinions editor for the GW Hatchet, launched a protest against their Spring Fling headliner Action Bronson, accusing him of being a "blatant misogynist" and "transphobic."
In the editorial posted on Tuesday, March 29, Blugis wrote, "Bronson has a history of public transphobia, and has mocked transgender people on Instagram." She also pointed to his song "Consensual Rape" and the video for "Brunch."
"He's also been widely criticized for the song 'Consensual Rape,' in which he describes drugging and raping a woman," wrote Blugis. "One of his music videos, for a song called 'Brunch,' depicts Bronson cooking a meal next to a woman's dead body, putting her body in the trunk of his car, then stabbing her repeatedly while shouting gendered insults."
As a result, the GW programming board removed Bronson from the concert at the 11th hour and have not announced who will replace him. The majority of students appear to be against the decision to remove him, judging by the student response.
The programming board released a statement, saying "We apologize to the GW community for causing distress over the past few days and for attempting to bring an artist who is not consistent with our values of diversity and inclusion. Spring Fling is intended to be an event for all students to enjoy and including Action Bronson in the day would go against this."
As a result of this, Action Bronson took to Facebook to respond to these allegations.
I understand that when it comes to musicians, and more specifically rappers, the lyrics I say are taken to heart many times as a representation of my beliefs or true feelings," he wrote. "SO please let me make this very clear: I think rape and acts of violence toward woman are DISGUSTING. I would never condone anything remotely close to that type of behavior, and it's certainly not what I'm about at all."
The concert is slated to take place tomorrow, April 2, which makes the timing of the cancellation quite odd and inconvenient for students who already bought tickets. Goldlink, the initial opener will now be the headliner, while school act Lean Quatifah is the official opener. Good luck ever booking another rapper with that attitude GW.
2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Swedish dance-pop super-duo Galantis have released their brand new song "No Money." Co-written by Digital Farm Animals and Bullysongs, the track is another piece of dance-pop mastery from the pair of Christian Karlsson, aka Bloodshy of Miike Snow and Linus Elkow, also known as Style of Eye. and the first original since their 2015 album Pharmacy.
Short and sweet, Galantis keep this to just three minutes, packing the track with as many singable moments and catchy hooks as they can. They succeed in putting together another infections instrumental, highlighted by a high-pitched steel drum, four on the floor bass line and simple, yet effective piano melody. With the vocal, it all comes together into another big track from Galantis with radio appeal.
Vocals from a young 12 year old Reece sing the catchy and triumphant vocals about standing up to a bully who tried to take your money. "Sorry I ain't got no money I'm not trying to be funny but I left it all at home today / You can call me what you wanna I ain't giving you a dollar, this time I ain't gonna run away / You might knock me down, you might knock me down, but I will get back up again / You can call it how you wanna I ain't giving you a dollar, this time I ain't gonna run away, run away, run away," Reece sings in the main verse.
Galantis explained how the song came together in various cities across the world in a statement.
"We experimented for quite some time on this one; it was one of those Galantis enigma puzzles where you just have to keep on trying piece by piece to get it right. Started the chord progression in Silver Lake LA, built the body in Sukhumvit, Bangkok, and finished it off in the Stockholm archipelago," explains Galantis. "It feels like the track has a flavor of each place actually. Finally, 12 year old Reece delivered the vocal in perfect manner and we knew we had something we really loved."
2016 will probably be a down year for Galantis as Karlsson focuses on Miike Snow following the release of their new album iii in March, The group is touring extensively right now and has a large list of festival gigs this summer across North America and Europe.
Pick up "No Money" on iTunes.
2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Someone should sue the President for ...
Lake Tulloch View View Photos
Oakdale, CA If plans are carried out as proposed, New Melones Reservoir will sit higher, come September, and Lake Tulloch will have a normal recreational season.
This, according to Tri-Dam Partner Oakdale Irrigation District (OID) General Manager Steve Knell, who shares that his district and partner, the South San Joaquin Irrigation District (SSJID), will join Bureau of Reclamation officials as they present their proposed operational plan for the remainder of the water-year at a public State Water Board session next Tuesday at 1. Among the goals, besides meeting all the required water flows, is to leave New Melones Reservoir in a better position that last year.
Obviously, the reservoir is going to fill up significantly this year because of run-off, but also it is going drop off significantly because of all the demands that we put on itfor agriculture, for the environment, Knell explains. What you want at the end of September to be is better than where you were last year, and last year we finished at 267,000 acre-feet of storage in a 2.4 million acre-foot reservoir so we were barely at ten percent. So hopefully, if our management plan works out well, we would have 400,000 or 500,000 acre-feet in New Melonesso we are adding to the pool.
Multi-agency Efforts Working Well
Knell figures that almost for every year the state remains in a drought it takes two to get out. So Melones is going to fill very slowly annual demands on the reservoir are equal to the inflows that come in on an average year, so we live on average in Melones, he states. Commenting on the multi-agency management plan efforts, he adds, I think we have learned, at least in our basin, cooperation gets you a lot further down the road than not cooperating. I think everybody has played well and is doing what they can. Everybody recognizes the challenges we have and we are working well together.
Generally during average years the reservoir does not gain very much, if any, additional storage without some changes in outflow management. This is the battle, and I think this is true for most of the reservoirs in California, because of water demands in the state and most of these reservoirs are fully committed on average years to meeting that need in the statehence you have very slow reservoir refill and it takes you years to get back to where those reservoirs were, Knell maintains. He further figures, In a four-year drought it could be six to eight years before we are going to see Melones up at where it was in the 1.8 million to 2 million acre-foot of storage and that is if we get above average snowfall years in those periods of time.
Knell has good news for those who are looking forward to an enjoyable recreational season out on Lake Tulloch. As previously reported here, last seasons drought-led plans to potentially draw it down early for fish and farming concerns are not currently in the works. This year for Lake Tulloch we see no more operations so Tulloch is now on its annual refill right now, he confirms, with more than a hint of relief in his voice.
A Great Rec Year For Tulloch Ahead
An afterbay to New Melones, summertime elevations at Tulloch help maintain a backwater condition at the New Melones outlet, which enable power plant turbines to run. Knell details that, according to the proposed plan, Tulloch will creep up at a normal refill this year and will stay at its normal recreational level all the way until sometime in September, when they bring the level down for its winter operating range we dont see any changes in those levels we think we will have a great recreational year at Tulloch, with the reservoir being where it always is in the summertime, meeting those needs.
Knell shares a point learned in the wake of last years multi-agency management plan was that when New Melones practically got down to its relative dregs, trying to control water temperatures downstream with coldwater releases for fish flows was almost impossible. So at least we wont have all these concerns in drawing down Tulloch all those discussions, effortsjust were not effective at a reservoir this low so we are not even going to worry about it, which is why Tulloch will be at normal operations this year, he states.
The way things currently look, Knell confides that New Melones Reservoir will probably reach maximum storage this year in June at about 700,000 AF before winding up around 400,000 AF at the end of September. Offering a point of reference, he recalls that back in September of 2014 Melones stood close to a half-million AF.
New road signs being installed View Photos
Bill Hill, CA Unclear signage piqued the interest of a Tuolumne County Sheriffs Deputy, who, while patrolling an area neighborhood, worried of their safety implications for residents.
While making his rounds in the Big Hill area along the winding Quail Mine Road, Deputy Joe Morton discovered a disturbing dilemma that recently repaved roads had no clear street signs posted. Noting that this was not only unsafe for law enforcement and emergency crews but also to the public, Morton decided to investigate further. Tuolumne County Sheriffs spokesperson Sgt. Andrea Benson shares, He spoke to citizens, who relayed that numerous times when residents were in need of emergency services, they have had to give driving directions by phone to fire personnel.
Those dangers caused Deputy Morton to spring into action for a solution. Although the county does not maintain these roads, he went straight to the top to Sheriff Jim Mele for help. Mele agreed there was a need for visible street signs to ensure proper responses and for safety. Sgt. Benson explains, The sheriffs office then received maps of the area and were given training to the Tuolumne County Jail Inmate Work Crew by the county road crews to be able to install the street signs. (As seen in the pictures in the upper left-hand image box)
Donations from private citizens through the Friends of the Sheriff General Fund paid for the signs.
Sonora, CA Although the nations health is lacking, according to the American Public Health Association (APHA), the public can still make strides.
With statistics from APHA that find the U.S. not only spends more on healthcare than comparable countries, but live shorter lives due to health issues related to obesity, diabetes, heart disease and infant mortality there is a way to change that bleak outlook one healthy step at a time. Tuolumne County Health officials say this is the motive behind National Public Health Week, which runs from April 4-10 this year.
Area residents are encouraged to hit the Dragoon Gulch trail with health department staff for a walk-hike on Thursday, April 7 at 5:30 p.m. The meeting spot will be at the trailhead in the parking lot of Woods Creek Park . There will be information on various public health education programs with a health goodie bag for the first 20 participants.
Florida Highway Patrol troopers have discovered a dangerous issue on I-4 they believe could be contributing to recent fatal accidents between Longwood and Sanford.
They believe the lack of construction in that area could be leading to more speeding.
On her trip back to Philadelphia on Friday, Mary Loyden was greeted by the construction on I-4 in Orange County, and parts of southern Seminole County.
Stopping and starting, stopping and starting, and then you see the sign that says congestion the next 12 miles, said Loyden.
But Loyden noticed the road open up when construction ended as she got further into Seminole County.
I guess people get so frustrated that when they finally get out of that starting and stopping mode, they zoom - take off! said Loyden. And thats when the trouble starts.
FHP troopers believe people are using the stretch of I-4 that runs through Longwood, Lake Mary and Sanford to make up for lost time by speeding.
They say all that speed is creating a dangerous situation.
In just the last week, there were three different crashes on I-4 between Longwood and Sanford, including a van crash Easter weekend that took the lives of two people.
FHP is now sending extra troopers to the area. They say troopers and Seminole County deputies will be closely monitoring for speeders throughout the weekend.
Loyden says shes anxious to get back to Philadelphia, but she says she and her son wont be speeding to get their faster.
Youre not going to get there any faster, said Loyden.
FHP says theyre going to meet with the Seminole County Sheriffs Office Monday to figure out some long-term solutions to the problem.
The local American muslim community met with state lawmakers in Longwood Friday night, to talk about how they can become more engaged in the political process in Central Florida.
"Were slowly becoming more politically active," said Atif Fareed, the chairman of the American Muslim Community Centers.
More than one hundred people of all ages attended the town hall at the American Muslim Community Center.
The discussion centered around how to move forward in a political climate sometimes marked by strong messages against muslims.
I grew up in New York City, so I grew up in a very diverse community and Im third generation American so to me, that doesnt bother me. I like to break those stereotypes," said Emerge USA Central Florida regional director Vetnah Yemen Monessar.
The town hall was also organized to engage and register muslim voters, some of them experiencing democracy for the first time.
"Voting is your right, so voting for the person who is good for your community, good for the people of America, is your right," Monessar said.
According to Emerge USA, there are 37,000 muslims who are registered to vote in Central Florida.
It's a growing community, respected by State Sen. David Simmons, R-Longwood.
"It is so critically important to put policy over personality," Simmons said. "And we dont need to be making the kind of personal remarks that some people are making."
"So this is a good turning point, something positive is coming out of it. Were becoming more engaged," Fareed continued.
Education, discrimination, healthcare, terrorism are all important issues. However, concerns over anti-Islam sentiments still linger in the American muslim community.
Some of the concerns are it empowers the haters, those who are on the margins of society," Fareed explained. "Sometimes take it as a green light to cause violence and we have seen that. So what we are trying to do is trying to give a positive face to who we are that were American citizens."
"So what we are trying to do is realize the American dream," Fareed said.
When the hail piled up in Poinciana on March 26, many people were shocked that it can happen here in Central Florida. That kind of weather is supposed to be over in the Southern Plains where they get the large tornadoes.
Well, for us, sometimes the perfect combination of ingredients come together to make these rare occurrences possible.
It was almost 25 years ago that we were hit by a similar event. In fact, there were two major hail storms that hit in March 1992.
The first was in Longwood on March 6. I remember this one the most because my folks were still in our house in Sweetwater Oaks that we moved into in 1980. The hail was so large and pounding that it took out all the windows in the front of the house and shredded the screened enclosure in the back.
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Over at what was the Jacobsens plaza at I-4 and 434, the hail piled up to car bumpers. They had to use Bobcats to scoop it up and free the cars.
That was bad, but not as widespread as the storms that hit later in the month on March 25. Large hail and damaging winds ripped through Central Florida. An estimated $60 million in damage was done. About half of that was to nurseries and greenhouses.
So what makes March so popular for large hail storms? The key to making hail is very cold air. It makes sense since hail is made of ice. During the winter months here, it is much easier to get large hail because the freezing level in the atmosphere is so much lower than the rest of the year. The hail doesnt have as much time to melt as it falls out of a storm.
The rest of the year, the hail melts quite a bit before it hits the ground.
You still have to remember that these are rare occasions. But, I would make sure you keep your insurance policies up to date. After all, this is Florida!
A lieutenant with the Sanford Police Department was arrested early Saturday morning on domestic violence charges.
According to the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, deputies were sent to the intersection of H E Thomas Jr. Parkway and I-4 in response to a disturbance call.
When they arrived, they took Joseph Santiago into custody. Deputies say they noticed that Santiago smelled of alcohol.
Another set of deputies spoke with a woman, who said the pair had been drinking at bars in Daytona Beach. At one of the bars, the woman said something that Santiago did not like. That's when the woman said Santiago "head-butted" her.
The pair returned to an address in Santiago and continued to argue, which is when Santiago "balled his right hand into a fist" and punched the woman in the face, deputies said.
The woman said she called 911 because she had blood "shooting" out of her nose. She was taken to a local hospital for treatment.
Investigators deemed Santiago was the "primary aggressor." He refused to answer any questions without a lawyer present.
Santiago was taken into custody and transported to John E. Polk Correctional Facility, where he is being held without bond. He will face a judge at 9 a.m. Sunday.
Sanford Police Chief Cecil Smith released the following statement:
"We hold our officers, regardless of rank, to the highest standards of conduct and ethics both on duty, and in their personal lives. We will conduct a fair and thorough internal investigation into the incident, and be as transparent in that process as possible."
The Sanford Police Department said Santiago has been relieved of duty and has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the criminal and administrative investigations.
The estimates for smartphone sales in 2016 aren't quite as dire as some pundits suggest, but their growth is expected to come under some pressure. After years of skyrocketing growth, leading IT research firm Gartner estimates that mobile phone sales will increase just 2.6% this year, and consumer's spending on phones will inch up a mere 1.2% thanks to a shift toward low-end devices.
For mobile chip king Qualcomm , the forecast flattening in mobile phone sales has been particularly painful. Apple, one of Qualcomm's longtime customers, recently forecast a drop in quarterly revenue for the first time in 13 years. Those factors, along with a so-so first quarter of fiscal 2016 and an underwhelming forecast for the current quarter, have resulted in multiple analyst downgrades . What's a mobile chipmaker to do? Explore other, fast-growing markets in order to diversify revenue sources. And Qualcomm's doing just that.
Image courtesy of Qualcomm
A brave new world
Thanks in large part to the much anticipated Oculus Rift virtual reality headset, which is scheduled to begin shipping on March 28, and HTC's Vive device, which will follow a week later, VR is expected to finally go mainstream this year. As with any new market, it will take time for consumers to get on board the virtual reality train, but it looks like that train's ready to get rolling.
Within four years, pundits estimate VR will generate $30 billion in annual revenues. And with the folks at Oculus, HTC, and other VR manufacturers working to develop more efficient devices that don't require as much computing power, that sales forecast may prove conservative. Qualcomm is taking steps to ensure it gets its fair share of the VR revenue pie.
To unleash "the full potential of Snapdragon 820 [processor]", Qualcomm has made its VR-ready chip available to developers via a newly released software development kit (SDK). The Snapdragon 820 already boasts several enhancements to make the VR experience more enjoyable, and minimizes some of the downsides, including "latency."
Latency, or "buffering," is one of the biggest causes of complaints from early VR users. Some early VR testers actually became ill because of latency, but Qualcomm's VR chip -- with the help of developers now that its SDK is available -- can reduce latency by up to 50%. Other enhancements include improved image layering to reduce distortions, more power efficiency, and "predictive head position processing."
The opportunity VR represents for Qualcomm is significant, to say the least, and even more importantly, could very well prove to be a means of reducing its reliance on the mobile phone market. Of course, with so much potential revenue at stake, Qualcomm isn't the only chip manufacturer that has entered the fray.
Not alone
Qualcomm's long-time rival Intel is also in the midst of a company-wide transition away from reliance on a slowing market -- PCs. Instead, it's focusing on chips to run cloud-based data centers, Internet of Things devices, and wearables. Intel CEO Brian Krzanich's emphasis on non-PC related sales is beginning to pay off. Data center sales earned record revenue of $16 billion in 2015, and the IoT group generated $2.3 billion last year, up 7% from 2014.
But Intel also recognizes the same fact that Qualcomm does: The market for VR and VR-like solutions -- including augmented reality (AR), in which the virtual "world" overlays the user's real surroundings, which they can still see -- is going to be massive. In fact, Intel is said to have partnered with Microsoft to power its HoloLens AR headset.
As big as the VR market is expected to become, it will pale in comparison to the $90 billion AR is forecast to generate by 2020. Though the two chip kings are currently focused on opposite sides of the VR-AR fence, the technological similarities suggest it won't be long before Qualcomm adapts its latest, greatest Snapdragon 820 processor for AR, and Intel modifies its Atom chip for VR.
For now, Qualcomm and Intel seem content on expanding their respective revenue sources in similar, but slightly different directions. It will take time, but there is room for both Qualcomm and Intel to reap the altered reality rewards. And it couldn't come at a better time for Qualcomm shareholders.
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The Zika virus is gaining little traction in Bexar County, where Metropolitan Health District reports 14 people have tested negative for the illness so far.
Only three cases of the virus have been confirmed in San Antonio so far. All of those cases were reported in February in people who became infected while traveling abroad. No additional cases have surfaced here since Feb. 10.
Metro Health reports that 30 people in Bexar County are still waiting for their test results.
A total of 28 people across Texas have tested positive for the virus. The most cases 11 in all have surfaced in Harris County, where Houston is located. In addition to Bexar and Harris counties, Zika virus cases also have been confirmed in Dallas, Tarrant, Travis, Fort Bend, Grayson and Wise counties.
One of the Texas patients who tested positive for the virus is pregnant, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. Where that pregnant woman resides was not immediately available from state health officials.
More than 300 cases of the Zika virus have been diagnosed in the continental United States, and 27 of them were in pregnant women, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nationally, the virus has spread from coast to coast.
Zika presents a special danger to pregnant women because the virus can spread from expectant mothers to their unborn babies. Health officials have suspected Zika could be linked to birth defects in places where the virus is more prominent, such as South America. Brazil has experienced a surge in the number of infants born with microcephaly, a condition where a babys head is abnormally small and the brain is underdeveloped.
Health officials have strongly urged pregnant women to avoid traveling abroad to areas where the Zika virus has been much more prominent, such as Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean. Pregnant women who cannot avoid traveling to those areas should take extra precautions to protect themselves against mosquito bites since Zika is primarily spread in those regions through bites from infected mosquitoes.
There has not yet been a case where someone has been infected with the virus through a mosquito bite that occurred within the continental U.S.
Zika is rarely fatal. Most people infected wont show any symptoms. Those who do become ill usually experience only mild symptoms, such as a low-grade fever, a headache, a rash, aching muscles, joint pain or red eyes.
pohare@express-news.net
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The knife that was found at O.J. Simpsons former estate is not connected to the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, the Los Angeles Police Department has confirmed to TheWrap.
#LAPD has determined knife has no nexus to Simpson/Goldman murder investigation. The investigation remains open, the LAPD also tweeted Friday.
The knife that was discovered was believed to be too small to make the deep wounds suffered by Simpsons ex-wife and Goldman. According to the Los Angeles Times, the police department performed numerous forensic tests before they came to their conclusion.
Also Read: LAPD Refutes TMZ's Claim That Knife Found on OJ Simpson's Property Contains No DNA Evidence (Updated)
Earlier this month, reports surfaced that the knife was not connected to the murders with sources within the LAPD expressing doubt that the weapon was used in the 1994 crime.
A construction worker is said to have found the knife buried at O.J.s Rockingham residence in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood, California, several years ago. He subsequently turned it over to an off-duty police officer who happened to be nearby, but rather than handing it in, the officer kept it.
Also Read: Knife Found at OJ Simpson's Estate Likely Not Connected to Murder Case
The officer, since retired, planned to frame the knife and reached out to a friend at the LAPD for the case number of the Simpson-Goldman murder investigation because he wanted to have it engraved on the frame. His friend alerted higher-ranking LAPD officers, who demanded the knife be turned over as evidence.
Simpson was tried and acquitted of the double homicide in 1995. His case has returned to the public eye this year in the wake of the FX miniseries The People v. O.J. Simpson.
Read original story Knife Found at OJ Simpsons Former Estate Not Connected to Murder Case, LAPD Confirms At TheWrap
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His name doesnt ring in our ears like Yeats or Joyce, or even Bono, but his life several lives in one, actually bears out the words of another famous Irishman: A life making mistakes is not only more honourable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing at all.
Thomas Francis Meagher, pronounced mar, certainly made mistakes in his short life, but as George Bernard Shaw wisely noted, honor is not measured by taking the nearest fork in the road. And doing nothing was certainly not in Meaghers vocabulary.
After reading Timothy Egans exhilarating new biography really a rollicking, historical adventure story you are bound to agree that Meagher is indeed The Immortal Irishman, a true-green American hero.
Egan, the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who won the National Book Award for The Worst Hard Time, his book about the people of the Depression-era dust bowl, once again has made heroic what could easily be thought a tragic story.
A self-admitted lapsed Irish American, Egan has pulled from the annals of history the story of Ireland in the 19th century embodied in one man.
Meaghers detractors were formidable: the British early in life, his own Irish brethren and Confederate slavery sympathizers later, and still later, so-called state leaders (actually a nest of respectable outlaws) out West who found a way to exhaust Meaghers Irish luck.
More Information The Immortal Irishman: The Irish Revolutionary Who Became an American Hero By Timothy Egan Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $28 See More Collapse
As the spores of starvation wafted grievously over Ireland in the mid-19th century, a new force was emerging in the summer of 1846 from what would become the horror of the potato famine, in which at least a million Irish died.
This was young Thomas Meagher, born in Waterford in 1823, educated in Britain, but fearing early on of becoming a silken and scented slave of England. He fancied himself a poet and wasnt bad, but was most certainly one of the greatest Irish orators of his day.
Eschewing his privileged background Meaghers father was a wealthy businessman and politician Thomas would go on to be a leading voice of Young Ireland, a group of youthful rebels that spoke out against English cruelty.
His sharp tongue subsequently would get him sentenced to death, which was later commuted by Queen Victoria to lifelong exile he would never see his beloved Ireland again in the newly established prison colony of Tasmania.
From Tasmania, Meagher would escape, just by a whisker, and make his way to the United States, eventually settling in New York City.
Struggling to start a new life, Meagher met and married his great love, Elizabeth Townsend, the Fifth Avenue daughter of American royalty (her Yankee father was far from overjoyed), who would remain his most ardent supporter to his mysterious end.
Meagher clashed with the anti-immigrant Know-Nothings, and when the Civil War erupted, Meagher was commissioned a brigadier general and formed the Irish Brigade. The lethal unit fought and lost more than 50 percent of its men in bloody battles such as Bull Run, Antietam and most tragically, Fredericksburg.
Post-war, rather than retiring to a relaxing life practicing law in New York, Meagher, now in his early 40s, went west, with the idea of founding a New Ireland colony.
He was appointed governor of the Montana territory, and threw himself into the job, even though every step of progress he intitiated was resisted by a group of anti-immigrant ranchers, lawyers and businessmen who controlled the state and killed men, vigilante-style, at their whim.
Egans nose-to-the-grindstone research is solid, and his writing doesnt call attention to itself, but he does show flashes of brilliance. Throughout his life, Meagher exhibited a passion for political vandalism.
In Tasmania, Meagher encountered the echidna, a spiny anteater, with a pencil-thin beak and a coat of cream-colored quills who ambled like a pensioner out of a pub after last call.
Meagher was one of those men who was a magnet for historic drama. His first love, the Irish poet Jane Elgee, who wrote fiery verse blasting the English under the nom de plume Speranza, married Sir William Wilde after Meagher was banished. She gave birth to a boy who would author The Picture of Dorian Gray and would fight his own battles with the British.
Meagher also is credited, in 1848, with designing the Irish flag, the green, orange and white tricolor that came to be regarded as the national flag during the Easter Rising of 1916.
You may not have heard the name Meagher, but after reading Egans excellent biography, youll never forget it.
sbennett@express-news.net
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SAN ANTONIO Heres something that we all wish was just another April Fools Day joke: Rodents and mold in the kitchen were all common violations cited in this weeks restaurant inspections.
But there are no pranks here, as a total of 22 restaurants including one near the Pearl made the weekly dirty list.
The trendy Viva Tacoland, located at 103 W. Grayson along Museum Reach, was cited for having dirty soda nozzles and an expired food permit.
RELATED: San Antonio restaurant inspections: Worst reports from 2015
Also on the list are several neighborhood Tex-Mex restaurants with some nasty violations.
Nichas at 3119 Roosevelt Ave. was cited for mold in the ice machine, while Aqua Terra at 3825 Fredericksburg Road was caught with moldy vegetables and sausage.
In other reports, live rodents were observed at North Star Grocery at 8111 Westshire Drive, El Sombrero De Mexico Unico at 103 W. Theo Ave. and Juany's Taqueria at 1502 Somerset Road.
To make the Express-News' list of dirtiest restaurants, an establishment must have 14 or more demerits during a random city inspection, but this week those demerit totals kept adding up.
From the South Side to Stone Oak, get all the highlights of this week's dirtiest restaurant list in the slideshow above and see a full lineup of the dirty list below.
The San Antonio Express-News examines hundreds of restaurant inspections each week conducted by the San Antonio Food and Environmental Health Services division to bring you the eateries with 14 or more demerits.
The demerit system is based upon the number of violations found during a regular food establishment inspection. There are three categories of demerits and each are assigned a demerit score of 5, 4 or 3 points, according to the health division.
Scores and demerits listed are only representative of the state of the restaurant at the time of inspection and are surveyed at random.
rsalinas@mysa.com
Here is the full list of establishments on this week's list, see slideshow for information from the reports:
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A Brenham couple and about three dozen other bikers arrested after the deadly melee at the Twin Peaks restaurant in Waco last May may avoid prosecution.
A Houston lawyer contends that all criminal charges were automatically dropped against them since they were not indicted by the midnight Thursday deadline for a McLennan County grand jury to have completed its work.
"It timed out," said Houston lawyer Paul Looney, who represents Morgan and William English. They originally were arrested for allegedly engaging in organized criminal activity and were held on $1 million bail each, as were all others in the case. "Pop the champagne."
BIKERS SPEAK: Bandidos leader Jeff Pike speaks out amid federal charges
He said that while the investigation remains open and a new grand jury could take the case, under the law, the charges that had been pending are now gone.
Looney met behind closed doors Friday morning with McLennan County District Attorney Abel Reyna, first assistant prosecutor Michael Jarrett and State District Judge Matt Johnson.
The district attorney's office, however, cautioned nothing is over.
"We have not filed any dismissals in any of the remaining Twin Peaks cases," said Amy Kuzniarek, spokeswoman for the office.
"Furthermore, any McLennan County grand jury can hear evidence on this matter and decide to issue additional indictments," she said. "This is an ongoing, continuing investigation."
Exactly how many people have had their charges dismissed is unclear. At least 148 have been indicted over the incident. At least 177 were originally arrested following the clash that left nine dead and two dozen wounded. Others were arrested later.
The judge declined a request to clarify the situation.
THE INVESTIGATION: ATF finishes probe of guns in Waco biker clash
Looney said they all agreed the judge would have had to sign an order to keep the cases active, but no such request was made.
William and Morgan English had faced the prospect of up to life in prison if convicted of engaging in organized criminal activity as part of a turf war between the Bandidos Motorcycle Club and the Cossacks Motorcycle Club.
Of those who are not facing charges so far, none was a member of the Bandidos or Cossacks. All were in the vicinity of Twin Peaks for a regional motorcycle club meeting that was supposed to be about safety and changes in the law.
IN COURT: Takeaways from a rare glance into the world of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club
The Englishes were part of a small group of bikers from the Brenham area who call themselves the Distorted Motorcycle Club. They arrived at Twin Peaks in a Nissan Sentra, not on motorcycles, and maintained they had no hand in the violence.
Morgan English, a bank teller, has no prior criminal record. William, a Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq, had only a years-old prior brush with the law for driving under the influence.
Looney said the couple were relieved at not being indicted, but they still are dealing with having their lives suspended and their mug shots distributed around the Internet.
"I'm happy these people can try to regain their lives, regain the respect of their community and find a way to deal with the emotional trauma of having had this happen to them at all," Looney said.
We will never know whether Carlos Flores, then 44, was guilty of drunken driving when a San Antonio police officer stopped and arrested him back in October 2009.
Flores was charged with a more serious crime assault on a public servant. The officer said in his report that Flores had kicked him in the face as he tried to put him in the back of his squad car.
Flores said he was innocent. He filed a complaint with the Police Department alleging that the officer had actually assaulted him. The officer, said Flores, had handcuffed him and put him in the back of the car.
Flores said the officer then told him, I want to kick your ass, pulled him out of the car and began beating him while he was handcuffed. Flores said he did kick the officer, but it was in self-defense during the beating.
Nevertheless, presumably on the advice of his attorney, Flores cut a deal. It was his word against the officers, and that did not portend a favorable outcome.
Flores pleaded no contest to the charge in exchange for receiving deferred adjudication. If he completed the terms of a four-year probation, no final conviction would be entered in his record.
Unfortunately, Flores didnt complete those terms. He missed several meetings with his supervision officer, hadnt paid restitution or completed community service. In May 2013, his probation was revoked and he was sentenced to three years in prison.
Flores, who had no previous criminal record, apparently behaved himself in prison. After only one year he was scheduled for release. It was then that he learned a sobering fact. Flores was a Mexican citizen who was in the United States legally. But because of his conviction, he faced deportation.
Before he cut his earlier plea deal, Flores had received a response from the Police Departments internal affairs unit. In rather vague terms, he was told that corrective action had been taken against the officer. But he wasnt told what the action was.
What Flores wasnt told, nor was the DAs office, was that the Police Department determined that the officer had filed a false report on the Flores case and had violated department policy by not taking the seriously injured man to the hospital before booking him. The officer was suspended for 30 days without pay.
Photographs reportedly showed Flores with a severely beaten face and the officer with only a small mark on his.
Based on this and other evidence, the district attorneys Conviction Integrity Unit filed a motion to dismiss the charges. DA Nico LaHood explained why.
As you know, (Integrity Unit Chief) Jay Brandon and I both practiced as criminal defense lawyers, he said. I absolutely would want to know about the finding on that police officer before advising my client on his defense.
Whats more, he said, its the law. The Supreme Court a long time ago ruled that prosecutors must turn over to defense lawyers what it called exculpatory material any evidence that might help the defense.
In 2013, the Texas Legislature passed the Michael Morton Law, which broadens what Texas prosecutors are required to turn over.
But there is a problem, as first noted by Justice Barbara Hervey, a former Bexar County prosecutor who is now a veteran member of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. That problem is that under a separate Texas law, police agencies covered by civil service rules are not required to disclose police disciplinary files, even to prosecutors. This includes the SAPD. Hervey indicated that contradiction needs to be addressed, either by her court or by the Legislature.
Meanwhile, DA LaHood has put an appellate lawyer in charge of advising prosecutors on disclosure, and his office has developed a list of officers in the countys numerous police agencies whose disciplinary records should be disclosed to defense attorneys.
This column first appeared as the Last Word on KLRNs Texas Week with Rick Casey. The program appears Friday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.
A recent Express-News op-ed written by Washington Post Writers Group columnist Esther Cepeda ran with the banner headline, Hispanics blending into Melting Pot.
Melting pot is such a ridiculous metaphor. She probably meant a huge salad bowl. She writes that people, scoff or just get angry at the notion that someday Hispanics will melt into the American pot just like the Germans, Irish, and Italians before them. But like it or not, that day is undoubtedly coming.
I scoffed immediately because Cepeda is buying into that notion that we are Hispanic. As long as we continue to abide by colonial definitions to describe us, we will never come to know our true heritage.
And we are not Mexican! Mexican is a nationality, not a race. In fact, the entire concept of race is a 17th century invention to classify and define people. It is symbolically paper genocide of our ethnicity and who we are when people define us in pseudo-anthropological terms.
If the government were to do a DNA test on a majority of Hispanics, theyd find out that most of us are Native Americans.
While the infamous Trail of Tears invoked by President Andrew Jackson may have been used to eradicate the Cherokees and other Indians from the eastern seaboard, the white settlers of Texas committed genocide with a stroke of a pen by calling us Mexican.
We are a beautiful mixture of Lipan Apache, Coahuiltecan and Comanche who lived in this region.
We are the sons and daughters of the original people who founded these lands and lived in harmony for centuries before the massive invasion of white immigrants from the United States.
The first Texas settlers were the first Mexicans. They took an oath to Mexico to become citizens before being offered the acres of land. They thus became our first Mexican-Americans. And these first Mexican-Americans were booted out because they wanted to secede from Mexico and used the old states rights adage as a smoke screen to introduce slavery.
I marvel at the revelers who celebrate A Night in Old San Antonio and the Battle of Flowers parade because they dont have any inkling what they are celebrating. They hide behind the mythology of freedom and conquest.
Celebrating what? The out-right robbery of land from the rightful owners.
So now that the history lesson is over, we can now address the notion that a wall should be built to keep the Mexicans out. In fact, we are Native American and have a birthright to roam these lands.
Even xenophobe Donald Trump is as wrong as many Jamestown generation Americans who imply that many of us have just arrived.
We have lived in harmony with this land since before Christopher Columbus first arrived from the Old World. Christopher Columbus didnt discover this land. We discovered him to our detriment.
I always smile when I hear Woody Guthries song, This Land is Your Land, because it truly is my land even before the coming of Sam Houston and his band of property-thieving mercenaries.
Leo Pacheco is a direct descendant of the Canary Islanders who founded San Antonio. His family lineage merged with the Mission Native Americans. He is an adjunct professor of public administration at San Antonio College, and the former Bexar County Democratic Chairman.
I will say it upfront. I do not like guns. In fact, I confess I am a little frightened by them. Now, my youngest son, on the other hand, is a strong gun advocate. So I decided to do a little research.
What I learned is that there were 33,599 gun deaths in 2014 in the U.S. Of those, around two-thirds were suicides, and 3 percent accidental deaths. The remainder, around 10,000 were classified as homicides.
We are one of the most gun-friendly countries in the world. Roughly half of American households have a gun. There are almost as many guns in America as people. It is remarkable that in a country of 315 million people, there arent more deaths caused by guns. Firearms are part of American life and have been for centuries. But the reason for ownership has shifted dramatically over the past few decades. What had long been tools for hunting are now seen by many as must-have home-defense weapons. This change has resulted in unsafe handling of firearms.
Visiting the Web page of Smith & Wesson, a very well-respected firearm manufacturer, I was impressed to read its emphasis on gun safety. As a firearm owner, you accept a demanding responsibility. How serious you take this responsibility can be the difference between life and death. There is no excuse for careless or or abusive handling of your firearm. At all times handle your firearm with intense respect for its power and potential danger.
Accidents are the result of violating the rules of safe firearm handling and common sense.
Always treat every firearm as if it is loaded and will fire.
Never allow a firearm to be used by individuals who have not read the firearm safety rules.
There are arguments that the mere existence of guns makes people more violent, more likely to murder or commit other crimes. A Gallup poll taken last October found that around 63 percent of Americans believe that having a gun makes their home safer. Gun-rights proponents argue that more guns lead to less violence. The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.
Those arguments, however persuasive on the surface, do not withstand scrutiny. The most reliable analysis consistently shows gun ownership is more often a catalyst than a deterrent to crime.
Researchers from Bostons Children Hospital and the Harvard School of Public Health found that states with the lowest rates of firearm ownership had significantly lower rates of firearm-related assault and robbery, firearm homicide and overall homicide. States with the highest gun-ownership levels had 6.8 times the rate of firearm assaults, 2.8 times the rate of firearm homicides, and twice the rate of overall homicides.
The National Journal, a partner publication of the Atlantic magazine, reports that the states imposing the most restrictions on gun users also have the lowest rates of gun-related deaths, while states with fewer regulations typically have a much higher death rate from guns
But gun advocates disagree and claim these studies are flawed.
My son and I may disagree, but we deeply respect the Second Amendment of the Constitution his right to own a firearm, and my right to choose not to. And thats how I see it.
Larry P. Johnson is an author and motivational speaker. You may contact him at larjo1@prodigy.net or visit his website at www.mexicobytouch.com
Being back in Iraq after two years has helped me to put my finger on the central question bedeviling U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East today: What do you do when the necessary is impossible, but the impossible is impossible to ignore and your key allies are also impossible?
Crushing the Islamic State is necessary for stabilizing Iraq and Syria, but it is impossible as long as Shiites and Sunnis there refuse to truly share power. And yet, ignoring the ISIS cancer and its ability to metastasize is impossible as well. See: Belgium.
And as if all that isnt impossible enough, trying to make Iraq safe for democracy is requiring us to turn a blind eye to the fact that our most important NATO ally in the region, Turkey, is being converted from a democracy into a dictatorship by its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. But because we need Turkeys air bases and cooperation to foster a modicum of democracy in Iraq tomorrow, we are silent on Erdogan destroying democracy in Turkey today.
And to think that in America we have all these people competing to become president to get a chance to take responsibility for this problem! Has no one told them this is absolutely the worst time in 70 years to be managing U.S. foreign policy?
The problem in Iraq is not ISIS, Najmaldin Karim, the wise governor of Kirkuk province, which is partly occupied by ISIS, remarked to me. ISIS is the symptom of mismanagement and sectarianism.
He said that if the infighting and mismanagement in Baghdad and sectarian tensions between Shiites and Sunnis are not diffused, the situation in Iraq could be even worse after ISIS is toppled.
Why? Because there will be another huge scramble among Iraqi Sunnis, Kurds, Turkmens, Shiite militias, Turkey and Iran over who controls territories now held by ISIS. There is simply no consensus here on how power will be shared in the Sunni areas that ISIS has seized.
And here is another not so fun fact from Northern Iraq: Despite all you have read about foreign fighters who have joined ISIS, a majority of the people in Kirkuk province who have come to fight with ISIS were local Sunnis, who saw ISIS as protecting them from the pro-Iranian Shiite government in Baghdad. Or they were more impoverished Sunnis who saw joining ISIS as a way of gaining power over upper-class Sunnis.
Kurdish intelligence officials tell me there will be a lot of revenge against those Sunnis who joined ISIS, exacted by those who didnt if and when ISIS is defeated. Women from Iraqs Yazidi sect who were captured and raped by ISIS fighters and eventually escaped to refugee camps in Kurdistan have told Kurdish relief workers that in more than a few cases they were raped not by some foreign fighters from Chechnya or Libya, but by Iraqi Sunnis from their own hometowns.
I dont know what is sufficient to eradicate ISIS and create a decent order but its obvious what is necessary: The struggle between Sunnis and Shiites, fueled by Saudi Arabia and Iran, has to be tempered.
ISIS is a rocket whose guidance system is a direct descendant of the puritanical, anti-Shiite, anti-pluralistic Saudi Wahhabi ideology, and its fuel system is a direct reaction to Shiite Irans aggressive push to keep Iraqi Sunnis permanently weak. As long as Iran and Saudi Arabia are going at it, there will always be another ISIS. Which is why the peace process the Middle East needs most today is between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
But just waiting for that is no easy option, either. The impossible is impossible to ignore because ISIS is wicked and wickedly smart. The longer it hangs around, the more dangerous it becomes.
Obama is probably doing about the best one can with ISIS: Degrade it, contain it and downplay it, and keep nudging Sunnis and Shiites to come to their senses. But I have a bad feeling about the ISIS boys. They are networked and they have cast off all civilized norms.
It takes a village. Only Arabs and Muslims can truly take down and delegitimize ISIS, and right now their village is too divided, angry, ambivalent and confused to do it.
Thomas Friedman is a New York Times columnist.
There is now no possibility that the Republican Party will survive its rendezvous with Donald Trump unbroken.
If Trump is the partys nominee, the best-case scenario for GOP unity probably involves a host of Republican officials withholding their endorsements in the fall and millions of Republican-leaning voters simply staying home. The other scenario involves an independent candidate as a vehicle for #neverTrump conservatives, who might take from 5 percent to 30 percent of the general election vote depending on the candidate and how Trump fares outside his core constituency.
If Trump enters the convention with a plurality of delegates and leaves without the nomination, then he becomes the spoiler either as a third-party candidate or (more likely) as a kind of permanent roadshow, attacking the Cruz-Kasich ticket at every opportunity and urging his supporters to never vote Republican again.
In the past, such schisms have portended some sort of realignment.
For Republicans, the Barry Goldwater-Nelson Rockefeller civil war of 1964, and its fading echo in John Andersons third party campaign in 1980, were milestones along Rockefeller Republicanisms road to becoming just another variety of northeastern liberalism.
When Democrats split in 1968, with George Wallace running a Trumpesque third-party campaign, and again in 1972, when many party leaders barely supported George McGovern, the division hastened the transformation of Southern Democrats and blue-collar whites into Nixon and Reagan voters.
Would a Trump-induced schism have a similarly transformative effect? When you try to imagine how this schism might play out in the long run, you run into two realities.
First, there is no Trump movement as yet; there is only Trump himself, his brand and his cult of personality, plus a parade of opportunists and hangers-on.
Maybe a Trump movement is struggling toward self-consciousness, and in four to eight years it will be fully formed. But for now there arent Trump-like candidates challenging Republican politicians insufficiently committed to his cause, nor is there a Trumpish version of the netroots poised to be a player in GOP politics in 2018 or 2020.
Even if Trumpism finds the leadership and foot soldiers to fight a longer civil war, its very hard to see a classic realignment following. Thats because its hard to imagine either Republican faction the Trumpist populist nationalists or the movement conservatives who currently oppose him swinging into the Democratic coalition the way George Wallaces voters eventually joined the GOP and Rockefeller Republicans joined the Democrats.
Yes, if Trump is the nominee, some Republican foreign policy hawks, Wall Street types and suburban women will likely vote for Hillary; if Trump isnt the nominee, some modest chunk of his blue-collar base might pull the lever for the Democrat. But overall, the Obama-Hillary Democrats dont want, and more importantly dont think they need, the votes of either Trump-supporting working-class whites who oppose immigration and affirmative action or Trump-hating religious conservatives or libertarians or Jack Kemp disciples. Given present demographic trends, they could be right.
So a Trumpian schism would likely just create a lasting civil war within American conservatism, forging two provisional mini-parties one more nationalist and populist, concentrated in the Rust Belt and the South, the other more like the Goldwater-to-Reagan GOP, concentrated in the high plains and Mountain West whose constant warfare would deliver the presidency to the Democrats time and time again.
A rift is upon the party, and it wont be healed before November. But if the party cant be united under Trump, both his fans and his foes will probably face a stark choice in the aftermath: Rejoin or die.
Ross Douthat writes for the New York Times.
The President ... shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint ... Judges of the Supreme Court. This is the text of the U.S. Constitution.
It does not say, The President shall appoint ... Judges of the Supreme Court during such months as the Senate is in the mood to hear it.
The presidents duty to nominate a justice of the Supreme Court begins when there is a vacancy. It does not end until the vacancy is filled or the president leaves office. There is no constitutional reason for a president to abdicate the duty of nomination for one-fourth of a term of office. That a nomination comes in that fourth year of a term is no reason not to consider it.
President Barack Obama was within his powers to nominate Judge Merrick Garland to the high court. Indeed, by nominating a celebrated prosecutor with a reputation as a careful and cautious judge, the president chose the sort of judge most members of the Senate say they want.
Yet some senators say they will not consider a nomination in the last year of a presidency. A few refuse now even to meet Garland, whom many voted nine years ago to confirm as an appellate judge.
Should a president avoid election-time nominations for political reasons? Have modern politics become so divisive that a president should make no nomination in an election year?
Not really. It has always been this way, and the Constitution is designed to deal with it.
The Constitution limits the presidents duty to name justices by requiring the Senates advice and consent. By design, the president must select someone whom the majority of senators will accept. Those designers were clear that a presidents need to pick a nominee agreeable to senators would limit the presidents choices. The senators were understood to be political, even adversarial, in giving or withholding that consent. Thus the nominee should be someone who can attract a consensus among people who do not get along.
The nomination of justices has been political from the start.
President George Washington nominated John Rutledge, a former South Carolina governor, to be chief justice. Governor or not, Rutledge had bad political radar. After his nomination, Rutledge gave a speech against John Jays Treaty, which would settle U.S. claims with England.
Jays Treaty was terribly divisive; its consideration accelerated the division of the Congress into political parties. Rutledge sided with Thomas Jefferson and the Republicans in a nasty fight against the Federalists, who had been Rutledges presumed allies. Rutledges nomination was quickly voted down in the Senate.
Rutledges political defeat would not prove to be unusual. From 1795 until now, about one-fifth of presidents Supreme Court nominees have failed 36 of 160. James Madisons nominee, Alexander Wolcott, was rejected 24-9. John Quincy Adams nomination of John Crittenden was never brought to a vote. And our 10th president, John Tyler, was so unpopular that in 1844-45, he nominated five people to the court but managed to have just one confirmed.
Partisan pressures seem to have grown since President Ronald Reagan nominated Judge Robert Bork in 1987. Yet the process of confirmation has been recurrently partisan. Politics in the confirmation process is a given, leading at times to rejections or to stalled votes, but often to consent, even from political opponents of the president.
Indeed, Justices Anthony Kennedy and Clarence Thomas would not be on the court but that their post-1987 nominations by Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush were given consent by Senates controlled by Democrats.
Even in a partisan setting, there is nothing new about an election-year nomination. Washington presented three, with two being successful. Reagan nominated Kennedy in November 1987, long after the campaigns of 1988 had begun. Indeed, of the 25 Supreme Court nominations presidents made during the campaign year to succeed them, only seven have failed.
We must conclude not that the president should avoid nominations in an election year but that an election-year nomination must be especially hard for the Senate to avoid or reject. As the Framers intended, the president must find a nominee who will overcome the natural competitiveness, suspicion and jealousy with which the Senate greets presidential initiatives.
Obama has nominated a centrist judge with a great reputation. He is the sort of election-year nominee that the Senate should find hard to reject.
So, perhaps we might speculate.
If the majority party commits itself to gridlock again will it look as if they are really bowing to the future will of the voters? Gridlock will be painted as just another move in a partisan game the very game has made the parties weaker than ever.
It is all too early to tell. A day is a long time in politics, but a presidential election night is an eternity. When the confetti settles, the Senate might be in a different mood. Which will the Senate fear more: a nominee from this president or the next one? What if the senators distrust the new president, regardless of party? They may well prefer Garland.
But if the Senate does not act, then it does not act. The next president might renominate Garland, as Gov. John Kasich, R-Ohio, said he might do. Or nominate another person. Garland, after all, is already on the bench for life.
Either way, the process continues.
The Constitution divides the giving of this judicial power among two great competing forces of government. They dont have to agree every time, just often enough.
And come November, they might yet agree to the swearing in of Justice Merrick Garland.
Stephen M. Sheppard is dean and Charles E. Cantu Distinguished Professor of Law at St. Marys University School of Law.
Dear Nation:
There are Texans whod be a good fit in the White House. Ted Cruz isnt one of them. He is, by temperament and record, as unsuited to be president as is Donald Trump.
We had hoped we wouldnt have to have this conversation. But Cruz, our junior senator, is being touted as the lesser of evils. Nation, he is not.
There is a scenario in which Trump, without all the 1,237 delegates he needs for a first ballot win at the Republican National Convention in July, is denied the nomination. Cruz, with the second most delegates, is trying to make the case that he is then the logical go-to guy after a first ballot.
And some establishment Republicans, appalled at the possibility of a Trump nomination, are buying it.
They have short memories. Cruz led the charge to shut down government in 2013 because he wanted to overturn the Affordable Care Act, a lifeline to millions of Americans now. This displayed that he has no respect for the nations institutions or for his Republican Senate colleagues. And he wears that 2013 moment as if it were a badge of honor.
Trump warns of riots should he be the front-runner in delegates but is denied the nomination. That alone should disqualify him. He has abetted violence at his rallies. There is little substance or details to his stances. His call to deny entry to refugees on account of their religion, his demeaning of Mexicans, his advocacy for murdering the families of terrorists, and his call to a return of torture reveal him as dangerous. He is sowing grievance and division for political gain.
But, on important issues, Cruz will be just as divisive.
Both favor the mass deportation of 11 million or so undocumented immigrants, which would be impractical and inhumane even if among these families there werent children who are U.S. citizens. In 2012, there were an estimated 4.5 million children younger than 18 living with undocumented parents, according to the Pew Research Center.
Cruz, like Trump, would like to do away with birthright citizenship, which likely would require repealing the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.
Trump has said President Barack Obama is waging war on Christians. Cruz shares the view, working religion all he can into his campaign to appeal to evangelicals.
Trump would ban all Muslim refugees. Cruz would ban Syrian refugees who are Muslim but allow in fleeing Christians. Yes, a religious test. He would bar Muslims from countries where the Islamic State and al-Qaida are dominant.
And, though we didnt think it possible, Cruz has come close to trumping Trump on this issue. After the Brussels attack on March 22, Cruz called for a security crackdown in Muslim neighborhoods. He said, We need to empower law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized.
What does that look like? As with mass deportations, it looks like a papers, please police state.
Cruz said last year that the Supreme Court ruling that made state bans on gay marriage unconstitutional was fundamentally illegitimate. He said it was lawless and not based on the Constitution. He told a conservative commentator that a president would be within his rights to defy the ruling. No, that would be lawless.
Cruz is claiming that he is the true conservative of those left standing among the candidates. But his temperament and all-or-nothing, absolutist ideology and strategies dont make him a viable alternative. His colleagues loathe him. He is not a builder and far from a uniter.
There is an argument that denying front-runner Trump will be undemocratic. Not so. Multiple balloting, adhering to long-standing party rules, is intrinsically democratic. In any case, most Republicans in the primaries up to and including those on March 22 voted against Trump in fact, 5 million-plus more than voted for him. If Trump can be democratically denied, denying Cruz will not be any less democratic. And both denials are necessary for much the same reasons.
Its likely that the GOP faces an intraparty bloodletting no matter what it does at the convention. That die is cast.
But more is at stake than peace in the GOP. Yes, polls suggest that neither Cruz nor Trump will beat the Democratic nominee most likely Hillary Clinton in November. But we remember when everyone said Trump was a flash in the pan. Poof, hed be gone. Didnt happen.
Simply, putting the White House within the grasp of Cruz is as perilous as giving the nomination to Trump.
Embattled Texas Attorney General Ken Paxtons choice of Jeff Mateer as his first assistant is hardly surprising, but it is still troubling.
Mateer is best known for his work on religious liberty cases, which fits well with Paxton. Some may remember that after the U.S. Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in this country, Paxton said clerks could cite their faith as reasons to ignore the courts ruling.
The Georgia governor was correct in vetoing a law that opponents saw as license for those claiming religious beliefs to discriminate.
The veto and what prompted it significantly, opposition to the legislation by the business community should be an object lesson for the Texas Senate. It is signaling that it will consider similar bills.
And the problem here, there and everywhere in the United States is that there really isnt any assault occurring on religious freedoms, the alleged motivations for such laws.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has tasked the Senate State Affairs Committee with studying whether religious liberties are being infringed upon by local, state and federal law. In February, the committee held a hearing and appeared to be aiming for a piecemeal approach that might include protecting opponents of same-sex marriage.
If such measures amount to a license to discriminate in commerce, adoptions and in hiring, for instance they shouldnt be considered.
But lets be clear about the goal of such measures. It is to unsettle what was clearly settled by the U.S. Supreme Court in its historic ruling in June that made bans on gay marriages unconstitutional.
Texas Religious Freedom and Restoration Act and the First Amendment offer substantial protections for people to exercise their religion as they see fit. But the RFRA is also clear that it cannot be used to disregard civil rights protections. And the First Amendment also means religion cannot be imposed by government on others. Laws enacted by the government to allow discrimination would allow just that license for the imposition of religious beliefs on others.
In Georgia, business pressure was key to Gov. Nathan Deal vetoing the Free Exercise Protection Act approved by that states House and Senate less than two weeks before.
North Carolinas Gov. Pat McCrory is experiencing the same kind of pressure after he signed a law March 23 that eliminates anti-discrimination protections for all lesbians, gays and bisexuals, and bars transgender people from using public bathrooms that do not match the gender they were born with.
The Human Rights Campaign tracks major businesses and scores them on what the group calls its Corporate Equality Index. Of the 789 major employers it tracks in Texas, 51 have domestic partner benefits. These businesses know that their employees are affected when states pass laws that open the door to discrimination.
But business pressure aside, the Texas Senate should shy from such laws for the simple reason that many of their constituents could also be affected. Last we looked, gay Texans are also entitled to representation.
What does it take to radicalize Muslims?
Experts have been pondering this for years, but there is general agreement that making them feel as alien others in their own countries doesnt help. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas our newly minted GOP establishment candidate for president doesnt seem to get this. Thats scary.
Brussels was targeted on March 22. Yes, Europe is closer to the Mideast than is the United States. So there are certain logistical advantages for the Islamic State in targeting European cities.
But also likely making it easier is that many European Muslims, according to social research, feel disenfranchised and isolated, though many are European-born. Its why more European Muslims than U.S. Muslims travel to Iraq and Syria to fight for the Islamic State, and why, on returning, they find both sanctuary and, sometimes, allies if they plot terrorist acts.
U.S. Muslims offer a somewhat different story. And this nation should do all it can to preserve this storyline.
At about 3.3 million, they are about 1 percent of the population. They will be the second-largest religious group after Christians in the United States before 2040, according to the Pew Research Center. Many European Muslims came as low-wage guest workers. U.S. Muslims, according to 2011 Pew research, are about as likely as other Americans to report annual incomes of $100,000, though 45 percent also report $30,000 or less.
Asked in 2011 how they felt about their lives, 82 percent of U.S. Muslims said satisfied, higher than the general publics 75 percent. Eighty-four percent of foreign born-U.S. Muslims reported satisfied lives, and 90 percent of U.S.-born, second-generation Muslims said the same.
U.S. Muslims, even the foreign-born, are, from available evidence, comfortably assimilated and integrated or getting there.
That makes us a great country. And brings us to Cruz.
After the bombings in Brussels, the establishment candidate called for police to patrol and secure U.S. Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized.
This followed his proposal to bar U.S. entry to Syrian Muslim refugees akin to Donald Trumps call to bar all Muslim refugees. These are folks fleeing the barbarians Cruz wants to carpet bomb to test if sand can glow in the dark. Hed sort out the guilty and innocent later, I guess.
Lets see. It is widely accepted that a big part of Europes terrorism problem is that too many Muslims there are disaffected. They feel this estrangement in their everyday lives. They see and hear the animosity played out as countries flirt with anti-immigrant, far-right nationalism and try to close their borders to refugees fleeing Mideast violence.
And Cruz and Trump seem to want to use the same playbook. They are making U.S. Muslims feel distrusted because of their faith. And Cruzs proposal to prevent radicalization has a police-state ring to it.
Heres a not-so-radical thought: Cruz is as unfit to be commander in chief as Trump. Yet, because he isnt Trump, hes the GOP establishment candidate, anointed by party elites.
On many levels, it makes no sense to make U.S. Muslims feel as unwelcome here as European Muslims report feeling there. And it makes to no sense to feed into the terrorists narrative that the West is waging war against Islam. Yet listening to two particular presidential candidates can lead to such conclusions.
There likely will be more terrorist acts on U.S. soil. Our and Europes open societies make it difficult to stop madmen willing to die for their hate. Closing up means a victory for our enemies. One of our best fortifications is inclusion that makes allies and fellow travelers of those the madmen would turn against the U.S.
Among his many failings, Trump is said to be too vulgar to be president. Some things can have the trappings of reasonableness and still be vulgar. Our new establishment candidate, bomb-thrower Cruz, has managed to find that magic.
Posted on 04/02/2016, 10:00 am, by mySteinbach
On March 30, 2016, members of the Manitoba RCMP Major Crime Unit executed a search warrant in Winnipeg following an investigation into a man impersonating a police officer.
RCMP began the investigation after receiving multiple complaints from across North America of what appeared to be a police officer inappropriately using social media and other online forums.
Investigation revealed that 58-year-old Thomas Hanaway from Winnipeg, created social media accounts and engaged in online forums using the name of an active police officer within Manitoba.
Hanaway was located inside his Winnipeg residence, arrested, and charged with personating a peace officer and failing to comply with a probation order.
RCMP would like to remind the public to always remain vigilant when interacting with individuals online. Police officers will never use their personal social media accounts to conduct any police investigations.
Part-time Collier residents and prominent developers Larry and Jane Glazer have died after their small plane en route to Naples veered off course Friday, crashing off the coast of Jamaica, according to WHAM-TV in Rochester, N.Y., and The Associated Press.
Maj. Basil Jarrett of the Jamaican Defense Force told the AP the plane went down Friday about 14 miles northeast of Port Antonio. Jarrett says the military has sent aircraft to investigate.
The Glazers' son confirmed to WHAM-TV that his parents were both on board and have died. Larry Glazer was one of Rochester's most prominent real estate developers, and the couple had a home in North Naples.
Federal aviation officials said the couple's fixed wing single-engine aircraft took off from Rochester at about 8:45 a.m. destined for Naples Municipal Airport. The pilot stopped responding to radio calls at about 10 a.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said. The Associated Press reported at about 2:30 p.m. that the plane had crashed about 14 miles off the northeast coast of Jamaica.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command said the pilot might have lost consciousness due to hypoxia, or oxygen deprivation. NBC News, citing unnamed sources, said the pilot was seen unconscious and slumped over in the cockpit.
Andrew Knott, executive director of the TBM Owners and Pilots Association, a group dedicated to the type of aircraft the Glazers were flying, said it's likely an issue with cabin pressurize debilitated the couple. Knott said Larry Glazer, a member of the association's board of directors, had been flying TBM aircrafts for several years, and that Jane Glazer had a pilot's license.
"When the airplane is still capable of flying, the most likely cause is always going to be pressurization," Knott said. "There isn't anything else that can debilitate multiple people simultaneously."
See the flight path of the plane
According to FlightAware.com, the Glazers' plane veered dramatically off course over western North Carolina, turning southeast. Air Force pilots in Florida were dispatched to follow the aircraft after the pilot stopped communicating with officials on the ground. The Air Force pilots followed the plane until it passed over Cuba.
The aircraft, a 2014 SOCATA TBM 700, has seven seats and is used for light business. It was scheduled to arrive in Naples shortly before noon.
Knott said Larry Glazer "always struck me as a good and careful pilot" who trained regularly. Jane Glazer didn't fly TBM aircraft, he said, but she was well-versed enough to radio for help if her husband suffered a medical episode. The couple frequently jetted between upstate New York and Southwest Florida, Knott said.
Naples Municipal Airport Executive Director Ted Soliday said he plane was last there July 6.
"It does come in here, and it buys fuel from us in a regular basis," Soliday said. "It comes here enough that our people were able to look it up and see we have a fuel account with them."
Soliday said he had not been in contact with the pilot, the NTSB or the FAA. He could not confirm how many people might have been on board.
Though "expensive," the plane model is fashionable because of its jet engine and size, Soliday said.
"It's a popular little plane," he said. Knott added he believes there are about 600 jets like the one flown by the Glazers.
Through his company, Buckingham Properties, Larry Glazer became one of Rochester's most influential developers, with about 60 properties covering more than 10 million square-feet. The headline of a Rochester City Paper article about Glazer called him the city's "downtown patron saint."
"They were a power couple who didn't throw their power around. They most likely could have if they really wanted to, but that's how down to Earth they were," said Marc Goldfischer, who did public relations and marketing work for the Glazers in New York.
Glazer also dipped his toe into the Sunshine State as a partner of Central Florida Development. Rich LeFrois, a partner with Glazer in Florida, described the couple as "the most stand-up people you'd ever want to meet."
LeFrois said he'd been a business partner with Glazer for the past 15 years. The Central Florida business began about seven years ago, with about 400 acres of land.
LeFrois said the Glazers' Naples residence was "a winter place he liked."
"It will be a huge loss for the Rochester area," LeFrois said. "They were so involved in the community and so generous."
In an interview televised on WXXI, Rochester's Public Broadcasting Service affiliate, the Glazers described how they both learned to fly.
"It's been a wonderful experience because we've gone all over the world," Jane Glazer said. "We've been to Europe and Alaska, and you know, it's just a fun thing we share."
Follow the Daily News throughout the day for more on this story. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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The question is what to do with the overwhelming amount of drainage water that comes in a southerly direction from Central Florida and regions south, west and east of Lake Okeechobee.
The answer is a puzzle, both literally and figuratively.
As with any puzzle, it takes many pieces to create the full picture. The longer it takes, the more pieces that can be lost. In this case, it will cost a lot more, too.
This wasn't the first year the estuaries along the Southwest Florida and central east coasts took the brunt of water released to keep Lake Okeechobee from bursting through the Herbert Hoover Dike that protects neighboring towns from catastrophic flooding. Water was released in 2013 and 2014, then again in January. It's certain to happen again.
The Conservancy of Southwest Florida, other environmental groups statewide and U.S. Rep. Curt Clawson, R-Bonita Springs, are among those advocating acquiring land south of the lake to get cleansed water stored and moving back toward the Everglades and Florida Bay. This past week, a local South Florida Water Management District board member endorsed Clawson's approach. That included not only Clawson's suggested study for where more land can be acquired, but expediting money for bolstering the dike so the lake can safely hold more water.
Those are identifiable, necessary pieces of the puzzle.
We've also heard from a former executive of the water district and representatives of U.S. Sugar, who contend the answer lies north of the lake, not to the south. Their arguments are persuasive a 5,000-square-mile basin south of Orlando is draining into a 730-square-mile lake. Without more storage to the north of the lake, their point goes, the lake will continue to fill up with nowhere for excess water to go but down the Caloosahatchee River and St. Lucie canal. Yes, northern storage sites are necessary puzzle pieces as well.
Missed opportunity
The clearer the final puzzle picture becomes, the more evident it is that the missing piece from 2015 may be an irreplaceable one.
In 2008, then-Gov. Charlie Crist negotiated a deal that could have seen the state spend some $350 million for land in the agricultural region south of the lake, including a 26,000-acre parcel to build a reservoir to hold excess water. The state didn't pull the trigger by the mid-October deadline.
Critics of that deal suggest there already is untapped government land south of the lake for storage and, instead of buying more land, money could better be utilized for completing planned projects.
While the state still has options to acquire agricultural land south of the lake until 2020, U.S. Sugar representatives said it would require buying all of the corporation's land at current market rate, not a portion. That's an unthinkable cost not even worth calculating.
Solutions
On the other hand, Clawson's recently proposed Everglades Land Acquisition Act would identify another parcel the federal government might buy for water storage. In a recent guest commentary, Clawson stated that the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, which includes about 60 projects, is projected to take until at least 2050 to complete.
Given the irreplaceable piece the state passed on in 2015, the more water storage pieces north and south of the lake, the more they will all add up. Land costs will only rise; availability will decline as time passes. Waiting for Congress and the state to authorize spending for all currently planned projects before acquiring potential future storage land would be a mistake in our view.
Clawson's commentary noted Congress "has historically authorized water projects every seven years. We need to speed this up to at least every two years to stay on top of things." He couldn't be more right.
Every seven years, the makeup of Congress can change three times. The White House and governor's mansion can have new occupants, who appoint new environmental and water district leaders.
As faces change, someone needs to keep the final picture in focus. We see Clawson as secure in his district seat for as long as he wants to be. We again urge all government, corporate and environmental stakeholders in Florida to unite and follow Clawson's lead on addressing the crisis around Lake Okeechobee.
Today, Walmart announced that Fort Myers residents have generated more than $42,500 for Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida to support those facing hunger in the local community. Through Walmarts Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign, families rallied together to help fight hunger through three simple actions taken in Walmart stores and online. Nationwide, the campaign raised more than $10 million to support Feeding America and its affiliate food banks across the country.
The Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign offered customers the opportunity to help fight hunger from April 6 to May 3 by making a donation to their local Feeding America food bank at a Walmart register, or purchasing select products from some of the nations leading food companies: Campbells, ConAgra Foods, General Mills, Kellogg Company, Kraft, and Unilever. In addition, the public participated in the #WeSparkChange social media challenge. Customers were asked to take a picture of six friends who share their commitment to fight hunger and post a public picture on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #WeSparkChange. For each post, Walmart donated $10 to Feeding America on behalf of its affiliate food banks.
Hunger is a nationwide problem with local implications in every community across the United States. One in six people in America will struggle with hunger at some point during the year, according to the USDA. Here in Southwest Florida, the Harry Chapin Food Bank helps serve about 30,000 children, seniors, working-poor families and others who face hunger each month.
We are so grateful to all the families who came out to participate in Walmarts Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign, to help us secure critical meals for those in need in our community, said Al Brislain, President and CEO of the Harry Chapin Food Bank. The results were amazing, and will go a long way to help us provide access to food for people who count on our support throughout the year.
We take pride in giving back to local communities and empowering residents to support their neighbors in need. This spring, customers across the country jumped into action to fight hunger, and the results were truly extraordinary, said Karrie Dennison, Director of Hunger and Nutrition for Walmart and the Walmart Foundation. With 49 million Americans struggling with hunger today, we are dedicated to helping families access affordable, nutritious and sustainably grown food. With the support of our customers, associates and Feeding America, we will continue our work to help every family have access to the food they need.
The Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign is just one step towards Walmarts larger commitment to provide meals to those in need, helping ensure every family has access to affordable, nutritious and sustainably grown food. As the nations largest grocer, Walmart is in a unique leadership position to help impact the issue of hunger in the United States. Last year, Walmart announced a commitment to create a more sustainable food system, with a focus on improving the affordability of food by lowering the true cost of food for both customers and the environment, increasing access to food, making healthier eating easier, and improving the safety and transparency of the food chain. This commitment includes a goal of providing four billion meals to those in need in the U.S. over the next five years.
The Harry Chapin Food Bank, an affiliate of Feeding America, solicits, collects and stores quality food for distribution to families and others in need through a network of 150 nonprofit agencies in Lee, Collier, Hendry, Charlotte and Glades counties that provide food to more than 30,000 people monthly. The Harry Chapin Food Bank distributes more than 1 million pounds of food each month. In 2014, the Harry Chapin Food Bank distributed 19.6 million pounds of food and other grocery items valued at more than $33.7 million. This is roughly the equivalent of 16.3 million meals to people in need.
For additional information about or to contribute financially to the Harry Chapin Food Bank, contact 239-334-7007 or go to harrychapinfoodbank.org.
About Feeding America
Feeding America is the nationwide network of 200 food banks that leads the fight against hunger in the United States. Together, we provide food to more than 46 million people through 60,000 food pantries and meal programs in communities across America. Feeding America also supports programs that improve food security among the people we serve; educates the public about the problem of hunger; and advocates for legislation that protects people from going hungry. Individuals, charities, businesses and government all have a role in ending hunger. Donate. Volunteer. Advocate. Educate. Together we can solve hunger. Visit www.feedingamerica.org, find us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better anytime and anywhere in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, more than 250 million customers and members visit our 11,462 stores under 71 banners in 28 countries and e-commerce websites in 11 countries. With fiscal year 2015 sales of nearly $486 billion, Walmart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart. Online merchandise sales are available at http://www.walmart.com and http://www.samsclub.com.
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By Maryann Batlle of the Naples Daily News
Two teenagers were seriously injured in an early Saturday motorcycle crash on Airport-Pulling Road.
Just after midnight, Alezandre Almarel, 19, of Arcadia, drove a Suzuki motorcycle south on Airport-Pulling Road, according to a press release from the Florida Highway Patrol. Cassandra Garcia, 17, of the Naples area, was his passenger.
Almarel attempted to turn left onto YMCA Road, but was going too fast and lost control of the motorcycle, which began to slide and rotate counter clockwise, according to the FHP.
The motorcycle's right side struck the center median curb and overturned. It came to rest facing north in the median on Airport-Pulling Road, reports said.
Emergency crews took Almarel and Garcia to an NCH hospital, according to the press release. Charges are pending for Almarel, FHP said.
A shift in how we approach drug addiction
(NaturalNews) It's a bold move, the likes of which hasn't been seen in recent United States history: The state of Hawaii is on the cusp of decriminalizing ALL recreational drugs . If the resolution passes, Hawaii would become the first state to investigate alternative solutions for treating drug addiction other than just locking people up.Instead of imprisoning drug users, Hawaii would look at the situation from a different angle. Drug users caught in a vicious cycle will be able to get professional help instead of fearing long-term imprisonment. Families, friends and support groups will be more empowered and able to create an environment of accountability that breaks the addiction and resets the priorities of drug users.Hawaii lawmakers admit that incarceration isn't working: "Despite a longstanding policy that enforces illicit drug prohibition and imposes some of the world's harshest penalties for drug possession and sales, illicit drug use in the United States has been increasing," states the resolution.With drug use rising in the U.S., and with incarceration rates continuing to climb, the root of the problem isn't really being dealt with. Criminalizing drug use has perpetuated hard drug abuse while creating heightened fear and violence where it is unnecessary.For so long, all drugs have been treated in the same way, as something for law enforcement to use as evidence against people to lock them up. This doesn't solve addictions or help people strive to have better priorities. There's now growing support for looking at each substance for what it is, and how best to approach the problem on an individual basis. Instead of locking people up for possessing the cannabis plant , for example, resources could be better used helping people who are dependent on methamphetamine . Distinctions have to be made, and better approaches have to be used, other than violence and control.That's why Hawaii is looking to set up a commission to study the benefits of drug decriminalization. If the measure passes both chambers of the legislature, the state's Legislative Reference Bureau would be activated to, "conduct a study on the feasibility and advisability of decriminalizing the illegal possession of drugs for personal use in Hawaii ," so that such conduct, "would constitute an administrative or civil violation rather than a criminal offense." The state of Hawaii is officially recognizing that the force of the state only makes the root of the problem worsen.Portugal has seen great results in crime reduction since the country decriminalized all drugs in 2001. Since then, the country has witnessed a drastic reduction in drug use and overdoses. "The positive results from Portugal's drug decriminalization system provides a potential model for more effectively managing drug-related problems in the United States," stated the Hawaii resolution.U.S. Surgeon General, Vivek Murphy, is on board with the shift in public policy. In January he announced, "It's time for us to have a conversation in this country that's based on facts; A conversation that's based on medicine and science." The Surgeon General will be presenting the first-ever report in 2016 on how decriminalization of all drugs can reduce violence and injustices carried out by law enforcement Former secretary of the United Nations, General Kofi Annan, calls the war on drugs a war on people. "I believe that drugs have destroyed many lives, but wrong government policies have destroyed many more," he recently stated. "We all want to protect our families from the potential harm of drugs . But if our children do develop a drug problem, surely we will want them cared for as patients in need of treatment and not branded as criminals..."A positive shift is taking place, and Hawaii may be the first state to lead the Nation away from the bloodshed and failed police-state mentality of the war on drugs.
Bashing a documentary most of the MSM hasn't even seen
'Now we're making history'
(NaturalNews) Members of the mainstream news media remain oblivious to the fact that they are no longer the center of the information world, despite the fact that daily newspaper numbers are dwindling, viewers are turning them off, and readers are checking out alternative media sources by the millions.One of the primary reasons why the MSM is shedding viewers and readers is because they continue to push blatant propaganda, especially when it comes to full-throated support for Big Pharma and Big Medicine, two of their most profitable advertisers, and that is especially true of their support for vaccines In recent days,editor Mike Adams, the Health Ranger , and author of the upcoming book,, has alerted readers and the public at large to the fact that a critical new documentary on the MMR vaccine-autism link was initially going to be screened at the Tribeca Film Festival, until one of its co-founders, actor Robert De Niro, was pressured to cancel the screening by a combination of special interests.The documentary the trailer of which can be viewed here , is chock full of explosive information about how the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the MMR-autism link, and how our country is currently on an autism trajectory that, by 2032, will affect 1 in 2 children (and 80 percent of boys).But you wouldn't know that if all you read was the MSM, like a recent piece inwhich decried the "dangers of vaccine denial:""In Britain, for example, researchers found no change in the rate of autism diagnosis after the 1987 introduction of the M.M.R. vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella, and M.M.R. vaccination rates were similar for autistic children and for others. Likewise, studies in California and Atlanta found no correlation between autism rates and M.M.R. vaccinations. Japan suspended the M.M.R. vaccine because of health concerns, yet a careful study found that autism continued to rise."VAXXED, however, disprovesOr this , from theabout how the "anti-vaccine movement" is the one endangering lives:"Why are people not vaccinating their kids? There are a number of factors at play. Many of the diseases we vaccinate against are so rare here now that the public's awareness of vaccination might have decreased. But the one reason that has most alarmed public-health experts lately has been the rise of the anti-vaccine movement . Groups and activists such as celebrity Jenny McCarthy have repeatedly claimed that vaccines cause autism."Again, VAXXED demonstrates and proves the link.But then, the MSM likes to contradict itself on the issue of vaccines as well, such as in this story, which discusses how "imperfect" vaccines might actually make viruses more deadly. If you're a consumer of the mainstream media,. One story denies there are any problems with vaccines, while the next suggests they can make illnesses worse.As reported by Vaccines.news went so far as toan astounding 99 percent of its interview with Del Bigtree, the producer of VAXXED:"ABC World News Tonight conducted an interview with Del Bigtree, producer of the polarizing documentary " VAXXED ," over the phone for ten minutes. Rather than give Bigtree the opportunity to respond to critics of the film, which was originally endorsed and later retracted by Robert De Niro's Tribeca Film Festival, the media outlet aired a mere five seconds of the interview in a news segment about the documentary.""We set out to make a movie, now we're making history," Bigtree said in a statement bashing the censorship and attacks in the MSM. "To watch every major newspaper tell people not to see a movie, a movie they had never seen, is an unprecedented moment in this country. When has that ever happened?"We have a whistleblower at the CDC who is still sitting at the CDC, an awarded scientist, who is being protected by whistleblower status, and the media is saying we are making things up," he continued. "They say they've debunked the whistleblower, but you can't debunk someone who hasn't had his day in court, just like you can't review a movie you haven't seen."Watch the entire Bigtree interview UNCUT here
'Hastening the death' of hospice patients
Healthcare fraud, false statements and obstructing an investigation
(NaturalNews) A Texas based healthcare company has been accused of expediting the deaths of hospice patients via drug overdoses in order to increase profits, according to a report by. Brad Harris, 34, founded Novus Health Care Services, Inc. in July 2012, state records show. The company is based in Frisco.Individuals employed with Novus accuse Harris of making heartless comments about hospice patients living too long. He allegedly instructed nurses to speed up their death by doubling, tripling and quadrupling their medication.Harris, an accountant with no medical background, reportedly "instructed a nurse to administer overdoses to three patients and directed another employee to increase a patient's medication to four-times the maximum allowed," the FBI wrote in an affidavit for a search warrant obtained by the local news."You need to make this patient go bye-bye," Harris allegedly wrote in a text sent to a nurse employed with Novus. In the first instance, the nurse refused her boss's instructions, but the FBI affidavit is unclear as to whether or not any hospice patients were harmed by Harris' lethal business model.Apparently, healthcare providers have an incentive to get rid of patients fast because they do not "make more money for longer hospice stays," reports. According to the FBI , hospices are subject to an "aggregator cap," which limits Medicare and Medicaid payments based on the average annual hospice stay.Providers can be forced to pay back money to the government if " patients live too long. ... Hence, hospice providers have an incentive to enroll patients whose hospice stays will be short relative to the cap," said the FBI.Novus first attracted the attention of the FBI in 2014, when information surfaced that the company was recruiting patients "who did not qualify for services," fraudulently billing the government for unnecessary medical treatments.It was during the investigation that the FBI learned of Harris' much more sinister behavior, including that "as part of this scheme, Harris, who has no medical training or licenses, would direct his employed nurses to overdose hospice patients with palliative medications such as morphine to hasten death, and thereby minimize Novus' (paybacks) under the cap."The FBI raided the offices of the healthcare provider in September 2015, butwas unable to view court records pertaining to that search, because they appear to be sealed. Determined to increase profits, Harris handpicked which home healthcare patients would be moved to hospice, completely ignoring their medical needs."He did this by having employees who were not doctors sign the certifications with the names of doctors also employed by Novus ," wrote the FBI agent. "If a patient was on hospice care for too long, Harris would direct the patient be moved back to home health, irrespective of whether the patient needed continued hospice care."Harris is reported to have made a series of cold-hearted and arguably downright evil comments to the nurses he employed about killing off hospice patients. During a lunch meeting, he told two healthcare executives to "find patients who would die within 24 hours," in order to "save my ass toward the cap," according to the FBI.Referring to a current hospice patient , Harris said that he wished they "would just [expletive] die." He allegedly directed other employees to "overdose hospice patients when they have been on hospice service for too long."The FBI is investigating Novus for healthcare fraud , false statements relating to healthcare matters, and obstruction of a criminal investigation into healthcare offenses. The company was forced to turn over all of its data storage including emails, medical records and passwords.Novus' website says: "When you invite us into your home, it's personal. And we take that invite as an honor as well as an immense responsibility."
When PRO choice becomes NO choice
The vaccine industry's war on women
What abortions and vaccine mandates have in common: The destruction of LIFE
The sick politics of medical murder parading as "science"
What's my take on medical choice?
Vaccines represent the ritualistic sacrifice of children to appease the science gods
(NaturalNews) Presidential candidate Donald Trump stepped in it last week, giving a flippant answer about abortion while being bombarded by rapid fire questions from Chris Matthews, a democratic party political hack pretending to be a journalist.According to Trump's initial answer -- which has since been walked back -- if lawmakers were to outlaw abortion across the country (which will never happen), those who break the law should receive some sort of punishment.This answer predictably set off a firestorm across the media, which reiterated that women's bodies are their own and that government should keep its hands off their bodies. Yet this same media establishment gleefully contradicts itself when the issue turns to vaccines. The "Pro Choice" mantra of the mainstream media instantly transformed into "NO CHOICE" when the topic turns to vaccines.The child of a woman doesn't really belong to that woman, we're told, when the subject is immunization. Even a woman's own body is assumed to be the property of the government in the view of all the vaccine pushers who decry anyone who seeksrather than being injected with toxic vaccine ingredients that provably cause brain damage , autism (as recently admitted by FDA documents ) and even death.And so the hypocrisy of the political and medical establishment. No women should be given any choice about vaccines, we're adamantly told by the anti-science trolls posing as journalists at the NY Times and Washington Post. Vaccine mandates are "good for society" and thereby supersede the individual medical rights of women. The, it seems, is alive and well in the vaccine industry, where women are seen as nothing more thanto be manipulated and dominated by the men who run the vaccine industry.Take the case of this six-month old infant who was paralyzed and brain damaged by eight vaccines given all at once. As Vactruth.com reports:According to the women-hating science hacks in the mainstream media, this sort of... and should, in fact, be encouraged and even gleefully forced upon moms and their babies.Imprisoning a women for having an abortion is wrong, they say, but murdering that woman's child with toxic vaccines is perfectly acceptable.You might think that the medical establishment's positions on abortion and vaccines are contradictory. How can they protect a woman's choice in one circumstance, yet violate a woman's choice in the other?But you're missing the bigger picture. Despite all the other debated elements of this, abortions and vaccines have one thing in common:From a purely medical standpoint, abortion ends a developing life. Vaccines, in turn, destroy the lives of children already born. The end result is the same: Fewer humans being born or surviving childhood.It's no coincidence that vaccines are aggressively pushed by depopulation advocates like Bill Gates, who think there are far too many people on the planet and we'd better get rid of some of them through vaccines. As Gates said in this recorded presentation , "The world today has 6.8 billion people... that's headed up to about 9 billion. Now if we do a really great job on new vaccines, health care, reproductive health services, we could lower that by perhaps 10 or 15 percent."By "reproductive health services," he means abortions and birth control. By "vaccines," he means injecting babies with toxic poisons like mercury, aluminum, MSG and formaldehyde -- all ingredients that are still used in vaccines according to the CDC The message from the medical establishment on all this is simple:In other words, the political-medical establishment isn't really pro choice at all. They claim the government should "keep its hands off women" only when it comes to abortion, but not with vaccines. Women in America, in other words, are. Protecting life is frowned upon. Protecting life is demonized and even attacked by the entire medical establishment. Any mom who wants to delay vaccines, or spread them out, or seek single-dose vaccine vials instead of the multi-dose vials made with mercury is vilified and publicly shamed.Yet a woman who ends the life of an unborn child is celebrated! Some wear T-shirts proudly proclaiming how many abortions they've had. Under the regime of medical murder that now pushes vaccines, psych drugs and abortions,That's how sick the politics of medicine have become. The medical murder of children -- both living and unborn -- is celebrated by the entire mainstream media, while parents who desire to protect their children from toxic vaccine adjuvants are maliciously attacked and shamed for daring to protect life.Once you realize this, you finally realize what you're really up against. The medical murder establishment and its quack science media writers are really just. Much like the eugenicists of the Third Reich, they want to see as many human babies and fetuses destroyed as possible. One more child being brought into the world is, in their minds, a sin against the climate... or the rainforests... or Gaia or whatever. They see procreation as something evil. Yet DEATH is something to be applauded, mandated and even celebrated.Every mainstream media writer who attacks the "VAXXED" movie, in other words, is a death worshipper and medical cultist who can't stand to see children grow up with healthy bodies and minds. They desperately want to see children crippled, maimed and murdered... and they only resent the fact that those children weren't aborted before they were born in the first place. There's never enough murder to satisfy the extreme hatred for humanity that infests the dark souls of those in the media who push toxic vaccines. Like hungry demons feeding on human blood, they can never be satiated by sucking the life out of a few children... they want them ALL to be destroyed.My position on all this is strictly libertarian. I'm a proponent of individual liberty, meaning. While I do not condone abortion, and I cringe at the thought of it being used as a form of convenient birth control by irresponsible young adults, neither do I believe the government should criminalize the act.We have too much criminalization in our society already. Our prisons are filled with people who were busted for possessing recreational drugs like marijuana. America already has, per capita. Should we now double and triple the prison capacity to incarcerate women who had abortions? Of course not. The very idea is ludicrous.Yet there are vaccine cultists who insists that we should fill those same prisons with women who refuse to chemically assault their own children with toxic vaccines that are proven to cause brain damage and death A woman's choice, it seems, isthat now dominate the pharma-controlled media and medical institutions. According to them, every woman is required to participate in athat's no more based in science than the ritualistic killings carried out by the Aztecs . It's all a false narrative, backed by merchants of death and presented to the public through the illusion of authoritative knowledge.In the days of the Aztecs, it was the high priests who claimed to have unique positions of knowledge and communion with the gods. Today, it is the high priests of medicine who claim to have a monopoly on science and the exclusive superhuman ability to understand "evidence" that no one else can access because they aren't sufficiently accredited "scientists."Only the times have changed, but the con stays the same. One day,in precisely the same way we now view the "mercury vapors" medical treatments of the 1700's to be insanely stupid and destructive. Yet when living in each age of medical delusion, a sensible person finds herselfwho have never learned the skills of critical thinking. So the intelligent get shouted down by the idiot cultists of medical mythology... all of whom demand a systematic destruction of life that's no more based on logic, reason or evidence than slicing off the heads of children and rolling them down the stone stairs of grand pyramids rising out of lush jungles.A mother who tried to protect her child from the sacrificial rituals of the high priests in the 1400s would have been vilified, shamed and insulted in precisely the same way a mother is vilified today for trying to protect her child from toxic vaccines.Modern medicine is not actually "advanced," you see. In many ways, it's truly barbaric, and in six centuries of science moving forward, the quest for knowledge is still twisted and perverted by the dark desires of the "high priests" who still seek to sacrifice, murder and maim children in order to appease their "gods." Today, those gods are called "science," but they are no more based in rationality and evidence than, the Aztec god of sun and war, who of course didn't really exist... and neither does any scientific evidence supporting the universal safety and efficacy of vaccines.Vaccines need no scientific explanation or evidence, you see. They are. That's why vaccines are always said to be safe and effective even when the available scientific evidence says they are neither.Read more about the covert sterilization chemicals found in vaccines or how Pfizer used Nigerian children in vaccine medical experiments . Learn the truth about vaccine science fraud in this False Claims Act filing , and find out why 75% of the children vaccinated in this Mexican town ended up dead or hospitalized.
Authorities are looking for a suspect who allegedly got into a fight with a man at a party in an upscale East Bay neighborhood early Saturday morning and left him with life-threatening injuries.
Deputies were dispatched to the house in Orinda at about 8 a.m. following a reported battery, according to Contra Costa County Sheriff's officials. When officers arrived they found a 21-year-old man in the parking area of a nearby home suffering from a head injury.
The victim was taken to a hospital.
Officers learned there had been a large party at the house on Camino Encinas, near Moraga Way, before the fight broke out. One neighbor told NBC Bay Area theyve called police in the past to report loud parties at a rental house that had been listed on Airbnb.
The five-bedroom, five-bath, 4,000-square-foot home was listed on Airbnb for $875 a night. The listing said the property had "been used for filming and hosted music stars."
Attempts to reach the property owner for comment were unsuccessful, but shortly after NBC Bay Area reached out, the property listing was removed from Airbnb.
Airbnb provided the following statement: "The people staying at this home did not book it through Airbnb. We encourage all hosts and guests to only book reservations through Airbnb, which provides a Trust and Safety team on standby 24/7 and a toll-free neighbor hotline for any concerns. We have zero tolerance for this sort of behavior and we have permanently removed this listing from the Airbnb community."
Police, along with the Contra Costa Sheriff's Office, are investigating the incident and a have released a cell phone image of the suspect.
Anyone with information about the suspect is asked to contact the Contra Costa Sheriff's Office at 925-646-2441. Callers who wish to remain anonymous can call 866-846-3592.
This incident has the city of Orinda considering a new ordinance to address Airbnb rental properties. Mayor Victoria Smith said there already is a party ordinance that holds homeowners responsible when parties get rowdy.
"We want to make sure if there is an emergency there is someone to answer the phone, and there is someone to contact and responsible," Smith said.
Last month, an Airbnb rental in the East Bay turned into a crime scene. A 19-year-old renter used a home for a house party and invited hundreds of teenagers. The owners of the home returned to find dirty furniture, beer cans, broken glass and even bloodstains. Police arrested the renter for vandalism. The homeowners plan to press charges and file a civil suit.
Newly released police reports shed light on why it took police nearly two weeks to bring charges in connection with a near tragedy in west suburban Northlake.
Two children came within inches of being shot, after a bullet tore through the wall of an office at a Northlake grocery store March 9, narrowly missing the pair before striking the ankle of an employee bagging groceries. But it would be twelve days before anyone would be charged, and police reports obtained by NBC5 Investigates reveal that investigators initial reaction was that no one should face arrest at all.
Video of the March 9 incident at Farmers Best Market, obtained through a Freedom of Information request by NBC5 and Telemundo Chicago, shows the bullet tearing through the wall, inches from the head of a 5-year-old boy and his 7-year-old sister, who was standing directly behind him.
I felt angry because nobody asked if my son was fine, says the childrens mother, Maria Urbano. Its really hideous to imagine what would have happened if that bullet had hit my son.
Police say the incident occurred after store employee John Lulias, who is also a licensed security guard, brought a handgun to work and laid it on a counter in the office. A second employee, Luis Hernandez, picked the gun up and it went off. Both employees were eventually charged with reckless conduct, but not until 12 days after the incident. And police reports show that initially officers felt no one should be charged.
It was determined that this was not a reckless discharge of a firearm, the initial narrative stated, but was in fact an accidental shooting with injury.
Additionally, the reports reveal that a store employee texted a friend who was an off duty police officer within minutes of the incident. We got a problem here, he said.
The video shows that police responded rapidly, believing there might have been an active shooter in the store. But upon arrival, they were faced with a chaotic scene. The children had run to their mother, who had offered her apron as a tourniquet for the wounded employee. But none of the officers spoke to her, or the children, apparently unaware at that point of the close call when the bullet ripped through the office wall.
Urbano and the children left the store, virtually unnoticed, just seven minutes after the incident.
I felt angry because nobody asked if my son was fine, she said. Nobody came to us to ask if he was ok, or scared.
Eventually charges were brought after the video was shown to prosecutors. But four days later, the documents reveal that the chief learned no one had identified or spoken to the childrens mother. He took it upon himself to drive to a nearby Portillos, where she had been identified through the uniform she was wearing on the video. Nissen determined who she was with store management, and arranged to have her speak to a Spanish-speaking officer.
Leaves a lump in your stomach, the chief said. Its a shocking thing, and you just cant help but feel sorry for that little child, and happy that he sees the next day.
Store owner Nick Merikas told NBC5 his employees feel terrible about the incident, which he called a lapse in judgment. Merikas says Lulias had removed the clip from the gun, apparently unaware that there was still a round in the chamber.
Clearly shaken, he said he had not viewed the video, but was so horrified at what had happened that he ordered Lulias to no longer carry a gun in his store. He said he would soon post signs outside, warning that no guns are allowed anywhere on his premises.
A deadly fire claimed the life of one man, injured two firefighters, and left more than two dozen people homeless on the city's West Side Friday night.
The fire began just after 10 p.m. Friday night on the second floor of the Austin Station apartment building located in the 300 block of N Central Ave in the Austin neighborhood, the Chicago Fire Department said.
Fire officials say the blaze began on the second floor of the building. Firefighters managed to contain the fire mostly to the single unit where it started, though flames did shoot up the outside of the building to the third floor.
The victim who died was reportedly in his 50s, though the Cook County Medical Examiner has not released his identity. Fire officials said that he used a wheelchair, and was found on the floor of his apartment with the wheelchair nearby.
His unit was "consumed floor to ceiling," said Larry Langford, spokesman for the Chicago Fire Department.
Neighbors say they often saw him in his wheelchair but didn't know his name, with several employees at the Central Plaza Residential Home across the street saying that he was a friendly man "who greeted everyone each day."
"He was nice. Usually when we come for work, he'll yell out the window and say something nice to us. Good morning and stuff," said Raven Brinson, an employee at the Central Plaza Home. "I'm just like, that's so sad. It was terrible. I didn't think anyone died I thought they helped everyone, but when I found out it was him, it kinda hit home."
One firefighter was critically injured after falling down an elevator shaft, and another suffered minor injuries, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Both were taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where their conditions were stabilized, fire officials confirmed.
The Red Cross was on the scene Friday night, assisting the more than two dozen residents who were displaced by the fire.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The search for a North Texas teenager swept away by Gulf surf Friday at Corpus Christi was called off Saturday.
The U.S. Coast Guard called off the search for 16-year-old Carlos Perez, a Lake Ridge High School ninth-grader, on Saturday at 5 p.m.
The Coast Guard sent their condolences to the family. Right now officials said that there are no other agencies conducting a search.
"We all hope for the best, but there is a belief in everyone's body that you're going to have to prepare for the worst," said freshman Brendan Smith, who plays soccer with Perez.
A Corpus Christi police statement said officers received a call for help shortly before 11 a.m. on Padre Island near Bob Hall Pier. A man told arriving officers that the teen had been swimming with a group but couldn't be found when the group came ashore.
A police spokesman said rough surf quickly ended a boat search, but officers continued to search the shore while the U.S. Coast Guard searched by air until nightfall Friday.
The Coast Guard planned to reassess weather conditions before initiating search efforts Saturday.
Parents of students on the trip said the stop at the beach was a planned part of the trip. David Ward's son, a junior, was with Perez.
"He called me around 2 p.m. and said there was an incident on the beach, but didn't go into too much detail," Ward said. "I asked if he was involved and he said, 'Yes. I was there.' Pretty soon after that he said we were at the beach and one of the kids is missing and the Coast Guard is looking and they haven't found him."
"Hopefully he's alive. We're just going to keep praying," Mendoza said.
In a statement, Dr. Jim Vaszauskas, superintendent of the Mansfield Independent School District said the missing student had been attending the SkillsUSA state competition:
"Dear Mansfield ISD Family: It is with deep sadness that we must share with you that a ninth grader at Lake Ridge High School was in Corpus Christi for the SkillsUSA state competition and went missing in the rough Gulf of Mexico waters south of Bob Hall Pier. Corpus Christi firefighters and the U.S. Coast Guard are currently searching for the student.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the student's family as the rescue crews continue their search efforts. The Mansfield ISD community is doing everything we can at this time to provide comfort and assistance to the family and to our students.
NBC Today Show co-host Hoda Kotb paid a visit to Dallas Friday and gave a powerful speech about overcoming adversity in her career and her fight with breast cancer.
Kotb spoke to a packed luncheon crowd at the Dallas Country Club, put on by Interfaith Family Services. The organization transitions families from homelessness to self-sufficiency and helps 100 families a year in Dallas.
Kotb talked about her transition from a hard-news journalist to the quirky, fun-loving fourth hour of Today.
"When you've covered hard news your whole career and you've been in all the hot spots and the places you've been to Baghdad and Afghanistan and all of a sudden you are laughing and scratching and drinking with Kathy Lee, you go, 'what happened?'" Kotb said.
Changing paths is what Kotb writes about in her latest book, Where We Belong: Journeys That Show Us the Way, which features stories of people who find their life's purpose in unexpected ways.
The term of a Texas grand jury considering the cases of bikers arrested after a shootout that left nine dead last year at a Waco restaurant expired, giving defense attorneys hope that the 39 people whose cases weren't considered won't be indicted.
"If they didn't present anything to the grand jury in all this time, I can't imagine they ever will," said Paul Looney, a Houston attorney representing a biker couple from Brenham, Texas.
But McLennan County District Attorney Abel Reyna said Friday that he could still present the cases to another grand jury and that the criminal investigation continues. Reyna declined to say why he hadn't presented the cases yet.
Since November, the grand jury has indicted 154 people on the identical charge of engaging in organized criminal activity, alleging that they are complicit in the shootout that also left 20 people injured. They face 15 years to life in prison if convicted. The grand jury's term expired Thursday.
The shootout between bikers and police occurred outside a Twin Peaks restaurant in May 2015, shortly before a scheduled meeting of the Confederation of Clubs and Independents, a coalition of motorcycle clubs that advocates rider safety.
The Associated Press previously reported that ballistics reports show four of the people killed were struck by the same caliber of rifle fired by Waco police. Waco police spokesman Patrick Swanton has declined to comment, citing a gag order in the criminal case of one of the bikers.
Authorities say the shooting arose from an apparent confrontation between the Bandidos and Cossacks motorcycle clubs.
Lee West, a Waco biker who has been closely monitoring the case, said all of those indicted thus far have been Bandidos, Cossacks or members of their support clubs. The remaining 39 people all belong to what bikers call "mom-and-pop" clubs, West said.
Dallas attorney Don Tittle, who represents about 15 bikers who have filed or plan to file lawsuits against Waco authorities for wrongful prosecution, said he believes Reyna didn't present the remaining cases to the grand jury so that he can wait out a deadline for the bikers to sue. They only have two years from the shooting to file their lawsuits, and 12 of the bikers Tittle represents have yet to be indicted. He says they fear retaliation if they go ahead and sue.
"There was no way he was going to allow these cases to be no-billed. If he's continuing to investigate, there are a lot of people out there who are hesitant to poke the bear," Tittle said.
Melissa Hamilton, who teaches criminal procedure at the University of Houston, said prosecutors may have let the grand jury lapse because they are continuing to collect evidence.
"If there's additional evidence with the next grand jury, that could mean not only charges for those who have not been indicted but also additional charges for those who have been," she said.
Three missing North Texas children were found alive Thursday night, locked inside their parked SUV with their deceased mother, outside a McKinney shopping center.[[374216361,R]]
Police said Christine Thi Woo was found dead in her 2011 Honda Pilot about 6:30 p.m. in the parking lot of the Target store on the 8900 block of Texas 121 at Custer Road.
Woo's cause of death is unknown and will be determined by the Dallas County medical examiner.
The children, 1-year-old Leah Woo, 3-year-old Nathan Woo and 5-year-old Lauren Woo, were found alive in the vehicle, police said, and appeared to be OK but were transported to an area hospital for evaluation.
Three missing North Texas children were found alive Thursday night, locked inside their parked SUV with their deceased mother, outside a McKinney shopping center.
The children's father, Brandon Woo, went to the hospital to be with them, police said. On Friday, he issued the following statement: Thank you for your thoughts and concern for the wellbeing of my family. We request that everyone please respect our privacy as we focus on healing.
The family's church, Stonebriar Community Church, said the children are at Children's Medical Center in Dallas.
"Were doing all we know how to do right now," said Carol Spencer, church spokesperson and senior director of ministries. "A lot of praryer, tons of prayer for this family. Such a sad situation for all of us our hearts are just broken."
Spencer said the family has attended the church for the last four or five weeks and that the children have been attending Sunday school. She said church representatives are with the family at the hospital to assist in whatever way they can.
Police are investigating after the body of Christine Thi Woo was discovered in her vehicle near a Target store in McKinney. Her three young children were alive inside the vehicle.
"I wish we had an answer," Spencer said. "We know nothing. Were all just as baffled as everyone else is. It's just a sad, sad situation and it just breaks our hearts"
A Frisco police spokesman, Sgt. Jeff Inmon, declined to speculate about the woman's cause of death.
"At this point we're conducting an investigation to determine exactly what happened," he said. "The medical examiner's office, however, will determine the cause of death. We're all saddened by this incident and it's unfortunate but hopefully it'll bring some closure to the family."
On Friday, Frisco police said it had no update on the case and that it may be at least a week before any new information is available. The Collin County Medical Examiner's Office said it had no information on Woo's death as of Friday morning.
The three young children of a Frisco woman whose body was found in her vehicle at a McKinney parking lot were rushed to a nearby hospital Thursday.
Christine Woo and her children were last seen in Frisco Monday morning. Police tracked her last credit card to purchases at a Frisco Walgreens and McDonald's Monday between about 10 a.m. and noon.
Police continue to investigate at the scene, and additional details have not yet been released.
Husband Speaks to NBC 5
Brandon Woo, told NBC 5 Thursday that he texted his wife on his way home from work Monday and didn't get a response. When he arrived home they were gone.
"Got to the house, no kids, no wife, so I'm thinking, 'OK they may be out at the playground, shopping, somewhere,' so I give her a call. Cell phone rings in the other room," Brandon Woo said. "She doesn't have her cell phone, can't track her from her cell phone."
"Started getting worried when it got to 8 o'clock, now nothing. Nine o'clock, 10 o'clock, stayed up all night of course, worrying," he said.
Frisco police say a mother not seen since Monday has been found dead in McKinney, and her three children are alive.
Brandon Woo said he returned to work Tuesday morning, but would later tell his boss his family was missing and was allowed to return home.
"I know a lot of your viewers are asking me why did you wait so long to file a missing person report," he said. "Call it ignorance. I always thought that you had to wait 24 hours for a person to be missing before you can file a report. Once I did file a report on Tuesday evening, the police obviously educated me on that, saying, 'No you don't have to wait.' As soon as you think they're missing you can file a report, doesn't matter how long."
Brandon Woo said there was no further activity on the couple's credit cards, or even their Toll Tag, beyond Monday morning.
It is not clear how long the SUV had been in the Target parking lot.
Vigil for Woo Family
Friday evening, a few dozen people gathered at a vigil at Warren Sports Complex.
They lit candles and prayed for the Woo family.
"I don't know what happened that day but I know that three children lost their mother," said Cate Biggs, founder of Frisco Moms Care, which organized the vigil.
"That breaks our hearts," Biggs said.
NBC 5's Chris Van Horne and Scott Gordon contributed to this report.
A plan to send back migrants from Greece to Turkey sparked demonstrations by local residents in both countries Saturday, two days before the deal brokered by the European Union is set to be implemented.
At the same time, migrants stranded at a makeshift camp in this small town on Greece's border with Macedonia staged a protest demanding that the border be opened and that they be allowed to continue their journeys to central and northern Europe.
The migrants' continued presence led several dozen local residents to stage a protest Saturday morning. They blocked a road for about an hour to demand the evacuation of more than 11,000 stranded migrants to "transit centers" across the Greek mainland.
"The police know what they must do ... they must be issued orders," said Georgios Georgantas, a lawmaker with the conservative opposition New Democracy party, who joined the protesters. He called for the "immediate" evacuation of the Idomeni camp "using violence, if necessary."
Idomeni residents alleged that some migrants had broken into empty homes in the town and said they no longer felt safe.
In the coastal Turkish town of Dikili, hundreds demonstrated against the prospect of hosting people expelled from the nearby Greek islands, especially Chios and Lesbos, where there were over 5,000 migrants on Saturday morning.
Turkey is due to receive the first batch of returned migrants and asylum seekers on Monday. A plan to build a reception center in Dikili is unpopular with locals.
"We definitely don't want a refugee camp in Dikili," said the town's mayor, Mustafa Tosun.
Demonstrators expressed concern over the impact the EU deal could have on the economy, tourism and security in their town.
The EU-Turkey deal stipulates that those who reach the shores of Greece unlawfully will be returned to Turkey unless they qualify for asylum. The deal aims to break the lucrative smuggling operations that now operate out Turkey.
In Idomeni, more than 200 refugees and migrants staged a protest on a highway linking Greece and Macedonia, demanding that Macedonia open its borders. The protesters blocked trucks from crossing into Macedonia, but not passenger vehicles. In a counter-protest, the truckers blocked the road to other vehicles as well.
Near the camp itself, some migrants have camped on the rail tracks, blocking passenger and cargo traffic for the 13th day in a row.
Quite a few migrants, including war refugees from Syria and Iraq, are still hoping that Macedonia, and other Balkan countries to its north, will open their borders. There are rumors circulating in the camp that a "European summit" on Monday will decide to open the borders, but no such summit is scheduled.
But many others are giving up hope. Among them is Muthanna al Hashemy, 36, a refugee from Iraq, who has been waiting for 43 days, along with his wife and two boys, aged 4 and 6. He is getting desperate.
"I do not know what to do. The only solution is to return to my country. Here, the situation is worse than the war...They want us to go to the (transit centers) where it is worse than here. I no longer have any money," he says, adding that he spent "over 2,500 euros" ($2,800) to get to Idomeni. Still, a glimmer of hope persists.
"I will wait until Monday, see what happens and then return to my country," he said.
Dominique Soguel, in Turkey and Demetris Nellas in Athens, Greece contributed to this report.
After more than 110 days in the hospital and widespread support from her community and beyond, a young girl who nearly drowned in a bathtub last year finally returned home.
Members of the Abington Township community welcomed Ally home Friday after her family announced she was healthy enough to leave the hospital.
Welcome home Ally Turner! Posted by Abington Township Police Association on Friday, April 1, 2016
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On December 8, 2015, Ally's parents Bridget and Brad Turner were inside their Abington Township home when they heard a loud noise in their bathroom. When they went inside they found the 7-year-old girl unresponsive and underwater. The parents quickly administered CPR and continued to do so until medics arrived. Ally was then taken to Abington Memorial Hospital and then airlifted to the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia.
Ally's family says she was placed on a ventilator and put into a medically induced coma in order to preserve her brain function and allow her lungs to heal. She was also placed on an ECMO machine, which drains blood from the body, adds oxygen, removes carbon dioxide, warms the blood and then returns the blood to the artery and pumps it through the body.
As the young girl remained in a coma, her parents constantly stayed at her bedside and repeated the words, "Just fight," a phrase that would ultimately be the rallying cry for Allys supporters. Allys 11-year-old brother Liam created a t-shirt with the words, Just Fight on it. Soon thousands of the shirts were delivered to Abington Township residents as well as people across the nation who were following Allys story. A Facebook page, website and GoFundMe page were also created for the girl, gaining thousands of followers who showed their support by wearing the Just Fight t-shirt.
Bob O'Brien
As the support for her grew, the young girl continued to fight through obstacles, including significant brain damage that was revealed in an MRI on December 19. On December 23, the Turner family received an early Christmas gift when Ally went off the ventilator and began breathing on her own. Friday marked another milestone for Ally when she was allowed to leave the hospital and continue her recovery at home.
CLICK HERE to track Allys continued recovery and CLICK HERE to donate to Allys medical expenses.
While a baby who was kidnapped from the King of Prussia Mall Thursday was eventually found safe, many viewers reported they received the Amber Alert notification on their phones around four hours after the kidnapping. NBC10 investigated why the notification took so long to be sent out.
Upper Merion Township Police Chief Tom Nolan told NBC10 the recovery of 7-week-old Ahsir Simmons was a quick success but there may have been a delay in the Amber Alert process.
Our dispatcher may not have notified the State Police through the exact protocols that they want which could potentially have slowed the process down, Chief Nolan said.
Chief Nolan says the dispatcher may have put the words Amber Alert into a standard missing persons advisory even though the official process is more complex. Dispatchers are supposed to submit data to a national system and then directly contact state police.
In the state of Pennsylvania, sending out an Amber Alert is a process with at least three steps. Local authorities notify the state police, the state police notify the National Center for Missing Children in Washington, DC, and then the National Center for Missing Children sends the alert to phones.
Before law enforcement officials issue an Amber Alert they must first believe an abduction occurred and that the child, under the age of 17, is in imminent danger. They also need enough descriptive information to assist in a recovery. Chief Nolan insisted those criteria were quickly met on a local level.
"I know that the Amber Alert that went out through the Upper Merion Police Department went out to all surrounding jurisdictions in Montgomery County within the first few minutes," he said.
Pennsylvania State Police told NBC10 their watch center was first contacted at 7:45 p.m. Thursday but it took an hour for them to obtain appropriate pictures and information. They then activated the Amber Alert at 8:48 p.m. With that activation, State Police notified the National Center for Missing Children in DC which sent the alerts to phones, a process that took about 45 minutes.
While the official Amber Alert push may have been delayed, Chief Nolan says a huge response on social media proved to have a major impact in finding the baby with thousands of people sharing video and photos of the suspect and child on Twitter and Facebook.
This case here, I think, just really reflects how important it can be, Chief Nolan said. And probably more than any of us imagined.
In the world of avid Disney fans, pin release days are as big as any, and for one collector who attended the latest event, an accidental loss may turn out to be of huge gain, if he or she can be found.
At a Disneyland pin release in Anaheim Thursday, March 24, a worker came upon a misplaced lanyard that had a couple of pins attached to it. It also had a note that read "Hello, I am autistic and I don't talk much but I would like to trade for Mickey pins."
Disney employee Emily Gibby found the lanyard and decided to fill it with 11 more Disney pins. She then posted a picture to Twitter, Instagram and Facebook asking for help to find the unknown Disney fan.
"We did what any Cast Member would naturally do," Gibby said in her post. "We filled up his lanyard with Mickey pins and got him a Mickey medallion as well!"
Gibby asked people to share the post and get the word out so that they could find the owner.
As of Friday afternoon, the post had been shared more than 10,000 times on Facebook and the hashtag #theredlanyard showed over 50 people had regrammed the original post on Instagram.
In her Instagram post, Gibby shared a few clues. She said employees had learned there reportedly a group of kids with similar lanyards at the event, and one tip said they may have been from a Boys & Girls Club.
A Disney spokeswoman said that if anyone has any information or would like to claim the lanyard, they can call lost and found at 714-817-2166.
Gibby said in her posts they can also reach out to her directly on Instagram or Facebook.
Alright Friends I need your help! Thursday morning during the pin release I was working, we found this red lanyard with... Posted by Emily Fuller Gibby on Saturday, March 26, 2016
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Two paragliders got tangled together 100 feet in the air at the Torrey Pines Glider Port Friday afternoon just after 2 p.m.
After the collision both pilots managed to deploy their back-up parachutes and pull off an emergency landing within seconds as they fell to the cliffs below.
What's going through my mind? As soon as you collide I'm going to hit the cliff. That's what's going through my mind, Dave Maples told NBC 7.
Maples, who survived the collision, was absolutely right.
They did hit the cliff. Maples said the other pilot was higher than him and she caught the wing on her left side. That's when the parachutes got tangled together.
As they began to spin they went down. The paragliders were stranded on the side of the cliff for a short amount of time afterwards before lifeguards came in from the bottom of the cliff and others from the top.
Rescuers helped the paragliders get their equipment together then escorted them to lifeguard trucks on the beach.
Actually it was pretty calm. The other pilot threw her reserve first, then I threw mine right after her, and that's what slowed us down, Maples explained.
Lifeguard Mike Cranston said the paragliders are lucky to have walked away from the incident. He told NBC 7 the pilot showed him his helmet and it didn't have a single scrape on it.
Its just amazing that they hit each other and they fell to the ground in a controlled emergency descent, they were not injured. We were expecting that this was going to be a bad one from the information we had and we are very happy to see that there are no injuries and nobody has to go to the hospital from this incident, Cranston said.
One person was crushed to death and five are injured after a small plane crashed into a car on a San Diego freeway, officials confirmed to NBC 7 San Diego.
The single-engine, two-seat Lancair IV crashed into a car on Interstate 15 North near State Route 76 at approximately 9:15 a.m. Saturday morning, about 50 miles north of San Diego.
One witness stated that they didn't hear the engine of the plane. Witnesses are saying without question the plane appeared to be having mechanical issues, Chris Parent of CHP said.
The driver, identified as Aaron Meccann, had pulled over to sync his Bluetooth when the plane crash landed in the fourth lane of the freeway, sliding 250 feet and hitting the back of the Nissan, CHP authorities on scene said. CHP officials said there was no evidence landing gear was deployed and it appeared the plane had mechanical issues.
See photos from the scene of the crash here.
Watch video from moments after the plane crash here (Warning: graphic language).
Authorities on scene told NBC 7 San Diego that a 38-year-old woman, identified as Antoinette Frances Isbelle, was sitting in the back passenger seat and was crushed to death at impact. Meccann, 43, who had pulled over to sync his Bluetooth, was taken to Palomar Hospital with lacerations above his eye; a 45-year-old female sitting in the front left passenger seat was taken to Sharp Linda Vista; a 36-year-old man sitting in the back passenger seat was taken to Sharp Linda Vista Hospital.
The pilot, a 60-year-old man, suffered severe head trauma, CHP officials said; his injuries are considered life-threatening. He was taken to Palomar Hospital. The passenger in the plane, a woman in her 50s, suffered non life-threatening injuries and was taken to Palomar Hospital.
Chris Saunders, a Palomar Hospital spokesman, said the extent of the victims' injuries and their conditions are unknown as they are in the ER.
Crews worked to clean up a fuel leak from either the plane or car following the crash.
Jacob Duncan was heading to work when he noticed a plane that appeared to be having trouble leveling out approaching the freeway.
The plane touched down about 40 feet behind my car and it slid about another 40 feet, Duncan recalled in an interview with NBC 7.
One car was stopped on the shoulder, he said. It slammed right into the back of them.
Duncan hopped out of his vehicle and with the help of other passersby tried to help the people in the aircraft and the vehicle.
Erika Uribe-Munoz witnessed the crash and commented on NBC 7's Facebook page.
"We were on the opposite side of the freeway, we saw it as it was coming down to crash, pretty scary," she said.
Cyndi Young also saw the crash. "Was scary," she posted on our FB page. "Went right over our heads. Saw it hit the ground."
A Sig Alert was issued for the area as crews respond to the scene. Traffic quickly backed up in the area.
Duncan said in hindsight, it was obvious the pilot didnt have much control of the plane and was trying his best to avoid the vehicles on the road.
Its sad for everyone involved, he said.
If the car hadnt been stopped on the freeway, Duncan said, he thinks the crash wouldve been avoidable.
The pilot really I believe was trying his best, he said.
Isbelle was a member of the San Diego Roller Derby according to the 'Aftershocks.' The team posted condolences on their Facebook page Saturday saying:
"We are hit very hard with the passing of Toni "Rockalicious" Isbelle. She was a great part of our family. Condolences to our sister league San Diego Roller Derby. Your big brothers will always be here for you for anything that you need. We love you Rockalicious!"
No other information was immediately available.
Check back for details on this developing story.
Beginning Friday, it's easier for Virginia and Maryland residents to get the life-saving medication Narcan, which can reverse the deadly effects of an overdose from heroin or other opiates, but a leading activist says there's also been a setback because she's been told can no longer dispense Narcan.
Since summer 2015, when Narcan became available without a prescription, Ginny Atwood has trained hundreds of worried parents, health care workers and drug abusers in how to use the life-saving antidote. But she can no longer provide Narcan to those who take her class.
The Virginia Board of Pharmacy told her to stop, saying legislation only permits pharmacists and law enforcement to distribute Narcan.
Atwood lost her brother to an overdose and started the Chris Atwood Foundation, which raised the funds to pay for and provide Narcan free to those in her classes who couldn't afford it or couldn't make it to a pharmacy.
"This is a life-saving medication, and when people need a life-saving medication, they need it now, not two weeks from now," she said.
Atwood is appealing to the Attorney General's Office to see if the rules could be reinterpreted or altered.
In the meantime, getting Narcan from CVS stores just got easier. Virginia and Maryland joined 21 other states where CVS provides Narcan without a prescription. It is still kept behind the counter.
Funeral arrangements have been made for the Virginia State Police trooper gunned down at a busy bus terminal in Richmond.
Virginia State Police announced Saturday that the funeral for Trooper Chad P. Dermyer will take place on Tuesday, April 5 at 11 a.m. at Liberty Baptist Church at 1021 Big Bethel Road in Hampton, Va., and will be followed by a private graveside burial in Gloucester County.
The same church will also hold a visitation on Monday, April 4 from 3 to 5 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m.
Dermyer, 37, was shot multiple times by an Illinois man before other officers shot and killed the gunman, police said. Police have not said what the motive was in the shooting and identified the shooter as 34-year-old James Brown III.
Dermyer, uniformed in dark blue fatigues, had been participating with about a dozen other troopers in a training exercise at the bus station.
He was known as a hard worker and good colleague, said Newport News Police Sgt. Gerald Loose. Dermyer worked for the Newport News Police Department from 2003 to 2007. Dermyer had a wife and two children, police said.
An apartment building fire in Greenbelt, Maryland, left at least 17 people without a home on Saturday, according to the spokesman for the Prince Georges County Fire Department.
Mark Brady, chief spokesperson for the agency, said crews arrived in the 8500 block of Greenbelt Road just before noon on Saturday and saw smoke coming from a three-story apartment building. Fire crews tackled the flames on all three floors for about 45 minutes before getting it extinguished.
Brady said 17 people, 11 adults and six children, will be displaced. He said there is a possibility of that number increasing.
The County Citizen Services Unit and the American Red Cross are helping those in need. No injuries were reported.
Investigators are looking into whether a stove fire that was put out at that location about an hour early had anything to do with this fire.
A 69-year-old Alexandria man has died after he was assaulted and beaten during a robbery in Old Town, police say.
Alexandria police said officers found Melaku Abraha conscious, but injured in the 200 block of South Alfred Street about 9:33 p.m. Monday, March 28.
Abraha was taken to a hospital where it was determined he was suffering from a head injury. Abraha's condition continued to worsen over several days and he died on Friday, police said.
Police said the assault was part of a robbery. It is the first homicide in Alexandria this year.
Anyone with information about this investigation is asked to contact Detective Bikeramjit Gil with the Alexandria Police Department at (703) 746-6751.
The owner of two Maryland spas was arrested after a three-month investigation uncovered evidence of human trafficking, Montgomery County Police said.
Tin Tuan Lu, 37, was charged with four counts of human trafficking. Police said some of Lus female employees made extra money by performing sexual acts for the spas customers.
Detectives from the Vice and Intelligence Section began investigating the case in November after receiving a tip that two establishments owned by Lu, Star Foot Spa and Sun Foot Spa, were linked to prostitution, police said.
The two businesses are located next door to each other on Hungerford Drive in Rockville.
Lu drove six-to-eight women between the spa and his home each work day, police said. Some of the women were engaging in sex acts for money, police said.
The women are from New York, police said.
Detectives searched both spas March 10 and found seven women later determined to be from New York, police said. Eight days later, detectives got an arrest warrant. Lu turned himself into police March 23. He was released on $50,000 bond.
Police described warning signs that someone you meet may be a victim of trafficking, including:
Multiple people living in a cramped space and/or living with their employer.
Employer holding employees identification documents.
Inability to speak with the individual alone.
Submissive or fearful behavior by employee.
The investigators uged anyone with information about suspected human trafficking to contact the Vice and Intelligence Section at 240-773-5959.
A 31-year-old Essex, Maryland man used a social media app to lure in a 14-year-old girl and sexually assault her, police say.
The girl contacted Roy David Evans Jr. in June 2015 after he posted a Craigslist ad looking for young models, police said. According to police, the two communicated over the app Kik, where Evans went by the username Roddanger86.
The victim emailed Evans and sent him a message over the app Kik. She told Evans she was 14 years old, police said.
Evans drove to the victims home in Montgomery County three times and had sexual relations each time, police said.
Detectives charged Evans with three counts of third-degree sex offense and arrested him Thursday. He was released after posting a $150,000 bond.
A third-degree sex offense charge in Maryland has a maximum penalty of ten years in prison.
Evans also used the alias Rodney, police said.
Police warned there may be additional victims in the Baltimore area because Evans started posting Craigslist ads in 2014 looking for young models.
Police urge anyone with more information to contact the Montgomery County Special Victims Investigations Division at 240-773-5400 or their local police department.
A woman was forced into a dumpster behind a shopping center in Springfield, Virginia, where police say she was robbed and sexually assaulted.
Police said the 40-year-old woman was walking alone behind Commerce Plaza in the 7000 block of Commerce Street when she was attacked by a man.
The suspect is still at large and police have released pictures of a red car they say he was driving. There is a large, white or gray mark on the driver's side front door ofthe car.
Police described the suspect as a Hispanic male, between 5 feet 6 inches and 5 feet 9 inches and 140 to 160 pounds.
One business owner told News4's Krtistin Wright that many people walk through the area early in the morning and he's now worried for his femal employees.
"So, I just tell them 'careful,'" restaurant owner Sukit Sangh said.
Police said the suspect also took money from the woman before fleeing.
She was able to make it home and call police.
Police say an "armed and dangerous" suspect in a series of crimes in two New England states injured an officer and tried to steal a police cruiser before he was taken into custody Saturday.
Investigators had been searching for 32-year-old Michael Munroe of Raymond, New Hampshire, in connection to multiple robberies.
The violent crime spree ended Saturday when Munroe and his girlfriend, 29-year-old Rebecca Norton, were arrested in Hancock, a town so quiet, there is only one police officer on duty at a time.
Saturday, that officer was Frank Shea.
"He was talking with this guy, and then all of the sudden, I saw this roundhouse punch, a sucker punch, come up and hit Frank in the face," said Hancock Fire Chief Nevan Cassidy, who assisted in the arrest, along with other firefighters.
According to police, Munroe punched Shea twice, injuring him.
At the time, Shea did not know the man was Munroe.
"He got in the police car and tried to steal the cruiser," said Hancock Police Chief Andrew Wood. "Luckily, the officer had removed the keys and he wasn't able to go anywhere."
"Frank and I pulled him out," said Cassidy. The guy was incredibly strong, and it took both of us to just to pull him out of the car and hold him down."
Munroe is accused of robbing a bank Monday in Ossipee.
Wednesday, he allegedly carjacked a woman as she left work at the Dress Barn in Tewksbury, Massachusetts. The suspect got away with her purse and her vehicle, which was later recovered in Wilmington.
The suspect is also accused of robbing another bank Friday in Seabrook, New Hampshire.
Munroe and Norton may have left their mark in another part of town, as well. An SUV the couple is accused of stealing in Derry was found abandoned on a rural trail.
Boston is banning city travel to North Carolina in response to a new state law that critics say discriminates against gay and transgender people.
The Boston Globe reports that Boston's city council approved a measure this week prohibiting taxpayer-funded travel to North Carolina. It joins a growing list of cities and states that have restricted official travel to the Tar Heel State, including New York, Connecticut and the District of Columbia.
Republican North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory signed a law March 23 that requires transgender people to use public restroom facilities that correspond with their gender at birth. It also excludes lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from statewide protections against discrimination.
Boston City Councilor Josh Zakim said he felt compelled to stand up for diversity, inclusion and antidiscrimination.
Champaign, IL (61820)
Today
Partly cloudy skies with gusty winds. High 79F. Winds S at 20 to 30 mph. Higher wind gusts possible..
Tonight
Partly cloudy skies early will become overcast later during the night. Low 63F. Winds S at 15 to 25 mph.
Pediatricians can now identify infants who are at higher risk of early-childhood obesity, before obesity develops, using a simple measurement of body mass index (BMI), a tool not routinely used until children are 2 years old. This conclusion, from a new study of nearly 4,000 children, will be presented Friday at the Endocrine Society's 98th annual meeting in Boston.
In the U.S., 17 percent of children and teens are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, health care providers do not know when obese children develop an abnormal pattern of weight gain, said lead investigator Allison Smego, MD, a pediatric endocrinology fellow at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.
"Our study shows that growth patterns in children who become severely obese by 6 years of age differ from normal-weight children as young as 4 to 6 months of age," Smego said.
The researchers found that a high BMI, measured between 6 and 18 months of age, accurately predicted which infants were prone to early-childhood obesity.
Children age 2 years or older are considered overweight if they have a BMI at or above the 85th percentile for their age and sex on standard growth charts, and are obese if their BMI is at the 95th percentile or higher. Although not typically done, infants' BMI can be tracked on World Health Organization (WHO) growth charts for birth to 24 months.
In this study, Smego and colleagues looked at the electronic health records for two groups of patients who had growth data from birth through age 6 years. One group of 480 children was severely obese between ages 2 and 6 years, with a BMI above the 99th percentile on the WHO growth charts, and the other group of 783 kids was lean, with a BMI between the 5th and 75th percentiles during those ages. Looking back at the growth curves over time, the researchers found that BMI diverged between the two groups starting at only 4 months of age.
A BMI above the 85th percentile at 6, 12, or 18 months was a strong predictor of severe obesity by the age of 6 years, the investigators reported.
Most of the obese children were from low-income, African-American populations in Cincinnati, according to Smego. To validate their findings in a different ethnic and socioeconomic population, the researchers repeated the study in a third group: 2,649 children seen at Children's Hospital Colorado in Aurora, Colo., which had a higher Hispanic population. Smego said that a BMI threshold above the 85th percentile increased the chance of severe obesity at age 6 years by threefold to nine-fold in this group.
"Based on our findings, we recommend that pediatricians routinely measure BMI at infant well-child assessments beginning at 6 months, identify high-risk infants with BMI above the 85th percentile, and focus additional counseling and education regarding healthy lifestyle toward the families of these children," Smego said. "It might take the pediatrician a minute to look at BMI, yet it gives them a wealth of knowledge about how their patient is growing."
Endocrinologists are at the core of solving the most pressing health problems of our time, from diabetes and obesity to infertility, bone health, and hormone-related cancers. The Endocrine Society is the world's oldest and largest organization of scientists devoted to hormone research and physicians who care for people with hormone-related conditions.
More and more children in Europe and the USA are suffering from diabetes. A Group of European Researchers has now joined forces under the leadership of the Gothe University Frankfurt. They are searching for a new method in order to spare people with Diabetes type 1 from lifelong insulin therapy.
The number of children in Europe and the USA with type 1 diabetes is growing by four percent each year. A group of European researchers has now joined forces under the leadership of the Goethe University, with the goal of sparing affected people from lifelong insulin therapy. They plan to develop three-dimensional cellular structures of insulin-producing cells (organoids) in the laboratory and to work with pharmaceutical industry partners to develop a process for their mass production. The European Union is providing over five million Euro over the next four years to support the project. The first clinical studies on transplantation of organoids are planned after that.
Patients with type 1 diabetes are unable to produce insulin due to a genetic defect or an autoimmune disorder. They could be cured by transplanting a functional pancreas, but there are not nearly enough donor organs available. This is why researchers had the idea of growing intact insulin-producing cells from donor organs in the laboratory to form organoids, which they would then transplant into the pancreas of diabetes patients. "The method has already been shown to work in mice", explains Dr Francesco Pampaloni, who coordinated the first project together with Prof. Ernst Stelzer at the Buchmann Institute for Molecular Life Sciences at the Goethe University.
Researchers have only recently discovered how to produce organoids. Adult stem cells, which develop into cells for wound healing or tissue regeneration in the body, are the starting point. These cells can be grown in the laboratory through cell division and then allowed to differentiate into the desired cell type. The key is now to embed them in a matrix so that they grow into three-dimensional structures. The organoids are typically spherical, hollow on the inside and have a diameter of approx. 20 micrometres - about half as thick as the diameter of a human hair - to hundreds of micrometres. "If the structure were compact, then there would be a risk of the inner cells dying off after transplantation because they wouldn't be supplied by the host organ's cellular tissue", Pampaloni explains.
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The task of the Frankfurt group under Stelzer and Pampaloni is to control the growth and differentiation of the filigree organoids under a microscope. To do so, they use a light microscopy method developed by Stelzer with which the growth of biological objects can be followed cell for cell in three dimensions. The project is called LSFM4Life, because light sheet fluorescence microscopy (LSFM) plays a key role in the project.
The Frankfurt group is also responsible for developing quality assurance protocols, because of the cooperation with industrial partners in Germany, France, the Netherlands and Switzerland, the original goal of the project is the large-scale production of organoids in accordance with good manufacturing practices for pharmaceuticals. Two research groups in Cambridge specialise in isolating insulin-producing cells from donor organs and growing organoids, while a group of clinicians in Milan is developing methods for transplanting organoids.
As is the case for all organ transplants, care will have to be taken with organoids as well so that rejection responses by the recipient's immune system are avoided. However, over time the researchers plan to build cell banks from which immunologically compatible cell types can be selected for every recipient.
A new national research network was launched today to transform the health outcomes of individuals with diabetes and its related complications. It will be led by two of Canada's top researchers in the field and includes researchers conducting leading-edge health and biomedical research at nine institutions across the country.
"Diabetes is a huge burden to our health system right now. One in four Canadians have diabetes or pre-diabetes and it's costing us $16-billion per year to treat. By 2020, we anticipate that more than 3 million Canadians will have diabetes. We have an opportunity to harness the tremendous research being done in Canada to find better solutions," said Professor Gary Lewis, Director of the Banting & Best Diabetes Centre at the University of Toronto and a Senior Scientist with the University Health Network.
Lewis will lead the new Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) Network in Diabetes and Related Complications - with Professor Jean-Pierre Despres, Scientific Director of the Cardiology Division of the Quebec Heart and Lung institute, Director of Science and Innovation at Alliance sante Quebec and a Professor of Kinesiology at Universite Laval.
Today, Federal Health Minister Jane Philpott announced funding from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) for five SPOR Networks in Chronic Disease. "These networks will produce the innovations that improve health of Canadians and position Canada as a global leader in research on these chronic diseases," said CIHR President Dr. Alain Beaudet.
Each SPOR Network will receive $12.45-million from CIHR to be matched by partners. The SPOR Network in Diabetes and Related Complications has partnered with the Canadian Diabetes Association, JDRF, the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, Research Manitoba, Alliance sante Quebec, New Brunswick Health Research Foundation, as well as private sector contributors including Merck Canada Inc., Astra-Zeneca Inc., Caprion Proteome Inc., and WinSanTor Inc., for a total five-year investment of an additional $19-million for the SPOR Network in Diabetes and Related Complications.
"JDRF is proud to be a SPOR partner, as we greatly value Canadian researchers working collaboratively to accelerate diabetes research. This gives patients hope for a better world, a world without type 1 diabetes (T1D) and this research will move us there faster," said Dave Prowten, President and CEO of JDRF Canada.
"Our network will facilitate meaningful connections between primary healthcare providers, their patients and relevant specialists to achieve improved care and significant cost savings within our health system," said Despres.
"I have been living with T1D for 49 years, and have experienced how devastating diabetic related complications can be; I lost my eyesight 25 years ago. Last week my 14-year-old nephew was diagnosed with T1D. This disease continues its devastating path, which is what compels me to fight back and be a member of this SPOR Network," said patient advocate Debbie Sissmore. "I am delighted to represent and advocate for the Canadians that need help in the prevention and treatment of diabetes related complications."
A focus for the network will be the impact diabetes has on vulnerable groups, including Indigenous peoples, immigrants, women and lower socio-economic groups. "We know that diabetes has a disproportionate impact on these groups, but there is still much more research to be done on why and how to deliver appropriate and culturally sensitive treatments," said Lewis.
Sensory neurons in human muscles provide important information used for the perception and control of movement. Learning to move in a novel context also relies on the brain's independent control of these sensors, not just of muscles, according to a new study published in the journal Current Biology.
Each muscle can have tens or hundreds of encapsulated sensory receptors, and these "sensors" are called muscle spindles. Spindles differ from other sensory receptors as they also receive nerve fibers from the central nervous system itself, which acts to control spindle output.
There are more nerve fibers travelling to and from spindles than to the actual muscle tissues generating force and powering movement. Despite more than a hundred years of research on this class of sensory receptors, however, it has been unclear how, why and when the nervous system chooses to independently control spindles.
"The findings strongly point to independent control of these sensors during motor learning," says Dr. Michael Dimitriou, who conducted the study and is a researcher at the Department of Integrative Medical Biology at Umea University in Sweden.
In this study, Dr. Dimitriou monitored spindle signals in humans while they learned to control the position of a visual cursor by moving their hand (much like using a computer mouse). Depending on what stage in the learning process, the spindles sent very different signals in response to virtually identical movements.
The research shows that the sensory capability of spindle neurons was adjusted according to the ongoing requirements of the task being learned. In other words, muscle spindle signal patterns were changed during the learning process to become selectively informative about different aspects of movement.
"It is well-known that effective extraction of information is a major component in good learning performance, and this is true in motor adaptation as well. Richer and more relevant sensory information from spindles allows for efficient update of the computational circuits in our brain that guide movement. Differing levels of skill in controlling muscle sensors is probably a factor defining individual differences in motor learning performance," says Dr. Dimitriou.
Beyond increased understanding of how human motor learning works, the current findings may also have more practical implications, such as in prosthetic limb and robotics control, argues Michael Dimitriou:
"To use a common example, computer algorithms can easily defeat a human in a game of chess. However, even the most sophisticated robot cannot match the skill and dexterity of a child in moving pieces on the chessboard. Better understanding of human sensory control is a way forward."
Source: Umea University
A national study involving 804 couples found that married men over age 55 were almost 20 percent more likely to have had a screening colonoscopy in the previous five years than men who were not married. Men married to women who are happier with the marital relationship were nearly 30 percent more likely. That rises to more than 40 percent if their wives were highly educated.
For women, however, being married, happily or otherwise, made no significant difference compared with unmarried woman. Neither the relationship happiness nor education levels of their husbands appeared to change colonoscopy rates for wives.
"Women are thought to control the health capital in most households," explained study director William Dale, MD, PhD, chief of geriatrics & palliative medicine at the University of Chicago. "They act as health gate keepers, overseeing their husband's health choices and directing decisions at the margins. Her decisions influence both partners."
"In contrast, women appear to derive fewer direct health benefits from marriage," he said. "We suspect they depend more on alternate support sources, such as friends and other relatives."
The study used data collected in 2010 from the National Social Life Health and Aging Project (NSHAP), a nationally-representative sample that includes older couples in the U.S. The researchers surveyed 804 male-female couples, drawn from a sample of more than 3,000 community-dwelling adults, aged 55 to 90. Average age was 72 for men and 69 for women.
"We hoped that a better understanding of the role of spouses might help us improve cancer screening rates," Dale said. This strategy has been valuable for other health interventions, such as smoking cessation, encouraging exercise, and nutrition counseling. It had not previously been shown for colon cancer screening.
Although colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths among American men and women, nearly 40 percent of those who meet the screening guidelines do not get the procedure. Last year, about 133,000 Americans were diagnosed with colorectal cancer. An estimated 50,000 died. The United States Centers for Disease Control (CDC) encourages regular colorectal cancer screening once every ten years beginning at age 50, earlier and more often for those at higher risk.
Because colorectal cancers can often be prevented or cured when diagnosed early, the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, a coalition of organizations co-sponsored by the CDC and the American Cancer Society, has proposed adoption of a national goal to achieve 80 percent colon cancer screening rates by the end of 2018.
In Illinois, according to the American Cancer Society, 1,032,400 people need to be screened to achieve 80 percent by 2018. Nationwide, 24 million people need to be screened to reach the goal. Staying current with screening involves either a colonoscopy once every 10 years or a yearly stool test.
This is an uphill battle. Although screening colonoscopy is one of the most effective tools for preventing cancer or catching it early, it is more complicated, more expensive and takes longer than, for example, a simple blood test for possible prostate cancer. Colonoscopy uses a four-to-six foot, flexible tube, about half an inch wide, with a camera and a light source at its tip, to examine the inside of the colon.
"Screening takes time, involves preparation and recovery, and comes with an 'ick factor,'" Dale said. It begins the day before, with a bowel cleansing, which means drinking a volume of polyethylene glycol, an electrolyte-rich fluid that flushes out the colon. Most people are sedated during the actual testing, and thus require a ride home afterwards. They tend to take the rest of that day off. Overall, it's an involved process requiring assistance, especially for older adults.
"We suspect that women who are more emotionally invested in their marriage are more likely to encourage healthy behaviors in their husbands," Dale said. "Husbands are more likely to take this advice when they view their wives as supportive."
"Men don't like to discuss cancer screening generally or colonoscopies in particular," Dale said. "They don't tend to talk to each other about it. It is not an easy topic of conversation. But our data suggest that they will more often do it with proper encouragement and support from their spouse. Our goal now is to engage the wives, to have them in the office when we discuss cancer screening with the husband."
Whether walking into Patrick Doughertys comforting pods of willow osiers and saplings or craning upward to watch the mesmerizing light show on Janet Echelmans tsunami, visitors to WONDER are dwarfed by the outsized exhibitions currently on display at the Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C.
Both natural and manmade materials evoke rainbows, trees and the Chesapeake Bay in surprising ways.
Home to the Smithsonian American Art Museums collection of contemporary and decorative art, the Renwick Gallery was the first building in the U.S. designed specifically to be an art museum.
It couldnt provide a more perfect venue for the nine installations in WONDER, which will be on full display through May 8.
The exhibit has been drawing huge crowds since the Renwick reopened in November after a two-year renovation. Dont be surprised by long lines of people stretching down Pennsylvania Avenue, especially on weekends. The outdoor line, however, moves quickly.
Upon entry, be sure to watch the short videos in which the artists describe their work.
On the first floor, where exhibits will remain through July 10, visitors are greeted by Doughertys fanciful stick houses, which seem to have been woven by giant birds. He whimsically calls this exhibition Shindig. Indeed, the structures seem ready to whirl around each other in a square dance, even as each piece evokes its own circular swirl.
Gabriel Dawe created rainbows using miles of colored embroidery thread spanning from floor to ceiling. From some angles, the thread disappears into triangular shafts of light.
Stalagmites, mountains, dribbled towers of sand? Tara Donovans 10 towers seem like a work of nature but are composed of thousands of styrene index cards glued in stacks. What could be less natural? Styrene is considered a hazardous chemical and possible human carcinogen. Perhaps this is a warning about the piles of waste humans are heaping upon the Earth.
Walking up the grand staircase, visitors emerge under Leo Villareals light sculpture, made of 320 hanging rods studded with 23,000 LED lights that shimmer in non-repeating sequences. The sculpture, intended to evoke falling stars, has been acquired by the Renwick and will remain in place indefinitely.
Upstairs, visitors are likely to encounter a second, longer line under Echelmans 1.8 installation, inspired by the number of microseconds our days were shortened by the earthquake and resulting tsunami that hit Japan in 2011.
The 8.9-magnitude earthquake shifted how the planet's mass is distributed, shortening the length of the 24-hour day by 1.8 microseconds, according to geophysicist Richard Gross at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
Echelmans hand-woven net, reminiscent of a giant fish net, undulates above the 100-foot long Grand Salon as lights change the installation from bright yellow and orange to a deep orange, pink and purple. This installation will also be in place indefinitely.
Visitors snake under Echelmans net in Disney-like lines while waiting for the mass of people to move to the next installation by John Grade, which allows them a peek inside the roots and trunk of a replica of a giant tree lying on its side.
Grade made a plaster cast of a living 160-year-old hemlock in the Cascade Mountains and then had volunteers help re-create the tree using recycled cedar strips. The installation is in tribute to the 160-year-old Renwick building.
Once the installation is removed, Grade plans to take it to the Cascade Mountains and let it lie on the forest floor next to the tree that inspired it, allowing mosses and nature to reclaim the tree.
The next gallery contains a deluge of pale green glass marbles, which flow across the floor and up the walls and ceiling, creating a map of the Chesapeake Bay. This piece by Maya Lin, the artist who designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, employs a simple toy from childhood.
Visitors can smell rubber as they enter the next gallery, where a labyrinth made of sliced pieces of old tires are woven into undulating shapes by Chakaia Booker. While this installation appears to be the least imitative of nature, it somehow manages to belong with the others.
The final installation is truly made by nature.
Artist Jennifer Angus created spiraling designs across the gallery walls with giant cicadas, grasshoppers, beetles and other insects. The walls are painted a brilliant pink shade from the cochineal, an insect from which the natural dye carmine is derived. A parasite native to tropical and subtropical South America as well as Mexico and Arizona, the cochineal lives on cacti.
The designs include human skulls, somewhat jarring images, among the pinned insects. The center of the gallery contains a wooden cabinet with multiple drawers full of more insects. A large hornets nest dangles from a slender branch that juts from the top of the cabinet.
Angus bought the insects from collectors and says she will reuse them in other installations.
Each of the installations inspires a sense of wonder, leaving room for visitors to interpret the artists intentions.
The Renwick itself is a work of art. Construction began in 1859 to house the collection of William Wilson Corcoran, who along with architect James Renwick was inspired by the elaborate pavilions of the Louvre in Paris.
The museum was threatened with demolition in the 1960s, but was rescued, restored and reopened in 1972 as part of the Smithsonian Institution.
Members of the Liberty High School Student Council Association are holding an online and on-site silent auction to raise the remaining funds needed for a digital sign for the school.
Robin Waldron, social studies teacher and SCA adviser, said the students have been working on the project since 2013 when Liberty celebrated its 50th anniversary. So far the students have about $6,600 raised to replace the sign damaged in the windstorm of 2012. They need about $15,000 to buy the sign.
The online auction will be posted through 9 p.m. Monday. On Wednesday, the school will display the items in the cafeteria during the games scheduled that evening.
Items available for bid include a weekend getaway to Wintergreen Resort, a Mary Kay makeover, a Putt-Putt Fun Pack, a one-day ice skating pass to Elmwood on Ice in Roanoke, and four general admission tickets to a Red Sox game at Lewis Gale Field during the 2016 season.
People drive by and dont know whats happening at the school, Waldron said. They dont know sporting events, drama productions, students who have achieved awards, unless they seek out this information, theyre not going to know and its a huge disadvantage that we dont have that connection with people who drive by our school every day.
For more information, visit scaauction.weebly.com
Two of Central Virginia Family Physicians practices have been recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance for their efforts to inform primary care physicians about their involvement in patients care.
CVFP Immediate Care on Airport Plaza in Campbell County and CVFP Immediate Care on Lakeside Drive in Lynchburg have received Patient-Centered Connected Care Recognition from NCQA, a private nonprofit that aims to improve health care by holding providers to high standards through continual measurement and analysis of performance.
The recognition is for agencies that provide outpatient care for patients experiencing acute/episodic illness and do not act as the patients primary care provider.
According to NCQAs website, the recognition evaluates how ambulatory care providers such as urgent care centers, onsite employee health clinics and school- and retail- based clinics communicate and connect with primary care providers as they deliver care to shared patients.
According to a news release from NCQA, the two practices have demonstrated each connects the care they deliver back to patients primary care team in a structured and timely manner.
It recognizes the efforts providers make to close the gaps in care and ensure that all parties involved in a patients health care have the information needed to care for a patient.
CVFP was evaluated on how it connects with primary care, identifies patient needs and provides patient care and support, as well as how its system capabilities include electronic and data collection systems and how it measures and improves upon its performance.
NCQA announced it would launch a program to increase care coordination between traditional primary and ambulatory care providers last spring. CVFP began pursuing the recognition in 2015 after seven of its sites achieved the agencys highest level of Patient-Centered Medical Home approval possible, a level 3 certification.
The only other practice in the state with Patient-Centered Connected Care recognition is Cignas Healthy Life Care Center, HealthSmart Wellness Clinic in Arlington County.
According to NCQAs website, it can cost providers up to $1,500 to have a site evaluated for the new recognition. It is valid for three years.
For more information, visit www.ncqa.org or www.cvfp.net.
Home News Sports Social Obituaries Events Letters Looking Back Health Jewels Stitch in Time STATEWIDE: Idaho law enforcement looking for
distracted drivers April 2, 2016 Idaho law-enforcement personnel will combine traditional and innovative strategies to crack down on motorists who choose to drive distracted, April 1-11.
A statewide high-visibility enforcement of texting and inattentive driving laws will be underway during the 11-day period. At the same time, traditional- and social-media outreach efforts will let drivers know about the enforcement and encourage them to always drive attentively.
Driving and texting is not only dangerous and irresponsible, its illegal, said Captain Sheldon Kelley with Idaho State Police. Drivers who break our states texting law will be stopped and fined. This is a major problem in our state, and were trying to work toward a resolution by fining violators.
Its not that complicated: If you text and drive inattentively, we will see you, pull you over, and fine you. Were serious about preventing distracted crashes, said Kelley.
Distracted-driving statistics portray a grim picture. In 2014, 39 people were killed (22 percent of all crash fatalities) and an additional 3,243 were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers.
Violating Idahos texting law, which became effective in 2012, can be costly. Violations of the texting law are an infraction; it is a primary citation and will cost you $81.50. Drivers found to be inattentive (Idaho Code 49-101(3)) can be fined up to $300 and/or receive 90 days in jail.
Texting and driving requires motorists to take their eyes off the road, hands off the wheel, and mind off the task of driving. This is a recipe for a crash, and thats a scary thought, said Josephine Middleton, Distracted Driving program manager from Idaho Transportation Departments Office of Highway Safety.
People think they can multi-task, but research shows that your mind can only focus on one task at a time, she explained. No one has the right to put another persons life at risk like that.
The University of Michigans Transportation Research Institutes 2012 Teen Driver Distraction Study reports that one quarter of teens respond to a text message once or more every time they drive, and 20 percent of teens and 10 percent of parents admit that they have extended, multi-message text conversations while driving.
For more information, please visit http://itd.idaho.gov/ohs/justdrive.htm and www.distraction.gov
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Women in Jazz
The series will feature Brenda Butler, Neisha Guy, Patti Rogers, Marie -Angelique Cartar and Llettesha Sylvester. Butler leads off tonight and the other artistes will perform on a different night every Saturday until April 30, which will see Sylvester taking centre stage.
Sylvester has been winning more fans and kudos since her role in Mahalia: A Gospel Musical.
This is the sixth year of the Women in Jazz series which is usually held in April. Jazz lovers also have the option of having dinner while the artistes perform.
Known for her fantastic voice and powerful delivery, Butler is sure to excite the audience tonight.
Butler returned to Trinidad in 1996 after attending Nova Southern University where she performed as a soloist in the universitys gospel group Colour Blind.
The group toured throughout the United States backing gospel greats such as Edwin (O Happy Day) Hawkins, Donnie McClurkin, Kirk Franklin and Mary Mary.
Butler first appeared in Women In Jazz 2011 and took a five-year hiatus from public performance but kept on perfecting her craft and will return tonight much to the delight of her fans.
April 9 will feature the Digicel Raising Star 2014 winner, Guy, who was returned to the competition by a Wild Card vote and then went on to win. Guy has performed and opened for many local and international acts and also performed at The Tobago Jazz Experience last year.
Rogers is often referred to as The Grand Dame of Jazz in the local jazz circles. She has been performing over the last 36 years and is a true master of the jazz and blues genre. In the early 80s she became the resident vocalist at the Trinidad Hilton Hotel performing with the Felix Roach Jazz Trio and also with jazz pianist Ralph Davies. More recently, Rogers has done a number of collaborations with noted keyboardist Ronald Aqui where together they offer interpretations which although rooted in the jazz standard idiom also includes Latin, Brazilian and other popular music styles. Rogers will perform on April 16.
Cartar has been performing for many years often as a soloist and also with the band, The Cartars, where she performs alongside her very talented brothers. She can be seen at many corporate functions and weddings, always bringing her dynamic stage personality to enhance any function.
Carter will be supported by the very talented Jason Dasent on piano on April 23.
The Women in Jazz 2016 series will wrap on April 30 with distinguished soprano Sylvester. In the 2010 Music Festival Sylvester claimed the titles: Most Outstanding Vocalist and the winner of The Lieder Class, Broadway Female Class. This very versatile performer has trained under Dr Jessel Murray, Dr Charles Brunner and the late Dr Vertrelle Cameron- Mikens.
As a graduate of The University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT), Sylvester has completed an Artist Diploma in Music Performance with an emphasis in Voice from The Academy of The Performing Arts. She was last seen on stage in the leading role of Mahalia Jackson in JCS Productions Mahalia: A Gospel Musical. She will be backed by The Dean Williams Quartet.
All shows are free but dinner reservations are advised by contacting any of the Fiesta Plazas restaurants. For more info: visit the MovieTownes web site or Fiesta Plazas Facebook page.
Envoy gets pan from Laventille school band
The instrument will be sent to Cuba to be displayed at the Cuban Institute of Music in commemoration of the steel orchestras week-long visit to Cuba last August on a Laventille to Cuba.
with Success tour.
The band which has through the years garnered top prizes in music festivals and steelpan competitions from 1987 a mere four years after the school was established on the hills of Laventille at which time walked away with the first place in the Steelband Music Festival also won the hearts of the Cubans.
At an Evening of Appreciation at the House of Angostura to thank all who had in one way or another contributed to the summer tour, Moreno was so moved by Success Stars Pan Sounds playing Cubas National Anthem on pan, that he praised a disciplined and organised school, a model school where teachers get full support from parents. Said Moreno: You work like a family.
I wish this school a beautiful and marvellous future.
Asbestos threat at Port-of-Spain General
The woman, who has been staging a protest outside the Health Ministry for the past two weeks, said the building in which they were housed at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital is unsafe.
On January 6, the roof, which she said contained asbestos, a cancer-causing agent, collapsed.
Alexander said despite many attempts to get an audience with the minister, she has been unable to have the matter addressed.
She said the issue was not non-payment of salaries, but that the relevant documents regarding their health issues have not been issued to the Public Services Association (PSA), of which she was a member.
She wants the minister to act on the matter and put the right structures in place legislatively.
Alexander explained that she was employed with the NWRHA after a protest staged by employees of National Flour Mills (NFM), where Alexander had been employed until 2003.
She said after 116 days of protest regarding working conditions at NFM, the workers were placed in various sectors of the Public Service.
Because of the intervention of then president of the PSA, Jennifer Baptiste-Primus, we were placed in several sectors, something that she promised us and followed through on, Alexander told the Newsday yesterday.
(Baptiste-Primus is now Labour Minister under the present PNM regime.) I joined the PSA when I saw the PSA leadership could make a difference. I began to represent colleagues, the tailors and seamstresses... we make uniforms, coats for doctors, sheets and so on at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital.
We have been removed from the building and nobody is addressing the matter. My concern, being a member (of the PSA), is I would have clamoured persistently about this building.
My question to the minister is why the issue was not dealt with before the collapse? she asked.
Alexander said some people would feel quite content about receiving a salary and not having to work. However, she said that was not her way.
Three months now we have been coming in and signing in, but we are doing nothing.
These women I work with are hard-working, and this is not what we want. We are being paid when clearly the economy cannot support it. How could this have gone so wrong with all those persons being paid to manage the hospital? Alexander asked. She said despite several attempts to speak with the minister, his response has been that he was busy. How busy could he be not to address the dilemma of 18 workers and the health threat of the workers? We need him to put structures in place so this does not happen again. There is a clear divide between the ministry and the RHAs. I am not seeing him (Deyalsingh) as a weak person, but I am calling on the minister to make a pronouncement on this, this has to be legislatively dealt with, Alexander said. The NWRHAs Chief Executive Officer Stacy Seeterram said yesterday that the matter is being looked into.
'He Had the Chance to Go in
and Save the Children'
(Newser) At the end of the Nuclear Security Summit on Friday, President Obama took a question on the man the Economist deems a top global risk: Donald Trump. When asked about Trump's recent suggestion that Japan and South Korea get their own nuclear weapons to deal with any threat for North Korea, Obama said Trump simply doesn't know what he's talking about, the New York Times reports. The remarks "tell us the person who made the statements doesn't know much about foreign policy, or nuclear policy, or the Korean Peninsula, or the world generally," Obama told reporters at the Washington, DC summit. Leaders in the region have also dismissed the suggestion, which analysts say would go against more than 60 years of US policy.
Obama said Trump's remarks came up "on the sidelines" of the summit, which focused on the threat of nuclear terrorism and was attended by dozens of world leaders, reports NBC. "I said before that people pay attention to American elections," Obama said. "What we do is really important to the rest of the world. Even in those countries that are used to a carnival atmosphere in their own politics want sobriety and clarity when it comes to US elections." Obama was also asked who he voted for in the Illinois Democratic primary. "It's a secret ballot, isn't it?" he said. (Earlier in the summit. Obama said ISIS getting its hands on a nuclear weapon "would change our world.")
(Newser) British police went undercover to trick a 25-year-old delivery driver into giving them his cellphone, leading to his conviction on terrorism charges Friday, CNN reports. Back in July, undercover officers posing as company managers showed up at Junead Khan's workplace and asked to see his work records. When they asked for proof of where he was on a certain day, he showed them a record from that day on his iPhone. They asked for a closer look then arrested Khan once he handed over the phone. So as not to be locked out, the officers quickly changed the phone's password, giving them complete access.
Khan's iPhone ended up being a "goldmine of information." He used it to keep in contact with a British ISIS fighter in Syria, who sent him bomb-making instructions, the BBC reports. There was also an encrypted conversation in which he lamented missing an opportunity to kill US soldiers near a base on his delivery route. "When I saw these US soldiers on road it just looked simple but I had nothing on me or would've got into an accident with them and made them get out the car," NBC News quotes the message. Thanks in part to evidence on his iPhone, Khan was convicted of preparing terrorist acts and planning to join ISIS in Syria on Friday. (Read more ISIS stories.)
(Newser) Leonardo DiCaprio may be banned from returning to Indonesia over his criticisms that palm oil plantations are destroying the country's rainforests and endangering wildlife, an immigration official said Saturday. The Oscar winner made a one-day visit to protected Mount Leuser National Park in northern Sumatra last weekend and uploaded photos to his Instagram account, expressing concerns over species whose habitats are threatened. "The expansion of palm oil plantations is fragmenting the forest and cutting off key elephant migration corridors," he posted. "A world-class biodiversity hotspot, but palm oil expansion is destroying this unique place."
Heru Santoso, the spokesman for the Directorate General for Immigration at the Law and Human Rights Ministry, says DiCaprio used his visit to discredit the palm oil industry and the Indonesian government. "We support his concern to save the Leuser ecosystem," Santoso says. "But we can blacklist him from returning to Indonesia at any time if he keeps posting incitement or provocative statements in his social media." Santoso says companies that objected to DiCaprio's comments have the right to request that immigration authorities bar him from reentering Indonesia, though none have done so yet. (DiCaprio recently told Beijingers that China could be the "hero of the environmental movement.')
(Newser) A bull that escaped from a slaughterhouse holding area and darted through the streets of New York City was taken to greener pastures by Jon Stewart. Officials tell the New York Times that the black and white Angus was spotted Friday in Queens. The bull was soon corralled at York College, where students snapped pictures and took videos. The bull was dubbed Frank Lee after a prisoner who escaped from Alcatraz. NYPD officer captured the bull and took it to a Brooklyn animal shelter, where it was picked up by the former Daily Show comedian and his wife, who are animal advocates.
In a Facebook post from the Farm Sanctuary group, which negotiated the bull's release, Stewart can be see feeding the animal. After a checkup at the Cornell University Hospital for Animals, Frank Lee will be transported to a permanent home at Farm Sanctuary's Watkins Glen shelter in upstate New York, where it will spend its days grazing 175 acres of pastures in the company of dozens of other bovines, CNN reports. (Another cow that escaped a Queens slaughterhouse earlier this year is now living a new life under the name Freddie Mercury.)
(Newser) Heavy fighting has broken out between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces along the front lines of the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region, reportedly killing at least one child in what one official called the worst clashes since 1994. Officials from each former Soviet republic blamed the other Saturday for the fighting that began overnight, the AP reports. Both Armenia and Azerbaijan said they had inflicted heavy losses on the other. David Babayan, a spokesman for Nagorno-Karabakh's separatist president, said a boy of about 12 was killed and two other children wounded in a Grad missile barrage by Azerbaijani forces. Azerbaijan says 12 of its soldiers were killed and around 100 Armenian forces were killed or wounded.
Vladimir Putin has urged all sides to cease firing and "show restraint," a Kremlin spokesman says. Nagorno-Karabakh, a region in Azerbaijan, has been under the control of local ethnic Armenian forces and the Armenian military since 1994. The Armenian Defense Ministry says Azerbaijan used aircraft, tanks, and artillery to try to make inroads into Nagorno-Karabkh and that "Azerbaijani authorities bear all responsibility for the unprecedentedly supercharged situation." The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry says the fighting began when Armenian forces fired mortars and large-caliber artillery shells across the front line. (Read more Nagorno-Karabakh stories.)
(Newser) After recapturing the city of Palmyra from ISIS, Syrian troops discovered a mass grave containing the bodies of dozens of men, women, and children who had been decapitated or shot, AFP reports. The city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its ancient ruins, was captured by ISIS last May. According to the BBC, one human rights group estimates that in the months since then ISIS executed at least 280 people. The mass grave found Friday contained 42 bodies, 24 of which were civilians and three of which were children. They were soldiers or supporters of the Assad regime and their relatives. Only some of the bodies have been identified so far.
The reclaiming of Palmyra by Syrian troops last Sunday is seen by experts as one of the biggest setbacks for ISIS in two years. But its months in the hands of the terrorist group took a toll beyond the loss of life. The AP reports many of the ancient ruins that once drew tens of thousands of tourists every year were destroyed by ISIS, including the 1,800-year-old Arch of Triumph, two Roman-era temples, and a 13th century citadel. And what remains of the city following ISIS' occupation and Syrian and Russian airstrikes is empty. Residents are too afraid of either violence from the Assad regime or remaining ISIS landmines to return. One Syrian officer says they've dismantled 3,000 mines left by ISIS so far. "They booby-trapped everything, trees, doors, animals," he says. (Read more Syria stories.)
(Newser) Twelve days after suicide bombs killed 16 people there, the Brussels Airport will reopenat least partiallyon Sunday, Reuters reports. Brussels Airlines will fly three flightsto Greece, Italy, and Portugalout of the airport that day. "A restart of the operations, even only partially, as quick as this is a sign of hope," the airport's chief executive says.
According to Bloomberg, new security measures will be in place for the reopening. Vehicles approaching the airport will be randomly screened, travelers and baggage will be checked outside the airport, and there will be another security barrier inside the airport. Trains and buses will not be servicing the airport for the time being, and cameras will read the license plates of vehicles arriving there. These measures will drastically reduce the amount of passengers the airport can handle, but officials hope to be back to normal capacity by July. (Read more Brussels stories.)
(Newser) A 69-year-old Southern California man has been charged with murdering his 29-year-old son for being gay, the Los Angeles Times reports. Police say Shehada Issa killed his son Amir Issa with a shotgun outside their home on Tuesday. The district attorney says Shehada had threatened to kill Amir for being gay multiple times in the past, and authorities are considering the killing a hate crime. But Shehada is claiming self defense, according to the AP. The Los Angeles Daily News reports he claims he found his wife stabbed to death in the bathroom, grabbed a gun, and then ran into Amir outside. Authorities say he claims he shot Amir after Amir threatened him with a knife. The body of Shehada's wife, who hasn't been identified, was found inside the house, but no knife was found on the scene.
Police are calling the incident a "horrible family tragedy." Neighbors frequently heard Amir and Shehada screaming at each other, and Amir was being evicted from the family home by his parents. Shehada is being held without bail pending an arraignment on April 11. If convicted of premeditated murder, he faces life in prison. There are no details available on the death of Amir's mother, and police are continuing to investigate. No charges have been filed in connection with her death. (Read more hate crime stories.)
British police successfully seized a potential suspect's phone before it was locked.
The seized cellphone contained information such as communications with a British ISIS operative in Syria that played animportant role in securing a conviction against Junead Khan.
Junead Khan, 25, a supporter of the Islamic State (IS) extremist group, was found guilty of plotting terrorist acts. He and his uncle Shazib Khan, 23, were also convicted of plotting to join IS in Syria.
When police broke into Khan's home abruptly, they discovered an ISIS-style black flag and a laptop with an article from an al Qaeda magazine entitled "Make a bomb in the kitchen of your mom."
Junead Khan's work as a delivery driver took him near U.S. airbases in eastern England, according to The Associated Press.
Police said he did send "chilling message" to a suspected ISIS fighter of how had an opportunity to kill U.S. soldiers on one of his delivery rounds but failed.
"When I saw these U.S. soldiers on road it just looked simple but I had nothing on me or would've got into an accident with them and made them get out the car," the message read, according to police.
Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Commander Dean Haydon said Khan "posed a real risk to public safety," according to Sky News.
"He'd undertaken research and planning to make a pressure cooker bomb... And, what we think is, either before or during the attack, if he'd been compromised in any way he was going to detonate that device and commit suicide," Haydon said.
Both of them will be sentenced May 13. Junead Khan may face a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The Duggars have been struggling financially since Josh Duggar's molestation and cheating scandal last year. Though TLC has been trying to reintroduce the clan on TV with Jill and Jessa: Counting On, a recent report said that the spinoffs has been disliked by a lot of advertisers who withdrew their support from the show.
A report said that more than ten companies have already aired their protest and urged the network to stop running their ads in any Duggar show.
These companies are Wrigley, Ring.com, Combe Inc., Credit Karma, Gazelle.com, RCN Corporation, X Out, Chattem, Inc, Cici's Pizza, The UPS Store, Whitewave Foods, Choice Hotels, Mattress Firm, Verizon Wireless and Pure Michigan who have issues statements saying that the station did not inform them properly that their ads will be aired during the Duggar spinoff.
Wrigley and Ring.com, for example said that their ads were run by mistake or because of an 'error' that prompted the airing of the ad.
Despite this negative turn, TLC General Manager Nancy Daniels assured that the Duggars still have millions and millions of fans out there who want to stay updated particularly in the lives of Jessa Seewald and Jill Dillard.
Daniels also said that the reported advertisers just comprise a 'small group' of 'very vocal' ones who are against the show.
As of the moment, the network still has no definite plans for the clan to return to television even after Josh's supposedly momentous event of being released from rehab.
"We've been with Jill and Jessa [for years]... they had a tragedy in their lives when they were very young... these are two girls who were victims," another Discovery Communications executive said.
The recent development came out amidst new pregnancy rumors aimed at Jill Duggar. In Jill's recent Instagram post, she was seen wearing a maternity shirt while with baby Israel and Derrick Dillard. The reality TV star's loose clothing prompted speculations that she is carrying her second baby.
Fans, however, were worried for Jill since she is currently with Derrick in South America, a Zika hotspot, for their charity mission.
The trailer of the new Marvel Comics movie Captain America: Civil War has just been released triggering a wave of panic among Marvel fans and film viewers. The Phase Three of Marvel Cinematic Universe will surely be an intense apocalyptic clash of all MCU heroes on the opposing sides of an epic war.
How did fans react after watching the trailer?
Well, it seems that the trailer did provoke an intense emotional reaction among fans after seeing Iron Man's buddy, Don Cheadle's War Machine (aka Rhodey), being blown out after an intense sky battle then cradled by a weeping friend- no other than Tony Stark himself.
"I'm on Twitter, so I've gotten a few people going, 'Rhodey better not be dead, son. I'm going to be so mad.' Or 'I'm done with this thing if Rhodey's dead,'" said Cheadle as quoted by New York Daily News. He added, "But that's cool, I like that people get so upset about it. I like that in a Marvel movie people are able to evoke such emotion."
As reported by Movie Web, the narrative took a surprising twist after an incident involving the Avengers' effort to save humanity resulted in a huge collateral damage. This pressured the government to establish a system of oversight and accountability strongly rejected by Captain America (Chris Evans). On the other side of the political fence is a faction headed by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) who favored government regulation of Avengers' activities.
In the big showdown of heroes, we'll see Team Captain America with Falcon, Bucky, Scarlet Witch, and Hawkeye facing Team Iron Man with Black Widow, and Vision. The two sides appeared to have been evenly matched until Spiderman enters the scene and cast his lot with Tony Stark.
As for War Machine, his fate remains hanging in the balance until the movie hits the theaters. Apart from Spiderman, a slew of new heroes will join the fray such as Black Panther, Crossbones, Baron Zemo, and Everett Ross, First Post reported.
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Seoul:
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has overseen the test of a new anti-aircraft weapon system, state media said today, the latest in a series of missile trials as tensions run high on the divided Korean peninsula.
Over the past month the young leader has supervised several military drills, including the test-firings of medium ballistic missiles, a multiple rocket system and long-range artillery, in response to Seoul-Washington joint army drills south of the border.
The latest launch came as a two-day nuclear security summit was being hosted by Barack Obama in Washington, at which North Korea was the focus of the US presidents talks with the leaders of China, South Korea and Japan.
Pyongyangs official KCNA news agency said today Kim guided the test of a new-type anti-air guided weapon system to check its capability.
Under his observation, AA rockets were fired to accurately hit mock enemy aerial targets, it said.
The Souths defence ministry said the North fired an anti-air missile around 12:45 pm (0915 IST) yesterday from the eastern city of Sondok.
Kim expressed great satisfaction over the successful test, calling it another striking demonstration of the the rapidly growing defence capability of the country, KCNA said.
Obama spoke Thursday of the need to vigilantly enforce the strong UN security measures imposed on the North after its fourth nuclear test in January and a subsequent long-range rocket launch.
Pyongyangs state media labelled the summit a nonsensical effort to find fault with the Norths legitimate access to nuclear weapons.
Existing UN sanctions ban North Korea from conducting any ballistic missile test, although short-range launches tend to go unpunished.
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New Delhi:
A 33 year old woman entrepreneur was allegedly raped at Delhis Connaught Place area by a man who she met for business purposes. The woman alleged that the man called her at a hotel where he raped her.
The woman, who resides in south Delhis Defence Colony, owns a business enterprise here. She met the accused today over lunch to discuss business matters, the officer said.
The man, who had come from Chandigarh, was known to the woman and they had met earlier. He allegedly spiked her drink with sedatives and took her to a room in the hotel in the inner circle of Connaught Place, where he forced himself upon her.
The woman called up the police after she gained conscience but by that time the accused had left.
A case under Section 376 (rape) was registered by the police, the officer said adding that they are trying to track down the accused man.
With PTI Inputs
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Chennai:
The full Election Commission would review the preparedness for the May 16 assembly elections in Tamil Nadu and neighbouring union territory of Puducherry during their three-day tour next week, a senior official said today. The commission officials led by Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi would hold the review in Tamil Nadu on April 7 and 8 here.
Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi, two Election Commissioners and other officials will hold meetings with political parties on April 7 and Collectors the next day, Tamil Nadu Chief Electoral Officer Rajesh Lakhoni told reporters here.
The CEC and his team would visit Puducherry on April 6, he said adding the commission would review the arrangements being made for the conduct of the polls in the state and the UT.
Single phase polling is scheduled in Tamil Nadu on May 16, where a multi-cornered contest involving AIADMK, DMK-Congress, PWF-DMDK and BJP is in the offing. Earlier, Lakhoni released an awareness song sung by rapper Blazee on the need for voting.To a question, Lakhoni said that the electoral authorities had seized about Rs 17.31 crore cash in the state since the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) came into effect on March 4.
However, about Rs 15 crore had been returned and the intention is to see what cash is being carried for election purpose, he said.
Washington:
India has reacted sharply to China scuttling its attempt to get JeM chief Masood Azhar designated as terrorist by the UN, but China stood its ground.
Expressing its strong disappointment over the development, India said it finds it incomprehensible that while the Pakistan-based JeM was listed in UN Security Council Committee for its well known terror activities and links to the Al Qaeda, the designation of the groups main leader, financier and motivator has been put on a technical hold.
In a strongly-worded statement, India slammed Chinas virtual veto of its attempt to blacklist Pathankot terror strike mastermind Azhar, saying this does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said the UN sanctions committee was taking a selective approach in tackling terrorism, adding that Its working methods, based on the principles of unanimity and anonymity, is leading the Committee to adopt a selective approach to combating terrorism.
However, China defended its action, maintaining JeM chief does not qualify to be nailed as a terrorist to face UN sanctions as his case did not meet the Security Councils requirements.
Any listing would have to meet the requirements for blacklisting, Chinese Permanent Representative to the UN Liu Jieyi told reporters yesterday in response to questions over Chinas decision to place a technical hold on designating Azhar in the UN Sanctions Committee.
After the attack on the IAF base at Pathankot on January 2, India in February wrote to the UN calling for immediate action to list Azhar under the Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee.
The India submission was considered by the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED) for technical aspects of the evidence provided. The technical team then with the support of the US, UK and France had sent it to all the members. However, hours before the deadline, China requested the Committee to hold up the banning of the JeM chief.
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New Delhi:
In the backdrop of toppling of its government in Uttarakhand, Congress today sought to put its flock together in Himachal Pradesh with all its state leaders pledging to unitedly fight attempts to destabilise the Virbhadra Singh dispensation.
With factional feud in the partys Uttarakhand unit partly contributing to the exit of its government, Congress organised a meeting of the coordination committee of Himachal in Delhi where all its leaders in the state, including chief minister Virbhadra Singh, all ministers and MLAs were present.
The meeting, that lasted over two and half hours, was chaired by AICC general secretary Ambika Soni, who is also incharge of party affairs in the state, and saw all Congress MLAs from Himachal putting their weight behind the state government.
Sources said they decided to unitedly fight out any attempts by the BJP-led Centre to destabilise the state government.
Some of the leaders, who are known critics of Virbhadra, however vented out their anger against him and sought changes in the functioning of the state government, the sources added.
Soni, when asked, downplayed it saying it was a routine meeting organised for coordination purposes. She said party matters were discussed during the exercise.
HPPCC chief Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu said the party will fight unitedly any attempt to destabilise its government.
We are together. We will protest jointly against the Centres attempts to destabilise the Himachal government. We will oppose BJPs attempt to topple the Congress elected government in Himachal Pradesh, he said.
The meeting was attended, among others by a number of senior ministers in the state including Vidya Stokes, Kaul Singh Thakur, Mukesh Agnihotri, G S Bali, besides other states leaders like Asha Kumari and Rajya Sabha MP Viplove Thakur.
Some other state Congress leaders like Rangila Ram Rao, S S Pathania, Rakesh Kalia and Kuldeep Kumar were also present during the meeting.
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Riyadh :
In a special gesture, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today broke bread with a group of Indian workers of a major construction project. Modi sat with the workers at the L&T workers residential complex and had the meal with them shortly after addressing them during which he appreciated their contribution to development of Saudi Arabia.
Eating together, hearing each others thoughts & experiences...at L&T Workers Residential Complex in Saudi Arabia, the Prime Minister tweeted along with a picture of him having food with them.
The Prime Ministers gesture was hailed by the workers.
This is unprecedented. We will not forget it ever, said a worker from Kerala. The Indian blue collar workers are engaged in L&Ts USD 2 billion housing project here.
There are over 2.96 million Indian nationals working in Saudi Arabia, the largest expatriate community in the country, and nearly 90 per cent of them are blue collar workers.
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DANBURY - Theyve been arriving since January in numbers that have exhausted staff at the Hispanic Center of Greater Danbury.
Ecuadorians, Dominicans, Mexicans, Guatemalans and Colombians previously content with permanent legal status suddenly want to become citizens and claim their right to vote.
We are extremely busy - this is no joke, says Andrea Contreras, the executive director of the Hispanic Center, which has been assisting up to 10 new citizenship applications each week for the past three months. It has been overwhelming for us, and we are surprised how many people want to become citizens.
The local surge in interest in citizenship apparently is part of a larger national trend of Latinos registering to voice their objection - one vote at a time - to inflammatory comments about immigrants by GOP front-runner Donald Trump.
A record 27 million Hispanics are expected to be eligible to vote this year, in part because of immigrants going through the naturalization process as they are in Danbury. The other major trend driver is Latino millennials such as Stephani Figueroa, who is old enough to vote this year in her first presidential election.
I heard about some of the things that Trump said and I definitely dont like it because we are all working here and we are all part of the community, said Figueroa, 20, the Danbury-born daughter of a Guatemalan immigrant. What he said about immigrants and other nationalities has made him one of the top candidates, just because he is being a racist.
Trumps spokeswoman did not respond to a request on Friday to share his strategy to win the states 280,000 Latino voters in the April 26 Connecticut primary.
Trump has suggested there is no issue after angering Latinos by calling Mexicans criminals and promising to deport 11 million undocumented immigrants. At a Feb. 26 debate, Trump noted he won the Nevada primary with Hispanic backing, saying Im doing very well with Hispanics.
Two Latina candidates who are courting support for state office - Newtown Democrat Eva Bermudez Zimmerman and Danbury Republican Emanuela Palmares - are not so sure.
For every vote he might gain with that negative campaigning, he is going to lose a vote from someone who knows a family who needs immigration reform, said Zimmerman, who is running against the GOPs Rep. Mitch Bolinsky to represent the 106th District.
Palmares, the first Brazilian to run for state office, said Trumps statements clash with the principles of social justice she believes in. Palmares is running to represent the 110th District held by Democrat Bob Godfrey.
I think that whenever you see two extremes being so loud and pulling people apart, it is really the birth of a very diverse middle ground, said Palmares. Its my hope that from this whole national conversation we are having that a lot of new leaders are going to be born that are going to strive to make it their lifes mission to find balance.
Hispanic or Latino?
Its clear to Hispanic center staff that this is no ordinary election-year spike in citizenship applications - and that Trump is motivating immigrants to mobilize.
Yes, we have had people say that to us, Contreras said. His comments are not just attacking undocumented immigrants - they are attacking everybody.
But in a year when Hispanics as a voting bloc are expected to equal African-Americans in voting power, the details are complicated.
One obstacle to quantifying the impact of immigrants on voting is that the term Hispanic can be misinterpreted. Portuguese-speaking Brazilians, who may identify with immigrants from Spanish-speaking countries as fellow Latinos, dont identify themselves as Hispanics to census-takers, for example.
The Hispanic label gap makes a big difference in Danbury, a city of 83,000, where Hispanics are conservatively thought to be 25 percent of the population. The Brazilian population estimate of 11,000 is widely thought to live outside the Census count for Hispanics.
Another difficulty: The 52 percent of Connecticut Hispanics who are eligible to vote in 2016 is skewed by the fact that over half of Hispanics are Puerto Ricans, who are U.S. citizens and can vote in primaries but cant vote for the president, said Orlando Rodriguez, an analyst at the Latino and Puerto Rican Affairs Commission in Hartford.
Rodriguez added that since local registrars dont track voter registration by ethnicity, the state relies on a formula to approximate Hispanic voter registration, checking registrations against a list of common Hispanic surnames.
Finally, there is the debatable impact of the undocumented population - ostensibly a group that should not be able to affect an election because everyone is living under the radar.
The rule of thumb in the Latino community, however, is that everyone who cant vote knows someone who can, and everyone who can vote knows someone who cant.
Definitely, I have friends and also family members who want to be able to make a difference but dont necessarily have the opportunity to voice their opinion, says the 20-year-old, Figueroa, who has not made up her mind who will get her vote for president. That is why I feel it is so important to use my voice to make a difference.
Palmares, the editor of a tri-language newspaper, agrees.
If I ignore you for five years, which really says I dont value you because you cant vote, then how can I expect you to be engaged and know whats going on? Palmares said.
2016 and beyond
The growing number of Latino voters across the country, and their objection to Trumps pledge to build a wall on the southern border and make Mexico pay for it, has made headlines recently.
A poll conducted in late February by the Washington Post and Univision News found that among Hispanic voters:
82 percent want the next president to support a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, and 43 percent would not vote for a candidate who opposed it
74 percent find Trumps immigration views offensive
Trump himself had an unfavorable rating of 64 percent
At home, Zimmerman said, views about Trump are similar among Latinos.
Its upsetting that somebody who built his business on the backs of minority workers would say something like that, Zimmerman said. To what end is he so desperate to push people aside and treat people like second-class citizens who are working here?
At stake is not only the contribution Latinos in greater Danbury make toward the nomination of major-party candidates, or the election of a new president in November.
Danbury is also working to close the gap between established residents and the newest wave of immigrant Americans.
The more involved residents are in civic life, the more integrated they will become in the culture, Palmares agrees.
The more you become legitimized in your status journey, the more you care about everything around you because now you have increased access to things you didnt have before, she said.
rryser@newstimes.com; 203-731-3342
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DANBURY The old saying that Justice delayed is justice denied might no longer be true at least in Connecticut.
The phrase, attributed to British statesman William E. Gladstone, is meant to underline the importance of a speedy trial in obtaining justice. But in Connecticut, delaying the resolution of a criminal case is often seen as the surest way to achieve it.
Today, half of all criminal defendants enter some sort of pre-trial diversionary program drug or alcohol rehabilitation, for example, or family counseling in domestic violence cases that can delay resolution of cases for months or even years while the programs are given a chance to work.
And in a great many cases, officials say, they do.
The court system has pivoted from a system that was intent on adjudicating cases determining guilt or innocence, putting some kind of sanction to one that is very much based on trying to get at the root cause, said Robert Devlin Jr., Connecticuts chief criminal judge.
These programs take time, but length of time is not all bad, Devlin said. At the end of the process, you get people who are in better shape to face their challenges.
A few numbers help make the point.
As crimes rates have declined in Connecticut, so has the number of cases entering the criminal court system. In the 1994-95 fiscal year, nearly 140,000 new criminal cases were filed in the 20 so-called Geographic Area courts, which handle the vast majority of cases, according to the state Judicial Branch. In 2014-15, less than 92,000 new cases were added.
But over that 20-year span, the number of pending cases has barely changed, from 78,500 in 1994-95 to about 76,000 in 2014-15.
The reason: Over that same period, the proportion of pending cases put on inactive status while defendants went into diversionary programs has grown from one-third to one-half.
One reason for that growth is that courts are less intent on pushing cases to conclusion.
When you had 140,000 cases coming in, there was a lot of pressure to move the business, because you didnt have time to spend with the defendant in court discussing these programs or continuing the case to try to find a program to fit the persons needs, said Joseph DAlesio, executive director of superior court operations.
Today, he said, because we have less cases, we can focus on these other aspects.
Dan Shaban, the administrative judge at state Superior Court in Danbury, said attention to root causes is the best way to keep defendants from being arrested a second or third time.
By investing some time into them, youre hopefully getting a long-term benefit, and not getting repeat customers, he said.
Not every defendant is eligible for diversionary programs. Most are limited to first-time offenders or those accused of non-violent crimes. Most can be entered just once or at most twice. And no one gets in without the approval of the prosecutor and judge in the case.
Diversionary programs are run by the Court Support Services Division, the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services or by a contracting agency, typically a non-profit.
The largest such program, with nearly 10,000 participants, is called accelerated rehabilitation. It is a sort of pre-trial probation that can include community service, restitution and counseling tailored to offenses ranging from animal cruelty to hate crimes.
Other large programs include those providing alcohol education, with 7,700 participants, and treatment and counseling in domestic violence cases, with almost 5,000.
Defendants who successfully complete a program, which can take up to two years, have their charges expunged.
On any given day, said Joe Greelish, deputy director of superior court operations, about 3,000 defendants are taking part statewide in diversionary programs. Those who complete them, he added, are much less likely than non-participants to be arrested again within a 12-month period.
For example, in the family violence program, the rate of recidivism within the first 12 months is just 13 percent, according to the Judicial Branch. That program runs for nine weeks and aims to educate offenders on the impact of violence on relationships.
Defendants who completed another program, Alternative in the Community, re-offended within 12 months at a rate of 27.2 percent in 2015 5.5 points lower than in 2011 and much lower than the 42.5 percent for defendants who did not complete it, according to the Judicial Branch.
Diversionary programs often are the surest way to provide treatment to defendants who have no medical care, said Loel Meckel, assistant director of forensic services in the state Department of Mental Health & Addiction Services.
Oftentimes, people with serious mental health issues who are arrested are not undergoing any treatment, Meckel said. Putting them in jail for a few months or a year is really not going to address the factors in their lives that are leading them to the criminal behavior.
Meckel added that defendants with serious mental health issues are more likely to be victimized in prison.
Speaking at the state General Assembly earlier this year, David McGuire, a director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut, praised the state for trying to avoid giving defendants the stigma that comes with criminal conviction, which he said means a lifetime of discrimination, poverty and inhumane treatment.
When someone returns home after prison, logic and Hollywood films would suggest that she or he has repaid his or her debt to society, he said, according to testimony posted on the General Assembly website. Checking the box indicating a past criminal conviction can prevent someone from finding housing, a job, and other basic necessities that are critical to preventing recidivism.
noliveira@newstimes.com, 203-731-3411, @olivnelson
There's still more than a month until Connecticut voters cast their votes for party nominees in April, but we can still get a look at who is trending ahead of who thanks to Google.
Using data from Google Trends, we can see just who's peaking peoples' interest the most in Connecticut. And the verdict: Connecticut is developing Trump feverwell, at least intrigue.
Several former high-ranking officials in the Jonathan administration have started returning looted funds, it was learnt last night.
Several former high-ranking officials in the Jonathan administration have started returning looted funds, it was learnt last night.Besides, they are begging the Federal Government and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to shelve plans to put them on trial.Four such ex-top government officials have refunded N1.4billion in the last one week alone, an authoritative source said yesterday.This sum does not include the N7billion said to have been paid back to the AVM Jon Ode Committee which investigated about 300 companies and individuals who collected money from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) without executing the jobs for which they were paid.However, a few others are said to have opted to face trial instead of returning money which they claimed had been spent on 2015 presidential campaign.Investigations revealed that some of the beneficiaries of the looted funds have actually paid back or promised to do so.Those affected have been mounting pressure on the presidency, the EFCC and theAttorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, for soft landing against trial.The government is yet to take a position on whether or not those who have returned their loot will be prosecuted.A source said: One of those who served under the former President has returned about N750million given to him by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) for campaign. He was able to make up because he didnt spend the cash. He kept it for private use.Some have paid back more than N650million.A former minister has pledged to refund over N1billion. Another beneficiary of the curious contracts has promised the EFCC to sell a few properties to be able to return about N2.1billion.A former military governor has also refunded the cash advanced to him by ONSA to buy a house.Many of these former public officers and contractors are effecting refunds to avoid being named and shamed.They dont want trial. Some have volunteered to serve as prosecution witnesses instead of going through the rigours of trial.At the appropriate time, the list of those who have refunded money in one way or the other will be published.Responding to a question, the source added: The government is preoccupied with the recovery of looted funds. At the appropriate time, the fate of those who have refunded cash will be determined by what the law says.But some of the suspects have refused to return looted funds which they claimed had been disbursed for 2015 poll.They said the cash was given to them on the order of former President Jonathan.They also said the funds were privately disbursed to them by the campaign committee and PDP officials without telling them the source(s) of the money.Another source said: Some of those implicated in the collection of some funds have opted for outright trial because they did not benefit while carrying out presidential directives.Some former ministers said the amount credited to them came from private accounts for the 2015 campaign and nobody can accuse them of diverting public funds.About 300 persons and companies were indicted by an investigative committee a week ago.The Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Mallam Garba Shehu, on Thursday claimed that the ONSA committee had recovered over N7billion from those culpable.The indicted companies are to refund another N41 billion.But the investigating agencies, including the EFCC, will determine whether another N75 billion should be recovered from some of the companies.Shehu said the ONSA committee had found out that one of the indicted companies, Societe DEquipment International, was overpaid by 7.9 million euros and $7.09 million.It noted that many contractors were apparently over paid, while others were given full upfront payments contrary to their contract terms and agreements.The panel also uncovered evidence of payments to individuals and companies by ONSA without any contractual agreement or evidence of jobs executed.The committee discovered that some companies failed to fulfill their tax obligations for contracts executed.Fifteen firms, the panel said, were awarded contracts that require further investigation to ascertain their status. The total value of the contracts in this category was N11, 726,571,161.00, $202,136,890.00 and 4,114,752.96.The companies include: Abrahams Telecommunication Limited and Value Trust Investment Limited RC 1050628 and RC133792, Bilal Turnkey Contractors Limited RC 616389, Circular Automobile Limited RC 953549, Continental Project Associates Limited RC 1201210 and Davoice Network Solutions Limited RC 658879.Others are Foretech Investment Limited RC 759046, Forts and Sheild Limited RC 1148793, GDP Associated Limited RC 830715, Hakimco Automobiles RC 904389, Hamada Properties and Investment Limited RC635720, International Resources Management Company RC228657, Investment Options Limited RC 133484, Jakadiya Picture Company Limited RC 270972, JBE Multimedia Investment Limited RC 48875, Kamala Motors Limited RC 845545 and Key Information Services Limited RC 297516.Also investigated are Leeman Communications Limited RC 499781, MCAF Associates RC 734745, Moortown Global Investment RC 968416, Syntec Nigeria Limited RC 220165, Trafiga Limited RC 1098961, Trim Communications Limited RC 261180, Securicor Emergency and Safety RC 431246, Sologic Integrated Services Limited RC 744982, Wada Autos Limited RC 1082513, Zukhruf Nigeria Limited RC 306244, 2020 Nigeria Limited RC 1090292 and A and B Associates Limited RC 279980.The individuals and companies that received payments without contractual agreements include: Bello Matawalle, Brig-Gen. A.S. Mormoni-Bashir (the former Principal General Staff Officer at the ONSA, who is still serving), Alhaji Umar Sani, Dr Yakubu Sanky, Baba Bala, Ambassador Clement Layiwola Laseinde (a Director in the ONSA) and an architect from Baitil Atiq Travels and Tours.Others are Alhaji Shuaibu Salisu (the former Director of Finance and Administration at (ONSA), Col. Bello Fadile (rtd) (Special Adviser to Lt Col Sambo Dasuki; former NSA), Mr Otunla Jonah Niyi, Otunba Adelakun, Alhaji Bashir Yuguda, Dr Tunji Olagunju, Miss Oluwatoyin Oluwagbayi and Lt Col MS Dasuki (rtd) (the former NSA).Also listed are Maipata Mohammed Abubakar, Mohammed Suleiman from Musaco investment and properties, Ibrahim Abdullahi also from Musaco investment and properties, Alhaji Aliyu Usman and 18 other officers that served in the ONSA.The companies that failed to execute contracts or did so partially and have been asked to refund various sums are: A and Hatman Limited, Abuja Consulting Limited, Afro-Arab Investment, Agbede A Adeshina and Co, Aleppo Systems Nigeria Limited RC 947255, Amp Africa Holdings and Solar Services, Apple Drops Nigeria Limited RC 1102219, Apt Security Limited RC 165189, Autoforms Integrated Enterprises Limited RC 1234829, Axis Consulting Services Limited RC 1151145, Belsha Nigeria Limited, Community Defence Law Foundation RC/IT No 56854, Complus International Service Limited, Cosse Limited RC 316214, Daar Investment and Holdings Limited, Dalhatu Investment Limited RC 404535, Destra Investment Limited and Development Strategies International Limited RC 361191.Others are DFX/White Zebu BDC RC787658/RC1049919, Duchy Concepts Limited RC392281, Fara Security Limited RC 694607, Fimex Gilt Nigeria Limited RC 143150, First Aralac Global Limited RC939512, Fix-HYL Global Investment RC1129654, Good year Properties Limited RC1168828, Image Merchant Promotions Limited RC 416703.Interglobal Limited RC 189188, Jos Peace Dialogue Forum CAC/IT/No75434, Kakatar Limited RC 443321, Leaderette Nigeria/Norden Global RC 422129/RC1119925, London Advertising Limited UK BASED, Mithra Oil Limited RC 620979, NigerLink BOG (Under Musaco Investment)RC 834592, Iban Global (Under Musaco Investment), Musaco Investment (Bank Charges), Mystrose Limited RC 475579, NAF Holding Company Limited.Also listed are: Peach Tree Communications Limited RC 410115, Perception BDC RC 740741, Pioneer Ventures RC 69776, Proptex Nigerian Limited RC 116801, Prosedec Interglobal Limited RC 619845, Real Property Investment Limited RC 294761, Sinash Communications Limited RC 333134, Skytick International Limited RC 798693, Soject Nigeria Limited RC 74991 and StellaVera Development Company Limited RC 713258.Others who defaulted in their contractual agreements include Teracon AG SWISS BASED, Wehsec Farms Limited RC 713258, African Cable Television Limited RC 1113903, BCN Nigeria Limited RC 50969, Brains and Hammers RC 655673, Concept Options Ultimate Limited RC 604167, Elizade Nigeria Limited RC 11544, Emerging Platforms Limited RC 922205, EMI System Nigeria Limited RC 248986, Hadassa Investment and Security RC 709085, Kala Consulting Solutions Limited RC 98562, Pioneer Ventures, Nan Bizcom Nigeria Limited RC 680708, Nerres Limited RC 1138835, Plectrum Consulting Limited RC 937931, Protech Consultant RC 301426, Summit Publications Limited RC 304671, Telios Development Limited RC 468351, Urban Abode Nigeria Limited RC 651613, RCN Networks Limited RC 439720, Sail International Limited RC 97863, Suburban Broadway Limited RC 469689, Geronimo Middle East and Africa, Julius Berger RC 6852, Romgat Morgan Nigeria Limited RC 902020, and Stallion Motors Limited RC 178627.Contracts awarded to the following companies are to be further investigated: 2020 Nigeria Limited RC 1090292, Acacia Holdings Limited RC 940978, Africair Incorporated US Company, Augusta Westland Limited, Almond Project Limited, Bam Project and Properties, Bob Oshodin Organisation Limited RC 790662, Coral Builders Limited RC 397748, Dan Clington Nigeria Limited RC 940978, Law Partners and Associates BN/UY/004566, Magnificient 5 ventures Limited BN/2299463, MPS Global Services Limited.Others are One plus Holdings Nigeria Limited RC 695999, Quadsix Nigeria Limited RC 1177968, and Reliance Reference Hospitals.
The power of a bold idea uttered publicly in defiance of dominant opinion cannot be easily measured. Those special people who speak out...
The power of a bold idea uttered publicly in defiance of dominant opinion cannot be easily measured. Those special people who speak out in such a way as to shake up not only the self-assurance of their enemies, but the complacency of their friends, are precious catalysts for change Howard Zinn.This is one of the most profound assertions that I have ever heard. We must all learn from it regardless of the challenges that we may be facing in our country today.In a special message to the Congress on the Internal Security of the United States on August 8, 1950, President Harry S. Truman said,"Once a government is committed to the principle of silencing the voice of opposition, it has only one way to go, and that is down the path of increasingly repressive measures, until it becomes a source of terror to all its citizens and creates a country where everyone lives in fear."Permit me to begin this essay with an aside. I do not intend to incite anyone against the government or the Nigerian state by making this contribution and neither do I believe in an armed struggle.If there was ever an elephant in the Nigerian room then it is Biafra. Given that let us explore it together in this two part discourse and let us bare our minds.The Buhari administration cannot tolerate or brook any form of dissent and neither are they comfortable with criticism or free speech.They are desperately trying to establish a culture of silence in our country. They are particularly uncomfortable with the subject matter of this essay.Their double standards are made all the more manifest by the fact that they have acknowledged and recognized the right of self-determination for the people of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic in their quest for independence from the Kingdom of Morocco whilst at the same time they have denied those that believe in the establishment of Biafra and the exercise of that very same right of self-determination here in Nigeria.As if that were not bad enough they went even further by describing Biafra as a matter that is "dead and buried" which must not be discussed under ANY circumstances.The Buhari administration appears to have forgotten the fact that charity begins at home. You cannot give those from outside your shores what you are not prepared to offer your own people.If the quest for independence is good enough for the people of Sahrawi Arab Republic then surely it is good enough for the people of Biafra or any other ethnic nationality in Nigeria if that is what they really want.The suggestion that we should not even mention let alone discuss the idea of Biafra is simply absurd. Those that subscribe to that view often argue that three million people were killed in order to ensure that Nigeria was kept together and consequently there can be no going back.This is a specious, self-serving and intellectually lazy argument. And this is especially so given the fact that those that have put it overlook the fact that the root causes of the civil war appear to be back with us today.If you don't cure the ailment and get rid of its root cause then you cannot complain about the consequences of its continued existence or its symptoms. If you dont clean up the mess you cannot complain about its stench. Air freshener alone cannot do it: forgive my crudity but if you dont flush the toilet after using it a terrible smell is bound to linger.The matter is simple and clear: as long as the Igbo people of eastern Nigeria feel marginalized, persecuted, cheated, vilified and wronged the spirit of Biafra will continue to flourish.As long as Igbos are targeted and slaughtered like flies at the drop of the hat in the northern part of our country, or indeed in any other part, Biafra will continue to thrive and burn in the hearts of every Igbo man, woman and child. Whether we like it or not that is a reality and there is nothing anyone can do about it.Quite apart from that I deeply resent the fact that our government has got the nerve and has cultivated the temerity to venture to tell us what we should and what we should not mention or discuss. Surely even the madness of tyranny has its limits.Those that are at the helm of affairs in our country today may have the power to kill, torture, detain indefinitely or jail those that do not share their views but they do not have the power to kill an idea. And an idea whose time has come cannot be wished away or stopped by any force from hell or on earth.In this essay we shall defy the government, ignore the critics, shed the fear and share some inconvenient truths.100 years ago, on what is known as the Easter Rising Day, the Republic of Ireland began their struggle for independence from Great Britain when a handful of brave men went to the center of Dublin, raised the new Irish flag and openly declared the establishment of the Irish Republic.The rebellion was crushed but it signaled the beginning of a prolonged armed struggle.During the course of that struggle approximately thousands of Irish men, women and children were killed by the British occupation forces over the years but eventually the Republic of Ireland won their freedom and became an independent sovereign state.A few days ago on Easter day the Irish Government and people celebrated the 100th anniversary of Easter Rising Day with great pride, joy, pomp and style. The celebrations were attended by delegations from the Basque separatist movement and officials of the Catalan regional government of Spain.Both of these courageous political movements have been attempting to exercise their right of self-determination, break off from Spain and establish their own independent nations for many years and as each year passes they are getting closer to achieving their objective.Those that believe in the right of self-determination of the ethnic nationalities in Nigeria and particularly those that are fighting for the creation of the sovereign state of Biafra have so much to learn from the history and struggles of the people of Ireland.The Irish suffered immeasurably under British occupation for hundreds of years and literally millions of them were enslaved and killed over that period of time.Yet in the end they managed to break the yoke and secure their liberation and triumph over the cruel subjugation and tyranny of British rule.It is my belief that by God's grace those that are being oppressed, butchered and murdered by the Nigerian state today in an attempt to forcefully keep our country one and those that wish to break off to form their own country on the basis of the principle of self-determination shall also eventually prevail.This is particularly so for the Igbo people of the south-eastern region of our country who have suffered more than any other ethnic group in Nigeria. Permit me to remind those that doubt this assertion that it was the Igbo that were slaughtered in their hundreds of thousands in the core north during the pogroms of 1966.Igbo men, women and children were butchered on sight all over the north simply because they were Igbo and for no other reason. Even pregnant women were not spared. This led directly to our civil war in which no less than three million Igbos were killed including one million Igbo children who were starved to death.After the war they were deprived of all their properties outside Igbo land except for in Lagos and the south west where they were treated with some level of decency and allowed to have their properties back.Everywhere else in the country they could not reclaim the properties that they owned before the war and such properties were declared "abandoned property", confiscated by the various regional and state governments and handed over to the local indigenous people.As if that were not bad enough after the civil war every igbo man and woman, no matter how much they had in the bank before the war, was given only twenty pounds from their respective banks to begin a new life. Millions of pounds and many fortunes were lost in this way and the truth is that the Igbo suffered immeasurably as a consequence of this unjust policy.It is a testimony to their resilience and nothing else that they were able to get back on their feet and within a period of ten years after the civil war an Igbo man was elected Vice President of our country. They also thrived in the private sector due to their diligence and hard work.Yet in spite of that the systemic persecution and marginalization of the Igbo people did not stop within the Federal Government, the public sector, the civil service, the security and intelligence agencies and the Armed Forces.They were prevented from reaching the top in virtually all these sectors right up until President Olusegun Obasanjo was elected in 1999.It was President Olusegun Obasanjo that began the effective post-war rehabilitation of the Igbo in the public sector when he started to appoint them into sensitive and strategic positions within his government and within the security agencies and Armed Forces.A good example of that is Lt-General Chidabikia Isaac Obiokor who was the first Igbo man to he appointed as GOC in the Nigerian Army since the civil war. Another is Mr. Ogbonna Okechukwu Onovo who was the first Igbo man to be appointed Deputy Inspector General of Police since the civil war and who was later appointed Inspector General of Police two years after Obasanjo left office.Then came the Ojo Maduekwes, the Andy Ubas, the Ngozie Okonjo-Iwealas, the Charles Soludos, the Emeka Chikelus, the Frank Nwekes, the George Obiozors and so many other bright and promising stars from the east who all wielded far more influence and power than their political offices had to offer in President Obasanjos government and who were all his protegees and appointees.Without Obasanjo's premeditated and conscious policy of wanting to rehabilitate the Igbo and bring them back into the main stream none of these people would have achieved the great success that they have achieved today and none would have been brought into the national limelight.Yet despite Obasanjo's efforts the truth is that, between 1970 when the war ended right up until today, whenever there are attacks against people in the northern part of Nigeria the Igbo are singled out for more slaughter, more ethnic cleansing and more mass murder than anyone else. (TO BE CONTINUED).
The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has said that it will resume protest in it bid to free Nnamdi Kanu, Director of Radio Biafra and t...
The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has said that it will resume protest in it bid to free Nnamdi Kanu, Director of Radio Biafra and that it is putting in place a Television technology that it will use to broadcast live all its activities in Nigeria. IPOB also said its leader and Director of Radio Biafra, Mr. Nnamdi Kanu will no longer accept any food, including those brought by his close family members to avoid poisoning it by the Department of State Security, DSS, alleged to always scrutinize his food before allowing it in. IPOB in a statement jointly signed by its spokesmen Emma Mmezu and Dr Clifford Iroanya, said many people are willing to die for Nnamdi Kanu so Buhari led All Progressives Congress Federal Government should tread carefully with the life of Mr. Kanu because hell will be let loose if anything happens to him, Nigeria will never be the same should anything untoward happens to Kanu.Our resumption of protest is imminent but for understandable reasons we cant give you details yet. We are putting in place our TV technology so the whole world will watch it live online and gain firsthand knowledge of the brutality of the Nigerian Army. We are IPOB and we do things in a unique way, so our next outing will shake the whole earth. The worst mistake this government did is to arrest our leader and now they are beginning to discover how formidable we are. Death to us is nothing, freedom for Biafra is everything.Those governors from southeast state who have decided to bring them selves out as argent of the APC led government in Nigeria will soon know the stuff IPOB is made of at the appropriate time. In response to what some South East Governors are doing, IPOB does not expect our elders and leaders to support us openly, we know that not all of them are trust worthy. IPOB worldwide decided to be doing and piloting this struggle without them at this point in time, till the appointed time they said.Also there is serious plan to kill Mr. Kanu by his persecutors who are confused on what to do about the charges they preferred against him, just as they said they will resume their protests. We have advised our leader to reject every food, including those brought by close family members because the DSS that always scrutinize his food before allowing it in as might poison the food.He will also not mix with other prisoners because we are aware that Interior Ministry officials working through the Prison Service have planted their agents pretending to be prisoners, in order to spy and report on him to DSS. We have eyes everywhere so we get regular reports on his health status. Nigeria knows the consequences should anything happen to our leader because in every family in Biafra lands are hardcore IPOB they said.The bail refusal is not a problem for us because IPOB wants the trial to go ahead, so we can expose and disgrace a corrupt judicial system hamstrung by the whims of a dictator in the the present government of Nigeria they said.The group alleged that the trial Judge was hired to do a hatchet job, but he never reckoned that we will be this tenacious. As long as they want to go by the rule in this trial we welcome, it but any silly games will be resisted.It is obvious that the Nigerian Federal Government has no case against our leader Nnamdi Kanu, hence we continue to call for his release rather than his vindictive detention. Meanwhile, the IPOB through it Media and Publicity Officer Mr. Emma Powerful has denied a local radio and television report in Anambra state that Mr. Nnamdi Kanu is begging President Muhammadu Buhari to release him. IPOB described the report precisely from the Anambra State owned radio and television reports as blatant lie that is calculated to destroy the name of Mr. Kanu and to give the impression that he is chicken hearted when he is not and is in high spirit to face his trumped up charges.According to Mr. Powerful to set the records straight, there no time IPOB, Mr Kanu or his lawyers wrote to Buhari, Nigerian Government or representatives of the Nigerian Government anywhere in the world begging for the release of Mr Kanu, rather IPOB through lawyer to Mr Kanu wrote the British High Commission Abuja over the injustice by Nigerian Federal Government against Mr kanu who is also a British citizen. In the letter through their lawyer Hon. Ifeanyi Ejiofor, titled Nnamdi Kanu: A victim of travesty of justice and a call for British Government to be on the watch IPOB said there is a deliberate design by the Nigerian Government to subvert the course of justice in the criminal trial of Mr. Kanu.It is repeating the obvious to state that Mr Kanu is a full British citizen, by virtue of which position he is entitled to all rights, privileges and protections guaranteed under the British Laws and convention.
Boko Haram abducted at least 300 elementary schoolchildren in an unreported kidnapping in the town of Damasak in northeast Nigeria, an ...
Boko Haram abducted at least 300 elementary schoolchildren in an unreported kidnapping in the town of Damasak in northeast Nigeria, an investigation by Human Rights Watch (HRW) claims.
The Nigerian militant group is infamous for abducting and indoctrinating young people and children, most notably the 276 schoolgirls kidnapped from their dormitories in Chibok , Borno state in northeast Nigeria in April 2014. But despite eclipsing the Chibok kidnapping in terms of scale, the abductions in Damasakwhich took place after Boko Haram seized the town in November 2014have received little attention as residents claimed they were silenced by the Nigerian government.
According to HRWs investigation, Boko Haram occupied Zanna Mobarti Primary School in Damasak in November 2014 after taking control of the town. More than 300 students were inside and, over the following months, the militants banned teaching in English and forced their captives to learn the Koran. When soldiers from neighboring Chad and Niger advanced on Damasak in March 2014, Boko Haram militants fled the town, taking with them the 300 schoolchildren and around 100 more women and children who were also being held captive.
Damasak residents interviewed by AFP claimed that none of the kidnapped schoolchildren had been returned and said they had not spoken out on the issue due to pressure from the government, which was already struggling to manage the embarrassment of losing the Chibok girls. The administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan denied reports of the Damasak kidnapping in March 2015.
The authorities need to wake up and find out where the Damasak children and other captives are and take urgent steps to free them, said Mausi Segun, Nigeria researcher at HRW.
Boko Haram, which pledged allegiance to the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) in 2015, has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions in a six-year insurgency in northeast Nigeria. More than 1 million children have been forced out of education and more than 2,000 schools have closed in Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger due to the militant groups campaign of violence, UNICEF said in December 2015.
Upon his inauguration in May 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari said he would not claim Boko Haram was defeated until all captives held by the group, including the Chibok girls, were returned. But in December 2015, he claimed that the militants had been technically defeated by a Nigerian military offensive and had resorted to guerrilla-style suicide attacks.
Culled from Newsweek
On April 4, 2016, Olu Jacobs and Richard Mofe Damijo will make their return to TV in a new telenovela "Hush," which is set to p...
An exclusive screening of the series held yesterday 1 April, 2016 at Four Points by Sheraton in Lagos. The star-studded event saw celebrities in attendance includingRichard Mofe Damijo, Rita Dominic, Toke Makinwa, Michelle Dede, Uti Nwachukwu, Linda Ejiofor, Toni Tones, Meg Otanwa, Daniel K. Daniel, Adesua Etomi, amongst others.
A tale of fashion, politics and ambition which follows different members of high society as they collide, the story of Hush revolves around Bem and Arinola, power-players in fashion and politics respectively. Bem, played by Richard Mofe-Damijo, is one of Africas biggest designers based in Lagos State, Nigeria, and Arinola, played by Thelma Okoduwa, is one of the states fastest rising politicians. The intrigue begins when Bem proposes marriage to Arinola, an action that sets in motion a chain of events propelled by the secrets in their respective lives, secrets that run through the backrooms of secret societies, the corridors of the judiciary and on social media.
The telenovella which will air weeknights at 9pm CAT, also stars Olu Jacobs, Baj Adebule, Rotimi Adelegan and Meg Otanwa.
On April 4, 2016, Olu Jacobs and Richard Mofe Damijo will make their return to TV in a new telenovela "Hush," which is set to premiere on Africa Magic Showcase.
Abdallah Adamu, a prominent go-between between the Cameroonian government and Boko Haram terrorists, has been arrested for complicity with...
Abdallah Adamu, a prominent go-between between the Cameroonian government and Boko Haram terrorists, has been arrested for complicity with the terrorist group following his sudden unexplained wealth.Abdallah Adamu, the man who negotiated release of all hostages abducted by Boko Haram in Cameroon. Was arrested 4 complicity," international investigative journalist Bisong Etai announced on twitter.Abdalla negotiated release of Boko Haram prisoners in Cameroon. Reports say he's been sharing the ransom money with some big guns in the government.Following his arrest, his holding location was kept secret for fear he might be assassinated by top government officials. Cameroon's National Assembly Speaker 'Cavaye' is also implicated as he allegedly knows Boko Haram sympathizers in high places.
The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, yesterday, explained that the nationwide total system collapse experienced at 12:35pm on Thurs...
The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, yesterday, explained that the nationwide total system collapse experienced at 12:35pm on Thursday, was caused by the tripping of Osogbo/Ihovbor and Ihovbor/Benin 330kV transmission lines, which resulted in loss of 201MW generation from Ihovbor power station. The Management of System Operation/Market Operation (SO/MO) of the TCN, in a statement yesterday explained further that the generation and load imbalance that ensued, defined by sudden decline in system frequency, culminated in the Collapse. According to TCN, Total grid generation at collapse inception was 3,196.0MW.The low generation at the time was due to shortage of gas supply to generators. The transmission grid is characteristically susceptible to system collapses when generation is below 3,500MW and the available spinning reserve capacity is low. TCN is working assiduously to consolidate the gains recorded in system stability, which is evident from the substantial reduction of system collapses from 22 in 2013 to 9 in 2014 followed by 6 in 2015.A substantial number of these collapses are attributable to low system generation due to gas supply issues which impacts stability. TCN recalled that The improvement in system stability is also evidenced by the fact that TCN has been able to wheel maximum energy of 109,372MWH on 2nd February, 2016 while the peak power transferred on the same day was 5, 074 MW.The System Operator, TCN regrets the inconvenience caused by the collapse.
MEDFORD TWP. Jamie Westphal wants to be a nurse. The day before she was supposed to set off on her path to adulthood, the 19-year-old went into kidney failure.
Jamie Westphal, 19, of Medford, went into kidney failure just prior to starting classes at Stockton University. (Photo provided)
Stockton University, where Westphal was about to move into a dorm room, saw promise in Westphal and promised to hold her spot for this fall.
But before she can fulfill her dream, Westphal needs your help.
"I don't think I could handle this the way she has," Westphal's mother, Lori, said Wednesday of the Shawnee High School graduate.
Jamie Westphal's ordeal began two years ago. Headaches and high blood pressure diagnosed by a pediatrician landed her in the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Her kidneys were scarred possibly as the result of an undiagnosed infection from when she was much younger.
One year after the scarring diagnosis, a University of Pennsylvania doctor said she'd need one as soon as next month.
Dialysis began last August the day before she was supposed to move into her Stockton dorm room. Earlier this month, the 19-year-old recently began receiving dialysis at home. A Facebook page tracking Jamie's progress shows that her first night of peritoneal dialysis on March 25 went well.
Some hope on the horizon came in the form of an aunt from Southern California who at first appeared to be a match for a kidney transplant. The night before the surgery, the family was told that the two were not compatible.
"We were devastated," Lori Westphal lamented Wednesday of the last-minute diagnosis.
Jamie Westphal will need a second kidney transplant somewhere down the line. First, she needs your help. Lori Westphal encouraged those with Type O Positive blood to contact Penn Medicine's Living Kidney Donor Department.
If your blood is paired with the recipient's and not rejected, you two are a match.
"She's really strong. I have to say she's my hero," Lori Westphal said. "She doesn't let much phase her."
Greg Adomaitis may be reached at gadomaitis@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregAdomaitis. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
CAMDEN -- Authorities in South Jersey are searching for a man witnesses say shot and killed his mother Friday, 6abc reports.
The shooting occurred around 5 p.m. in Camden on the 1100 block of North 18th Street, according to reports.
Family members of the woman killed, as well as neighbors, said Pedro Sanchez, 20, is responsible, 6abc reports.
Iris Sanchez, 38, was shot and waited for emergency personnel to respond until she was taken to Cooper University Medical Center and was pronounced dead, reports say.
Police are looking for Pedro Sanchez, who may have fled into Philadelphia.
It is unclear at this time what sparked the shooting.
Brittany Wehner may be reached at bwehner@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @brittanymwehner. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
CAMDEN -- A 22-year-old South Jersey man has been arrested and charged with the shooting death of his mother Friday afternoon, the Camden County Prosecutors Office confirmed Saturday.
Authorities have confirmed the identity of the shooter as 22-year-old Pedro Mercado.
Mercado, of Camden, was located around 8 p.m. near the intersection of Haddon and Benson streets Friday night, authorities said.
Iris Sanchez, 38, of Camden, was shot around 5:36 p.m. at the 1100 block of North 18th Street by her son, Mercado, authorities said.
Sanchez was taken from the house to Cooper University Hospital in the city where she died from her injuries. She was pronounced dead at 7:25 p.m., authorities said.
Mercado was arrested by Camden County sheriffs officers.
The motive behind the shooting is not known at this time and remains under investigation.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Camden County Prosecutor's Office at 856-225-8561 or Camden County detectives at 856-757-7420.
Information can also be emailed to ccpotips@ccprosecutor.org.
Brittany Wehner may be reached at bwehner@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @brittanymwehner. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
-- Authorities asked for the public's help to locate a missing 35-year-old man who they said was last seen Thursday in Lower.
Carl Suit was described as 5-foot-11, with brown hair and brown eyes, wearing a blue jacket and blue jeans with brown shoes and a button-up shirt, according to a missing person alert from police.
Suit was believed to be driving his company's vehicle, a 2013 tan Kia Soul with New Jersey license plate of RAP-59V.
The Kia is marked with a logo for House of Print on both sides, police said. Suit was possibly in the New York City-area.
Suit was reported missing and last seen by his wife in the Villas-section of Lower, authorities said.
According to the House of Print website, Suit owns the Rio Grande-based business.
Anyone with information was asked to contact Lower police detectives at 609-886-2711.
Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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Bradi Woodward and Melissa Myers (Submitted photos)
BRIDGETON -- The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office would like your help in finding two of their most-wanted fugitives.
Bradi L. Woodward, 30, is being sought on two Superior Court of New Jersey Family Court warrants for failing to appear. Woodward is described as a white female, 5-foot-2-inches tall, 130 pounds, with brown eyes and brown hair. She has freckles and a tattoo on her back "FRANKIE." Her last known address was Laurel Drive in Millville.
Melissa Myers, 39, is being sought on one Superior Court of New Jersey Family Court warrant for failing to pay $36,549.46 in child support payments. Myers also is being sought for one Superior Court of New Jersey Criminal Court warrant for failure to appear. Myers is described as a white female, 5-foot-1-inch tall, 125 pounds, with hazel eyes and brown hair. She has a tattoo on her right calf of a heart and a tattoo on her right shoulder "TRAVIS." Her last known address was South Park Avenue in Millville.
Sheriff Robert A. Austino asks anyone who comes in contact with these individuals to call the police immediately. You should contact state or local police, or the Cumberland County Sheriff's Department TIP-LINE at 856-451-0625.
If you know the whereabouts of this individual, share this information anonymously by downloading the CCPOTIP App at the Android or iPhone Store and choosing Cumberland County Sheriff's Department, submitting an anonymous tip via text to 847411 with CCSONJ and your tip in the message line or going to the Cumberland County Prosecutor's Facebook page and clicking "submit a tip" and submitting a tip to the Cumberland County Sheriff's Department.
Citizens are reminded not to approach, confront, or detain these fugitives.
Don E. Woods may be reached at dwoods@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @donewoods1. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
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Jon Stewart helped rescue a runaway bull that escaped its slaughterhouse fate. (Greg Allen/Invision/AP)
Jon Stewart's latest gig: bull savior.
The comedian and former "Daily Show" host, who grew up in Lawrenceville, had a hand in rescuing a runaway bull, according to a Facebook post from Farm Sanctuary, an animal sanctuary in Watkins Glen, N.Y.
"Jon and Tracey Stewart picked up the individual whom we are calling Frank this afternoon from Animal Care Centers of NYC," the post says.
CNN reports that the Stewarts drove from Bufflehead Farm, their animal sanctuary in Middletown, to see "Frank" the bull in Brooklyn after the animal escaped from a truck in Queens. The bull will now reside at Animal Sanctuary, where Tracey Stewart, an animal rights activist, serves on the board of directors, as Mashable notes.
Stewart can be seen in a video from Farm Sanctuary feeding the bull.
"Everyone likes hay," he says, holding the grass out for the animal to munch.
The bull was given name "Frank Lee" -- Frank Lee Morris famously escaped Alcatraz -- after fleeing a truck bound for a slaughterhouse in Jamaica, Queens on Friday. Police shot the animal -- which had been spotted at York College -- with a tranquilizer dart before bringing it to the care center.
The Stewarts, who are reportedly looking to open their second animal sanctuary in Colts Neck, personally drove the the bull's getaway car to upstate New York. Reports say the animal will be castrated and become a steer.
Breaking News: We are happy to report that the bull who was on the run earlier today in Queens is safe and on his way to... Posted by Farm Sanctuary on Friday, April 1, 2016
Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @AmyKup. Find NJ.com Entertainment on Facebook.
WOODBURY -- The conviction earlier this year of an accountant who stole $750,000 from her 86-year-old client is one of Gloucester County's most memorable instances of senior citizen exploitation. But law enforcement officials say this was no isolated incident, and that often, senior citizens fail to report when they've been the victim of a crime.
That's where the Elder Abuse Unit of the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office comes in. As the Baby Boomer generation ages, said Prosecutor Sean Dalton, senior citizens are becoming a fast-growing segment of the population in need of special attention from law enforcement.
"With a country that has a significant number of people becoming senior citizens, abuse of the elderly is becoming a bigger issue," Dalton said. The agency said the majority of crimes against senior citizens are financial in nature, ranging from contractor fraud to phone scams. However, physical and sexual abuse -- along with homicide -- are not unheard of.
"It's known as the silent crime," said Dalton. "Because such a large number of cases go unreported."
The Elder Abuse Unit, which turns a year old this month, has handled about 75 complaints so far. Gloucester County's program is among the first in the state, though the idea is spreading. In February, officials met with Middlesex County officials to discuss bringing the initiative farther north.
The unit networks with public agencies like Adult Protective Services and the state Ombudsman's Office to handle the gaps that normal social services can't fill. Representatives from the Ombudsman's Office, for instance, are limited to handling complaints that relate to institutions, such as nursing homes, while protective services can only respond to situations that occur at private homes.
But Det. Steve Hogan, the GCPO officer handling elder abuse cases, does not face those limitations. Hogan and Assistant Prosecutor Jacqueline Caban coordinate with hospitals, banks and government agencies to investigate possible abuse and exploitation.
Det. Steve Hogan (Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office).
"We talk to hospitals and banks about what to look for so that we have the evidence to build a case," Caban said. "We've found where the holes in the system are -- where different people weren't connecting."
Furthermore, since many abused senior citizens live in fear, Hogan and Caban said, victims may be more willing to talk to a police detective than a social worker.
"People are more willing to talk [to police], or at least listen," said Hogan. "We'll have a lot of things that are questionable, if not illegal, when it comes to people handling their older relatives' finances. We let people know that someone is watching."
Officials said elder abuse is most often perpetrated by someone close to the victim, usually a relative, friend or caregiver.
"Their abuser might be the person who answers the door," said Caban.
She added that large thefts tend to occur over long periods of time.
Assistant Prosecutor Jacqueline Caban (Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office).
"An older person might give a relative money to pick up their prescriptions without knowing that person is also helping themselves to $300," she said. "Something I've noticed about these cases is the way they snowball. [Thefts] aren't happening in just one shot. They happen on a regular basis."
About half a dozen of the unit's investigations are currently being prosecuted, while other cases involving senior citizens have been resolved before Hogan and Caban became involved. In contractor fraud schemes, for instance, many older victims decide not to pursue charges if they get their money returned.
The Elder Abuse Unit is also meeting with senior groups throughout the county to alert them to possible scams. Frequently, those meetings end with someone coming forward to report a possible crime.
"We liken it to where domestic violence was 20 years ago," said Hogan. "It stayed in the house until people said, 'this needs to stop.' We need people to report it so we can make it stop."
To report possible elder abuse to the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office, send a tip to elderabusegc@co.gloucester.nj.us. A list of common scams against senior citizens can be viewed at the official website of the FBI.
Andy Polhamus may be reached at apolhamus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ajpolhamus. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
MANTUA -- The memorial service for a South Jersey Navy veteran who set himself on fire outside a Department of Veterans Affairs clinic will be held Saturday afternoon.
The memorial service for Charles Richard Ingram III, 51, will be held at the United Methodist Church of Mantua, located at 201 Mantua Blvd.
Family and friends are invited to visit between starting at 3 p.m. and the memorial service will start at 4 p.m.
Ingram, of Egg Harbor Township, died March 19 after he was airlifted to the Temple Burn Center in Philadelphia.
The veteran was pronounced dead later that night.
Ingram, who reports said served in the Navy from 1985 to 1992, reportedly doused himself with gasoline before setting himself on fire outside the VA clinic, which was closed at the time.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks donations be made to Operation Smile, located at 2641 Faculty Blvd. in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Brittany Wehner may be reached at bwehner@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @brittanymwehner. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
MANTUA -- The streets were lined up with family and friends holding American flags as a 27-year-old United States Army National Guard sergeant was welcomed home from his recent deployment oversees Saturday.
Michael S. Shevlin, a Williamstown native, was cheered on as motorcycles and police vehicles escorted him to the Mantua VFW for an ecstatic and heartwarming welcome home.
Shevlin has served in the US Army National Guard for more than 10 years and roughly two weeks ago, returned back to his home after serving overseas.
The South Jersey sergeant graduated from Williamstown High School and then continued on to the Camden County Police Academy when he graduated in June 2014.
Shevlin then became a police officer and worked for the Neighborhood Response Team for the Camden County Police Department.
Joined by his family and friends, the sirens sounded as Shevlin arrived at the VFW to be greeted by the Camden County Police Department, Camden County Office of Veterans, as well as members of Operation Yellow Ribbon of South Jersey.
Brittany Wehner may be reached at bwehner@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @brittanymwehner. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
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The Hudson County Administration Building on Newark Avenue in Jersey City where Central Judicial Processing court is located. -- REENA ROSE SIBAYAN / THE JERSEY JOURNAL
(EJA)
JERSEY CITY - Five men have been charged with dealing drugs through the fortified door of a Jersey City basement and maintaining a drug manufacturing facility.
They also face charges related to a .380 handgun, officials said.
The address of the building wasn't specified in the criminal compliants used in court this week, but other charges indicate it's in the South Greenville neighborhood near School 30 and Columbia Park.
According to the complaint, the men arrested Wednesday were:
Jimelle Jones, 31, of the Bronx, and Jersey City residents Stefon Alexander, 20, of the 100 block of Seaview Avenue; Daundre Wilson, 18, of the 400 block of Bergen Avenue; Sidney McCord, 22, of another residence on the 100 block of Seaview Avenue; and Christopher Nickens of another residence on the 400 block of Bergen Avenue, the criminal complaints say.
They face 10 to 20 years in prison if convicted of the most serious charges.
They are charged with possession of 23 bags of suspected marijuana, 34 bags of suspected heroin and five vials of suspected cocaine and possessing each with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of School 30, located at 171 Seaview Ave., and within 500 feet of Columbia Park, located at Kennedy Boulevard and Winfield Avenue, the complaint says.
They are charged with weapons offenses related to the handgun, including possession of a handgun during commission of a drug crime.
All are charged with resisting arrest by running away, distributing drugs from behind a fortified basement door and "maintaining or operating a controlled dangerous substance production facility," the complaint says.
Finally, they are charged with possession of drug paraphernalia including a digital scale, glass vials, Ziploc bags and other items, the complaint says.
When they appeared in court Thursday, bail was set at $200,000 cash or bond for Wilson, McCord, Jones and Nickens, while Alexander's bail was set at $100,000 cash or bond.
They appeared in Central Judicial Processing court in Jersey City via video link from Hudson County jail in Kearny.
WASHINGTON (AP) The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has issued a subpoena to Donald Trump. The nine-member panel sent a letter to the former president's lawyers on Friday, demanding his testimony under oath by mid-November and outlining a series of corresponding documents. The decision by lawmakers to exercise their subpoena power comes a week after the committee made its final case against the former president, who they say is the "central cause" of the multi-part effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election. It remains unclear how Trump and his legal team will respond to the subpoena, if at all.
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Two people are alive today thanks to Jim Allsop
Jim Allsop doesn't consider himself a hero, but a family in Cancun, Mexico may very well think otherwise. Allsop and his wife, Lynda, were vacationing at a resort over the Easter weekend.
Jim Allsop, centre, and is wife, Lynda, on his left, were vacationing in Cancun, Mexico at the end of March and Jim ended up saving the lives of a man and his daughter from drowning. Supplied photo.
Jim Allsop doesn't consider himself a hero, but a family in Cancun, Mexico may very well think otherwise.
Allsop and his wife, Lynda, were vacationing at a resort over the Easter weekend. On Easter Monday, his quick actions saved the life of a father and his young daughter.
We are beach walkers, we walk for miles along the beach every day, Allsop said. We walked for about an hour down the beach after lunch. When we turned around and started back, we noticed a woman trying to get into the water. The waves slammed her to the ground and washed her ashore.
She was panicking, and we didn't know what was going on. We looked out into the ocean, and that's where we saw a man holding up his daughter out of the water. He was disappearing under the water. The fear and peril in his eyes, we knew right away he was drowning. The current was taking him deeper into the ocean, he wasn't able to touch, and he was running out of energy.
Allsop, a self-proclaimed aquanarian, sprang into action. He handed his hat and glasses to his wife and ran into the ocean.
Without another thought, I swam as hard and as fast as I could to get to them, he said. When I got to them, I put the girl around my shoulders and wrapped her arms around my neck and grabbed her father with my right arm. I kind of rode the waves in, then planted myself firmly when I was able to touch, but the riptide just wanted to sweep my legs out from under me.
The entire experience is still just a blur, he said. But, as a father, he knew something was wrong when he saw the man struggling to hold up his daughter.
I have no idea how long it took me to get to them; I just swam like hell, he said. The waves were so hard. I had to swim until a wave was upon me, then I had to dive under the wave, otherwise, it would just push me backwards. The entire time, I was thinking to myself, what the hell am I going to do when I get there? I had no idea, and then something just told me to wrap her around my back and grab him under one arm. I struggled so much to get back, that that night, and for the rest of the vacation, it felt like I had been kicked in the stomach.
When they got ashore, Allsop said he got a hug from the man's wife and a thank you, but his adrenaline was pumping so hard, he wasn't really concentrating on what was going on around him.
I didn't even really realize what had just happened until a few hours later, when my wife was telling others the story.
After he saved the father and daughter, he just put on his hat and glasses and kept walking like nothing had even happened. They didn't even get the names of the people he had just saved. He said he thinks the girls was five or six years old, while the father was in his early 30s.
He said there were thousands of people on the beach that day, and his wife told him many people were there cheering him on as he dragged the two in from the ocean. Even the lifeguard for that area was only just arriving as he already almost to shore.
The lifeguard at this particular spot was having lunch at the time, he said. My wife was looking for him to come and help, and she started yelling to him. By the time he realized what was happening, and had dropped his lunch, ran to his stand to get his equipment and then ran to the ocean, I was already 15 feet from shore.
And, now that he's had time to reflect on everything that happened, Allsop said he knows he was in the right time at the right place for a reason, especially considering the trip was a spontaneous adventure.
Allsop and his wife were driving to Toronto for a business meeting. The forecast was calling for five to eight inches of snow in Sudbury.
Somewhere between Parry Sound and Barry, at 4 p.m., my wife found a trip using her iPhone to Cancun, and 14 hours later (on March 24) we were on a plane, he said. They say nothing happens for a reason, and I guess we were meant to go to Cancun and help save this family.
My daughter said it best in a Facebook post, that a family still gets to be a family. That's the most humbling thing of it all. There's still a mother, daughter and father that are still a mother, daughter and father thanks to my actions. I don't expect any credit for it; there was something happening, and I needed to do something.
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A teenager died after an apparent seizure following his arrest in the Bronx on Thursday, according to police.
NYPD Bronx Narcotics officers searched a 19-year-old's home on Lorillard Place near Columbus Square around 6:15 a.m. as part of an ongoing narcotics investigation at the home, according to the city police department.
According to the police, officers found marijuana and cocaine residue in the home and placed the teen under arrest, but he began to experience an apparent seizure as they were transferring him to the police station.
The teen was conscious and alert when officers transported him to St. Barnabas Hospital, according to the police report, but his condition worsened while he was being treated in the emergency room.
He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The medical examiner will determine cause of death.
Police said the 19-year-old had 21 prior arrests.
The de Blasio administration can breathe a sigh of relief with this state budget, which instead of blowing a huge hole in the citys finances may wind up being a net gain. Our Bobby Cuza has that part of the story.
For New York City, whats most important is not what was in the state budget, but rather what wasnt.
"It really does seem that the things that we were most concerned about have been averted," said City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. "And thats really good news for New York City."
The biggest concern was a proposal by Governor Andrew Cuomo to shift hundreds of millions of dollars in costs to the city, specifically funding for Medicaid and the City University system. In the end, those plans were dropped, as was a plan that would have given the state more say in the citys affordable housing construction a top de Blasio priority and a change in funding formula that would have upped the citys reimbursements to charter schools.
The mayor praised Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie for holding the line.
"The State Assembly did an amazing job standing up for New York City and stopping those cuts dead in their tracks," said Mayor Bill de Blasio. "So, that was a great victory."
The budget also maintains funding for the citys universal pre-K program, and increases school aid by $525 million, according to city officials. And the mayor hailed as a great victory both paid family leave and the $15 minimum wage.
"The increase in the minimum wage is absolutely essential to addressing income inequality, to raising our plan is to get 800,000 people out of poverty over the next decade and this is one of the things we needed the state to do," the mayor said.
While the city may have dodged a bullet on Medicaid funding, Cuomo did note hed won a commitment to help cut Medicaid waste and fraud.
"I spoke to the mayor in January," Governor Cuomo said. "He said we would work he would be cooperative in finding those savings. And we will find the savings. I have no doubt."
On the down side, city officials say the budget will re-direct about $200 million year in sales tax revenue to the state. And, left unresolved: extending mayoral control of city schools, which means the mayors battles in Albany arent over just yet.
Ronnie Corbett, the diminutive comedian who teamed with Ronnie Barker to delight audiences for almost two decades on the hit BBC comedy show The Two Ronnies, died on Thursday. He was 85.
His death was confirmed by his agent, Mandy Ward, who did not specify a cause or say where he died.
Mr. Corbett, who stood just over five feet tall, delivered a gentle brand of comedy that appealed to a vast audience. He specialized in clever wordplay, self-deprecation (he titled his autobiography High Hopes) and the effortless delivery of one-liners.
A few examples:
All those who believe in psychokinesis, raise my right hand.
A cement mixer collided with a prison van on the Kingston bypass. Motorists are asked to be on the lookout for 16 hardened criminals.
Weve just heard that in the English Channel, a ship carrying red paint has collided with a ship carrying purple paint. It is believed that both crews have been marooned.
A roiling controversy over the truthfulness and intent of a documentary about the widely debunked link between vaccines and autism did not keep theatergoers away from its premiere on Friday. Several dozen people (and more than a handful of reporters) arrived for the first showing of Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe at the Angelika Film Center in Manhattan, along with a producer and co-writer of the film, and some of its distributors.
The movie, about the supposed connection between autism and vaccines, had been accepted for a screening later this month at the Tribeca Film Festival and then suddenly removed amid criticism. Robert De Niro, a founder of the festival, initially supported the showing but then decided to drop it, saying that upon reviewing it with scientific professionals, he felt it would not contribute to a positive discussion about public health issues.
Still, moviegoers were eager to see it on Friday. Bonnie Peters drove from Palm City, Fla. Regardless of whether your stance is pro-vaccine or anti-vaccine, you should have the opportunity to know all the facts, said Ms. Peters, 66, who described herself as more pro-information, and who has two grandsons with autism. I want to see both sides of the story, she said. She left the screening in tears.
The film was directed and co-written by Andrew Wakefield, an author of a 1998 study that suggested the link. The study, published by the British medical journal The Lancet, was retracted in 2010. Though the film mentions the retraction, it does not note that the British General Medical Council revoked Mr. Wakefields medical license, citing ethics violations and financial conflicts of interest. Mr. Wakefield appears in Vaxxed as an expert on the topic.
Mayor Bill de Blasio has said he knew nothing about how his administration had allowed a Lower East Side nursing home, once protected from development by a restrictive deed, to be sold to make way for luxury condominiums.
But as the mayor began to investigate the deal, his administration conceded on Friday that the first deputy mayor, Anthony E. Shorris, was aware of the situation in late February after the building had been sold for $116 million to a condo developer.
Mr. Shorris did not tell Mr. de Blasio about the arrangement because he and the commissioner of the Department of Citywide Administrative Services were gathering facts to determine what exactly happened and how, Karen Hinton, a spokeswoman for the mayor, said in a statement. Such a review, she said, would allow a full picture to be presented to the mayor.
By that time, however, the deal was already the subject of an inquiry by the Investigation Department, and a separate review by the citys comptroller, Scott M. Stringer. The administrative service agency had, as of March 1, suspended any new changes to restrictive deeds citywide.
With the New York State math and reading tests set to begin next week, the opt-out movement has made noise from the State Education Department to City Hall, with opponents of the tests pushing for even more students to sit them out this year.
But at some schools, they have not been heard.
Alice Hom, the principal of Public School 124 Yung Wing, in Manhattans Chinatown neighborhood, said that no parents were having their children opt out of the tests at her school this year. Only one family has ever done so.
Nor do the parents at P.S. 124 consider test preparation to be anathema, as other parents do. Many purchase their own test-prep books a nearby stationery store stocks a wide variety, including Barrons Common Core Success series or send their children to after-school or Saturday programs where they get additional drills.
On Wednesday after school, teachers were offering some students help. Alpona Datta was there to pick up her son, who is in the third grade. I just said, Take the test this is a good thing, she said. Ms. Datta, a teaching aide for the citys Education Department, said that she was nervous about the exams and had made her son do three practice tests at home in the past month. But she believed that taking the tests was a valuable experience.
NEWARK The Federal Aviation Administration announced on Friday that it would ease limits on the number of hourly flights at Newark Liberty International Airport.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport, said the change should lead to more competition and help lower fares.
The flight limits were put in place in 2008 to reduce congestion and delays. They restricted flight operations to 81 an hour during peak times.
The agency said that arrival and departure delays had fallen significantly since then.
It also said that the number of scheduled flights had been well below the limits and that Newarks runways could handle more.
A Brooklyn man charged with manslaughter in the beating death of a transgender woman in Harlem told prosecutors and detectives he had been flirting with her just moments before the attack, unaware that she was transgender.
In a taped confession played in court on Friday, the man, James Dixon, said he became enraged when he heard a friend making fun of him and then realized he was talking to a transgender woman. I just remember lashing out, he said.
Mr. Dixon, 25, said that he pushed himself away from the woman, Islan Nettles, and started to walk away, but that Ms. Nettles shoved him from behind, forcing him to trip. He got to his feet quickly, he said, whirled and hit her with his right hand, knocking her to the sidewalk, then punched her a second time as she lay on the ground, apparently unconscious. Then, he said, he turned on her companion, another transgender woman, and said, You want some too?
The account of the crime that Mr. Dixon gave to prosecutors was played in State Supreme Court in Manhattan during a pretrial hearing to determine whether the confession could be used as evidence at his trial, which is scheduled for next week. Justice Daniel P. Conviser ruled that the statements, as well as two others Mr. Dixon made to the police earlier, were admissible.
As he ended the Nuclear Security Summit on Friday, President Obama could claim some success in leading the international community to curb the amount of nuclear materials that could fall into terrorists hands.
But even with considerable progress, Mr. Obama has not fulfilled his goal of securing all nuclear materials in four years; some 1,800 metric tons of nuclear material remain stored in 24 countries, much of it vulnerable to theft.
The summit meeting, which drew more than 50 world leaders to Washington, produced many practical commitments to secure and eliminate nuclear materials. Mr. Obama announced that a long-stalled treaty requiring countries to comply with standards for securing nuclear facilities and nuclear material while in storage, use or transit would take effect in 30 days.
Japan and the United States said they had completed the transfer of all highly enriched uranium and separated plutonium from a research project in Tokai Mura, Japan, to a facility in South Carolina where the materials will be converted to forms less suitable for use in weapons. South Korea promised to strengthen nuclear detection at its ports, Kazakhstan said it would strengthen its export control laws and Britain pledged to lead a new cyber security initiative in response to growing concerns that a cyberattack could be made on nuclear plants.
Last year, a friend from Vienna had a business meeting in Munich. Traveling from Vienna to Munich used to be easy, either four hours on a comfortable train or three hours on the highway, the border crossing noticeable only to those paying attention to the change of train conductors or the welcome signs on the highway. But now Munich had suddenly become impossible to reach. Train service had been suspended because the trains couldnt handle the high number of refugees and the old border checkpoints on the highway had been put back in place for the moment, armed by police officers checking every single car and passport. After waiting in line for three hours, my friend turned around and drove back to Vienna.
We all became so used to Europes open borders that it seemed unimaginable to turn back the clock. As long as civilization was working it seemed as reliable as a force of nature, so it is baffling when we suddenly see it disappear.
And then, the terror. Germans are deeply disturbed by the terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels, and everyone expects it to be Germanys turn sooner or later. It is confusing to figure out how to live under these newly frightening conditions. Its not really helpful that reason tells us that terror works only because we are afraid of it.
Until the humanitarian situation of the refugee crisis became unbearable, Chancellor Angela Merkel had always been an aloof pragmatist of power. But when dead children started to wash up at the shores of the European Union, she decided that the moment had come to offer desperate people refuge.
She made that decision when she was riding a wave of public approval and her popularity was quite high. Now many seem to have turned against Ms. Merkels welcoming embrace of those fleeing war zones. Part of the reason is that, in some areas, life in Germany is considerably less comfortable. Friends who work in the government on the refugee crisis profess helplessness in the face of the challenge.
DONALD J. TRUMP gave his primary opponents a gift when he said this week that if abortion is outlawed, there has to be some form of punishment for the woman. He let them look as if they cared about women.
Gov. John Kasich of Ohio responded to Mr. Trumps comments by saying, Of course women shouldnt be punished. Like his fellow Republican presidential candidate Mr. Trump, Mr. Kasich opposes legal abortion except in cases of rape and incest and to save the womans life. Mr. Kasich has signed 17 anti-abortion measures into law since he took office in 2011. Half the clinics in Ohio in operation at the beginning of his tenure have closed or stopped performing abortions.
In a statement, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas said, Being pro-life is not simply about the unborn child, its also about the mother. He would permit legal abortion only to save the womans life no exception for rape and incest victims and tried to shut down the government in his effort to defund Planned Parenthood. Virtually every anti-abortion group in the country quickly disavowed the notion of punishing women, many using words like compassion, love and healing. The movements hashtag is #lovethemboth.
Within hours, Mr. Trump retracted his punishment statement, saying that only the doctor or person who performed the abortion would be held legally responsible. That is the standard anti-abortion line, but face it, punishing the woman is logical.
Cronyism, corruption and scandal have swirled around Jacob Zuma since before he became president of South Africa in May 2009, and the muck has only deepened since. On Thursday the countrys highest court ruled that he had violated the Constitution by refusing to pay back millions that the government spent improving his home.
Before that, there were reports that the Guptas, a powerful business family close to Mr. Zuma, had offered to arrange cabinet posts for politicians. And so it goes, prompting the secretary general of the ruling African National Congress to warn that South Africa is turning into a mafia state. Yet the A.N.C. steadfastly continues to declare full confidence in the president.
It is a shame that the A.N.C., the party of Nelson Mandela, is allowing its moral and political authority to be so grievously eroded by Mr. Zuma, instead of bringing his corrupt presidency to an end. But the national executive committee of the A.N.C. which has dominated South African politics since the end of white minority rule in 1994 is stacked with allies of the president, and evidently loath to take action against him in an election year.
Yet the need for action becomes more urgent with every new scandal. Mr. Zumas predecessor, Thabo Mbeki, fired him as his deputy after Mr. Zuma was implicated in a shady arms deal. Then Mr. Zuma was charged in the rape of a friends daughter, and later acquitted. In 2014, an independent inquiry found that Mr. Zuma had the government pay for lavish improvements to his home, but the president refused to refund any of the money, leading to the Constitutional Court ruling on Thursday.
Harold J. Morowitz, a boundlessly curious biophysicist who tackled mind-boggling enigmas ranging from the origin of life to the thermodynamics of pizza, died on March 22 in Falls Church, Va. He was 88.
The cause was sepsis, his son Noah said.
Trained as a physicist and a philosopher, Professor Morowitz was inspired in his scholarly speculation by the writings of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, the mid-20th-century Jesuit paleontologist who developed the idea of the Omega Point, his term for a level of spiritual consciousness and material complexity toward which he believed the universe was evolving.
Professor Morowitzs intellectual scope extended beyond the laboratory. He was a consultant to NASA on experiments conducted remotely on the surface of Mars and inside Biosphere 2, the worlds largest enclosed ecosystem.
He was best known for applying thermodynamic theory to biology, exploring how the energy that flows through a system acts to organize that system.
WASHINGTON There are the legal giants of the Supreme Court, justices such as John Marshall, Louis D. Brandeis and Earl Warren. Then there is Rufus W. Peckham.
He is one of the pygmies of the court, said Leon Friedman, a law professor at Hofstra University, about the justice most remembered if he is remembered at all as the author of the oft-maligned Lochner v. New York decision, a 1905 ruling that prevented the states from limiting the hours of overworked bakers.
Justice Peckham does have one distinguishing characteristic and, as todays political fight over the Supreme Court rages, it is rescuing him from obscurity. He was the last Supreme Court justice nominated by a Democratic president Grover Cleveland and approved by a Republican-controlled Senate, a step taken in 1895, and on a voice vote, no less.
The case of Justice Peckham highlights the unusual situation Senate Republicans find themselves in after the death of Antonin Scalia. While Democratic-controlled Senates have considered and approved 13 Supreme Court nominees by Republican presidents since 1895 the most recent in 1991 contemporary Republicans have never faced that prospect and have no experience doing so, a fact that might help explain their extreme reluctance to even take up President Obamas choice for the court, Judge Merrick B. Garland.
HARIDWAR, India Sitting on an orange sofa set over a Persian carpet, in a gated office park of freshly painted tan buildings and manicured lawns, Baba Ramdev is surrounded by the trappings of any major corporate leader almost anywhere in the world.
But Mr. Ramdev is also an Indian swami, having renounced all worldly pleasures and possessions, and he sits cross-legged on the couch, his face fringed by an untamed beard, his body draped in the saffron cloth of a Hindu holy man.
Famous for bringing yoga to the Indian masses, Mr. Ramdev, 50, is also the leader of what has become known as the Baba Cool Movement a group of spiritual men, known here as babas, who are marketing healthy consumer items based on the ancient Indian medicinal system of herbal treatments, known as Ayurveda. His rapidly expanding business empire of packaged food, cosmetics and home-care products is eating into the sales of both multinational and Indian corporations.
The babas message about the value of traditional Indian ingredients is particularly resonant in the current environment in India, where a prime minister and his political party have built a narrative around the value of ancient Hindu practices, from yoga to reverence for cows. Mr. Ramdev is the most prominent of a growing group of brand-building babas, whose ranks include Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the founder of the Art of Living, an Indian spiritual practice, who promotes a line of creams, soaps and shampoos also called Ayurveda.
Bela Biszku, the only high-ranking Communist-era official to be tried for his role in the repression that came after the 1956 Hungarian uprising against Soviet rule, died on Thursday in Budapest. He was 94.
His death was confirmed by the Federation of Hungarian Jewish Communities.
Mr. Biszku was part of the Communist Partys ruling interim executive committee after Soviet forces crushed the October 1956 uprising. The committee created militias to carry out the repression.
Mr. Biszku, who also served as Hungarys interior minister from March 1957 to September 1961, denied any involvement. But in 2014, he was sentenced to five years and six months in prison after being convicted of war crimes and other charges, including his role in nearly 50 deaths.
A higher court voided the verdict and ordered a retrial, which concluded in December with a suspended sentence on lesser charges, including the denial of crimes committed by the Communist government. The conviction was under appeal at Mr. Biszkus death.
JAFFA, Israel The armed wing of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas showed photographs on Friday of four Israelis, two of whom it said were captives being held in Gaza. Two others were Israeli soldiers who were killed during the 2014 conflict in Gaza, Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul.
The images of Mr. Goldin and Mr. Shaul were included in an announcement by the Qassam Brigades, Hamas military wing, on Al Aqsa, a Hamas-run satellite channel. The identities of the other two people pictured were not immediately clear.
The announcement was the first time the group had released photographs of the people it said it had been holding captive. The spokesman for the Qassam Brigades, who goes by his nom de guerre, Abu Obeida, referred to all four of them as Israeli soldiers.
Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians, including Avraham Mengistu, an Israeli of Ethiopian descent. Mr. Mengistu, who is believed to be in his mid to late 20s, crossed an Israeli-constructed fence that surrounds much of Gaza on Sept. 7, 2014. His family has said that he has psychiatric problems. Hamas is also holding an Arab citizen of Israel who has not been identified.
Of course, few will have sympathy for wealthy oenophiles crying over their spilled Margaux. Yet the victims also include teachers, doctors, accountants and wine store workers who used their savings to buy special-occasion wines with Premier Cru.
Sure it hurts, said Ned Valois, a retired Florida policeman who may have lost $800 to Premier Cru. I got suckered into it by the prices. They seemed too good to be true, and they were.
Premier Crus collapse has sent a chill through the broader wine and collectibles market. As wine, art, classic cars and other collectibles have soared in value and transformed from status trophies into financial investments, they have also become more prone to fraud. Although fake vintage wine has dogged the industry for years, there are signs that wine fraud has reached a new financialized stage, where millions of dollars are lost without a single bottle changing hands.
Premier Cru started out as a low-price wine shop for high-income collectors. Founded in 1980 by Mr. Fox and other partners, it outgrew its store in Emeryville, Calif., and in 2011 opened its gigantic emporium on University Avenue in Berkeley.
Clients said Mr. Fox was the driving force behind Premier Cru. Tall, businesslike and better known for his taste in fast cars than fine wine, Mr. Fox often dealt with Premier Crus biggest clients and orders. Much of Premier Crus business came online. Clients say wine buyers often search the Internet for the best prices for top wines, and Premier Cru often undercut its competitors by 15 to 20 percent significant savings for wines that may sell for more than $1,000 a bottle.
In the 2000s, Premier Cru started expanding its business of selling wine futures, according to clients. Futures allow customers to pay for wine (usually Bordeaux or Burgundy) while it is still in the barrel but is not yet bottled or sold in retail outlets. The wine is delivered more than a year later. If a wine increases in value while its aging, the buyer gets the wine at a discount. Some buyers can also use futures to buy wine they can later flip for a profit, making futures more like a financial investment.
Thomas Boothe, a lawyer in Portland, Ore., started buying wine and futures from Premier Cru in the late 1980s, he said. He talked with Mr. Fox several times over the years.
Virgin, Alaska and JetBlue compete in a tier below the giants that are American, Delta and United. When Virgin put itself up for sale this year, it drew preliminary interest from a host of potential suitors. But the biggest domestic airlines, constrained by antitrust regulations, soon gave way to smaller competitors eager to expand their networks.
Alaska and JetBlue squared off in the final round of bidding, with official offers coming in recent days. But Alaska, one of the rare airlines to hold an investment-grade credit rating and one with more cash on its books than some others, appears to have triumphed.
During the contest, Alaska also argued that it would need to divest fewer airport slots than JetBlue would, since its network has fewer overlaps with Virgins, according to the person briefed on the matter.
Any transaction will probably draw close scrutiny from government regulators, who have become more suspicious of airline mergers because of the potential for them to result in higher prices. The Justice Department went to court to challenge Americans takeover of US Airways, though it lost that legal fight.
A sale of Virgin would mean a quick end to independence for an airline that began flying more than a decade ago. The company was the brainchild of Richard Branson, the outspoken billionaire behind the Virgin empire of brands.
Eric Engberg, a former CBS News correspondent who hosted the CBS Evening News segment Reality Check, which was aimed at keeping politicians honest, died last Sunday at his home in Palmetto, Fla. He was 74.
His son Jason said the cause had not been determined.
Mr. Engberg spent 27 years with CBS, mostly in the Washington bureau. He covered five presidential campaigns as well as international events, including the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Reality Check began during the 1992 presidential campaign as a way to verify candidates statements, a precursor to websites like Politifact.com and Factcheck.org. The segment also had an investigative function, in one case shedding light on a little-examined law change that allowed members of Congress to use taxpayer funds for radio advertisements. The segment also took on less serious matters, like whether letters to Santa Claus made it to the North Pole.
Mr. Engberg won an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Silver Baton Award for an investigative report in 1998 that helped identify the body of a Vietnam War veteran (that of Air Force First Lt. Michael Blassie) buried at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery.
Kagans argument appeared amid the Iraq war debate, which seemed to perfectly illustrate his premise. Even if (as he conceded) the Mars and Venus language oversimplified things, anyone who observed Western politics in that era could see the pattern he was talking about, the assumptions that separated the American perspective from the worldview of Brussels, Paris and Berlin.
Which is why, in this time of political turmoil on both sides of the Atlantic, its so striking to watch Mars and Venus reverse their Bush-era alignment.
Its too soon to say Europeans are actually from Mars once again. But the Continents Venusian idyll has taken blow after blow: the euro crisis, the aggressions of Vladimir Putin, and now the convergence of mass migration and Islamist terror. Nationalism is returning, border fences are going up. The center is weakening, the far right is gaining power. The Mediterranean and the Russian marches are zones of conflict again, and ancient habits French military adventurism, Little Englander separatism, a tense relationship with Islam are resurfacing.
The European elite still believes in the Kantian dream of perpetual peace, which is how the Continent ended up with Angela Merkels open-door policy for Syrian refugees. But its leaders are also adapting to post-Kantian reality, and nowhere more so than in France, where the government has basically gone Le Bush-Cheney under both Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande: intervening in Libya, Mali and Syria, responding to terrorist attacks with Bush-esque rhetoric, and implementing a terror crackdown that makes the Patriot Act look libertarian.
In certain ways America is mirroring these trends: Were involved in Libya and Syria as well, we have our own refugee-related anxieties, and in Donald Trump we have our own version of Europes nationalist right. But if nationalism is making Europeans more militaristic, in America its inclining us to lay down the burdens of empire, to retreat into a self-sufficient Arcadia all our own.
Self-doubt is not required of the honest atheist. Atheism is not a belief system but a repudiation of belief systems. A common ground for atheists can be summed up by a phrase popularized by Carl Sagan: Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Miscasting atheism as a belief system that carries an equivalent burden of proof is a common gambit from apologists who commit the tu quoque (You too) fallacy as a deflective tactic.
Atheists simply lack belief in the faith-based assertions of the worlds many religions. Many who describe themselves as agnostics fall within the larger category of atheism. Even the most devoutly religious are atheistic with regard to the countless other religions from throughout history. Atheists simply go one step further.
ROB KIRKPATRICK
Newburgh, N.Y.
To the Editor: William Irwin asserts that belief without doubt would not be required by an all-loving God, and should not be worn as a badge of honor. I take issue with this. By the very definition of the words belief and faith, the individual passes from a doubting and questioning phase into one of assurance and confidence of his convictions. The Bible is the source document of the Judeo-Christian tradition. James, the author of one of the books of the Bible, states that one must approach God without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.
LACY BOGGESS
Danbury, Conn.
To the Editor: William Irwin suggests that atheists and believers have a commonality: Both may experience doubt about the existence of God. It is well known that even ardent believers sometimes have doubt about God. On the other hand, Mr. Irwin points out that atheists may on occasion consider that God may exist after all. Thus, they doubt their atheism. Both atheists and believers are hamstrung by the seeming fact that the existence of God may neither be proved or disproved.
There is a compelling argument, however, that God is an artifact of human consciousness. Consciousness creates within us a serious identity problem. We strive to know how we came to be. God is just the latest version of our relentless search for identity. It is human nature for us to search for God in the natural world about us. But its the wrong place. God is just a product of our consciousness.
RICHARD C. JOHNSON
Tucson
The writer is a board member of Freethought Arizona, a community of secular humanists, skeptics, agnostics and atheists.
To the Editor: William Irwin is taking doubt from being part of the process to the point of it all. Youd think its all about the journey, not the destination. He is so enamored with doubt that he elevates it to a religion, and equal to truth itself, and leaves no doubt about his conviction that it is impossible to be certain about God. That is an assertion, not a fact, and one that should itself qualify for a hefty dose of doubt, given the testimony and changed lives of so many throughout the world.
The campaigns of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders have tapped into a deep well of anger and anxiety about international trade. While their ideas for changing American trade policy are unrealistic and, in Mr. Trumps case, nonsensical their campaigns are doing something important by calling attention to the governments failure to help workers who have been hurt by globalization.
This much is clear: While trade with other countries benefits the economy over all, it creates winners and losers. In recent decades, the winners have included consumers who are able to buy cheaper clothes, electronics and other imported goods, and companies like Boeing and General Electric that have been able to sell more of their products overseas.
The losers have primarily been businesses and workers who face greater competition from foreign factories that can produce similar goods at lower prices. Economists and political leaders have long argued that if the winners compensate the losers, everybody should be better off. But in practice, American policy has allowed the winners to keep most of the spoils of trade and has given the losers crumbs. This has exacerbated income inequality by raising the profits of big corporations and the salaries of executives and other white-collar professionals while leaving blue-collar and lower-skilled workers poorer, as Mr. Sanders has correctly pointed out.
Recent economic research shows that workers who live near manufacturing hubs in Midwestern states like Ohio and Michigan have suffered high unemployment and low wages because of the transfer of manufacturing in the last 20 years, principally to producers in China. The worst of that shift has probably passed, but its aftereffects are still being felt across the country. One recent paper by three economists, David Autor, David Dorn and Gordon Hanson, concluded that in places affected by Chinese imports unemployment rates remain elevated for at least a full decade after the China trade shock commences. The workers who lost their jobs were not able to find new jobs easily, and when they did find work it did not pay as much as they had previously earned.
This was his first mistake.
Mike Williams, a retired lieutenant colonel who was one of Sameys supervisors in Afghanistan, was grocery shopping in Wegmans when he got a call from the judge. Swearing an oath with his right hand, holding baby food in his left, he vouched for Sameys character and performance. He told the judge that Sameys life was in danger and that he would take responsibility for him. Sameys aunt, an American citizen who manages a fried chicken business in New York, did the same.
I thought it would be a fairly open-and-shut case, Mr. Williams said. But when he heard the governments lawyer on the phone shouting objection and leading the witness, he began to worry. Samey didnt know what he was doing.
The judge ordered Sameys deportation. Flabbergasted, Samey told his aunt he would rather die in Afghanistan than rot in jail awaiting appeal. His aunt begged him not to return home and hired a lawyer to appeal. Samey was shipped to a detention center in Alabama.
Court documents suggest Samey was right to be stunned by Judge Powells findings. Common sense, the judge wrote in his decision, suggested that real Taliban would have assassinated him on the spot or taken him by force. He also mused that the threatening note could have been left by car thieves.
An immigration lawyer I consulted who represents detainees at Etowah called the judges assertions about the Taliban rank speculation and said she was dumbfounded that he rejected the note Samey gave to the C.I.A.
Nobody has evidence that good for asylum, she said. Under this judges standard no one with these types of cases could prove the nexus requirement of asylum.
But the most extraordinary passage of Judge Powells decision is his rejection of Sameys claim of persecution:
Respondent must show that the Government was, or is, unable to control the Taliban. Although the Taliban is conducting a tenacious insurgency and terrorist campaign, country reports show that Afghan security forces are effective in controlling the Taliban in many parts of Afghanistan.
While the marriage of the partys evangelical and business wings has never been a cuddly one, its especially frosty now, their incompatible desires evident in the significant number of prominent corporations that have denounced the North Carolina law and that successfully pressed the Republican governor of Georgia, Nathan Deal, to veto recent legislation that would have permitted the denial of services to L.G.B.T. people by Georgians citing religious convictions.
Corporations want to attract and retain the most talented workers, and thats more difficult in states with discriminatory laws. They want to reach the widest base of customers and sow loyalty among young consumers in particular, and the best strategy for that is an L.G.B.T.-friendly one, given that eight in 10 Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 support non-discrimination laws, according to a 2015 Public Religion Research Institute survey.
So theyre increasingly at loggerheads with the G.O.P., whose gay-rights advocates are still in the minority and whose socially conservative members still profit from and promote a derisive view of gays.
The gay-rights front isnt the only one on which theres tension between the party and big business. The Republican primaries are awash in anti-immigrant sentiment and screed; corporate America generally backs immigration reform. The protectionism and nativism that have had such currency in the contest so far conflict with many corporations interests.
Whats more, several major companies are so concerned about the brew of misogyny, racism and xenophobia stirred up by Trump that they are debating whether to follow through with their usual sponsorship of the Republican National Convention, as The Timess Jonathan Martin and Maggie Haberman reported last week.
THE partys anti-gay efforts not only undermine its pro-business stance but also contradict conservatives exaltation of local decision making. The North Carolina law was drafted and passed expressly to undo and override an ordinance in the states most populous city, Charlotte, that extended L.G.B.T. protections against discrimination to transgender people who want to use bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity. The law went so far as to forbid any municipality from instituting its own anti-discrimination protections, lest they contradict the states.
Apparently conservatives love the concept of local control when the locality being given control tilts right, but they have a different view when it leans left. Rural sensibilities must be defended while cosmopolitan ones are dismissed.
I GREW up in a small rural town in West Tennessee. My family is rooted in that region, where my ancestors were once enslaved. In the 1970s, when I was a teenager, we regularly attended an old country church that was located in the curve of a gravel road and surrounded by undeveloped Southern land. The church had rustic wooden floors, handmade pews and a piano that was often missing an accompanist. The congregation didnt mind though; they made their own music, tapping the pews and the floor as they sang.
A short distance away, at the dead end of a dirt path, was the churchs cemetery. According to local oral history, it was established sometime during the 1840s. Most of its burials had headstones with names, dates and sometimes epitaphs. However, the cemetery also contained an area with graves marked only by plain rocks of various sizes. I would eventually discover that the rocks marked the graves of people who had lived and died in the community over the years, including those who had been enslaved.
Very few, if any, members of the church knew their identities. Nonetheless, on Decoration Day each May, church members would place flowers not only on the graves of their loved ones, but also on the rocks. Afterward, they would paint the rocks bright colors to prevent them from being mistaken for common field rocks. I once asked an older relative if she knew who was buried there. She said no, as she resolutely placed bouquets on every rock.
My great-grandfather, Ben Harmon, was born into slavery around 1855. He died in 1946 and is buried under a headstone in a plantation cemetery not far from that church. His grave and that of my great-grandmother were visited often by older members of my family, but I had never done so, until a few years ago. Before then, I had only ever thought of him as a distant ancestor who had been a slave. I felt no personal connection. However, after I began visiting his grave, that changed. People who had the privilege of knowing my great-grandfather never referred to him as someone who was born a slave. He was simply Grandpa Ben or Papa. Now he is Grandpa Ben to me as well, someone whom I now feel as a member of my family.
KELLY VAUGHAN of Brooklyn, a Times reader, lived in Istanbul for a year, and so has followed the media coverage of the violence in Turkey with great interest.
She wrote to me last week after the terrorist attacks in Brussels with a concern: I cant help but wonder why The Times is naming the individual victims of the Brussels attacks, and profiling at least some of them, when the same was not done (as far as I can find) for the victims in Ankara and Istanbul, she wrote. This was also the case, she noted, in other world cities, whether the violence was in Lebanon, Mali or Kenya.
Ms. Vaughn said she was able to imagine a number of reasons for this discrepancy, some of which feel more legitimate than others. She asked how The Times decides how to cover these similar tragedies in such different ways.
Many others raised similar concerns. Richard Greenberg, also of New York, wrote: Why did the N.Y.T. devote so much less coverage to the Ivory Coast terror attack from just last week, in which 16 people were killed, including both Africans and Europeans? And Theodore Glasser, a communications professor at Stanford University, put it succinctly: ISIS kills 30+ in Brussels: Big story, page 1. ISIS kills 30+ in Baghdad, small story, page 6, below the fold. What does this tell us about newsroom biases?
Ask Real Estate is a weekly column that answers questions from across the New York region. Submit yours to realestateqa@nytimes.com.
Interview With Pup in Tow
I am buying a co-op apartment. The co-op board insists that I bring my dog, a boxer-lab mix, to the interview. She is a sweet and civilized pooch, but can be skittish because she is a rescue. Im afraid she might get weird if she has bad chemistry with a board member. I know we would both be very happy in this apartment, so how can we put our best foot forward? Should I warn the board ahead of time that she might act strangely? Or should I wait to see if it happens, and then deny that its ever happened before and promise to muzzle her if she does it again?
Murray Hill, Manhattan
Co-op boards that interview four-legged candidates do so for a reason: They want to gauge the dogs temperament. If your pooch has a meltdown at the interview, the board will probably take notice, but that might not be such a bad thing.
You and your skittish pup ultimately have to live in this building, and the tenor of the interview should help you determine if it is a good fit. If the building has a small elevator, for example, your dog might freak out every time she has to share the space with someone she perceives as weird. Your neighbors and the board might freak out, too. Nobody wants to go into a lobby or a skinny hallway with a dog whos highly stressed, said Andrea Arden, a dog trainer.
WHEN Rob Fords time as mayor of Toronto became a reality show that lurched from one cringe-inducing revelation to another, one question loomed: How did he come to lead Canadas largest city? His rumpled suits, fondness for profanity, racist and homophobic remarks, public drunkenness, admitted drug use and general boorishness made Mr. Ford seem like an outlier in a city that had carefully cultivated a reputation for multiculturalism, tolerance and sophistication.
But Mr. Ford, who died on March 22 while being treated for a rare form of cancer, wasnt a sign that something was wrong with the city, but evidence of the smart planning and foresight that helped Toronto avoid many of the problems that plague American cities. In short, Toronto works because its suburbs never separated themselves economically or politically from the city core. Mr. Ford, a suburban populist, may have been an embarrassment to some, but his election shows that the system works.
In 1953, the city itself was doing just fine, but the 12 smaller municipalities surrounding it were struggling to keep up with their postwar sprawl. So the province of Ontario imposed a metropolitan government over the entire region to handle big, costly projects: policing, water and sewer systems and major roads. Each of the cities, still run by their local councils, paid into the kitty according to their tax base assessments. Toronto, which had 57 percent of the population, paid 62 percent of the metropoliss bills.
The system certainly had its problems, but it made common cause between the suburbs and the city center. But the rapid rise of suburbia swiftly reversed that cash flow. Just nine years later, Toronto made up just 38 percent of the metropolitan areas population and it contributed 44 percent of its budget.
The purity level of heroin seized by drug agents on the streets of American cities has grown significantly in recent years, federal officials say, rising to 50 percent from 5 percent in St. Louis in the past several years, and as high as 90 percent in Philadelphia.
In a trend mimicked in large cities nationally, many of the heroin consumers in St. Louis are young whites in their 20s, who drive into the city from suburbs and distant rural areas, the police say. And while most heroin overdose victims here are white, nearly all of the shooting victims and suspects in St. Louis this year have been African-American men and boys, police data shows.
What Im seeing at street level are violent disputes about money owed around heroin debts, with sometimes the dispute being about money, and sometimes about drugs, said D. Samuel Dotson III, the police chief of St. Louis.
In 2014, St. Louis had the highest homicide rate of any city with more than 100,000 people. Its 157 homicides that year increased by 18 percent in 2015 to 188, and while the rate has slowed in the initial months of this year, St. Louis is again on pace to be among the nations most dangerous big cities.
The heroin problem has been difficult for the citys leaders to ignore. Those who have succumbed to the drug include a nephew of Steve Stengers, the St. Louis County executive, who died from an overdose in 2014. A brother of Mayor Francis Slays was arrested on a charge of heroin possession in 2012, and the stepson of Jennifer Joyces, the citys top prosecutor, was arrested on the same charge last month.
These heroin addicts are daughters, sons, husbands, wives or, in my case, a brother, Mr. Slay told reporters last month.
Former SEALs have offered accounts of derring-do, being transgender, SEAL-style yoga, dog-training techniques and even SEAL humor. One author, Matt Bissonnette, earned millions for No Easy Day, a firsthand narrative of the Bin Laden raid, but had to forfeit the profits for failing to submit it for Pentagon review of classified information.
Some SEALs, contending that they have every right to benefit from their experiences in the military, say the publicity has done no harm and divulged few if any classified tactics or techniques. Kevin Lacz, a former SEALs member whose book The Last Punisher is due this summer, said in an interview that readers are captivated by the mystique and aura of the teams, and want to hear stories about SEALs written by SEALs.
Brandon Webb, who founded a veteran-run news website, Sofrep, that focuses on the Special Operations community and is an author of several SEAL-themed books, was cited in the thesis as someone who has exploited the SEAL brand.
Ever since wars have been fought guys have been writing their stories, Mr. Webb said. Its important for Americans to know what the guys fighting the wars have been experiencing, not just from the perspective of a talking-head politician or a four-star general.
The elevation of SEALs in the public eye has plenty of precedent; there have been countless books and movies about heroics or sacrifice by organizations like the Marines and the Green Berets in other eras. The United States military has often assisted Hollywood, figuring that inspiring narratives helped win recruits and support.
In fact, the Naval Special Warfare Command helped create the clamor for tales of SEAL daring. After 19 SEALs and helicopter crewmen were killed during a 2005 mission in Afghanistan, Marcus Luttrell, who lived through it, was given time off to work with a writer on what became the best-seller Lone Survivor . It was published in 2007 and released as a feature film in 2013.
Were talking about somebody who has the passionate devotion of a minority and alternately scares, appalls, angers or all of the above a majority of the country, said Henry Olsen, a conservative analyst. This isnt anything but a historic election defeat just waiting to happen.
What could ensure a humiliating loss for Mr. Trump in November are his troubles with constituencies that have favored Republicans in recent elections. Among independents, a group that Mitt Romney carried even as he lost to President Obama in 2012, Mr. Trump would begin the fall campaign at a considerable disadvantage: 19 percent have a favorable opinion of him, but 57 percent view him unfavorably, the Times/CBS survey found. Given his loathed standing among Democrats and the possibility that many in his own party would spurn him, Mr. Trump would need to invert his numbers among independents to even be competitive in November.
With white women, a bloc Mr. Romney easily won even in defeat, Mr. Trump is nearly as unpopular: 23 percent view him favorably, while 54 percent have an unfavorable opinion of him. And that was before Mr. Trump attacked Senator Ted Cruzs wife, ridiculed a female reporter against whom Mr. Trumps campaign manager was charged with committing battery, and suggested that women who have abortions should face criminal punishment before reversing himself.
Mr. Trumps penchant to offend and his household-name celebrity are a potentially lethal combination, as most voters have both firm and deeply negative opinions of him. His incendiary comments about minorities and the disabled, and proposals to bar Muslims from entering the United States or to force Mexico to pay for a wall on the southern border, have resounded so widely that half of all voters said they would be scared if he were elected president, according to the Times/CBS poll.
There is no precedent for this, said Neil Newhouse, a veteran Republican pollster. In the modern polling era, since around World War II, there hasnt been a more unpopular potential presidential nominee than Donald Trump.
RICHMOND, Va. A former girlfriend of the gunman who killed a trooper at a Virginia bus station said that he frequently expressed his hatred toward the police and once nearly choked her to death after she broke up with him.
The gunman, James Brown III, was killed Thursday by two Virginia state troopers after the authorities say he fatally shot Trooper Chad P. Dermyer at a Greyhound station here.
Mr. Brown, 34, who had a lengthy criminal record, previously said he would rather die fighting the police than return to prison, the ex-girlfriend said.
He wanted to be one of those guys that just died killing police officers because they are not taking him back to jail, she said.
The lawyers for the plaintiffs in the Hudbay case, Murray Klippenstein and Cory Wanless, took a novel approach, however, making a simpler claim. They said the Canadian parent company was negligent for failing to put an effective monitoring system in place to understand what its Guatemalan subsidiary was doing. Framing the claim in this way allowed the plaintiffs to draw a clear connection between the negligence and Canada.
In addition to the claims brought by Mrs. Caal and the other women who say they were raped in Lote Ocho, Hudbay, based in Toronto, is facing claims over the death of a prominent local leader, Adolfo Ich Chaman, 50, and the shooting and paralysis of a bystander, German Chub, 28, during demonstrations against mining in the nearby town of El Estor in 2009.
Hudbay lawyers moved to have the case dismissed both because of jurisdictional grounds and because it was plain and obvious that the claims would fail. Before the ruling on jurisdiction, they dropped that claim and went forward with the other one. In July 2013, however, the judge ruled it was not obvious that the claims were without merit.
Turning to the courts has not been easy for the plaintiffs, most of whom speak only Qeqchi, a Mayan language, have had little or no schooling, and find the prospect of going to Canada terrifying. In addition, they face animosity from a sizable portion of the local population, particularly in El Estor, where there is a giant nickel processing plant.
Here are excerpts from the interview, translated from Dari:
On rumors of a deal to leave the governorship: I have not received any messages about that. I spoke with the president twice in detail. We talked about bringing changes, but I also told him this: that I did not inherit this province so that I should be its governor forever. I gave an example that if still water is left in one place too long, it will start to stink. But I also told him, I dont want to be a victim of your campaign slogans.
On the governments legitimacy and stability: A legitimate government is one that is formed as a result of free and fair elections, as the result of the blue-inked fingers of the people. You know that this presidential election was the worst, the longest and the most fraudulent election in the world. Instead, the government was created on a political agreement. It only has legitimacy because of that political agreement and by the signature of our team. That agreement is just for two years alone, until four months from now. Meanwhile, they have just made a mockery of the government and the peoples vote and will. ...
Although our team is in government, unfortunately they dont listen to us. The political agreement of the N.U.G. is not being implemented, unfortunately. Except for the formation of the cabinet, nothing else mentioned in the N.U.G. agreement is in effect yet. Dr. Abdullah is not involved in the big, strategic, national decision making. ...
I would never wish for the collapse of this government. No matter how weak it may be, it is still better than not having a government at all. That would be very dangerous. Our people would experience the past decades again. No one wants a repeat of those chaotic decades.
On the violence between Mr. Attas and General Dostums men: It was a conspiracy to disrupt peace in this city. I dont want to boast about my achievements, but this is the only province in the country that is doing great in terms of security, development, reconstruction and so on. They could not accept this and want to ruin it. ...
Supporters of General Dostum tried to come here from his strongholds. They were trying to come into this province with tanks, Humvees, and guns and ammunition from other provinces, but I turned them around at the border gates. It was my order to stop them. They repeatedly said that was undemocratic, but I told them it is not democratic to bring people from other provinces to cause violence. What has democracy to do with mortars or tanks? They got all these tanks from General Dostums palace in Sheberghan that is where they got them from. Obviously, some of the Afghan national security force units obey the vice presidents orders. But we prevented this agitation from reaching Mazar-i-Sharif.
As of tomorrow, Sunday, Brussels Airport should be partially operational, Mr. Feist said at a news conference in a hotel near the airport, which is several miles northwest of Brussels. The airport had been closed since the attacks, in which two suicide bombers detonated explosives in the departures hall.
A police spokesman, Michael Jonniaux, said there would be new security measures at the airport, including spot checks of vehicles and checks of people and baggage entering the airport terminal which will be open only to those with travel documents and identification. The airport police had previously complained about a lack of security, delaying the reopening.
Mr. Feist said that there will be three flights on Sunday to Faro, Portugal; Turin, Italy; and Athens and that passengers would be processed in temporary constructions. He added that for the time being, the airport would be accessible only by taxi or car.
Y.A. is the third person in Belgium to be charged as an accomplice of Reda Kriket, 34, a Frenchman who was arrested outside Paris on March 24.
MOSCOW Heavy fighting broke out Saturday in Nagorno-Karabakh, an Armenian separatist enclave in Azerbaijan and a longtime ethnic tinderbox in the South Caucasus region.
As the fighting escalated through the day it was unclear whether the use of tanks, artillery and aircraft was merely a flare-up in a long conflict or the start of a new phase.
Artillery barrages began early Saturday, threatening a breakdown of a fragile 1994 truce agreement. Armenia and Azerbaijan, both former Soviet republics, blamed each other for the violence. By evening, both sides spoke of dozens of dead, and Azerbaijan claimed that its military had advanced to capture territory, a move that seemed to bode ill for a quick resolution.
The ethnic war that began in the late Soviet period between Armenians and Azerbaijanis claimed more than 20,000 lives and ended in a cease-fire but no final settlement. The region became one of the so-called frozen conflict zones in the vast area of the former Soviet Union, with sporadic episodes of violence since the 1994 truce.
LONDON Britain is one of Europes strongest economic performers, having emerged from the financial crisis of the last decade faster and less burdened by debt than competitors like France, Italy and Spain. Unemployment is at a 10-year low of 5.1 percent. London, vibrant and second only to New York as a global financial hub, hums a siren song to the young and ambitious across Europe.
Those campaigning for Britain to leave the European Union in a national referendum on June 23 focus their arguments on reclaiming national sovereignty and reasserting national identity in the face of immigration. But proponents of exit are also now confronting the challenge of convincing the country that any freedom it gains from divorcing the Continent would not be offset by the risks to Britains prosperity.
Estimates of the economic impact of Brexit vary, because no one knows what terms would be negotiated in what would most likely be a yearslong divorce. But that very inability to foresee the consequences has become a factor in the debate, especially since the value of the pound started to soften over concern about Britains future.
Mark Carney, the governor of the Bank of England, framed the stakes recently, saying the prospect of British exit is the biggest domestic risk to financial stability because, in part, of the issues around uncertainty.
A nations greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members.
-Mahatma Ghandi
Autism is a devastating neurological and biological disorder that typically presents in children between the ages of 18 months to five years of age. It currently affects 1 in every 68 children (up from an estimated 1 in 10,000 in the 1970s). It is estimated that there are over 3 million people in the United States with autism and over 10,000 children in Orange County with an autism diagnosis.
Many claim that the rise of the autism diagnosis is a result of increased awareness. While that may account for a spike in the count, its akin to saying there are more train wrecks because we now know what a train wreck look like. Ive been around autism for 15 years, and I can tell you for certain theres no missing a child that is autistic.
Regardless of the dispute of cause and prevalence, theres no debate over the cost. According to University of Pennsylvania and the London School of Economics the cost of autism to our economy is $237 billion annually. If we dont quickly figure out whats going on and how to address this issue, it is estimated that we will be staring down a $1 trillion a year tragedy by 2025. The human toll is incalculable.
Further complicating the financial issue is that children diagnosed in the 1990s are now becoming adults. With the estimated annual cost of care at $100,000, aging parents who can no longer support their children in home and limited living facilities geared toward the adult autism population, parents are questioning who will care for their children when they are gone. This is driving families headlong into a situation where they are resorting to the most desperate measures to what they perceive as a hopeless situation.
Its time to get off the autism awareness carousel and get on with taking action. April should not be Autism Awareness Month. April should be Autism Action Month.
Autism is not a game over diagnoses. For many, autism and the co-morbid biomedical issues are treatable. With appropriate early intervention, unique to each childs needs, outcomes can be changed.
Heres what you need to do:
Step One: Get engaged. Autism is not game over. Its game on!
Step Two: Obtain the diagnosis that best describes your child. Once an official diagnosis has been made, a detailed assessment should be produced that outlines your childs assets and deficits plus recommendations for appropriate services. The assessment is crucial. Recommended therapies should begin as soon as possible.
Step Three: Find a physician.
Children with autism often have co-morbid medical issues that can be evaluated and treated by a physician. Behavioral and other therapies that require active involvement of the child are more effective when the childs health is not compromised. Common medical issues are outlined in the American Academy of Pediatrics Standards of Care for Autism.
Step Four: Get connected.
Many of the families my organization, Talking About Curing Autism, supports report that the hyper-focus on their childs needs, combined with the behavioral nature of autism, can result in isolation from friends and family. The divide often also occurs between mom and dad. Divorce, abandonment, child abuse and suicide are all too common. Get connected with an organization in your community that focuses on autism. You need not be alone.
Step five: Get empowered. Drive change for your family and others.
Families with children diagnosed with autism need to get organized and drive change within their community. Get engaged, and let your public officials know your issues. Reach out to your elected representatives and be counted. Tell your story. Until families impacted by autism get active, autism will continue to be known as the silent epidemic. Get loud. Be heard. You are your childs voice.
Remember, if autism is not in your life today, it very likely will be soon.
If we are to make progress for our children and other children with similar conditions, we are going to have to make it happen through determination and grit. Today our son, who cast us on our unplanned journey, is preparing to graduate high school and has been accepted to the college of his choice. He participates on the cross country team, acts in school plays and is looking forward to prom. His future is bright.
Lisa Ackerman is executive director of Talk About Curing Autism.
VALLEY OF THE KINGS, Egypt Egypt on Friday invited archaeologists and experts from around the world to examine new data from new, extensive radar scanning conducted on King Tutankhamuns tomb to explore a theory that secret chambers could be hidden behind its walls.
The open invitation to a conference in Cairo in May, issued by the antiquities minister at a news conference just outside the tomb, aims to bring broader scientific rigor to what so far have only been tantalizing clues.
The new exploration was prompted by a theory by British Egyptologist Nicolas Reeves that undiscovered chambers lie behind the tombs western and northern walls and that they likely contain the tomb of Queen Nefertiti, one of pharaonic Egypts most famous figures whose bust, on display at the Berlin Museum, is a much storied symbol of ancient beauty.
Preliminary scans whose results were announced last month suggested two open spaces with signs of metal and organic matter. Egypts archaeologists announced Friday they completed more extensive scanning, sponsored by National Geographic, and the results must now be analyzed.
If chambers whether containing Nefertitis tomb or not are discovered behind the western and northern walls covered in hieroglyphs and bas-reliefs in Tuts tomb, it would likely be the biggest discovery in Egyptology since Howard Carter first discovered the kings 3,300-year-old burial chamber and its treasures in 1922.
Antiquities Minister Khaled el-Anani, who was appointed to his post last week, counseled caution.
He said Egypts scientific credibility and the preservation of its antiquities were at stake, adding; We will rely only on science going forward. There are no results to share at the current stage, but only indications. We are not searching for hidden chambers, but rather we are scientifically verifying whether there are such rooms.
We are looking for the truth and reality, not chambers.
Another radar scan will be carried out at the end of the month. It will be done vertically from atop the hill above the tomb, using equipment with a range of about 40 yards.
Harvard University Egyptology professor Peter Der Manuelian, who is not involved in the project, said the Valley of the Kings is notorious for containing fissures, cracks that complicate interpreting the scans. So the more scans we do, and from different angles and directions, inside and outside the tomb, the better, he told The Associated Press.
Even if the spaces are rooms, they could be undecorated small rooms for holding embalming materials, he said or, more dramatically, the beginning of a larger floor plan.
Well have to be patient. In the meantime, kudos to Nick Reeves for pointing out the presence of these anomalies and for sharing them with the world.
Reeves theory was prompted by the unusual structure of Tuts tomb. It is smaller than other royal tombs and oriented differently. Furthermore, his examination of photos uncovered what appear to be the outlines of a filled-in doorframe in one wall.
He has speculated that Tutankhamun, who died at age 19, may have been rushed into an outer chamber of what was originally Nefertitis tomb. Nefertiti was one of the wives of Tuts father Akhenaten, though another wife Kia is believed to be Tuts mother.
We have a theory, and now what were trying to do is test it. And, I , if I am right, fantastic, if I am wrong, Ive been doing my job, Ive been following the evidence trail, and seeing where it leads, Reeves told the AP.
El-Anani said Egyptologists and Valley of the Kings experts will discuss on May 8 the findings of the scans in a previously scheduled conference devoted to King Tut to be held at Egypts new national museum near the Giza Pyramids outside Cairo. There, they can discuss the findings. The outcome, he said, will guide what course of action Egypt takes.
The Valley of the Kings was one of the main burial sites for ancient Egypts pharaohs, located among the desert mountains across the Nile River from Luxor, the site of the monumental temples of Thebes, one of the pharaonic capitals.
Tuts was the most intact tomb ever discovered in Egypt, packed with well-preserved artifacts. But he was a relatively minor king ruling for a short period at a turbulent time.
Nefertiti was the primary wife of the Pharaoh Akhenaten, who unsuccessfully tried to switch Egypt to an early form of monotheism. Akhenaten was succeeded by a pharaoh referred to as Smenkhare. Reeves believes Smenkhare and Nefertiti are the same person, with the queen simply changing her name during her rule.
Not long after Tut died in 1323 B.C., his family was overthrown by a general, ending the 18th Dynasty that had been in power for 250 years.
John Darnell, professor of Egyptology at Yale University, said Tuts tomb is somewhat anomalous due to its small size But the question is: Was Tutankhamuns tomb small, or do we have only a portion of a larger tomb?
The latest scans were carried out over 12 hours along five different levels of the walls, producing 40 scans. The data will be analyzed by U.S.-based experts, but the results would not be known for at least another week.
Technology is beginning to open doors that were permanently locked, or seemed permanently locked or maybe we did not know it existed, said Terry D. Garcia, chief science and exploration officer for National Geographic. It is creating a revolution and it is going to result in the 21st century being the greatest in exploration in the history of mankind and we are just scratching the surface.
The mystery is also a golden opportunity for Egypt to boost its deeply damaged tourism industry by drawing world attention to its wealth of pharaonic antiquities.
But any benefit from the discoveries may be slow coming, with Egypt still facing turmoil, including a deadly fight against Islamic militants in the Sinai.
Pharaonic sites were once Egypts main draw. But cities like Luxor have suffered heavily from the plunge in tourism. Now, visits to Egypts beaches have also been devastated since the crash of a Russian airliner in October over the Sinai Peninsula that killed all 224 people onboard. Russia said it was downed by an explosive device and suspended all flights to Egypt. Britain suspended all flights to Sharm el-Sheikh, the Egyptian Red Sea resort from which the doomed aircraft took off shortly before it crashed.
TEMECULA The Southern California city of Temecula has honored a local Marine killed in a rocket attack in Iraq last month.
Hundreds of residents paid respects Friday morning in a closed-casket ceremony for Staff Sgt. Louis F. Cardin on the steps of the Civic Center.
The ceremony included speeches from the mayor and a representative of the Marines family, which plans a private funeral.
The 27-year-old Cardin died March 19. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
Cardin was a native of Riverside who moved to Temecula with his family in the mid-2000s.
He was a graduate of Chaparral High School in Temecula.
Many folks I know are getting tired of reading about the fiasco of government worker pensions. The issue is just another example of how ridiculous governments operate. We are convinced they havent a clue what theyre doing.
Most folks I know are from the private enterprise world, the people who pay for all the government incompetence. In my case, the two pensions I receive from private industry would be considered a joke compared with, say, a firefighters pension plan. First, my pensions are not near 3 percent per year of service and did not kick in at a young age. Second, there is no cost-of-living indexing; if you get $500 a month in 2008, you will get $500 a month in 2028.
One problem is that government employees have not been taught to save for themselves. They make good money and can blow it all, knowing the taxpayer will kick in for their Cadillac pensions when needed. The government is nurturing a bunch of spoiled wimps.
My personal savings were accumulated through years of consistent pay yourself first mentality. Income from those savings amounts to more than my small private, fixed pensions. Of course, I never drove a $50,000 macho truck.
Good luck, California (and other states). The courts wont allow you to trim back public pensions to something more realistic.
Paul Kartinen
Laguna Hills
Beyond the bunny
Its easy to get distracted from the core message of Easter by all the peripheral trappings, so thank you for Mark Landsbaums fit reminder why we celebrate the good news of Christs resurrection [Message of Easter a hard sell for many, Opinion, March 26].
Frank Grau
Fontana
Why boomers rule
I am an angry white male boomer. According to Joel Kotkin [Tilted toward boomers, Opinion, March 27], boomers are partisan, have tended toward divisiveness, are increasingly strident in our politics, have racist and xenophobic tendencies and are graying Trumpites.
Boomers may be all of those things, but the real animosity toward boomers has its origin in the simple fact that we own and control most of this country. I am college-educated, have fathered (in marriage, by the way) only the children I can afford to support, have worked diligently at every job I have had, made smart financial decisions, been aware of the trends in the world, stayed on the right side of the law in short, made (mostly) smart decisions. And I have been lucky. Most importantly, I have never blamed others for my lot in life or for the stupid choices we all make.
The only part of being an angry white male boomer I have any control over is the anger. But I choose to hang on to that anger. So, to all the prissy, safe-space college students and whining ethnic/gender victim groups who are complaining because they have no bread, I have this advice: Go eat cake.
Mike Hamilton
San Juan Capistrano
Why cant Trump win?
Joel Kotkins analysis of the Republican Partys populist transformation was excellent in Out of the picture [Opinion, March 20]. But his conclusion that Donald Trump cant be elected appears to be contradicted by the facts he presented.
Mr. Kotkin cites survey results showing many Democrats are likely to bolt and embrace The Donald, voting for Trump in November. Later, Mr. Kotkin claims that Trump wont win the general election, but provides no data or basis for that opinion. In fact, the only data he provides in the piece contradict that opinion.
When the data tell you something contrary to your opinion, you should listen to the data. Im as surprised as anyone, yet Mr. Kotkins article suggests Trump may be able to swing the votes of many Democrats and win the presidential election.
David Ruhm
Irvine
Minimum wage realities
Every time you raise the minimum wage for the lowest-paid worker, everyone else in the company gets a raise, and this really raises the cost of labor. If you have one worker making the minimum $10 per hour, and you raise it to $11, the worker who was making $11 now will need to be paid more.
It finally ends when the owner cant afford to stay in business anymore. All the workers then revert back to the minimum wage at their new jobs, and the process repeats itself.
Leonard Musgrave
Orange
People starting out in the job market arent unskilled. Most have computer skills these days, and these skills shouldnt be free to the employer. They werent 20 years ago.
A wage of $15 an hour to start at places like McDonalds, Target, Wal-Mart and various other retail stores isnt asking much when these stores are making head over heels in profit, while one worker does the job of two. The workplace has lost many of the family-supporting jobs it once had, and employees are getting only part-time hours instead of the full-time work that people need to survive.
We dont have the luxury of the past to say these jobs are for students and housewives. Not everyone is cut out to be a manager or star employee, and there are only so many slots for those people. When workers start at these retail places, they are told they will make minimum wage to start, regardless of how much experience they have.
Weve learned over and over that the trickle-down theory doesnt work. CEO compenstation has soared while their workers compensation has barely increased in 20 years. Worker productivity is the highest its ever been but they are cut out of the compensation pie.
Fifteen dollars an hour is still chicken feed, when you need two adults together making $32 an hour to afford the average rent in Orange County. Raise the minimum wage, for heavens sake.
Christy Bultsma
Fullerton
The descent of the Republican primary campaign into attacks on the wives of Ted Cruz and Donald Trump points to a serious flaw in our present system of campaign financing.
This fight was initiated by Make America Awesome, an organization that describes itself in this way: Make America Awesome is a super PAC dedicated to blocking and reversing Donald Trumps political ascent. We are an independent group and are not authorized by any presidential candidate or candidate committee.
This super PAC sent a nude photograph of Trumps wife, Melania, to Republican women voters just before Utahs caucuses, suggesting she was inappropriate to serve as first lady. Trump accused Cruz of being behind it; Cruz responded that he had no affiliation with the super PAC and deplored what it had done. Trump then retweeted a side-by-side photograph of the two candidates wives, unflattering to Heidi Cruz. That led to Cruzs characterization of Trump as a sniveling coward and his demand that Trump leave Heidi Cruz out of the campaign.
This started with a super PAC, and it is there that we should focus if we seek a change to a political system that has sunk so low. Super PACs raises money in unlimited amounts because they are unaffiliated with any campaign. Donations to an official campaign, by contrast, are limited to $2,700 for a primary. Every major presidential candidate has an unaffiliated super PAC working on his or her behalf, but, we are assured, without any actual coordination.
OpenSecrets.org reports there are four super PACs raising money to help Trump, nine doing the same for Cruz, five for Hillary Clinton, three for Bernie Sanders and one for John Kasich. The super PACs share of total money helping a candidate ranges from 45 percent for Kasich, 44 percent for Cruz, 26 percent for Clinton, 9 percent for Trump and .015 percent for Sanders.
So, with the exception of Sanders and Trump, super PACs are a very significant part of the 2016 presidential candidates arsenals, even though they are not controlled by the candidate. Not being controlled also means not having responsibility and that is where the greatest flaw lies.
The super PAC can say what a candidate does not wish to say, do what a candidate would not stoop to do and not have it reflect on the candidate. Make America Awesome actually touts that advantage, claiming on its website that it uses unconventional and cost-effective tactics, though it didnt explicitly promise it would attack Trumps wife.
Candidates need to take responsibility for their campaigns. The way to make this happen is to apply the same overall limit of donations to a super PAC that applies to a candidate. If a donor may only give $2,700 to help a candidate, the donor will most likely give it to the campaign directly rather than to a super PAC.
Citizens United and other recent cases have allowed limits on campaign contributions to stand, to avoid the appearance of individual donors corrupting elected officials, but the Supreme Court has barred limits on giving to entities not actually controlled by a candidate. That distinction is ephemeral.
A million-dollar donor to a super PAC that supports a candidate will actually curry more favor with a candidate than if the donor gave the legal maximum of $2,700 to the same candidates official account. Since Citizens United was a 5-4 opinion, this aspect could be overturned when the replacement for the late Justice Antonin Scalia is eventually seated.
Some critics of campaign finance laws argue that the $2,700 limit itself is suspect and that contributions to political speech should be unlimited. The Supreme Court has never said so. Ironically, if the court did so rule in a future opinion, that would also solve the problem of lack of responsibility. Unshackled from any limits, campaigns would urge their supporters to give all they could directly to the campaign. More money would flow into politics, but the responsibility level would be much improved.
The Supreme Court, therefore, can restore responsibility either by reversing Citizens United and allowing limits on super PACs, driving contributions to candidates official accounts, or by going to the other extreme and removing all limits on donations to official campaigns. While we languish in the middle, the claim to greater responsibility actually can be made by Trump. Self-funding his campaign, Trump will be able to outspend Hillary Clinton by a substantial amount. If he uses his personal fortune to attack Clinton, it will be clear who is responsible for the attack; the same cannot be said for an attack on Trump by Priorities USA, the super PAC supporting Clinton.
Tom Campbell is a professor in Chapman Universitys Fowler School of Law. He was elected to Congress five times and to the California Senate. He was a floor manager for the Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2000, McCain Feingold. These views are his own.
SACRAMENTO I first got to know Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait in the early 2000s, when we were battling a perverse city ordinance that forced low-income people typically, folks one step ahead of homelessness to move out of grubby old motels every 30 days. Local residents were upset that one-time tourist lodging had become permanent homes and were seeking to use the government to force the motels to remain devoted to tourism.
Tait and I are now on different sides of an issue in which many Anaheim residents want to use government to do the opposite. Instead of stopping people from residing in buildings designed for vacationers, they want to stop tourists from staying in buildings designed for residents.
This is an example of the kind of economic change ushered in by the sharing economy. When I moved to Orange County in the 1990s, many neighborhoods surrounding Disneyland battled blight. That explains why neighbors were upset about poor folks living in nearby motels. These days, home values are soaring, as tourists rent rooms through room-booking apps such as Airbnb and HomeAway.
This innovation is a great way to house a family vacationing at the Happiest Place on Earth. Its a great way for owners to cover their mortgage payments. It has led to the renovation of many 1960s-era ranch houses. But its also upset neighbors. They have legitimate complaints about noise, traffic and parties. Obviously, vacationers live differently than people who need to get up at 5 a.m. and commute to work.
The hotel industry isnt too pleased, either.
Anaheim has more than 200 permitted short-term rentals and many more that operate in the shadows. To deal with complaints, the City Council last year approved a moratorium on new permits. City staff created a 12-page memorandum offering suggestions. Tait a self-described fan of the sharing economy and someone with real property-rights credentials has nevertheless proposed a ban on this type of operation.
Its pretty extreme. He would allow people to rent out rooms in their homes, provided it is their primary residence. They could operate, say, a bed-and-breakfast or rent out the house while they take an extended vacation. But he would put the kibosh on rental houses that cater to vacationers. He would provide an 18-month period for existing short-term rentals to phase out.
The latter sounds too much like the kind of regulatory taking that Tait has opposed in the past. I appreciate concerns about noise and traffic, but those issues often are a proxy for the real issue: People dont like it when their neighborhoods change.
Its the nature of what they are, Tait told me. They are bringing in 1,000 different people a year, and its no longer a neighborhood. He says these houses are essentially full-throttle minihotel businesses.
City staff are trying to craft a middle way between the current system and a ban, but they have floated the idea of grandfathering in existing permit holders. That could mean the worst of all worlds. Now, if you cant stand living in a neighborhood with vacation houses, you can sell out to someone who wants to operate a vacation home, pocket the cash (the Register reports room-sharing has pushed up property values by 25 percent) and move someplace more to your liking.
Under such staff proposals, youd instead be stuck with a rental next door and youd only be able to sell your property as a residence. Youd also potentially have a neighborhood disclosure issue on your hands.
Tait believes this middle ground might do more harm than good. But instead of opting for a ban, he should opt for the traditional free-market approach: Letting people live their lives as they please but cracking down on bad behavior.
My R Street Institute colleague Andrew Moylan recently released a report that gives Anaheim a good Roomscore grade of B for its current regulations. Cities nearly always have ordinances to address traffic and noise complaints, whether a property is rented or not, he wrote. Where new problems arise related to congestion or noise, they are best addressed holistically, rather than a piecemeal approach that targets only short-term rentals.
Exactly. I also like the suggestion from Anaheim Councilman James Vanderbilt: I would have hoped the short-term-rental owners would have formed a self-policing group of some sort. Theres still time for the city to work with owners and come up with a system that improves self-policing.
Its not the governments place to enforce the character of a neighborhood, whether were talking about old motels or rental houses. Theres still time for Tait to come to his senses.
Steven Greenhut is the Western Region director for the R Street Institute. A former Register editorial writer, he is based in Sacramento. Write to him at sgreenhut@rstreet.org.
Donald Trump, who in recent days has mocked a political opponents wife, defended a campaign aide arrested on a charge of battery and suggested punishing women who terminate pregnancies, may have surrendered any remaining chance to rally Republicans strongly around him before the partys July convention in Cleveland.
At a moment when a more traditional front-runner might have sought to smooth over divisions within his party and turn his attention to the general election, Trump has only intensified his slash-and-burn, no-apologies approach to the campaign.
He should have started uniting the party in March, said Henry Barbour, a Republican National Committee member from Mississippi who previously supported Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, and he is making it harder on himself.
Republicans who once worried that Trump might gain overwhelming momentum in the primaries are now becoming preoccupied with a different grim prospect: that Trump might become a kind of zombie candidate damaged beyond the point of repair, but too late for any of his rivals to stop him.
Should Trump lurch into the convention so fatally compromised with both general-election voters and a sizable faction of Republicans, it could make it easier for the party to wrest the nomination away from him. But it would also make the consequences of failing to defeat him all the more ruinous if the specter of choosing a seemingly unelectable nominee does not deter Trumps supporters.
Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker who has frequently praised Trumps insurgent campaign, said the front-runner had made a series of bewildering and irrational mistakes. Trumps campaign, he said, had failed to evolve beyond the personal gunslinger, random-behavior model characterized by the candidate.
None of the mistakes have been forced and nobody forced him to react negatively, Gingrich said. Its almost as though he is so full of himself that he cant slow down and recognize that being president of the United States is a team sport that requires a stable personality, that allows other people to help him, Gingrich said.
Polls show that Trump has struggled to attract a majority coalition even within the Republican Party, and the distress of mainstream Republicans has grown as Trumps general-election numbers have crumbled. In next weeks crucial Wisconsin primary, Trump now trails Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas by nearly 10 percentage points, according to a poll published Wednesday by Marquette University.
In Wisconsin and elsewhere, the strongest Republican opposition to Trump comes in suburban areas and among college-educated voters and women. His conduct over the last week is unlikely to win over those groups.
In the past few days Trump has declined to apologize for circulating on social media an unflattering photo of Cruzs wife, Heidi Cruz, and bitterly criticized a female reporter who accused his campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, of manhandling her. Trump has said he believes Lewandowski is innocent, and that his mockery of Cruzs wife was a response to lewd criticism of his own wife from a group that opposes his campaign.
On Wednesday, he said that if abortion were illegal, it would be appropriate to punish women who seek out the procedure before issuing a statement reversing himself, saying that only doctors performing abortions should be held legally responsible under those circumstances.
Asked to address Republican critics who said Trumps style was fracturing the party, Hope Hicks, a Trump campaign spokeswoman, said he was a counterpuncher who viewed himself as standing up for the people closest to him. This is what he will do for the country, she said.
In the past, Trumps political missteps have done little to hinder his progress in the campaign. He has built a powerful delegate lead in the race for the Republican nomination, with about three-fifths of the 1,237 delegates he needs; Cruz, his nearest competitor, is about 270 behind.
And while Trump has not yet won over a majority of Republican primary voters, he still polls well ahead of Cruz and a third candidate, Gov. John Kasich of Ohio. A New York Times/CBS News poll released last week showed Trump with support from 46 percent of Republicans nationally, compared with 26 percent for Cruz and 20 percent for Kasich.
After Wisconsin, the primary battle moves onto decidedly favorable turf for Trump: his native New York, on April 19, followed by a series of Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states, including Pennsylvania and Delaware, where he is expected to run strong.
Still, Trump has been unable to consolidate support the way a conventional front-runner would. His share of the vote in the primaries has remained relatively steady in the high 30- to low 40-percent range even as his opponents have dwindled to just two.
An analysis circulated in mid-March by the Republican strategist Alex Gage showed Trumps average support in primaries to be nearly flat over the last two months, compared with a rapid climb Mitt Romney experienced in his campaign over the same period in 2012.
Thomas M. Reynolds, a former Republican congressman from New York, said he expected Trump to do well in the delegate-rich state in spite of his evident limitations as a candidate. But Reynolds said the Trump method of kind of ad-libbing his way through the race had left him as the master of a strong plurality of Republican voters and still short of a coalition that would make him a commanding winner.
He has successfully been able to say whatever he wants without retribution, Reynolds said, but I am not seeing him grow in the Republican base at this point.
Jim McLaughlin, a Republican pollster who has worked with Trump in the past, said Trump had not yet convinced a majority of primary voters that he is prepared to hold the countrys highest office. Trump, he said, hasnt figured out a closing message.
And his political position is slipping nationally, McLaughlin said: In a poll taken in late March by McLaughlins firm, about two-thirds of general-election voters said they now had an unfavorable view of Trump, including seven in 10 women. (An ABC News/Washington Post survey in early March had similar findings.)
He needs to start acting more like the commander in chief, McLaughlin said. At some point folks ask themselves, am I comfortable in terms of wanting to give this person the nuclear codes?
Trump has periodically seemed determined to reassure voters on that front. Starting on the night of the Super Tuesday primaries on March 1, he has held a string of news conferences in ornate settings, wrapping himself in presidential pomp even as he continued to engage in mockery of his rivals.
He has given two lengthy interviews focused on foreign policy, and after facing questions about the sophistication of his campaign operation, he announced the hiring of a longtime Republican strategist, Paul J. Manafort, to lead his delegate-wrangling efforts.
It may still be enough, Republicans say, for Trump to win the barest of delegate majorities before the Cleveland convention. But had he taken a more deliberate and less divisive approach in the last two weeks, Trumps nomination might be inevitable, and he might be less wounded as a candidate in November.
He would be miles ahead of this kind of junk, Gingrich said, referring to Trumps feuding over Lewandowski and Cruzs wife. I dont understand it. I dont think it works.
As it is, Gingrich said, I think he has a real possibility of, having surged amazingly, to miss the golden ring.
A woman has filed a federal lawsuit against the county claiming she was sexually assaulted by an on-duty sheriffs deputy in Dana Point.
In a civil rights lawsuit filed this week in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana, the woman says she was assaulted after a traffic stop in April 2014.
The Orange County Sheriffs Department declined to comment because of the ongoing litigation.
The lawsuit says the woman was at the home of her then-boyfriend in Dana Point when the couple got into an argument and she left. A deputy arrived as the woman was driving away and ordered her to pull over to the side of the road, the lawsuit says.
The deputy searched the womans car and found some of her clothing, including her underwear, and asked inappropriate questions about the underwear, the lawsuit says.
The deputy ordered her to stay put, left and returned in his personal vehicle out of uniform, the suit says. He then got into the passenger seat of the womans car and sexually assaulted her, the lawsuit says.
Attorney Jeremy Jass, who is representing the woman, said she did not go to police or file a criminal complaint out of fear of retaliation. Ultimately, she decided to come forward to prevent this from happening to someone else, he said.
The woman is seeking an unspecified amount in damages.
Contact the writer: kpuente@ocregister.com
U.S. construction spending fell 0.5 percent in February, the largest amount in three months, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Weakness in nonresidential construction and government offset the strongest month for home construction in more than eight years. Home construction rose a solid 0.9 percent, which pushed that sector to the highest point since October 2007.
Way cleared for Marriott deal to acquire Starwood
Anbang says it is dropping its $15 billion offer to acquire Starwood Hotels, citing various market considerations and ending a bidding war for the parent of St. Regis and Sheraton resorts. The China-based insurance company was leading a consortium of potential investors. Starwood, based in Stamford, Connecticut, said its board continues to support its existing $14 billion deal with Marriott. Starwood shareholders would own about 34 percent of the combined company, which, with 30 brands, would be the worlds largest hotel chain.
U.S. manufacturing shows sign of expansion
U.S. manufacturers expanded in March, ending a five-month streak of declining factory activity. The Institute for Supply Management said Friday that its manufacturing index rose to 51.8 last month from 49.5 in February. Any reading above 50 signals growth. The increase suggests that U.S. factories are adapting to the turmoil abroad, where a stronger dollar and weakening economies in China, Japan and elsewhere have hurt sales.
Wiring problem prompts VW recall of Passats
Volkswagen is recalling about 91,000 Passat cars with diesel engines because wiring under the body can corrode, overheat and potentially start fires. The recall covers midsize Passats from the 2012 through 2014 model years. VW says wire seals in an electrical connector werent properly assembled and can let water touch electrical terminals. This can cause a short that in rare cases can cause a fire beneath the cars.
From wire reports
In June 2011, Nebraska Machine Products lost everything when its factory, which had occupied the same Omaha location on 45th Street near Interstate 680 for nearly half a century, burned to the ground. The company, which manufactures everything from small computer parts to agricultural machinery parts, needed someone to bring people together and pick up the pieces.
That person was co-owner Ron Rosso, who died Monday of heart failure at 62.
After the fire, he immediately made it clear the company had a future and that employees would be taken care of the workers were paid during the time the business was closed.
He had felt responsibility to keep them employed, Rossos wife, Linda, said. That was part of his heart. He couldnt just say, Sorry, guys, Im closing down. Good luck to you. He couldnt do that.
In place of their usual work, employees volunteered at a variety of jobs, such as removing beds from the University of Nebraska at Omahas dorms and taking shifts at soup kitchens.
The company has always been a family business. Rossos father founded it in 1966. Thats why it was a point of pride not just to find a new place but to find the right place.
And there was pressure from customers to start refilling orders, said Mike Schlimgen, vice president of manufacturing and a close friend of Rossos. But that didnt dissuade Rosso from the mission statement.
He said, No, no, no, Schlimgen recalled. Were not going to do it quick. Were going to do it right.
Linda Rosso said her husband took about three months before settling on a plant at 9101 F St., which had room for the company to expand.
Rosso was born in Omaha, went to Ryan High School and spent two years at the University of Nebraska at Omaha before joining the family business.
At Nebraska Machine Products, Rosso was co-owner with his brothers from 1986 until buying out their shares and becoming sole owner in 2011.
He married Linda in 1987. Each brought two kids from a previous marriage and they had one of their own, which meant things were hectic.
We were outnumbered, Linda said, adding that Rosso was a caring father.
Rosso had a crusty exterior, his wife said, but underneath you could always find the generous, kind-hearted person he was.
Id always tell him, youre such an old man, she said. But he was a good old man.
Other survivors include children Jason, Ryan and Michael Rosso, Rob Kniewel and Liz Rodis; and eight grandchildren. A celebration of his life will be held at Nebraska Machine Products 9101 F St. plant at 4 p.m. Sunday.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) Massachusetts has been chosen to host a futuristic textiles manufacturing center with a goal of developing cutting-edge fabrics fabrics with unusual properties, such as being incredibly lightweight and flame-resistant or exceptionally strong or containing electronic sensors.
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter joined Gov. Charlie Baker and other state leaders Friday in announcing the first-in-the-nation Revolutionary Fiber and Textile Manufacturing Innovation Institute. The $317 million plant will be based at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge.
Carter said the fabrics could have a range of practical applications: protecting firefighters; weaving the sensing capabilities of a smartwatch into a lightweight fabric; even detecting when a wounded soldier needs to be treated with an antimicrobial compression bandage.
Massachusetts has pledged $40 million in matching funds to support capital projects at the facility.
Fibers and fabrics are among the earliest forms of human expression, yet have changed very little over the course of history, said Yoel Fink, director of the MIT-based Advanced Functional Fabrics of America. All this is about to change as functional fiber and yarn technologies meet traditional textile production and yield new products by design.
Other participants in the project include the University of Massachusetts, Quinsigamond Community College and several private companies, Baker said.
U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy, who helped rally support for the Massachusetts bid, said the initiative helps combine two of the states economic strengths: the legacy of the old mill towns that were once the backbone of the state economy and the brainpower that has helped fuel much of its 21st century growth.
WASHINGTON (AP) Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton agree on almost nothing. Except for their dislike of a trade deal that would erase most tariffs and other trade barriers among the United States and 11 other nations.
Insanity, Trump calls the deal, known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Disastrous, says Democrat Bernie Sanders.
Clinton and Republican Ted Cruz have used less colorful language but also oppose the pact.
The other candidate still in the GOP race, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, supports the deal but is running a distant third.
All the bashing of the TPP by the presidential candidates has created extra difficulties for one of President Barack Obamas top priorities in his final year in office.
Some Democratic supporters of the deal have come around to the thinking of the Senates top Republican, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who says its best to wait until after the November elections and vote on the TPP during a lame-duck session of Congress.
I dont think anyone wants to take it up in the lame duck if there arent the votes for it, but I dont see any chance of taking this up earlier than that. Thats for sure, said Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va.
Groups working behind the scenes to promote the agreement say many lawmakers are skittish about staking out a position.
And theres a practical challenge: The legislative calendar is short, as lawmakers spend more time at home campaigning and less in Washington.
Make no mistake, the presidential campaign is a huge factor. It presents a stream of challenges, said John Murphy, a senior vice president at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The TPP offers the classic free-trade bargain: Its supposed to make products cheaper for consumers and help level the playing field for exporters. But opponents say it includes giveaways to business lobbies and will push down wages, even kill jobs, in some industries that are newly exposed to foreign competition.
For the pacts supporters, theres a huge incentive to try to get it approved this year, knowing that the next president will be hard-pressed to touch the issue at first.
Congress approved legislation last year setting fast track rules for a vote on TPP: a simple majority vote, yes or no, without opportunities to amend it.
The real battle will be in the House, where that fast-track legislation passed 219-211.
The administration is hoping that business and agriculture groups can sustain House Republican support and limit any dropouts from among the 28 House Democrats who supported the fast-track approach.
Opponents say TPP is in big trouble.
The more voters hear about the deal, the less likely they are to support it, said Lori Wallach, an international trade analyst at Public Citizen, a nonprofit public interest group.
The fact that its become a centerpiece in the presidential primary is extremely helpful, Wallach said.
The Obama administration has been working behind the scenes with lawmakers to try to address concerns about particular facets of the deal.
For example, senior officials recently met with Sen. Orrin Hatch, the Republican chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, who has objected to how the deal would treat drugs called biologics medicine derived from living matter such as human cells or bacteria. The United States provides 12 years of regulatory data protection for biologics. Under TPP, a county may limit the data protection to just eight years, and possibly less in some cases, the pharmaceutical industry fears.
Although the trade deals details already have been negotiated, its routine for lawmakers to seek informal commitments from the president to address their concerns, or even side agreements between nations that would spell out additional obligations.
Hatch said that if Obama wants TPP to be approved, he will need to work with Congress to address concerns.
Im hopeful that, at the end of the day, I, along with many of my colleagues, will be able to support a strong TPP, Hatch said.
But this is a once-in-a-life opportunity, and we have to make sure we get it right.
The financial services industry also has some concerns about TPP, as do tobacco growers. Republican Sens. Richard Burr and Thom Tillis of North Carolina both voted for last years fast-track legislation but have announced their intentions to vote against the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Murphy, who directs the Chamber of Commerce advocacy efforts on trade, said he still sees a lot of good will to advance the trade pact, but he says he wont make any predictions on timing.
All our potential supporters on the Hill agree the substance has to drive the timing, Murphy said.
Saudi Arabia will freeze its oil output only if Iran and other major producers do so, the kingdoms deputy crown prince said, challenging the countrys main regional rival to take an active role in stabilizing the oversupplied global crude market.
The warning by Mohammed bin Salman, 30, who has emerged as Saudi Arabias leading political force, leaves the outcome of a meeting between OPEC and other big oil producers this month in question. Iran has already said it plans to boost its production after the lifting of sanctions following a deal to curb the countrys nuclear program.
If all countries agree to freeze production, were ready, Salman said. If there is anyone that decides to raise their production, then we will not reject any opportunity that knocks on our door.
After the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries abandoned its efforts to boost oil prices in November 2014, focusing instead on protecting its market share, Saudi Arabia increased production to an all-time high of more than 10.5 million barrels a day, claiming that customers were asking for more oil.
The meeting of oil producers in Doha, Qatar on April 17 follows the gathering in February involving Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Russia and Venezuela in which the four tentatively agreed to cap their production at Januarys level.
The deal, which helped to lift the price of benchmark Brent crude to about $40 a barrel from a 12-year low of $27.10 a barrel in January, was contingent on other countries joining it.
Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh will attend Doha discussions but wont join a production freeze, according to a person familiar with the nations policy. Tehran will maintain its policy of regaining market share lost during years of sanctions, said the person, who asked not to be identified as the talks are private.
The International Energy Agency said that Iran, in its first full month freed of nuclear sanctions in February, lifted its oil production to a four-year high of 3.22 million barrels a day. Oil traders said Iran boosted oil exports by another 100,000 barrels a day in March.
Traders and analysts have speculated that Riyadh could be ready to voluntarily cap its output at the current level of about 10.2 million barrels a day even if Iran doesnt join. But asked whether Iran needed to take part, Salman said, without a doubt.
If all countries including Iran, Russia, Venezuela, OPEC countries and all main producers decide to freeze production, we will be among them, he said. The prince said that Saudi Arabia was ready to weather the oil crisis by reforming its economy.
I dont believe that the decline in oil prices poses a threat to us, he said, adding that a rise in prices, while having budgetary benefits for the kingdom, was also a threat to the lifespan of oil.
Salman suggested prices will rise over the next two years as demand continues to increase, but he made clear Riyadh has very little appetite for the return of OPEC production management that molded the oil industry for 30 years.
For us its a free market that is governed by supply and demand, and this is how we deal with the market, he said.
IOWA CITY (AP) Iowa inmates have a right to a lawyer when fighting Department of Corrections decisions that can add time to their sentences, a judge has ruled in a case heading to the Iowa Supreme Court.
If upheld, the ruling would help inmates defend themselves when challenging decisions about mandated treatment programs or disciplinary violations, which can tack on months or years to their incarceration. The outcome could have major implications for the workings of the prison system and taxpayers.
It is an important case, said Iowa City lawyer Philip Mears, who has long represented inmates and isnt directly involved in the case.
The Department of Corrections filed notice this week that it would appeal the decision Judge Scott Rosenburg issued last week.
The Iowa Supreme Court will decide whether to take the case or send it to the Court of Appeals for further review.
The high court ruled last year that defendants charged with simple misdemeanors such as shoplifting have the right to counsel under the Iowa Constitution. Citing that decision, Rosenburg said that its logical that inmates facing the possibility of an increase in the amount of time he or she will be incarcerated also be allowed to retain private lawyers or have them appointed at public expense if they cant afford to do so.
The importance of representation by counsel cannot be overemphasized, Rosenburg wrote, noting that legal proceedings can be unreliable when those accused lack attorneys.
Inmates advocates say the deck is stacked against them during disciplinary hearings in which prison judges can take away their earned time and lengthen their sentences.
The Iowa Ombudsmans Office last year issued a report that criticized the system as unfair to inmates, including a policy that allows prison officials to discuss the cases with judges, who are supposed to be neutral. Inmates are judged on a standard that requires only some evidence of guilt.
The expense could be significant. State Public Defender Adam Gregg said spending by his office for lawyers in simple misdemeanor cases has shot up 45 percent, an increase of $350,000, after last years court ruling.
More than 12,000 disciplinary hearings in prisons occurred in 2012, although its not clear whether all would trigger the right to counsel.
The ruling came in a case brought by Gary Pettit, who is serving a sentence for a 2004 conviction of third-degree sexual abuse and third-degree kidnapping. Pettit is challenging the departments decision to require that he complete a lengthy sex offender treatment program at the Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility as a condition of being granted parole.
Refusing to participate would also suspend his earned time, lengthening his sentence.
Pettit argues that he completed a nearly identical treatment program in 2005, that his own counselor has said hes at low risk to re-offend and that there is no other evidence that he needs further treatment. Other inmates in similar cases have been granted parole, he argued.
Pettit told the department that he wanted privately retained attorney Gary Dickey to help him contest the decision. The department denied his request under a longstanding policy that inmates dont have the right to counsel during hearings and appeals.
The department denied his attempts to issue subpoenas and obtain records for his defense, and an administrative law judge upheld the decision requiring Pettit to complete the treatment program.
Rosenburg threw out that decision, saying Pettit should get a new hearing with legal counsel. He rejected the departments argument that Pettit has no liberty interests in early release.
Dickey said Pettit has enrolled in the treatment program but believes he should be paroled.
An 18-year-old wanted in Maryland on several charges, including attempted first-degree murder, turned himself in to Bellevue police.
Benjamin E. Rivera-Alvira surrendered to police Wednesday because he was aware he had an outstanding warrant for his arrest, a Bellevue police spokeswoman said.
Rivera-Alvira is wanted in Salisbury, Maryland, on charges of attempted first-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, first-degree assault, robbery, possession of a handgun and several other charges.
He appeared in Sarpy County Court on Thursday. His bail was set at $10 million. He would have to pay $1 million to be released.
Rivera-Alvira is scheduled to appear in court again April 25 for an extradition hearing.
The Salisbury Police Department said Rivera-Alvira is wanted in connection with the Jan. 19 robbery and shooting of a 34-year-old taxi driver. The drivers injuries were not life-threatening.
Contact the writer: emily.nitcher@owh.com, 402-444-1192
The April 4 battle for Assam- What to watch out for
Assam
oi-Vicky
By Vicky
Assam goes to polls on April 4th. On April 4th the state polls in the first phase where the fates of candidates contesting the 65 constituencies (totally 126) will be tested.
The BJP sees hope in Assam and is banking on an aggressive campaign and the anti incumbency factor against Tarun Gogoi.
All eyes will be on the Assam polls on April 4th and many would say that the first phase would set the tone for the remaining phases.
Experts would say that the BJP is in with a chance in Assam, although some exit polls have predicted a hung assembly.
Crucial first phase:
The BJP hopes to continue from where it left off. In the 2014 Parliamentary elections, the party put up a good showing and took away seats from areas that were traditionally the strong hold of the Congress party.
The Congress on the other hand which has been in power for one and half decades has a tough battle on hand.
Tarun Gogoi is a popular face in Assam, but faces the anti incumbency factor.
Also Read: Will Modi factor swing votes in favour of BJP in Assam?
However, he has been pushing the developmental plank all through his campaign and is hoping to get another term.
The BJP however points out that the rallies addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi have helped. His speeches focused largely on development and this will help overcome the Congress campaign.
Moreover, he was a major factor in 2014 and the BJP hopes that this would continue in the assembly elections as well.
The issue of illegal immigration from Bangladesh was brought up several times during this campaign. The indigenous communities of Assam are most affected by the illegal immigrants and have sought protection several times in the past.
Also Read: Assam assembly election 2016: Much is at stake for BJP, Congress
During the campaign the BJP has addressed this issue and assured to drive out the illegal immigrants apart from sealing the Bangladesh border.
In addition to this the BJP would also look to make gains through the peace accord with the pro-talks faction of the ULFA.
However, the deal had to be put on hold due to the election code of conduct. The BJP has however managed to convey the message that as part of this deal, the indigenous communities in Assam would be granted Schedule Tribe status.
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Story first published: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 9:05 [IST]
Rahul Gandhi's "no politics please" remark in Kolkata was in itself a political one
Feature
oi-Shubham
By Shubham
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday visited the place in North Kolkata where a huge chunk of a flyover collapsed on Thursday (March 31), killing 24 people besides injuring many and destroying properties.
Rahul also met the injured admitted in the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital and said he went to Kolkata to extend support to the victims and added that he did not want to allow politics a chance at such moment of a grave tragedy. [Kolkata has seen major tragedies under both Left, TMC govts]
Sorry Mr Rahul, you are trying to hide your real intention under feel-good talks. That he did not want to make any political remark at such hour was misleading because the very purpose of his trip to West Bengal was to address election rallies in three places and that is purely political. [Left accuses TMC of stopping blood bank after flyover collapse]
The problem with India's politicians is that they try to crashgate at times of tragedy without actually feeling for the feelings genuinely. Big tragedies have happened in Kolkata in the past as well. How many times did we see Rahul Gandhi visiting the spot and consoling the victims?
National leaders aim to capitalise on local issues ahead of high-stake election
This West Bengal election has become such a fierce battle for prestige that even the national leaders of the two national parties which are otherwise also-ran in the state have come down to the local level to get some mileage. After Prime Minister Narendra Modi telephones Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee from Washington offering all possible help after teh disaster, now it is the turn of Rahul Gandhi to also chip in to bring the Congress in the reckoning.
But no matter how much they try to make the most out of the flyover disaster just a few days ahead of the high-stake election, the BJP and the Congress are not going to get much benefit from this, eapecially the latter.
How many times has Rahul visited victims of local disasters in non-poll times?
The BJP may still get the blessing of the non-Bengal speaking residents living in and around the spot for the incident has really rattled lives of many and then can vote against the ruling Trinamool Congress out of an instant anger, but it is unlikely that the Congress will make any big gain in Kolkata where the TMC has a complete dominance.
In the late 1980s, Rajiv Gandhi vigorously tried to revive Congress in post-MGR TN but couldn't
Rahul Gandhi needs to understand that just flying in and out of distant states is not going to help his party improve its election tally there. Ahead of the 1989 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, his later father Rajiv Gandhi had made over 30 visits to Tamil Nadu in the wake of the death of MG Ramachandran to revive the Congress in that state but it didn't pay off.
To tap local issues, the national parties need to have a robust local organisation in place and can't expect its top brass to utilise them in their favour. But the Congress, with its poor organisational strength in South Bengal, is in no position to do so.
The Law of Attraction: Modi factor woos 'national media' to Assam?
Feature
oi-Oneindia
By Maitreyee Boruah
When was the last time Assam saw such a huge media contingent from Lutyens' Delhi?" was the sarcastic remark of a reporter, who works in an Assamese daily, as he sipped tea with his colleagues in the spartan looking Press Club, located in the heart of Guwahati.
The Press Club, overlooking the beautiful lake Dighalipukhuri (the popular meeting ground of lovers), is the place of adda' for most journalists and photojournalists in the city, as they discuss socio-political affairs of the state.
With the election dates coming closer, it is perhaps easier to predict whether it would rain or not in Guwahati gauging at the cloud laden sky of the city, than to make any assumption on which party would come to power.
Modi magic?
In this atmosphere of uncertainty, the sudden media attention Assam is getting is further baffling the local journalists as well as the common man on the streets.
"Perhaps it is Prime Minister Narendra Modi factor," remarks septuagenarian Haren Deka, at a bookshop in Panbazar, just 500 meters away from the Press Club.
"He is a crowd-puller. Media follows him everywhere, so they are here too. Modi has made several trips to Assam in the past few months and it was not surprising to see journalists from the national media covering his rallies. The BJP has a fair chance of coming to power in the state for the first time, as the Congress is facing anti-incumbency," adds Deka.
Deka, a retired teacher, has seen several elections in his lifetime and it might be his experience which helps him come up with quick answers to tough questions, which even poll pundits are finding it difficult to anticipate.
Delhi dor hain?
Most of the journalists covering the upcoming Assam Assembly Elections 2016 are in a fix to predict anything about the results.
"It is a difficult election to predict. Stakes are high and I have an inkling several surprises are in store," says a veteran journalist, who didn't wish to be named.
Ask him about what he has to say about the remark made by one of his juniors, regarding the visiting journalists from Delhi, the veteran says, "It is a good sign. Delhi is taking interest in us. I wish there were more reporters from the mainstream newspapers and news channels covering Assam throughout the year."
The moment the veteran finished his "balanced" observation on the whole phenomenon of visiting mediapersons from Delhi, sceptics in the Press Club openly expressed their disagreement.
Violence attracts attention?
"Where were all these journalists when Assam was reeling under severe floods in 2015? The national media was busy sensationalising the Sheena Bora murder case (the Guwahati girl alleged to be killed by her biological mother Indrani Mukherjea, the wife of former media baron Peter Mukerjea in Mumbai)," says a photojournalist.
The grouse of the local Assamese journalists against their colleagues working in various media houses across the big cities in the country is not new.
Several popular national dailies, magazines, websites and news channels don't even have a single reporter to cover the northeast region.
It is only terror-related incidents that get flashed on national channels, a common protest of any news junkie in Assam.
Why media love to ignore northeast India?
"There was a time when the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) (now almost defunct) used to carry out attacks to attract the attention of the media in Delhi. Imagine, the desire to get some attention in national dailies and channels," says a senior journalist.
"There are several instances when reports on important issues pertaining to Assam and the northeast region never getting published in the national media. This is the kind of censorship we are talking about here. A common blanket ban of news from the northeast region in the mainstream media," he adds.
The anger is so rife that many working journalists of Assam, especially in remote areas, see the visiting scribes as "parachute journalists".
"They have no knowledge about Assam, its history and people. They come here, meet few politicians, businessmen and political gurus and file reports based on hearsay. This is dangerous. They should stay in Assam for at least a month to understand the local issues," says a Nagaon-based journalist, who works for a popular English newspaper.
The tug-of-war between the local and Delhi journalists is just like the trailer of a Bollywood blockbuster.
The actual film' revolves around PM Modi and BJP president Amit Shah's election strategies to snatch away fourth consecutive victory from the incumbent chief minister Tarun Gogoi.
OneIndia News
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Story first published: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 11:10 [IST]
Why notorious North Korea is playing on its nuclear power?
Feature
oi-Pallavi
By Pallavi
North Korea's poor economy and a staggering GDP amounting to less than a third of Ethiopia has not stopped it from playing the war games. Like its dictatorial leadership of Kim Jong-un, the country too is steering towards a zone that is unsettling for the western powers and its neighbours.
Consider this- Without the Soviet backing and an equally unstable relations with China, how can a country as unpoverished as North Korea continue to evade nuke policies and build nuclear power?
Muscle flexing or defence mechanism?
North Korea has had a strong background of being a notorious state. And with Soviet backing, threatening the neighbouring countries became a spare-time activity since the 1960s. Until 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed and the benefactor was gone.
And nailing the coffin was USA, which bombarded the Iraqi military in Pyongyang in 1991. Incidentally, the backing of the North Korean motif became clear when the ammunitions and the war residuals pointed at the country.
[Read: UN chief urges North Korea to halt inflammatory actions]
2006 was when North Korea shot back with the detonation of its first nuclear bomb, marking the beginning of a unique nuclear program. A survival strategy adopted by the the Kim regime, the program bared its teeth against the US and the South Korean forces who had any vested interest in retribution.
Then came the bomb that was half as powerful as the atom bombs dropped in Hiroshima. Another warning sign that the country was upgrading its defence mechanism.
Incidentally, it was revealed that North Korea possesses close to 16 nuclear weapons, which may rise to 100 by 2020.
[Read: Seoul activists launch anti-Kim leaflets into North Korea]
North Korea is also working on missiles to be delivered as nukes. The U.S.-Korea institute at Johns Hopkins University has assessed Pyongyang as being able to put a bomb on its medium and intermediate-range nuclear missiles. These missiles could strike neighboring countries including Russia, China, South Korea, Japan, and U.S. military bases in the Asia-Pacific region.
A tensed region
With nuke threat looming large, the Asia Pacific region is gearing up its own defence mechanism to battle any possibility of nuclear war. South Korea for instance is developing a cruise missile the Hyunmoo-3, designed to destroy North Korean missiles fueled and sitting on a launch pad.
Japan is all set to invest in the U.S.-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system. US, however is still wondering how to address the situation as any action may trigger retaliation. And North Korea would not think twice before acting as it has been indifferent to any sanctions and punitive economic measures by the International community.
China, however, has no reasons to worry. With the world's second largest independent economy, China has both money and power to brace adversities without help. North Korea has been a client state to China for many years. Although China does not approve of North Korea's involvement in nuclear activities, it also has its vested interest in letting the battle begin.
[Read: N Korea fires another missile: South]
As a safety measure, it has canceled fuel deliveries to North Korea, but it does not want the collapse of North Korea either as it would land up with a number of refugees at its doorstep. China, in fact, is in a fix. It does not want a united Korea either because that would land up a pro-US regime in the southern border. So that justifies why China is more concerned with North Korea's safety and independence.
On second thoughts, North Korea's audacity rises from its unconditional support from China. But what is in store for the nuke history that North Korea shares with the world is something time will tell.
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Story first published: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 14:58 [IST]
Pathankot attack: NIA note on JIT visit speaks of only 4 terrorists
India
oi-Vicky
New Delhi, Apr 2: The note by the National Investigation Agency post the visit by the Joint Investigation Team from Pakistan states that it had given the identity of the four terrorists involved in the Pathankot attack.
The note reads, "The NIA shared with JIT the identity and the address of the 4 terrorists and requested the JIT to confirm the same." NIA presented the JIT with concrete evidence against the office bearers of JeM who conspired in the attack and the handlers of the terrorists who facilitated and guided them.
Indian investigators to visit Pakistan for Pathankot probe
This would indicate that there is still a great deal of confusion regarding the number of terrorists that were present at the air base. While four terrorists were killed on day one and the Home Minister even announced that the operation was over, the NSG said that it was still engaged in battling two more of them.
As per the version of the NSG, there were two more terrorists still holed up at the air base and they were later killed in an encounter that lasted 60 hours.
Another forensic report
When the NIA commenced its probe there were traces of only four terrorists. In fact the bodies of the four had been recovered and the pictures too sent to the media by the NIA.
Pathankot probe: NIA has 300 questions for Pakistan's JIT
However the mystery over the remaining two terrorists continued. The NIA felt that the bodies may have been charred beyond recognition and hence they were unable to retrieve the bodies.
Doubts were also raised when the investigators found that certain rugs in the area where the two terrorists were said to have been had not been burnt entirely. The NIA then collected the charred remains from the spot and sent it for a forensic test.
After much delay and two reminders, the test report was submitted and it stated that there was a presence of two more persons, but the DNA test could not be done since the bodies had been charred.
The NIA was however not entirely convinced and did not want to take chances. The agency sought for another report.
While dealing with Pakistan one does not want to take chances and any wrong information could prove fatal to the investigation and also the trial. The NIA wants to be doubly sure and hence sent the samples for re-examination.
OneIndia News
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Story first published: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 9:51 [IST]
19 years of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham: Blessing in my filmography says Karan Johar
In reply to NCB, Karan Johar denies drugs being consumed at his house party
Karan Johar mourns Pratyusha's death: Here is what he said
India
oi-PTI
Mumbai, Apr 2: Filmmaker Karan Johar, while expressing grief about alleged suicide of TV actress Pratyusha Banerjee, has said her death should be taken as an alert by people who are ignorant towards condition of depression.
24-year-old Pratyusha, who shot to fame with TV show "Balika Vadhu", was found dead at her home yesterday in a suspected case of suicide.
Reason for the extreme step is not yet known, but Banerjee was reportedly facing problems in her relationship with boyfriend Rahul Raj Singh.
Mourning her death, Johar tweeted, "This is just so sad...and a wake up calm to families and friends who don't consider depression a medical condition...RIP."
Veteran actor Rishi Kapoor also wrote on Twitter, "What a shame! Such a lovely person shouldn't have committed suicide! Who knows the turmoil within her. RIP."
Celebrities shocked by death of actress Pratyusha Banerjee: Here is how they reacted
Actor Armaan Kohli, who was Pratyusha's co-contestant on "Bigg Boss 7", paid her tribute by posting, "A beautiful soul, a beautiful friend who is going to be missed from the bottom of my heart #PratyushaBanerjee. May God rest her soul."
Pratyusha's friend actress Maheck Chahal wrote, "I am deeply saddened by the news of my friend #PratyushaBanerjee. My most sincere condolences. Rest in peace little baby doll."
PTI
Rahul Gandhi visits Kolkata flyover crash site, meets victims
India
oi-IANS
By Ians English
Kolkata, April 2: Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday visited the city's Posta area where an under-construction flyover collapse killed 26 people and later met the injured in a hospital.
Flanked by state party president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and former union minister Deepa Dasmunsi, Gandhi was at the crash site for five minutes and interacted with the officials engaged in rescue work.
Kolkata bridge collapse: Left accuses TMC of stopping blood-donation camp for injured
He then went to the Medical College and Hospital, and interacted with some of the injured admitted there.
"It's a tragedy and one must give support to whatever he can. The injured people need support and I am here to give whatever support I can. I am not here to talk politics," said Gandhi to mediapersons after his hospital visit.
Congress VP Rahul Gandhi at the site of flyover collapse in #Kolkata pic.twitter.com/1jeA2ErLJD ANI (@ANI_news) April 2, 2016
Later in the day, Gandhi will be addressing rallies at Kulti and Durgapur in Burdwan district and Bankura.
The Vivekananda Road flyover under construction collapsed on the busy Posta area of the city on Thursday killing at least 24 people and injuring many more.
IANS
RTI activist Baliga murder: Police have to probe financial and other links of suspects
India
oi-Shreyas
Mangaluru, Apr 2: As the probe panned post RTI activist Vinayak Baliga's dastardly murder by the contract killers, the police have declared leader of Yuva Brigade, Naresh Shenoy, a prime suspect. However Naresh Shenoy, according to the police is in hiding and the man hunt is on.
Major angle, on the grounds of police suspecting Shenoy's alleged involvement in the Supari killing, emanating is the financial angle. At this juncture the cops have to put extra brain to investigate the inter financial links of Naresh Shenoy and other suspects involved in the case.
The police have so far established that, a person named Giridhar Shetty, a chartered accountant, Vignesh, Shailesh, Shrikanth, Shiva aka Shivu and an individual from North India who run a jewellery shop in Mangaluru are suspected to be involved in the case and are absonding. The police have also taken the custody of Babu, who was active Bajrang Dal activist apart from nabbing two accused in the case.
[RTI activist Baliga murder: Supari killers took indirect orders from a senior political leader?]
Besides looking into links existing between all these, the police also have to exhaustively probe financial transaction by hand or through banking held among these. In the case of Naresh Shenoy, the investigators must deliberate on financial statement of five years period of his, as RTI activist Baliga had alleged about misappropriation of funds of popular Venkataramana temple of Mangaluru.
[RTI activist Baliga murder: Car of a prominent chartered accountant used for the crime]
Shenoy is said to be pivotal to the state of affairs of this temple and his involvement in the alleged swindling of fund cannot be ruled out. The police sources say that two accused (Vineeth Poojary and Nishith Devadiga) who executed the very act of crime or Supari killers revealed that Rs 13,000 each paid by Shrikanth, Shiva and Shailesh to them to carry out the murder.
[RTI activist Baliga murder: Police issue look out notice for two more suspects]
But, highly placed sources informed OneIndia, its the Supari killing to the tune of Rs 30 lakhs. The police have to crack as to from where the money has been sourced and what happened to other left out amount, if the executers of the slay were paid only Rs 13,000.
The cops also needs to solve the puzzle of what kind of relationship have been established between builder Giridhar Shetty, chartered accountant who is close to temple, Naresh Shenoy and the owner of a Jewellery. The picture at this level is clear on Shrikanth, Shailesh and Vignesh. According to reliable sources, Shrikanth is an employee of Naresh Shenoy. "Shrikanth looks after a resort of Naresh Shenoy located in Mulky of Dakshina Kannada", a source specifically informed.
[Conspiracy to slay RTI activist Baliga was on from three months]
On the other hand, Vignesh is also an employee of Naresh Shenoy, while the exact role assigned to him by Shenoy is not known yet. Shailesh, another suspect is a former driver of a 'political leader' affiliated to 'BJP' and is currently the driver of Naresh Shenoy.
Shiva is a friend of Shrikanth and their root of friendship goes back to days during activism in Bajrang Dal. It has to be noted that all- Vineeth, Nishith, Shailesh, Vignesh and Shrikanth, Babu were active members of Bajrang Dal.
OneIndia News
Seventh Pay Commission: Good News! Employees likely to get minimum salary of Rs 20,000
India
oi-Jagriti
New Delhi, Apr 2: There is good news for central government employees eagerly awaiting for the implementation of the Seventh Pay Commission as they are likely to get around 19 percent raise on the current minimum salary being drawn.
7th Pay commission: From Cabinet approval to basic pay, what govt staff need to know about increment
According to reports, the Empowered Committee of Secretaries (CoS) is planning to propose a minimum pay of Rs 20,000 instead of Rs18,000 as proposed earlier.
Government employees demanded a minimum salary of Rs 26,000 as against Rs 18,000 recommended in November last year.
The 7th CPC award is likely to come with salary increment which was anyway due in the month of July.
7th Pay Commission: Report not final, recommendations likely to be revised
CoS also wants to address various concerns raised by the Joint Consultative Machinery (JCM) before taking a final call on the recommendations of the commission. Defence Ministry also sought a fresh analysis of the concerns raised by the Army, Navy and the Air force- over the recommendations of the seventh pay commission.
In a recent interview, Defence minister Manohar Parrikar assured that concerns raised by the armed forces would be taken up by the commission.
7th Pay Commission: Good News! 'Review report' to be submitted likely by April-end
The empowered committee with 12 secretaries on board was set up on January 27 to process the recommendations of the Seventh Central Pay Commission.
OneIndia News
Dengue patient dies after fruit juice transfused instead of platelets
Woman, her daughter-in-law killed in a bike-truck crash in Ballia
10 held for selling fake platelets in UP's Prayagraj after 'Mosambi juice' death
In UP 166 criminals killed in encounters in past five years: Yogi
UP traders to strike on Monday
India
oi-IANS
By Ians English
Lucknow, April 2: Traders across Uttar Pradesh is set go on a strike on Monday to express solidarity with the ongoing protests by jewellers against the additional excise duty levied by the union finance ministry.
UP Udyog Vyapar Mandal officials informed that cloth merchants, food grain traders will also join the strike.
Over 300,000 jewellery shops owing allegiance to more than 300 associations across India went on strike since the excise duty announcement in the budget presented on February 29.
More than 1,200 jewellery shops in the state capital have remained shut since the strike began.
Late Friday, angry jewellers demanded Union Ministers Manoj Sinha and Sanjeev Baliyan for a rollback in the additional excise duty.
The ministers were in Lucknow to attend a state executive meet of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
IANS
Arab-American family slams United Airlines over discrimination
International
oi-IANS
By Ians English
New York, Apr 2: An Arab-American family slammed United Airlines after its staff removed them from a flight in an incident that they claimed was "profiling" and "discrimination at its finest".
On March 20, Eaman-Amy Saad Shebley and her children were asked to leave a Spring Break flight from Chicago to Washington by the crew in what was described by them at the time as a "safety of flight" issue, the Daily Mail reported on Saturday.
In videos posted on Facebook, Shebley claimed that the air crew were "profiling my family and me for no reason other than how we look."
The two short videos show two air crew members talking to Shebley and her husband. In the first, a woman said that they were going to "ask that she step off the aircraft".
Shebley's husband enquires why, but the video cuts off before a response is heard.
In the second video, the captain of the plane is asked why they must leave and said "Because it's my decision".
When asked to elaborate he said, "It is a safety of flight issue".
In an earlier post, Shebley wrote, "United is kicking me and my kids off of the plane! For no reason! Captain said for the safety of the flight! ... Discrimination at its finest! I have everything recorded! We didn't say or do anything!"
Handcuff for unruly passengers on flights
However, United Airlines has denied the claims and said it has "zero tolerance for discrimination".
Advocacy group, Council on American-Islamic Relations sent a letter to United Airlines on the family's behalf demanding disciplinary action against the staff involved.
"We are tired of Muslim-looking passengers being removed from flights for the flimsiest reasons, under a cryptic claim of 'security'," said CAIR-Chicago Executive Director Ahmed Rehab.
"Security means securing passengers, not harassing and humiliating them and booting them off their flight for, of all things, actually asking for security."
IANS
Aung San Suu Kyi to be the State Counsillor, Military disagrees
International
oi-Pallavi
Myanmar, April 2: Post the democratic elections in Myanmar, there has been a huge debate over Aung San Suu Kyi's role in the government. A bill has been passed in the upper house of the Parliament, creating the post of the state counsellor that would allow the Nobel Leureate to coordinate ministers and influence the executives.
Suu Kyi could not be the elected as the state leader because of the constitution written under the JUNTA that prevents her from such a position as her two sons are not citizens of Myanmar.
The NLD lawmakers say that the tussle over the state counsellor post would be th first of many clashes between the military members of the Parliament and the government that took office on Wednesday.
Suu Kyi has already been assigned foreign minister, education minister, energy minister, and minister of the president's office.
"The provisions in the bill are tantamount to meaning the state counsellor is equal to the president, which is contrary to the Constitution," said Colonel Myint Swe, a military member of the upper house.
The opinion about the bill has divided the houses. While some lawmakers suggest that Constitutional Tribunal should decide on the bill, there are others who believe that since majority of the house has agreed to it, her placement is uncontested and does not need military permission. However, that is unconstitutional.
OneIndia News
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Story first published: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 12:51 [IST]
No, Vienna is no more the favourite address for 'James Bonds' today; its this city
Brussels airport reopening nears as security deal reached with police
International
oi-PTI
Brussels, Apr 2: The Belgian government reached an agreement on Friday with police on introducing tighter security at Brussels Airport after the jihadist suicide attacks, a union leader said, clearing the way for the reopening of the key transport hub.
"There is an agreement," Vincent Gilles, head of the SLFP police union, told AFP after hours-long talks, adding that the government and the airport operator had given in to the main demand for "systematic checks" of passengers and their luggage before going through customs.
The deal will allow for the airport's reopening "in the coming days", according to Gilles, although the final decision rests with the government. The operator of the airport, whose departure hall was wrecked in the blasts on March 22, had said it was "technically ready" to resume partial services after testing new, temporary check-in facilities.
But no flights were announced as police unions held up the planned reopening, threatening to go on strike unless stricter checks were imposed.
Complaining about lax security in the past they proposed using metal detectors to check all visitors before they enter the airport zone. It was not immediately clear if the agreed new security checks would take place outside the temporary departure hall, something the airport operator earlier warned would create long queues that could be another target for attackers.
When Zaventem airport does reopen, it will only be working at 20 percent capacity, the operator has warned, handling 800 to 1,000 passengers an hour. Chief executive Arnaud Feist has said it could take months to return to normal.
The airport's spokeswoman Florence Muls, speaking to AFP before the deal with police was announced, said flights would resume on Sunday at the earliest.
"Once we have a formal agreement on the security measures, approved by the interior ministry, we can start calling employees and carriers can contact their passengers, this will take some time," she said.
PTI
India, Canada made for each other: Modi tells Trudeau
International
oi-PTI
Washington, Apr 2: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said India and Canada were "made for each other" as he met his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau for the first time during which they reviewed bilateral ties including the progress on nuclear cooperation.
Prime Minister Modi and Trudeau met here on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit. This was their first meeting after Trudeau came to power last year, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said while briefing reporters on the bilateral meeting.
PM leaves for Saudi Arabia after Nuclear Security Summit
During Friday's meeting, the two leaders reviewed bilateral cooperation including progress in the nuclear energy sector.
Last year, Modi had held extensive talks with then Canadian Premier Stephen Harper after which Canada had agreed to supply 3,000 metric tonnes of uranium to energy-hungry India under a $254 million five-year deal to power Indian reactors.
During the meeting Friday, Prime Minister Modi noted that the cooperation in the nuclear energy sector was "progressing very well", Swarup said.
Last year's agreement for uranium supply came two years after protracted negotiations following the 2013 civil nuclear deal between India and Canada.
Modi in Saudi Arabia: What to expect from the visit?
The two leaders also recalled their meeting when Modi visited Canada last year when Harper was the Prime Minister. Modi also congratulated Trudeau on his fantastic win in the November elections.
Modi noted that there was new energy, dynamism and speed in India-Canada relationship since Trudeau assumed office. The Prime Minister pointed out that possibilities for cooperation on the economic front were immense and the potential for economic cooperation had not been utilised, Swarup said.
Modi told Trudeau that India and Canada were "made for each other".
"The Prime Minister said Canada has all natural resources, India needs those resources. India also has human resource," Swarup said.
Trudeau also complemented Prime Minister Modi on his intervention last evening at the opening of the Nuclear Security Summit. The Prime Minister said India has a fruitful partnership with Canada and it is progressing well. "India is the land of Buddha and Gandhi and is committed to non-violence," Modi was quoted as saying by Swarup.
PTI
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Story first published: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 10:39 [IST]
From plotting a hijack to creating the JeM, why Pakistan guards Masood Azhar so much
In a case of bad karma Taliban outs Pakistan on what India had always said on Azhar
India slams move to block ban on Jaish chief Maulana Azhar
International
oi-IANS
By Ians English
Washington, April 2: India's move to get Pathankot terror attacks mastermind, Jaish-e-Mohamed chief Masood Azhar, banned by the UN was rebuffed for the second time by China, a close friend of Pakistan. Following this, New Delhi has slammed the move.
India had approached the UN in February to include Masood Azhar in the UN Security Council's 1267 sanctions list, in the aftermath of the January 2 terror attack on the Pathankot air base by Pakistan-based JeM terrorists.
On Maulana Azhar, the China-Pakistan bonhomie is a reality
However, China requested the UN sanctions committee to keep on hold the move to ban Masood Azhar.
India on Friday voiced disappointment at the "technical hold" put on its application to include the name of Azhar, in the UN sanctions list, and criticised the UN sanctions committee for adopting a "selective approach to combating terrorism".
In a statement, the ministry of external affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup said: "We find it incomprehensible that while the Pakistan based JeM was listed in UN Security Council Committee established under UNSCR 1267/1989/2253 as far back as 2001 for its well known terror activities and links to the Al Qaeda, the designation of the group's main leader, financier and motivator has been put on a technical hold."
"The recent terror attack in Pathankot on January 2 has shown that India continues to bear the dangerous consequences of not listing Masood Azhar. Given the global networking of terrorist groups, this has implications for the entire international community," the statement said.
"It needs no emphasis that the UNSCR 1267 regime is an important building block of the UN global counter terrorism strategy that should aim to protect all member states and their citizens from the activities of terror groups such as JeM and its leader Mohamad Masood Azhar."
"Its working methods, based on the principles of unanimity and anonymity, is leading the Committee to adopt a selective approach to combating terrorism. This does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism," the statement said.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hong Lei, answering a question on blocking the ban on Azhar, indicated that it did not have all the facts to support the ban.
On Mauala Azhar, India needs to be realistic: Access to the JeM will not be granted
Hong said that "China opposes all forms of terrorism, supports the UN in playing a central and coordinating role in global counter-terrorism cooperation, and plays an active part in this area.
"China deals with the listing matter of the 1267 Committee on the basis of facts and in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions and relevant rules of procedure. China remains in contact with all relevant parties on this matter."
The UN had banned JeM in 2001 but India's effort to ban Azhar after the 2008 Mumbai terror attack was not successful as China, one of the five permanent members of the UN group with veto powers, didn't allow the ban apparently at the behest of Pakistan again.
The blocking of India's move to get a ban slapped on the terrorist came as Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in the US, to attend a Nuclear Security Summit where he spoke out strongly against terrorism and on the need for countries to unite against the menace. Modi said the world needs to drop the notion that terrorism is someone else's problem and that "his" terrorist is not "my" terrorist.
In June last year, China blocked India's move in the UN demanding action against Pakistan over release of Mumbai attack mastermind and LeT commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi as it contended that India had provided insufficient information.
IANS
Meet the chief financers of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba
International
oi-Vicky
Ahead of the visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Saudi Arabia, there was some welcome news.
Saudi Arabia and the United States of America imposed sanctions of some persons who were actively funding the Taliban, al-Qaeda and the Lashkar-e-Tayiba.
This is a welcome move. The sanctions against the funders of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba in particular is good news for India.
There are three persons and their respective organisations which have been slapped with sanctions.
Also Read: Modi in Saudi Arabia: What to expect from the visit?
Interestingly one of them is a Scottish man who converted to Islam and runs the influential money spinning organisation, the Al-Rahman Welfare Organisation.
Abdul Aziz Nuristani:
Abdul Aziz Nuristani the head of the Jamia Asariya Madrasa is one of the names in the sanctions list. He is based in Peshwar and through his Madrasa he has been raising funds and also channelising the same.
This is a key Madrasa for the Lashkar-e-Tayiba. The money is collected as donation in the Gulf and the same is channelised into the Lashkar-e-Tayiba's coffers through this madrasa.
Investigations had shown that this Madrasa would collect money under the garb of relief work. It has collected millions of dollars in the name of relief work or charity. A chunk of these collections were used to provide supplies for the Lashkar-e-Tayiba.
Alexander McLintock:
Alexander McLintock is a 52 year old Scotsman who embraced Islam at the age of 20. He runs the Al-Rahmah Welfare Organisation which has been involved in funding both the Taliban and the al-Qaeda.
The organisation was opened with an intention of supporting both the Taliban and the al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.
There have been instances of him channelising funds to the Lashkar-e-Tayiba as well. However, his primary operations were linked with the al-Qaeda and the Afghan Taliban.
Muhammad Ijaz Safarash:
Muhammad Ijaz Safarash is a key man in the transactions of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba. He is based in Saudi Arabia and has been playing a major role in providing financial assistance to the Lashkar-e-Tayiba.
In addition to this, his role in arranging for the travel of Lashkar-e-Tayiba operatives and creating travel documents has also been unearthed by the investigators.
Also Read: Lashkar-e-Taiba attempted to kill Bal Thackeray: David Headley
His role and connection with the Lashkar-e-Tayiba came to light when intercepts of him speaking with Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi cropped up.
Lakhvi, the operations head of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba trusted him the most and would rely on him entirely when it came to sending operatives to Saudi Arabia apart from channelising funds for the outfit.
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PM Modi in Saudi Arabia: What Indian expats expect from this visit
International
oi-Jagriti
New Delhi, Apr 2: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has left for Saudi Arabia after two days of engagement with world leaders during the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington.
Indian expatriate living in Saudi Arabia hold high expectations from Prime Minister Modi's visit to the Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia, largest crude oil supplier of India is home to 2.96 million Indians.
They expect Prime Minister Modi to ask King Salman to increase Haj quota for Indian pilgrims in the future. They also want him to discuss welfare of Indian workers in Saudi Arabia.
A large number of people hailing from Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka residing in Saudi Arabia are looking for a direct Air India connectivity to their cities.
Modi's visit to usher in a new era in Saudi-India relations: Here are facts you need to know
Indian expats also want good education facility for their children as their children do not have the facility of pursuing higher studies after 12th standard.
The existing infrastructure of Indian schools has become insufficient as thousands of parents are seeking admission of their children at Indian schools in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Jubail etc, reported the Saudi Gazette.
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Story first published: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 14:45 [IST]
Islamic State bomber detained in Russia for attempting attack in India was recruited through Telegram
Why India should get access to Islamic State bomber detained in Russia
Prosecutions story may be attractive but should be backed by evidence
Obama's ISIS remark: Do we smile or nod our heads in despair
International
oi-Vicky
Washington, Apr 2: Going by what President of the United States of America had to say on the ISIS, it appears that the outfit was one up in this battle.
He said yesterday that as the ISIS continues to get squeezed out in Syria and Iraq, it will unleash terror elsewhere in the world.
It is extremely difficult to decide whether one needs to feel happy or disgusted with the statement by by Obama.
The writing was on the wall and the ISIS was using Syria and Iraq as a stage. Radicalised youth would go to Iraq and Syria only to return to their home countries and unleash terror.
The war was always beyond Iraq and Syria:
What many failed to see or did not want to see is the manner in which the ISIS was building its army on the world stage.
Thousands would flock ISIS camps in Syria and Iraq, train hard and return to their home countries. France and Belgium are classic examples of this scenario.
The ISIS believes in the concept of networked cells. It has set up camps for every nation in Iraq and Syria.
ISIS's defeat at home prompts group to terrorise Europe
For instance an Indian joining the ISIS would be part of the Hind camp. However these persons from foreign lands are instructed to stay on only for a particular amount of time and return home when they are battle ready.
The biggest threat that is being faced is in Europe. Thousands have left home to join the ISIS. However what many did not notice was when the US was supposedly squeezing out the ISIS in Iraq and Syria many had already returned home- radicalised and battle hardened.
Donald Trump needs to get it right:
Donald Trump the Republican frontrunner for the post of President makes sure he speaks about sealing the border for refugees. While his suggestion is good in a lot many ways, the real problem is elsewhere.
The border needs to be sealed for those who have trained with terror groups and return to their home land.
Operation botched up as ISIS Indian recruit chickened out
These are persons who cause the bulk of the problem when they attack lone wolf style. The same could be witnessed in France and Belgium where the locals who had trained with the ISIS returned home to carry out these horrific attacks.
The extent of the problem is quite vast today. Belgium alone had 250 of its nationals training with the ISIS. The number from the whole of Europe is around a 1,000.
In addition to the problem of ISIS returnees is the problem of radicalisation online. Apart from the trained fighters, there are many who have radicalised themselves without leaving their home turf.
This problem we found in India when a bunch of self-styled ISIS fans had joined together to orchestrate a series of blasts in the country.
OneIndia News
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Story first published: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 12:47 [IST]
PM leaves for Saudi Arabia after Nuclear Security Summit
International
oi-PTI
Washington, Apr 2: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has left for Saudi Arabia after two days of engagement with world leaders during the Nuclear Security Summit here.
"My Washington DC visit was full of fruitful meetings and interactions. We have discussed an issue of great global importance," Modi said in a tweet before Air India One left Andrews Airforce Base for Saudi Arabia yesterday.
During his visit, Modi held bilateral meetings with British Prime Minister David Cameron, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe, Swiss President Johann N Schneider-Ammann, Argentinian President Mauricio Macri and New Zealand PM John Key .
The Nuclear Security Summit was attended by leaders from more than 50 countries with heads of States from over 20 nations. At the summit, Modi also interacted with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev apart from a host of other leaders.
Speaking at the White House dinner hosted by US President Barack Obama which kicked off the two-day summit, he underlined the need for maintaining highest level of vigil with regard to nuclear terrorism, and made a veiled attack on Pakistan, saying the "greatest risk" is from state actors working with nuclear traffickers.
"Farewell Washington! After 2 days of intense diplomacy PM @narendramodi leaves for final leg of his three nation tour," MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. As Prime Minister, this was Modi's third trip to the US and his second visit to Washington. Modi's first trip was in September 2014, followed by one a year later in September last year. The Prime Minister arrived in Washington from Brussels after attending the EU-India Summit.
PTI
Bolsonaro and Lula jabs at each other in debate
Police fire tear gas at protests against Brazil's president
International
oi-PTI
Rio de Janeiro, Mar 18: Brazilian police fired tear gas and stun grenades to keep at bay angry protesters rallying against President Dilma Rousseff who faces calls to quit in a political crisis.
In the capital Brasilia, thousands of protesters rallied in front of the presidential headquarters and the congress in anger at corruption scandals implicating Rousseff and her Workers Party (PT).
Police yesterday fired tear gas and stun grenades to stop protesters approaching the official buildings. In the country's economic capital Sao Paulo, an opposition stronghold, thousands of protesters rallied on the major Paulista avenue.
"PT out! Resign!" they yelled. A group of about 60 prepared to camp out for the night in tents near the headquarters of the anti-Rousseff FIESP industry federation.
"We are going to protest like they did in Ukraine. There will be more of us tomorrow," said one protester, Cristiane Galvao, 44. "We will not leave until Dilma leaves."
The rallies followed a day of political drama. Lawmakers relaunched impeachment proceedings against Rousseff and a judge blocked her bid to bring her powerful predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva into the cabinet.
The PT and other groups supporting Rousseff called counter-demonstrations for today in more than 30 cities. Brazil grabbed world headlines in 2013 when it was gripped by mass riots against corruption and increased transport costs.
AFP
Trump doesn't know much about foreign policy: Obama
International
oi-PTI
Washington, Apr 2: US President Barack Obama has questioned Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump's foreign policy credentials, saying he doesn't "know much" about the world.
"They tell us the person who made the statements doesn't know much about foreign policy or nuclear policy or the Korean Peninsula or the world generally," Obama told reporters yesterday at the conclusion of nuclear security summit here.
He said Trump's recent statements on US foreign policy, that has unnerved the national security establishment, came up during his interaction with world leaders.
"I've said before that people pay attention to American elections. What we do is really important to the rest of the world. Even in those countries that are used to a carnival atmosphere in their own politics, want sobriety and clarity when it comes to US elections," Obama said.
"They understand President of the United States needs to know what's going on around the world and has to put in place the kinds of policies that lead not only to our security and prosperity, but will have an impact on everybody else's security and prosperity," he added.
Earlier, Trump had favoured countries like Japan and South Korea developing their own nuclear weapons capabilities to defend themselves rather than the US protecting them.
"America's alliance with Japan and South Korea is one of the cornerstones of US presence in the Asia- Pacific region. It is underwritten, the peace and prosperity of that region and has been an enormous boom to American commerce and American influence," the US President said.
Obama said it has prevented the possibilities of a nuclear escalation in conflict between countries that in the past and throughout history have been engaged in hugely destructive conflicts and controversies. He called foreign policies with countries like Japan and South Korea an investment that rests on the sacrifices that American men and women made back in World War II.
"We don't want somebody in the Oval Office who doesn't recognize how important that it is," Obama said.
PTI
Not just future of Sena but democracy at stake, says Uddhav
Amitabh Bachchan reveals he had to get stitches after he cut a vein on his leg
Bengal opinion polls 2016: TMC may win 160 seats; Cong may get less vote-share than BJP
Mumbai
oi-Shubham
Mumbai, April 2: The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) led by Mamata Banerjee will win 160 of the 294 Assembly seats in the Assembly elections beginning on Mondya (April 4), an opinion poll conducted by news channel Times Now said.
The Left Front is predicted to win 106 seats while the Congress may win 21. The BJP may win four seats while others three.
It means if the Left and Congress's seats are put together, they will give the TMC a run for their money.
In terms of vote-share, the TMC may get 40 per cent while the Left may get 32 per cent. The Congress, surprisingly, can finish behind the BJP (11 per cent) with eight per cent. Others are expected to get two percent vote-share.
In the 2011 Assembly elections, the TMC alone had got 184 seats while its then ally Congress got 42. The Left had won 62 seats of which the CPI(M) had 40. The results marked the end of 34 years of Left rule in West Bengal and Mamata Banerjee became the first woman chief minister of the state.
Oneindia News
Not just future of Sena but democracy at stake, says Uddhav
Amitabh Bachchan reveals he had to get stitches after he cut a vein on his leg
Pratyusha Banerjee's death: Police waits for autopsy reports
Mumbai
oi-Sandra
Mumbai, Apr 2: A day after popular television actress Pratyusha Banerjee was found hanging in her flat, police officials have now have started questioning friends and family members of the actress.
According to latest reports, though police officials suspect it to be a case of suicide, they say it is too early to know what caused her death. The post mortem reports will be out by Saturday, police officials informed even as investigation were on.
Revealed! Balika Vadhu actress' last WhatsApp status indicates the cause of suicide
Mumbai police officials said that they were searching Banerjee's flat and were carrying out the investigation to ascertain the cause of death. No suicide note has been found from the actress' flat.
Though initially it was said that her boyfriend Rahul Singh was absconding, the Mumbai Police clarified on Saturday that he was not absconding and that police officials were questioning him.
Banerjee, who shot to fame as Anandi in the popular TV serial Balika Vadhu was said to be under depression. She also starred in a reality show with her boyfriend recently where she announced that they would be getting married soon.
Meanwhile, many television actors condoled Banerjee's death and remember her as a lively and a determined young girl. Actor Ejaz Khan, former Big Boss particiapnt alleged that Pratyusha was murdered. Pratyusha was once a contestant on Big Boss.
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Reprinted from Mondoweiss
As attention turns to the NY primary, the Democratic candidates are beginning to separate on the Israel issue. Let's hope that their very real differences on the Palestinian question become politicized over the next three weeks, and voters are urged to choose between reflexive Israel support (Clinton) and criticism of the occupation (Sanders). Let's hope the media points out that Clinton is to the right of even Donald Trump on this issue.
Some news on the New York race. The Times of Israel reports on a private gathering of rabbis with Bill Clinton earlier this week:
"Former President Bill Clinton met with over 20 leading rabbis in the New York area to discuss his wife Hillary's presidential campaign. "The meeting Tuesday in Midtown Manhattan was off the record and lasted for two hours, twice the amount of scheduled time. Participants would not discuss the content."
Bernie Sanders told a New York TV station that "we cannot continue to ignore the needs of the Palestinian people." (Thanks to Jewish Insider).
"I grew up in a Jewish neighborhood, I have lived in Israel, I'm a strong defender of Israel," he told NBC 4. "But let me also say this, I think we cannot continue to ignore the needs of the Palestinian people and I would hope very much that I could move us forward in what has been so intractable over the years, bringing Palestinians, bringing Israelis together, bringing peace finally to the Middle East."
Two days ago Clinton sat down with Rachel Maddow and threw in a gratuitous Israe l reference, and an Iran one too, in repudiating Donald Trump's bigoted idea of barring all Muslims from coming to the United States:
"We know if we're going to defeat ISIS, which is a very high priority for us, for our partners in Europe and the Middle East, especially Israel and others. We have to form coalitions with predominantly Muslim nations. "I know how hard it is to form a coalition, I formed the coalition that imposed the sanctions on Iran. Got Russia, and China, and others to be part of it."
PS -- Israel is not all that concerned about ISIS; ISIS just confirms its contention that it lives in the most dangerous neighborhood in the world, and it compares Hamas to ISIS frequently.
Clinton has a high-profile downtown surrogate: playwright Tony Kushner is supporting her and defends her appearance at AIPAC. He appeared on Chris Hayes's MSNBC show, and Hayes prompted Kushner, saying he has been "quite outspoken on Palestinian self-determination" and that Clinton's AIPAC speech was "hawkish." Kushner:
"It was pretty much the speech that I would expect a Democratic serious nominee for the presidency to give to AIPAC. I suppose she might have not shown up as Sanders did... It's enormously important I believe for the Jewish American vote to stay 75 percent Democrat, as it has for many many many decades, and I think that this is an enormously fraught issue and she is avoiding getting caught up in a debate that might do damage to her candidacy. I think she believes in diplomacy and she'll pursue a diplomatic solution to the crisis in the Middle East."
(Kushner expresses an interesting idea of Jewish political solidarity. I would guess that Kushner thinks that the liberal Jewish political presence on countless domestic issues, which has helped change the country in the last 50 years, outweighs its reactionary effect on Middle East policy. Many in the Palestinian solidarity camp would disagree, and would welcome a new left coalition of great diversity.)
Now here are two great attacks on Clinton's pandering. Sandy Tolan in Truthdig says Clinton has gone "radical right" on Israel, to Donald Trump's right. Some of his items, familiar to folks on our site but worth repeating:
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A Milwaukie man who earned two Purple Hearts during the Vietnam War died in a motorcycle crash last month while vacationing in Mexico, his wife said.
John E. Currin, 66, was riding his 2012 Harley-Davidson motorcycle when it went off a winding road on March 13, said Jackie Currin, his wife of 41 years.
He was leading a group of four friends from the U.S. border to San Quintin in the Mexican state of Baja California, when he noticed they were no longer in his rearview mirror, his wife said. He then turned his motorcycle around to see where they were and ended up going off the road into an area flush with boulders.
Currin was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash, she said.
Currin was nicknamed "Roaddog" -- because he would take the lead when groups of motorcyclists rode together -- and had a keen sense of direction and deep passion for riding, his wife said.
"It was his freedom," said Jackie Currin, who would ride on the back of his motorcycle on their many trips.
Currin was born in Portland and graduated from Cleveland High School. He was a retired truck driver and had worked for the same company, Unified Grocers, for 32 years, his wife said.
Service information
Service:
9:30 a.m. Saturday at Christ the King Catholic Church, 7414 S.E. Michael Drive, Milwaukie
Burial:
After the service at Gethsemani Cemetery, 11666 S.E. Stevens Road, Happy Valley
Celebration:
After the burial at the Veterans of Foreign Wars, 7118 S.E. Fern Ave., Portland
She said he'd been a corporal in the Marine Corps and earned a rifleman designation. He was a volunteer for the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association, through which he raised money and gathered supplies for homeless veterans.
Currin earned his first Purple Heart when a bullet hit him in the finger and under his arm, his wife said. She said his second Purple Heart was awarded because his feet and lower legs were hit with shrapnel.
Currin served in 1968 and 1969, she said.
They met in Milwaukie before he was deployed to Vietnam, Jackie Currin said. She said she went to school with Currin's younger sister, who set them up when he returned from the war.
They have two adult children, Nick and Shawn, who live in Milwaukie, she said.
She remembered her husband as a fun-loving man who would "strike up a conversation with anybody" and considered his family and friends "super important."
A public service will be held for Currin on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. at Christ the King Catholic Church near Milwaukie, according to his obituary.
-- Jim Ryan
jryan@oregonian.com
503-221-8005; @Jimryan015
Transit Mall
TriMet buses and MAX light-rail trains pick up passengers in downtown Portland along Southwest 5th Avenue.
(The Oregonian/File)
TriMet's sudden decision to stop paying new front-line employees while they attend union orientation meetings has become a sore point as contract negotiations loom.
It's a reversal of a longstanding policy, under which TriMet would pay employees to attend the one- or two-hour orientation at the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 757 meeting hall and even provide transportation.
That all stopped in early February, when a TriMet labor relations manager told union officials the agency believed the practice is illegal. TriMet cited a 2013 law passed to prohibit public employers "from assisting, promoting or deterring union organizing."
It has also cited a state ruling, and the law on which it is based, that found the City of Portland couldn't pay for benefits for a union official. Randy Stedman, TriMet's executive director of human resources and labor relations, said the legal issue around the orientation meetings is the same because both are examples of using public money for a private purpose.
"Our problem is it's illegal," Stedman said. "The union likes to portray this as being union busting, but for us it's a matter of law."
The agency said it made the decision based on counsel from two outside law firms, but declined to name the firms or provide their written advice, citing attorney-client privilege and a pending unfair labor practice filing.
It says it has no objection to employees visiting the union hall on their own time. It's also said it would be open to a shorter, 15-minute orientation on paid time. That would be a "de minimis" usage of public funds, Stedman said, using the legal term for a matter too small to merit consideration.
The decision comes as TriMet is on a rapid hiring clip, bringing on as many as 20 new drivers every three weeks.
TriMet's previous policy had been unusually generous compared to many public employers, which often do give unions time during their own new-employee programming to discuss union issues. The amount of time and the forum are usually subject to negotiations.
But it's not clear other public employers have taken the same position as TriMet regarding the 2013 legislation. Jeff Klatke, president of Oregon AFSCME, whose 25,000 members are mostly public employees, said he's not aware of other agencies who have made the same argument.
Klatke and other labor officials have asked TriMet's board to reconsider, in part out of concern that other public employers could similarly decide to do away with paid orientation time.
"We've been able to negotiate this. It's not illegal, and it's not unconstitutional. It's quite common," he said. "We want to make sure that both the public perception and the public employer perception is that it's legal."
Keith Cunningham-Parmeter, a labor and employment law professor at Willamette University, said a technical read of the state law might support TriMet's position that it is prohibited from paying employees to attend union orientation.
But case law around the National Labor Relations Act, upon which state laws for public employee unions is based, have found that paying employees for their time to attend union functions is generally allowed.
"This is not a novel issue at all," Cunningham-Parmeter said. "It's settled law that assisting a union in these ways is perfectly permissible."
-- Elliot Njus
enjus@oregonian.com
503-294-5034
@enjus
OSU president Ed Ray speaks with OEB
Ed Ray, the president of Oregon State University since 2003, spoke with The Oregonian Editorial Board on Friday Feb. 12, 2016. Dave Killen / staff
(Dave Killen/The Oregonian)
Ed Ray, Oregon State University's president, said Thursday that the university's Bend campus should receive the same amount of state funding as Oregon's regional universities, like Eastern Oregon or Southern Oregon. It shouldn't come out of his budget for OSU's main campus in Corvallis.
"We can't build a four-year university whole cloth out of the allocations we traditionally get from the Legislature as one of the seven universities," Ray said at OSU's Board of Trustees meeting Thursday.
Oregon universities submit their top capital construction requests to the state. Not all projects are funded, but each school typically receives state bonds for its most-desired project. OSU plans to submit a separate list of capital projects for its Cascades campus.
Ray's comments came as construction is underway on a new academic building, dining hall and dorm on the 10-acre Bend campus. OSU expects its first classes to begin there this fall, although the dorm isn't expected to be finished until winter 2017.
Beyond the new buildings in Bend, OSU is eyeing expansion on a 46-acre former pumice mine it bought in January. Ray, the state's longest active serving university president, said OSU-Cascades hopes to have 3,000 to 5,000 students by 2025.
Construction at OSU-Cascades as pictured in early February, 2016.
That expansion will be costly. He said to meet the enrollment goals will require in the range of $150 million to $250 million in new construction.
"We're talking about an eighth public university," Ray said.
OSU is requesting $69.5 million in state bonds for the following projects on its Cascades campus:
$20 million in reclamation and site work on the recently purchased 46-acre expansion site.
$39 million for a new 55,000-square-foot academic building, with labs, classrooms and study space ($10 million is expected from philanthropy).
$10 million for a three-story student success center with counseling, sports and clubs and other student services (OSU would chip in $5 million in bonds).
$490,000 to renovate the remainder of a Graduate and Research Center building purchased in 2012.
Separately, the university is requesting $95 million for capital projects on the Corvallis campus.
State lawmakers approved $308.8 million in capital projects at the seven universities for the 2015-17 biennium. Of that, OSU received $55.3 million for two projects -- a new forest science complex and the first phase of the school's planned Hatfield Marine Science campus expansion in Newport.
Oregon lawmakers approved $665 million in operating support for the state's seven public universities last year. This week, Ray and the state's other six university presidents signed a letter to state education leaders asking for a $100 million increase during the 2017-19 biennium.
-- Andrew Theen
atheen@oregonian.com
503-294-4026
@andrewtheen
Uroboros
The state's investigation of cancer cases around Uroboros Glass in North Portland uncovered what it said was "small, statistically significant" bladder cancer cluster. (Kelly House/Staff)
The Oregon Health Authority announced Friday the discovery of what it termed a "small, statistically significant" cluster of bladder cancer diagnoses in two neighborhoods around a North Portland glassmaker, Uroboros Glass, between 1999 and 2003.
It's the first time the state's investigation of community concerns about toxic air pollution in North and Southeast Portland has uncovered a noteworthy cluster. Doctors diagnosed 12 people with bladder cancers in North Portland between 1999 and 2003, more than double the number state researchers expected to find.
In all, during the 15 years for which it has data, the state found 22 bladder cancers diagnosed among people living in two Census tracts immediately surrounding Uroboros. The state expected to find 15 cases.
The findings in the other years weren't statistically significant, the health authority said, noting that diagnoses declined in subsequent years.
Bladder cancer is associated with the oral ingestion of arsenic. Uroboros once used arsenic in its manufacturing, but stopped years ago because of concerns about its toxicity, owner Eric Lovell said in a February interview. It's unclear exactly when. The company didn't respond to a call late Friday.
A state health official cautioned against drawing conclusions about the results. Katrina Hedberg, the state epidemiologist, said it isn't possible to attribute the cancers to any specific exposure.
Analyzing cancer cases at such a detailed level - among 5,300 people in two census tracts - is expected to produce this type of variation, Hedberg said.
The state doesn't know how long the people lived in those neighborhoods or whether they were smokers, she said.
Though the state has the names and phone numbers of the people who developed cancer and could investigate those questions, Hedberg said it had no plans to. "Even if we call them, we can't identify what caused their specific cancer," she said.
Mary Peveto, president of Neighbors for Clean Air, a Portland nonprofit, said the state should dig deeper.
"It's the state's obligation to find out what's at the root of the causes of these illnesses," Peveto said. "Who better than your health authority to help corroborate these connections?"
The state analyzed 15 years of cancer cases around the two glassmakers, from 1999 to 2013, looking for clusters of bladder or lung cancer.
State health officials saw a decline over time in the incidence of bladder cancers adjacent to Uroboros.
They found 12 bladder cancers diagnosed from 1999-2003.
They found seven from 2004-2008.
They found three from 2009-2013.
The analysis didn't find elevated rates of lung cancer around the glassmakers. Cadmium, which was found in unsafe levels around one glassmaker, Bullseye Glass, during monitoring last October, can cause lung cancer.
Since the air pollution problem went public on Feb. 3, Uroboros has signed an agreement with the state to install pollution controls on its glassmaking furnaces.
-- Rob Davis
rdavis@oregonian.com
503.294.7657
The Portland-area housing market again topped the monthly Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price index, released Tuesday, which measures year-over-year gains in home values among 20 of the nation's largest metros.
That was just one piece of news during another busy week in the real estate world. If you missed any of it - and who could be blamed with the recent streak of nice weather? - here's a roundup (click the links below for the full stories):
Seattle's housing deal, political shift may provide Portland a blueprint
Like Portland, San Francisco and a handful of other cities, Seattle is dealing with a housing-affordability crisis resulting from an exploding population and a limited supply of homes.
But unlike Portland and San Francisco, Seattle has undertaken a unique and ambitious plan that sets the city's approach to housing apart. The plan has upended traditional political alliances and played an outsized role in a recent election. And it may offer Portland - a city in the midst of its own effort to plan for growth and infill - a blueprint for dealing with a growing population that increasingly can't afford a place to live.
Hawthorne Theatre sold to California buyer for $3 million
The Hawthorne Theatre, a Southeast Portland music venue in a nearly 100-year-old building at the corner of Hawthorne and Cesar E. Chavez boulevards, sold earlier this year for $3 million, records show.
The company Hawthorne Masonic LLC sold the theater, built in 1919, to Pandion Investments LLC and Cyrus G. Etemad, Pandion's manager, in a transaction recorded in February. The building previously sold in 2005 for just under $2 million.
The new owners listed a San Francisco address. Attempts to reach Etemad and the Hawthorne Theatre were not immediately successful. Previous owner Anthony McNamer said Tuesday that the sale won't immediately affect the music venue, which operates under a lease that was transferred to the new owner.
The building was formerly known as the Sunnyside Masonic Temple.
4 straight months: Portland homes' annual price increases again lead nation
January marked the fourth straight month the searing Portland-area market posted the nation's largest year-over-year gains in home values, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price index, released Tuesday.
Prices in the region increased 11.8 percent in January from the same month a year earlier, more than Seattle's 10.7 percent and San Francisco's year-over-year increase of 10.5 percent.
The Portland area's monthly gains in home values between December and January were also near the top of the 20-city index - only Miami and San Diego matched Portland's 0.4 percent monthly increase, and only Los Angeles' 0.5 percent monthly gains topped it. San Francisco-area housing lost 0.7 percent of value over the same stretch, the largest decrease among the index.
New York City approves inclusionary zoning, as Portland considers the same
Reacting to rising rents and home values, lawmakers in Salem and Seattle recently approved a concept called mandatory inclusionary zoning, which allows local jurisdictions to require that developers set aside parts of their projects for those on the lower end of the income ladder. Portland is reportedly preparing to take advantage of the new state law allowing the practice.
On the East Coast, meanwhile, the nation's largest city has passed its own version of inclusionary zoning, according to The New York Times.
At the urging of Mayor Bill de Blasio, the New York City Council last month mandated that in neighborhoods rezoned for residential growth or greater density, between 20 percent and 30 percent of units in new projects should be set aside to those making between 40 percent and 80 percent of area median income. The local city council member would ultimately decide whether the affordability target would be 40 percent, 80 percent or somewhere in between, the Times reported.
Ron Wyden, Jeff Merkley say presidential candidates have given housing 'short shrift'
Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton have sparred on health care and higher education. Ted Cruz and Donald Trump have a lot to say about immigration and international terrorism.
But there's one issue that U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley think is lacking on the presidential campaign trail: housing.
"It should absolutely be getting more attention," Merkley said Tuesday, after a Portland forum he organized on housing affordability. Since "a lot of the national conversation is about inequality," he said, housing should be a natural component of the discussion.
Wyden said he has watched some of the presidential debates and believes housing has gotten "short shrift." He and U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer, whose congressional district includes most of Portland, appeared alongside Merkley at the forum, held at the Gray's Landing affordable housing development in the South Waterfront neighborhood.
But, Wyden added, the lack of emphasis on housing "is precisely what we're going to change" when the three Oregon Democrats return to the nation's capital.
19-story tower planned for Broadway lands Radisson brand as hotel tenant
A 19-story tower planned for a lot on Southwest Broadway in Portland has landed a hotel tenant.
The building's first eight floors will be home to the United States' second Radisson "RED" hotel, according to a news release from the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, which owns the Radisson brand. It is scheduled to open in 2018.
The 180-room Radisson RED won't have a front desk and will use technology "to simplify the experience and provide efficiencies including keyless guest room entry," according to the release. Guests will use an app to enter their rooms and order food. The hotel will include a bar, a restaurant, a fitness center and conference rooms.
There are 15 Radisson RED hotels in development around the world, according to the release, including one in Minneapolis that will open late this year.
In other news:
The Oregonian/OregonLive's Janet Eastman takes you to
Brad Schmidt of The Oregonian/OregonLive reports that Portland transportation officials
The Commercial Association of Brokers for Oregon and Southwest Washington named Bradford H. Fletcher the industrial broker of the year for the 10th time, according to a news release from the firm Newmark Grubb Knight Frank. Fletcher's transactions included nearly 182,000 square feet for Nike and Intel and more than 600,000 square feet for Subaru.
The commercial real estate firm CBRE announced that its "Capital Markets IG West Team" is expanding to Portland and will focus on investment sales.
The commercial real estate analytics provider CoStar named all four partners at Portland-based HFO Investment Real Estate as "Power Brokers," HFO said in a news release. Cody Hagerman, Greg Frick, Rob Marton and Tyler Johnson qualified as four of the top 10 commercial brokers in the city based on total sales closed. HFO also ranked among the top 10 commercial real estate firms in Portland.
San Diego-based real estate investor MG Properties Group bought the Russellville Commons Apartments, a 283-unit complex in Portland's Gateway district, for nearly $58 million in a sale announced Monday. The seller was The Reliant Group, a holding company headquartered in San Francisco.
-- Luke Hammill
lhammill@oregonian.com
503-294-4029
@lucashammill
Nestle is no victim: I hope no one is fooled by the op-ed from Jay Clemens, president of Associated Oregon Industries. Clemens is playing the role of a loyal handmaiden to corporations that are currently in a profit-driven competition to grab Oregon land and resources.
Clemens' assertion that Nestle is a victim of Oregon's regulations is a comical April Fool's joke! Nestle has a global track record of exploiting the water resources of numerous communities -- in particular, preying on small rural communities. This multinational corporation has been caught up in water controversies in Florida, Texas, Michigan, Brazil and Canada. As most Oregonians already know, we can live without Nestle and their expensive bottles of our own water. Cascade Locks can do better than to make a deal with a known corporate predator.
No community in Oregon should ever need to sell its soul to a devil to provide a decent living to its citizens. Growth in Oregon can mean growing in our ability to not be fooled by voracious, self-serving corporations. Let's keep Oregon growing for the good of its people and the planet.
Linda Hartling
Lake Oswego
By David Sarasohn
When the U.S. Senate returns from its two-week recess Monday, its first order of business will be to keep trying to ignore an 800-pound gorilla.
Or at least a 150-pound Supreme Court nominee.
The Republican Senate leadership is standing firm in its insistence on ignoring President Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland to the high court, on the grounds that when Obama named Garland, there were only 10 months left in Obama's term. The GOP leaders have urged their senators not to even speak to Garland, to pretend he doesn't exist, and possibly to hold their hands over their ears and just repeat "La, la, la" should he approach.
Oregon's Democratic senators, rolling through Southern Oregon last week, pronounced themselves perplexed.
"The Constitution did not foresee a Senate filled with ostriches," said Sen. Ron Wyden. "The policy 'Put your head in the sand' is nowhere in the Constitution. ... All over the state, people come up to me and say, 'Are you folks going to vote?'"
Polling suggests people are urging that in other places, too, but if you can ignore a nomination, you can also ignore polls.
"At this point, this is really a dereliction of duty by the Republicans," said Sen. Jeff Merkley. "They know it, and they're embarrassed by it."
Of course, these days, the GOP embarrassment threshold keeps getting higher.
Over the past two weeks of this recess, pressure was supposed to be building on Republican senators, and there have been some signs of it. Jerry Moran of Kansas and Susan Collins of Maine said publicly that the Senate should proceed with the nomination, and Mark Kirk of Illinois, perhaps the most endangered GOP incumbent this November, actually met with Garland -- who is, after all, from Illinois.
"It's significant that Mark Kirk met with Garland yesterday," judged Merkley, but "I don't think you can call it a major fissure yet."
Recent days have also shown another effect of the empty seat on the Supreme Court, as the justices delivered rulings on two major cases with 4-4 ties. With the Republican claim that filling the seat should wait on the next president, and the time required for that nomination to move through the process, this would be the situation for quite a while.
Points out Wyden, "We shouldn't have to wait until spring 2017 to have a full court."
And that's assuming nobody else leaves the court over the next year. Given the uncertain proposition that is life, the next president could start out with a list.
Still, the Republican Senate leaders are holding firm. Orrin Hatch of Utah wrote an op-ed for The New York Times declaring he was standing for eternal principle, although most of the piece was about how much he disliked President Obama.
Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley spent the recess promising Iowa audiences that he wouldn't hold hearings on Garland, although he warned that Democrats might try to hold a vote forcing the nomination out of his committee. As the Senate returns, Wyden agrees that that kind of vote might be technically possible -- although even if Democrats somehow attracted enough Republicans for a majority to get the nomination out of committee, it would still take a more-distant 60 votes to force a confirmation vote -- but says Democrats haven't actually discussed it. Merkley notes there are other strategies Democratic senators could use to try to force the Senate to take up Garland, such as refusing the unanimous consent needed to proceed on most actions, or filibustering to paralyze the Senate, but he doesn't sound enthusiastic.
"I think in general, people in the Democratic caucus think there's been enough paralysis already," Merkley said. "We'll continue just trying to win the hearts and minds of our colleagues."
This also seems to be the approach of the Obama administration, hoping that each Republican senator's willingness to have a polite conversation with Garland will somehow add up to an eventual willingness to hold an actual Senate vote on confirming him. It may not be entirely promising, and given the rigid positions of the Senate leadership, a more likely outcome might be that the paralysis consuming the Senate will spread across the street to the Supreme Court.
But who knows.
"I don't think anybody can predict," said Wyden. "This is the year when everything you predicted wouldn't happen, happened, and everything you predicted would happen, didn't."
But it really doesn't seem that the Senate can spend the entire rest of the year ignoring the 800-pound gorilla of an empty Supreme Court seat and a qualified Supreme Court nominee.
After all, it's also got an entire federal budget to neglect.
*
David Sarasohn's column appears on the first and third Sundays of the month. He blogs at davidsarasohn.com.
Need a reminder not to talk on your cellphone while you drive?
A 29-year-old Bend driver got just that when an Oregon State Police trooper spotted him chatting away on his cellphone -- sans a hands-free device -- Jan. 21. The trooper pulled the man over, then discovered 63 pounds of processed marijuana packed into the man's 2004 Toyota 4Runner.
That ultimately led to the arrest of the driver, Trevor A. Thayer, who far exceeded the state's recreational marijuana limit. Oregonians 21 and older are allowed to carry around an ounce while they are away from home, and possess up to eight ounces while at home.
This week, the traffic stop also led state police detectives and the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team to execute search warrants at Thayer's home as well as one other. Detectives uncovered 136 more pounds of marijuana and 104 mature pot plants, police said. They also discovered an illegal butane honey oil lab, which is highly dangerous because of its explosive potential, according to police.
The homes were at 56022 Remington Drive and 63465 Hamehook Road in the Bend area.
On March 21, shortly before police raided the homes, Thayer was convicted of two violations: Driving while using a mobile communications device and driving while suspended. This week, he was charged with new crimes based off of the results of the search warrants: Unlawful manufacture of marijuana and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Two other men were cited to appear in court based on accusations of possession, delivery and manufacture of marijuana, but charges apparently have not been filed yet.
-- Aimee Green
503-294-5119
Oregon State Police say authorities took into custody Saturday a 24-year-old man wanted in the shooting of a man found dead in his car in southern Oregon.
U.S. Marshals arrested Marshall William McKenna in Ponder, Texas -- ending a five-month manhunt. Authorities had publicly circulated a photo of McKenna -- cigarette hanging from his mouth, sunglasses obscuring his eyes from view -- in hopes of tracking down his whereabouts in the days after the killing.
McKenna was the third person arrested on robbery and murder charges in the slaying of Roger L. Huntington, 43, at the scenic Lake Selmac boat ramp in Josephine County in October 2015. According to court papers, authorities say Carroll "BJ" Ballard and Blake R. Sibley took part in the hold-up, but McKenna actually shot and killed Huntington.
State police haven't shared more information about the killing -- including the circumstances that led up to it.
All three suspects are Texas residents.
Huntington was found in his black Chevrolet Blazer shortly before 7 p.m. on Oct. 23, 2015. He lived in Crescent City.
Within a few days of the killing, Sibley and Ballard were found and arrested.
McKenna was lodged Saturday into jail in Laredo, Texas. He is expected to be transferred to Oregon to face charges.
-- Aimee Green
503-294-5119
Ted Wheeler has a big lead over rival Jules Bailey as Portland's May 17 mayoral vote approaches, according to the first poll results released publicly this campaign season.
Fully 38 percent of polled voters said they would vote for Wheeler. Bailey got just 8 percent. The remaining 13 candidates received a combined 23 percent.
And with about six weeks until election day, 31 percent of polled voters say they remain undecided.
Friday's release is significant because it offers the first public insight into a race that so far hasn't seen data. While many political observers have informally suggested that Wheeler appears to be campaigning well, the new numbers indicate that voters agree.
Wheeler's campaign touted the results.
"We are heartened to see that Ted's message is resonating with Portlanders," Michael Cox, Wheeler's campaign manager, said in a statement. "We remain mindful that the one poll that counts is on May 17, and that's where our focus remains."
Bailey's campaign consultant, Stacey Dycus, said such polls are "notoriously unreliable." As an example, she said candidate names aren't rotated -- making Wheeler's name the last one heard.
"We aren't concerned by it," she said in a statement.
Wheeler, Oregon's treasurer, entered the race in September with early momentum and picked up several key endorsements, including former mayors Vera Katz, Sam Adams and Tom Potter.
Bailey, a Multnomah County commissioner, didn't formally jump in until January. He has recently secured several big endorsements, including Portland teachers and key environmental groups.
The poll was conducted Monday through Friday by SurveyUSA for KATU. It includes responses for 576 registered Portland voters likely to cast ballots in May. The poll has a margin of error of 4.2 percent.
Polling this early into the campaign season isn't always indicative of the final outcome, as Portlanders may remember.
SurveyUSA performed polls during the 2012 mayoral season. In February of that year, Eileen Brady was up big (25 percent) over Charlie Hales (16 percent) and Jefferson Smith (10 percent). By April, Brady's lead had grown even larger: She had 34 percent, Hales had 22 percent and Smith had 15 percent.
On election day, however, Hales got 37 percent, Smith received 33 percent and Brady earned 22 percent.
Also from the new poll:
This year's gas-tax proposal looks to be close. Some 38 percent say they plan to support the tax, 34 percent are opposed and 29 percent are undecided.
Affordable housing is by far and away the top issue in the mayor's race, followed by homelessness and taxes.
Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have nearly identical support in the presidential race.
If no mayoral candidate secures a majority of votes in the May primary, the top two candidates will advance to a November runoff.
-- Brad Schmidt
503-294-7628
@cityhallwatch
For Portlanders, "getaway" might be a bit of a stretch when it comes to Mount Tabor, but whether you live around the city or are touring it for the first time, the scenic city park is a perfect place to get away from the urban environment - without really leaving it at all.
Built atop an old volcanic cinder cone, Mount Tabor is beloved by runners, walkers, cyclists, stroller-pushers, hikers and even soap box racers. Paved roads, staircases and trails form a network of pathways throughout the park, weaving through a forest of tall firs and wide open meadows.
Finding your way to the top is as easy as wandering uphill, but for those who want some guidance there are three official hiking loops: the Red Trail, Green Trail and Blue Trail - all starting and ending at the kiosk by the main parking area in the northwest corner of the park. The Red and Green trails offer shorter, easier walks, but if you're able to climb hills and stairs, you can't beat the 3-mile Blue Trail loop, which offers a comprehensive tour of scenic Mount Tabor.
Blue Trail loop at Mount Tabor
Distance: 3.31 miles
Difficulty: moderate
When to go: year-round
Note: Due to incomplete mapping, this Google map of the trail isn't 100 percent accurate - but it's pretty close.
Reservoirs
The Blue Trail is a loop, meaning you can technically take it either way, but the blue arrows posted throughout the park do indeed point you in the best direction - west from the kiosk, going counterclockwise to the summit. The trail markers aren't 100 percent clear, so grab a map if you want to follow along.
The trail takes you around all three Mount Tabor reservoirs, which until recently held some of the drinking water supply for Portland. Each is essentially a manmade lake, reflecting the towering firs around them, standing serenely before the city skyline. The most scenic is ovular Reservoir 5, at the center of the three, surrounded on the eastern side by a sloping meadow that makes a great spot for sitting, napping, picnicking or soaking up that elusive Oregon sun.
Summit
Once you pass Reservoir 1, the trail will cut suddenly and steeply uphill to the summit of Mount Tabor. The trail map lists the summit loop as an optional .31 miles, but there's absolutely no reason to skip it.
Break off the dirt trail for the paved loop when you reach the top for great views of downtown Portland to the west and Mount Hood to the northeast, just peeking through the trees. The summit is also home to two of the park's most iconic landmark's: A towering statue of northwest pioneer and longtime Oregonian editor Harvey W. Scott on the south side of the loop, and a charming (but closed) Tudor-style bathroom on the north side.
Follow the blue arrows north, leading quickly downhill back to the kiosk to the end of the hike. Before you go, make sure to catch a view of Mount St. Helens through the trees behind the playground, and stop by the volcano's "crater" beside the amphitheater near the kiosk.
Soap Box Racing
In recent decades, Mount Tabor has become famous as the home of Portland's PDX Adult Soap Box Derby, a weird and wild competition that sends handmade cars careening down the paved roads of the park every August. Park maps mark the "soapbox derby track" above Reservoir 5, but don't be fooled - that's an old, unused straightaway once used by kids' soapbox derbies, not actually the track used by the adult derby today.
--Jamie Hale | jhale@oregonian.com | @HaleJamesB
The Saginaw Art Museum and its partnering organizations invite artists to participate in the first Great Lakes Bay En Plein Air Festival June 13 to 18 throughout the Great Lakes Bay Region.
The festival will culminate in exhibitions at the Saginaw Art Museum and participating venues.
En Plein Air is a French expression meaning in the open air used to describe painting outdoors, which involves all of the senses. Artists create a painting expressing the mood of a scene which often includes not only the sights, but also the sounds, temperature, atmosphere and changing light.
Great Lakes Bay En Plein Air 2016 has three categories for artist involvement: Invitational, Juried and Open.
Invitational, Open and Juried Class registration is open to all artists, 18 years and older, currently residing in the United States. Media choices include: oils, acrylics, watercolors, gouache, pastels, charcoal or pencil, and mixed media.
To enter the Juried Class, artists must submit images of previous plein air art by May 18. Registration for the Open Class closes June 1. The Juried Class exhibition will take place at the Saginaw Art Museum. Open Class exhibitions will be at the Saginaw Art Museum and various nearby locations.
Participating artists will paint on location in the Great Lakes Bay Region between Monday, June 13, and Saturday, June 18, submitting up to three framed pieces for exhibition and jurying. The Juried and Invitational Class will award more than $5,000 in cash prizes. The Open Class will award more than $1,000 in cash prizes. Each category will have works on exhibition during the summer of 2016.
Complete entry information, schedules, and forms can be downloaded at www.saginawartmuseum.org/index.php/plein-air-festival.
Photo provided
The John Alden Chapter of the Daughters of American Revolution recently heard Joann Puffer Kotcher tell of her adventures as a Donut Dolly in Korea and Vietnam.
After graduating from college, Kotcher wanted to experience adventure and travel. She entered the American Red Cross Donut Dolly program in 1965, spending 14 months in Korea and then 12 months in Vietnam. While in Vietnam, Kotcher and five other Donut Dollies visited troops from the Central Highlands to the Mekong Delta, from the South China Sea to the Cambodian border.
The following list includes recent reports from the Midland County Sheriffs Office and the Midland Police Department.
Friday, April 1
3:29 a.m. A 27-year-old man was arrested for trespassing, and resisting and obstructing, after deputies were called to a report of an intoxicated man who refused to leave a property in Lee Township.
Thursday, March 31
3 a.m. Officers were called to a domestic assault at an Elizabeth Street address.
2:09 p.m. A deputy was sent to Lee Township for a report of a teenager driving an ATV on a roadway. The laws were discussed with the teen.
3:28 p.m. An Ingersoll Township woman, 47, reported filed taxes in her name. The IRS is investigating.
4:45 p.m. A deputy located a vehicle parked in the travel lane of a Greendale Township roadway. The owner arrived with gasoline while the deputy was at the scene.
5:12 p.m. Police were called to a drug overdose in the 600 block of Gerald Court.
6:43 p.m. A Mills Township man, 41, reported someone used her personal information to obtain unemployment. The case is being investigated.
8:21 p.m. A deputy was sent to a Lee Township home to investigate a report of trespassing.
8:43 p.m. A motorist was arrested at Saginaw Road and Northwood Drive for driving without a valid license.
11:41 p.m. A motorist was arrested at South Saginaw Road and East Haley Street for driving without a valid license.
Wednesday, March 30
3:14 a.m. A minor was cited for alcohol possession at North Saginaw Road and Dublin Avenue.
9:29 a.m. Police investigated a traffic offense at Waldo Avenue and Bay City Road.
1:03 p.m. Officers investigated a hit and run traffic crash at Rodd Street and South Saginaw Road.
3:17 p.m. Police investigated a case of retail fraud in the 6900 block of Eastman Avenue.
6:43 p.m. Property was stolen from the 400 block of Richard Court.
9:26 p.m. Police were called to investigate a hit and run traffic crash in the 1600 block of Sayre Street.
To the editor:
In response to the attack by Ronald E. Taylor (Theres no intimidation, March 25), I reread my copy of the article and I did not include what my viewpoint of Christianity is (which he rails against), except to say how it differs from Unitarian, namely it denies the divinity and the triune nature of Jesus. For defining my religion I align very closely to what Barb Phillips of Freeland wrote on Thursday, March 24. Mr. Taylors quote of me was incomplete, The whole point of referring to the Luke study was to highlight the word action. Judging some actions as wrong may be able to sway the consciousness of some. Killing in the name of Allah is wrong. I suggest Mr. Taylor was so angry, he failed to get the point.
SECRETARY KERRY: Good afternoon, everybody, or good evening, almost. Happy to welcome the National Security Advisor of India Ajit Doval, and have a chance to be able to work with him on a number of key issues for us.
Obviously, President Obama is delighted that Prime Minister Modi is able to be in Washington for the Nuclear Security Summit. And India has a very important role to play with respect to responsible stewardship of nuclear weapons and nuclear materials. India has a long record of being a leader, of being responsible, and it is particularly important right now at a time when we see in the region some choices being made that may accelerate possible arms construction, which we have serious questions about. Weve raised them with various partners in the region. So our hope is that this Nuclear Security Summit will contribute to everybodys understanding about our global responsibilities and choices.
President Obama has called the relationship with India a defining relationship of this century, and there are many reasons for that. India a powerful, big, the largest democracy in the world, and a real partner with the United States on a lot of technology, energy issues. Were particularly grateful to India for the leadership it offered in Paris helping us to reach a climate agreement. And now, there is more that we can do with respect to the next steps in that agreement.
So Im delighted to have Ajit here. There are other security issues we need to talk about, but its important to have this conversation, and Im grateful for you taking the time to be here.
MR DOVAL: Thank you very much, (inaudible).
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you (inaudible). Thank you.
MR DOVAL: Thank you very much, Secretary Kerry. Its a great delight to be here. Im most grateful to you for sparing your time for this meeting. Its a very, very important summit. We attach considerable value to it, and Prime Minister Modi, who will be here, is deeply interested in seeing and ensuring that the safety and security of the radioactive material must be ensured.
We have made many strides after the new government of Prime Minister Modi has come and we have taken our relationship to new heights. We have got many areas in which we have done we have been able to improve and achieve substantial results. We do hope that this cooperation will find a new strength and new height, will get further strengthened and deepened. And we share many concerns, particularly with concerns about terrorism, about concerns about the cyber space (inaudible) and well be working together on that. And we do hope that together, we should be able to make this place a better place to live and meet with these challenges together, and in cooperation with all other likeminded countries. And thank you very much for receiving me here, and Im most we are all very proud and very happy about our good relationship and excellently growing relationship with United States.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, sir.
YONGSAN GARRISON, Republic of Korea (March 28, 2016) -- With over 3.5 billion people, 36 countries, seven of the world's largest Armies and five of the world's declared nuclear nations in the Asia-Pacific region alone, maintaining peace can be challenging. That task is only amplified as the U.S. Army postures itself for reduced budgets and increasingly complex operating environments in the future.
In response to this daunting challenge, U.S. Army Pacific Commander Gen. Vincent K. Brooks developed an "innovation" in 2014 that enables the Army to maintain a heightened level of readiness while making efficient use of existing resources.
"Pacific Pathways is not a new initiative or program start, but an innovation that links a series of U.S. Pacific Command-directed Security Cooperation exercises with allied and partner militaries into a single operation," explained Brooks. "The 'pathway' is the link between these previously-independent bilateral and multilateral exercises, and the unit is mission-tailored and task-organized for the entire series of exercises."
The U.S. Army hosts a series of multilateral exercises throughout the Pacific Theater with countries including the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, India and here in the Republic of Korea. Under the program a small expeditionary "nucleus" deploys to the region and moves from one exercise to the next, morphing at each stop to adapt to the particular needs of each partner nation and corresponding exercise.
As part of this year's rotation, elements of the 1-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division, also known as the "Ghost Brigade", deployed to the Pacific with stops in Thailand for the annual exercise Cobra Gold, in South Korea for Foal Eagle and the Philippines for Balikatan.
While in South Korea, the brigade conducted a combined urban assault exercise, March 15, with the Republic of Korea 16th Mechanized Infantry Brigade at the Rodriguez Live Fire Complex near Pocheon. After only few months into their deployment, Soldiers from the 1-2 SBCT could already see some of the positive benefits of the training and also the inherent difficulty that comes with integrating in a bilateral exercise.
"In Thailand, we focused more on partnership," said Elijah Dixon, a combat medic from the 1-2 SBCT. "Here in Korea we can get a little more in-depth with mount attacks and complex maneuvers because the language barrier is easier to overcome."
When Brooks first started the program he wanted to "develop expeditionary readiness and adaptive leaders in a way not possible during home station training or at the Combat Training Centers". From the reactions of Soldiers participating in this year's training it seems his plan is having its intended effect.
In addition to the benefits experienced by U.S. Soldiers, each partner nation also gains experience and improved interoperability with American forces.
"This training provides South Korea an opportunity to acquire know-how from the U.S.' warfare experiences while giving the U.S. (Soldiers) a chance to learn the geographical features of the Korean Peninsula for real-war applications," said Lt. Col. Kim Seung-Kon, commander of the 16th Mechanized Infantry Brigade. "It is important that U.S. Soldiers participate in this exercise because (we) will have to conduct combined operations in a real-world situation and by working together it also strengthens our Alliance."
Pacific Pathways could play a pivotal role in the future as expeditionary-sized forces greatly enhance the Army's ability to deliver humanitarian supplies, restore critical infrastructure and provide emergency medical support rapidly. As the Army moves towards its goal of becoming "globally responsive and regionally engaged" Brooks has set the stage for cost-effective success in the Pacific Theater and strengthened the ROK-U.S. Alliance at the same time.
PANAJI, India -- Army Materiel Command's senior leader Gen. Dennis L. Via attended India's annual defense exposition to further define and help strengthen U.S. ties with India and other nations, March 28-31.
Defexpo India 2016, in its ninth iteration, is a biennial land, naval and internal homeland security systems exhibition designed to showcase the country's capabilities and its willingness to advance in the defense sector. The event is similar in many ways to another Via and AMC recently had a key role in -- the Association of the U.S. Army's Global Force Symposium and Exposition, held March 15-17 in Huntsville, Alabama.
"That event highlighted readiness and showcased cutting-edge technologies, and it brought together many of the U.S. Army's top leaders to focus on our opportunities and challenges," Via said. "With that event fresh in my mind, I look forward to the chance to compare and contrast both the technology and the dialogue," he said.
Defexpo provided an opportunity to boost joint ventures and partnerships with the more than 90 companies and nearly 50 countries and territories that participated.
"It's my pleasure to be here in India to witness the spirit of collaboration and cooperation that has evolved over a relatively short period of time," Via told a group of media during his visit. "Our efforts over the past decade, and our shared vision of advanced technology, have laid the groundwork for long-term partnership."
Continuing joint exercises and training, as well as Foreign Military Sales, helps reinforce the bond between the U.S. and India, said Via, who was accompanied by U.S. Consul General to Mumbai Thomas Vajda and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Defense Exports and Cooperation Ann Cataldo.
"We are setting a firm foundation for long-term partnerships. These ties are strong and are growing," he said. "We look forward to continuing to strengthen our ties and work together for a safer world."
While the U.S. has six ongoing FMS cases with India, valued at more than $1.1 billion in equipment, ammunition and training, and an increase in collaboration and cooperation expected, Vajda said that's not the only long-term objective.
"I emphasize that the relationship is not just about selling equipment to India, but about the U.S. and India transforming their relationship into a co-production and co-development, in which the two governments work together on defense security and defense goals," Vajda said.
SANTA RITA, Guam (NNS) -- Commander, Submarine Group 7 conducted bilateral talks with the Republic of Korea Navy March 30-31 at Polaris Point, Naval Base Guam.
The 43rd Submarine Warfare Committee Meeting, hosted by Submarine Squadron 15, brought together representatives from the U.S. and ROK navies.
Rear Adm. William R. Merz, commander, SUBGRU 7, met with Rear Adm. Youn Jeong Sang, commander, Submarine Force to discuss planning joint exercises, training and continued development of integrated anti-submarine warfare plans.
The underlying theme of the talks was to leverage the strong relationship between the U.S. and ROK to advance the capabilities of both submarine forces.
"This conference provides an excellent opportunity to foster the relationship between the U.S. and Korean submarine forces and is becoming increasingly more important," said Merz.
"Bilateral talks like these improve our planning and coordination in support of maintaining peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region."
At the conclusion of the conference, a formal agreement was signed between COMSUBGRU 7 and CSF. The agreement reaffirms the longstanding relationship and pledges continued support between the two submarine forces.
"I strongly believe it is because of the enthusiastic support of the U.S. and especially the submarine force that we are who we are today as a submarine force," said Youn. "We hope to continue closely coordinated efforts with our regional partner."
Established in 1994 during the birth of the ROKN submarine fleet, the SWCM has evolved into a discussion between U.S. and ROKN submarine forces and focuses on submarine tactics, force integration and future submarine development.
The ROKN visit to Guam centered on the 43rd SWCM but also included office calls to the command leadership of Naval Base Guam, Guam Naval Hospital, Andersen Air Force Base and SUBRON 15. COMSUBGRU 7 and CSF also toured the Naval Submarine Training Center Pacific Detachment Guam and the War in the Pacific Museum.
"Hosting our partner nation during their visit to Guam has been invaluable," said Capt. Jeffrey Grimes, commander, SUBRON 15. "We were able to show them the evolving submarine force presence here in Guam and discuss the importance of having submarines available and able to quickly respond when the need arises. Having a strong and capable partner nearby allows for greater bilateral training opportunities, which we look forward to in the future."
SUBRON 15 is located at Polaris Point, Naval Base Guam in Santa Rita, Guam, and consists of four Los Angeles-class attack submarines.
The squadron staff is responsible for providing training, material and personnel readiness support to these commands. Also based out of Naval Base Guam are submarine tenders USS Frank Cable and USS Emory S. Land.
The submarines and tenders are maintained as part of the U.S. Navy's forward-deployed submarine force and are readily capable of meeting global operational requirements.
School administrators from Minnesota have expressed their doubts on the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). They claim that the reform still does not address some of the pressing problems at school.
Daily Globe reported that this act is not the answer to the current predicaments of teachers like shortages of personnel and school facilities. "On the new law, quite honestly, I see no change in Minnesota. The new system already follows what we do, and we are frustrated with it," said John Langaard, superintendent of Worthington School District 518.
The educators claimed that ESSA would allow them to use the funding for early childhood provisions and mental health but noted that they still do not receive funding. In addition, the expansion of the programs also seems impossible given their financial status.
They also mentioned on the Daily Globe report that districts also need allocation for mental health services noting that having psychiatrists in some schools is not enough. "These kids know these counselors for three to four months, and then (the counselors) leave... that's not good for them," explained Springfield Superintendent Keith Kottke.
According to the National Schools Board Association (NSBA), ESSA was originally enacted in 1965. In 2007, it was reauthorized but its flaws hindered it to be signed into law. It was only signed last Dec. 10, 2015 by President Barack Obama noting that its goal is to create improvements on the academic performance of the students.
In a White House statement, it was explained that the bipartisan bill will prepare students to become successful individuals for the 21st century. This reform delivers a much-needed fix to the outdated policies of No Child left Behind by rejecting the overuse of standardized tests and one-size-fits-all mandates, and instead, empowering states and school districts to develop their own strategies for improvement," the statement furthered.
A student from Yuba River Charter School in Nevada County returned from a trip overseas with measles, which prompted the public health to shut down the school to prevent an outbreak. Nevada County in California is known as one of the places with the lowest rate of vaccination.
According to Huffington Post, there's an on-going investigation on an unvaccinated child, who showed symptoms of measles after returning from an overseas trip on March 17. While the child seemed to have recovered, he remained a possible carrier of infection in an area where vaccination is very low. The public health officials closed the school until all students get vaccinated. The students will have until April 8 to get the measles vaccine.
CBS Sacramento adds that the school already reopened last Wednesday to students who were already vaccinated. The school officials will make sure no unvaccinated student goes back to school to prevent a possible outbreak. Based on the school records, there were 225 students exposed to the infectious disease with 124 of them unvaccinated. That's only 43 percent of the exposed students. In Nevada, only 77.1 percent of kindergartners are up to date with their vaccination requirements, the second lowest in the country. It closely followed Trinity County with 77 percent vaccination rate.
MEASLES: drive thru vaccination station up & running in Nevada County Where there's 1 confirmed case @FOX40 pic.twitter.com/Ao5sPoeopj Ali Wolf (@awolfTV) March 31, 2016
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has declared measles as a highly contagious, viral respiratory disease that could be fatal if untreated. It has recorded 146,000 worldwide deaths each year. However, this infectious disease can be easily avoided through MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccines.
Experts have raised their concerns over the low vaccination rates. Many parents refused to vaccinate their children, fearing side effects such as autism despite lacking medical evidence to establish the link. In 2000, measles has been completely eliminated in the United States, however, unvaccinated children have spurred the outbreaks once more. Just last year, there was a report of one thought to have come from Disneyland.
In response, a new vaccine law was passed in the state legislature last year requiring all California students to be vaccinated. Effective July 1, there will be no accepted reasons aside from medical ones to exempt children from getting vaccinated. This will take effect both in public and private schools. Parents, who wish not to have their children vaccinated, can have them homeschooled, the report says. To know more about the law, check out the video below:
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Each week, Dom plumbs the depths of podcast nation to bring you the best in cinema-related chats and programs. If writing about music is like dancing about architecture, then writing about movie podcasts is like listening to someone describe someone dancing about architecture.
Have a suggestion for a good movie podcast? Slide into Doms DMs on Twitter.
In case youre unfamiliar, the last week in March is Sweeps Week for most podcast networks, which means a whole cadre of brand new shows premiere alongside veteran podcasters rolling out some of their most high-profile work in the hopes that they can lure new listeners into the fold. Setting aside the ubiquitous Batman v Superman opinions for the week, film podcasters are resorting to big guests and no-holds-barred hot takes to satisfy the clickiest fingers scouring the web for content.
As Pastes podcast expert, I am no different, which is why Im ecstatic to bring you three podcasts I havent yet covered in this column, which each had some of their best episodes this past week. (Though special shout-out to The Projection Booth for their incredibly comprehensive episode about Nicolas Roegs Bad Timing, replete with a friggin interview with the director, and to We Hate Movies who provided the commentary we never knew we needed for BvS, focusing on how the fact that Holly Hunters character dies next to a glass of Lex Luthors urine marks a new low for superhero movies in general.)
So raise your mason jars full of pee to a great era in podcasting, and check out my picks for the three best episodes of the week:
Midnight Special and Jonathan Kent
On each episode of Dad Salad, co-hosts Tom Dinnercola and Phil Nelson review dads and dadding in recent and classic films, rating each dad on a scale from 1 (Bad Dad) to 5 (Rad Dad) to determine each dads place in the canon of All-Time Great Cinematic Dads. This week, the Saladeers talk Michael Shannons role in Jeff Nichols new Midnight Special as the father of a boy with nebulous superpowers. How far must a truly Rad Dad go to protect his super-son? Having only watched the trailers for the film, Dinnercola and Nelson answer at surprising length, discussing Shannons excellent taste in Eddie Bauer flannels and musing about at what point in a super-powered sons life he should be told about safe sex. From there, their conversation transitions seamlessly into another dad with a super-son, Jonathan Kent. Like every film-related podcast, Dad Salad feels the need to weigh in on Batman v Superman, but fortunately the hosts only focus on the scene in which Clark Kent (Henry Cavill) is visited by his ghost dad (Kevin Costner) on top of a mountain. Though Dinnercola and Nelson agree that for the most part, Jonathan Kent is, next to George Washington, Americas original Rad Dad, in BvS its very Bad-Dad of him to give his son advice that directly contradicts the advice he gave his son moments before his death in Man of Steel. Regardless, the hosts agree that though the films Jonathan Kent is more of a Sad Dad than anything else, he is a much better ghost dad than Bill Cosby. And, as in every episode, Nelson caps off the conversation with a great joke, this time about a talking duck and a supermarket that doesnt sell duck food.
Brokeback Mountain with Jake Gyllenhaal
In Earwolfs brand new podcast, host Henry Flebberman invites stars on to do more than simply talk about their famous on-screen love scenes, but to describe in painstaking detail what their parents reactions were to seeing their child humping in front of millions of people. For his pilot episode, Flebberman is joined by the incessantly charming Jake Gyllenhaal, who describes his multiple love scenes in Ang Lees Brokeback Mountain, comparing his chemistry with Anne Hathaway versus that of his dear friend, the late Heath Ledger. Gyllenhaal then tells the story of bringing his mother to the films premiere, as well as the street tacos they ate afterwards, because his mom wasnt all that bothered by the scenes, having already steeled herself to such things by enduring daughter Maggies work on Secretary barely three years before. Next Flebberman introduces a reoccurring segment, in which he brings in his own mother to watch the aforementioned sex scenes with him, forcing himself to describe in graphic detail whats happening on screen while his mother sits close by, vocally mortified and audibly disappointed in the direction her sons life has taken. Whether or not No Shame will get much content out of its premise if more stars parents are as game as the Gyllenhaals is still up in the air, but for now Flebbermans knowledge of film and ease with attractive Hollywood folk make for brisk listening.
Hereafter
Unlike most podcasts of its ilk, such as Hanks for the Memories, Everybody Loves Damon does more than take its titular heros endearing nature for granted, it actively invites guests to the show to figure out ways to hate Matt Damon. Host Don Slimmapolo begins each episode with an overarching questionIs it possible to dislike Matt Damonand then uses one terrible film from Matt Damons oeuvre to investigate that notion at length.
This week Slimmapolo scores what in the podcast business is called a killer get by having infamous debunker James the Amazing Randi come on the show to talk about Matt Damons role as a psychic construction worker in Clint Eastwoods Hererafter. Feeling no compunction for sullying Damons or Eastwoods good names, the Amazing Randi goes into excessive detail explicating how George the construction workers supernatural powers are bullshit, which leads him into an expletive-filled, unprovoked rant about John Edward, even going so far as to give out Edwards home phone number and address, encouraging listeners to go to the mans house and do what comes naturally, I dont care, this doesnt matternone of this matterswhat were we talking about? Still, not for a lack of trying, Slimmapolo and Randi are unable to find much reason to dislike Damon in Hereafter, ending yet another episode of Everybody Loves Damon in defeat.
Dom Sinacola is Assistant Movies Editor at Paste and a Portland-based writer. Like everyone on this planet, he co-hosts his own podcast, Pretty Little Grown Men, which is sometimes about movies but mostly about Pretty Little Liars. You can follow him on Twitter.
Biopics typically dont get made until their subjects have passed away. It eliminates the possibility of a defamation lawsuit should the studio or production company not obtain the life rights, a process often more trouble than its worth. But negotiations over property rights and moving forward with the cooperation of the estate are still hugely important for authenticity, which also dont come easy. Just ask Sacha Baron Cohen, who was attached to the Freddie Mercury biopic but left the project over creative differences with remaining members of Queen; or Zoe Saldana, whose recent casting as Nina Simone incited heavy backlash from both the Simone family and from the black community in general. The Tupac pic, now on its third director, lost the first (John Singleton) because of what he saw as a lack of respect for the slain rappers legacy. The list goes on.
Miles Ahead was a different story. The plan to have Don Cheadle play Miles Davis had been brewing in the minds of the Davis estate long before it had in Cheadles. When the iconic jazz trumpeter was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2006, Daviss nephew, having no prior contact with Cheadle, told the press that the Iron Man star was the only actor who could play his uncle. Where filmmakers can spend months locked in a tug-of-war between historical accuracy and artistic vision, Cheadle was in a unique position of power, which he exercised to its full extent. He dismissed a pitch for conventional structure and instead suggested making a film that captures the essence of Daviss spirit by bucking the biopic forma film in which, as Cheadle tells it, Davis himself would want to star.
Everyone got on board, so Cheadle proceeded to co-write, direct and star in what now amounts to a piece of Miles Davis fan fiction: Miles Ahead is a caper film with a refreshing sense of creative authority, chutzpah and goodwill. This biopic-turned-buddy-heist squares off in Daviss New York apartment during the mid-1970s, a known dark spot in his career. With ailing health and a healthy cocaine addiction, his glory days slipping further into obscurity, Davis is an ornery old hermit personifying many has-been artists. He seeks validation by calling into radio shows and heckling DJs.
Miles Ahead sets the stage for an odd-couple buddy comedy when a wide-eyed reporter for Rolling Stone named Dave Brill (Ewan McGregor) strong-arms his way through Daviss front door, claiming hes there to get a firsthand account of the artists comeback. After a series of convenient and unlikely eventsa stop into Columbia Records after a years-long absence for a game of shoot-em-up, in case the big guns upstairs forgot who really ran the show; a business transaction with a local college student/trust-fund babythe two are chopping up cocaine and conversation by nightfall. When they discover Daviss original recordings for his new album have been stolen, they team up to find the bad guys and save the Prince of Darknesss career.
A musician in his past life, Cheadle makes a striking transformation in his role, parading a crown of Jheri curls and straining and rasping his voice to the point that he and Davis are indistinguishable. McGregor as his sidekick amounts to little more than an ornament despite a generous amount of screen time, but one of the films strongest casting decisions is in leading lady Emayatzy Corinealdi (Middle of Nowhere ) as Frances Taylor, a professional dancer and Daviss first wife. Shes painted as the one who got away, the reason Davis lives shrouded in the regret of a broken heart (no mention of his two other wives). Accordingly, she handles her scenes with measured intensity, carrying the mostly male cast with voracious but tender feminine strength.
Cheadle teamed up with Canadian screenwriter Steven Baigelman, whose propensity for unconventional biopics about larger-than-life personalities was on point in 2014s Get On Up. Much of the rambunctious, at times schizophrenic, storytelling used in that account of James Brown can be seen in Miles Ahead: parallel storylines, one told chronologically, the other in extended flashbacks; a flouting of traditional narrative in exchange for a more abstract rhythm; and a whirlwind of high, unfocused energy that has a tendency to overshadow the main attraction (the music). Cheadle wants his directorial debut to mirror elements of scat but it sometimes winds up scattered, skipping from Paul Feig-like rabble-rousing to memories from inside an empty, smoke-filled leather lounge.
Miles Ahead is massively entertaining but guided with a shaky hand, at times overly stylized and others stiflingly formulaic, a film whose quest for innovation within its genre may have outpaced its ability to deliver. Despite Davis instructing his band to Come at it with some attitude, dont be all corny with this shit, Miles Ahead can be pretty high in fructose, leaning on heavy symbolism and thematic theatrics. The plot itself is a metaphorical exercise for Davis, contending with past and present demons so he can take control of his life and keep the music aliveor out of the hands of filthy corporate execs. But when he storms out of the record execs office in a fit, his eyes dart between two album covers mounted on the wallhis Sketches of Spain and Bob Dylans The Times They Are a-Changin. It hits a little hard on the nose.
Still, during a rehearsal scene, Davis implores his band to be wrong strong, one of the many callbacks to Daviss passion for improvisation. If Cheadle meant to communicate the messy rebelliousness of jazz music, then he succeeded through a messy rebellion of cinema.
Director: Don Cheadle
Writer: Don Cheadle, Steven Baigelman
Starring: Don Cheadle, Ewan McGregor, Emayatzy Corinealdi, Keith Stanfield, Michael Stuhlbarg
Release Date: April 1, 2016
Leonardo Fabbretti pleading with Tim Cook to help him see the photos stored on his dead son's iPhone. The Italian architect sent a letter to Cook on March 21. Apple's customer care team has expressed sympathy, trying -- and failing -- to help Fabbretti unlock the iPhone.
Fabbretti's son Dama, adopted from Ethiopia in 2007, died in September 2015 at the age of 13. Dama had bone cancer. Dama had given Fabbretti access to his iPhone 6 by registering his thumbprint on the phone's Touch ID software. But Fabbretti says the phone restarted, preventing him from using Touch ID to log in. He doesn't know his son's passcode.
Fabbretti wants to get into the phone so he can see his son's photos, notes and other messages that will help him remember Dama. "Don't deny me the memories of my son," Fabbretti wrote in his letter to Cook. "I will fight to have the last two months of photos, thoughts and words which are held hostage in his phone."
Cellebrite, an Israeli forensics company that might have helped the FBI crack open Farook's phone, has offered to help Fabbretti break into the phone for free, according to the AFP. If it's unsuccessful, Dama's memories stored on his iPhone could be lost forever.
Fabbretti says Apple should think about the collateral damage its new policy has caused. "I think what's happened should make you think about the privacy policy adopted by your company," Fabbretti wrote. "Although I share your philosophy in general, I think Apple should offer solutions for exceptional cases like mine."
Facebook allows loved ones to take control of deceased customers' accounts. People can assign legacy contacts to manage their accounts after they die. Apple has no such policy for iPhones, software or iCloud. For more on this, see the full CNN report here.
Side Note
As a side note or personal note, I had a situation recently where I switched iPhones with my wife. I gave her my iPhone 6 so that she could enjoy playing her games on the bigger display while I took her iPhone 5s with Touch ID until the iPhone 7 arrives this fall.
When switching accounts, something got screwed up. My wife and I had the same password to make it easy to access each others iPhone when we needed to. That worked just fine until we switched accounts and the iPhone 5s refused to open. Why the switch complicated matters is a mystery.
In the end when I went to the Apple Store's Genius Bar, they fixed it easily by accessing my iCloud account. The thing that angered me though was that Touch ID was useless. Without a passcode, your Touch ID is just marketing fluff. It won't open your iPhone. In the case of a screw-up where a user has to change a passcode, the stored Touch ID fingerprint should at least be a safety trigger to let a user back into their own phone to change the password. But no, the user is locked out.
Obviously Apple doesn't think Touch ID is worth a damn thing for security other than a marketing tool, because for actual security, it doesn't pass the laugh test apparently. Just listen to Apple's initial marketing of Touch ID and it's importance to security, not convenience once you're logged in with a 6 digit code. Listen to the detail of measuring your fingerprint and the secure enclave. All for naught, because independently it's not securing your iPhone in the least. The old fashion 6 digit passcode is. So who needs a secure enclave? It's just slick marketing. All it does is saves the user two seconds in keying in a numbered passcode. That's it.
While the genius bar attendant tried to defend Touch ID with me, it was useless. It just didn't work when it needed to. By itself it's useless. How clear is that? What is there to argue?
I'm sure that Mr. Fabbretti thought by registering his fingerprint with his son's iPhone that it would let him into his son's account when needed. That's the way it's marketed (see below). Apple doesn't say, hey, here's Touch ID but it only really works if you have a passcode. No, it's all about the "magic" of Touch ID. It's so magical that it doesn't really work when it counts!
To Apple: Please make Touch ID work as our passcode like you market it but don't really deliver.
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President Obama and the Saudi Allies: It's Complicated
04/02/16
By Cinzia Bianco and Giorgio Cafiero (source: LobeLog)
Photo: U.S. President Barack Obama offers condolences on death of Saudi King Abdullah
Riyadh, 27 January 2015
Photo: U.S. President Barack Obama offers condolences on death of Saudi King AbdullahRiyadh, 27 January 2015
Throughout Barack Obamas presidency, the U.S. has faced unprecedented challenges across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The Obama administrations response to these crises has created substantial friction between Washington and some of its allies in the Arabian Peninsula. The perception of the U.S. supporting the Arab Spring uprisings across the MENA region and Washingtons diplomatic overtures to Iran unsettle some Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) officials.
After Egypts Arab Spring revolution in 2011, the Saudis angrily accused Washington of dropping key U.S. ally Hosni Mubarak like a used Kleenex. The State Departments criticism of Bahrains crackdown on political activists irked authorities in Manama. The U.S. refusal to intervene militarily in Syria against the Damascus regime frustrated Riyadh. Yet the geopolitical implications of last years watershed Iranian nuclear deal, which some GCC officials argue will increase the Islamic Republics influence across the Middle East, appear to represent the greatest source of tension in Washington-Riyadh relations.
Obamas landmark Middle East foreign policy decisions fit within the context of a new U.S. posture in the region and pivot to Asia. Exemplified by Washingtons limited military role in Libya, the term for this new posture is leading from behind. Indeed, President Obamas many decisions reinforce the idea that even if Washington cannot afford to look away from the Middle East, the U.S. should nonetheless re-interpret its traditional role as the dominant outside actor in the region.
Expectedly, this approach has disappointed many traditional American allies, chiefly Saudi Arabia, which has long considered its relationship with the U.S. to be privileged. Since the 1940s, under both Republican and Democratic administrations, Riyadh has maintained a steady relationship with Washington, built on converging strategic interests and in spite of tactical disagreements and ideological differences. But Obamas foreign policy has raised questions about the persistence of such convergence and the alliances long-term strength.
The Obama Doctrine
Last month, the Atlantic published highlights of an interview with Obama in which he openly expressed concerns regarding Washingtons relations with its traditional allies in the MENA region. He reinforced the idea of a U.S. retrenchment away from the region and advocated for a multilateral, diplomacy-based approach to resolving crises while sharing burdens with regional and proximal powers with the highest stakes. Acknowledging the end of the unipolar system, Obama argued that U.S. interventions in the region are only worth the risks when absolutely necessary from the standpoint of American national security.
He blamed European and GCC nations for being free-riders in the Libyan crisis. As candid as only an American president at the end of his second term could be, Obama implied that certain issues regarding Saudi Arabia-social justice, civil and women rights, the kingdoms spread of Wahhabism in foreign countries-aggravate him. Obama went as far as to argue that the kingdom must share the region with Iran. Prolonging Riyadh and Tehrans geo-sectarian proxy wars across the region, he continued, would compel the U.S. to step in militarily, which Obama said would undermine the interests of both America and the Middle East as a region.
Obamas ideas of the kingdom sharing the region with Iran most infuriated Riyadh officials. Indeed, just a few days after the Atlantic article appeared, Prince Turki Al Faisal Al Saud, a member of the royal Al Saud family, expressed the Saudi leaderships frustration regarding Obamas comments in an Arab News article.
The prince, a former diplomat, is also one of the few spokespersons of the Saudi leadership in the West, usually conveying messages from Saudi leaders without their having to do so officially. The objective of Prince Turkis article was to utterly reject Obamas label of Saudi Arabia as a free rider. He argued that the kingdom has confronted many regional challenges, shared terrorism-related intelligence and counter-terrorism efforts with Washington, and actively participated in the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS or IS). Prince Turki utterly rejected the idea of sharing the region with Iran without even discussing it at length, underscoring the low probability of any Saudi-Iranian dialogue emerging spontaneously. For the current Saudi leadership, and especially for the powerful Deputy Crown Prince and Minister of Defense Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud, who launched an unprecedented level of activism in regional affairs, that allegation is unacceptable.
Finally, the article stressed the kingdoms financial contributions to all these dossiers, brandishing the kingdoms usual financial leverage. Prince Turki also claimed that the kingdom has contributed to Americas economy in several ways, including by buying U.S. treasury bonds. For sure, all of these points of contention will be shaping the upcoming U.S.-GCC summit, which Obama will attend this month in Riyadh.
Why Did Obama Dish?
Knowing how the Saudis would react, Obama may have simply decided, with only nine months remaining in his presidency, to speak his mind. However, he might also have been sending a message regarding his national security legacy, particularly the challenges of negotiating a settlement in Syria and prosecuting a campaign against IS. In the former, Obama might be trying to make clear that Washington will accept only a solution that equally involves all regional players. Regarding Libya, Obama intends to signal that the US is not willing to repeat the 2011 mission, which he labeled a failure. In both cases, the Obama administration expects regional and proximal powers to take substantial responsibility for post-war stabilization and reconstruction.
Grounded in the awareness of Washingtons concrete interests in regions beyond the Middle East such as South Asia and Latin America, this attitude might outlive Obamas presidency. Perhaps such an approach to the Middle East will carry on in a more moderate fashion should Hillary Clinton, more embedded in the Washington foreign policy establishment, become Americas 45th president.
However, GCC countries, European member states, and Turkey should carefully consider this retrenched attitude on Washingtons part. Alongside the relative decline of U.S. influence in the MENA region, ill-advised and adventurous foreign policies in Libya, Syria, and Yemen have exacerbated tribal/sectarian unrest and ultimately provided fertile ground for extremist groups such as IS. If carefully factored in, however, the decline of U.S. influence in and commitment to the MENA states may lead to the formation of new alliances and regional arrangements better able to address regional challenges. Alliances among regional and proximal powers might emerge out of the uncertainty about the U.S. role in the Middle East and might navigate regional issues in a way mindful of their vested interests. Although extremist groups such as IS threaten the security of all countries in the region, thus far it does not appear as though such a common menace has heralded deeper cooperation among the Middle Eastern states on opposite sides of geopolitical fault lines. As states focus on short-term goals, rather than long-term ones, when attempting to fill the vacuum left by Washingtons gradual decline in influence, the risk is that IS and other radical groups will continue to exploit the Saudi-Iranian rivalry and other geo-sectarian problems in the Middle East.
Cinzia Biancois an analyst at Gulf State Analytics. Giorgio Cafiero is the co-founder of Gulf State Analytics.
Iranians retreat to nature for celebrate Sizdah Bedar tradition
04/02/16
Report by Press TV; photos from across Iran by Islamic Republic News Agency
Iranians all over the country have celebrated the ancient tradition of Sizdah Bedar or the Nature's Day by spending some quality time with their loved ones out in the wilderness.
Every year, Iranians go outdoors for picnics, in the parks or the countryside on the 13th day of Persian New Year, called Nowruz, as part of rituals to mark the festival of nature. They also take the opportunity to preserve the environment.
The day, which is celebrated on the 13th day of the first Persian calendar month of Farvardin, usually falls on April 1 but in leap years, it coincides with April 2.
On this day families enjoy the final day of their New Year holidays in the woods, mountains or along streams and rivers to avoid the bad luck associated with the number thirteen.
Low temperature and a rainy weather in the Iranian capital, Tehran, on Friday did not stop people from rejoining with the nature on the 13th day of spring to celebrate the deep-rooted occasion.
Sizdah Bedar gives Iranians a chance to play outdoor games, have special food and enjoy the fresh smell of spring.
One of the popular traditions of the Nature Day is the knotting of blades of grass by the young unmarried girls in the hope of marrying and expressing their wish for good fortune in life and love.
This was originally posted April 20, 2010.
The Norco Security Pacific Bank robbery on Friday, May 9, 1980, is considered one of the most violent running gun battles in American history. Online, it is listed alongside a Butch Cassidy bank robbery and the violent bank robberies of Bonnie and Clyde.
The Norco Bank Robbery isnt just a local story, its part of American history, said Tom Pigeon, special events coordinator for the Riverside Sheriffs Association. The 23-mile running gun battle was remarkably destructive. Its a wonder more people werent killed.
On that day in the Riverside County community, 33 police cars were destroyed or damaged, a police helicopter was hit by gunfire and forced to land, eight officers were wounded and Riverside Deputy Jim Evans was shot and killed.
Two robbers died, three went to prison for life without the possibility of parole. The suspects were chased from Norco to the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains. The event forever changed the way police and FBI are trained in pursuit and safety and how they are armed.
The Riverside Sheriffs Association will host a luncheon The Norco Bank Robbery 30th Anniversary: A Tribute to Law Enforcement on May 21, at the Lake Norconian Club in Norco.
Pigeon said hes reached 12 to15 people who attended the 20th anniversary event and is still seeking others who might want to attend the 30th anniversary event. He wants to video peoples experiences that day or later to keep a record, as the people involved are aging.
I am interested too in the civilians involved, people who were there in the street, he said. One 12 year-old bike rider outside the bank was grazed by a bullet.
Pigeon said the widow of Deputy Jim Evans, Mary, and her son, James, will attend the event.
BEGINNINGS
On May 9, five heavily armed men stole a van, took the owner hostage, then planted a homemade bomb near a gas main about a block from the bank to draw attention from the robbery.
Armed with automatic weapons and 12-gauge shotguns, four of the robbers entered the bank. They gathered up $20,000.
Norco resident Debi Paggen Schleuning opened the door to the bank, saw the robbery taking place. She turned and saw the van. She backed away and turned around and saw that the van driver had pointed a gun at her. She looked driver in the eye and told him, Go ahead and rob the bank, Im not going in there.
She ran around the corner and headed toward a real estate office, which is now the Cowgirl Cafe. Gunfire began, and she said there was so much, you couldnt count the shots. The shots were pinging against the cars lined up on Hamner, and their drivers got out and ran.
It sounded like machine guns, she said. It was total chaos.
Riverside County Sheriffs Deputy Glyn Bolasky pulled up in his police cruiser. The 17 year-old getaway driver, Belisaro Delgado, radioed the men inside the bank.
The robbers dropped the cash and ran outside and began firing at Bolasky, who put his car in reverse as his windshield was blown out.
A gunfight ensued as all five men jumped into the van and began to leave. The gunmen fired over 200 rounds at Bolasky. Forty-seven of them penetrated his police car. Bolasky was hit five times in the left shoulder, face, both forearms and the left elbow. Later it would be determined the robbers had thousands of rounds of ammunition.
I was prepared for small weaponry, not the magnitude of (assault weapons), said Bolasky.
He exited the car with his shotgun, watching as the van exited the bank driveway and turned toward Hamner Avenue, the robbers spraying bullets toward him all the time. Bolasky leveled his shotgun and fired four rounds at the van, as he was hit in the shoulder. He watched as the van crashed into a fence.
Later, he would learn the 17 year-old driver had been hit, severing his spinal cord, and died instantly.
Everything was in slow motion, and I had tunnel vision as I saw each of my rounds hit the van, he said.
Bolasky saw blood spurting from his ulnar artery on the inside of his elbow. As blood poured out, he worried that he would pass out and be shot and killed.
About then, Deputy Chuck Hille pulled his cruiser into the feed store lot off 4th St. and Bolasky ran for cover toward a row of Eucalyptus trees separating houses from the east side of the bank.
Out of nowhere, this civilian walked in front of me, in the line of fire between the robbers and me, he said. To this day, he doesnt know who that was, but Bolasky yelled at him to get down or he was a dead man.
Hille pulled his car up to Bolasky and got him in the car to take him to the hospital, the car passing about 20 people out on 4th Street, watching what was happening. At the hospital later that night, Bolasky said the hostage came to his room to thank him for saving his life.
He told me that they were going to kill him after the robbery, said Bolasky.
The robbers stole a truck on Hamner Avenue from the driver and sped away towards the mountains. They threw homemade bombs out the back of the truck as they continued to fire on deputies. The robbers shot at the police helicopter above, forcing it to land.
In the San Bernardino Mountain community of Lytle Creek, the robbers turned and ambushed Deputy Jim Evans as he arrived. He died with a bullet to the eye. With arriving San Bernardino authorities carrying heavy weaponry, the robbers ran.
Three of the gunmen were found and arrested two days later. Manuel Delgado, brother of the van driver, was killed in a shootout with a SWAT team. Two days later, three of the gunmen, George Wayne Smith and brothers Christopher and Russell Harven, were arrested. The three arrested men were convicted of 46 felonies and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Bolasky survived his injuries. He later became a U.S. Air Force officer. Following the robbery, the San Bernardino County Sheriffs department equipped their deputies with Ruger Mini-14s chambered in .223 Remington and the M-16 and AR-15. A movie, Rapid Fire, was made about the shootout.
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
After joining the Riverside Police Department for one year, Bolasky joined the Air Force and retired after 23 years as a lieutenant colonel. Hes spoken to over 6,500 in presentations about the robbery, passing on knowledge learned that day. He said joining the military was the most rewarding things hes ever done.
One person who may not attend the event is Andrew Monti, former Riverside County sheriff deputy Andrew Delgado.
His name change had nothing to do with sharing his last name with two of the robbers. He said the event changed his life forever and ended his career with the sheriffs department. He arrived at the bank at the same time as Hille. He says he engaged in a gun battle, as Hille pulled the wounded Glyn Bolasky into his car to take him for help.
I had been promoted to investigator that morning, said Monti. I had a three-minute gun battle with the robbers. I wasnt happy being left there to die.
Monti said he has no animosity towards any of the other deputies because they all did what they felt was right to do on that day. He said that Riverside County sheriff deputies carried one revolver each and the police cruisers shotgun when the bank robbery occurred and had no SWAT team.
Shortly after the robbery, Monti said they were allowed to carry as many weapons as they wanted, as long as only one showed. They were allowed assault rifles, and later on, automatic weapons. Riverside County Sheriff developed the third largest SWAT team in the state, he said.
Monti retired from the sheriffs department two years later due to post traumatic stress. He became a probation officer for San Diego County and retired from there as a supervisor nine years ago. Since then, hes been teaching high school history classes in San Diego County.
Sgt. D.J. McCarty, a rookie San Bernardino County deputy who took an AR Vietnam era military rifle to Lytle Creek and fired back on the robbers as Evans was hit, still works for the sheriffs department at the Glen Helen Rehabilitation Center.
He will soon retire, as he said his wounds that day and over the past 30 years are catching up with him.
He gives all the credit to Jim Evans for saving his life that day.
He was the only hero that day, said McCarty, who received a Medal of Valor for his actions on May 9, 1980. If it wasnt for Jim, a lot more people would have died there. I got lucky, I survived.
Riverside County Sheriffs Deputy Hille is now Dr. Charles Hille, a doctor of psychology. He helps to determine when a police officer or fireman has post traumatic stress disorder and works in the Riverside County conditional release program with mentally ill patients, who have been found not guilty by reason of insanity.
I retired from the department two years after the robbery because of PTSD. After 9/11, my PTSD returned and I had an epiphany. I decided to give back to police officers and firemen and went back for my masters degree in psychology, said Hille.
Previous to that, he attended law school and worked as a general contractor for 20 years.
Although he does some work with emergency service personnel, helping them to deal with their critical incidents, trauma, personal relationships and PTSD, he wants to do more by becoming a police psychologist.
David Madden, a former Riverside Country sheriff deputy recently retired as a senior detective.
Hed engaged in pursuing the robbers, stopping to check on two wounded officers along the way before continuing on. Later he was relieved to find his friend Andy Delgado (Monti) alive and safe, and he cleared a house in Norco, where it was reported more suspects might be hiding out.
At a traffic stop some weeks later, Madden was astounded to hear a woman spew that it was too bad more police hadnt been killed at the Norco Bank Robbery. Another young woman at the Carls Jr. across the street from the Security Pacific Bank saw him having lunch one day soon after the robbery and said to him,
What about that bank robbery? Norco needed something like that to put it on the map!
Laura Bakewell, a coordinator for the anniversary event, helped organize the 20th year reunion.
Some didnt want to come, they asked why bring this all up again, she said. Some of the deputies arrived angry at the last event, but by the end of it, they left crying and hugging each other. I dont know what will happen this time.
If anyone has an experience of the robbery to share or is interested in luncheon tickets, call (951) 686-7575.
What the robbers had
(In addition to an arsenal of automatic weapons, 12-gauge shotguns, and a total of 1,103 rounds of ammunition)
Section of PVC pipe and fittings
Four cans with gunpowder
One role of hobby fuse (safety fuse)
Masking tape
Six plastic pipe caps, 10 dowels, two cans of plastic cement
Plastic container with cans, tape, dowel, can of black rifle powder
Spray paint can
Three boxes of nails
Six glass Coke bottles, empty
Three bottles of Blue Nun, 1.5 liters, empty
Box with bullets, rivets, sling-shots, rags and nails
Box labeled safety fuse
Two Pepsi cans, one with lead shot
One roll of electricians tape
A beaker with gunpowder
Box containing disassembled flammable shotgun launching device
Three 16-oz. bottles with gas
Two bottles, corks, cut plastic tubing and gunpowder
Box containing disassembled explosive device
Box containing disassembled explosive shotgun launching device
Cloth rags
Explosive Devices
Hand-thrown grenade device
Shotgun-launched grenade device
Incendiary shotgun launch device
Blue Nun incendiary device
Molotov cocktails, containing leaded gasoline
Norco Fire Department Arson Device
Gasoline
Riverside County sheriffs Deputy Glyn Bolasky was driving south on Hamner Avenue in Norco when five masked gunmen in military fatigues barged into the Security Pacific Bank less than a half mile down the street.
It was about 3 p.m. on May 9, 1980, an otherwise calm spring Friday.
Bolasky, a 24-year-old newly appointed deputy, had just pulled into the bank parking lot when the robbers opened fire. Bullets tore through his windshield, striking Bolasky in the left shoulder and sending shards of glass into his face and arms. Ducking beneath the dashboard, he put his cruiser in reverse and backed into the street for a shootout.
I thought, This isnt real, Bolasky said, according to an article on the Riverside Sheriffs Association website.
Its the type of story that Adair Cole, a Hollywood screenwriter and Norco High School graduate, never expected to find in his quaint hometown. And its the basis for his newest screenplay, Norco, which he aimed to write with all the intensity and accuracy deserving of a gunfight that killed three men including a deputy and wounded eight more. It would be one of a handful of films based on events in the Inland area.
Cole had thought his bucolic 27,000-person town was immune to such crimes. During his childhood, Norco was a place for long bike rides along unpaved sidewalks in a time before national chain retailers.
And later, in high school, a place for lunchtime hangouts at the same Carls Jr. where a victim of the robbery had fled decades before.
Standing in front of the former bank, across the street from Carls Jr., Cole retold the story of the robbery with the passion and profanity of a blockbuster movie.
The 33-year-old writer was dressed in blue jeans, hands stuffed into a blue denim coat. He sported a scraggly, gray-tinged beard and a flat-brimmed ball cap pulled low on his forehead. His speech was casual and quick.
There used to be a line of eucalyptus trees right here, Cole said, waving his hand along the dusty horse trail that parallels Fourth Street in front of the old bank.
Bolasky and his partner hid behind one of the trees and these guys were just unloading on them.
For an hour and a half, a gunbattle between law enforcement and five heavily-armed Orange County criminals extended 25 miles into the foothills of the San Bernardino mountains. In addition to the injuries, a sheriffs helicopter was shot out of the sky and 33 patrol cars were damaged.
Story continues below
SLIDESHOW: Other movies based on Inland events
UNPLANNED SCRIPT
Cole grew up less than 2 miles from the old bank site, now being transformed into a satellite horse-betting facility.
But it wasnt until about 2012 that an errant Google search for the address of the Corona-Norco Unified School District turned him on to the robbery.
I started to tell people about this story and nobody really remembered it, said Cole, now an Orange resident. It just wasnt a national event in a way. You couldnt pull up a YouTube clip of the chase like you could today.
He sifted through old newspaper clippings, making routine visits at local colleges and the Riverside Public Library, where a librarian told him how terrified she was the day of the robbery.
Cole spent a week in Norco, walking the old bank site, talking to locals who lived through the ordeal, driving the chase route and imagining what happened there a few years before he was born.
Im from Norco. When you experience the film, we want you to feel like youre in Norco, he said.
If completed, Norco would join locally-inspired movies such as Changeling, a 2008 drama starring Angelina Jolie, and Erin Brockovich, a 2000 drama featuring Julia Roberts as a legal assistant who helps bring down a California power company polluting a High Desert community.
A 2006 made-for-TV film, Rapid Fire, chronicled the robbery and chase but deputies names and many details were changed. Cole called it a loose representation of the events, adding that he wants his writing to pay homage to the deputies.
Being from Norco, I dont want anyone to say Youre exploiting someone here.
MAY 9, 1980
The shootout at the bank killed one of the five robbers. The others stole a yellow pickup and headed north toward Mira Loma, leaving behind the $20,000 in stolen cash, as well as more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition and 15 homemade bombs.
The robbers weaved through the residential streets of Mira Loma, shooting from the bed of the truck and leaving several wounded deputies and disabled cruisers in their wake. As the truck pulled onto the northbound 15, other law officers joined deputies.
The truck ended up driving north on Lytle Creek Road toward the mountains until it was halted by a washed-out dirt road.
Deputy James Evans was leading the pursuit when the shooters started firing. A helicopter sent a warning that the robbers were lying in wait, but Evans cruiser wasnt equipped for the radio frequency. Ambushed and outgunned, Evans was shot and killed.
The robbers fled into the wilderness as roughly 200 officers searched. One suspect was killed by a Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department SWAT team early May 11. The other three surrendered and were sentenced in 1982 to life in prison without parole.
RAW INTENSITY
Cole wrote the bulk of his 122-page Norco script in two weeks in 2012. Fresh out of an MFA program at USC, another screenplay he had written was being adapted for the big screen. That project, Lawless Range starring Beau Bridges, was released in January, according to the Internet Movie Database.
Once filming for Lawless Range ended in late 2014, Cole polished his Norco script while his agent pitched it. In June, MadRiver Pictures a production company behind this years Pride and Prejudice and Zombies bought the screenplay, according to the online database.
Fahad Siddiqi, a MadRiver Pictures executive, said Norco is in early development and no actors have been signed. A release date has not been set.
The Hollywood entertainment news service Deadline reported in June that MadRivers Marc Butan and Mason Novick would produce the film.
Adair wrote a script that tells this story with a raw, almost matter-of-fact intensity that it makes you feel like you are there, Butan told Deadline.
The publication reported that Mark Romanek, director of One Hour Photo, a 2002 film starring Robin Williams, and Never Let Me Go, a 2010 movie with Keira Knightley, was in final negotiations to direct. Siddiqi said a director has not been announced. Still, he was optimistic about Coles screenplay.
Its a great idea, a great story, and were still thinking about how to do this, Siddiqi said.
Confidentiality agreements hamper Coles ability to talk about the plot, but he offered some anecdotes. For instance, almost the entire script follows several deputies on the day of the robbery.
You had so many deputies from all these departments, all these things that had to come together to combat this, Cole said. You couldnt just follow one persons story.
Details from the morning of the shooting, such as the officers interactions with their families, will add context and develop characters, he said.
Cole hopes the film is shot in his hometown, but he has no control over the decision.
Norco Mayor Kevin Bash, an actor and chair of the Norco Film Committee, said he has talked with Norco location scouts who have considered shooting locally. They were disappointed the banks facade has changed, but Bash said the city offers perks such as cheaper filming costs and easier access to large swaths of city streets.
Cole knows many in his hometown remember the story of the deputies and their families. And he intends to retell it accurately.
People want the anti-hero now, Cole said. Thats not what this was. This was good guys and bad guys.
Contact the writer: 951-368-9644, poneill@pressenterprise.com, @PE_PatrickO
Yo, Scotty bear.
Perhaps you dont think of UC Riversides ursine mascot as particularly dope. But next weekend, the campus will be injected with a heavy dose of hip-hop when its dance department sponsors the three-day Show and Prove Conference spotlighting the street-spawned culture.
Imani Kai Johnson, a professor of dance, is the conference organizer. She organized two previous conferences in 2010 and 2012 in New York, where she was a post-doctoral fellow at NYU. She came to UCR two years ago.
I think its an excellent fit for UCR, said Johnson, a Brooklyn native. Im in the dance department, and to me its about engaging a lot of students.
She said she is hoping to draw between 100 and 200 people to the three day event, April 8-10, that will include panel discussions, workshops and presentations covering dance, art, literature, theater and film.
Highlights of the event include a Friday night screening of Dope, at 7 p.m., and a 9 a.m. Sunday dance workshop with legendary breakdancer Ken Swift, who will be a visiting professor at UCR during the spring quarter.
Johnson said even though shes presenting the conference on a different coast, shes confident it will work just as well.
I think it will translate excellently, she said. Theres already such a strong history of hip-hop culture here across the (spectrum of) dance, music and theater. Theres great interest and we think it will develop into a successful series.
Johnson said UCR already has some hip-hop history of its own, especially with the work of theater professor Rickerby Hinds. Hinds will be on two panels during the conference and will present a theater piece Saturday evening.
Johnson also spotlighted a master class with DJ Lynnee Denise.
While I think the popular interpretation of hip-hop is that its a commercial music form, she said, artists understand it to be a broader culture.
Shes hoping that message will be clear from the conference offerings. And shes expecting attendees to help direct the conversation.
The conference, she said, is a place where people can share their ideas and scholarship. Hip-hop, she added, can feel like a moving target, continually expanding and continually evolving. As a field of study, its young. There are people doing studies on its first exposure to the main stream in the late 70s.
Johnson said she is encouraged by the response shes had so far, considering UCR is not in the thick of the urban scene. Shes anticipating it will be a continuing event and hopes to mount another one in two years.
Theres been interest from across the state, across the country, she said. We have people coming from outside the U.S. that are going to be presenting. One of my implicit goals is to shine a light on the things happening here.
That includes the city itself. Johnson said she is working with several Riverside businesses that are providing special deals to those attending or presenting at the conference, including the Mission Inn.
Hip-hop can be anywhere, she said. Why not the Mission Inn?
The conference is free and open to the public. More information is available at www.showand proveconference.com
Even if you cant stay for everything, she said, come for something.
Contact the writer: mmuckenfuss@pressenterprise.com or 951-368-9595
The driver of a white pickup was taken to the hospital in critical condition after he collided with a utility pole and storefront late Friday, April 1.
The crash occurred at about 10:35 p.m., when a 20-year-old Riverside resident traveling north on Brockton Avenue at a high rate of speed hit the curb near the intersection of San Simeon Way, a Riverside Police Department news release states.
The truck smashed through a wooden utility pole and part of an unoccupied business.
Riverside Fire Department crews removed the man from his truck and provided life support on his way to the hospital. No one else was injured in the crash.
The business has been temporarily closed due to vast structural damage.
The crash is under investigation. No other information was available early Saturday.
Anyone with information is urged to call Riverside police Detective Soria at 951-826-8720.
The Inland purchasing managers index, a measure of the local economy based on production, new orders, and inventory, showed a drop in March to 51.7, down nearly five points from February and an indication of slow economic growth.
The index from the Institute of Applied Research based at Cal State San Bernardino covers Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
But number remains above the 50-point mark fixed by analysts as the line between growth and contraction for the local economy, according to the institute.
Nationally, the Institute for Supply Management put the March index at 51.8.
The Inland March figure is the third month in a row above that line, noted Barbara Sirotnik, the director of the institute, although the assessment said the local economy was growing at a snails pace.
The March survey was based on data from 31 participants from local businesses. They were generally less than enthusiastic about the state of the economy for the coming quarter, Sirotnick said in a statement.
More than three-fourths 78 percent of the purhcasing managers surveyed said the economy will remain unchanged, another 15 percent said it will grow stronger and 7 percent forecast a weakening of the economy, although that was down from 13 percent in February.
One of the participants, Allegra Marketing Print Mail founder and owner Eugene Montanez, said while business has generally been flat recently, we see mostly positive comments from our customers.
His Corona-based business does direct mail, collateral mail and design work for a variety of businesses including manufacturers, restaurants and food services as well as some wholesale and distribution businesses.
We see a pretty wide range of companies, he said in a phone interview Friday, April 1. If we had a lot of comments about the sky falling, I think we would hear about it sooner than most. Montanez is also a member of the Corona City Council.
Some of the month-over-month numbers: Production was down, 51.6 compared with 64.5 in February, and new orders decreased to 53.2 from Februarys 56.2, but the employment index increased from 51.6 to 55.0 for March.
The fact that these key indices continue to be above the 50 percent baseline reflects increasing consumer confidence and expectation that consumer purchases will increase in the near future, the report said.
Commodity prices rose 54.8 against 50.0 for February.
Supplier deliveries went from 53.1 to 48.4. That means deliveries were faster but thats not good. Delivery speed picks up when theres less to deliver, Sirotnik explained.
The index has made multi-point moves for the past six months, at 44.1 in September, as low as 42.1 in December and back to the 56.5 of February.
Sirotnick said manufacturers are looking at a broad number of factors.
The situation stock market in China, the political landscape in the United States, the minimum wage being raised its really a gestalt of all that, she said.
Bud Weisbart, vice president of marketing and co-owner of the A&R Tarpaulins aerospace company in Fontana, echoed that.
In the short run, we are doing very well. In the long run, we are very concerned because of the political circus going on, said Weisbart, adding that about 80 percent of his companys business is aerospace.
Contact the writer: rdeatley@pressenterprise.com or 951-368-9573
WASHINGTON After dozens of contests featuring cliffhangers, buzzer-beaters and a ton of flagrant fouls, were down to the Final Four: Sanders, Clinton, Cruz and Trump. (If Kasich pulls a miracle, hell get his own column.) The world wants to know: What are their foreign policies?
Herewith, four candidates and four schools: pacifist, internationalist, unilateralist and mercantilist.
Bernie Sanders, pacifist.
His pacifism is part swords-into-plowshares utopianism, part get-thee-gone isolationism. Emblematic was the Nov. 14 Democratic debate, which was supposed to focus on the economy but occurred the day after the Paris massacre. Sanders objected to starting the debate with a question about Paris. He did not prevail, however, and answered the first question with some anti-terror pablum that immediately gave way to an impassioned attack on his usual handful of billionaires.
Sanders boasts of voting against the Iraq War. But he also voted against the 1991 Gulf War. His reaction to all such dilemmas is the same anti-imperialist/pacifist reflex: Stay away, but if we must get involved, let others lead.
Thats for means. As for ends, Sanders foreign policy objectives are invariably global and universal, beginning, above all, with climate change. The rest is foreign-policy-as-social-work do-goodism, most especially undoing the work of U.S. imperialism.
Dont be surprised if President Sanders hands Guantanamo Bay over to the Castros, although Alaska looks relatively safe for now.
Closest historical analog: George McGovern.
Hillary Clinton, internationalist.
The Clinton/Obama foreign policy from Ukraine to Iran to the South China Sea has been a demonstrable failure. But in trying to figure out what President Clinton would do, we need to note that she often gave contrary advice, generally more assertive and aggressive than President Obamas, that was overruled, most notably, keeping troops in Iraq beyond 2011 and early arming of the Syrian rebels.
The Libya adventure was her grand attempt at humanitarian interventionism. Shes been chastened by the disaster that followed.
Her worldview is traditional, post-Vietnam liberal internationalism America as the indispensable nation, but consciously restraining its exercise of power through multilateralism and near-obsessive legalism.
Closest historical analog: the Bill Clinton foreign policy of the 1990s.
Ted Cruz, unilateralist.
The most aggressive of the three contenders thus far. Wants post-Cold War U.S. leadership restored. Is prepared to take risks and act alone when necessary. Pledges to tear up the Iran deal, cement the U.S.-Israel alliance and carpet bomb the Islamic State.
Closest analog: Ronald Reagan.
Donald Trump, mercantilist.
He promises to make America strong, for which, he explains, he must first make America rich. Treating countries like companies, he therefore promises to play turnaround artist for a foreign policy that is currently a hopeless money-losing operation in which our allies take us for fools and suck us dry.
You could put the Sanders, Clinton and Cruz foreign policies on a recognizable ideological spectrum, left to right. But not Trumps. It inhabits a different space because it lacks any geopolitical coherence. Its all about money. He sees no particular purpose for allies or foreign bases. They are simply a financial drain.
The one exception to this singular focus on foreign policy as a form of national enrichment is the Islamic State. Trumps goal is simple bomb the s out of them. Yet even here he cant quite stifle his mercantilist impulses, insisting that after crushing the Islamic State, hell keep their oil. Whatever that means.
Closest historical analog: King Philip II of Spain (1556-98).
On Jan. 20, one of these four contenders will be sworn in as president. And one of these four approaches to the world will become the foreign policy of the United States.
Dont say you werent warned.
Three disparate California lawmakers lead Congress oversight of the U.S. spy services, sharing secrets but not the same spin.
One is a former San Francisco mayor and the states deal-making senior senator. Another comes from the rural Central Valley, holding a masters degree in agriculture. The third is a Harvard Law School-trained former federal prosecutor with statewide political ambitions.
When terrifying things happen, from Brussels to San Bernardino, these congressional overseers get called. Daily, even when all seems quiet, they must struggle to corral bureaucracies that keep mum about how they spend an estimated $53 billion a year.
The CIA, by culture and instinct, is not prone to really open up and provide information, former CIA Director Leon Panetta, himself a former California congressman, said in an interview, adding, in a reference to congressional testimony, there were some whose instinct was to go up there and try to stonewall.
The resulting clashes can be consequential.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, now the ranking Democrat on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, battled for years with the CIA over the committees still-secret study of harsh interrogation practices.
The CIA provided extensive amounts of inaccurate information about the operation of the program and its effectiveness to the White House, the Department of Justice, Congress, the CIA inspector general, the media and the American public, Feinstein said when releasing the reports executive summary in 2014.
The current chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., is now investigating the alleged manipulation of war assessments by the U.S. Central Command. Last year, citing anonymous sources, The New York Times alleged that Centcom officials had overstated progress against the Islamic State and other U.S. enemies.
Nunes, in an interview, said a special multi-committee task force was needed to investigate the allegations because officials were trying to hide from oversight through bureaucratic sleight-of-hand.
There was manipulation of intelligence, Nunes said, adding that weve had whistle-blowers who have come forward.
Nor is Congress immune from criticism, with the 9/11 Commission in 2004 warning that congressional intelligence oversight was dysfunctional at the time. Since then, Congress has made some changes, though not all the ones recommended by the 9/11 Commission.
Each of the current intelligence overseers is a groundbreaker, in his or her own way.
Feinstein was the first woman and first Californian to chair the Senate intelligence panel.
Nunes is the first member from the Central Valley to chair the House intelligence panel. At 42, hes second-youngest of the 14 chairmen to head the committee since it was established in 1975.
And the ranking Democrat who serves alongside Nunes, Rep. Adam Schiff of California, makes this Congress the first time members from the same state have held the House intelligence committees top two seats.
We all understand the importance of our responsibilities, particularly with all that is going on in the world, and want to get things done, Schiff, 55, said of his relationship with Nunes, adding that it helps that were both Raiders fans.
Each maintains ambitions of their own, for which effective committee performance could come in handy.
Nunes says hed like to chair, some day, the powerful tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee. Schiff, who has stockpiled $2 million in campaign cash, has eyed the Senate, declaring last year that he would relish the chance to serve the entire state.
Citing his intelligence committee position, Schiff ultimately ruled out a run for the seat being vacated this year by Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer. The next Senate opening occurs in 2018.
The 82-year-old Feinstein, first elected in 1992, has not said whether she will run again for re-election in two years.
I have two years and nine months left, so there is ample time to make a decision, she told The Sacramento Bee editorial board on Wednesday.
California is intimately tied to the intelligence world. From discrete contractors like Palantir Technologies, a Palo Alto-based data analytics firm that Fortune magazine valued at $20 billion, to Southern Californias vast aerospace industry, the commercial and intellectual connections abound.
We depend a great deal on those companies that are based in California, Panetta acknowledged.
And, each of the overseers has put a distinctive stamp on the work.
Feinstein is always well prepared and zeroes in with very specific questions, Panetta recalled. Feinstein, who couldnt be reached to comment for this story, can also be turf-conscious, as when she showed displeasure after the White House in 2009 didnt check with her before tapping Panetta as director of central intelligence.
She feels she should be consulted, Panetta said, with a knowing laugh.
Schiff brings a lawyers analytical mind to bear on intelligence problems, Nunes said. The former prosecutor also regularly opines publicly on national security matters. In March, Schiff sent out five intelligence-related press releases. Nunes sent out one, and held a half-hour meeting with reporters in the Capitol.
Nunes reorganized his panels subcommittees and, this year, elevated to staff director his long-time aide, Tulare County native and Air Force veteran Damon Nelson. Nelsons predecessor as chief of staff, California State University at San Bernardino graduate Jeff Shockey, was hired in January as vice president of federal legislative affairs for aerospace giant and spy satellite competitor Boeing.
The state Legislature approved a plan Thursday to gradually raise the minimum wage to $15. This debate particularly resonates in the Inland Empire, which unfortunately has long seen poverty rates hover around 1-in-5. Mindful of this, Inland representatives in Sacramento made their cases passionately as they weighed the benefits and costs of such a dramatic move.
Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown, D-San Bernardino, took to the Assembly floor to argue an increase in the minimum wage is not only necessary, but should be paired with increases to Supplemental Security Income and State Supplementary Payments to help seniors and disabled Californians.
Stagnant wages have hindered economic growth and relegated too many Californians to a life of poverty, especially in the Inland Empire, she said, while noting the downsides of a minimum wage increase. As businesses raise the cost of services, we risk permanently relegating seniors and disabled Californians to a life of poverty, if we do not raise the SSI and SSP.
In contrast, state Sen. Jeff Stone, R-Temecula, took to the Senate floor to argue such a steep increase would burden small businesses. People need work and this bill will tell small business owners, who are faced with higher costs and more regulations, they shouldnt even bother to open or expand, he said.
In a similar vein, Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez, R-Lake Elsinore, issued a statement condemning the vote as yet another example of the Democratic majoritys failed policies, arguing the wage increase would only make it harder to live in California.
Small businesses, which create half of the states jobs, cant afford another skyrocketing cost and will be forced to layoff employees, she argued. As a result, there will be fewer jobs for the very people this is meant to support.
This is a concern that we share. While there are sure to be many beneficiaries from a minimum wage increase, small business owners, job creators and those seeking their first or second job are not among them. Wed like to see lawmakers put a greater emphasis on clearing away barriers to job creation rather than imposing new ones, however well-intentioned they might be.
Ultimately, we all aspire to the same ends. We do not want to see families living in poverty or people working obscene hours just to make ends meet. But does an artificially inflated minimum wage constitute a sustainable solution? We have our doubts.
This has been a weird, weird year for April Fools pranks. Google, previously the untouchable queen of seasonally-appropriate lols, unwittingly threw a slew of Gmail users into disarray with some ill-informed GIFfery. That left a gaping hole in the gag-market that only a pioneering juggernaut of a brand could take advantage of.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, that April Fools Day 2016 champion has been anointed. And its a company that makes instant pasta. And they dropped a trap mixtape. And it bangs.
Yeah, we know. Hamburger Helper is a company that, as far as we can tell, riffs heavily on the throw-it-in-a-bowl-and-heat market. The only link theyd really have with the trap house is maybe, maybe a love of Pyrex dishware, but even then its a stretch.
And thats what makes this wonderful non-sequitur of a mixtape so great. Watch The Stove is a slick, professionally-produced collection of tracks exclusively about that mac & cheese life. Thrown together by Minnesota team Dequexatron X000, Retro Spectro, and students at McNally Smith College of Music, it sounds like none of the above took it as a joke. At all.
Anyway. Well let you cook, right here:
Source: Mashable / Soundcloud.
Photo: Hamburger Helper / Twitter.
LOS ANGELES -- Los Angeles County prosecutors on Friday charged a man who shot and killed his son with premeditated murder, alleging that he committed the crime because his son was gay.
Los Angeles police officers investigate Tuesday, March 29, 2016, outside a North Hills house after suspect Shehada Issa's wife and son were found dead.
The district attorney's office said Shehada Issa, 69, had allegedly threatened to kill his 29-year-old son, Amir, in the past because he was gay.
"The murder was committed because of the victim's sexual orientation and because of the defendant's perception of that status and the victims' association with a person and a group of that status," prosecutors said in a statement.
Issa was arrested Tuesday after Los Angeles police officers found the young man's body outside a North Hills house. Issa's wife was found stabbed to death inside the house.
Detectives said Issa told officers he found his wife's body in a bathroom. He said he shot his son in self-defense because the young man was threatening him with a knife.
"He claimed (the son) was armed with a knife, and there was no knife to be found (there). It was a horrible family tragedy," Detective John Doerbecker told the Daily News after Issa's arrest.
An investigation into who killed Issa's wife is ongoing.
Issa is being held without bail pending his arraignment on April 11.
He faces life in prison if convicted of the charge..
An intoxicated man with a knife wound ended up being charged with driving under the influence after he drove himself to the emergency room last month, state police said.
Troopers were called to the emergency room at the Carlisle Regional Medical Center in South Middleton Township just before 6 p.m. on March 17 after receiving a report about a man with a knife wound.
Investigators arrived at the hospital and spoke with the injured man, a 53-year-old man from Carlisle, and determined that the wound was "accidentally self-inflicted," police said.
"However, the accused drove to the (hospital) while intoxicated," according to a news release from the police.
After several years of dormancy, the never-settled abortion debate may be rekindled next week in the Pennsylvania General Assembly.
The state House's Health Committee is scheduled Monday to take up a bill that would limit abortions to cases of medical necessity after 20 weeks of pregnancy, instead of the current 24-week ceiling.
House Bill 1948 would also sharply curtail the use of a common second-trimester abortion technique known as dilation and evacuation, in which the fetus is extracted with tools, their bodies often torn apart in the process.
In many cases, doctors say, it is the safest abortion technique for a mother after the first trimester.
But under this bill the technique would be defined as "dismemberment abortion," and it too would only be permitted in cases where the mother would otherwise be at risk of death or "substantial and irreversible" loss of major bodily functions.
According to the state Health Department, there were 1,550 dilation and evacuation abortions performed in 2014, the last year for which data is available. That represented about 4.8 percent of all abortions in Pennsylvania.
But those procedures represented more than 40 percent of all abortions completed after the fourth month of a pregnancy.
That's where opponents are finding their rallying cry.
Some said Friday this bill may be the biggest single attempt to restrict abortion rights in Pennsylvania since the current law's adoption in 1989.
"It raises serious constitutional concerns by banning safe and legal abortion at various points in pregnancy without any concern for a woman's unique circumstances and health needs," said Amanda Allen, senior state legislative counsel at the New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights.
Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania Advocates called the proposed bill a "dangerous, extreme, and out of touch abortion ban... criminalizing women who seek abortion care in the second trimester."
In fact, the bill criminalizes the procedure when the exceptions aren't met, but specifies that charges would attach to the person performing the abortion.
Supporters see it very differently.
They say the bill's twin goals are to recognize medical advances made since the main abortion control law was adopted in Pennsylvania, and also to end a particularly cruel and barbaric form of abortion.
Abortion opponents say the first change is warranted under U.S. Supreme Court decisions that effectively guarantee a right to abortion until the fetus is viable outside the womb.
Rep. Kathy Rapp, R-Warren County and the prime sponsor of the bill, cited advances in neo-natal technology that can now keep premature babies alive before 24 weeks, Pennsylvania's current threshold, and assertions that a fetus can feel pain after 20 weeks.
Rapp points to stories of doctors administering anesthesia to fetuses who are receiving in-the-womb surgical procedures because they believe the child can feel pain.
"At twenty weeks gestation, there is no denying it's a child," Rapp, chair of the General Assembly's Pro-Life caucus, said Friday. "And we are trying to be the voice of that unborn child."
Twelve states have 20-week thresholds in place at present, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health rights organization.
In Pennsylvania, state Health Department records show, only 328 abortions occurred after the 20th week of gestation last year, or about 1 percent of the total.
The second change, supporters say, is a simple attempt to eradicate cruelty.
"Imagine the outcry if once a day, someone walked in to a Pennsylvania nursery and brutally killed 4-5 babies by ripping them apart," said Michael Ciccocioppo, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation.
"Yet that's what is happening to these babies in their mother's womb (through the D&E procedure) and 61 percent of Pennsylvanians agree this is wrong and must end now."
"Dismemberment abortion" is becoming something of a crusade for anti-abortion groups around the country.
A similar ban was enacted in Kansas last year, but enforcement was blocked after an appellate court there deadlocked on the issue, allowing a lower court decision that struck the bill down to stand.
That case is now pending before the Kansas Supreme Court.
Depending on how Pennsylvania's debate goes, the bill could be positioned for final action in the House in the April 8 session week.
There was some uncertainty about that heading into the weekend - especially with Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump's heavily criticized comments on abortion rights still dominating national news coverage.
As with many controversial issues, final decisions about floor action may not be made until after the GOP members meet in closed-door caucuses early in the session week.
The abortion front has been pretty quiet in Pennsylvania since 2012, when efforts to require women choosing abortion to first undergo an ultrasound were defeated.
In 2011, Gov. Tom Corbett did sign into a law a bill imposing stricter patient protections standards on abortion clinics across the state. That measure was driven by the indictment earlier that year of the rogue abortion provider Dr. Kermit Gosnell, who was eventually found guilty of killing a baby born alive at his West Philadelphia clinic after a botched abortion.
Some Capitol observers believe the issue is getting fresh life now because it is a good, pre-election issue to work on for the relatively few pro-life Republicans with primary election challengers.
Others cited a desire by House leaders to off-set potential antagonism with the Catholic Church - a staunchly anti-abortion entity - at a time when the House is also looking to change statute of limitations laws on cases of child sexual abuse.
But HB 1948's supporters, including Rapp, noted this week they have been working on drafts throughout the current legislative session. So in their mind, the bill is ripe for debate.
Opponents, meanwhile, said they are equally ripe for a fight.
"Similar laws have been successfully challenged--and defeated-- in state and federal courts," warned Allen, of the Center for Reproductive Rights. "We call upon Pennsylvania legislators to reject this cruel and callous measure outright."
Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
What are the recalls?
From mandarin oranges distributed at Pittsburgh-area food banks to defective garden shears, this weekly report gives you a look at all the food and product recalls announced recently.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
Garden shears
Fiskars is recalling its 32-inch Bypass Lopper Shears due to a laceration hazard.
The shears are sold exclusively at Home Depot and model number 6954 is printed on one of the handles.
The lopper handles can break when attempting to cut branches, which can cause serious injury and cuts.
Customers can have the product replaced or get more info by calling Fiskars at 855-544-0151 or by visiting the website at www2.fiskars.com.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
Carabiners
Black Diamond is recalling its Carabiners for Climbing due a falling hazard.
The carabiner can unexpectedly open and allow the rope to become detached, posing a risk of injury or death to climbers who fall.
Consumers can have the carabiners replaced by calling Black Diamond at 800-755-5552 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday or visit online at http://blackdiamondequipment.com.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
Red pepper strips
Roland Foods LLC is recalling its Fire Roasted Red Pepper Strips due to possible glass fragments in the product, which poses a potential health hazard.
The affected cans have UPC number 041224456280.
No other sizes of Roland Fire Roasted Red Pepper Strips or products are affected by the voluntary recall.
For replacement information, customers can call the companys consumer hotline from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 800-221-4030 or visit www.rolandfood.com.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
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Manhattan Toy Co. is recalling its Busy Loops table-top toys due to a choking hazard.
The round plastic beads can break, posing a choking hazard.
Consumers can get a refund by calling Manhattan Toy at 800-541-1345 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday or visiting online at www.manhattantoy.com.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
Mandarin oranges
The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank is recalling some of its mandarin oranges due to possible contamination.
Imperial Choice Mandarin Oranges Broken Segments in Light Syrup is the brand affected because some of the cans may leak, bulge or burst open.
The product may be contaminated by spoilage organisms or pathogens, which could lead to serious or life-threatening illness if consumed.
This recall only affects cans marked with code 4200/01029.
Even if cans from this lot appear normal, this product should not be eaten.
This recall only involves cans that were distributed August 2015 through January 2016 in the Food Bank's network of pantries throughout southwestern Pennsylvania.
It was also distributed at Produce to People distributions in Allegheny Valley, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Greene, McKeesport, Sheraden, Southside, Washington and West Greene, and through emergency aid boxes provided to people visiting the Food Bank's facility in Duquesne.
Any consumer, who has cans from this lot, should dispose of them.
Pantries with cans from this lot should remove them from their shelves and contact the Food Bank with an inventory of how many cans are remaining.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
Wheat muffins
Flowers Foods Inc. is recalling its Cobblestone Bread Co. Wheat English Muffins because an allergen wasnt listed among the ingredients.
The muffins contain milk, which wasnt included on the label.
Products in the recall have UPC number 072250013161 and best by dates of Oct. 28, 2015 through April 10, 2016.
People who have allergies to dairy products run the risk of serious or lifethreatening allergic reaction if they consume these products.
Consumers who have purchased Cobblestone Bread Co. Wheat English Muffins, with the UPC and dates noted, are urged to return the products for a replacement or refund.
Consumers with questions may call Flowers' Consumer Relations Center at 866-245-8921 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, or they can visit http://www.flowersfoods.com.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
Side chairs
Grosfillex is recalling its side chairs and armless bar stools due to a falling hazard.
Havana side chairs and armless bar stools
The backrest can crack and detach, posing a fall hazard to the user.
Consumers can call the company about a replacement or refund at 844-845-4570, ext. 3210, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday or by emailing gfxprogram@grosfillex.com.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
Trader Joe's chocolate
Trader Joes is recalling its Chocolate Orange Sticks and Chocolate Raspberry Sticks because an allergen wasnt listed among the ingredients.
The snacks may contain more than the traces of milk on the label.
People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to milk run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume these products.
Customers who have purchased the Trader Joe's Chocolate Orange Sticks and/or Trader Joe's Chocolate Raspberry Sticks may return them to Trader Joe's for a full refund. Customers with questions may contact Trader Joe's customer relations at 626-599-3817, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Friday.
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Candy Woodall | cwoodall@pennlive.com
2)d
The state Department of Agriculture is advising consumers to discard several varieties of milk and ice cream from Trickling Springs Creamery in Chambersburg, Franklin County, due to a technical malfunction in the pasteurization recording process.
Affected varieties include:
Trickling Springs organic nonfat milk: one gallon plastic containers with the sell-by date of April 8, 2016
FarmFriend whole chocolate milk: half-gallon glass bottles with the sell-by date of April 9, 2016
FarmFriend whole chocolate milk: quart plastic bottles with the sell-by date of April 9, 2016
FarmFriend whole chocolate milk: pint plastic bottles with the sell-by date of April 9, 2016
Moo Thru whole creamline milk: half-gallon glass bottles with the sell-by date of April 9, 2016
11% ice cream mix: one gallon plastic bottles with the manufacturing date of March 23, 2016.
16% ice cream mix: one gallon plastic bottles with the manufacturing date of March 24, 2016
Trickling Springs Creamery management notified the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture that the creamery's pasteurizer recorder chart did not contain the required information for proof of pasteurization on March 23 and 24. Trickling Springs Creamery has been making efforts to recall all the products produced during the affected time frame.
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture today said that no other products manufactured by Trickling Springs Creamery are affected.
For more information about the department, visit www.agriculture.pa.gov.
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MILL HALL -- A UPS driver has pleaded guilty to summary traffic charges stemming from a collision with a horse and buggy in Clinton County in which a mother and her eight-year-old son were killed.
Sherry Croak, 55, of Lock Haven, had sought a trial on charges of careless driving resulting in death, failure to drive on the right side of road and meeting a vehicle proceeding in the opposite direction.
However, when she appeared Friday for the trial she informed District Judge John Maggs she changed her mind and had paid fines and costs totaling $790.
Croak had been sent a summons in February listing her charges from the July 10 accident near Loganton in which Rachel Beiler, 36, and her son David, were killed and four others injured.
State police said truck driven by Croak veered into the opposite lane of traffic when it struck the buggy driven by Aaron F. Beiler. He, two other sons and a daughter suffered major injuries.
The impact with the truck's driver side bumper caused the buggy to roll onto its side, troopers said. The horse was killed and the truck continued approximately 100 feet and struck a tree, they said.
A state police investigation determined there was a lack of evidence to show willful disregard for others, a requirement for a vehicular homicide charge, District Attorney David Strouse had said when the charges were filed.
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By Joel Mathis and Ben Boychuk
The debate over religious liberty versus gay rights has flared up again. North Carolina just passed a bill telling cities they can't pass non-discrimination ordinances protecting gay and lesbian residents, while Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal vetoed a bill that let faith-based organizations deny services and jobs to LGBT individuals.
A similar bill has been simmering in Missouri's Legislature, and other states may soon be considering them as well.
Do such bills protect religious folks from acting against their beliefs? Or do they permit discrimination against gays and lesbians? Joel Mathis and Ben Boychuk debate the issue.
JOEL MATHIS
The funny thing about the Georgia bill? How completely unnecessary it was.
One prime aim of the bill: To make sure that government could never, ever tell Catholic priests - or clergy of any other religion - to perform a gay wedding.
Guess what? That was never, ever going to happen. America's long history of religious liberty would never allow it, even if politicians were suicidal enough to pass such a law: It would never be enforced a Supreme Court that just recently said that Hobby Lobby's owners don't have to pay for birth control because of their religious objections.
In America, religious freedom often trumps everything else.
So why all the fire and angst to pass the Georgia bill? Our best clue comes from North Carolina, where a separate bill - different in substance, if same in discriminatory intent - passed last week.
First: The bill was introduced, passed and signed into law in less than 12 hours. That's extraordinary speed, and it was evidently meant to allow the law's passage without allowing the public time to scrutinize or muster any meaningful opposition. The process was simply, and deliberately, undemocratic.
Second: The North Carolina bill declares that municipalities - like Charlotte - cannot pass their own antidiscrimination ordinances. So even if local communities wish to protect gays and lesbians in their midst, they won't be allowed to do so.
All of this suggests that current religious liberty efforts are nothing more than a political power play.
See: There are many Americans who legitimately believe their religion calls them to oppose gay marriage. But many folks are mostly angry that American culture no longer shares their views. The religious freedom they seek is the right to be, well, right - to be vindicated by law and society, to be in the majority, to not have to worry that one's opinions are seen by others as bigotry.
But no American has a right to such vindication.
Some legitimate religious liberty concerns might arise as gay rights take root. That wasn't the case in North Carolina or Georgia. The battle for LGBT freedom still isn't over.
BEN BOYCHUK
Critics of Georgia's religious liberty bill seem to want to have it both ways. The bill is totally unnecessary. The bill would give state sanction to bigotry and discrimination. Well, which is it?
The answer, of course, is neither claim is true. The Georgia bill was a necessary, if modest corrective, to a very bad trend. It was, in fact, an anti-bigotry and antidiscrimination measure.
The bill would have protected clergy and churches from secular coercion. Nobody would have been prevented from getting married. It would have protected religious organizations' property rights, as well as their right to hire and fire people whose views are consistent with their mission and beliefs. Simple really.
Gov. Deal might have said as much, if he had the courage and the wit. Instead, he tied himself into knots trying to explain why knuckling under to big business and left-wing propagandists was really a victory for social tolerance and small government.
Deal claimed the controversy over whether or not the bill would encourage discrimination really just showed why the question was "best left to the broad protections of the First Amendment" - and, presumably, to the wisdom of the courts.
But as University of Notre Dame law professor Gerard V. Bradley points out, those "protections" are "neither broad nor deep, especially when they run up against the demands of the LGBT community."
Fact is, America's long history of religious freedom has depended greatly on favorable public opinion and the outlook of judges.
If enough elected officials feel enough public pressure, the laws that provide churches and religious institutions with certain protections and benefits - tax-exempt status, for instance - will go away. So will the First Amendment, if that's what the people want.
But what's to prevent some future government bureaucracy from ordering a church or a minister to marry a same-sex couple or face fines and imprisonment? A judge may find a "compelling state interest" to do so. And a Supreme Court with more justices inclined to think like Elena Kagan or Ruth Bader Ginsburg rather than Antonin Scalia or Clarence Thomas may very well agree.
So never say "never." The question is far from settled. In truth, it may be the most important question facing the country right now.
Ben Boychuk (bboychukcity-journal.org) is associate editor of the Manhattan Institute's City Journal. Joel Mathis (joelmmathisgmail.com) is associate editor for Philadelphia Magazine. Visit them on Facebook: www.facebook.com/benandjoel
FILE - In this Wednesday, March 23, 2016, Actor Leonardo DiCaprio waves during a photo session of the movie The Revenant in Tokyo. An Indonesian immigration official says Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio may be banned from returning to Indonesia over his criticisms that palm oil plantations are destroying the country's rainforests. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)
St. Mary's gets win No. 300, Felten sets 8-man kicking record
What could have been a game to overlook was a milestone night for Gaylord St. Mary's in its final home game of the regular season.
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Fusion Antibodies and MAB Discovery to collaborate on the development of fully humanized antibodies
Details Category: More News Published on Saturday, 02 April 2016 13:37 Hits: 1643
BELFAST, UK and NEURIED, Germany I March 31, 2016 I Fusion Antibodies, a UK-based contract research organisation and MAB Discovery, a unique antibody discovery company, today announced their intention to enter into a research and licence agreement in the field of monoclonal antibodies. Within the scope of this collaboration, Fusion Antibodies will apply its proprietary CDRx(TM) Multiplex platform to humanize therapeutic antibodies selected and produced by MAB Discovery. MAB Discovery will provide high-quality humanized antibodies ready for further development to potential partners.
"We are very pleased to be working with Fusion Antibodies, a well-respected antibody engineering firm with strong expertise in humanization," said Dr. Stephan Fischer, Chief Executive Officer of MAB Discovery. "The planned collaboration will enable us to provide our customers added value by offering high-quality humanized antibodies that are ready to be validated and brought into development. We also expect that combining our technologies will reduce the time from target to clinical candidate."
"Through this collaboration we are able to create synergies and provide clients with perfect antibody candidates. They will get access to rapid discovery and development of new antibodies through MAB Discovery's unique immunization and B cell cloning technology. MAB Discovery has developed a rabbit-based platform that produces monoclonal antibodies with unprecedented epitope coverage and potency," said Dr. Paul Kerr, Managing Director at Fusion Antibodies.
About Fusion Antibodies
Fusion Antibodies; a UK based life science company, with innovative technologies and world-class expert services for antibody drug discovery, are specialists in production of High Quality Humanized Monoclonal Antibodies, Antibody Engineering Projects and cell line development. With 15+ years of experience in the medical research & diagnostic industry, with >50 humanized projects to date (from Rabbit, Rat, Mouse, Chicken, Llama); Fusion Antibodies have extensive experience in accelerating therapeutic immunotherapy research towards the clinic.
Fusion Antibodies has the knowledge and expertise to build and deliver a modular package of the services you need to achieve outstanding results. They provide Royalty Free Antibody Humanization of Monoclonal Antibodies and using their next generation in silico CDRx(TM) technology, they have modernized the traditional CDR grafting technique. Fully humanized monoclonal antibodies are an essential step in the progression of therapeutic drugs to the clinic and the in-house expertise at Fusion Antibodies ensures its success. Visit their website at www.fusionantibodies.com to find out more.
About MAB Discovery and its technology platform
MAB Discovery is focused on creating a vast repertoire of high quality monoclonal antibodies in terms of potency and epitope coverage for its clients, who include biotech and pharmaceutical companies such as Sanofi, GenMab A/S, Synthon Biopharmaceuticals and others.
MAB Discovery's proprietary technology utilizes the natural antibody maturation process following immunization. Rather than relying on conventional single hit optimization techniques of a few selected antibodies, the MAB Discovery approach creates a diverse collection of many hundreds of high affinity antibodies. The company uses state-of-the-art automation to select and clone B cells expressing matured antibodies deriving from the immunized animal's entire repertoire to a given immunogen. Using this sophisticated high throughput approach enables MAB Discovery to select antibodies for functionality at an early stage and not just by simple binding. The MAB Discovery team represents a group of scientists out of Roche Biologicals R&D with extensive experience in developing biologically based therapeutics. For more information, please visit www.mabdiscovery.com.
SOURCE: MAB Discovery
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The other day, a white SF State student with dreads accused of cultural appropriation by a black student. The incident, as reported by ABC affiliate KSBW, was caught on video on the schools campus Monday. Witness Nicolas Silvera caught it on film and uploaded it to YouTube.
In the video, she accosts her fellow student in a hallway of a campus building.
Youre saying I cant have a hairstyle because of your culture? Why? asks the incredulous dreadlock-coiffed student.
Because its my culture, she says.
Cory Goldstein informs her that dreadlocks were in Egyptian culture and asks rhetorically Are you Egyptian? Nah, man, youre not.
The woman throws that right back at him. Are you Egyptian? she asks. Wait, wheres Egypt?
But the man wont be drawn into a discussion of Mideast geography.
You know what, girl, you have no right to tell me what I can and cannot wear, Goldstein says while trying to pass her in order to go up a flight of stairs.
At this point the woman grabs Goldsteins arm in an attempt to stop him.
Yo, girl, stop touching me now, he says, before shaking free. I dont need your disrespect.
He then storms off. Meanwhile, the woman confronts the videographer, saying Why are you filming this? and reaching for the camera.
KSBW describes what happened:
No charges were filed, and the University says it is investigating.
Cultural appropriation, as Wikipedia will tell you, is the adoption or use of elements of one culture by members of a different culture. No big deal normally in a world where syncretism rules. Cultures cannot avoid the influence of surrounding cultures, after all, and the same is true of religion and of language.
Jezebel talked to Fordham University Law professor Susan Scafidi, the author of Who Owns Culture? Appropriation and Authenticity in American Law, who explained that cultural appropriation is Taking intellectual property, traditional knowledge, cultural expressions, or artifacts from someone elses culture without permission.
This can include unauthorized use of another cultures dance, dress, music, language, folklore, cuisine, traditional medicine, religious symbols, etc. Its most likely to be harmful when the source community is a minority group that has been oppressed or exploited in other ways or when the object of appropriation is particularly sensitive, e.g. sacred objects.
This normal process then becomes a much bigger issue when it is the dominant culture in this country, white culture taking from an oppressed culture.
If the incident in SF doesnt make enough of a point, how about this in-your-face episode of what we might call cultural misappropriation by Victorias Secret:
Some countries, like France and Iceland, prefer their languages pure. The German band Rammstein wrote a 2004 ode to American cultural imperialism called Amerika which features the band dressed up like Native Americans. Rammstein speaks of Coca Cola and the Wonderbra, of Santa Claus coming to Africa, and and Mickey Mouse standing in front of Paris the Paris most of us know as the center of French culture. The song concludes that were all living in America and that, unsurprisingly, this is not a love song.
Yet Fox News wants to pretend that cultural appropriation, like racism, is something theyve never heard of.
Juan Williams had an encounter with Greg Gutfeld and Eric Bolling on Fox News The Five Friday about this latest incident of cultural appropriation, and Greg Gutfeld, to ones surprise, announced that you dont own anyones culture and that therefore, cultural appropriation is a hoax. Juan Williams told him that though it did not bother him, Cultural appropriation is very real.
Watch courtesy of Media Matters for America:
ERIC BOLLING: Cultural this is a new one for me, Greg. Cultural appropriation. People own culture?
GREG GUTFELD: I hate both of these people equally. Cultural appropriation is a hoax. You dont own anyones culture. In fact I guarantee everything that that black woman was wearing has been appropriated from some other culture, made from somewhere else. But then, white young guys with dreadlocks, its a lifestyle on their head. You know that they drink soy milk. You know that they play drums on the beach. You know they have a hacky sack and you know they have a trust fund. And you also know that they pretend like its not a big deal but theyre dying for to you ask about their dreadlocks. And it stinks.
BOLLING: Juan, does a white guy in dreadlocks offend you? Do you feel hes appropriating your culture?
JUAN WILLIAMS: Not at all. I mean, I find it odd sometimes and I do think its very real. Cultural appropriation is very real. But I mean, you know where I think its real? Its like rap music. Which I, ya know, every time I say to people, you know whos the biggest consumers of rap music are? White people. Teenage white guess. Why do they love it? I guess its teen rebellion or something, and they say stereotypes about black people are rebellions and violent.
BOLLING: So are white teens in the suburbs, theyre appropriating black culture?
WILLIAMS: What?
BOLLING: Theyre appropriating it or just enjoying it?
WILLIAMS: No, theyre taking it. I think, theyre in their car and rapping about over-sexed and violent.
GUTFELD: What about Darius Rucker doing country music?
WILLIAMS: Thats country music. Thats a different thing.
GUTFELD: Hes appropriating white music.
WILLIAMS: Thats a different kind of appropriation if you think of like Elvis or Blue-Eyed Soul, like Hall & Oates. And I love Hall & Oates.
Leave it to Fox News to play the ignorance chord and suck all meaning from the dialogue. Its what they do. Its what their audience wants. Actually thinking about real issues doesnt help anyone, is the Republican mantra, one extending all the way to Congress, as I showed last night.
Cultural appropriation is as old as cultures coming into contact with each other. There is an example of Phoenician appropriation of Egyptian culture in the British Museum, though in this case the Phoenicians cannot be said to be the dominant culture. The Hittites of Asia Minor did not even use their own language, let alone their own gods.
And the Romans appropriated everything they came into contact with to the extent that Roman writer Juvenal expressed himself eloquently on these prudish Roman attitudes by saying that the Orontes had flowed into the Tiber, which speaks of influences born of decadent Antioch, on the river Orontes in distant and exotic (to be read as decadent) Syria.
Many white people (if not only white people) are cultural insensitive. We lack the context of the meaning of objects in their native cultures. We might think it looks cool and you sometimes hear white referred to as vanilla, not only by whites, who have lost contact with their ethnic roots, but by blacks. You can find rural schools full of white kids in love with rap music while entirely lacking the cultural context of that music. You can even find, paradoxically, schools full of Native American kids doing the same.
The incident in San Francisco was a clear case of assault, and a hair-style, or even cultural appropriation is no excuse to assault somebody. That is not to say that the problem does not exist. At the very least, people should be aware of what theyre doing, and of the potential implications. As Jezebel recommended, do some research. In a world where cultural genocide is a very real thing, awareness is never a bad thing.
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By Alana Wise
WASHINGTON (Reuters) Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Friday will propose a $10 billion investment in partnerships to encourage the growth of the U.S. manufacturing sector as part of a national push to discourage outsourcing in the industry.
The proposal would work with a broader campaign to encourage companies to build and expand their U.S. manufacturing operations.
Clinton is slated to roll out the proposal on Friday in Syracuse, New York, ahead of the states nominating contest on April 19.
New York has long been a hub of the manufacturing industry, but suffered significant declines in the sector in recent years. From 2000-2008, upstate New York alone lost nearly 105,000 manufacturing jobs, according to the state government.
Clinton maintains a lead in the state, which she represented in the U.S. Senate, over rival Bernie Sanders, a U.S. Senator from Vermont and a New York native.
Sanders was born and raised in New York Citys borough of Brooklyn. The Clinton campaign is headquartered there.
The campaign said the proposals multi-billion dollar price tag would largely be covered by Clintons proposed clawback tax, which would rescind tax relief for companies that outsource jobs or facilities abroad.
(Reporting by Alana Wise; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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By Lisa Lambert
WASHINGTON (Reuters) Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat who advocates for strong financial regulation, asked U.S. securities regulators to investigate comments made by major insurance companies about a forthcoming federal rule on retirement advice.
Last month, Warren criticized Lincoln National, Jackson National Life Insurance Company, Prudential Financial and Transamerica, a unit of Aegon NV , for publicly stating that the rule requiring retirement advisers to put their clients interests ahead of their own would hurt business while privately telling investors it would not create a major hurdle.
On Thursday, she went one step further and requested the Securities and Exchange Commission to formally look into whether the statements were contradictory and ran afoul of securities laws.
Both sets of industry claims that the proposed rule will harm them and their business model, and that the proposed rule will not harm them and their business model cannot possibly be true. And if one these public statements is materially false, it would appear to violate long-standing interpretations of our securities laws, she wrote to SEC Chair Mary Jo White.
The White House will soon publicly release the latest version of the rule, drafted by the Labor Department.
The 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform law called for holding brokers who give retirement advice to a strong fiduciary standard, meaning they must act in their clients best interest, as a way to protect retirees from buying unnecessary products that line brokers pockets.
The Labor Department had to withdraw its initial version of the rule in 2011 after complaints from members of both political parties and the financial services industry.
Warren says that financial and insurance companies have warned in public that the proposed rule could drive up costs and stop them from offering retirement services such as annuities to middle- and lower-income people.
But in earnings calls they have reassured investors that they will come up with new products or approaches that will minimize threats to their businesses.
Responding to Warrens critique last month, most of the insurers said their public warnings did not contradict reassurances to investors that they could withstand regulatory changes. They said their companies could navigate potential disruptions but they were still concerned about the consequences for consumers seeking retirement advice.
(Reporting by Lisa Lambert; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
Noting Chinas recent activity in the Asia-Pacific region and its implications for regional security, Grant Newsham, research fellow at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies, on Wednesday highlighted Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands' pivotal role as a basing and training location as part of the U.S. regional defense strategy.
Newsham was guest speaker at the monthly membership meeting of the Guam Chamber of Commerce at the Pacific Star Resort & Spa.
Newsham has extensively researched and written about enhancing the amphibious capabilities of the U.S. and its allies in the Asia-Pacific region, describing the process as combining sea, air and ground capabilities. He highlighted the importance of building amphibious capabilities in terms of disaster response, providing the aftermath of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011 as examples.
Newsham also proposed developing the Marianas as a training hub for building the amphibious capabilities of countries within the region, describing the partnership between capable nations as having the potential of creating a political knock-on effect.
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In the article Rethinking 'Amphibiosity' in the Asia-Pacific by Newsham published in the November 2015 issue of the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings Magazine, he pointed out that honing the amphibious capabilities of nations in the key region offers enhanced possibilities for partnerships with the United States.
When China pushes a nation, if the United States can respond with a multilateral amphibious exercise, it will send a message. But to do so, the Marines have to establish the relationships first. An exercise in the northern Marianas with Japan, Australia and U.S. amphibious forces would transmit such a notice to China when it mucks about in the East China Sea. Even a humanitarian exercise in the South China Sea with Japan, the United States, India, Singapore, and others would send yet another very pointed message, he said.
He added, Bringing Guam/CNMI training facilities to fruition - at long last - is important. Done right, it offers opportunities for conducting bilateral and multilateral joint/amphibious training that exists nowhere else in Asia. If Guam/CNMI becomes a reality, the regional amphibious development effort will advance much more rapidly."
During the meeting yesterday, Newsham also provided a wide-ranging look at current and future prospects for stability and/or conflict in the region.
In the wake of recent terrorist attacks, Belgiums Parliament is considering, and is deemed likely to pass, legislation requiring non-EU immigrants to sign a Newcomers Statement pledging adherence to basic European values. While it doesnt distinguish among immigrants, the statement is obviously aimed at Muslims. The concept is an interesting one; here is the Statement in its entirety:
The statement covers the basic flash points that have emerged in connection with Islamic immigration: equality of the sexes, opportunities for girls, acceptance of homosexuality, religious freedom (i.e., no death penalty for apostasy), no terrorism. One wonders: if Belgiums government doubts that a group of immigrants adheres to these basic principles, why are they being admitted? Is it really likely that signing this pledge can assuage whatever doubts exist about certain immigrants participating appropriately in Belgian society? It doesnt seem so.
The pledge also highlights Belgiums Achilles heel: its own multilingual, and to an extent multicultural, nature:
I understand and accept that the language of the region in which I will stay (French, Dutch or German) is essential to participate actively in society. Therefore I will make sufficient efforts to learn these languages and to familiarize myself with this society.
To learn these languages? Does that mean French, Dutch and German? If so, it is not a realistic expectation. And the list of languages testifies uncomfortably to Belgiums fragmented society. Would a comparable pledge in the United States commit the immigrant to learning either English or Spanish?
In principle, I dont have any problem with requiring immigrants to sign some sort of pledge to abide by the values of the host country and to abjure terrorism. But I dont see how such a document can substitute for choosing a nations immigrants wisely in the first place.
It is well-established that President Bill Clinton more than once in the 1990s refused to capture or kill Osama bin Laden when we had him in our graspa fact that Clintons and their retainers have go to great length to deny or obfuscate, including their frantic efforts first to edit and then suppress the TV movie The Path to 9/11.
This afternoon NBC News reports Obamas equivalent dereliction in a bombshell story:
Obama Nixed CIA Plan That Could Have Stopped ISIS: Officials
by and
The CIA in 2012 proposed a detailed covert action plan designed to remove Syrian President Bashar Assad from power, but President Obama declined to approve it, current and former U.S. officials tell NBC News.
Its long been known that then-CIA Director David Petraeus recommended a program to secretly arm and train moderate Syrian rebels in 2012 to pressure Assad. But a book to be published Tuesday by a former CIA operative goes further, revealing that senior CIA officials were pushing a multi-tiered plan to engineer the dictators ouster. Former American officials involved in the discussions confirmed that to NBC News.
In an exclusive television interview with NBC News, the former officer, Doug Laux, describes spending a year in the Middle East meeting with Syrian rebels and intelligence officers from various partner countries. Laux, who spoke some Arabic, was the eyes and ears on the ground for the CIAs Syria task force, he says. . .
A former senior intelligence official said Lauxs ideasmany of them shared by other members of the CIAs Syrian task forcewere heavily represented in the plan that was ultimately presented to Obama.
But the president, who must approve all covert action, never gave the green light. The White House and the CIA declined to comment.
Yesterday afternoon I attended the hearing set by Judge Davis in the cases of the five Minnesota men charged with seeking to join ISIS. I wrote about the cases in the Weekly Standard articles The threat from Minnesota men' and, most recently, in Judging the Minnesota men.' I wrote about the background to yesterdays hearing in Follow that Muhammad. Its hard to keep the Muhammads straight without a scorecard.
Coincidentally, the Standard published the most recent article with a photograph of the star of yesterdays hearing expounding outside the courthouse (above at right). The gentleman is the renowned Somali community leader, imam, law school graduate, legal assistant, adjunct law professor and member of the defense team of defendant Mohamed Farah. His name is variously given, but his Minnesota Dawah Institute profiles him under the name Hassan Jaamici Mohamud. We learned yesterday that one or more defendants in the case apparently refer to him in a secretly recorded conversation as Sheikh Hassan.
The prosecutors have given notice of their intent to introduce evidence that Mohamud taught co-defendant Abdirizak Warsame (who has pleaded guilty) and others how to recite the prayer for jihad on the battlefield just before Warsame and the rest were to leave for Syria. Assistant United States Attorney John Docherty explained that Farah and Warsame talked about the prayer taught by Sheikh Hassan in a conversation recorded by the FBIs confidential source in the case on April 2, 2015. In his discussions with prosecutors related to his guilty plea, Warsame identified the Sheikh Hassan referred to in the recorded conversation as the Hassan Mohamud assisting in Farahs defense.
Mohamud works in the office of defense counsel P. Chinedu Nwaneri; Nwaneri and attorney Murad Mohammud were co-counsel for Farah. On the morning of the hearing yesterday, Nwaneri filed a motion seeking to withdraw from his representation of Farah and thus remove Mohamud from the defense team. After interrogating Nwaneri, Mohammud and Farah, and hearing out other counsel of record in the case, Judge Davis granted Nwaneris withdrawal motion.
As a result of Judge Daviss order setting yesterdays hearing, we learned that Hassan Mohamud had sought to persuade Warsame against pleading guilty. In response to Judge Daviss order setting the hearing, Warsame attorney Jon Hopeman filed an affidavit setting forth Mohamuds efforts to interfere with the deal Hopeman had worked out on behalf of Warsame. On the evening before Warsame was to plead guilty, Mohamud counseled Warsame that all the defendants should stick together and go to trial, and if they did, good things would happen. Hopeman, it should be noted, is a prominent and respected member of Minnesotas defense bar. In his remarks to Judge Davis, Murad Mohammad told Judge Davis that he had emphatically warned Hassan Mohamud not to speak to defendants other than Farah. It was among the first points that Mohammad made.
Sheikh Hasan is a man of many hats and shenanigans. Yesterday he beat a strategic retreat. Thats some community leader youve got there.
Judge Davis is using the biggest courtroom in the federal courthouse for hearings and for the trial scheduled in these cases, yet its still not big enough to accommodate the large contingent of family members and others who turn out for hearings in the case to support the defendants. The courtroom was packed yesterday. Judge Davis uses his own assigned courtroom two floors below for overflow. When I turned up there yesterday looking for the hearing, a DHS agent had a dog sniffing the corridor for bombs.
The Star Tribunes Stephen Montemayor reports on the hearing here; the APs Steve Karnowski reports on the hearing here. Karnowski advises AP readers that they shouldnt get too worked up about the whole jihad thing. Karnowski writes: Muslims typically define [jihad] broadly as struggle. Sorry, Steve, but you have no warrant to say that.
Karnowski and other reporters sought out Mohamud following the hearing, but he was uncharacteristically tactful. He wasnt talking; he referred reporters to Nwaneri. Karnowski, however, found Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, who advised him that prosecutors had misconstrued jihad as meaning holy war. Hussein added: Its clear that the U.S. attorneys office has used anti-Islamic tactics to undermine a good defense for this man.
UPDATE: I should have noted Muktar Ibrahims story (with Laura Yuen) for Minnesota Public Radio previewing and reporting on the hearing.
To She Who Must Be Obeyed we add The Cause Which Must Not Be Named:
The White House website has censored a video of French Pres. Francois Hollande saying that Islamist terrorism is at the roots of terrorism. The White House briefly pulled video of a press event on terrorism with Pres. Obama, and when it reappeared on the WhiteHouse.gov website and YouTube, the audio of Hollandes translator goes silent, beginning with the words Islamist terrorism, then begins again at the end of his sentence. Even the audio of Hollande saying the words Islamist terrorism in French have, apparently, been edited from the video.
Orwell! thou shouldst be living at this hour.
Whole thing here (more here, video below).
UPDATE: The New York Post reports:
The Central Bank of Nigeria has refused to respond to a query from the Federal Character Commission regarding its secretive recruitment of children and relatives of serving and former senior government officials.
The commission is empowered by law to monitor and ensure recruitments by government offices follow the law and maintain a spread across Nigerias states and local government areas.
The latest employment by the CBN is believed to have breached those requirements.
Through a highly secretive process, the bank hired dozens of relatives of government officials including relatives of several government ministers and President Muhammadu Buhari.
The bank told PREMIUM TIMES it conducted targeted recruitment for specialists, and that it obtained a waiver from the Federal Character Commission, allowing it to recruit without advertising for other qualified Nigerians to apply.
The acting chairman of the commission, Shettima Abba, however told this newspaper it was unaware of such waiver, and said the commission had written to the CBN requesting its staff nominal rolls for 2013, 2014 and 2015, within two weeks.
That deadline expired on Wednesday and the CBN provided no response, PREMIUM TIMES can authoritatively report today.
The bank neither offered any explanation for the delay, nor a commitment to respond on a later date.
The two weeks deadline for the response to our letter expired on Wednesday without CBNs response. We are now considering the next line of action to take. By next week, the Commission will let Nigerians know what that will be. We have zero tolerance for lawlessness and impunity, Mr. Abba told PREMIUM TIMES.
Under the Federal Character Commission Regulation, 2008, recruitment into government offices are to be duly advertised in at least two national newspapers giving qualified Nigerians a minimum of six weeks to apply.
Meanwhile, Say No Campaign, a coalition of civil society groups against corruption and impunity in Nigeria, has petitioned the National Assembly demanding investigation into the controversial recruitment.
In its petition to the Chairmen of the Senate and House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions, the group who described the recruitment exercise as highly secretive, demanded that individuals and organisations found culpable should be prosecuted.
In the petition signed by co-convener of the group, Samson Itodo, the group said the exercise violated the rights of Nigerians enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended), as it did not follow the federal character principles for employment by government agencies and public institutions.
Section 16(2) of the constitution provides that, the economic system will not be operated in such a manner as to permit the concentration of wealth or means of production and exchange in the hands of few individuals or of a group, such as the politically and economically connected, or their children.
Lamenting its frustration to investigate the allegation since it broke, the group said a Freedom of Information request for details of the recruitment sent on March 17 was ignored by the CBN, as it was yet to receive any response.
Some of the details included a copy of the letter of approval from the Federal Character Commission authorizing the CBN to recruit staff from 2014 to date; copy of the advertisement for vacancies in the CBN, or waiver granted for the recruitment without advertisement from 2014 to date, and a database of the applicants/beneficiaries of recruitment from 2014 to date.
Ahmed Gulak is a former political adviser to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan. In this interview with PREMIUM TIMES Festus Owete and Sani Tukur, Mr. Gulak speaks on why he was sacked by the former president, his attempt to impose himself as PDP national chairman earlier in the year, the future of the party, the Buhari administration and other issues. Excerpts:
PT: Were you disappointed that you didnt eventually emerge as the National chairman of Peoples Democratic Party?
Gulak: I actually set out to achieve one thing and that is constitutionality. We have given ourselves a constitution and I felt as a member of the party we must abide by the provisions of the constitution and when I saw that Uche Secondus and his team were adamant, they were not ready to follow the part of the constitution and legality, I went to court to test the veracity of their action.
Firstly, I set out to achieve one thing and that is that the constitution must be obeyed by whoever is concerned in this party and my action and after the court judgement, the legal and political steps I took made the PDP to wake up and since then the PDP has never been the same again. There was the emergence of Ali Modu Sheriff from the north-east and that is part of what I went to court to achieve.
Secondly, the party was woken up from its slumber. That is another aspect. I did not set out to say that I must be the chairman of this party. I set out to say that somebody from the north-east must occupy that position. So by and large I have achieved my aim and somebody from the north-east has emerged and is leading the party. The party from that time has been meeting. All the organs of the party have been meeting and that was because somebody had to take some steps and which I took.
PT: So, you are satisfied with Ali Modu Sheriff as national chairman?
Gulak: I am satisfied with him; he is from the north east and I am from the north-east. And like I said, somebody from the north east must occupy that seat and Ali Modu Sheriff is a qualified person to be the national chairman from the north east. So Im really satisfied with the outcome of my action and without that action may be that couldnt have been achieved.
PT: And you deserve credit for what happened?
Gulak: Well, I do not set out to acquire credit for myself; I am not that type of person. Im not just coming around. I have been in this game for over 26 years. All I need is for people to respect the constitution they give themselves as members of the political party.
PT: I made that comment because in the past, during the Secondus era, you were seen as a trouble maker. Now that this change has happened are you still seen as a trouble maker?
Gulak: I dont care how people assess me, but posterity will judge because you have gone to court to seek interpretation of the constitution that you have given yourself. That is not trouble making. In fact, this is part of constitutionality and part of rule of law. So, no matter what anybody says I dont give a damn. All I know is that I have taken the right steps to ensure the compliance with the constitution. If you go round and ask may be only secondus and his clique will be thinking that Im a trouble maker because they wanted to cling on that chair that does not belong to him and I said no that chair belongs to the north-east. They couldnt have ignored that. They excluded north-east, a whole zone with six states, from the PDP national working committee. That was my grouse with them.
You know when the court gave judgment that within 14 days either I or any other person from the north-east must be appointed, Secondus could have appointed any other person from the northeast. But be that as it may we have somebody from the north-east in the person of Ali Modu Sheriff there and nobody can fault his emergence because he is a politician, a two term senator, two term governor. He has the experience.
PT: Has he appreciated the efforts you have made?
Gulak: It is for you to go and interview them whether they appreciate what I have done for them or not. It is not for me to judge, it is not for me to tell. I have done my own part. It is left for them to appreciate or not or to vilify one or not. I have done my own part as a practical politician and as a lawyer and the court has given verdict and the party has woken up from its slumber and has done the needful that is appointing somebody from the north-east I am done.
PT: Since his coming to power a lot of decisions have been taken. Are those decisions in line with the expectations of people like you to move the PDP forward?
Gulak: If I did not go to court and if the court did not give me judgment and if Modu Sheriff did not emerge as declared by the court, may be PDP would still be sleeping and this country for Gods sake need PDP either as a ruling party or as opposition. Opposition is the spice of democracy. You continue to put the ruling party on its edge to give the dividends of democracy to ordinary Nigerians. So my own take is that the PDP is needed in this country now more than ever before and so we must pick up the pieces and begin to rebuild it. But we cannot rebuild without people, without new faces, without new managers of this party.
Luckily enough the timetable has been approved and we will have our national convention in May. So at least the party is alive.
PT: Are you interested in any of the positions?
Gulak: They have set up four committees reconciliation committee, finance committee, zoning committee and congress committee. These committees have been announced but have not been inaugurated. So let us wait for the committees to be inaugurated and let us see the zoning formula that they will come up with and what they will send to the north-east. If I see the offices they zone to the north-east and I feel and after robust consultation that I should go for it and Im encouraged by my people to go for it, I will go for it. But if on the other hand I feel somebody else should go, so be it.
PT: So, we take it that you are still in PDP.
Gulak: I have never left PDP.
PT: We are asking this question in the light of recent developments. Some people, some of whom we know are very close to you came out to float a new party, Peoples Mega Party, PMP.
Gulak: I have not been part of that and I dont intend to be part of it.
PT: But were you ever consulted.
Gulak: I was never consulted. You know these are people who are politically mature in their own right. The fact that you are my associate does not mean that I control your actions. So I have never been part of it and I dont intend to be part of it. I remain in the PDP. I have begun to pick up the pieces and partner with anybody to rebuild this party. That is my stake as for now. I dont know what the future holds.
PT: But how do you feel that some powerful people are trying to leave the party?
Gulak: Its unfortunate and it is because of impunity in the party that people started leaving. Look at Senator Ken Nnamani. He has left the party, a former senate president. He left because of the impunity that Secondus and his people have fostered on the party. They consider this party as their personal organization. The party belongs to Nigerians and you give yourself a constitution that you dont follow; that is impunity and that has made people to leave. I went to court in order to arrest the mass exodus and give people the hope that there are some people who are still interested in rebuilding this party and I think that singular act has rekindled hope and people are beginning to see that the party can be repaired any way.
PT: You mentioned in your earlier submission that PDP has never been the same since you took your action. Now what future do you see for PDP?
Gulak: Well if the PDP manages itself well, if the PDP is able to embark on genuine reconciliation and come up with peaceful congresses and conventions and give the party new faces and new managers that will radiate confidence and trust and Nigerians will begin to come back to the party. I see a bright future for PDP and I see a new PDP that has been repositioned to harvest fall outs from the APC, because of the way I see politics being played out in APC.
It is so clear that there are four blocks in APC that dont appear to be ready to mix and the internal crisis of the four blocks, namely the ACN of Bola Tinubu and his people, the CPC of President Buhari and his people, the PDP of Bukola Saraki and his people and the ANPP of Ogbonnaya Onu and his people. These are four different blocks that are not ready to mix. So the PDP, if repositioned, can harvest from the fall outs of the crisis in APC and before you know it we can bounce back to power.
PT: They keep saying they are united and have no problems, why are you insisting that they are not?
Gulak: We are not insisting. You know this politics is not rocket science; it is based on facts on the ground. For example, there are three arms of government the executive arm led by president Buhari, the judiciary which is apolitical and led by Justice Mohammed Mahmud and the legislature led by Dr. Bukola Saraki. Remove the Judiciary since they are apolitical and lets talk about the executive and legislature.
There is principle of separation of powers, not separation of government and when you begin to see another head of government being prosecuted by the same government you know something is wrong. As a practical politician I am sure and convinced beyond any reasonable doubt that, that head of that arm of government will not be happy with what is happening to him by the same government he believes he is part and parcel of.
So it is not as if we are insisting that there is crisis no. The crisis is there for everybody to see. I am not happy that the APC is not cohesive because if the government fails, we Nigerians have failed. We will not pray for the government to fail notwithstanding the fact that I am in opposition. I want Nigerians to enjoy the benefits of democracy.
PT: But if they dont fail you wont come back to power?
Gulak: We want development. For example, no Nigerian will like this thing that is happening in the north-east, Boko Haram; this thing happening in Benue, the Agatu mass murder or genocide, the kidnappings, the Biafra issue, the militancy etc. No right thinking Nigerian will be happy that all these things are happening. But we cannot get over all these crises until we have a united front at least by the government in power.
PT: You were a political adviser to a president; what is your view regarding President Buharis running of his administration presently?
Gulak: I am not part of it so how will I know?
PT: But you are a Nigerian and that is why I said you were a political adviser. You should know more than most ordinary Nigerians. Whether you are in government or not you have an idea or direction this administration is taking.
Gulak: Buhari and his party came to power because Nigerians wanted and believed in the change mantra and the promises made. Buhari brought APC to government; it is not APC that brought Buhari to government. That is the way I see it. Buhari brought APC to government so there must be that distinction. I believe most of the APC governors became governors because of Buhari and Buhari did not become president because of the APC governors. That distinction must be made. But the fact is Buhari as a president was sponsored by a political party and this political party went and campaigned for Nigerians to elect Buhari and the promises are there. But the question is- are the promises being fulfilled? That is the question and it is left for Nigerians to judge.
Yes, Buhari is doing his best in the fight against insurgency and in the fight against corruption but to me the government will start in earnest when they begin to execute their programmes; when the budget is passed and they begin to implement the budget in consonance with the manifesto of the political party. But I have started hearing that the APC government is no longer available for execution of some of the programmes like the N5,000 stipend, the one naira to one dollar promise etc. Be that as it may, no government can be run by one person. He has chosen his ministers. They are his team and it is the team Nigerians expect to move this country forward from the past to where Buhari wants to take it to. This is a one million naira question but we have to sit down and analyse it. In fact, if you remove Buhari and Bola Tinubu and his people, every other person in APC has been a PDP member. So if you say PDP ruined Nigeria for the past sixteen years, know that PDP is just a name. Who were the components of the PDP that ruled Nigeria in the past 16 years? I will begin to name them for you from governor of Kebbi to governor of Sokoto, governor of Kastina, governor of Kaduna, Adamawa, Plateau, Benue. These are all PDP members and so it is not right for me to say that PDP ruined Nigerian for the past 16years. It is better to say Nigerian politicians ruined Nigeria in the past 16 years. Do we have different Nigerian politicians in APC that will move this country to the next level of development? If these were the same people that were in PDP and have now joined APC, my answer is that the fact that you throw lizard into water does not make it a crocodile.
PT: What if they have repented?
Gulak: Well, if they have repented from their old ways then we thank God for that. If it is true that they have repented, we live to see. It will not be too long before Nigerians will begin to judge whether this change bus we have entered will really give us the needed and desired change.
PT: But personally are you hopeful?
Gulak: I have always been hopeful. I am a Nigerian and I believe in this country. I believe in Nigeria; I have no other country than Nigeria, I cannot live outside Nigeria. I better live in Nigeria even if it is in jail than to live outside this country. Nigeria belongs to all of us and it is incumbent on all of us all hands must be on deck to see that the country remains united and we need development. All these killings happening left right and centre is not what will take this country to the next level.
PT: Did you suspect the PDP was going to lose the presidential election?
Gulak: I knew PDP was going to lose.
PT: Why?
Gulak: Because we embarked on impunity that will not take us anywhere. We had no reason to lose the states we lost and we did that because of protest votes. We had no reason to lose Adamawa State but because of imposition of the candidate. We had no reason to lose Plateau State; we lost Plateau state because of imposition of candidate. We had no reason to lose Nasarawa State; we lost Nasarawa state because of imposition of candidate. We had no reason to lose Benue State; we lost Benue state because of imposition of candidate. People came out to protest against what the PDP did. In any case, with how many votes did we lose the presidential election?
PT: About two million.
Gulak: Yes, two million! And in the states I have enumerated for you, if we had fielded the correct PDP candidates, we would have made up the difference.
PT: Somehow some people also claim that Jonathan himself was imposed as the candidate of the PDP?
Gulak: I was against that attitude. In 2011 Goodluck Jonathan slugged it out with (Abubakar) Atiku.
PT: Some say PDP would have won if they picked a candidate from the north?
Gulak: I dont work on speculation. I dont talk about speculations because this was an incumbent president. He had the right to offer himself for a second term and his party selected him to stand election, whether he is from the north or from the south. These are probabilities.
Who in the north would you have fielded against Buhari to defeat him in the north in the circumstance of the 2015 election? Let us be truthful to ourselves, I did not see any. But if PDP had listened to our advice by picking popular candidates in the states of the north may be the difference would not have been much and we would have recovered the lost ground.
PT: You were his political adviser and you left office at a time people least expected you to leave. What was the circumstance that led to your just leaving the office at a time the president perhaps needed you most?
Gulak: Well, there were some issues that resulted to some of us leaving office, like Bamanga Tukur left as national chairman of the PDP, Mike Ogiadomhe left as chief of staff and Gulak left as political adviser. But the true position I think was that the president was literarily blackmailed into taking those decisions.
PT: By whom?
Gulak: By people in PDP who felt that people like us around him will always remind him of the betrayals around him. There are people who never cared about his winning election. Their main concern was about what they could get out of the system. We were part of the team that won election in 2011 and ordinarily you dont discard your winning team. Be that as it may, the short of it is that the president was literarily blackmailed into dropping some of us.
PT: Are you suggesting there was no a rift between you and the president that could have prompted your removal?
Gulak: There was no rift and there can never be rift.
PT: Even after you left office?
Gulak: Even now we meet we discuss and he knows.
PT: You never criticized him?
Gulak: Who?
PT: President Jonathan.
Gulak: Why should I criticise him?
PT: There was a report that you asked for him to be investigated?
Gulak: During or when I left office?
PT: After you left.
Gulak: When exactly?
PT: Before the election.
Gulak: No, I never did.
PT: But did you ever at any point in time..
Gulak: I never criticised him. Some papers misquoted me to say that I called for his probe by Buhari. I will tell you the circumstances of that. After I won my case in the court against Secondus and the PDP, some newsmen interviewed me on what happened in the court that day. They asked, How do you see it? What is your take? I told them that, Yes, the court has vindicated me; this position belongs to the north-east and the court has declared me. That day Dasuki too was in court. He was being arraigned. They said, look the former NSA to your boss is been tried.
I said, Yes, there is a probe going on. Dasuki is facing trial, some ministers are facing trials. Let us allow the court to do their job but that the Goodluck I know, you can probe him from morning to night, seven days a week, but you will never see him in those things; that he authorized for government money to be transferred from government account to a private account in the name of prayers, you can probe Goodluck Jonathan and you can never find him support that.
The Goodluck I know! Those were the statements I made and I was quoted out of context to say that I was calling for Goodlucks probe.
What I said was that you can probe Goodluck from morning to night seven days a week you can never find him support the transfer of government funds, N4.6billion from governments account in the name of prayers. That is ridiculous; that is madness. Goodluck will never support that.
PT: Given what is happening now, aides are being probed, Dasuki and co being tried, do you think that now
Gulak: Everybody will come and explain his role in everything they did.
PT: Do you expect you will be invited too?
Gulak: Me?
PT: Yes
Gulak: If I have done anything wrong while in office, if may be Dasuki has given me money or somebody else has given me money, Im ready. I am in the country, I will not run away. Im here but I believe what happened was wrong for government money to be transferred from government account to private account without job done to the tune of N4.6 billion in the name of prayers. It was wrong, gentlemen. Let us call a spade a spade.
PT: You mentioned the circumstances that brought Buhari to power. You said if we had those circumstances in 2015, no northerner would have been able to face him. If those circumstances present themselves in 2019 do you see PDP returning to power? Do you think any northerner can still face Buhari?
Gulak: It depends on his performance from now till 2019. Performance matters. If Nigerians are satisfied with his performance they can return him to power. But if Nigerians are dissatisfied with his performance, they can vote him out of power.
PT: Adamawa PDP recently still came to the partys national secretariat. I dont know what brought them. But to your knowledge, is there any crisis within the PDP still even after the election in the state?
Gulak: Well, I think as a party we are not focussed and united in Adamawa state and that was brought about by the selection of candidates for the election of 2015. And I believe anywhere, not only in Adamawa state, this party PDP needs new faces and new managers so that Nigerians will begin to have confidence in those who are managing the affairs of the party at all levels ward, local government and state levels. Im not liming my political knowledge to Adamawa state. I am a national figure and so I believe PDP at all levels needs new managers if we want to really take this party to the next level as an opposition party.
PT: What is your assessment of the governor in power now?
Gulak: Well, every government even at the central level, I still believe needs to be given chance. They need to be given time before you access. So you dont begin to criticise somebody because you are in opposition. No. At least every reasonable person will say let us give them time. Let them begin implementing the budget 2016, 2017, 2018, then we will stand up. And after we have chronicled their failure then we tell Nigerians this is the change you ask for and this is what youve gotten, are you happy about it? Can you feed yourself three times a day? Why are your children out of school? But any person criticising Buhari or APC government right now I think is not strategically good. Allow them to fumble, chronicled those failures and keep the records. But now what are you criticising?
Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State has said he did not call former President Goodluck Jonathan to brief him after Boko Haram abducted over 200 school girls from Chibok, because he knew that security agencies must have briefed the president of the development the day it happened.
Mr. Shettima said as president, Mr. Jonathan had wide resources to keep him abreast of serious national security issues on a daily basis.
Mr. Shettima was responding to an inquiry from PREMIUM TIMES which sought to determine why the governor waited for almost three weeks expecting the president to reach out to him over a major incident that happened in his domain.
The governor had said recently that Mr. Jonathan took 19 days to telephone him to ask about the abduction.
He made the remark while receiving former President Olusegun Obasanjo whom he praised as having a better record of contacting governors of crisis- prone states on a daily basis.
In our own case, Your Excellency, after the Chibok abduction of over 200 schoolgirls in April, 2014, it took 19 days for me to receive a call from the Presidency, Mr. Shettima said to Mr. Obasanjo.
Analysts have accused the governor of not also taking the security of his state serious enough to have to wait for the president to call, and not contact him immediately.
In his response to PREMIUM TIMES on Saturday, Mr. Shettima, who is currently attending the second term inauguration of President Mahamadou Issoufou in Niger Republic, said he immediately launched efforts to rescue the girls, and became too busy to reach out to the president.
He said he knew the president must have been made aware already since there was a state of emergency already in place in the state long before the kidnap.
Mr. Shettima spoke through his Special Adviser on Communication, Isa Gusau, who assured us his comments were the governors position.
Mr. Gusau said he had it on good authority that President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan was well briefed by security agencies soon after the abduction and this is to be expected given the magnitude and for the fact that as at that time, Borno was under a State of Emergency as declared by the president, which made him directly in charge of security issues in Borno and happenings there.
So, when the Chibok abduction took place on April 14, 2014, Governor Kashim Shettima who is Chairman of the State Security Councils remained within Borno State as he was expected to do, to build public confidence and presided over series of daily security council meetings held at the Government House in Maiduguri to analyze the situation and developments, to identify strategies and to coordinate deployment of security responses to containing the emergency, he said.
Mr. Shettima also said that the normal practice over the years in Nigeria was that the president would be the one to call a state governor to find out how he could help if there was an emergency situation.
The practice in Nigeria is that when emergency security situations happen in any of the 36 States, the president does not rely on governors for security briefings, he relies on daily situation report and also he invites service chiefs and heads of key intelligence establishments like the Department of State Security Services and National Intelligence Agency as well, for information that may include what a governor may not even be in position to know because there are certain classified information that only the president is told even when they affect a particular state whose governor is kept in the dark.
What happens in our unwritten protocol in Nigeria is that, in event of major security problems, it is the president that summons a governor or calls him on phone or directs the Vice President to call on his behalf for sympathy, seek additional information where necessary and to assure or discuss aspects that require Federal intervention. Governors dont rush to the Villa during emergencies, they remain in their respective States to provide leadership because their presence means so much in managing situations.
Mr. Shettima said Mr. Jonathan could not have feigned ignorance of the development because he had made several media interviews and offered a reward of 50 million for accurate information about the whereabouts of the girls.
After a security meeting on April 16, 2014, Governor Kashim Shettima had addressed the Press same day, (April 16, 2014) which was two days after the Chibok incident during which he announced a N50million reward on information that could lead to freeing the schoolgirls and this was widely reported by the media within and outside Nigeria. So, there was general public knowledge about the incident not to talk of the president knowing about it.
The Governor simply concentrated on working with security agencies, the civilian JTF, hunters and local community leaders in Chibok on finding ways of freeing the schoolgirls. Till date, only Governor Kashim Shettima and his wife visited Chibok after that incident, no body went from the Federal level to meet the parents throughout the Jonathan era.
On allegations that the he was complicit in the abduction of the girls because he ordered WAEC officials to proceed with the exams in defiance of all security warnings, Mr. Shettima dismissed the allegation as malicious.
The issue of saying there were reports against holding WAEC in the Chibok School was just a propaganda orchestrated by actors under the Jonathan administration in order to shift blame on Borno State Government and if you cast your mind back, you would understand that the whole propaganda only began in May, 2014, when wife of President Barack Obama was shown participating in the Bring Back Our Girls global protest which made the Jonathan Presidency to come under criticism from the international community. The FG didnt show any concern before May, 2014 whereas the abduction took place on April 14, 2014.
To start with if it was true that the Government Secondary School, Chibok, was considered unsafe to the point that the Borno State Government was warned against holding the exams there, why would parents of the school who live within the same unsafe Chibok, allow their children to be in that school at that time? If the Borno Government was reckless enough to care less of the safety of the gilrs what about parents of the girls? They also didnt care or what?
Truth is that Chibok was one of the places that had no known security threats as at the time the abduction took place. Chibok had virtually no record of attacks before that incident. No one anticipated that attack just like no Nigerian could have anticipated attacks on the secured Police Headquarters in Abuja by the Boko Haram in 2012.
Before Belgium was attacked recently, it wasnt among areas in Europe vulnerable to terrorist attacks. As events have shown, terrorists seem to target areas less expected of them to attack than places considered vulnerable. If GSS Chibok was marked as unsafe, the WAEC wouldnt have sent their officials there to conduct the exams neither would parents have lived in Chibok. Everyone would have fled. We all know that WAEC had officials conducting exams in Chibok while residents didnt flee the Communities. We have reasons to believe that the Boko Haram targeted Chibok because it was one of the places they were not expected to attack given records of their presence and attacks across Borno State.
Mr. Shettima, however, acknowledged that a security alert did go out prior to the incident, but quickly added that it was ambiguous.
It is however true that there were security concerns raised by the WAEC on the need for security to be provided in all examination centres without any emphasis on GSS, Chibok.
In a letter addressed to the late Deputy Governor of Borno State, Zannah Umar Mustapha, who was presiding over the matter, with reference number MD/ZO/OA/10/203, dated March 19, 2014, signed by F.M Gaiya, zonal coordinator, the WAEC had raised issues of security which it did by requesting the Borno Government to provide security in all the centres in Maiduguri, Biu, Askira, Lassa and Chibok, which the Borno State Government promptly acted upon by writing a letter to the Borno State Commissioner of Police request adequate security in all examination centres (as the attachment here would show). The WAEC was never specific on Chibok because there was no fears of imminent attack on Chibok and if there was, WAEC wouldnt have contemplated the exam there at least for safety of its own staff.
The Borno State Government had in response, written a letter dated March 20, 2014, with reference number SEC/282/GH/T.I/109, signed by the Chief Admin Officer, Special Services (Security) at the Government House in Maiduguri, M.M Gana, addressed to the then Borno State Police Commissioner, Lawal Tanko requesting for security to be provided to all examination centres in Borno State, that include Chibok but also without any specific fears on imminent attack on Chibok.
A Presidential Fact-finding committee on the Chibok abduction which was set up by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan which had members including friends of President Jonathan and serving security officials had examined all documents and correspondences between the Borno Government and WAEC and I dont think anyone doubts the sincerity of Governor Kashim Shettima in all that happened.
It is unfortunate that the abduction took place and so was the politics that was brought into it. Governor Shettima recollected that matter because he was dealing with President Olusegun Obasanjo whose voice has been consistent on the Chibok schoolgirls abduction.
In the wake of recent fire outbreaks across the country, the federal government has announced its intention to partner with state governments to curtail future occurrences.
Fire outbreaks have reduced several major markets in Lagos, Kebbi, Kano, Cross River and Gombe States to rubble in recent weeks.
Responding to the inferno that occurred in a fruits market in Gombe State on Wednesday, the Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazzau, said the federal government would deepen collaboration with states. He also condoled the victims of the accident.
In a statement signed by his press secretary, Osaigbovo Ehisienmen, Mr. Dambazzau said this synergy will also involve industrialists and representatives of traders in the country.
The aim will be to build a platform for safety procedures and to also retool the nations fire service response mechanism at various levels, he said.
Mr. Dambazau, who had earlier visited the scenes of fire incidents in Kano and Kebbi markets during the Easter holidays, said there was need to embrace safety measures, and adhere strictly to international fire codes.
He said the government was determined to find lasting solution to this menace.
The National Secretary of the governing All Progressives Congress, APC, Mala Buni, has described as bogus allegations comments made by the partys Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Timi Frank, alleging that the APC is now divided.
Mr. Buni in a statement Friday said the bogus and misleading allegations are unnecessary distractions to the Partys resolve to fully support President Muhammadu Buharis Administration deliver on the motley promises made by our great Party to the electorate.
He said the APC National leadership remains united and solidly committed to the task of bringing cohesion to the party at all levels.
The national secretary also said that the APC recently held its National Caucus and National Executive Committee, NEC, meetings where positive and far-reaching decisions were collectively taken by the partys leadership to drive the party forward.
The party will not deny anybody or interest the right to seek justice where he feels this has been denied him, he said in a statement. However, we sincerely appeal that we all play by the rules in our engagements and be guarded in our utterances.
Mr. Frank had last week lambasted the leadership of the party for its silence over the ongoing travails of the president of the Senate, Bukola Saraki.
Mr. Saraki is facing prosecution at the Code of Conduct Tribunal over false declaration of assets.
Mr. Saraki emerged Senate president against the wish of the leadership of the APC last July.
Mr. Frank expressed the view that there was disquiet among the leadership of the party over Mr. Saraki being a high ranking official and a member of the governing party.
However, Mr. Buni said, the public is advised not to misinterpret or confuse Comrade Timi Franks personal opinions to be the official position of the Party or the true reflection of what is happening inside the Party.
For the umpteenth time, only the APC National Chairman and the National Secretary are authorised to officially speak for the Party, he said.
The organised labour in Bayelsa State has suspended its proposed strike to honour the founder of the Niger Delta University (NDU), Diepreye Alamieyeseigha.
The labour leaders said in a communique on Saturday that they had resolved to postpone the strike to demand for salaries owed the university workers by the state government.
The communique issued in Yenegoa on Saturday and signed by the Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Stanley Ogoun, said the workers were making the sacrifice to honour the first visitor to the university.
It said that both the academic and non-academic unions agreed that the non-payment of their salaries had made life unbearable but pledged to stay action on the planned strike until Mr. Alamieyeseighas burial on April 9.
It said the unions would converge at their various levels for an appropriate response after the burial.
It decried the insensitivity of the state government to the plight of the university workers.
The communique said the development had rendered the unions members unable to meet their obligations, resulting in their children and wards dropping out of schools.
It is inhuman to expect our members to exercise further patience when three months into the year, salaries have not been paid.
The development has resulted in families of our members going hungry, our children being driven out of school in the last term, the sick uncared for and eviction by landlords due to expiration of house rents.
Also, there is increased rate of hypertension and related diseases arising from members inability to provide food on the table and worsened by no means of credit facilities, the communique read.
It said that though the unions were in support of the state governments staff verification as a means of exterminating payroll fraud in the system, they, however, faulted its timing.
The communique said that the workers argued that the timing was a calculated attempt to further worsen their already critical state.
It said their fears arose from the fact that previous verification set up four years ago failed to achieve any meaningful result.
It said they had called on the state government to immediately pay their three months salaries on the basis of the bank verification numbers they had earlier submitted, while the current verification continued.
Our Visitor, Gov. Seriake Dickson, should be bothered by the cries of children whose working parents are no longer able to provide food and medical care for them or by the fact that people can no longer transport themselves to their places of work arising from the scarcity of petrol.
By extending the period of no salaries beyond the third month, the visitor to the university is vicariously liable for systematically compelling genuine workers to indulge in criminality to keep their families alive.
Where is the place of empathy in public policy formulation and implementation?
We are calling on Gov. Dickson to condescend to the state of the ordinary worker whose take home pay cannot even take him home.
The misguided notion of university autonomy as held by only the Bayelsa State Government in the entire country should not be used as a guise for abdicating responsibility to the university, the communique said.
It, however, promised that the workers would continue to contribute meaningfully to the human capital development of the state. (NAN)
A multiple accident on Saturday claimed two lives,while unspecified number of persons were critically injured along the Abeokuta Siun Sagamu expressway.
A witness said the auto crash, which occurred around 3:45pm in front of the Police ICT College located few metres away from Kobape village, involved three cars and an Abeokuta-painted Toyota Carina taxi cab marked (Ogun) ABG 810 XA.
Other cars involved included a Toyota Siena car with registration number APC 929 HU; a Nissan Pathfinder Jeep with registration number (LAGOS) KJA 311 CW as well as an unregistered Toyota Corolla Tokunbo car.
The Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency (TRACE), Public Relations Officer, Babatunde Akinbiyi, who confirmed the multiple auto crash to journalists attributed the cause of the multiple auto crash to speed on the part of the driver of the Toyota Sienna car.
He said the driver of the Toyota Sienna car which was coming into Abeokuta, lost control of the car, skidded off its lane, with burst rear tyres, and crashed into the three other vehicles going outward Abeokuta to the Sagamu inter-change axis.
Mr. Akinbiyi said the two victims died on the spot, while other commuters sustained varying degrees of injuries in the crash.
He said a three-day old baby was rescued alive notwithstanding that her father and one other person died. The mother sustained legs injuries.
The Agencys spokesperson said the rescue team of the agency evacuated nine victims to the Federal Medical Center (FMC), Idi Aba in Abeokuta, while good spirited Nigerians assisted in evacuating other unspecified numbers of victims who were critically injured to the State Hospital in Ijaye, Abeokuta.
For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME.
Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest warscreating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire.
Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III.
to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever.
Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation.
View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union.
Never before has a documentary assembled all the pieces of the globalists' dark agenda. Endgame's compelling look at past atrocities committed by those attempting to steer the future delivers information that the controlling media has meticulously censored for over 60 years. It fully reveals the elite's program to dominate the earth and carry out the wicked plan in all of human history.
Endgame is not conspiracy theory, it is documented fact in the elite's own words.
TSX-V: JAG
TORONTO, April 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Jaguar Mining Inc. ("Jaguar" or the "Company") (TSX-V: JAG) is pleased to announce the appointment of Thomas Weng to the Board of Directors of the Company.
Mr. Weng has more than 22 years of experience in the financial services sector. Mr. Weng is currently Co-Founding Partner with Alta Capital Partners, a provider of investment banking services (since 2011). Prior to that, Mr. Weng was the Managing Director at Deutsche Bank and Head of Equity Capital Markets for Metals and Mining throughout the Americas and Latin America, across all industry segments. Mr. Weng has held various senior positions at Pacific Partners, an alternative investment firm, Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns. Mr. Weng graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics.
Richard Falconer, Chairman of the Board of the Company, commented, "On behalf of the Board, I would like to welcome Thomas to the Jaguar team. Thomas's financial expertise and experience in the investment sector will be a valuable asset to our Board. The addition of another independent Board member reflects the Company's commitment to best practices in corporate governance."
About Jaguar Mining Inc.
Jaguar Mining Inc. is a Canadian-listed junior gold mining, development, and exploration company operating in Brazil with three gold mining complexes, and a large land package with significant upside exploration potential from mineral claims covering an area of approximate 191,000 hectares. The Company's principle operating assets are located in a prolific greenstone belt in the state of Minas Gerais and include the Turmalina Gold Mine Complex ("Mineracao Turmalina Ltda" or "MTL") and Caete Gold Mine Complex ("Mineracao Serras do Oeste Ltda" or "MSOL") which combined produce more than 90,000 ounces of gold annually. The Company also owns the Paciencia Gold Mine Complex, which has been on care and maintenance since 2012. Additional information is available on the Company's website at www.jaguarmining.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.
For further information: Rodney Lamond, President & CEO, rodney.lamond@jaguarmining.com; Hashim Ahmed, Vice President Finance, Interim CFO, hashim.ahmed@jaguarmining.com, Tel: 416 628 9601
Related Links
http://www.jaguarmining.com
SOURCE Jaguar Mining Inc.
BEIJING, April 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Almost every nation has a representative traditional outfit in the world, such as Kimono in Japan, Hanbok in South Korea, Ao Dai in Vietnam and Sarli in India. China, a country with five thousand years of history and civilization, is undergoing its renovation, and Chinese traditional outfit is a significant icon to represent cultural implication.
To look for the fashion talents who are capable of clothing design with the ethnic Chinese characters and spirit today, the opening ceremony of Inheritance and Craftsmanship - the first Traditional Chinese Clothing Design Award kicked off in Beijing on March 22nd.
Under the guidance of China National Textile and Apparel Council, co-hosted by the Xinhua News Agency, Xinhuanet and Textile Apparel Weekly Magazine, the competition will run until October and include nationwide and overseas tours in November for outstanding works. To attract broad participation, the competition is divided into amateur and professional designers groups.
Mentors + E-commerce
National well-known designers will act as mentors in the competition, and cooperate with famous brands that provide overall support to the candidates. Under the guidance of three mentors, the top 24 finalists will have their designs modeled at a live competition, the winner of which will receive RMB150,000 ($23,100). The 24 finalists' works will also tour major cities including Suzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong and Paris. Meanwhile, the outcome of the competition will transfer to the e-commerce platform, winning designers and sponsored brands will establish "advanced new Chinese clothing customized e-commerce platform" together, to pull the production right into sales market and better increase the influence of textile and clothing industry.
A call for cultural recognition
Silk textile is a considerable element in advancing the development policy of "One Belt and One Road". This competition will collect works with the theme of "Inheritance and Craftsmanship" from both domestic and overseas fields.
"China's global influence keeps growing during the recent years, we should carry forward Chinese costume and fashion culture at the moment. Inheritance means more than imitation and reproduction, but creation. I believe this competition will play an important role in the future clothing business, especially for the current industry supply-side structural reform," Mr. Li Dangqi, Chairman of Chinese Fashion Designers Association said.
Entry requirements and application
If anyone is interested in the competition, candidate is required to provide the materials as follows:
1. Design theme: "Inheritance and craftsmanship" (3-4 outfits).
2. Color sketch effect drawing: please finish the sketch in the size of 27cm*40cm. Name of works should be marked in the top left corner. A 4cm*4cm cloth material sample should be attached to the bottom right corner. The name of candidate and works should be signed in the bottom right corner on the back side.
3. Structure drawing: please prepare the structure or craft drawing of each outfit with the explanation of theme and concept.
4. Application form: please download and print the application form in the competition official website (www.zhongguoguofu.com). Fill in the form, photos should be attached.
5. Creativity instruction:
Design rationale
Fabric description
Manufacturing techniques explanation
Unique highlights (how to correspond to the competition theme)
6. One copy of personal ID card (both sides).
Attention:
All materials above should be prepared in both electronic and paper version.Please send electronic copy to zggf@news.cn with "designer's name + work name" as the subject.
Please send paper copy to the contact address as below:
Address: Room 1007, Zhidi Plaza, NO. 55 of Hongwu Road, Xuanwu District, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, P.R.China
Postcode: 210005
Contact person: Mrs. Lv +86 139 1448 8485, Mr. Zhang +86 150 7782 1366
Contact QQ: 3109519599
Deadline: May 31st, 2015, based on the postmark date
On the outer packing, please mark "competition", the postage is refused to pay.
If candidates have any inquiries, please contact the competition contact person via QQ.
Image Attachments Links:
http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=268508
SOURCE Inheritance and Craftsmanship-TCC Design Award Committee
RIDGEFIELD, Conn., April 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced the results of a new interim analysis of data from the ongoing phase III RE-VERSE AD patient study that showed a single 5g dose of idarucizumab immediately reversed the anticoagulant effect of dabigatran, the active ingredient in Pradaxa (dabigatran etexilate mesylate) in all patients evaluated. Idarucizumab was the first specific reversal agent for a novel oral anticoagulant approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in October 2015 and is marketed in the U.S. as Praxbind. The results from this study were presented today at the American College of Cardiology 65th Annual Scientific Session (ACC.16) and Expo in Chicago.
"The data from this new RE-VERSE AD interim analysis, of the first 123 patients, support earlier findings that show idarucizumab reverses the anticoagulant effect of dabigatran, including reversal in critically ill, high-risk patients in emergency care," said Dr. Charles Pollack, lead investigator of RE-VERSE AD, Professor of Emergency Medicine, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. "We have enrolled patients in more than 35 countries and we look forward to the additional analyses and final results to further support the safety, effectiveness and impact of idarucizumab."
RE-VERSE AD was designed to allow for the types of patients healthcare professionals may treat in real-world emergency settings. Patients were categorized into two groups (A) patients with uncontrolled or life-threatening bleeding complications (Group A, n=66), or (B) patients requiring emergency surgery or an invasive procedure (Group B, n=57). All patients received 5g of idarucizumab, and reversal was evident in all assessable patients (n=100).
Among assessed patients in Group A (n=48), the median subjective investigator-reported time to cessation of bleeding was 9.8 hours. In Group B (n=52), the mean time to surgery was 1.7 hours following administration of idarucizumab. Normal blood clotting (hemostasis) during surgery was reported in 92 percent of patients (48/52). Thrombotic events occurred in five patients between two to 24 days after idarucizumab administration. None of these patients were receiving antithrombotic therapy at the time of their event. There were 26 total deaths, which appeared to be related to the original reason for emergency admission to the hospital and/or to co-morbidities.
"These new data add to the important body of evidence for idarucizumab and the important role it can play for patients. While emergency situations in which idarucizumab may be used are rare, we believe offering a broadly available specific reversal agent may help set a new expectation of care for patients, caregivers and healthcare providers," said Sabine Luik, MD, senior vice president, Medicine & Regulatory Affairs, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. "Boehringer Ingelheim is committed to bringing value to patients through investment in innovation. The research, development and FDA approval of idarucizumab are evidence of this commitment."
About RE-VERSE AD
RE-VERSE AD is an ongoing phase III global study that includes patients taking PRADAXA who have uncontrolled bleeding or require emergency procedures. The interim analysis from RE-VERSE AD included data from patients with either uncontrolled or life-threatening bleeding complications, e.g. intracranial hemorrhage or severe trauma after a car accident, or patients requiring emergency surgery or an urgent procedure, e.g. surgery for an open fracture after a fall. The primary endpoint, the degree of reversal of the anticoagulant effect of dabigatran achieved by idarucizumab within four hours, measured by diluted thrombin time (dTT) and ecarin clotting time (ECT).
The study is the first of its kind in patients, and has been underway since May 2014, enrolling up to 500 patients in more than 35 countries.
There are serious risks to consider when treating patients with PRAXBIND, including warnings and precautions for thromboembolic risk, re-elevation of coagulation parameters, hypersensitivity reactions and risks of serious adverse reactions in patients with hereditary fructose intolerance due to sorbitol excipient. The most frequently reported adverse reactions (5%) in PRAXBIND-treated healthy volunteers was headache and in the phase III RE-VERSE AD study were hypokalemia, delirium, constipation, pyrexia and pneumonia.
Please see more complete details of these risks in the "About Praxbind (idarucizumab)" section.
About Praxbind (idarucizumab)
INDICATIONS AND USAGE
PRAXBIND is indicated in patients treated with Pradaxa when reversal of the anticoagulant effects of dabigatran is needed:
For emergency surgery/urgent procedures
In lifethreatening or uncontrolled bleeding
This indication is approved under accelerated approval based on a reduction in unbound dabigatran and normalization of coagulation parameters in healthy volunteers. Continued approval for this indication may be contingent upon the results of an ongoing cohort case series study.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS
Thromboembolic Risk
Dabigatran-treated patients have underlying diseases predisposing them to thromboembolic events. Reversing dabigatran therapy exposes patients to the thrombotic risk of their underlying disease. To reduce this risk, resumption of anticoagulant therapy should be considered as soon as medically appropriate.
Re-elevation of Coagulation Parameters
Elevated coagulation parameters (e.g., activated partial thromboplastin time or ecarin clotting time) have been observed in a limited number of PRAXBIND-treated patients. If reappearance of clinically relevant bleeding together with elevated coagulation parameters is observed or if patients requiring a second emergency surgery/urgent procedure have elevated coagulation parameters, an additional full dose may be considered.
Hypersensitivity Reactions
There is insufficient clinical experience evaluating risk of hypersensitivity to idarucizumab, but a possible relationship could not be excluded. Risk of hypersensitivity (e.g., anaphylactoid reaction) to idarucizumab or excipients needs to be weighed cautiously against the potential benefit. If serious allergic reaction occurs, immediately discontinue PRAXBIND and institute appropriate treatment.
Risk in Patients with Hereditary Fructose Intolerance
PRAXBIND contains 4 g sorbitol as an excipient. When prescribing PRAXBIND in patients with hereditary fructose intolerance consider the total daily amount of sorbitol/fructose consumption from all sources as serious adverse reactions (e.g. hypoglycemia, hypophosphatemia, metabolic acidosis, increase in uric acid, acute liver failure and death) may occur.
ADVERSE REACTIONS
The most frequently reported adverse reaction in 5% of idarucizumab-treated healthy volunteers was headache (12/224). The most frequently reported adverse reactions in 5% of patients were hypokalemia (9/123), delirium (9/123), constipation (8/123), pyrexia (7/123) and pneumonia (7/123).
As with all proteins there is a potential for immunogenicity with idarucizumab. In treated patients, treatment-emergent antibodies with low titers were observed (9/224).
USE IN SPECIFIC POPULATIONS
Pregnancy and Nursing Mothers
PRAXBIND should be given to a pregnant or nursing woman only if clearly needed.
Please see full Prescribing Information .
About Pradaxa (dabigatran etexilate mesylate)
INDICATIONS AND USAGE
Pradaxa (dabigatran etexilate mesylate) capsules is indicated:
to reduce the risk of stroke and systemic embolism in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation;
for the treatment of deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in patients who have been treated with a parenteral anticoagulant for 5-10 days;
to reduce the risk of recurrence of deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in patients who have been previously treated
for the prophylaxis of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in patients who have undergone hip replacement surgery
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION ABOUT PRADAXA
WARNING: (A) PREMATURE DISCONTINUATION OF PRADAXA INCREASES THE RISK OF THROMBOTIC EVENTS, (B) SPINAL/EPIDURAL HEMATOMA
(A) PREMATURE DISCONTINUATION OF PRADAXA INCREASES THE RISK OF THROMBOTIC EVENTS Premature discontinuation of any oral anticoagulant, including PRADAXA, increases the risk of thrombotic events. If anticoagulation with PRADAXA is discontinued for a reason other than pathological bleeding or completion of a course of therapy, consider coverage with another anticoagulant. (B) SPINAL/EPIDURAL HEMATOMA Epidural or spinal hematomas may occur in patients treated with PRADAXA who are receiving neuraxial anesthesia or undergoing spinal puncture. These hematomas may result in long-term or permanent paralysis. Consider these risks when scheduling patients for spinal procedures. Factors that can increase the risk of developing epidural or spinal hematomas in these patients include: use of indwelling epidural catheters
concomitant use of other drugs that affect hemostasis, such as non-steroidal anti inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), platelet inhibitors, other anticoagulants
a history of traumatic or repeated epidural or spinal punctures
a history of spinal deformity or spinal surgery
optimal timing between the administration of PRADAXA and neuraxial procedures is not known Monitor patients frequently for signs and symptoms of neurological impairment. If neurological compromise is noted, urgent treatment is necessary. Consider the benefits and risks before neuraxial intervention in patients who are or will be anticoagulated.
CONTRAINDICATIONS
PRADAXA is contraindicated in patients with:
active pathological bleeding;
known serious hypersensitivity reaction (e.g., anaphylactic reaction or anaphylactic shock) to PRADAXA;
mechanical prosthetic heart valve
WARNINGS & PRECAUTIONS
Increased Risk of Thrombotic Events after Premature Discontinuation
Premature discontinuation of any oral anticoagulant, including PRADAXA, in the absence of adequate alternative anticoagulation increases the risk of thrombotic events. If PRADAXA is discontinued for a reason other than pathological bleeding or completion of a course of therapy, consider coverage with another anticoagulant and restart PRADAXA as soon as medically appropriate.
Risk of Bleeding
PRADAXA increases the risk of bleeding and can cause significant and, sometimes, fatal bleeding. Promptly evaluate any signs or symptoms of blood loss (e.g., a drop in hemoglobin and/or hematocrit or hypotension). Discontinue PRADAXA in patients with active pathological bleeding.
Risk factors for bleeding include concomitant use of medications that increase the risk of bleeding (e.g., anti-platelet agents, heparin, fibrinolytic therapy, and chronic use of NSAIDs). PRADAXA's anticoagulant activity and half-life are increased in patients with renal impairment.
Reversal of Anticoagulant Effect: A specific reversal agent (idarucizumab) for dabigatran is available when reversal of the anticoagulant effect of dabigatran is needed: For emergency surgery/urgent procedures In life-threatening or uncontrolled bleeding
A specific reversal agent (idarucizumab) for dabigatran is available when reversal of the anticoagulant effect of dabigatran is needed:
Hemodialysis can remove dabigatran; however clinical experience for hemodialysis as a treatment for bleeding is limited. Prothrombin complex concentrates or recombinant Factor VIIa may be considered but their use has not been evaluated. Protamine sulfate and vitamin K are not expected to affect dabigatran anticoagulant activity. Consider administration of platelet concentrates where thrombocytopenia is present or long-acting antiplatelet drugs have been used.
Thromboembolic and Bleeding Events in Patients with Prosthetic Heart Valves
The use of PRADAXA is contraindicated in patients with mechanical prosthetic valves due to a higher risk for thromboembolic events, especially in the post-operative period, and an excess of major bleeding for PRADAXA vs. warfarin. Use of PRADAXA for the prophylaxis of thromboembolic events in patients with AFib in the setting of other forms of valvular heart disease, including bioprosthetic heart valve, has not been studied and is not recommended.
Effect of P-gp Inducers & Inhibitors on Dabigatran Exposure
Concomitant use of PRADAXA with P-gp inducers (e.g., rifampin) reduces exposure to dabigatran and should generally be avoided. P-gp inhibition and impaired renal function are major independent factors in increased exposure to dabigatran. Concomitant use of P-gp inhibitors in patients with renal impairment is expected to increase exposure of dabigatran compared to either factor alone.
Reduction of Risk of Stroke/Systemic Embolism in NVAF
For patients with moderate renal impairment (CrCl 30-50 mL/min), reduce the dose of PRADAXA to 75 mg twice daily when dronedarone or systemic ketoconazole is coadministered with PRADAXA.
For patients with severe renal impairment (CrCl 15-30 mL/min), avoid concomitant use of PRADAXA and P-gp inhibitors.
Treatment and Reduction in the Risk of Recurrence of DVT/PE & Prophylaxis of DVT/PE Following Hip Replacement Surgery
For patients with CrCl <50 mL/min, avoid use of PRADAXA and concomitant P-gp inhibitors
ADVERSE REACTIONS
The most serious adverse reactions reported with PRADAXA were related to bleeding.
NVAF
Most frequent adverse reactions leading to discontinuation of PRADAXA were bleeding & gastrointestinal (GI) events
PRADAXA 150 mg resulted in higher rates of major and any GI bleeds compared to warfarin
In patients 75 years of age, the risk of major bleeding may be greater with PRADAXA vs warfarin
Patients on PRADAXA 150 mg had an increased incidence of GI adverse reactions. These were dyspepsia (including abdominal pain upper, abdominal pain, abdominal discomfort, and epigastric discomfort) and gastritis-like symptoms (including GERD, esophagitis, erosive gastritis, gastric hemorrhage, hemorrhagic gastritis, hemorrhagic erosive gastritis, and GI ulcer)
DVT/PE
Rates of any GI bleeds were higher in patients receiving PRADAXA 150 mg vs warfarin and placebo
In the active-controlled studies, there was a higher rate of clinical myocardial infarction (MI) in PRADAXA patients [20 (0.66/100) patient-years)] vs warfarin [5 (0.17/100 patient-years)]. In the placebo-controlled study, there was similar rate of non-fatal and fatal clinical MI in PRADAXA patients [1 (0.32/100 patient-years)] vs placebo [1 (0.34/100 patient-years)]
GI adverse reactions were similar in patients receiving PRADAXA 150 mg vs warfarin. They were dyspepsia (including abdominal pain upper, abdominal pain, abdominal discomfort, and epigastric discomfort) and gastritis-like symptoms (including gastritis, GERD, esophagitis, erosive gastritis and gastric hemorrhage)
DVT/PE After Hip Replacement Surgery
Rate of major GI bleeds in patients receiving PRADAXA 220 mg and enoxaparin was the same; rate of any GI bleeds was higher in patients receiving PRADAXA 220 mg vs enoxaparin
GI adverse reactions were the same in patients receiving PRADAXA 220 mg vs enoxaparin. These were dyspepsia (including abdominal pain upper, abdominal pain, abdominal discomfort, and epigastric discomfort) and gastritis-like symptoms (including gastritis, GERD, esophagitis, erosive gastritis and gastric hemorrhage)
Clinical MI was reported in 2 (0.1%) patients who received PRADAXA 220 mg and 6 (0.3%) patients who received enoxaparin
Other Measures Evaluated
In NVAF patients, a higher rate of clinical MI was reported in patients who received PRADAXA (0.7/100 patient-years for 150 mg dose) than in those who received warfarin (0.6).
Please see full Prescribing Information including boxed WARNING and Medication Guide .
About Boehringer Ingelheim
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., based in Ridgefield, CT, is the largest U.S. subsidiary of Boehringer Ingelheim Corporation.
Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the world's 20 leading pharmaceutical companies. Headquartered in Ingelheim, Germany, the company operates globally with 146 affiliates and more than 47,000 employees. Since its founding in 1885, the family-owned company has been committed to researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing novel treatments for human and veterinary medicine.
Boehringer Ingelheim is committed to improving lives and providing valuable services and support to patients and families. Our employees create and engage in programs that strengthen our communities. To learn more about how we make more health for more people, visit our Corporate Social Responsibility Report.
In 2014, Boehringer Ingelheim achieved net sales of about $16.96 billion dollars (13.3 billion euros). R&D expenditure corresponds to 19.9 percent of its net sales.
For more information please visit www.us.boehringer-ingelheim.com, or follow us on Twitter @BoehringerUS.
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. either owns or uses the trademarks Pradaxa, Praxbind and RE-VERSE AD under license.
SOURCE Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Related Links
http://www.us.boehringer-ingelheim.com
WEST JORDAN, Utah, April 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Rocky Mountain Biologicals (RMBIO) specializes in the development and production of high performance solutions, sera including fetal bovine serum (FBS), protein fractions like bovine serum albumin (BSA) and thrombin, and cell culture media supplements. The new West Jordan, Utah division is a cGMP process solutions manufacturer focused on water for injection (WFI), sterile purified water (PW), sterile water for irrigation (WIR), saline, media, reagents and buffers. The high purity sterile water products are manufactured to USP monograph specifications using RMBIO's nine-step system. This proprietary process includes the closely regulated processes of primary filtration, deionization, UV treatment, multiple effect distillation and hot storage, culminating in passage through circulation systems before final filtration.
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160401/350612
"Rocky Mountain Biologicals new facility is a critical step in our path to becoming a complete cell culture company. This facility, and the team we have been able to assemble in our media, WFI and supplements division, add tremendous capabilities to RMBIO. The expansion is a direct result of our customer's demands for these critical products. The level of investment we have contributed to this division demonstrates our commitment to meeting the requests of our customers," said Suresh Daniel, CEO of Rocky Mountain Biologicals. "The continued growth of our serum and protein business provides a great complement to the products manufactured in the new facility, and we are proud to offer our complete product selection to our customers."
CAPABILITIES:
The primary products manufactured in our West Jordan facility include:
A complete line of USP High Purity Water including Water for Injection Quality Water (WFI), Sterile Water for Irrigation (WIR), Purified Water (PW), Molecular Water and Reagent Grade Water
Saline and Balanced Salt Solutions
Upstream Media and Feed Solutions
Downstream Purification Buffers
Diluents/Buffers
Cell and Tissue Processing Solutions
Cell Culture Media
cGMP Custom Process Solutions
FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT:
The 20,000 square foot West Jordan facility was custom-designed and built to our exact specifications, based on guidance provided by our team of skilled scientists and seasoned business leaders. The facility is capable of producing over 20,000L of high purity water daily.
Designing the plant from the ground up allowed us to employ the most recent developments and innovation in our industry; including our nine step, cutting-edge purification system. RMBIO is also utilizing single-use systems that have revolutionized bio-manufacturing practices, and deliver the highest levels of quality assurance for process solutions.
This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com
SOURCE Rocky Mountain Biologicals
Related Links
http://www.rmbio.com
The following product is subject to the voluntary recall:
Roland Fire Roasted Red Pepper Strips, NET Wt. 5 LB. 8 OZ. can
Item #: 45628
Lot #s: 427, 428, 432, 437
UPC #: 10041224456287 (carton) and 041224456280 (can)
Pack Size: 6 x 5 LB. 8 OZ. cans per shipping carton
Production Codes (code is ink jet printed on the top of the can): G1 MSS 1 P0929 and G1 MSS 2 P0929
Carton Markings: ITEM 45628 LOT #s: 427, 428, 432, 437 Fire Roasted Red Pepper Strips Roland UPC 10041224456287
No other sizes of Roland Fire Roasted Red Pepper Strips or products are affected by the voluntary recall.
No illnesses have been reported to date.
The recall was initiated after the firm received customer complaints of glass in the product. The recalling firm has notified the manufacturer of the findings in order to conduct an investigation as to what caused the problem.
Consumers can visit www.rolandfood.com, or contact its Consumer Hotline at 1-800.221.4030 ext. 222, Monday Friday, 9am-5pm EST, for further information about the voluntary recall and for instructions on obtaining replacement product.
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160401/350676
SOURCE Roland Foods, LLC
Shimla, March 30 : Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh is battling increasing disquiet within the Congress party even as the BJP seems confident of clawing back to power in the hill state.
After three years in power, a section of Congress leaders, including young legislators, say they feel suffocated vis-a-vis Virbhadra Singh, who is at the helm for a sixth time and is known for his autocratic style.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is confident of regaining the ground it lost in the 2012 assembly election. It also feels that the Virbhadra government is on the brink of collapse following fresh revelations as the Enforcement Directorate probes the chief minister for money laundering.
Two-time BJP chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has hinted that many Congress legislators were unhappy with Virbhadra Singh and were in touch with him, and an Uttarakhand-like situation cannot be ruled out.
Undeterred, a shrewd Virbhadra Singh, who will meet Congress party in-charge Ambika Soni in New Delhi on April 2, said: "The BJP will never succeed in my political murder."
Congress insiders say it is high time to end the discontentment among a section of legislators.
"Virbhadra Singh needs to bring in new faces and make changes in his government. It will be too late if he fails to do it now," a senior party leader who didn't wish to be identified told IANS.
He said three under-performing ministers - Vidya Stokes, 89, Sujan Singh Pathania, 73, and Thakur Bharmouri, 69 - could be replaced in the 12-member cabinet with new talent.
Speaker B.B.L. Butail is 75-years old.
Second-time legislators Rajesh Dharmani (Ghumarwin) and Rakesh Kalia (Gagret) were among the youth leaders whose names were doing the rounds for ministerial berths when the first cabinet was constituted. But they were ignored.
Another young sulking legislator is Rohit Thakur, the grandson of former chief minister late Thakur Ram Lal and a prominent apple grower. So is former education minister and firebrand legislator Asha Kumari.
The fissures within the Congress surfaced twice at vice president Rahul Gandhi's election rallies in the state in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls when his "young brigade" complained that they were deliberately sidelined.
At a rally in Bilaspur town, Gandhi took with him Dharmani to the dais where Virbhadrda Singh and other senior leaders were seated. Dharmani had not been invited to the stage though he was the local legislator.
Similarly, a group of young turks told Gandhi that they were not getting due respect from party leaders in the state.
Dharmani resigned as a chief parliamentary secretary just ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
A political crisis was sparked in 2013 by the purported resignation of Transport Minister G.S. Bali who was miffed with Virbhadra Singh.
Bali, who sent his resignation to the party leadership in New Delhi, later backtracked.
Last year, Bali vowed to launch a statewide march to raise the issue of unemployed youth.
Political observers say the Congress central leadership seems to have adopted a wait-and-watch policy on the fresh revelations by the Enforcement Directorate against the chief minister.
"Probably they are awaiting the outcome of the investigation. If something adverse happens, the leadership may force Virbhadra Singh to step down and pitch for (senior minister) Kaul Singh," said an observer.
Kaul Singh was in the race for chief ministership in 2012.
Accusing the Centre of misusing government agencies against him, Virbhadra Singh, 82, has said his government was stable despite political manoeuvring by the BJP.
In the 68-member assembly, the Congress has a wafer-thin majority with 36 members. The BJP has 26 legislators.
There are five independent legislators and one from the Himachal Lok Shakti Party.
(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)
Kolkata, March 30 : Since coming to power in West Bengal five years back, the Trinamool Congress has been steamrolling opponents in successive electoral battles. But Mamata Banerjee's party faces a formidable challenge in the upcoming assembly polls in the wake of a raging bribery scandal and the teaming up of the Congress and Left Front, say analysts.
But they also feel TINA (There Is No Alternative) factor, Trinamool's organisational might, the effects of the development projects and social security schemes implemented by the Banerjee government, especially in the countryside, could be Trinamool's biggest pluses.
After dismantling the Left Front in 2011 with a brute majority, the Trinamool has scripted grand successes in the panchayat, civic, and Lok Sabha polls. In the 2014 general elections, it bagged 34 of the 42 Lok Sabha seats, pushing traditional foes Left Front and ally-turned-opponent Congress to the brink.
Even as the Trinamool campaigns on its development plank, analysts feel the Congress-Left combination may play a catalytic role in the polls, billed by many as one of the most crucial in the history of the eastern state.
"The biggest threat facing Trinamool is the Congress-Left tie-up, which has given a new dimension to Bengal polity often characterised by apolitical untouchability. Besides charging up the Congress-Left Front workers, it has given credence to the opposition's bid to provide an alternative to the Trinamool," political analyst Biswanath Chakraborty told IANS.
While the tie-up has been plagued by delivery pangs and bickerings, Chakraborty asserts it can be a game changer, especially against the backdrop of the Narada sting operation in which several Trinamool biggies have been purportedly caught accepting bribes.
"Trinamool's electoral fortunes remained unscathed by the Saradha chit fund scam because of its timely damage control. That included setting up a corpus to indemnify the ruined investors. But the sting operation has come like a bolt from the blue," said Chakraborty.
He pointed to the damaging remarks by several Trinamool leaders, including veteran MP Dinesh Trivedi, who prescribed that party colleagues purportedly caught in the scandal should "sit at home" till they "come out clean" in a probe.
Though Banerjee and her party have rubbished the sting as "doctored" and have been constantly ridiculing the Congress-Left accord, the jitters within the Trinamool are apparent.
Analyst Bimal Shankar Nanda, howver, stresses on the TINA factor, as well as the Banerjee government's micro-level development plank.
"The anti-incumbency, the sting operation, all pose a threat. But the one thing that not only nullifies these threats, but is likely to play a major role is the TINA factor," Nanda told IANS.
"Notwithstanding the charges levelled by the opposition, a large section of voters, especially the rural populace, are still unwilling to give another chance either to the Left or the Congress, while the BJP is still several years away from being a force to reckon with," he said, referring to Banerjee's social security schemes.
Besides being "unabashed" in wooing the minorities, Banerjee has introduced social security schemes like the 'Kanyashree' (aimed at stopping marriages of minor girls and inspiring them to complete school education) and 'Khadya Sathia' (providing subsidised food grain at Rs.2 a kilo to a large section of the population). She has also been showering sops, including scholarships, bicycles and automotive loans.
While a factional feud, especially at the grassroots, has become a bane for the party, Banerjee's decision to field turncoats, especially former Marxist leader Abdur Razzak Molla, also has triggered protests in several constituencies.
At the other end, the reintegration into the party mainstream of Mukul Roy -- considered the architect of its electoral victories "has come at the most opportune time".
"The current election undoubtedly is Trinamool's biggest challenge since 2011 especially in the face of the Congress-Left tie-up. But with Roy's re-emergence and riding on its organisational might and the oppositions' organisational deficiency, the party can manage to sail through again," analyst Anil Kumar Jana told IANS.
Considered Banerjee's right hand man, Roy had become a pariah within the Trinamool following his grilling by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the Saradha scam. Having mended fences after nearly a year, the Rajya Sabha member is now the party's vice president.
Jana feels Trinamool will not be able to repeat its 2011 performance, when it bagged 184 seats in partnership with the Congress.
"It will win with a reduced majority," added Jana.
But the Trinamool is gung-ho about bettering its 2011 showing.
"Despite the conspiracies hatched by the opposition, or the collusion between the CPI-M, Congress and the BJP, Trinamool will return to power on the sheer strength of the development work undertaken by the government in the last five years," Trinamool Lok Sabha member Sultan Ahmed told IANS.
"Anti-incumbency, or the charges of corruption, are a mirage created by the opposition and they will not cut ice with the people," Ahmed asserted.
New Delhi, March 31 : India must look beyond money to develop its ports sector for which it has estimated a whopping investment of Rs.2.98 lakh crore (nearly $45 billion) for handling 3.13 billion tonnes of cargo annually, according to a research study released here on Friday.
The study, conducted by the Bureau of Research on Industry and Economic Fundamentals (Brief) with the support of the British High Commission here, recommends a comprehensive, holistic and port-wise plan of action to enhance maritime trade and ease the business environment.
The recommendations focus on key areas of reform requiring investment as well as restructuring of port policies to support India's development agenda in the area. The study says for an emerging economy, such initiatives are key to capitalising on trade opportunities and promoting growth.
The study comes at a time when Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari has said the government has drawn up projects with an investment potential of Rs.120,000 crores ($18 billion), including 27 port-based clusters, coastal shipping and inland waterways, which can create 4-6 million new jobs.
India currently handles around 1 billion tonnes of cargo from over 200 ports.
"It's not all about investments," said Mohammed Saqib, chief executive of Brief, after looking at some key ports such as Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Mumbai Port, Paradip Port, Haldia Docks, Cochin Port, Chidambaranar Port, Adani Port, Attari and Petrapole Land Customs Stations for the study.
"While technology and international experience are necessary pre-requisites for port development, they must also be complemented with efficient coordination and communication between authorities and the stakeholders in the country," Saqib said.
"The recommendations made in the report have been designed to aid overall development of the Indian Ports Sector, which in turn will have positive effects on the Indian economy."
The study was conducted from April 2015 to March 2016 and focussed on identifying infrastructural gaps and policy reforms that needed to be addressed to capitalise on the trade opportunities in the country.
Issues highlighted by it include inadequate mechanisation, low draft, lack of coordination among authorities, poor rail and road connectivity, frequent breakdown of ports and customs softwares, flaws in risk management systems, high tariffs and uncompetitive costs.
Brief is an economic research organization focusing on primary survey-based research in a host of socio-economic areas. It has undertaken studies for clients like The World Bank, Germany's GIZ, Ficci, Sidbi, Dun and Bradstreet and the British High Commission.
Hanoi, March 31 : Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang was relieved from duty on Thursday at the ongoing 11th session of the 13th National Assembly (NA) in capital Hanoi.
Sang was approved to be relieved from the duty of president of Vietnam by the NA with 447 "for" votes out of 473 valid ballots, Xinhua news agency reported.
A resolution on relieving Sang from the duty of president of Vietnam was later adopted by the NA with 458 "yes" out of 459 participants.
Tran Dai Quang, member of the 12th Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPVCC) and 12th CPVCC's Politburo member and minister of public security, is the sole nominee to the post.
The election for the new Vietnamese president will be conducted on Saturday through secret ballot.
Mumbai, March 31 : In tune with the theme of Indian textile and craft on the second day of the Summer-Resort edition of Lakme Fashion Week (LFW) here, designer duo Swati & Sunaina explored an organic line infused with elements from the life of mythological character Radha.
It is a sensuous line of gossamer creations handloomed with precision.
Talking of the inspiration behind the collection, Sunaina told IANS: "Even though Radha is a mythological character, but what sets her apart is that she made a choice and stuck to it. Material thing and possession didn't matter to her.
"Hence, through this collection, we are portraying those women who make choices in their life and stick to it."
Since Radha was more involved with nature, the designers ensured the line is organic.
"Keeping in mind Radha's love for nature, we did a lot of cotton and pure Jamdani. If she is close to nature, then she must be dressed up in more organic and cotton clothing. There were few heavier silks that we did keeping in mind young girl's colour choices as we tried to portray modern Radha," Swati added.
Their line comprises saris, dresses and other feminine outfits in calm pastel shades.
There's also festive evening wear revisited with a beautiful non-silk option in the form of pure zari sari. The designers played with the hues of summer in shades like corals, light blues, pinks and beige, lending a pertinent fashion perspective to a jetsetter woman.
The opening show of 'The Sustainable And Indian Textile Day' at LFW also witnessed the showcasing of Priyanka Ella Lorena Lama's Eclectic 'Maitake' Collection and Swati Kalsi's designs.
Priyanka allowed her creativity to move into an unconventional fashion zone. Weaving her creative talents around an exotic milieu of fabrics, the designer selected fragile light handwoven pure eri, ahimsa silk, cashmere and pashmina. The collection's USP was minimum measurements and stitching.
Short dhotis, frayed edged loose tunics and capes, kaftan with hooded long covers, extreme long sleeves with a straight jacket inspiration and a sleeve-cum-stole for the midi were great unconventional construction designs.
Also, the glamour of Sujani embroidery came alive in Kalsi's earthy collection. Her range 'Monad' was an ode to the beauty of the traditional Sujani embroidery and fabulous handwoven fabrics.
The designer revealed her creative magic in black, ivory, camel, grey and madder. The handwoven textiles used are tussar and Gicha silk, cotton and cotton silk, while for some sheer glamour there was silk organza. The Sujani embroidery worked its delicate magic on the garments turning them into feminine fashion offerings.
Opening the show with a black shaded soft coat over skirt, the collection moved to sheer tie-up dress and cropped pants, kurta with ankle length parallels, bell sleeve short wrap, maroon/gold flecked loose smock and an off-shoulder maroon top and wrap pants.
New Delhi, April 1 : The requirement that 85 per cent of the display area of packets of all tobacco products should carry pictorial warning of cancer has come into force from Friday According to the new norm, packets of cigarettes and other tobacco products will have 85 per cent of their area covered by pictorial warnings besides the text warning which has existed for long, said an official statement.
The notification requiring larger warning was made in September 2015. Until its implementation from Friday, the norm was 40 percent pictorial warning on packets of tobacco products.
The implementation comes despite a parliamentary committee determining that the requirement of 85 percent pictorial warning is too harsh. The committee instead recommended 50 percent pictorial warning.
A delegation of the tobacco growers had urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring the norms on graphic health warnings on cigarette packets in line with those prevailing in other tobacco-producing countries.
According to them, many developed countries including the US, Japan and China have only the text and no pictorial warnings on packets of tobacco products.
The union health ministry had made a commitment to the Rajasthan High Court on March 28 that all tobacco products manufactured from April 1 onwards will carry larger pictorial health warnings.
Washington, April 1 : A defiant North Korea and global terrorism were the main focus of talks at the fourth Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) in Washington.
The two-day biennial summit opened here on Thursday night with a welcome dinner at the White House for the over 50 top world leaders, including India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, attending the two-day event which will conclude on Friday, media reports said.
US President Barack Obama, who launched the summit in 2010 and is hosting his fourth and last such summit, said there is "great urgency" to end the scourge of global terrorism after the March 22 Brussels attacks, in which 32 people were killed, and the Paris attacks in November last year that claimed 130 lives.
Obama was flanked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the left and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the other side during the NSS working dinner to discuss how to prevent terrorists and other non-state actors from gaining access to nuclear materials.
Xi and Obama found common ground on confronting the nuclear threat posed by North Korea. China supported a new round of UN sanctions against the Pyongyang government after it tested a nuclear device and fired ballistic missiles, the New York Times reported.
Obama also met Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan and South Korea's President Park Geun-hye.
In a meeting prior to the dinner on Thursday evening, Obama praised his French counterpart, Francois Hollande, for "galvanising the European community" in the fight against terror groups. Both leaders also discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation to prevent further terrorist attacks, EFE news reported.
Russia, the country with the largest nuclear weapons arsenal in the world, has decided not to attend the summit citing "lack of cooperation" between partners, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov.
Russia's absence makes it difficult to reach major agreements on nuclear safety.
Nine countries -- the US, Russia, Britain, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea -- together possess more than 15,000 nuclear weapons -- but 90 percent of all nuclear weapons are in the US and Russia.
Besides Hollande, Xi and Modi, British Prime Minister David Cameron, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev are also attending the summit.
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was due to participate in the summit but he cancelled his visit in the backdrop of the deadly suicide attack at Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park in Lahore on March 27, in which at least 72 people, including 29 children, were killed and over 300 others injured.
However, Minister of State and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Syed Tariq Fatemi will represent Pakistan at the Summit.
The first of these biennial nuclear security summits was held in Washington in April 2010, followed by summits in Seoul in March 2012 and The Hague in March 2014.
US Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz co-hosted a separate working dinner for other members of the visiting delegations.
New Delhi, April 1 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Riyadh from Washington on Saturday on the third and last leg of his three-nation tour to pay a two-day bilateral visit to Saudi Arabia at the invitation of King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
This will be the first prime ministerial visit from India to the Gulf kingdom after the visit of then prime minister Manmohan Singh in 2010.
During that visit, the relationship between the two countries was elevated to "strategic partnership".
This was after the Delhi Declaration made during then King Abdullah's historic visit to India in 2006, the first by a Saudi monarch in five decades.
There are four key aspects to India's relationship with Saudi Arabia: energy cooperation, the nearly three million-strong expatriate Indian community, Haj pilgrimage and security cooperation.
Saudi Arabia is India's largest crude oil supplier accounting for one-fifth of the total imports. In 2015, India imported $21 billion worth of crude oil from that Gulf nation.
Saudi Arabia is also India's fourth largest trading partner with exports to that country exceeding $11 billion.
At over 2.96 million, Indians form the largest expatriate community in Saudi Arabia and are crucial to the Indian economy as they send over $10 billion in remittances every year.
Over 134,000 Indians go for the Haj pilgrimage every year and almost 300,000 for Umra.
A key aspect of the strategic partnership between the two countries is the defence cooperation agreement signed during then Crown Prince Salman's visit to India in 2014.
With Saudi Arabia upping the ante against terrorism, security cooperation also has become an important cornerstone of the relationship. In recent times, Riyadh handed over to New Delhi key terror operatives like Abu Jundal and Abdul Aziz alias Gidda.
"India's ties with Saudi Arabia are special," Prime Minister Modi said in a statement ahead of his departure from New Delhi.
"Robust people-to-people ties constitute a key component of our engagement. I plan to work with the Saudi leadership to expand and deepen our bilateral relations. Discussions on the regional situation would also be on the agenda," he said.
The prime minister also said that he wanted Saudi businesses to partner in India's development plans.
Soon after his arrival in Riyadh on Saturday afternoon, Modi will visit the historic Masmak fortress.
The fortress was taken over by King Abdulaziz in 1902 in a sudden attack which marked the start of the history of the third state of Saudi Arabia.
Thereafter, Modi will meet with members of the Indian community which will be followed by a visit to the L&T workers' residential complex.
L&T is doing $2 billion worth of work on the $600-billion Riyadh Metro Project.
On Sunday, the prime minister will visit the Tata Consultancy Services' (TCS) all-women IT centre.
"It is a very happy thing that he will be doing because this centre provides employment opportunities to Saudi women and this is empowerment of Saudi women," Mridul Kumar, joint secretary (Gulf) in the external affairs ministry, said at a media briefing in connection with the visit.
"When the centre started two or three years back, there were 80 people in that centre. It has now grown to over 1,000," he said, adding that 80 percent of the workers there were local Saudi girls.
Stating that this was the first BPO operation by any company in the world in Saudi Arabia, Kumar said that "it is a very important statement that we will be making there".
After this, Modi will meet with select top Saudi business leaders.
The official ceremony at the Royal Court will start in the afternoon when King Salman will receive the prime minister King Salman will host a lunch in Modi's honour in which key Saudi ministers and other leaders will be present,
This will be followed by a delegation-level meeting and signing of agreements.
The prime minister will leave for New Delhi late Sunday afternoon.
New Delhi, April 1 : India and Saudi Arabia will seek to elevate their strategic partnership to a more broad-based one, with the focus on energy and security cooperation, during the two-day visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Riyadh beginning Saturday, the first by an Indian prime minister in six years.
Manmohan Singh was the last Indian prime minister to visit the Gulf kingdom in 2010, when the bilateral relationship was elevated to strategic partnership.
Modi, who flies in from Washington on the third and final leg of his three-nation visit, will hold discussions with Saudi King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, top officials and Saudi business leaders.
The prime minister's visit is part of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government's Link West policy -- of building closer ties with the Gulf region that is home to a large expatriate Indian population and fetches the country $70 billion in remittances a year.
Apart from being India's largest crude oil supplier, accounting for one-fifth of the imports, Saudi Arabia is also India's fourth largest trading partner with bilateral trade reaching $40 billion.
"India's ties with Saudi Arabia are special," Prime Minister Modi said in a statement ahead of his departure to Belgium, the US and Saudi Arabia.
"Robust people-to-people ties constitute a key component of our engagement. I plan to work with the Saudi leadership to expand and deepen our bilateral relations. Discussions on the regional situation would also be on the agenda," he said.
The prime minister also said that he wanted Saudi businesses to partner in India's development plans.
Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al Jubeir, who was in New Delhi last month in the run-up to the prime ministerial visit, said his country wanted to further elevate ties with India.
"We look forward to Prime Minister Modi's visit which will be another milestone in the relations between our two great nations," Jubeir told IANS.
"We hope to elevate our relationship from that of the current 'strategic partnership'," he said.
He said during his meeting with Modi, he expressed Saudi Arabia's "desire to broaden our relations in all areas".
"We expressed our commitment to further deepen our relations in all areas including energy cooperation."
India and Saudi Arabia had signed the Delhi Declaration during then King Abdullah's historic visit to India in 2006, the first by a Saudi monarch in five decades.
Modi's visit assumes significance in the context of the current regional situation and strained relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, another strategically important country for India.
With Saudi Arabia upping the ante against terrorism and the rise of the Islamic State terror outfit, security cooperation also has become an important cornerstone of the relationship. In recent times, Riyadh handed over to New Delhi key terror operatives like Abu Jundal and Abdul Aziz alias Gidda.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, during her meeting with Jubeir last month had conveyed that India is keen on a strong security and counter-terrorism partnership with Saudi Arabia and sought Riyadh's support for India's draft Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT).
The nearly three million-strong expatriate Indian population in Saudi Arabia is another key aspect of the bilateral relations.
Discussions on some of the issues facing Indian workers in Saudi Arabia are also likely to come up during Modi's visit. Sushma Swaraj had taken up the issue with Jubeir and suggested that the existing labour agreement with the Gulf nation be expanded to include sectors other than domestic workers.
On Saturday Modi will meet with members of the Indian community which will be followed by a visit to the L&T workers' residential complex.
L&T is doing $2 billion worth of work on the $600-billion Riyadh Metro Project.
On Sunday, the prime minister will visit the Tata Consultancy Services' (TCS) all-women IT centre.
After this, Modi will meet with select top Saudi business leaders.
The official ceremony at the Royal Court will be held on Sunday afternoon when King Salman will receive the prime minister.
King Salman will host a lunch in Modi's honour in which key Saudi ministers and other leaders will be present, This will be followed by a delegation-level meeting and signing of agreements.
The prime minister will leave for New Delhi late Sunday afternoon.
Lucknow, April 2 : Traders across Uttar Pradesh is set go on a strike on Monday to express solidarity with the ongoing protests by jewellers against the additional excise duty levied by the union finance ministry.
UP Udyog Vyapar Mandal officials informed that cloth merchants, food grain traders will also join the strike.
Over 300,000 jewellery shops owing allegiance to more than 300 associations across India went on strike since the excise duty announcement in the budget presented on February 29.
More than 1,200 jewellery shops in the state capital have remained shut since the strike began.
Late Friday, angry jewellers demanded Union Ministers Manoj Sinha and Sanjeev Baliyan for a rollback in the additional excise duty.
The ministers were in Lucknow to attend a state executive meet of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
Madrid, April 2 : The Spanish royal household announced that King Felipe VI and other members of the family will receive a 1 percent pay rise in 2016.
The pay rise, which is the same as that received by Spanish public sector workers, means Felipe will be paid a salary of 236,544 euros ($269,000), while his wife, Queen Letizia will receive 130,092 euros and his father, Juan Carlos I 189,228 euros, Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday.
The official website of the Royal Household confirmed on Friday that its budget for 2016 is 7,775,040 euros, which is the same as the last two years.
The majority of that money is spent for personnel costs (3.83 million euros) while 2.93 million is spent on day to day expenses, 662,316 on salaries for members of the royal family and 195,000 on "royal investments".
New Delhi : Title: The Scout - The Definitive Account of David Headley and the Mumbai Attacks; Authors: Shirish Thorat with Sachin Waze; Publisher: Bloomsbury; Pages: 232 Price: Rs.399 What kind of a person can coolly go around a bustling metropolis with the hidden objective of reconnoitering a series of high profile and bustling targets for a relentless, unconscionable carnage and strike up acquaintanceship with those who might well figure among the victims? Daood Sayeed Gilani alias David Coleman Headley for one.
Many details are now known of the Pakistani-American Lashkar-e-Taiba operative with the mismatched eye pupils who laid the seeds of the 26/11 Mumbai attack, by providing the terror outfit with detailed inputs and hours of footage of the iconic and well-frequented targets, including the Taj Hotel, the Leopold Cafe and even the hard-to-find Chabad House.
But as the attack was being directed by LeT commanders, why was Headley not invited to the "command centre" and his calls fobbed off. Finally arrested by the US authorities, he escaped the most serious punishment. Indian access, once granted, was extremely limited. (Until recently, when all sorts of disclosures are coming after he became an approver).
Where did his primary allegiance, if any, lie, and was there more he did that we don't know about - yet?
This is what former police officers Shirish Thorat and Sachin Waze try to do deal with this in this book - a riveting account of the preparations for the dastardly attack, their bloody unfolding, and a tantalising bit of the aftermath - with the ominous tagline "26/11 was just the beginning".
The real truth behind the planning and preparation of 26/11 may never be known, but the duo present a most plausible reconstruction of it, though admitting that "at the end of it all, we knew what had happened and in what sequence and like all events there were some things which we could prove and some things that we could not. This narrative is a combination of verifiable facts and a professional's estimate of what happened and how".
Thorat, an expert on terrorism and money-laundering, and Waze, who has experience of operating on Mumbai's mean streets, has helped authors such as Adrian Levy (co-writer of "The Siege: The Attack on the Taj"), Jason Burke and S. Hussain Zaidi, and is himself author of a Marathi bestseller about 26/11, succeed quite well.
Whether it is the meeting at LeT's sprawling headquarters at Muridke near Lahore when Hafeez Saeed gives the go-ahead to Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi (here strangely rendered Zakirur), their observations of their relations with the ISI, the attackers' training in Muzaffarabad, the planning sessions, they all seem based on notes taken by an observant participant and and reads no less than an engrossing thriller.
Likewise is the appearance of Headley himself in the third chapter, through his ISI handler 'Major Iqbal' reading about his background from his file, after having "poured two fingers of Jim Beam into a gleaming crystal glass and followed it up with soda and a splash of water" and having lit a cigarette and taken a "few meditative drags".
But it is the attack itself and the response of police force and some ordinary - and not so ordinary - citizens that sets the book apart. Whether it is junior officers and constables rushing to confront heavily-armed terrorists with their vintage - and unequal - weapons, the CST announcer who risked his life to warn away commuters, the beggar woman's selfless act, countless hotel employees who escorted patrons to safety, the doctor who worked overtime, and finally, the armed forces. This has been gone over in newsreports and earlier works but still remains the actual legacy.
This is however also the point when the plot is lost. There are a few matters which are raised but not adequately cleared up - like why the decision to put Rakesh Maria in charge of the control room came in for criticism later- but the vignettes of the aftermath, tantalising as they are, end without any full closure, while making a avoidable goof-up as to then union minister P. Chidambaram's designation.
This may not yet be a definitive account, as flagged, of Headley but gives an unforgettable view of an "extraordinary maverick chameleon character who only served himself despite professing multiple allegiances (Levy)", and the attacks he helped arrange. As such it is a valuable addition to the corpus on this watershed occurrence.
(Vikas Datta can be contacted at vikas.d@ians.in )
Chennai, April 2 : Dun & Bradstreet Technologies will use its analytical tools to predict the financial stress and bankruptcies that SME borrowers of state-owned Indian Bank are likely to face in the next 18 months, a top company official said.
"We will be using our predictive analytical tools to assess the financial stress, bankruptcies, propensity to pay back the loan and the ease of collection and other aspects about the small and medium enterprise (SME) borrowers of Indian Bank," Ganesh Sethuraman, managing director, Dun & Bradstreet Technologies, told IANS on Friday.
Each borrower would be given a score on various parameters, he said.
Vivek Agarwal, the senior vice president of the company, told IANS that the SME loan accounts of Indian Bank in the western region would be taken up first for the analysis.
Sethuraman said the assignment would enable the company to prove the concept and launch the fuller service for banks and financial institutions.
"Once the proof of concept is established we will launch our service sometime around June this year. India is the fourth largest economy in the world and the estimated market for this service is around $50 million for players like us," Sethuraman said.
The predictive analytical team for the Indian SMEs would have around 25 members with a strong grounding in statistics, mathematics and economics, Sethuraman said.
"We have been offering the service to companies in the Middle East and other regions with a team size of 180 and doing a business of around $6 million," he said.
The company has developed new set of products for the Indian market, he said.
The company would increase its headcount by around 200 people this year taking the total number of employees on the rolls to around 800, he added.
Predictive analytics is different from credit rating as it goes a couple of steps farther to forecast the possible financial position of a borrower taking into account various factors like economy and market conditions.
New York, April 2 : An Arab-American family slammed United Airlines after its staff removed them from a flight in an incident that they claimed was "profiling" and "discrimination at its finest".
On March 20, Eaman-Amy Saad Shebley and her children were asked to leave a Spring Break flight from Chicago to Washington by the crew in what was described by them at the time as a "safety of flight" issue, the Daily Mail reported on Saturday.
In videos posted on Facebook, Shebley claimed that the air crew were "profiling my family and me for no reason other than how we look."
The two short videos show two air crew members talking to Shebley and her husband. In the first, a woman said that they were going to "ask that she step off the aircraft".
Shebley's husband enquires why, but the video cuts off before a response is heard.
In the second video, the captain of the plane is asked why they must leave and said "Because it's my decision".
When asked to elaborate he said, "It is a safety of flight issue".
In an earlier post, Shebley wrote, "United is kicking me and my kids off of the plane! For no reason! Captain said for the safety of the flight! ... Discrimination at its finest! I have everything recorded! We didn't say or do anything!"
However, United Airlines has denied the claims and said it has "zero tolerance for discrimination".
Advocacy group, Council on American-Islamic Relations sent a letter to United Airlines on the family's behalf demanding disciplinary action against the staff involved.
"We are tired of Muslim-looking passengers being removed from flights for the flimsiest reasons, under a cryptic claim of 'security'," said CAIR-Chicago Executive Director Ahmed Rehab.
"Security means securing passengers, not harassing and humiliating them and booting them off their flight for, of all things, actually asking for security."
Dharamsala, April 2 : Eleven members of the US Congress have asked Secretary of State John Kerry to raise the issue of Tibetan political prisoners with the Chinese government, the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) said on Saturday.
They three prisoners are Khenpo Karma Tsewang, Lobsang Kunchok and Thapke Gyatso.
"We write today to express our deep concern about three Tibetan political prisoners, while noting that there are hundreds of other documented Tibetan political prisoners currently being held in Chinese prisons," the legislators said in a letter dated March 31.
"We urge you and others at State Department, the US embassy in Beijing and the US consulate in Chengdu to raise their cases with the Chinese government, make every effort to obtain information about their whereabouts and health status, press for necessary medical treatment, and prioritize their release," said the letter.
Those signing the letter included Micheal E. Capuano, Christopher H. Smith, James P. McGovern, James F. Sensenbrenner and Eleanor Holmes Norton.
The Dalai Lama has lived in India since fleeing his homeland Tibet in 1959. The Tibetan administration-in-exile is based here in Himachal Pradesh state.
Patna, April 2 : For the Bihar government, enforcing a liquor ban that came into effect on Friday is not the only challenge. De-addiction of hundreds of thousands of alcoholics is going to pose a tough task for the state government.
After a partial liquor ban came into force in Bihar from Friday, the state government has decided to take on the responsibility of de-addiction of alcoholics.
In the past de-addiction of alcoholics was mainly given to NGOs and voluntary organizations that run rehab centres to help people kick the habit.
The Bihar government has set up 39 de-addiction centres across the state for treatment and counselling of alcoholics.
"Around 150 highly trained doctors will be deployed at de-addiction centres in all 38 districts in the state for treatment and counselling of alcoholics," N.K. Sinha, state programme officer of de-addiction centres, told IANS here.
Doctors have been trained at the Bengaluru-based National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences(NIMHANS) and New Delhi and Patna -based All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). "The state government sent these doctors for special training in February and March for de-addiction of alcoholics," he said.
According to officials of the state health society, these doctors have been trained to carry out various methods of de-addiction, including counselling and treatment, to help overcome the mental and health problems of patients.
In Patna, the government has set up a 25 bed de-addiction centre at the Nalanda Medical College and Hospital and a 10 bed de-addiction centre in all sadar hospitals in the districts.
Doctors will also provide free counselling to families, particularly the women, of alcoholics to deal with the stress at home.
Health experts pointed out that alcoholics are prone to withdrawal symptoms, including body pain, anxiety and irritability after they leave alcohol.
Bihar Excise and Prohibition Minister Abdul Jalil Mastan told IANS that other than enforcing liquor ban in the state, the state government's focus will be de-addiction.
"With the liquor ban, alcoholics will now have to live without alcohol or they have to quit the habit. In such a situation, all of them would develop some health related problems; counselling and treatment would be provided to them by doctors at de-addiction centres," Mastan said.
He said that de-addiction of the poorest of poor in rural areas will be the focus. "It is not an easy thing in view of the big number of alcoholics in the state," he added.
Mastan said in the first phase, manufacture and sale of country and spiced liquor would be banned, followed by Indian-made foreign liquor later this year.
Last year, during campaigning for the 2015 Bihar assembly elections, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced that an alcohol ban would be implemented from April 1.
Bihar police chief P.K. Thakur has announced that prohibition and its 100 per cent implementation is a priority of state police.
"We have decided to set up a helpline number and control room to register country liquor related complaints," Thakur said.
The state minister said the poorest of the poor were consuming liquor, leading to family problems and domestic violence which was affecting their children's education. "Women are suffering more than anyone else due to increasing liquor consumption."
According to officials, the ban decision is expected to impact the government's financial health. Bihar earns an annual revenue of around Rs.3,650 crore from liquor sale.
To provide livelihood to those involved in the liquor business, the government has offered them to sell products of the state-run Bihar State Milk Cooperative Federation Ltd. under the brand name "Sudha Dairy"
(Imran Khan can be reached at imran.n@ians.in)
Washington, April 2 : An Indian-American Sikh military officer in US has been granted permission to wear a religious beard and turban while in uniform, the media reported on Friday.
The US Army's decision to the make permanent religious accommodation for Capt. Simratpal Singh makes him the first active-duty combat soldier in decades to be permitted to wear a turban and beard, www.nydailynews.com reported.
The ruling ended the protracted battle that pitted individual religious freedom rights against what the military said was a need for uniformity and strict safety standards.
"My two worlds are one againA I can fully serve my country exactly the way I want to and still be a full Sikh the way I want to be," reported nydailynews.com.
Singh, 28, an observant Sikh had to cut his hair and shave his beard when he joined the West Point military academy in 2006.
"It was excruciating. For 18 years of your life, you've had a certain image of yourself. All of a sudden, it's shattered within 10 minutes," Singh was quoted as saying.
Ten years later, Singh, now an Army Ranger and Bronze Star Medal recipient, in a bid to reclaim that image asked the US Army in October to allow him to begin wearing a beard and turban. Facing a discrimination lawsuit, the Army granted him a temporary accommodation in December.
In February, with the temporary accommodation set to expire, the Army insisted Captain Singh to undergo extensive testing to make sure his beard and hair wouldn't interfere with his helmet or gas mask.
Singh filed suit citing religious discrimination. A judge ruled that the Army couldn't impose the individualised testing on Singh and ordered the service to decide on his request by March 31.
On Thursday, in a court ruling Singh was finally granted a permanent accommodation.
"Because of the Army's strong interest in maintaining good order and discipline, the Army intends to develop clear, uniform standards applicable to soldiers who have received religious accommodation," Debra S. Wada, the assistant secretary of the Army for manpower and reserve affairs, wrote in a memo to the captain released on Friday.
Until those standards are in place, she said, Captain Singh will be expected to appear in a "neat and conservative" manner with a black or camouflage turban.
Singh, who grew up in Punjab, immigrated to the US at the age of nine after his father was granted political asylum in the country. His grandfather often regaled him with tales of fighting in World War I as a soldier in the British Indian Army, which instilled in him the desire to join the military.
Washington, April 2 : US Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Japan later this month to attend a Group of Seven foreign ministers meeting in Hiroshima, the State Department has said.
The foreign ministers of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US will gather from April 10 to 11 to discuss measures to fight terrorism as well as to realise a world without nuclear weapons, The Japan Times quoted a source as saying on Friday.
In Hiroshima, Kerry is expected to visit and lay flowers at Peace Memorial Park, dedicated to the 1945 US atomic bombing of the city, along with Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and other G-7 foreign ministers, the source close to bilateral relations said.
Kerry would be the first US secretary of state to visit the park while in office.
The meeting comes ahead of G-7 leaders' talks in Japan next month.
Islamabad, April 2 : India has "no right" to question Pakistan's decision to develop its nuclear material as its own nuclear programme is highly ambitious, a Pakistani daily has said.
The Nation, in an editorial titled 'Safe And Secure', also slammed the US over its support for India's nuclear programme, which it said was because India is one of the largest importers of arms.
The editorial said that Pakistan's security of its nuclear stockpile came into question "once again" during talks between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval in Washington in the backdrop of the Nuclear Security Summit.
It said Kerry, during his conversation with Doval, indicated that India and the US have begun conversations about Pakistan's nuclear weapons programme and Kerry also praised India's "responsible stewardship" of its nuclear weapons.
Asserting that Pakistan is "following a policy of minimum nuclear deterrence to preserve strategic stability in South Asia", it said the deployment of "battlefield tactical nuclear weapons that Mr. Kerry refers to are Pakistan's decision in light of the level of threat that it faces currently".
"It would be wise that the US uses this platform to address the tensions between the two counterparts before it wants to strike up a conversation about limiting the development of nukes," the editorial said.
"It is also a fact that Pakistan's nuclear programme is fully secure and there has not been a single breach, whereas India has five reported cases of nuclear breaches," The Nation said.
"While the US will never be quite satisfied with the seriousness with which Pakistan protects it nuclear program, India has no right to question Islamabad's decision to develop its nuclear materials considering the fact that its nuclear programme is highly ambitious and continues to increase its stockpile. It is understandable that the US will support its ally and one of the largest importers of arms in the world in comparison to distrustful Pakistan. But rest assured that Pakistan is a country that takes pride in its nuclear programme and will continue to enjoy full ownership of its assets regardless of any reservations that other parties might or might not have," it wrote.
Mumbai, April 2 : Bollywood actress and item girl Rakhi Sawant, a close friend of TV actress Pratyusha Banerjee who allegedly committed suicide on Friday, says the "Balika Vadhu" star was "tensed" about her relationship with her boyfriend Rahul Raj Singh.
Pratyusha hanged herself from a fan at her Goregaon West residence but was detected and taken to the Kokilaben Ambani Hospital where she succumbed.
"I still can't believe that she is no more. She was so lively and full of life. She had such big dreams. I had met her few days back and she was little upset. She looked tensed about Rahul's ex-girlfriend Saloni. She was tensed about her relationship," Rakhi told IANS here.
"She was such an emotional girl that the moment we ask what happened she used to have tears in her eyes," she added.
Rakhi also said that Pratyusha was not depressed about her work, but she was only tensed about her relationship.
"She was madly in love with Rahul and used to say that she can't live without him. Let the Mumbai police investigate on this," she added.
Hailing from Jharkhand, Pratyusha catapulted to fame with her role in "Balika Vadhu" between 2010-2013.
She was later seen in the reality dance show "Jhalak Dikhla Jaa 5", "Bigg Boss 7" and hosted some episodes of "Savdhan India". She recently appeared in "Sasural Simar Ka".
Ahmednagar (Maharashtra), April 2 : A day after the Bombay High Court ruled that no law prevented women's entry into places of worship, women activists seeking entry were assaulted and prevented by villagers from praying at the Shani Shingnapur Temple on Saturday.
A tense atmosphere prevailed in the pilgrim-cum-tourist site as Bhumata Ranragini Brigade President Trupti Desai and a band of around 500 women supporters entered the village and attempted to approach the temple precincts.
Hundreds of villagers, mostly women, formed human chains and prevented the activists from proceeding for 'darshan' at the Shani Temple in the centre of the village.
Chaos prevailed as an aggressive Desai and her team reached the village and proceeded straight to the temple. They were stopped in their tracks by villagers as well as police.
"This is a contempt of the Bombay High Court... the court had ordered that if women are stopped, the police must intervene and allow them to go to the sanctum sanctorum," Desai told mediapersons.
The chaos degenerated into a free for all with the resolute activists being pushed around and assaulted by the agitated villagers and police virtually barricading the temple complex.
Desai warned that if the women were stopped from going to pray right under the nose of the police, she would lodge a complaint against the concerned officials.
"Why is the police remaining silent? Was Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis lying when the assurance was made before the court? He should have issued the necessary orders as submitted to the court, why was it not done? Should we lodge a police complaint even against Fadnavis?" she asked.
Desai declared the women would not leave the village without having an audience in the sanctum sanctorum of the famous Shani Shingnapur Temple.
In a ruling with far-reaching implications, the Bombay High Court on Friday had declared that no law prevents women from entering places of worship and there should be no gender discrimination as far as entering a place of worship is concerned.
The verdict by a division bench comprising Chief Justice D.H. Waghela and Justice M. S. Sonak of Bombay High Court had come on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by activists Vidya Bal and senior lawyer Nilima Vartak.
Disposing off the PIL, the judges had directed the Maharashtra government to take proactive steps to ensure compliance with the laws, saying it is "the fundamental right of a woman" and must be protected.
The state government assured it was totally opposed to gender discrimination and it would scrupulously implement the Maharashtra Hindu Place of Worship (Entry Authorisation) Act, 1956, which stipulated six months jail for violators.
Women devotees are not allowed to worship at this temple, dedicated to Lord Shanidev - the personification of planet Saturn.
Los Angeles, April 2 : A 69-year-old man shot dead his adult son in Los Angeles this week because his son was gay, media quoted prosecutors as saying on Saturday.
Shehada Khalil Issa, who had previously threatened to kill his son, Amir Issa, 29, because he was gay, has been charged with premeditated murder, CNN quoted Los Angeles County prosecutors as saying.
Police responded to a 911 call on Tuesday and arrived at the family home in the North Hills neighbourhood in Los Angeles, where they found the body of Amir Issa outside their home and his mother's body inside the home. Prosecutors allege that Khalil Issa fired a shotgun that killed his son.
The LAPD was still investigating what happened to the victim's mother, who was not identified.
Investigators told the Los Angeles Daily News that Issa had initially said he found his dead wife in the bathroom of their house and had shot his son in self-defence after being threatened with a knife.
Later, Issa made "incriminating statements" and was subsequently charged with murder. Issa is being held without bail and could face life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Damascus, April 2 : Architecture and archaeological sites have sustained severe damage due to the attacks by Islamic State terrorists in the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria.
Homs Governor Talal Al-Barazi said that services, facilities and infrastructure have sustained severe damage and restoring the services may take several weeks, SANA reported.
The repair work will start next week in order to help displaced people return home, Al-Barazi said during a tour to examine the losses and damage in Palmyra, accompanied by the directors of services establishments in Homs.
Al-Barazi inspected the telephone centre, the electricity grid and water network and visited the national museum in the city whose contents and several other historical monuments like the Arch of Triumph and Temple of Bel were destroyed by the IS militants last year.
He said repairs will start as soon as the military engineering units complete defusing and dismantling explosive devices and mines planted almost all over the city, pointing out that several non-governmental international organisations have expressed their readiness to take part in restoring the ruins of Palmyra.
Director of Homs Department of Archaeology Hussam Hamish said the examination of the museum's contents showed the possibility that some of the damaged artifacts can be restored including the Lion of Al-Lat.
The Arch of Triumph, which was blown up by the IS, can be worked on as well, said Hamish, adding that the Temple of Bel needs expert examination since its main structure was completely demolished.
Director of Homs Electricity Company Musleh al-Hassan said the electricitu grid has been severely damaged and transfer plants stolen, adding that the damage exceeds 80 percent.
Director of Homs Telecommunications Directorate Kanaan Jouda said that it was possible to soon begin operating the Palmyra telephone centre which has been vandalised by the militants.
Also on Wednesday, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad sent a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon appreciating his welcoming of the re-taking of Palmyra city from the IS.
Assad called in his letter for the UN organisations and agencies to support the Syrian government in the restoration of Palmyra as it was a cultural icon classified as a Unesco World Heritage Site.
This could be the most appropriate moment to accelerate the collective war against terrorism, said Assad, renewing Syria's readiness to cooperate with all sincere efforts aimed at combating terrorism.
On February 27, the Syrian army regained control over the ancient city of Palmyra from the IS.
Bhubaneswar, April 2 : A day after Odisha celebrated Utkal Divas, the foundation day of the state formed on linguistic basis in 1936, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday received flak over his alleged poor understanding of Odia.
Patnaik's Odia speech written in English has gone viral on Facebook, with people mocking and venting their anger against the longest serving chief minister of Odisha.
He also came under attack from different political parties for his poor understanding of Odia language.
"I am shocked that he has not shown any interest to learn Odia. How can you rule a state without knowing the language of the land?" asked Pyari Mohan Mohapatra, Rajya Sabha member and estranged advisor of Naveen Patnaik.
Mohapatra said he had given two books to the chief minister on how to learn the mother tongue of the state.
"The chief minister didn't learn the language despite being given two books in 2000. Had he evinced the slightest interest, he would have learnt the language by this time," the leader said.
Meanwhile, police have detained some activists of the National Students Union of India (NSUI), the students' wing of the Congress party, for trying to sneak into Naveen Niwas in a bid to teach Odia language to the chief minister.
They tried to enter the residence of Patnaik with Odia text books and writing slate boards.
"We will continue such protests till the chief minister understands Odia language," said NSUI state unit president Itish Pradhan.
However, the ruling Biju Janata Dal reacted over the issue cautiously. BJD's students wing president Byomkesh Ray said the Congress party is indulging in such activities to gain publicity after it lost the confidence of the people.
New Delhi, April 2 : Opposing the central government's move to privatise Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI), Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to stop the process and allow the banks to recover outstanding from big defaulters.
In his letter to Modi, Kejriwal said: "The reason being described to privatise the IDBI is that the government aims to earn money by selling its shares. If the bank is being sold with this intension, then it will be very wrong.
"I request you to stop the privatisation of IDBI and allow the banks to recover outstanding loans from big industrialist defaulter. Strict action should be taken against people like Vijay Mallya."
His letter came after a delegation of IDBI Officers Association met Kejriwal on Friday and expressed their opposition to the government's reported move to dilute its stake in the bank to less than 50 percent.
The delegation had told Kejriwal that union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in his budget speech in the Lok Sabha on February 29 that the central government had no obligation to hold a minimum 51 percent stake in the IDBI, thereby effectively announcing the government intention to privatise it.
In the letter Kejriwal added that the IDBI was among the profit-making banks.
He said that according to the financial data of the bank, by December 2015 it had the operating profit before provisions and contingencies of Rs.1,117 crore.
"It's completely unfair to sell profit-making banks. I'm being told that the government will earn about Rs. 2,000 to 3,000 crore by selling its share," he wrote.
Attacking the BJP led-NDA government, Kejriwal said that it was very unfortunate that instead of recovering money from Mallya, the government let him go.
"When NDA government came to power people had expectation that you (Modi) will tighten the noose around big industrialists and recover bank loans from them. But NDA government permitted the people like Vijay Mallya to leave the country," he said.
"Mallya have a bank debt of Rs.9,000 crore. There are several such big industrialists who have taken loan from the banks. The government not only stops the banks to recover money from them but also privatise the banks by selling its shares. After privatisation these banks would be handed over to corporates like Mallya," he alleged.
Chicago, April 2 : A United Airlines pilot asked a Muslim family of five to leave a plane before it took off, citing "safety" issues, media reported on Saturday.
Eaman-Amy Saad Shebley, her husband and three young children were about to take off on a flight bound for Washington at a Chicago airport when the pilot asked them to get off the aircraft.
The family enquired earlier whether the stewardess could provide five-point harness safety seats for their children.
Two videos filmed by Shebley show the stewardess and then the pilot asking the family to leave.
Shebley asked the pilot whether it was a "discriminatory" decision. The pilot replied it was a "flight safety issue" but were not given any details.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations sent a letter to United Airlines on the family's behalf demanding disciplinary action against the staff involved, the Independent reported.
"We are tired of Muslim-looking passengers being removed from flights for the flimsiest reasons, under a cryptic claim of 'security'," said CAIR-Chicago Executive Director Ahmed Rehab in a statement.
"Security means securing passengers, not harassing and humiliating them and booting them off their flight for, of all things, actually asking for security."
Shebley wrote on Facebook: "Shame on you ?#?unitedAirlines? for profiling my family and me for no reason other than how we look and kicking us off the plane for "safety flight issues" on our flight to DC for the kids spring break. My three kids are too young to have experienced this."
The airline apologised multiple times to Shebley's family after they got off the plane and were rebooked on another flight.
In a statement to BuzzFeed News, United Airlines said the family was rebooked "on a later flight because of concerns about their child's safety seat, which did not comply with federal safety regulations" and said the airline has "zero tolerance for discrimination".
Kuala Lumpur, April 2 : Thousands of people joined a rally in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday to protest against the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on the first anniversary of its implementation.
Police cordoned off the intended venue, Dataran Merdeka, leaving protesters to converge outside police barriers, Malay Mail Online reported.
The rally, which started around 2 p.m. (local time) was organised to demand an end to the GST, a value-added consumption tax, which is levied on most transactions in the production process.
Protesters also called for the release of jailed opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim and the resignation of Prime Minister Najib Razak, who has come under fire over allegations of corruption linked to the debt-laden state fund 1MDB and deposits into his private accounts worth around $680 million.
Participants at Saturday's rally waved scarves emblazoned with the slogan "#Save Malaysia", while others wore "Cancel GST" headbands.
The rally featured speeches by prominent opposition figures such as Ibrahim's wife, Wan Azizah, and former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who recently filed a suit against Razak, alleging corruption and "misfeasance and breach of fiduciaries" in public office.
New Delhi, April 2 : Activists here on Saturday blamed the BJP-led Maharashtra government after various women activists were assaulted and prevented by villagers from praying at Shani Shingnapur Temple in Maharashtra's Ahmednagar.
The Bombay High Court on Friday declared that no law prevents women from entering places of worship and there should be no gender discrimination as far as entering one is concerned while allowing a plea filed by activists Vidya Bal and senior lawyer Nilima Vartak challenging the age-old tradition prohibiting entry to women to the sanctum sanctorum of the world-famous Shani Shingnapur Temple in Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district.
However, on Saturday, hundreds of villagers, mostly women, formed human chains and prevented the activists from proceeding for 'darshan' at the Shani Shingnapur Temple in Ahmednagar in Maharashtra.
Women activists have welcomed the ruling of the Bombay High Court that allows women to enter temples, saying there should not be gender discrimination on religious rights.
They, however, blamed local government and police for not providing easy passage to women activists to enter the temple.
Social Activist and CPI-M leader Brinda Karat said the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Maharashtra government violated the court order and blamed police for not providing easy passage to women activists to enter the temple.
"After the high court order and as the Maharashtra laws are very clear the police were asked to provide smooth passage and ensure security to the women activists who wanted to go to the temple," Karat told IANS.
Karat demanded that the court intervene and punish the people responsible for the situation.
Congress leader Priyanka Chaturvedi said: "Two things have been clearly exposed that the Maharashtra government despite knowing that there is an Act that exists on giving equal rights to women has not implemented in true spirit.
"The high court verdict has been disregarded to continue tradition which has been going on for years."
"We were hoping that the Maharashtra government which came on the promise of women empowerment and equal rights to women and a chief minister who keeps on talking of equal rights has failed in his duty," Chaturvedi told IANS.
President of the All India Democratic Women's Association and CPI leader Subhashini Ali also blamed Maharashtra government for not implementing the decision.
"This is very wrong. If you say that men and women have equal rights then why are only men allowed to enter places of worship," Ali told IANS, adding that the decision should be applied in mosques and dargahs also.
Meanwhile, All India Progressive Women's Association (AIPWA) Secretary Kavita Krishnan welcomed the verdict and said that it is the fundamental right of women to enter places of worship.
"I support the decision of Bombay High Court," she told IANS.
Director, Centre for Social Research, Ranjana Kumari termed it a historic judgment and demanded that the decision should be implemented in other temples where women are prohibited from entering.
There are several other temples in the country including Ayyappa Temple in Kerala, Patbausi Satra in Assam and Lord Kartikeya temple in Rajasthan which bar women from entering.
Kumari said: "There should be no discrimination on the basis of gender and women of 21st century will not tolerate such kinds of bias."
"Such prohibitions flourished as men made the rules regarding the rituals practiced in the temple," Kumari told IANS.
Islamabad, April 2 : At least 120 civilians, 19 militants and 12 security forces personnel were killed in militant attacks in Pakistan in March, a statement said.
Though the number of militant attacks decreased in March, an escalation in high-profile terror activities resulted in more casualties compared to February.
This was stated in a monthly security assessment report released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) on Friday, Dawn reported.
The report said security forces eliminated 108 militants and arrested 983 suspects. "March was the bloodiest month of the first quarter of 2016 with 151 casualties in 46 militant attacks."
The over three-time increase in the casualties was due to the rise in high-profile attacks, including the Charsadda courts attack, Civil Secretariat bus attack in Peshawar and the Gulshan-i-Iqbal Park attack in Lahore.
The report said the operational capabilities of militants started to improve in 2016 as their command and control structure was intact in Afghanistan.
"The increase in high-profile attacks in urban areas showed that financial pipelines of militants were reconnected. During intelligence-based operations, security forces busted their major source of finance through kidnapping for ransom."
In Federally Administered Tribal Areas 12 millitants, five civilians and three security personnel were killed in 13 militant attacks during the month.
In Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 29 civilians were among 40 people, including 12 security personnel killed. The province witnessed more high-profile attacks as at least 17 people were killed in the Charsadda bombings.
As many as 14 people were killed and 55 injured when a bomb ripped through a bus carrying government employees in Peshawar.
Punjab saw the deadliest attack of the year so far when a blast in Gulshan-e-Iqbal park killed 79 people and injured 340 others.
The attack resulted in the start of a military-led operation against suspected militants in the province.
A slight increase in militant attacks was observed in Sindh where five people were killed and 24 were injured in 11 militant attacks. January and February each had witnessed seven militant attacks.
Twenty two suspected militants were killed in Sindh in 29 security forces actions during March 2016 while 44 suspects were arrested.
Islamabad, April 2 : Pakistani security forces on Saturday captured senior Pakistani Taliban commander, Ahmad Mehsud, in a remote mountainous region of North Waziristan, security officials said.
Ahmad Mehsud was considered an important commander of the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan as he had been behind the attacks on the forces and the tribal elders in Waziristan region.
The commander was injured and was hiding in a house in Razmak area of North Waziristan, security officials said. The forces also recovered a big cache of arms and explosives from the hideout, Xinhua reported.
Security sources said Mehsud fled to Afghanistan after the security forces launched a major operation in the region in June 2014, adding that Mehsud was wanted by the authorities for his involvement in several terrorist attacks.
The forces conducted an operation on a tip-off about the presence of the Taliban commander in a house, an official said.
The authorities described the arrest of Mehsud as a major success as it can lead to the capture of other Taliban leaders who are hiding in the mountains.
The army was now carrying out the final phase of the major offensive codenamed "Zarb-e-Azb" in remote and rugged mountains. Officials believe that the militants have moved to the mountains after fleeing towns.
Security forces have taken control of nearly 95 percent of North Waziristan that was the last stronghold of the Taliban and other militant groups including foreigners.
Lesvos, April 2 : Greek authorities in coordination with Turkish and European authorities made final preparations on Saturday for the start of the return of refugees from the Greek Aegean Sea islands to Turkey on Monday, while NGOs were scheduling protests.
Under March's European Union (EU)-Turkey agreement, from April 4 migrants who entered Greece via the Aegean after March 20 and were declared not eligible for asylum protection in Greece will be readmitted to Turkey, Xinhua reported.
According to sources the process will start from the port of Mytilene on Lesvos island on Monday.
Two Turkish vessels have been chartered by the European border control agency Frontex via Greek shipping companies to transfer the first batch of migrants from Lesvos to Turkey.
The "Nazli Jale" will carry a total of 200 refugees escorted by 200 Frontex officers per day and "Lesvos" will transfer a total of 100 persons per day (50 refugees and 50 security officers).
Under the deal which was ratified by Greece's parliament on Friday, Athens, Ankara and European partners will be cooperating in order to curb the massive refugee influx into Europe via the Aegean.
More than a million people have landed on Greek shores since January 2015.
Humanitarian organisations have expressed concern over the process and whether the refugees will receive full protection in Turkey under international law and according to sources are planning to hold protests at Mytilene port on Monday.
Kolkata, April 2 : Two top Maoist leaders were arrested from the city on Saturday by the Special Task Force (STF) of the Kolkata police.
Acting on a specific intelligence input, the STF nabbed Bikas alias Manasharam Hembram and his wife Tara alias Thakurmani Hembram from near the Brigade Parade Ground here.
A state committee member of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist, Hembram, along with his wife, were involved several acts of violence including the 2010 attack in a Eastern Frontier Rifles (EFR) camp in Silda in West Midnapore district in which 24 paramilitary personnel were killed.
"Bikas Aand his wife Tara, who is the leader of Maoist's Salboni squad, were involved in several incidents of violence including those in Silda," said Joint Commissioner of Police (STF) Vishal Garg.
"Following their interrogation, we raided a house in Mogra area in Hooghly district and seized an AK 47 rifle along with several rounds of live ammunition, Maoist literature and some letters in tribal language," he added.
The duo will be presented before a court on Sunday.
The arrests come two days ahead of the first phase of the West Bengal assembly polls in which 18 assembly constituencies spread across the three Maoist-affected districts of Bankura, Purulia and West Midnapore go to the hustings on Monday.
Of the 18 constituencies, 13 were not long ago the hub of red ultra activities, that peaked between 2006 and 2009.
New Delhi, April 2 : Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti on Saturday said the central government was ready to face any water crisis in case this year's monsoon proves to be disappointing.
"Government is ready to face any kind of drought situation (in any part of the country) if monsoon fails," the minister told a press conference here.
She also announced that the fourth India Water Week with a theme of "Water for all: Striving together" will be held here from April 4, with Israel as the partner country and all water-related issues will be discussed.
"We will learn from Israel how to deal with all sorts of water problems. It has many success stories related to water," she said.
The minister said that many states have been becoming "partner states" in the whole scheme of water conservation and its judicious usage and the central government will pay "incentives" to those of them who will complete water projects within the specified deadline.
The minister also called upon the Congress to help the central government in getting the water projects implemented smoothly in the states it rules.
"I appeal to (Congress president) Sonia Gandhi... we need support from you," she said, calling for the opposition party to be "pro-development".
About the Narendra Modi government's river-linking programme, she said that it was on and she along with other stake holders was working hard to make it a reality.
She also urged people to think about innovative ideas to save and use water judiciously.
Rain water harvesting and other water saving methods and water's judicious use would help us deal with water-related problems, the minister added.
Riyadh, April 2 : In an unprecedented gesture, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday shared a meal with Indian blue collar workers in Saudi Arabia here.
Modi sat down for the meal after addressing a gathering of the workers at the L&T residential complex during which he voiced his appreciation for the hard work they have put in for the development of the Gulf kingdom.
"Eating together, hearing each other's thoughts & experiences... at L&T Workers' Residential Complex in Saudi Arabia," the prime minister, who arrived here earlier in the day on a two-day bilateral visit to Saudi Arabia, tweeted along with a picture.
Indian engineering and infrastructure major L&T is doing around $2 billion worth of work on one line of the $600-billion Riyadh Metro Project.
Of the nearly three million expatriate Indians in Saudi Arabia, a large number of them are blue collar workers involved in the Gulf kingdom's various infrastructure projects.
Around $10 billion come in as remittances to India from Saudi Arabia every year.
Blue collar workers include masons, carpenters, brick-layers and plumbers among others.
New Delhi, April 2 : A day after influential Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband issued a fatwa that it was not proper for Muslims to chant "Bharat Mata ki Jai", the Indian Muslim leadership stood divided on the issue.
While most leaders and religious scholars agreed with the edict's basic premise - that Muslims cannot worship India as a deity despite their deep love for the country, some questioned the timing and political relevance of the fatwa, while one took a contrary stand.
Without commenting on the fatwa, Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind president Maulana Arshad Madani took exception to the view that it was improper for Muslims to chant the slogan.
"I don't think there is anything wrong in chanting 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' as this is similar to saying 'Jai Hind', which Muslims do without hesitation," Madani told IANS from Deoband.
Elaborating on his contention, he said: "See, this is about perception. The Hindus perceive India as a deity, a devi. Muslims should not see it as a deity and see Bharat Mata as their motherland. Then there is nothing wrong in saying 'Bharat Mata ki Jai'."
Madani, a widely-respected Islamic scholar who teaches hadith (Prophet's traditions) at Darul Uloom, argued what would be the position of Muslim scholars if Hindus make a picture of Allah and start worshipping it.
"Would you stop calling Allahu Akbar then?" he said.
However, other Muslim scholars and leaders did not take Madani's arguments kindly.
"Firstly, I don't understand what Maulana Arshad Madani is saying. To me calling Bharat as Mata - a deity - is shirk (polytheism). Secondly, I find the whole debate around this issue unnecessary and uncalled for," said Jama Masjid Delhi's Shahi Imam Maulana Ahmed Bukhari.
Bukhari also questioned the timing and politcal relevance of the fatwa.
"Although I agree with the jist of this fatwa, its timing is ill-conceived. The Darul Uloom muftis should have weighed the ramifications of it. It comes when a number of crucial states are in the midst of elections. And this fatwa can be used to polarise the electorate in the poll bound states," Bukhari told IANS.
Slamming Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi for his "irresponsible" statement on the issue, the he said that Muslim religious scholars and leaders should guard themselves from being dragged into "unnecessary and uncalled for arguments" on this issue.
Nevertheless, many others agreed with the fatwa.
"The fatwa is right and we support it. Muslims cannot worship anyone but Allah. Those who are raising questions on Muslims' patriotism, let me say that Muslims are far more patriotic than they are," Jamaat-e-Islami Hind president Maulana Jalaluddin Umari told IANS.
"We love India as it is our country and we need not prove it before anyone. Chanting 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' cannot be the only benchmark for patriotism. We can love our counrty without making it a deity and worshipping it," he said.
All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat president Naved Hamid too agreed with Umari's views.
"Please note that we are not Muslims by compulsion but by choice. We have ourselves chosen India to be our country. So there is no question of proving our loyalty to this country through a slogan that goes against our religious beliefs," Hamid told IANS.
"Secondly, it is not just about Muslims but also about other monotheistic faiths such as Sikhism. Will Sikhs agree to worship Bharat as a deity?" he added.
Hamid also said that doubting Indian Muslims' love for their motherland was only an attempt to create divisions in society.
(Mohd Asim Khan can be reached at mohd.a@ians.in)
New Delhi, April 2 : In a bizarre incident, a 22-year-old man called police and told them he was going to commit suicide before hanging himself from a ceiling fan at his house here, police said on Saturday.
After receiving the Police Control Room (PCR) received the call on Friday afternoon, a police team reached at Shahzaad's house in Seelampur in east Delhi only to find him dead.
"Shahzaad might have committed suicide just after making a PCR call. We didn't take more than 15 minutes in reaching his home but he had died till then and was already discovered hanging by his family members," said a police officer.
The officer said they were yet to find out the reason behind his extreme step.
Bengaluru, April 3 : Karnataka will once again seek Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention in getting its due share of the Mahadayi river water from Goa for supplying drinking water to the state's northern districts, reeling under drought for the past two years.
"An all-party delegation will soon call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and seek his intervention again for resolving the inter-state water dispute with Goa," Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told reporters here on Saturday.
The decision to meet Modi was taken at an all-party meeting here, in which central ministers D.V. Sadananda Gowda and Ananth Kumar participated along with other BJP and Congress lawmakers from parliament and the assembly.
The assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution, seeking the prime minister's intervention amid protests by the opposition members and people, especially farmers in the most-affected districts.
"We will request the prime minister's office to fix a date soon to meet Modi for apprising him of the grim situation in the affected districts and seek his help to resolve the issue," Siddaramaiah said after the hour-long meeting.
Karnataka wants to build barrages across Kalasa-Banduri tributaries of the Mahadayi river to divert 7.6 thousand million cubic feet of water for supplying drinking water to four districts - Gadag, Hubbali-Dharwad, Belagavi and Bagalkote - through the Malaprbaha river.
As the 77-km-long Mahadayi river flows to Goa from Karnataka into the Arabian Sea, the former, which has 52-km of its length, has been objecting over sharing its water, calling it a lifeline for its people.
But Karnataka sought to disprove its stand.
"We have been trying to convince Goa over the years that our project does not affect the river flow into its state, as about 200 tmc feet of water is going into the Arabian Sea every year unutilised," Siddaramaiah said.
Goa approached Supreme Court in September 2006 to prevent Karnataka from going ahead with the project on fears that it would prevent the river water flow and the central government set up the Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal on November 16, 2010 to resolve the dispute.
The tribunal, however, on a petition by Goa, directed Karnataka not to utilise water or divert it through the barrage project till the dispute was adjudicated.
"People will at all times search for information from other humans, SaidHere conveys accurate information and content between people, regardless of time and space." - Ciprian Pater
SaidHere allows you to tell your public surroundings what is happening right now exactly where you are. It allows for public uploading of media content and shows it to the whole world in real time or retrospectively with filters for distance and time.
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SaidHere also enables private communication where you send messages to your friends whom are invited to the app from Facebook, they will be able to see the content you sent them if they are within a set geo-fence that you as the sender has chosen in advance.
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Pater & Eriksen DA, is a creative agency based in Alesund/Norway. We are currently developing an Android version of SaidHere and planning incorporate SaidHere AS. We will also shortly approach the Norwegian investors and put in effect an extended marketing campaign.
Download the free iOS application: https://appsto.re/no/WUyY6.i
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The article features the story of Andy Graber, who is fortunate to have experienced and survived both a heart attack and a sudden cardiac arrest. I think about all of the things I like to do in my life, and I almost lost all of it. My doctors saved my life. Past News Releases RSS A Save of Olympic Proportions: Paul...
Illinois High School Student...
Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation...
Many people think sudden cardiac arrest and heart attacks are the same thing. Theyre not. The confusion plays out in the mass media, popular TV and films every day. If more people understood the difference, thousands of lives could be saved each year.
An article by the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation in "Cardiovascular Health" contrasts sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) with a heart attack, describes how they can sometimes be related, and describes the critical steps for both prevention and treatment. To help illustrate the difference, the Foundation featured the story of Andy Graber, who survived both conditions.
So what is the difference? A heart attack is a blood flow problem, caused by a blockage. The victim is usually awake, and while symptoms can vary (particularly among men and women), it is often associated with chest pain, shortness of breath, nausea or sweating.
Sudden cardiac arrest is an electrical problem, caused by a disruption in the hearts electrical system. The victim quickly loses consciousness with little or no warning signs, has no pulse and ceases to breathe normally.
Both are very serious, but in the case of SCA, treatment in the form of CPR and a defibrillator must start immediately, as the chances of survival decrease by 10 percent with each minute that passes.
While there are many causes of SCA, including underlying (and often undetected) heart rhythm disorders, one of the most common risk factors is a recent heart attack. The dead muscle from a heart attack can make the heart electrically unstable, putting patients at greater risk for SCA.
With more than 1.5 million Americans suffering heart attacks each year, thats a lot of people who may not realize theyre at increased risk for SCA.
Andy Graber experienced both a heart attack and SCA. He was fortunate that his doctor prescribed a LifeVest wearable defibrillator after his heart attack, and that device helped save his life. To read Andy's story, click here.
About the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation
The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation is a national community benefit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to raising awareness about sudden cardiac arrest and saving lives. Programs include educational campaigns for secondary schools and colleges and the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Network, an online community that provides peer support and opportunities for survivors and family members to participate in awareness, advocacy, and research initiatives.
About Mediaplanet
Mediaplanet is the leading independent publisher of content-marketing campaigns covering a variety of topics and industries. We turn consumer interest into action by providing readers with motivational editorial, pairing it with relevant advertisers and distributing it within top newspapers and online platforms around the world.
Julia Navarro is one of Spains most widely recognized authors. With a background as a journalist, Navarro has sold millions of copies of her nonfiction and fiction titles around the world, and her books are available in more than 30 countries. After writing several books on politics, she published her first novel, La Hermandad de la Sabana Santa (The Brotherhood of the Holy Shroud), in 2010, which stayed at the top of the bestseller charts in Spain for months. La Biblia de barro (The Bible of Clay) and La sangre de los inocentes (The Blood of the Innocent) strengthened her prestige among critics and the public. Soon after writing those books, she published Dime quien soy (Tell Me Who I Am) and Dispara, yo ya estoy muerto (Shoot Me, Im Already Dead), both works of historical fiction. Some of Navarros books in Spanish have been published in the U.S. by Vintage Espanol, and the English translations have been released by Bantam.
Her latest novel, Historia de un canalla (Story of a Sociopath), explores the human condition and reflects the ambition, greed, and selfishness of human beings. It is a modern and cosmopolitan novel set in New York and London with a couple of brief forays into Spain. The plots backdrop is the world of communication and politics, and it explores the codependent relationship between journalism and politics. Navarro spoke about Historia de un canalla, which was released in March in a Spanish-language edition, during her visit to New York.
This is by far the most psychological novel you have written. How helpful was your experience as a political journalist in understanding the mind-set of politicians and those who crave power?
What you read, live, and hear are all helpful elements when writing a book. I have worked as a political journalist and in political communications for 35 years, and these experiences helped me tremendously in developing the characters for this novel.
Do you think we are going through a period when societies, specifically European and North American ones, are obsessed with the issue of political power?
Political power is part of world history and the human condition, which is nothing new. However, technology and in particular social media is changing how power is communicated. People now use social media to influence others, not just in politics but in everything.
In Spain it was said that this novel is one of the most anticipated books of 2016. What do you feel when you hear that?
Responsibilitya deep sense of responsibility. I have worked on this novel for three years, but now its time for the readers to judge it. As a writer, you are always judged by your latest work. It feels a bit like having vertigo. I am now getting ready for a book tour that includes Spain, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, Panama, Peru, and the U.S. Due to the financial crisis in Spain, the Latin American and U.S. markets are very important. Since my first novel, I have worked a great deal in forging a path for my books in Latin Americareaders there are very consistent. The U.S. market in English is rather complicated, but I am happy that most of my books have been translated and are available in the U.S. As for the U.S. Hispanic market, I hope readers will enjoy my latest book. It is a shame that many Hispanics dont read in Spanishit is a heritage for them to enjoy.
"The terms of the president and vice president shall end at noon on the 20th day of January...
Could the seemingly straightforward first section of the 20th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution contain the seeds for a political crisis? It could if youre Steve Berry, the perennial bestselling author, whose The 14th Colony (Minotaur, Apr.), the latest complex thriller featuring covert operative Cotton Malone, asks what might happen if both the president- and vice presidentelect die before taking the oath of office, a possibility not addressed in the Constitution. In Berrys fiction, the answer is uncertain, and the scenario could lead to unprecedented political chaos.
Making the improbable plausible is a hallmark of Berrys 11 books in the Malone series, and hes succeeded time and again in doing so. In 2015s The Patriot Threat (Minotaur), the story line centered on whether Congresss power to collect income tax, granted by the 16th Amendment, is legal. Malone, who works for a secret Justice Department unit, Magellan Billet, crossed the pond in 2013s The Kings Deception (Ballantine), to uncover secrets surrounding the legitimacy of the reign of Elizabeth I, and its connections with the Northern Irish struggle for independence and the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988.
Berrys own path to success as an authorhis books have a staggering 20 million copies in print worldwide, sold in 51 countries and translated into 40 languagesis almost as unlikely as the conspiracy between Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II to topple the Soviet Union that serves as the prologue to The 14th Colony.
From childhood, Berry has been an avid reader, a trait he picked up from his father, Harold, a traveling salesman who brought new books with him when he returned home to Atlanta on Friday afternoons. Berry still fondly remembers hanging out in the basement, where the books were stacked on metal shelves, and reading the newest additions to the family collection, whatever the topic. He worked as a small-town attorney in South Georgia, handling thousands of cases, including divorces and criminal defense, for over three decades. From 1996 until 2010, Berry also served his community as a county commissioner for Camden County.
Contrary to accepted wisdom, Berry believes that a writer should never write what they know. Instead, write what you love. If what you know and what you love are the same thing, great. It wasnt for me. I knew the law. But I loved stories with action, history, secrets, and conspiracies. So it was a no-brainer what I would write.
Berry sought to escape the ugly side of human nature that his law practice regularly exposed him to by writing thrillers. But Berry was not successful when he tried to get published. Over a seven-year period, in which he sent five manuscripts to all 17 major publishing houses in New York City, he was rejected. And rejected. And rejected. Berry was turned down 85 times before Ballantine accepted The Amber Room, which appeared in print in 2003. Though other authors have gotten more noes (Louis LAmour is reported to have been dinged more than 200 times), Berrys persistence is a testament to his belief in the quality of his work. How did he keep pushing, for all those years? Berry thanks that little voice in my head, the one every writer possesses, which nags at them every day to keep writing. Its the only thing that kept me going.
Berry admits that his good fortune was a matter of chance. He said that in May 2002, on the 86th attempt, I was at the right place, at the right time, with the right story. Random House was looking for things to go with a new book they would be releasing in 2003The Da Vinci Codeand my story was exactly what Mark Tavani at Ballantine Books was looking for. Dan Brown ended up blurbing The Amber Room, which centered on the search for lost treasures, calling it my kind of thriller.
Thirteen books later (Berry has written three other standalone thrillers, most recently 2012s The Columbus Affair, published by Ballantine), his established track record of success led Minotaur to offer him a million-dollar three-book deal in 2013, luring him away from his first publisher.
Minotaur editor Kelley Ragland explained the deal. First and foremost, we all loved his books. Steve has a unique place among thriller writers, as he brings so much real and interesting history into the story lines. He has a great instinct for what historical controversies or real political intrigues will resonate with readers. And he has a knack for putting just the right fictional spin on these ideas to maximize the suspense of a given scenario. He pays careful attention to a storys momentum, the timing of the twists and turns of the plot, and how to slowly, slowly build toward a denouement. Few thriller writers today are as adept at the bones of a story, and if the bones arent right, the finished novel will never be as satisfying as it should be. There is no one writing books quite like he does on a yearly basis, and he was a perfect addition to the Minotaur list. We look forward to being in the Steve Berry business for a long, long time.
Berry works hard to research his intricate plots. My process involves no shortcuts. I go through 200 to 400 physical books, extracting from them pages of nuggets I might need while writing the novel. There are six months of preliminary research before writing to get things in some semblance of order, so I can get started. Then, while writing, there are 12 additional months of research as the novel takes shape. In addition, every book involves at least one on-site trip, taken only when I cant find what Im looking for in the books. At every stage my goal is to keep the story 90% accurate to history, tripping things up only 10%.
Most recently, that scholarly approach has led to the entertaining, if alarming, what-if of The 14th Colony. There are flaws and loopholes galore in both the Constitution and the applicable laws that have never been fixed by Congress, despite their knowing about them. So I decide to use those in a novel. This one is my take on the good old-fashioned spy novel, a genre that died in the 1990s after the fall of the Soviet Union. Theres a ticking clock, a first for me, counting down to noon on January 20th. And theres some other cool stuff: a secret meeting between Ronald Reagan and John Paul II, which actually happened in June 1982; Cold War intrigue and a few ominous leftovers; the Society of Cincinnati, Americas oldest secret organization; and the only country on Earth that has defeated the United States not once, but twice, on the battlefieldCanada.
Berrys many fans can look forward to 2017s The Lost Order, which involves the Smithsonian Institution and an obscure real-life Civil War treasure. Berry also promises to reveal just how Cotton Malone acquired his first name.
Despite his writing triumphs, Berry isnt content to sit back and figure out new threats for his hero to overcome. Along with his wife, Elizabeth, the model for Cottons love-interest, Cassiopeia Vitt, he runs History Matters. Its a foundation we started in 2009. We work with local communities to raise money for historic preservation. Weve helped buildings, museums, books, documents, artifacts, you name it, raising nearly a million dollars. We do it together, as a 50/50 partnership. The beneficiaries of the Berrys hard work include the Historic Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta; the Library of Virginia, in Richmond, Va.; the John Jay Heritage Center, in Rye, N.Y.; and the Mark Twain House, in Hartford, Conn.
Berry has extended his passion for history into the classroom. To make history interesting, it has to be a story. That, more than anything else, explains the popularity of books like mine. Sure, theres an element of facts and figures that have to be absorbed, but the more those can be placed in the context of a story, the more interesting they become. A few years ago I was invited to Tennessee to speak with middle and high school history teachers, and we discussed this exact concept.
In a field crowded with authors seeking to attract readers by concocting more and more elaborate conspiracy theories, Berry stands out for his combination of painstaking research and entertaining ideas, and for his off-the-page activities, giving his time and money both to the preservation of history and to training educators so that the past resonates with todays students. Ive read history all my life, so the passion was there from birth. Millions of readers are glad that hes been able to translate that passion into thoughtful escapism.
Lenny Picker is a freelance writer in New York City.
Readers Respond
In a column last week, Smashwords founder Mark Coker suggested that authors should give some of your e-books away for free, because doing so makes it possible to reach new readers who would otherwise never take a chance on you. Our readers expressed enthusiasm as well as reservation:
I did a short-term experiment with free and had 27,000 downloads with a single advert. In one week I have received 23 new reviews. I can confirm that downloads do equate to reads, and my feeling is that more readers review when the book was free. The feeling I have is that a review is how the readers pay for the free book.Jane Davis
The fact that authors dont make a dime from free ebook giveaways remains a major drawback. Last year more than a million authors gave away more than a billion free e-books. Thats billions in lost income to hardworking authors. Authors need a revenue stream from free ebook giveaways.... [Until then,] authors will need to be smart about applying these strategies to build their brand and strive for crossover sales of their other books.Glenn McCreedy
From the Newsletters
PW Daily
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Tip Sheet
Cynan Jones, author of the grisly, slim novel Everything I Found on the Beach (Coffee House), makes the case for very short novels.
Childrens Bookshelf
A first look at A Childs First Book of Trump, coming in July from Simon & Schuster.
BookLife Report
How a self-published author got tapped to write the official Dracula prequel.
The most-read review on publishersweekly.com last week was You May See a Stranger by Paula Whyman (Northwestern Univ./Triquarterly).
Blogs
ShelfTalker
That time when National Geographic sent out promotional coconuts.
Podcasts
The Week Ahead
PW senior writer Andrew Albanese discusses one sector of the e-book market where digital sales are growing and handicaps what could be the final act in the Authors Guilds suit against Google.
More to Come
The More to Come crew discusses Rebirth, DC Comicss new publishing initiative, and the love/hate response to the Batman vs. Superman movie.
PW Radio
Romance author Linda Lael Miller discusses her new novel, Once a Rancher (HQN), and an exciting project she has in the works. Then PW senior news editor Calvin Reid discusses selling e-books in an evolving digital marketplace.
Events
PW is logging a ton of air miles in the coming weeks. Here is where well be; if youll be there, too, be sure to stop by and say hi!
Bologna Childrens Book Fair
April 47
Hall 26, B38
Public Library Association Conference
April 59
Booth 510
London Book Fair
April 810
Booth 6C75
If youre not going to London, you can still read each days PW London Show Daily for free with PWs app or online.
Texas Library Association
April 1922
Booth 1025
PW Star Watch 2016 Is Open for Nominations
Were looking for the next generation of publishing-industry leaders. Do you work with someone who is going to make a big impact on the business? Nominate that person for PW Star Watch, or you can nominate yourself. A panel of judges including members of PW, the Frankfurt Book Fair, and noted industry leaders will pick 50 up-and-coming stars and select five top honorees and a Superstar who will get an all-expense-paid trip to the 2016 Frankfurt Book Fair. Find out more.
As e-books sales soften at the large trade houses, some independent digital (or mostly digital) publishers continue to see their e-book sales grow. Interviews with five independent publishers show a range of publishing practices with the e-books they publish and highlight the ways in which they promote and market their lists. The publishers PW contacted include startup ventures Brown Girls Books and Polis Books, more mature ventures such as Open Road Integrated Media and Diversion Books, as well as Start Media, the acquisitions-driven media content firm, and its Start Publishing division.
These publishers represent widely diverging business models. Open Road focuses almost entirely on digital backlist reissues. Polis Books and Diversion Books, which began as digital-first publishers, now feature a substantial number of print frontlist releases as they move closer to a traditional publishing model. Start Publishing, part of a privately held media company with interests in publishing, film, and other media, and the far smaller Brown Girls Books both focus primarily on e-book releases.
All the publishers interviewed said they continue to see growth in e-book sales overall. These companies also share a number of promotional and marketing strategiesincluding the use of social media of all kinds and promotional newsletters, the creation of genre-focused online communities, and the building up of backlists.
In an interview at the Open Road offices, CEO Jane Friedman and president Paul Slavin said its e-books sales in the first quarter of 2016 were doing fine. Friedman, the former CEO of HarperCollins, emphasized that the Open Road business modelwhich is focused on backlist titles and occasional original releasesmakes a big difference in how it sells e-books when compared with larger traditional houses, which are focused primarily on frontlist publishing. We spend a lot of time marketing backlist, and thats not what happens at the Big Five, she said. She also pointed out that consumer price sensitivity over the costs of e-books is an issue.
Open Road releases about 200 e-books per month, focusing on the backlists of more than 2,000 authors, including such notable writers as Roger Angell, Thomas Berger, Pearl Buck, Pat Conroy, John Jakes, and Joyce Johnson. The company, Friedman said, now offers more than 10,000 titles, and although it has slowed down its pace of acquisitions, it will release about 1,000 titles in 2016.
Slavin said the Open Road model is centered on title selection, and the house uses sales data and gut reactions to pick and promote books. Slavin also pointed to the importance of mobile devices, including larger phones and tablets, pointing to the likelihood of a uptick in e-book sales as more people read on phones. Were looking to make older books appeal to todays audiences, Friedman said, outlining a marketing strategy that focuses on verticals and milestones to promote its titles. Milestones, she explained, are opportunistic events such as anniversaries of deaths and births, Black History Month, and Womens History Month, which are useful for promoting titles.
Selling e-books isnt magic, Friedman said. Its focus and being aware of anything new that happens even if you have to create the event yourself. Slavin said that Open Road uses Facebook and social media as well as launching its own online promotions. Those include Early Bird Books, a daily newsletter with discounted e-book offers (with 375,000 subscribers), and the Lineup, a true-crime community site (with books from all publishers) that attracts 2.5 million page views and 1.3 million unique visitors per month. Friedman said Open Road plans to add two more online communities (she declined to specify the verticals), one in late 2016 and another in early 2017.
Launched in 2010 by literary agent Scott Waxman as a digital-first publisher, Diversion Books has grown into a more traditional publishing model with a greater print focus, according to Mary Cummings, v-p, director of business development. The house now offers frontlist releases (about 50 titles a year published in print and digital) as well as backlist (the house has published about 1,200 titles since its launch). Diversion print releases are distributed and marketed through Ingram Publisher Services, and it uses POD services provided by Lightning Source.
Diversion will release about 200 backlist titles in 2016, all as e-books. But print, Cummings said, is a key part of the companys strategy: Its easy to do print on demand; it increases discoverability and gives us an opportunity to experiment with different price points and market segments. Cummings compared parts of Diversions operations to Open Road, describing the Diversion list as commercial genre fiction by high-quality authors, though maybe not as well-known as Open Road authors.
Cummings said theres been no slowdown in e-book sales at Diversion. Cummings said the company uses dynamic pricing (a flexible pricing strategy generally governed by data on customer preferences and the competition) and frequently tests price points for all its books. She emphasized that pricing depends on a combination of factors related to the book, author, genre, and format, but that $2.99 remains a trigger point for e-book sales, though e-books priced to $4.99 can workand some categories are less affected by higher prices. True crime, she said, sells like crazy when priced from $7.95 to $9.99, joking that its the romance category of the nonfiction world.
Marketing, she said, depends on the book. She pointed to tying book promotions to news reports, using backlist tie-ins, targeting genre-focused blogs, and creating special sales offers, as well as the importance of social media, metadata, and author blogs. Cummings joked that even National Puppy Day can be used to boost the sales of the right book.
Polis Books publisher Jason Pinter said the house, which he launched in 2013, is doing well and growing steadily, and e-book sales in the first quarter of 2016 are up 500% over sales in the same period in 2015. Pinter noted that this is due primarily to having a much larger catalogue this year and the overall growth of Polis in nearly every area. Pinter is working to expand his backlist and, much like Diversion Books, is adding simultaneous print/digital releases to his budding frontlist. Pinter is looking to add writers with extensive backlists that he can then release as e-books, as a platform to publish the authors next books. Were aggressive in talking to authors who have a new novel and a backlist, he said. He cited authors such as D.W. Buffa, whose nine-title backlist has been added to the Polis list, and Pinter plans to release his new thriller, Hillary, in October in hardcover and e-book formats.
Polis plans 4550 releases in 2016, including 30 simultaneous print/digital releases and 1520 digital-only releases. Its promotion and marketing involves Goodreads reviews, spreading the word on backlists, being active on social media, working with services like BookBub, and using giveaways and daily deals.
Pinter said authors at big houses are attracted to Polis because there are more opportunities with a small curated list to promote their backlist. He described digital publishing as more of a meritocracy than print; we dont have to fight for shelf space for e-books.
Start Publishing is an e-book-only publisher composed of nine imprintsamong them erotica publisher Cleis Press, thriller house Salvo Press, and science fiction publisher Nightshade Booksmany acquired by Start Media over the last two years. Start Publishing specializes in niches including erotica, crime, and other commercial genres, said Jarred Weisfeld, president of Start Publishing. Weisfeld noted that e-books sales at Start are up significantly in early 2016 over 2015, and he is also bullish on digital audiobooks, seeing them as another growing market. Weisfeld credits the Start Publishing business model for its growth. The firm looks to acquire small publishers to add to its title list. Were out looking for publishers, Weisfeld said.
Start Publishing currently offers about 7,000 titles and publishes 200 frontlist books each year. It releases e-books primarily, though it has a very small POD component. Start Publishing pays advances, and Weisfeld said our earn-outs for advances are higher than anyone. He added: We know what we can sell and what we cant. Were profitable and were having fun. Weisfeld cited the usual promotional platforms such as social media and email newsletters. Were very active wherever we think our readers are, he said.
Brown Girls Books was founded as a mostly digital publishing house in early 2014 by two bestselling authors, Victoria Christopher Murray and ReShonda Tate Billingsley, whose books target African-American readers. Both continue to be published by Simon & Schuster, and they are the authors of more than 30 books between them. Last year BGB appointed Jaquelin Thomas as COO. The house has also added four imprints, which include Brown Girls Faith (Christian fiction), Jacquelin Thomas Presents (mentoring), Enchantment (romance), and Brown Girls Kids/Teens (YA titles written by young people).
BGB has published 39 books and plans to release 22 titles in 2016.
Billingsley said e-book sales grew quickly at first but plateaued about five months after BGBs launch date. Indeed, e-book sales at the house were slow going into 2015, she said, before it returned to a variety of grassroots promotional tactics focused on readers. Billingsley said, We had an uptick in sales beginning in October 2015, and BGB e-book sales in early 2016 have continued to rise.
The BGB list features womens fiction, targeting the African-American market and working to get word-of-mouth promotion by targeting readers in black communities. We use street teams [to go out and meet people]; we go to community events and hand out Brown Girls T-shirts, Billingsley said. We spread the word. Sales are not soaring, but theyre up from the same time last year.
Building a Nest Egg
A pair of novels, one a high-profile debut and one a highly anticipated sophomore effort, land at #4 and #5 on our Hardcover Fiction list. In The Nest, which Ecco acquired in 2014 in a seven-figure preempt, first-timer Cynthia DAprix Sweeney looks at privileged New Yorkers through the lens of a quartet of adult siblings and their endangered trust fund.
Helen Simonsons The Summer Before the War, set in the English town of Rye in 1914, is a comedy of manners that examines social constructs and gender roles in Downton Abbeyera Britain. Her 2010 debut, Major Pettigrews Last Stand, was a book club favorite that sold 67K in hardcover, 373K in trade paper; this week, it sold 1,088 print copies, the first time weekly sales cracked four figures since December 2012.
(See all of this week's bestselling books.)
TV Dinners
Debuting at #5 in Hardcover Nonfiction, The Bobs Burgers Burger Book is a companion to the Emmy Awardwinning animated sitcom about a family-run burger joint. Written by show creator Loren Bouchard and the writing staff of the series, it offers, in the words of the subtitle, real recipes for joke burgers: Bleu Is the Warmest Cheese Burger, If Looks Could Kale Burger, etc.
Leaving parody cookbooks, of which there are many, out of this, heres how Burger Books first-week sales stack up against other recent cookbooks with official links to popular shows.
First-Week Print Unit Sales
A Feast of Ice and Fire (2012)
1,702
Orange Is the New Black Presents: The Cookbook (2014)
375
The Portlandia Cookbook (2014)
968
The Bobs Burger Burger Book (2016)
8,245
Movers & Shakers
On Fire, a memoir and self-help title by motivational speaker John OLeary, debuted last week at #12 on our Hardcover Nonfiction list. This week, its up 187% and 11 notches, helping itself to the #1 spot on the list.
In the no such thing as bad press files, Batman vs. Superman is up 155% over last week, following the March 23 release of the movie of the same, and some comically bad reviews. The collection pubbed in December 2015 and hits our Trade Paperback list for the first time this week, at #12.
Not surprisingly, in the runup to Easter Sunday, several backlist childrens titles on that theme had good weeks, and four of the top 10 books in the country have Easter in the title. A fifth, Animals by Jennifer Quasha, has been a perennial seller since its 2008 release, but this week it had its best week ever. Why? Might have something to do with the basket-ready bunnies on the cover.
New and Notable
Fool Me Once
Harlan Coban
#1 Hardcover Fiction; #1 overall
In this standalone thriller, which our starred review called stellar, a former U.S. Army helicopter pilot whose career was ended by revelations of the civilian deaths caused by her actions in Iraq is also haunted by the murders of her husband and sister.
Top 10 Overall
Rank Title Author Imprint Units 1 Fool Me Once Harlan Coben Dutton 30,882 2 Happy Easter, Mouse! Numeroff/Bond Harper/Balzer & Bray 28,659 3 Old School (Diary of a Wimpy Kid #10) Jeff Kinney Abrams/Amulet 23,216 4 Private Paris Patterson/Sullivan Little, Brown 22,019 5 Property of a Noblewoman Danielle Steel Delacorte 20,605 6 The Story of Easter Pingry/Thornburgh WorthyKids/Ideals 20,500 7 Pete the Cat: Big Easter Adventure Dean/Dean HarperCollins 20,105 8 God Gave Us Easter Bergren/Bryant Waterbrook 19,982 9 Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children Ransom Riggs Quirk 19,856 10 Animals Jennifer Quasha DK 19,169
All unit sales per Nielsen BookScan except where noted.
When sales of manga began to slump back in the late 2000s, manga publishers and booksellers blamed the lack of new bestsellers. Where were the hits that would energize fans the way Naruto and Fruits Basket had earlier in the decade? It looks like those new books have finally arrived.
Today there are three chart-topping manga series racking up sales around the world. Sales of backlist manga are also growing, and theres another wave of potentially big-selling titles just a little bit further down the road.
Sales of Kodanshas Attack on Titan went through the roof in 2013, and the series and its spin-offs have sold millions of copies around the world in the last since it was first published in Japan in 2009. In the past year, titles from two other propertiesTokyo Ghoul, and One-Punch Man (both from Viz Media)have topped BookScans graphic novel charts and placed among the top 20 sellers overall each month, a sign they are still bringing in new readers.
North American manga sales are down from the markets peak in 2007, when they hit about $210 million, according to pop culture trade news site ICv2. By 2012, North American manga sales had declined to $65 million, before beginning to rebound to about $70 million in 2013 and reaching $75 million in 2014, according to ICv2. Figures for 2015 are not yet available, but ICv2 reported that early 2015 sales were up about 13% over the same period in 2014. Manga sales have improved enough that the bestselling manga on the 2015 BookScan chart, volume one of Tokyo Ghoul, sold just over 50,000 copies.
Improved sales of backlist titles have also contributed to a healthier market. Tokyo Ghoul and One-Punch Man have been the standouts for us in the past year, said Leyla Aker, Viz senior v-p for publishing. But we also saw that the catalogue overall is growing. Aker said other frontlist series and backlist series such as Death Note and Dragon Ball are also selling well.
ICv2 named Death Note as one of its top 10 manga franchises of 2015although the last new volume came out in 2011. I think it all comes down to quality, said ICv2 CEO Milton Griepp. Death Note is a good series. Griepp compared Death Note to older nonmanga graphic novels such as Alan Moores Batman: The Killing Joke and Watchmen.
While Attack on Titan has been a major hit for Kodansha Comics, the publisher has also seen strong, steady growth in its other properties, according to Ben Applegate, who oversees the Kodansha Comics publishing team at its distributor, Penguin Random House Publisher Services. The market showed extremely healthy growth in 2015, he said. Manga in particular outpaced graphic novels that year, and there have been some breakout hits, like Tokyo Ghoul, One-Punch Man, and Attack on Titan, but the biggest message is that even series with more modest expectations have been in the black, which is great news. Applegate added, Its not just people coming back for a volume of Attack on Titan and going homethey are looking into other new series like A Silent Voice, like Noragami.
Fans continue to rediscover older series, such as Kodansha's Fairy Tail, which debuted in 2008 and is up to 52 volumes. Fairy Tail had its strongest year of sales in the U.S. ever in 2015, Applegate said. Even the first volume had its strongest year of sales in 2015.
The manga charts are fairly top heavy with respect to a handful of extraordinarily popular properties, said Yen Press publishing director Kurt Hassler. But there are any number of extremely popular and stable licenses in the market that may not reach that blockbuster threshold.
What makes a blockbuster manga series? Having an anime tie-in often gives the associated print manga a boost. Sales of Attack on Titan exploded in 2013, when the anime started streaming in English. Aker said that Tokyo Ghoul was helped by the anime as well.
Characters matter too. Ken Kaneki [the lead character in Tokyo Ghoul] is a really relatable character, Aker said. She also noted that One-Punch Man is both an homage to the American superhero genre and a send-up of superhero characters. Griepp said One-Punch Man is doing well in comic shops, which usually favor superhero comics over manga, as well as traditional bookstores, where manga has thrived from the beginning.
Attack on Titan, Tokyo Ghoul, and One-Punch Man appeal more to adult men than earlier manga favorites such as Naruto and Fruits Basket, which appealed to teenage girls. Yen Press is bringing out a new edition of Fruits Basket that Hassler expects will appeal to new readers and existing fans, and Aker has high hopes for Yona of the Dawn, a new historical fantasy series.
A new series of hit manga titles could mean more sales for the whole manga category. Hits help drive the market, said Griepp. They bring in more people, they expand the number of people who are engaging in the medium, so I think they help all the titles below them.
Corrections: The publisher of Fairy Tale and Leyla Aker's title were incorrect in an earlier version of this story.
Books-A-Million moved into the used book business five years ago with the opening of its first 2nd & Charles store in September 2010 in Hoover, Ala., just outside the companys headquarters in Birmingham. Since then, BAM has steadily expanded the concept with nearly 30 new 2nd & Charles stores, predominantly in the South and Midwest. Theres a 2nd & Charles location as far north as Michigan, as well as a few stores in the Mid-Atlantic region. Last month, BAM held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its newest 2nd & Charles location, in the Mall of Georgia in Buford.
BAM executives declined to discuss plans for 2nd & Charles, so PW visited the store in Gainesville, Fla., to find out more about the chain and its target demographic. Like several other 2nd & Charles locations, the Gainesville store had originally been a Books-A-Million outlet. In August 2015, according to the Gainesville Sun, the city issued a permit for BAM to do $350,000 in interior renovations to transform the outlet into a 2nd & Charles. The renovated store, which opened last November, has a bright, open layout with a big-box feel. It contains a broad range of used books, along with used CDs, DVDs, vinyl, musical instruments, video games and gaming systems, and iPads.
On a Thursday morning in February, the Gainesville 2nd & Charles store was humming. Though the city is a university town, this locations customer base is bigger than just the local student population. A group of older women perused titles in the fiction aisles, while a middle-aged couple checked out a wall of guitars and a father and his toddler daughter leafed through picture books in the childrens section.
The customers are diverse, according to a 2nd & Charles associate at the register, who has been working at the store since it opened. This place attracts all ages, she said. Were near a high school, so when school lets out, teens come over and head right to the video games. Teachers come in, and theyre able to get all of their books for the classroom for more than half off. Its a really good mix. We meet everyones needs in a way.
The associate attributed part of the stores appeal to its buy-back program. Customers can bring in used books and other merchandise for store credit, up to three bins full at a time. So far business has been really good, the associate said. Everybody has been loving the whole buy-back section.
During the PW visit there was a steady line at the buying counter, which is in the front of the store. Customers dropped off items at the counter when they arrived. Most shopped while employees sifted through their merchandise and tallied their credit.
The associate also noted that customers generally seem to be drawn to the nonbook sections of the store. People love the fact that we have actual movies and CDs because not many places sell them anymore, she said. Everybody likes how we sell a mix of everything.
In the books section of the store, the associate said, nonfiction tends to be popular among older customers, and the childrens aisles are consistently busy. There are always parents with their kids over there, she said. The kids section is crazy popular. As for genre fiction, romance seems to be one of the stores least-popular sections. At least as far as Ive noticed, its not too touched on, she said. And Im here every single day.
No question, state library associations play a strong role in supporting libraries across the country, and every state has at least one library association; some states have several, serving a range of librariespublic, school, academic, corporate, even digital, for example. But no state library organization rivals the Texas Library Association. And no statewide annual library meeting comes close to the Texas library Association Annual Conference, which this year runs April 1922 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston.
In fact, the TLA Annual Conference is larger than many national conferences. Each year more than 7,000 attendees take part, including more than 1,500 presenters and speakers across some 400 professional sessions, author appearances, events, panels, and lectures. And the exhibit hall hosts close to 500 vendors, including publishers, putting the TLA Conference in league with the ALA Midwinter Meeting and the biennial Public Library Association conference.
Yet, despite TLAs size and growth, librarians say the organization remains remarkably tight-knit, and the conference still feels intimate. People who join TLA feel as if they join a family, no kidding, says Julie Todaro, dean of library services at Austin Community College. Todaro should knowa respected, longtime leader in the profession, she is a past president of TLA and in 2012 took home a TLA Lifetime Achievement Award. An investment of time and energy in TLA yields great professional opportunities and rewardsnew skills, projects, publishing, programming, she says. And its fun.
Roosevelt Weeks, deputy director of library administration at the Houston Public Library, agrees. Ive been in libraries since 2005, when I left the private sector. I immediately joined TLA, and Ive been to every TLA conference since. And what makes it so great is not just the number of Texas library leaders, but the leaders from across the country who come. Outside of ALA, they know it is the place to be. You get a chance to meet and network with your colleagues. And the program is just fantastic, really second to none.
Texas-Size
TLA may feel intimate to its members, but make no mistake, like the state itself the Texas library community is big. In all, it numbers 202 academic libraries, and around 875 public library outlets if you count branches and bookmobiles. School librarians make up a huge contingency in TLAthe state counts more than 5,000 school librarians (and more than 4,500 members in the Texas Association of School Librarians, a division of TLA). And, for good measure, there are more than 200 special librariescorporate libraries, and the like.
For publishers and vendors, that size certainly is a big part of the attraction of the TLA conferenceTLA members represent a $1.5 billion market in terms of combined statewide annual library budgets, a big chunk of which goes to a wide array of books, resources, technology, and programming. And the TLA conference is where librarians come too learn, purchase, and promote all these critical tools, says TLA executive director Patricia Smith.
In a bit of good news, Smith says that library funding in Texas has begun to rebound after some painful statewide cutbacks. Texas has bounced back from some lean budget years and is now benefiting from a growing state and federal economy, she says. With an influx of millions of dollars in state funding in the last two legislative sessions, librarians are building out facilities and services, including very popular makerspaces, particularly in the areas of digital learning environments, workforce development, and literacy programs of all types.
TLA itself is also hugeit is composed of four divisions and 10 districts, and it contains 40-plus roundtables and interest groups. The association also grants thousands of dollars every year to members through a program of 50-plus awards, stipends, and scholarships. And beyond the annual conference, TLA members participate in a range of programming throughout the year, with local district meetings across the state as well as webinars on topics such as leadership, copyright, management, and support-staff training. Incredibly, TLA pulls this all off with just 16 staff members in its Austin offices, in addition to Smith.
I think what makes TLA so strong is the fact that it operates largely as a volunteer organization, says TLA president Susan Mann, director of the Hillsboro Public Library. TLA is a rather unique association in that all libraries are representedschool, public, academic, corporate. I believe that brings a lot of strength to TLA. We all really work well together, and we know what we do is important for all libraries, and the public. We always try to pay attention to one another and sympathize with each others problems.
Big and Bright
For Mann, her path to the TLA presidency began on the legislative committee. Its kind of my hobby, politics, so I have been friends with a lot of legislators, she says, many of whom also visit the TLA conference. As we have learned over and over again, if we can bring our story home to our legislators, then were a lot more successful. So thats what our goal is in every legislative session. We constantly try to educate our legislators, because some still see libraries as quiet places where librarians just check out books, and its not anywhere near that anymore. So we have really pushed hard in the last several years, and that seems to be resonating with legislators.
Not surprisingly, leadership and advocacy are two program tracks at TLA Mann will be participating inand throughout the program there are numerous panels marked as a presidents picks. Among Manns picks are a session titled Advocacy: Value, Impact, and Presence with Stephen Abram, a well-respected library leader from the Federation of Ontario Public Libraries (Canada), and another session called Take the Wheel: Hands-on Advocacy, which aims to help library directors build meaningful relationships with decision makers.
And though size is often a factor when it comes to all things Texas, Mann says thats not the case when it comes to working within TLA. I represent a very small community, she points out, noting that Hillsboro, the town she serves in central Texas, has a population of around 10,000, while some of the librarians she serves with in TLA run some of the largest public library systems in the nation and some of the worlds top university libraries. One of the messages I think my presidency sends, Mann says, is that anyone who wants to pitch in, work hard, and volunteer can become president of our association.
On the other end of the spectrumto give you a sense of the vastness of Texasis Weekss library in Houston, the host city for TLA this year. Houston is the seventh largest public library in the country, Weeks notes, with 44 locations in addition to its central library, and more than 500 employees. We served over six million visitors last year, he says, and over one million computer users.
Weeks can barely contain his excitement in having his colleagues in the library community in Houston, one of a handful of cities that rotates as TLA host every few years (this will be the fifth time since 2005 the conference has been in Houston). I get excited, because it is a chance to show off the Houston Public Library, and the city of Houston, which is a dynamic community, and the most diverse city in America.
Although Weeks is not presenting this year, he says he is especially interested in leadership issues and points to an all-day seminar based on Lean Six Sigmaa management philosophy popularized by General Electric CEO Jack Welch in the 1990s that is designed to improve processes and efficiency. The program will feature Myja Lark, from the city of Houstons finance department, and will focus on how libraries can streamline their organizations, and better meet their users needs.
Its always a struggle to get funding, so one of the ways to handle that is to manage more efficiently, Weeks says.
Certainly, efficiency is a priority as the mission of libraries continues to expand and evolve in the digital age, and libraries are often expected to do more with less. Weeks says the evolution of libraries is on display through out the TLA program and says he is looking forward to a number of programs at TLA on digital outreach, and the maker movement, for example. That, he says, and the opportunity to sit around and meet and visit with some great authors, of course.
Below, more on the Texas Library Association.
Incoming ALA president Julie Todaro talks funding, Spanish-language services, and more.
Authors and national library leaders highlight a strong program at the 2016 TLA conference. Here are some highlight you won't want to miss.
MOLINE Deere Employees Credit Union has been ranked the No. 1. credit union in the nation in the Return to the Member ranking as reported by Callahan & Associates for the fourth quarter of 2015.
This is the fourth consecutive quarter the credit union has held the top spot.
Callahan & Associates promotes the philosophy that credit unions exist to serve members, and they developed the Return to the Member scoring system in 1996 to measure how well credit unions follow the philosophy.
"Our top ranking among our peers is a reflection of our commitment to serving our members," said Deere Employees Credit Union President/CEO Kurt Lewin. "Our employees never lose sight of our No. 1 goal: Providing outstanding service to our member-owners.
The score attempts to capture all aspects of a members relationship with the credit union, including savings, lending and product usage. Deere Employees Credit Union scored 99.82 percent in savings, 99.01 percent in lending and 100 percent in product usage.
At the end of 2015, the credit union had 9.7 percent year-over-year loan growth and 3.5 percent year-over-year member growth. It also has 35.5 percent auto loan penetration and 30.1 percent credit card penetration.
Deere Employees Credit Union currently is marking its 80th anniversary, offering financial products and services to more than 32,000 members at 22 branches. For more details, visit DCCU.com.
The Mississippi River Distilling Co. in LeClaire is backing a bill that would let Iowa distilleries sell the spirits they make by the glass in tasting rooms.
Currently, wineries and breweries in Iowa can sell by the glass and by the bottle, with no sales or production limits.
House File 2431 also would increase the current daily sales limit from two bottles per person to a 12-bottle case, while increasing the state-imposed production cap that limits the amount of spirits a micro-distillery can make annually.
"We arent asking for special treatment," said Garrett Burchett, owner and distiller at Mississippi River Distilling Co. "Were asking for equal treatment.
"Since we opened five years ago, a winery and brewery have both opened within a block of our distillery," he said. "Our customers expect to enjoy a similar experience when they come to our business, but Iowa law doesnt allow for it.
The bill is supported by the Iowa Chamber Alliance, the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, Iowa Corn Growers and the Iowa Association of Business and Industry. Earlier this session, the bill passed the House State Government Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee. Since that time, however, the bill has not been able to see a vote on the House floor.
"We see this as an economic development bill. said Jason Gordon, vice president of public sffairs for the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce. It promotes jobs and tourism across the state as a whole, and supports small businesses and entrepreneurialism. Weve already seen distilleries choose other states instead of Iowa because of these limitations in Iowa Code.
For more details on the bill, visit IowaDistillery.com.
The plan from the Kansas-based Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation would put a 24-hour bingo hall near the DeKalb County village of Shabbona. The Bureau of Indian Affairs is reviewing the proposal. It collected public comments on the casino's environmental impact in January and February. A preliminary report on that impact is expected in October, said Department of Interior spokeswoman Nedra Darling.
A critical issue is whether the nation has a legal right to put the facility on the 128 acres it purchased for $8.8 million in a private sale in 2006. To get approval from the Department of Interior for the facility, the tribe has to show it has a credible claim to the land, that it would be used to "facilitate tribal self-determination, economic development or Indian housing," and that it would not cause environmental harm.
The tribe contends the land, which borders Shabbona Lake State Park and a forest preserve, is part of 1,280 acres given to the tribe's Chief Shab-eh-nay and his band by the U.S. government under a treaty in 1829. A group against the bingo hall says the land wasn't formally considered a reservation and was given to the chief for personal use, and that he abandoned it and tried to sell it.
There's also an issue in a 2011 federal policy change on tribal casino placement. Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk scrapped a guideline letting tribes have gambling facilities within "commutable distance" of a reservation, which was generally considered roughly 40 miles. The change formed new guidelines that didn't specifically reference an allowable distance.
The plan for the bingo hall has reignited emotions since public comments were gathered, the Chicago Tribune reported. Some see the plan as economic salvation, while others see it as ruining peaceful rural culture.
Potawatomi consultants estimate the facility would bring in 930,000 people annually. The consultants say there would be more than 650 construction jobs, followed by 400 facility jobs and a payroll above $40 million a year.
The facility would give DeKalb County $2.25 million a year in revenue sharing and $400,000 for payments in lieu of taxes, from which tribes are exempt. The village of Shabbona is projected to get $250,000 annually in its shared revenue agreement. The nation would also give $25,000 annually to charity.
"Most businesses want to come into the community and have the community give them incentives to come," said Denny Sands, who owns the cafe, bait shop and boat rental business at the state park. "This is just the opposite. The tribe is coming into the community to be a good neighbor, to give back to the community."
Peter Dordal, president of DeKalb County Taxpayers Against the Casino, moved in 2000 a few hundred feet south of the land later bought by the tribe. He said traffic, intoxication and storm water runoff from the proposed site to Shabbona Lake would hurt natural areas and the quiet atmosphere.
Discover new career as home health care provider
Want to help people and work in the medical field? Enroll in the new Family Home Health Care Provider program at Black Hawk College.
The program will cover the proper techniques for administering services commonly referred to as the Activities of Daily Living (ADLs).
Classes will be Thursdays, April 7 to May 12, from 6-7:30 p.m. at the colleges Outreach Center in East Moline.
Cost is $130. To register, call 309-796-8223.
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Community ed classes cover cooking, crochet, Spanish, Italian, creative writing
Black Hawk College offers a variety of foreign language, writing, cooking and craft classes for the community.Upcoming classes include:
Spanish for the Legal Professional Mondays, April 11 to May 23, from 6-8 p.m.
Spring Entertaining (cooking class) Tuesday, April 12 from 6:30-8:15 p.m. Cost is $35.
Travel Italy (language and culture class) Wednesdays, April 13-27, from 2:30-4:30 p.m. Cost is $40.
Crochet Pick-A-Project Thursdays, April 14 to May 5, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Cost is $48.
Creative Writing Thursdays, April 14-28, from 5:45-7:45 p.m. Cost is $38.
Class locations vary. For class details, visit www.bhc.edu/pace. To register, call 309-796-8223.
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Join BHC on a foodie bus trip to Chicago
Food enthusiasts are invited to visit Chicagos finest markets and hidden gourmet shops with Black Hawk College.
Choose from these Chicago Food Bus Trip dates:
Gourmet Appreciation Shopping Trip Tuesday, April 19. Registration deadline is Tuesday, April 12.
Chicago Ethnic Groceries Bus Trip Wednesday, May 11
Chicago Farmers Markets Bus Trip Tuesday, June 7
Cost is $90 per bus trip. All trips will leave at 7 a.m. from the BHC Outreach Center in East Moline and return at approximately 8 p.m.
For trip details, visit bhc.edu/chicagobustrips. To register, call 309-796-8223.
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Delve into life of gangster Looney at April 19 luncheon
Join Black Hawk College on Tuesday, April 19 for a Lifelong Learner Lunch on The Life and Crimes of John Looney, Notorious Early 20th Century Quad City Gangster.
Roger Ruthhart, co-author of Citadel of Sin: The John Looney Story, will discuss the notorious history of one of the nations biggest crime bosses.
Lifelong Learner Lunches are designed for those age 55 and older, but learners of all ages are welcome.
Lunch will be at 11:30 a.m. with the program at 12:15 p.m. Cost is $23. The registration deadline is Tuesday, April 12.
To register, call 309-796-8223. For more information, visit bhc.edu/lifelong.
ROCK ISLAND In honor of Cesar Chavez Day, Augustana College hosted speakers and a showing of "Cesar Chavez: An American Hero" on Friday evening at the Hanson Hall of Science.
In 2011, President Barack Obama proclaimed March 31 as Cesar Chavez Day to honor the tireless advocate for migrant farm workers, but it is not a federal holiday. California, Texas and Colorado have declared the day as an official state holiday. Mr. Chavez died in 1993.
Araceli Masterson-Algar, Augustana assistant professor of Spanish, and Jose and Ana Carrillo, of Moline, spoke at the event.
Mr. and Mrs. Carrillo worked on a farm in California in the 1980s and were subjected to many of the harsh working experiences that were discussed in the movie. The Carrillos met while working in the fields and said they moved to Illinois to be closer to family.
The movie focused on Mr. Chavez's struggles as he led migrant farm workers, who mostly tended and harvested grapes, to unionize in their quest for better working conditions and more pay. It also showed how Mr. Chavez struggled with balancing home life during the movement.
He attempted to do so in a peaceful way, which some members of the union did not want to conform to. He went on a hunger strike to raise awareness within his own ranks that violence was not the route to progress. The hunger strike lasted 25 days, according to the movie.
According to the Carrillos, the movie did not show some of the struggles that workers dealt with on a daily basis. Through translation by Dr. Masterson-Algar, Mr. Carrillo told the audience about life in the fields.
Mr. Carrillo said workers were not allowed to leave the field until their rows were completed. A row typically took seven hours to complete. Also, there were no restroom breaks, so workers carried toilet paper and defecated in rows off to the sides of the field.
Most of the workers in the field were men or children, he said. Women mostly worked indoors packing the various fruits, but the working conditions inside were no better and there were no restrooms there either, according to Mrs. Carrillo.
Even after all of the work done by Mr. Chavez in the 1970s, pay had not gotten much better by the time the Carrillos started working in the fields. Mr. Carrillo said they were being paid $1.50 per bushel, which took two hours to gather.
SILVIS He sat at his dining-room table Friday, recalling when his front-seat to history.
Air Force veteran Kenneth Haynie's "claim to fame" is once getting told to "shut up" by German rocket scientist Wernher Von Braun, after witnessing an atomic bomb test. As a staff sergeant working as a weatherman, Mr. Haynie, 83, once shared a desk with the infamous Mr. Von Braun.
"He was not my favorite person," My Haynie said. "All I knew about him at the time was that he had been a German scientist and was a very arrogant man."
Mr. Haynie didn't learn until later that Mr. Von Braun was part of a Nazi rocketry program in Germany that had been responsible for the deaths of thousands of concentration camp prisoners being used as slave labor. Mr. Haynie said he recently watched a documentary about Mr. Von Braun that "sure depicted how cocky and arrogant he was."
Mr. Haynie enlisted in the Air Force in 1952, officially signing up on his March 18 birthday. He was stationed at Holloman Air Force Base, in New Mexico, and also worked at the White Sands Missile Range, Trinity Island, and Johnston Island in the Pacific during H-bomb and A-bomb tests.
He served for about four years and eight months, working primarily to launch huge weather balloons to collect data. During bomb tests, he collected debris samples and materials.
He and his colleagues didn't wear fancy haz-mat suits or protective material, he said, adding it didn't rattle him much at the time. He said now he wonders if he was just being used as a "guinea pig."
"Years later, I thought that probably wasn't that good of an idea," Mr. Haynie said. "I was never really worried about it at the time. It was just a job."
The 1951 Moline High School graduate is a lifelong Quad-Citian, also having lived in Silvis and Colona. He and his wife, Jean, have three kids. During a recent Thanksgiving, he shared his war stories with his son-in-law, Joe Redman, of Rock Island, who contacted The Dispatch and The Rock Island Argus.
Mr. Haynie said he was surprised by all the attention. "I thought Joe would just forget about it," he said.
Mr. Haynie downplayed any thought that he was doing anything heroic.
"I never got shot at or anything," he said. "Other than the risk of dying from radioactive stuff, I wasn't doing any of the heroic stuff.
The "real" heroes, he said, were people such as his four brothers who truly risked life and limb, and soldiers from Hero Street, across town in Silvis.
Mr. Haynie was the 11th of 12 children. Three of his brothers were Marines; another served in the Army. They all survived the war. According to Mr. Haynie:
Jim Haynie was injured twice in Iwo Jima and kept a tin of shrapnel that had been dug out of his body.
Jerry Haynie was a member of the famous Black Sheep Squadron, led by Pappy Boyington.
Herman Haynie became a POW in the Pacific and once received a commendation from President Dwight Eisenhower.
Bob Haynie was a Marine Corps firefighter.
He said they faced a ton more of trials, tribulations and risks than anything he did.
DAVENPORT -- Evangelist Dr. Tony Campolo will speak at the 55th annual delegate assembly of Churches United of the Quad City Area at 7 p.m. April 15 at First Presbyterian Church, 1702 Iowa St.
We were looking for someone who was a dynamic speaker who also has had a journey of faith that has been changed and evolved over time. He is an ordained minister, a sociologist, a researcher and college professor," said Churches United Executive Director Anne Wachal. "He is a person who really can engage the audience and is appealing enough across a wide spectrum of the faith community.
Dr. Campolo, professor emeritus of sociology at Eastern University in Davids, Pa., is the founder and president of the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education. A former University of Pennsylvania faculty member, he has worked in ministry for five decades, has written more than 35 books and is a founder of the Red Letter Christian movement.
A frequent commentator on shows such as Crossfire, CNN News and Nightline, he hosts a weekly program called Across the Pond on the Premiere Christian Radio Network in England.
His April 15 presentation marks his first visit to the Quad-Cities.
This is our delegate assembly meeting and, even though theres a small business meeting taking place, its more of a worship service and hes the featured speaker, said Ms. Wachal. "Everyone is invited and Id like to see the church packed.
"He really has a fascinating perspective on what it means to be a Christian in this day and age," she said. "He also will admit -- over time, over life experience and through people that are influential with him -- that he himself has changed some of his views and perspectives on Christianity and who we are.
Usually every other year we try to invite somebody of regional or nation notoriety to the Quad-Cities so we have the opportunity to listen to someone who might have different perspectives on things, to understand each other better," Ms. Wachal said. "In the end, were all Christians no matter how we worship. Because were Christians, we also want to work with respect and understanding with other faith communities, too.
She said the group was looking for a dynamic speaker who has had a journey of faith that has been changed and evolved over time. Their past speakers have included the Rev. Martin Marty, Sister Helen Prejean, author of "Dead Man Walking," and Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, author of "Failing Americas Faithful -- How Todays Churches are Mixing God with Politics and Losing their Way."
New board members also will be installed at the April 15 meeting and financial matters will be approved. Dessert will be served after the program; the public is invited to attend. For more details on Dr. Campolo, visit tonycampolo.org.
GENESEO -- The Rev. Ryan J. Landino is the new pastor at First Presbyterian Church, Geneseo.
Born on Easter Sunday 23 years ago, Rev. Landino grew up in Bethlehem, Pa., and accepted that God was leading him to the ministry. Being the fourth boy among six siblings fostered his big-brother leadership at an early age, he said.
"I really found a home in the First Presbyterian Church of Bethlehem and there I was nurtured from a young age for discipleship and leadership," said Rev. Landino, who prefers to be called "Pastor Ryan" or just Ryan.
"Others saw that I was a minister way before I did, so I felt not only nudged in that direction by the Holy Spirit, but also by mentors, peers and church leaders Ive encountered along the way," he said. "Becoming a minister was more of a matter of accepting who God was making me to be behind my back and then embracing, 'Yup, this is Gods call for my life,' and then realizing that I found it really fulfilling.
While attending Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, N.J., Rev. Landino took the helm of the English Ministry program of a Taiwanese Presbyterian Church, which he said gave him a heart for immigrant ministry. After his ordination in 2010, he served at a Slovak church for five years.
"There is something about being able to own our cultural differences while at the same time learning from each others unique background, he said. I bring those lessons with me while I do ministry between different generations, with people of conflicting political and theological backgrounds, and among people with different levels of technological proficiency.
At the Presbyterian Church in Geneseo, Rev. Landino oversees the discipleship and spiritual development of the church, both individually and communally, "which means showing the Gospel truth in fresh ways, while training people to take their faith out into the world to show Gods love to everyone else, he said.
Worship is a time to dedicate ourselves to God, but also works as the recharging and equipping time to send us out into the world rejuvenated to be Christians between Sundays, he said.
What I find rewarding is when people feel that visceral sense of the nearness of God, he said. I especially love that moment when peoples eyes are opened to discovering something they never saw before. The Gospel has so many mysteries to unfold, and I love making discoveries along the way.
BIO BOX FOR REV. LANDINO
Birth date: April 3, 1983.
Family: Wife, Danielle; two dogs, Cookie and Leena.
Hometown: Bethlehem, Pa.
Education: Liberty High School, Bethlehem, Pa.; speech communication major at Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania, where he was a student associate director of the Honors Program; earned a dual Master of Divinity Degree/Master of Arts in Christian Education Degree from Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, N.J.; ordained Oct. 18, 2010, at Calvin Presbyterian Church, Linden, N.J.
Favorite scripture: Philippians 4:13 Because I had it by my bed as a teenager and it helped me through some of the darker times in my life.
Biblical character Id like to meet: Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus, "because she is always willing to seize the moment despite what others say about her.
Hobbies and activities: Comic books, film, reading, travel, trying new restaurants.
One thing I feel strongly about: I feel very strongly about the importance of expanding our personal horizons and learning new perspectives from people who are different from us.
I wish I knew how to: Draw people realistically.
ALEDO -- It takes an emotional toll to relive the death of her daughter.
Yet Traci Maynard, of Muscatine, seizes the opportunity to share what inspired her and her husband, Rich, to create the Erica Kate Hope Alliance, a nationwide ministry of love named in their late daughter's honor that she said "cares for families in the midst of a heart-related crisis."
Mrs. Maynard is one of four guest speakers at an annual one-day women's retreat called "The Journey" April 9 at United Methodist Church, 301 N. College Ave., Aledo. "Find Blessings in the Journey" is this year's theme.
"What I will focus on is how the Lord turned our pain into a great purpose," Mrs. Maynard said.
The couple's alliance has helped more than 850 parents at 45 heart centers across the country cover expenses -- such as groceries, utilities and mortgage payments -- while providing emotional and spiritual support, she said.
Mrs. Maynard said she and her husband decided during a return trip from a New York clinic for a heart-transplant operation for their daughter how they wanted to "lean into their grief" instead of letting it create and continue an internal, emotional "downward spiral."
"We talked about how we needed there to be a greater purpose to come from our great pain," she said. After their daughter died in 2006, they created the alliance.
The Maynards have three other children -- Emma, Evan and Ella -- in addition to the "one in heaven," she said.
The Maynards draw inspiration from the third and fourth chapters of 2nd Corinthians, she said. The Scripture ends, "So we do not lose heart. Though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed every day. For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, because we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal."
"The love and care we received from God couldn't have come from any human form," Mrs. Maynard said. "It was so abundant and magnificent, and makes us feel compelled to share it with others.
"This life isn't all about us," she said. "It's about loving and serving the Lord, and showing His glory here on earth. I just hope women attending the event will feel encouraged during whatever journey their life takes them to lean on the Lord to carry them when enduring a similar journey."
Other scheduled speakers are Andrea Mercier, a pastor's wife working with her husband as an outreach and discipleship director at the First Baptist Church in Winchester, Ill.; Brooke Fausett, a senior at Western Illinois University Quad-Cities; and Melissa Coleman, youth and children's ministries director at Aledo Methodist.
Doors open at 8:30 a.m., with the event running from 9:15 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Ms. Mercier is scheduled to talk from 10 to 10:30 a.m., followed by Mrs. Maynard from 10:50 11:20 a.m. and Ms. Fausett and Ms. Coleman from 1 2 p.m.
Other events will include Christian fellowship, prayer, praise, music, worship and lunch, coordinator Pam Truman said. Cost is $15 per person; to register or get more details, call the church at 309-582-2169, visit myaledoumc.com or contact Mary Flint at 309-582-7615 or mflint@frontiernet.net.
Lunch will include deli meets wrapped in croissants, salads and desserts, Ms. Truman said. Attendance is limited to 250.
"We had 220 last year, and would love to max out," Ms. Truman said, adding a crew of about 30 church volunteers will make sure things run smoothly. A part of the proceeds will benefit the Mercer County Family Crisis Center.
MOLINE -- Stamps without cancellation marks are considered more valuable. But those that help cancel out cancer are priceless.
Quad City Stamp Club members will host their 39th annual Stamp Out Cancer auction from 1 to 5 p.m. April 16 at Faith Lutheran Church, 1611 41st St. Viewing of the auction lots begins at 11 a.m. Stamp lots vary from single, more valuable stamps, to bulk lots weighing several pounds.
The auction benefits both the Scott County Iowa and the Rock Island County Illinois American Cancer Society Chapters. George Pettigrew, an auction organizer, said donations have come from both club members and nonmembers.
"In the past, we have had a retired dealer show up with a pickup truck load that consisted of the entire remnants of his store -- from stamps, albums and supplies to catalogs and cabinets, he said. Another year, a woman donated the nearly 500 pounds of U.S. one piece that her late father had collected for most of his life.
Mr. Pettigrew said a regular donor from California one year donated $8,000 to $10,000 of used early British Commonwealth. Another auction featured a letter by Albert Einstein with a handwritten "PS."
"We have received donations from throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and the Far East, he said. Our successful bidders have been local (and) by mail from the U.S., Canada, Europe and the Middle East.
"Generally, we have 75 to 100 bidders show up at the auction and 20 to 30 mail and email bidders, he said.
This years auction is posted on the Quad City Stamp Club website, qcstampclub.com. For more details, contact Mr. Pettigrew through the site or at soc@qcstampclub.com. He also can be reached at Stamp Out Cancer, Quad City Stamp Club, P.O. Box 1301, Moline, IL 61266-9301.
Formed in 1935 in Moline, the club held its first Stamp Out Cancer auction in 1978. Mr. Pettigrew said a local stamp dealer and his wife -- the late Dick and Jane Castner -- initially held a charity auction to benefit the American Cancer Society.
The first Stamp Out Cancer auction raised $1,750. Its largest, in 2000, brought in $15,000. In the last 38 years, the Quad City Stamp Club has raised more than $250,000 from the auctions.
"Since the proceeds are split equally between the Scott County Iowa and the Rock Island County Illinois American Cancer Society Chapters, the Quad City Stamp Club, for the last few years, has donated a sum to bring the donation to a nice, evenly divisible-by-two number, Mr. Pettigrew said.
The Castners chaired the auction for 10 years with the help of friends, customers and members of the Quad City Stamp Club. In the 11th year of the auction, the Quad City Stamp Club assumed the official sponsorship of the fundraiser.
The Castners chose the American Cancer Society because we have had so many friends who have been directly or indirectly affected by cancer, Mr. Pettigrew said. This is our tiny way to do some good.
Stamp club member Leen intVeld, of Moline, is among the auction's volunteers.
"Many of our members have seen the effects of cancer on family and friends," he said. "For me personally, my father passed away almost two years ago due to prostate cancer and my faith was strengthened during his final years.
Last year, we were able to give a check for $6,400 to the American Cancer Society chapters, he said. We are aiming for $10,000 this year.
On March 15, damaging winds, hail and tornadoes struck the Quad-Cities and surrounding area. Winds reached at least 69 mph. Homes and buildings were damaged. A few homes were destroyed. Following are three significant tornadoes that hit the local area many years ago.
In 1860, sky went crazy
On Sunday, June 3, 1860 around 6:30 in the evening, a large log raft was slipping peacefully through Camanche, Iowa reach, according to Charles Russell in his book A-Rafting on the Mississip.
The day had been sultry. It was hard work keeping the log raft in the channel. The men were said to be resting when suddenly a great cloud as black as tar loomed over the sunset. The whole sky seemed to go crazy with whirling scud, a deafening roar of wind and thunder drew near, and the cyclone (In those days a tornado was called a 'cyclone') burst upon the astonished community, wrote Russell.
Before it the works of man were but jests. Stores, warehouses, homes crumpled up like jackstraws, he said. At least 228 buildings were destroyed. Twenty-two people were killed outright and 119 injured. Trees, wrecked houses, and rubbish went shooting over the heads of the raftsmen. They said they saw a grey horse struggling in the air. Then the river seemed suddenly to go dry and they rested upon the muddy bottom. Then a vast wave, resurging from the Illinois shore, lifted them up and carried them against the wind and deposited logs and all far in the cornfields of Iowa, said Russell.
Wes Rambo, a rapids pilot, happened to be just below Camanche when the storm struck. He said he saw two-thirds of the bottom of the river swept as clear as a floor and then a tidal wave coming back and lifting everything before it, according to Russell.
The track of the storm was from Fort Dodge, Iowa, to Ottawa County, Mich., nearly 500 miles.
1884 twister surprising
According to The Moline Review Dispatch, May 9, 1884, Shortly before 4 oclock May 8, 1884 the atmosphere became dull and heavy and the sky presented an unmistakable sign of an approaching storm, followed by that peculiar darkness that is neither like day or night. The dense clouds of greenish hue rolled up from the western horizon like great mountains. The approach of the storm was so rapid that no one was ready for it.
The storm touched Moline and traveled across the river to Davenport. The gusts of rain were reported to be almost parallel with the ground. Telephone posts were broken off, fences demolished and houses blown away. Trees were uprooted and carried blocks away, said The Review. (Easter Sunday my family watched large trees floating down the Mississippi River dislodged by the recent tornadoes and winds as we attended a buffet at Steventons Restaurant high on a bluff in LeClaire.)
1974 twister hit Moline
On June 21, 1974 Patrolman Gilllis M. Reed, Moline police officer, saw a funnel cloud touching down in the middle of the Mississippi, according to The Dispatch. The tornado then snapped seven 69,000-volt conductor power lines along River Drive and ignited a fire that destroyed two sheds owned by American Air Filter Co. along the riverbank.
Before hitting Moline, the tornado ripped off the roof of the Holiday Inn across the river in Bettendorf, Iowa damaging 50 rooms, said The Dispatch.
Jim Dix, Dispatch columnist, said the terrain of the inner Quad-Cities which many have said is immune from such assault, has now disappeared up the vortex or if you prefer up the funnel.
Apparently 1974 was a disastrous year for tornadoes across the country. Dr. T. Theodore Fujita, University of Chicago professor of geophysical sciences, headed a study of those storms. His team found a tornado which had touched down in a valley in northwest Georgia, climbed a 3,500-foot mountain and went down the other side. In Brandenburg, Ky., a funnel had crossed a wide section of the Ohio River doing serious damage to both sides, said the newspaper.
At the Third Plenum of the 18th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in November 2013, major reforms to the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) were announced. Beginning in September 2015, elements of the reform programme have been made public and the process is expected to last until 2020. The changes challenge a number of established interests, including by restructuring the Military Region system as well as the four General Departments, which have been blamed for facilitating patron-client ties in the PLA.
Official sources say that these and other reforms are necessary to transform the PLA into a military force capable of conducting integrated joint operations to protect the Party's interests within and beyond China's borders. PLA analysts point out the importance of implementing the reforms, but also highlight the challenges that will come in attempting to carry them out, especially given entrenched interests within the PLA.
Overhauling the PLA
Since they began in September, the reforms have already brought about large-scale changes to the force structure, organisation, and operational command of the PLA. On 1 January 2016, the Central Military Commission (CMC) released an Opinion on Deepening the Reform of National Defence and the Armed Forces (hereafter, the Opinion), which provides the rationale, objectives, and priority areas for the reform programme.[1] The Opinion states that the reforms represent the only way to achieve the rejuvenation of the military as well as China's national-level goals, including the goals of becoming a moderately prosperous society ( , xiaokang shehui) by 2021, and becoming a modern socialist country by 2049.[2] The reforms are also necessary to overcome the structural and policy barriers that exist in the current national defence system.
According to the Opinion, the main principles of the reforms are to reorient the PLA to the correct political direction of Party control and to improve combat capability by creating an integrated joint operations system that can fight and win wars. Other areas targeted for reform include strengthening innovation and promoting a rule by law mindset, so that the reforms are seen within the context of a system of laws and regulations. Policy changes are to be complemented with reforms to organisational systems, and these reforms are to be introduced incrementally, so as to ensure the stability of the armed forces and effective integration with them.
Three of the reforms are particularly significant for the near-term future. First, the roles of national-level, theatre- level, and service-level organisations have been redefined. The description of the new delineation of powers is that the CMC manages, the theatre commands focus on warfighting, and the services focus on building [the forces] ( , junwei guanzong, zhanqu zhuzhan, junzhong zhujian). The CMC has greater authority over the four old General Departments, whose functions have now been reorganised into 15 bodies that are under the direct control of the CMC.[3] The Theatre Commands (, zhanqu) replace the seven military regions.[4] They will conduct combat operations under the joint operations command system ( , lianhe zuozhan zhihui tizhi), as part of an effort to improve joint warfighting operations in contrast to the old, peacetime-focused Military Regions. The services have also been profoundly transformed. An Army headquarters has been established for the first time, aligning it with other services. The Second Artillery Force, which controlled China's nuclear and conventional missiles, has been elevated to the level of a separate service called the Rocket Force. Along with the Navy and the Air Force, this brings the total number of services to four. The services will focus on force building, or manning, training, and equipping the armed forces. Finally, the newly-created Strategic Support Force will focus on cyber, information and electromagnetic warfare, and possibly some areas of space operations as well.
Second, the PLA as a whole is continuing to decrease in size, though (it is hoped) to increase in quality; a new 300,000 personnel reduction follows two similar cuts in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The reform programme has also introduced policies aimed at improving talent recruitment and development within the armed services. It is likely that a significant portion of these cuts will apply to the PLA Army, although no specifics have been announced yet with regard to any major reductions.
Third, the Opinion discusses improvements to PLA regulatory systems that would reduce the power of bribes, position-buying, and other corrupt practices that have led to public disciplinary action being taken against PLA officers in recent years.
Resistance to reform
PLA analysts and stakeholders have pointed out both the opportunities presented by the reforms and the challenges of implementing them. Largely in line with official commentaries, Xu Debin argues that the PLA needs to be open-minded and to consider the reforms in the light of the new challenges that China faces and the new requirements for the PLA in dealing with them.[5] Xu draws a historical analogy: he contrasts nineteenth-century Japan's ability to grapple with outside concepts and reforms (including military reform) with the late Qing Dynasty's rejection of foreign ideas. Xu implies that the PLA has failed to incorporate foreign ideas about some aspects of modern warfare. He notes that since the reform and opening era began in the 1970s, China has not managed to develop a truly modern army or navy. Xu says that one of the main areas of resistance to the current reform programme involves concerns about how the relationship between the theatre commands and the services will work in practice. The theatre commands are tasked with warfighting, while the services are supposed to build modern forces but some fear that in view of this split, the services may pursue force modernisation efforts that are not relevant to war- fighting requirements. Meanwhile, the theatre commands may not recognise the limits under which the services are operating due to personnel or costs. And it may be difficult to focus [the new] command authorities ( , nanyi jizhong zhihui tongling) in order to prosecute a conflict. These concerns may indicate that mechanisms for coordination between the theatre commands and the services have not yet been fully worked out.
Senior Colonel Tang Junfeng also points out potential roadblocks to the military reforms.[6] These include resistance within organisational systems because of inertia, the difficulty of breaking through conflicts of interest, and the difficulty of measuring military effectiveness. The lack of recent wartime experience may also pose a problem, because the usefulness of reforms is difficult to test during peacetime, as well as because a severe defeat can often provide the strongest impetus for reform. Tang cautions that reforms developed by a peacetime military may lack operational relevance, particularly since any idea can be rebranded as a reform, even if it represents outdated thinking. He also notes that it is difficult to undertake reforms within one's own organisation, but considerably easier to ask them of others. When confronted with challenges to their interests, some military organisations will respond by exaggerating the threats they currently face so as to block implementation. They may also apply political pressure to the reformers, or shape the reforms in such a way as to benefit their organisation but alter the impact entirelyeven, potentially, by adding inefficiencies rather than reducing them. Tang's article is a warning that in its efforts to reform, the PLA must not end up actually becoming less efficient or less capable.
How effective will the reforms be?
The Opinion acknowledges the unprecedented range of impact of the reforms, saying that they touch on deep interests within the PLA. Despite the disruption to these entrenched interests, the reform process will likely succeed in the end, at least in the terms of success defined by the Party: creating a politically reliable modern force capable of joint operations. Such speculation seems credible because the reform programme provides the right balance of carrots and sticks to three core groups that can be identified within the PLA. The first group consists of officers who either see value in building a more capable fighting force or hope to advance their careers by implementing the new policy (or both). The second group includes senior officers who have risen to the top of the current system. Many senior officers have been placated by being allowed to hold onto their current privileged status until they retire; though for a few, such as Liu Yuan and Cai Yingting, the case is different.[7] A third group of influential senior officers, who might otherwise resist reforms, will likely fall in line because of the threat of investigations, trials, or the worse fates that have befallen their disgraced colleagues.
However, even if the reforms are fully implemented, questions remain about the effects they will have on the PLA's operational capability. The PLA Army, Navy, and Air Force headquarters will be focused on manning, training, and equipping their respective services, while the five new theatre commands are tasked with leading military operations. But the new commanders and political commissars of the five theatre commands all come from the ground forces. This implies a continuation of Army dominance over a system that is supposed to be improving the PLA's ability to jointly prosecute conflicts by harnessing capabilities not only on land but also in the sea, the air, and other domains. As more details emerge about the leadership within each theatre command, one area to watch will be how Navy and Air Force officers are integrated into the leadership of the new commands.
Moreover, it is unclear how the PLA Rocket Force, China's nuclear and conventional missile forces, fits into the guiding principle that the CMC manages, the theatre commands focus on warfighting, and the services focus on building [the forces]. The Rocket Force is now a service, but its predecessor commanded troops from bases that were largely outside the command structure of the seven military regions, now replaced by the theatre command structure. Given the importance of the nuclear mission set, the Rocket Force will likely retain its independence from the theatre command system. If this turns out to be the case, it will be important to assess how the theatre commands and the Rocket Force develop and test coordination mechanisms.
Thirdly, the relationship between the theatre commands and the Strategic Support Force is not yet understood. If the Strategic Support Force is to have operational control of troops, it is unclear how it will coordinate the operations of those units with the theatre commands during wartime.
In conclusion, the reforms underway within the PLA are in the process of delivering sweeping changes to its day-to-day operations, despite concerns held by some members of the military. Whether or not the overall implementation is successful as envisioned in the Opinion, assessing the operational implications of the reforms will require more time as details emerge from exercises and other activities in which the PLA puts theory into practice.
Footnotes
Cristina Garafola is a project associate and China specialist at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation.
This commentary originally appeared on China Analysis, ECFR on March 30, 2016. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis.
Discovery Networks has named Vera Buzanello as executive VP and general manager of Discovery Networks Iberia, responsible for Spain and Portugal.
Having previously led the distribution side of the business in Iberia, Buzanello returns to a market where she is well-established within the industry. Her new role has a central focus on defining and implementing the growth strategy of Discovery Networks in the region, which includes seven channels.Based in Madrid, Buzanello will be reporting to Marinella Soldi, president and managing director of Discovery Networks Southern Europe.With 17 years experience within the company, Buzanello recently led distribution strategy and affiliate relations for Discovery Latin America (DLA). She will retain oversight of key strategic distribution relationships for the LATAM region.Vera Buzanello will lead the way in bringing to life the Discovery commitment in the region, particularly with a focus on greater investment in content and local talent, while delivering our content to more screens, said Soldi.My goal is to expand the business in both Spain and Portugal to offer Discoverys innovative and high quality content to more viewers. I am fully committed to ensuring the Discovery brand becomes a stronger force amongst viewers, institutions, partners and investors in Iberias TV market, added Buzanello.In Spain, Discovery owns its own free-to-air DTT channel, Discovery MAX, and has recently reached an agreement to become a major content provider for Kiss TV, one of the new channels that will start airing by the end of the month. It also distributes Discovery Channel, Eurosport 1 and Eurosport 2 for pay-TV platforms.
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Honaker, VA Data & Demographics (As of July 1, 2015)POPULATIONTotal Population1,575Population in Households1,569Population in Familes1,325Population in Group Qrtrs6Population Density1937Diversity Index24 HOUSEHOLDSTotal Households661Average Household Size2.37Family Households465Average Family Size3HOUSINGTotal Housing Units767 (100%)Owner Occupied HU513 (66.9%)Renter Occupied HU148 (19.3%)Vacant Housing Units106 (13.8%)Median Home Value$86,798Average Home Value$111,770 INCOMEMedian Household Inc...
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Q. What is intercessory prayer? Why do you think it works or doesn't work?
Prayer is an attempt to create a meaningful relationship with God. Thus, it plays an important role in the religious meaning system. Different forms of prayer add different things to this meaning system.
During the Sikh Ardas, the whole Sangat experiences stillness, connectivity and wholeness. It goes into meditative aspects, contemplative mode of consciousness. In the petitionary form of Ardas, the Sikhs tell their Satguru their concerns and gratitudes, and petition him for specific wishes. They also actively listen and ask Satguru for directions. In meditative Ardas, the congregation collectively listens to Satguru through Shabads and Naam Simran, which makes them experience his divine presence in the most intimate way. They wait for his directions and blessings. Sikh practice believes that intercessory prayer works, but only by them who are spiritually enriched. Finally, attention is of the very essence of prayer. As soon as this attention ceases, prayer ceases.
Amarjit Singh
The Sikh Centre, Anderson
At each Temple Beth Israel service, we offer a communal prayer for healing for named individuals. It works in two ways. The one offering the prayer benefits by feeling less helpless and by feeling they're doing something that will change the condition of the person they pray for. The recipient benefits by feeling less alone, more hopeful and more in control.
Medical and psychological practitioners know that a patient's attitude helps them heal quicker and better. The ailing patient does not have to rely on supernatural intervention. The prayer helps the patient become more accepting of whatever outcome occurs. If a specific outcome such as a complete healing does not occur, it's not as if God did not heed the prayer. Rather, it works best when the expected result is within the realm of possible and probable human efforts and not those built upon superstition.
George Wandrocke, chaplain
Temple Beth Israel of Redding
Our faith path does not believe in or teach intercessory prayer, whereby we ask a divine being to modify a circumstance for us. We believe the universe works through impersonal law to express its love. This means the law applies equally to all. Think of gravity, which doesn't care if you've been "good" or "bad."
Our method of prayer an affirmative prayer is to change our consciousness to more closely align with the results and experiences we choose to have in our life. This is an application of "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." Our process to change conditions is to change our thinking, not ask something outside of us to do so for us.
The infinite oneness is always expressing its own true nature of life, love, light, power, peace, beauty and joy. If we are not experiencing that, it is we who are blocking it. We need to change, not God.
The Rev. David Robinson
Center for Spiritual Living, Redding
Intercessory prayer is common practice for Christians. Understand that prayer is our form of communication with God. With prayer, we seek out what God has in store for us. We request understanding of his will, of scripture, of our daily direction. Because we consider other Christians family, we pray for them in the same manner for understanding of God's purpose. Intercessory prayer is common for physical and mental healing, protection, community and government officials, worldwide situations and yes, it works.
Jim White, lay leader
Weaverville Church of the Nazarene
Intercessory prayer is prayer on behalf of another person. As with all prayer that fits the biblical model, true intercessory prayer comes from the heart to the one true God for such as he has commanded us to pray. Intercessory prayer has nothing to do with praying to or through dead saints. Our requests are rather made directly to God, who hears us because of Christ.
Though the Bible speaks of vitally important intercessory prayer offered on our behalf by Christ (Romans 8:34) and the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26), when we talk about such prayer, we are usually referring to one human's prayers on behalf of another, and the Bible speaks volumes, both in instruction and example regarding such prayer.
The reason that intercessory prayer "works" is that God, to whom it is offered, is divinely powerful to act, and has chosen to answer the rightly ordered and offered prayers of his people.
The Rev. Gene Crow, pastor
Redding Reformed Fellowship
Unity was founded on prayer and is a cornerstone of our faith. We pray on our own and with and for others. We pray knowing that God is the source of all power regardless of appearances. We believe that prayer changes our mind about conditions and situations. We do not nor could we change the mind of God. God is love and God is law. The law is immutable and unchangeable.
We can always trust that at the spiritual level, all is good. We believe that praying for ourselves and others is based on the three P's: patience, persistence and practice.
The more we can bring the truth of God into ourselves and see the perfection behind a condition, the more we can help others see and believe the perfection in themselves. The essence of our being is always perfect
Carolyn Warnemuende
Unity in Redding
Historically, humans have always wondered whether our prayers for each other are answered. It seems to help when the subject of the prayer is known.
Both the person prayed for and the situation involved are affected by the simple knowledge that other people are committed to asking God for his help. But often specific prayer does not seem to yield the result we pray for. For example, a complete cure, total conversion and world peace. Yet we do not give up, instead letting go and letting God do as he wills. In tragic and end-of-life situations, often the victim or patient seems to find peace and acceptance, even giving heroic example while we pray.
"Ask and you shall receive, knock and it will be opened, seek and you will find" promises the Lord. But not my will but your will be done, O Lord.
Deacon Mike Evans
Sacred Heart Church, Anderson
Jesus used many images of the impact of our prayers, referring to wind, water, seeds, sunshine and the like. I take this to mean that God works gently and tirelessly for goodness, but not manipulatively, or automatically, or controllably.
Praying is allowing ourselves to hear the heart of God, and it is always valuable. I only worry when we treat prayer like rubbing a genie's bottle. I honestly think magic is not what we ever are truly seeking in prayer.
Rod Brayfindley
First United Methodist Church, Redding
Next week's question: Does God talk to us in dreams? Do symbols in dreams have spiritual meaning?
The "ghost" locomotive is ferried across the river. It fell of the ferry into the river in 1893.
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'Ghost' locomotive not visible, but site's rich with stories
By Dottie Smith of the Redding Record Searchlight
Travelin' in Time is a weekly look at historic places in the north state.
The location
Somewhere in the silt of the Sacramento River close to the Deschutes Road bridge in Anderson.
How to get there
Take Deschutes Road to the bridge across the Sacramento River.
What to see
You cannot see the locomotive because it's buried in the silt; you'll have to envision it. Historic old concrete bridge piers stand on the upriver side of the current bridge, but they are not associated with the locomotive. Those bridge piers were built after the locomotive fell into the river.
The history
A 15.6-mile standard gauge mill spur railroad system known as the Anderson-Bella Vista Railroad was built by Shasta Lumber Co. in 1889 to haul lumber from its Bella Vista planing mill to the Southern Pacific tracks in Anderson. The tracks closely followed the route of present day Deschutes Road, beginning at Meyers Road in Bella Vista and ending in Anderson along East Center Street midway between Howard and Ferry Streets.
A ferry originally took engines and lumber cars across the Sacramento River to the tracks on the opposite side. Before the first bridge was completed to replace the ferry, the engine and two cars fell off the ferry into the river in 1893. The cars were salvaged but the eight-wheeled locomotive was left in the river.
In 1897, Shasta Lumber Co. defaulted on its mortgage. Joseph Terry purchased the company, re-established it as Terry Lumber Co. and continued to operate the railroad. Besides hauling lumber, the railroad brought mail and groceries to the communities along its route and even had a passenger car. Rides on the passenger car were free. Locals called it the "GOP," meaning Get Out and Push.
A new railroad bridge was built in 1906 and its piers are still standing on the upriver side of the present bridge. A ferry served the road traffic at the site; some of its cables remain on the south side of the river.
Terry sold the railroad in 1912 to Afterthought Copper Co., which changed its name to the California, Shasta and Eastern Railroad in 1913. Even though the railroad had a new name, it remained known by locals as the Terry Railroad.
The bridge was converted to highway use in 1944 and its steel tracks were covered with pavement. In 1945, the railroad passed into the hands of Shasta County, which removed the tracks and turned the railroad grade into Deschutes Road. Portions of the old railroad grade still exist in places beside Deschutes Road.
In 1970, Moseman Construction Co. built the current bridge. According to correspondence from company owner Richard Moseman in 2005, two scuba divers employed by a subcontractor found the locomotive buried in the silt, Moseman said.
Some say the locomotive is no longer there. One story claims it was pulled out, cut up and sold for scrap. Yet there is no evidence to back this up.
Attempts have been made to locate and retrieve the locomotive, to no avail. Now that this new information has surfaced, possibly another attempt will be made to find the elusive ghost locomotive.
Dottie Smith is the author of "The Dictionary of Early Shasta County History" and the former curator of the Shasta College Museum. Check out her daily history blog at Redding.com. Contact her at historydottie@yahoo.com.
Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight Nathan Byers, front, and Richard Hiers pleaded guilty Friday to voluntary manslaughter and assault in connection with a 2014 fight that left a Redding man dead.
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By Jim Schultz of the Redding Record Searchlight
Two Redding men who had been set to begin standing trial next week for murder were both sentenced on Friday to eight years in prison after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter and assault.
Nathan Robert Byers, 21, and Richard James Hiers, 24, entered their guilty pleas as part of a plea bargain that called for the agreed-upon eight-year prison sentences.
They must serve 85 percent of their sentences before being eligible for parole, or about 6.8 years, but they are also being credited with the 620 days that they have served in jail since their 2014 arrests.
Under their plea deal, Hiers and Byers pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in connection with the death of Claude Alexander Schmies, 48, who died July 22, 2014, at Mercy Medical Center in Redding.
They also pleaded guilty to assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury.
That assault charge stems from the injuries suffered by a second victim, John Raymond Fritz, 30, serving a four-year sentence at Ironwood State Prison in Blythe in an unrelated felony case. Additionally, Hiers and Byers admitted guilt to a related enhancement.
The four men became embroiled in a deadly July 20, 2014, fight on Spruce Street that police said broke out after Schmies reportedly drove too close to Hiers and Byers while they were walking near Veda and Elmwood streets.
Schmies "aggressively backed up," and he and his passenger, Fritz, got out of the vehicle, police have said.
Hiers and Byers reportedly told police that Schmies and Fritz jumped them and that they acted in self-defense during the free-for-all.
Shasta County Deputy District Attorney Emily Mees, who called the four-man fight "mutual combat," said all of them were to blame for the violence.
"All four initiated the fight," she said. "This entire thing could have been avoided by anyone just walking away. It's a sad situation that didn't need to happen."
Police and prosecutors have said it appeared alcohol contributed to the fight,
According to a police report, a teenager who witnessed a portion of the fight said it appeared that the injured Schmies could not defend himself and fell to the ground.
At that point, the teen said, a man who police said fit the description of Hiers stomped on the side of the downed man's face four to five times and kicked him once in the ribs.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Patrol Detectives Steve Balonek, left, and Steve Thaxton enter a hallway in a building clearing scenario during "Reality Based Training" at the Mojave Training Center Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2016, in Las Vegas, Nev. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune/TNS)
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By Annie Sweeney, Chicago Tribune
LAS VEGAS As the car came to a halt, the irate driver jumped out, peppering the officers with expletives as he rushed to the open trunk.
The two Las Vegas Metro cops making the traffic stop yelled for him to stop. One longtime officer, worried that the driver might have grabbed a gun from the trunk, ran toward the man as he continued to scream. The driver scrambled out of reach for a moment before the officer took control of him.
It was just a training exercise, and in a briefing a few minutes later, the veteran officer explained he had rushed the agitated driver because he wanted to put hands on him I was trying to close distance and just grab him.
It was a quick way to gain control for sure, but at what risk?
In the wake of national outrage over the deaths of citizens by police, departments from Seattle to New York have started to use real-life scenarios to teach officers to balance the need for physical force with tactics favoring whats become known as de-escalation trying to calm tense situations peacefully.
These questions are especially pressing in Chicago amid one of the worst policing crises in its history. Last Novembers release of troubling video showing a white officer leaping from a squad car and within seconds fatally shooting black teen Laquan McDonald as he walked away has cast the Police Departments training under a harsh light.
Despite the life-and-death nature of the job, the department doesnt generally require officers to take annual classes at the academy after graduating from recruit training with the exception of firearms qualifications.
With the U.S. Justice Department investigating the Chicago departments practices amid the furor over McDonalds killing, City Hall is scrambling to overhaul its officer training. Required classes on Taser use and crisis intervention have already started, and in coming weeks, Chicago will begin to catch up with many other big-city departments and current national policing standards by launching training specifically geared toward de-escalation.
Officials have pledged it will be an annual requirement for all 12,000 officers, but at this point no new money has been earmarked to ensure that the department can accomplish that ambitious goal.
Chicago is looking to Las Vegas as one model as it finalizes its training plans. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department launched reforms about four years ago, and de-escalation has emerged as a guiding principle. The idea is now woven throughout its policing approach and emphasized in a revised use-of-force policy that included input from many of the departments most respected officers.
The approach is reinforced with annual training that is based on real-life scenarios and tackles vexing, highly controversial issues such as how to help officers not mistake harmless objects in citizens hands for guns.
The department evaluates every shooting and serious incident even those carried out legally and according to policy to try to determine what might have been handled better in retrospect. What is learned from those reviews winds up in training.
We really had to peel back some layers and take a look at what the organization was doing in terms of training, and we had to be honest with ourselves, said Capt. Matt McCarthy, until recently the head of the Las Vegas departments constitutional policing and oversight office. We werent hitting the mark. It required us really to look at how we train our officers for todays policing.
That officer who rushed at the driver, while considered an old school approach, wasnt necessarily wrong, but he had other options that might have been safer.
The things we have to think about is proximity, said Nicole Hemsey, the training officer who conducted the exercise. Can I get to him before he can get that gun?
The officers, she said, could have opted to stay behind your car doors and come up with a plan, talk to each other before you decide to go up. That is where de-escalation comes in.
De-escalation is not a new concept, but over the years, aggressive tactics by police have been emphasized more in training. On the street, pressure has grown on officers to resolve problems quickly in order to get to the next call. Besides, backing off a central element of de-escalation often isnt a natural instinct for a cop.
Back in the day, its like, if I took this ground from you, I didnt give it back to you, said Las Vegas Sgt. Brian Briggs, who oversees officer training and was himself shot in the line of duty. We are trying to tell people its OK, we have more time. We can set up, lets get more people. There were too many incidents, too many shootings, too many even uses of force. People were saying we need to come up with a new way of thinking about it.
The Metro Police Department, whose 2,500 officers patrol both Las Vegas and parts of Clark County, began exploring these questions after 25 officer-involved shootings took place in 2010, the most in 20 years.
Facing mounting criticism from the public as well as the American Civil Liberties Union, the department became the first in the nation to go to the Justice Department for help. An exhaustive review led to more than 70 recommended changes.
Las Vegas revised its policy on officers use of force, adding a commitment to preserving the sanctity of life when at all possible and clarifying when deadly force is warranted.
Generally, police across the country have long relied on a U.S. Supreme Court decision that justifies deadly force if an objectively reasonable officer facing similar circumstances would have made the same choice. In the 1989 decision, the court identified three factors to weigh: the severity of the crime committed by the suspect, whether he posed a physical danger to the officer or the public and if he actively resisted.
To further clarify when officers can use force, Las Vegas added five elements to consider, including whether the suspect appears to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol, if he is armed and how close police backup might be. When force is used, officers are expected to address as many of the eight factors in explaining their actions in written reports.
Before the changes took effect for the rank-and-file, the department sought input from about 25 of its most respected officers. Those same officers then were asked to explain the revisions to their colleagues at the eight urban area commands, the Las Vegas version of Chicagos 22 police districts.
We couldnt sell it without having well-respected officers sell it for us, McCarthy said. This group we had, they were very hard on the policy. But they understood where we were trying to go.
On a recent Wednesday afternoon, a group of mostly midcareer Las Vegas Metro detectives gathered around a U-shaped table in a classroom at the Mojave Training Center for one of two annual rounds of training using real-life scenarios. Some officers legs bounced as they waited to start whats called Reality-Based Training, a team-oriented class that was created as part of the reform efforts to help prepare officers for deadly force encounters.
Some of the real-life scenarios are taken from the departments critical incident review process that examines whether policy had been followed as well as the decision-making that led to the use of force. Officers who fail to follow department rules can face discipline ranging up to firing or simply be ordered to undergo further training. Officers found to have performed exceptionally are recognized with a commendation.
This year, the training has been focused on the proper way to clear buildings in an emergency. But first the group must review the departments policy on use of force and the definition of de-escalation.
Three questions pop up on the slide projector: Is there an immediate threat? Who is creating that the officer or suspect? Can you take a little time and get more help?
Now its time for the group to head in for the training exercise. Bright strobes flash and a high-pitched burglary alarm rings as officers make their way furtively through several dark rooms and down a long hallway. Amid the chaos, the officers move quickly in groups of three in search of an armed suspect. In the last room, they find him atop a toilet in a bathroom stall.
He suddenly screams out as the officers, sweat beading on their foreheads as they breathe heavily, attempt to take control. The officers will be judged on how well they use strong verbal commands, keep control of the confined space and avoid using force while taking the suspect into custody.
We put these dynamics together so that we dont have startle responses on the street, Lt. Dennis OBrien whispered inside the darkened room as the next team of officers prepared to go through. You put them through all the things that are going to stress them out. The point of de-escalation is stopping the momentum. Pull back. Think it through. Solve the problem.
Nearly all of the departments 2,500 officers underwent this training as well as advanced officer skills a nearly 20-year-old curriculum that has evolved in the wake of reforms to also emphasize de-escalation.
In one drill in which officers face an ambush by a shooter, instructors tested the participants heart rates before and after the exercise to illustrate the physiological effects of such stress including altered hearing and a narrowing of their vision.
Trainers stressed that officers who stay in shape with cardio workouts are better able to keep their heart rates in check under those trying situations.
Such extensive mandatory training for officers every year would represent a big culture change in Chicago as well as a challenge for a 12,000-strong department confronting escalating gang violence.
The departments Education and Training Division has historically focused on training recruits, offering fewer options to veteran officers except in special cases or promotional classes. All officers, for instance, were required to train for the 2012 NATO summit, and more recently, then-Superintendent Garry McCarthy, who was fired in the wake of the McDonald scandal, instituted a procedural justice curriculum that teaches officers how to improve communication and build trust with residents.
The department has also offered refresher tactical courses to officers.
Lt. Steve Sesso, who heads up recruit training, said the department relies heavily on online and video training at district stations, but he agreed that in-person training is preferred and that officers want to keep on top of the latest techniques.
Its absolutely a better option, and we get complaints that they cant come in, he said. The want is out there.
James Pasco, national head of the Fraternal Order of Police, agreed that officers across the country want the continuing training, but he said budgetary, logistical and political issues keep most police departments from committing to ongoing, mandatory training.
Its a failure in terms of elected officials or the (police) executives not asking for the funds, Pasco said. We are not talking about on-time trash collection here. We are talking about human lives, and if the mayor cant find enough money to keep people alive and healthy in his or her city, the mayor ought to be run out on a rail.
But its an expensive proposition at a time of belt-tightening. The New York Police Department spent $17 million so that 22,000 of its officers could each undergo three days of de-escalation training last year, a department spokeswoman said. It took several months for the training to be completed.
In coming weeks in Chicago, officers will each undergo two days of instruction one on how to respond to those struggling with mental issues and the other on de-escalation techniques.
With 12,000 officers to teach, the training academy is gearing up to provide round-the-clock classes seven days a week.
The training will be based on actual incidents, Sesso said. Officials are also seeking input from mental health experts and have sent a group of trainers to Las Vegas to learn from their training techniques.
While officer-involved shootings have already been declining in Chicago since 2011, experts caution that de-escalation training isnt just about preventing deadly confrontations but also making sure that officers consider other options than using force too quickly. They stressed, however, that officers need repeated training.
One year is not enough, said Alexa James, executive director of the Chicago-based National Alliance on Mental Illness who is on the citys task force examining police reform. There has to be continued refresher courses.
Four years into its reform effort in Las Vegas, officials are hopeful that de-escalation training is paying off.
While some survivors of those killed by police remain skeptical that officers have really changed their mindset, department officials point to a drop in officer shootings a combined 32 over the last two years, 19 fatal. Last year, in all but one of the 16 shootings, those targeted by police were armed with a weapon, according to police. In 2010, when the officer shootings peaked at 25, police shot six unarmed individuals.
That improvement means officers are making better decisions under stress, Capt. McCarthy said.
The Justice Departments final report on reforms in Las Vegas, issued in 2014, noted that an independent assessor had concluded that training and oversight contributed to the overall decline in police shootings. But it also pointed out that of the four unarmed suspects shot by police in 2012 and 2013, three were black, perhaps underscoring the need to train officers to try to avoid bias. Indeed, that training is now underway in the department.
The push for de-escalation has led to some worry that officers will hesitate too much, putting themselves at risk. To address that, training instructors set aside time to remind officers not to hold back in dangerous situations because of the increased scrutiny and heightened public awareness.
Officers on the street feel the tension.
You dont want to learn by being shot or stabbed, Sgt. Miguel Garcia, a 15-year veteran of the department, said on a recent patrol in Las Vegas.
Still, Garcia, who saw the impact of overly aggressive cops while growing up in Los Angeles, said he welcomes this new era in policing, saying it reduces conflicts with residents and stands to keep everyone safer.
Its different police work. Theres more talking to people, he said. Now were teaching to have patience, step back which is good. Good for the (police), good for the community.
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Infographic relating to the Nuclear Security Summit. Tribune News Service 2016
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By Tracy Wilkinson and Michael A. Memoli, Tribune Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON Late in his first term, President Barack Obama announced a new emphasis on Asia and the Pacific Rim, a way of pivoting from the morass in the Middle East and focusing on a peaceful, booming region that the first Pacific-born president saw as the future.
He has visited Asia regularly since then and will return at least twice again this year for economic and security summits.
But with notable exceptions, much of the administrations self-proclaimed rebalance has been dominated by emergency security matters, including North Koreas defiant nuclear tests, friction with China in the South China Sea, and the growing threat of cyberespionage and digital theft.
On Thursday, with about 50 world leaders in Washington for the Nuclear Security Summit, only the leaders of China, Japan and South Korea received full, formal meetings with Obama, a clear sign of his priorities.
(The White House belatedly added a shorter session with Frances President Francois Hollande, a crucial ally in the war against Islamic State.)
Trilateral security cooperation is essential to maintain peace and stability in Northeast Asia, Obama told reporters as he met with South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japans prime minister, Shinzo Abe.
Later, in a separate meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Obama emphasized their commitment to denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and praised Chinas new Nuclear Security Center of Excellence, which seeks to prevent smuggling of nuclear material.
As the two biggest economies, China and the U.S. have a responsibility to work together, Xi said.
The favored treatment for the three Asian powers underscores both the importance the White House attaches to boosting trade and security in Asia as well as the urgency of dealing with North Koreas nuclear saber-rattling and other potential conflicts.
The rebalance (toward Asia) the reshuffling of U.S. priorities is one of the most significant strategic initiatives of Obamas tenure, said Elizabeth Economy, director of Asia studies at the nonpartisan Council on Foreign Relations.
The meetings come against the backdrop of a tumultuous U.S. presidential campaign that potentially could upend half a century of U.S. policy in northeast Asia.
The Republican front-runner, Donald Trump, has said repeatedly in recent days that South Korea and Japan may need to develop their own nuclear weapons to confront regional threats, rather than relying on the U.S. nuclear umbrella that has shielded them for decades.
You have so many countries right now that have them, he said Tuesday in a CNN town hall. Wouldnt you rather have Japan have nuclear weapons when North Korea has nuclear weapons?
Whether a whim or a serious notion by Trump, the issue came up in multiple news briefings before the nuclear security summit, the fourth in a series launched by Obama in 2009 as part of his stated goal of seeing a world without nuclear weapons.
Ben Rhodes, the White House deputy national security adviser, said a pillar of U.S. foreign policy has been to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, not to encourage it, as Trump suggests.
Thats been the position of bipartisan administrations, everybody whos occupied the Oval Office, Rhodes said. Frankly, it would be catastrophic were the United States to shift its position.
White House aides say Obamas carefully nurtured relationship with Xi their meeting Thursday was their eighth face-to-face session was crucial in getting Chinese support at the U.N. Security Council meeting on March 2 to impose stiff sanctions on North Korea, Beijings ally, in response to its latest nuclear test.
It is only because the United States and China have been able to effectively work together that the United Nations imposed the toughest sanctions that have been imposed on North Korea, said Josh Earnest, the White House spokesman. That will pressure the North Korean regime and isolate the North Korean regime over their nuclear weapons program in a way that has positive benefits for our allies, South Korea and Japan.
North Koreans face a steadily growing drumbeat for war as Pyongyang prepares for its first Workers Party Congress in 36 years, scheduled for May, according to Victor Cha, a Korea expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonpartisan think tank in Washington. Annual U.S.-South Korean joint military exercises last month have helped fuel the tensions.
China has expressed its own frustration with North Koreas ruler, Kim Jong-un.
Beijing was caught off guard by Pyongyangs most recent underground nuclear test, on Jan. 6, the eve of Chinese New Year. Beijing had specifically told Kims government not to conduct the test, its first since 2013.
Tensions with China also have been growing in the resource-rich and bitterly contested South China Sea.
In the last two years, China has used dredgers to build up remote reefs and rocky outcrops into small islands in the Spratly and Paracel chains. It has constructed airstrips and other potential military installations in areas also claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam and other nations.
The Obama administration, which says it is determined to maintain freedom of the seas on a vital waterway, has responded by dispatching warships and surveillance aircraft into areas now claimed by China.
In September, during his last visit to the White House, Xi said China did not intend to pursue militarization of the islands. But many U.S. officials believe he has gone back on that word.
China is rising, which is fine, but behaving aggressively, which is not, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said last week at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
Those tensions have not stopped cooperation on other goals, including joint efforts to tackle climate change.
The White House announced Thursday that Washington and Beijing on April 22 will sign the so-called Paris Agreement, which contains pledges to reduce environment-damaging emissions. The U.S. and China are the worlds biggest carbon emitters.
Trade may be a sideline issue especially as Asian leaders look beyond Obama and to the next U.S. president.
Both Trump and the Democratic front-runner, Hillary Clinton, have announced opposition to the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership, a 12-nation free trade agreement that Obama supports. Its not clear whether Congress will vote on the accord before he leaves office.
(Times staff writer W.J. Hennigan contributed to this report.)
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'There is no difference morally between politicians scoring points amid the rubble and non-politicians who assume that politics and corruption necessarily had something to do with it,' says Mihir S Sharma.
'Both are twisting a tragedy to their own ends.'
Sadly, given it has happened just as the West Bengal assembly campaign reaches fever pitch, the collapse of the under-construction flyover near Kolkata's Ganesh Talkies crossing will become something for the state's main parties to hit each other with.
This is a pity, and not just because politicking in the midst of a tragedy is always sordid. It's also because it's vitally important to calmly figure out what might have gone wrong in the project without making convenient assumptions before the facts are in.
The Left Front and the (Gandhi) Congress, challenging the long dominance of Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress in Kolkata, have pointed to a statement by the chief minister last year in which she tried to set an early deadline for the completion of the elevated road project, which had already missed eight -- or possibly nine -- deadlines.
The TMC responded by arguing that the contractor chosen for the flyover, the Hyderabad-based IVRCL, had in fact been awarded the job in February 2009, under the Left Front government.
IVRCL has since become one of the poster children of India's stressed infrastructure industry, blacklisted by various operators including the Indian Railways; so the Left has asked why Banerjee's government didn't change the contractor when IVRCL started to run out of money. And it has correctly pointed out that IVRCL won the tender by being the lowest bidder, in a transparent and open auction process.
These are all pertinent questions, and the police need to investigate any credible accusations of negligence against IVRCL. But there are signs that the election-time debate will ensure that the follow-up to this calamity will become nothing more than political point-scoring and scapegoat-hunting.
It has been reported, for example, that criminal charges against IVRCL are to be upgraded from culpable homicide to actual murder something which, given that very little evidence has as yet been brought to light, sounds like political intervention in the process.
But the possibility remains that IVRCL will not be found to have done anything notably wrong; they may well have followed every protocol, if barely, and it may be impossible to show actual legal wrongdoing, just cut corners. What happens then? Are there still no lessons to learn?
There are indeed. But they aren't comfortable lessons for those of us accustomed to thinking purely in terms of venality and corruption as India's number-one problem. The questions are these: For a project as complex as this, a 2.2-kilometre elevated road through a congested area, with multiple turns and branches, is awarding the tender to the lowest bidder really the best thing to do?
Are the qualifications required of any company for entering the bidding process too easy?
But if such qualifications are made harder depending on the difficulty of the project, does not that allow for the sort of discretion that opens the door to political corruption?
When it comes to safety and competence, should there not in fact be place for discretion?
If the state government had indeed wanted to replace the contractor, would not the anti-corruption crusaders have asked if money changed hands?
There is no difference morally, to my mind, between politicians scoring points amid the rubble and non-politicians who assume that politics and corruption necessarily had something to do with it. Both are twisting a tragedy to their own ends. Scapegoating -- of another party, of the contractor, or of politicians in general -- is exactly the wrong response. It means you search for someone to pillory, rather than ways to fix the problems that were so tragically revealed.
But the worst response would be to declare that this is necessarily a failure of town planning -- the preferred reaction of the 'who-needs-flyovers-anyway' school of thought.
The elevated road project -- partly funded by the Centre under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission -- is a vital part of the longer-term project to decongest and revive north-central Kolkata. This area, the historical heart of the urban Bengali, the home of fabulous buildings and bustling ethnic enclaves, does not deserve to be cut off by traffic and poor connectivity from the rest of the city.
Indeed, Kolkata's infrastructure-building programme, under both the TMC and Left governments, in fact deserves praise. No metropolitan city in this country, bar Delhi, has done so much so quickly for infrastructure in the past decade.
Not all the interventions have worked, as locals will tell you, but the fact remains that the city is no longer the place I grew up in, where the Metro dig was a fixture, moving incredibly slowly up along Chowringhee. Today, work progresses on five of seven planned Metro alignments relatively swiftly; the Japan-financed east-west Metro corridor should be done by the middle of 2018.
Unlike Delhi's Metro, which criminally ignores interchanges with other railway projects and multi-modal transport in general, the different companies running various stretches, have nevertheless agreed on interchanges and a hub at Esplanade. Bengaluru and Mumbai -- the latter home to the only Metro in the world where it rains inside the compartments -- can't quite hold a candle to this big build-out. And it's one that is finally gathering pace, promising to make Kolkata the country's most liveable and vibrant city.
The worst thing that the politics could to in response to this tragedy is to stop the process altogether.
'It is because of the feared domestic backlash that the Modi government is now stepping up pressure on Pakistan to accommodate Indian interests,' says Rajeev Sharma.
Now that Pakistan's Joint Investigation Team has wrapped up its probe into the Pathankot airbase terror attack since it arrived in India on March 27, India-Pakistan bilateral relations move on to the next delicate phase while domestically the Narendra Modi government will be in an uncanny situation of depending on Pakistan to bail it out.
It is because of the feared domestic backlash that the Modi government is now stepping up pressure on Pakistan to accommodate Indian interests just as India had accommodated Pakistani interests by allowing a historic concession to Pakistan to visit the crime scene of a terror attack even though the attack was scripted and choreographed by elements based in Pakistan.
India pushed the envelope on April 1 and formally made clear some of the concrete deliverables it wants from Pakistan in the Pathankot case. Sharad Kumar, Director General, National Investigation Agency, released an exhaustive five paragraph statement on Friday on the Pakistani JIT's visit and made it clear that an Indian team would like to visit Pakistan 'on the basis of reciprocity' as per the mutually agreed terms of reference between the two sides.
The NIA chief's media statement is apparently aimed at countering the Congress allegations.
The relevant quote from the NIA chief's statement is as follows: 'The Pakistan JIT was informed that a team of NIA officials would like to visit Pakistan to carry forward the investigation in the Pathankot attack.'
Significantly, Sharad Kumar's statement underlined the principle of reciprocity and said: 'The interaction with JIT was held in accordance with terms of reference mutually agreed on the basis of reciprocity.'
He also noted that Pakistani JIT assured India of its full cooperation and promised to execute the Letter Rogatory which has been received by them.
The reference to LR is directly aimed at the Congress partys criticism that no Letter Rogatory had been signed between the two sides before the Pakistani JIT's arrival in India.
'What is more shocking is that there is no Letter Rogatory which has been signed between both the countries,' Congress spokesperson R P N Singh said on March 28. 'That means that all the evidence given to Pakistan will have no value once they get back to Pakistan because there is no Letter Rogatory signed.'
On March 30, Congress leader Kapil Sibal launched a scathing attack on the Modi governments Pakistan policy in context of the Pathankot episode. Sibal said it should have been an Indian team visiting Pakistan to probe the Pathankot terror attack and not the other way round.
'The attack was in India,' Sibal said. 'Therefore, in normal course, if Pakistan is cooperating and assuring of action, it should have been the NIA of India and the Indian investigators who should have been allowed to go to Pakistan, given access to the conspirators, given access to interrogate Maulana Masood Azhar and the other three named.'
'Pakistan should have also shared before sending a team or before India accepting team information about the Bahawalpur conspiracy and the details which are available to them,' Sibal added. 'It is ironic that when have people coming here to find out what has happened, who should actually be giving us information how this had happened and why it happened and why it was allowed to happen?'
On April 1, the Congress continued to attack the Modi government for allowing the Pakistani JIT to visit the Pathankot airbase. 'It is indeed strange and contradictory that a senior ISI officer and other state officers are part of the JIT invited to India to investigate Pathankot terror when various anti-India terrorist organisations/individuals of the likes of Maulana Masood Azhar actually flourish with the active patronage of the ISI and other intelligence agencies in Pakistan,' Congress spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi remarked on Friday.
The NIA chief's statement listed other demands that India has made to Pakistan. These include voice samples of some senior Jaish-e-Mohammed office-bearers, DNA sample of the mother of slain terrorist Nasir Hussain, verification of various articles seized from the terrorists including arms and ammunition as mentioned in the Letter Rogatory sent earlier to Pakistan and verification of identities and addresses of the four terrorists that NIA had shared with Pakistan earlier.
It remains to be seen how Pakistan reciprocates. Prime Minister Narendra Modi would do well to always remember the golden words of his predecessor Manmohan Singh in Pakistans context: 'Trust, but verify.'
Rajeev Sharma is an independent journalist and strategic analyst who tweets @Kishkindha
IMAGE: The Pakistani JIT at the NIA headquarters.
King Salman and Narendra Modi will find common ground to intensify cooperation against jihadi terrorism, says Tarun Vijay, MP.
IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted on his arrival in Saudi Arabia by the Governor of Riyadh, Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, April 2, 2016. Photograph: Press Information Bureau
Prime Minister Narendra Modi sharing snacks at L&T's residential complex for its workers in Riyadh has touched a billion hearts. The first Indian prime minister who mingled with the workers, asked their haalchaal (well being), sat with them as a commoner and had a hearty meal.
This prime ministerial gesture must have sent shock waves in the conservative and status conscious citadels of the Saudi royal family. It must have also helped elevate our Indian workers' status in the eyes of the Saudi government which has been frequently charged with ill treating our people.
L&T, by the way, is involved in a $2 billion section on the $600 billion Riyadh metro project.
Modi's visit to Saudi Arabia stands in its own class, is different and significant.
The Saudis have been known in India for various reasons -- child marriages in Hyderabad; insult to Hindus; not allowing images of gods and holy books into their country; ill treatment by employers; and, above all, exporting jihad to our region.
This apart, the 2.8 million plus Indian community in Saudi Arabia is the largest expatriate community in the kingdom and is the 'most preferred community' for their expertise, sense of discipline, law abiding and peace loving nature.
Saudi Arabia is the fourth largest market in the world for Indian exports, the destination of more than 4.11 percent of India's global exports. On the other hand, Saudi Arabia is the source of 6.71 percent of India's global imports.
King Salman and Narendra Modi will find common ground to intensify cooperation against jihadi terrorism.
There is already in place a little known but effective intelligence cooperation that has led to the deportation of several suspected terrorists to India, including Abu Jundal, who is linked to the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai and was sent back to India from Saudi Arabia in June 2012.
ISIS, too, is a common enemy: It has made clear that the Saudi royal family is a prime target.
In a contextual analysis of Modi's Saudi visit (external link), Tanvi Madan, director of The India Project at the Washington, DC think-tank the Brookings Institution, noted: 'The region (remains India's main source of imported oil and natural gas (58 percent of its oil imports and 88 percent of its liquefied natural gas imports in 2014-15 came from the Middle East).'
'In addition, as of January 2015, there were 7.3 million non-resident Indians in the region (64 percent of the total). These non-resident Indians remitted over $36 billion in 2015 (52 percent of the total remittances to India).'
'Add to that India's Sunni and Shiite populations (among the largest in the world), counter-terrorism cooperation with some countries, India's defence relationship with Israel, the desire to connect with Afghanistan and Central Asia through Iran, and the potential market and source of capital it represents for Indian companies, and it becomes clear why this region is important for India.'
These are eye opening facts. The entire Muslim world is today threatened by Islamic extremism. India has a big role to play in this situation and forging a united alliance against terrorism would be our biggest gain.
The United States and Saudi Arabia came together on Thursday, March 31, to sanction Pakistani individuals and terrorist entities, including Lashkar-e-Tayiba, hours ahead of Prime Minister Modi's visit to Riyadh.
Reports say bilateral investment between India and Saudi Arabia is growing steadily. Since 2000, a number of Indian firms have taken advantage of Saudi laws and established joint venture projects or wholly owned subsidiaries in the kingdom.
The Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority issued 426 licenses to Indian companies for joint ventures/100 percent owned entities, bringing investments worth $1.6 billion in Saudi Arabia.
These licenses are for projects in diverse sectors like management and consultancy services, construction projects, telecommunications, information technology, pharmaceuticals, etc. On the other hand, Saudi Arabia is the 50th biggest investor in India with investments from April 2000 to October 2014 amounting to $46.57 million.
Moreover, several Indian companies have established collaborations with Saudi companies and are working in the kingdom in diverse sectors like designing, consultancy, financial services and software development.
According to reports, Tata Motors is exploring the possibility of building its third largest assembly plant for Land Rover vehicles in Saudi Arabia's eastern province. Tata Steel has won an order to supply high-quality rails for a new high speed rail line linking the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. Tata Consultancy Services has established an all female services centre in Riyadh in collaboration with General Electric and Saudi Aramco.
On Sunday, King Salman will receive the prime minister and host a lunch in Modi's honour. Key Saudi ministers and other leaders will be present. Days before Modi's Saudi visit a grand Sufi international conference was held in New Delhi where Modi's speech on Islam was widely appreciated.
This has enhanced Modi's stature in the Islamic world where the fears created by fossilised hate mongers have evaporated with the prime minister's candid and transparent speeches and behaviour.
If we club Modi's Saudi visit with his maiden visit to an Islamic country, the United Arab Emirates -- the first by an Indian PM in 34 years, a country in which over 2 million Indians live and work, and send home an estimated $ 12 billion every year -- the Islamic world has been successfully reached out to by the prime minister and will also have a positive impact on our domestic Muslim population.
Modi's visit to Saudi Arabia has serious implications for the neighbourhood. But we must concentrate on what India gains by such visits. Modi has brought home a better secure and economically stronger future for the three million Indian workers in Saudi Arabia and has also issued a strong message to the perpetrators of Islamic jihad that India under Modi can forge pragmatic alliances to defeat terrorism.
Guess whose heart it gladdens and who would be shocked.
Tarun Vijay, Member of the Rajya Sabha, is a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committees on Defence and External Affairs respectively.
Armed with a Bombay high court order to end gender discrimination at temples, women activists on Saturday made a determined bid to storm the inner sanctum of Shani Shinganapur temple in Maharashtra but were stopped by villagers and later detained by police.
A day after the court ruled that entry to temples was a fundamental right of women and it was the states fundamental duty to protect it, the activists of the Bhumata Ranragini Brigade led by Trupti Desai tried to gain entry into the core area of the popular Shani shrine in Ahmednagar district where women are traditionally banned amid a tense faceoff. It was the second abortive attempt by the activists in two months.
Desai was later put under preventive detention along with 25 other activists by Ahmednagar Police and they were taken away from the shrine and released near Shirur in neighbouring Pune district in the evening. She was taken in her own car, police said.
Police said Desai and others were detained near the shrine in view of angry public sentiments among the locals against her attempted entry to the sacred platform of the temple which is dedicated to Lord Shani.
There was also a possibility of a stampede and law and order situation arising out of the temple entry march, they added.
Upset at her attempt being foiled, Desai said she would file an FIR against Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis if he fails to honour the Bombay high court order facilitating entry of females to places of worship. She also demanded Fadnavis resignation as home minister for failing to honour the HC order.
Vowing to intensify the campaign for gender justice after the tense faceoff, Desai said a police complaint would be also filed against those who prevented the activists from entering the core area of the shrine. She dubbed the police action as a murder of democracy.
The high court while giving its ruling on Friday had also ordered civil and police authorities in the state to implement the provisions of the Maharashtra Hindu Places of Public Worship(Entry Authorisation) Act, 1956 and ensure compliance.
On reaching the temple, Desai and her followers tried to scale the sacred platform but members of the local resistance group and temple officials pushed them away.
The slogan shouting villagers had laid a siege around the sacred area to stop the activists from storming the site.
Police then intervened, took the activists to a spot 100 metres away from the platform and threw a protective ring around them.
A similar attempt by Desai and the activists to defy the ban and gain entry into the shrine was foiled by authorities on January 26.
Image: Bhumata Brigade leader Trupti Desai, who was leading a march towards the Shani Shinganapur temple in Ahmednagar stopped by private security guards from entering the core area of the temple. Photograph: PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi boards Air India One as he leaves for Saudi Arabia, wrapping up his two-day United States visit, on Saturday. Photograph: @MEAIndia/Twitter
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has left for Saudi Arabia after two days of engagement with world leaders during the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, DC.
'My WashingtonDC visit was full of fruitful meetings and interactions. We have discussed an issue of great global importance (sic), Modi said in a tweet before Air India One left Andrews Airforce Base for Saudi Arabia on Saturday.
During his visit, Modi held bilateral meetings with British Prime Minister David Cameron, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe, Swiss President Johann N Schneider-Ammann, Argentinian President Mauricio Macri and New Zealand PM John Key.
The Nuclear Security Summit was attended by leaders from more than 50 countries with heads of states from over 20 nations.
At the summit, Modi also interacted with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev apart from a host of other leaders.
Speaking at the White House dinner hosted by United States President Barack Obama, which kicked off the two-day summit, he underlined the need for maintaining highest level of vigil with regard to nuclear terrorism, and made a veiled attack on Pakistan, saying the greatest risk is from state actors working with nuclear traffickers.
Farewell Washington! After 2 days of intense diplomacy PM @narendramodi leaves for final leg of his three nation tour, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted.
As prime minister, this was Modis third trip to the US and his second visit to Washington, DC.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the second day of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington on Friday. Photograph: MEAphotogallery/Flickr
During the second and final day of the Nuclear Security Summit Modi announced several key initiatives taken by his government in the area of nuclear security and non proliferation, including countering nuclear smuggling and deployment of technology to deter nuclear terrorism.
Informing the world leaders of measures taken by him, Modi said India will continue to accord a high national priority to nuclear security through strong institutional framework, independent regulatory agency and trained and specialised manpower.
The plan includes development and deployment of technology to deter and defend against nuclear terrorism.
These include physical and cyber barriers, technological approaches, setting up a facility for medical grade Moly-99 using low enriched Uranium and using vitrified forms of vulnerable radioisotopes such as Ceasium-137, the national plan says.
India will counter nuclear smuggling and strengthen the national detection architecture for nuclear and radioactive material, he said, adding that a dedicated counter-nuclear smuggling team has been set up.
Further, India will support International Atomic Energy Agencys central role in nuclear security by a further contribution of $1 million (Rs 6 crore) to the nuclear security fund.
A workshop with IAEA experts on International Physical Protection Assessment Service will also be held in India.
India, he said, will join trilateral initiative of Nuclear Security Series chairs circulated at IAEA by subscribing states as the joint statement on strengthening nuclear security implementation.
India will also join three gift baskets for this summit in priority areas of countering nuclear smuggling, nuclear security contact group in Vienna, and sharing of best practices through Centres of Excellence such as India's own, he said.
Finally India will host a meeting of Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism in 2017. An international conference on countering nuclear smuggling is also being planned with Interpol.
The nuclear security architecture in the country has been strengthened and India has also participated in strengthening security architecture at the global level, the national action plan said.
Indias export controls list and guidelines have been harmonized with those of Nuclear Suppliers Group and India looks forward to strengthening its contribution to shared non proliferation objectives through membership of the export controls regimes, it said.
In 2005, India enacted the Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems Act, 2005. This gives effect, inter alia, to India's obligations under the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1540, it said.
India on Friday said that it is disappointed that a technical hold has been put on its application to designate Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar, the mastermind of the Pathankot terror attack, in the United Nations Committee.
"We are disappointed that a technical hold is being put on India's application to designate terror leader Masood Azhar in the UNSC Committee established under UNSC Resolution No 1267, 1989 and 2253," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.
He said that India finds incomprehensible that while the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad was listed in the UNSC for its well known terror activities, the designation of the group's main leader, financier and motivator has been put on technical hold.
"The recent terror attack in Pathankot on January 2 has shown that India continues to bear the dangerous consequences of not listing Azhar," he said.
"Given the global networking of terrorist groups, this has implications for the entire international community," he said. On Thursday, China had requested the UN Committee, which is considering a ban on the JeM chief, to keep on hold the designation.
After the terror attack on the Pathankot airbase on January 2, India in February wrote to the UN calling for immediate action to list Azhar under the Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee.
The submission was armed with strong evidence of the outfit's terror activities and its role in the Pathankot attack that killed seven Indian military personnel. India also told the UN Sanctions Committee that not listing Azhar would expose it and other countries in South Asia to threats from the terror group and its leader.
"It needs no emphasis that the UNSC Resolution 1267 regime is an important building block of the UN Global Counter Terrorism Strategy that should aim to protect all member
states and their citizens from the activities of terror groups like Jaish-e-Mohammad and its leader Azhar," the MEA spokesperson said in a statement.
"Its working methods, based on the principles of unanimity and anonymity, is leading the Committee to adopt a selective approach to combating terrorism. This does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism," he said.
India and Pakistan need to make progress in reducing their nuclear arsenal and develop military doctrines so that they do not "continually move in the wrong direction", US President Barack Obama said on Saturday.
"One of the challenges that we're going to have here is that it is very difficult to see huge reductions in our nuclear arsenal unless the United States and Russia, as the two largest possessors of nuclear weapons, are prepared to lead the way," Obama said.
"The other area where I think we need to see progress is Pakistan and India, that subcontinent, making sure that as they develop military doctrines, that they are not continually moving in the wrong direction," Obama told a press conference at the end of the two-day Nuclear Security Summit in Washington.
"We have to take a look at the Korean Peninsula because North Korea is in a whole different category and poses the most immediate set of concerns for all of us, one that we are working internationally to focus on," the US president said.
Obama said that was one of the reasons he had a trilateral meeting with Japan and Korea, adding that it was a major topic of discussion with his Chinese counterpart as well.
Obama's remarks are seen in the context of growing American uneasiness about the rapidly increasing nuclear arsenal of Pakistan.
Last month US Secretary of State John Kerry had cited the example of America and Russia which are working to further reduce their nuclear arsenal, while urging Pakistan to review its nuclear policy.
Meanwhile, Pakistan has said it has "strong credentials" to become a member of the elite Nuclear Suppliers Group, arguing it has streamlined and strengthened its export control regime.
"Pakistan has strong credentials to become a member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group and other multilateral export control regimes, on non-discriminatory basis," Pakistan's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi told the Nuclear Security Summit.
Over the years, Pakistan has streamlined and strengthened its export control regime and enhanced its engagement with multilateral export control regimes, Fatemi said in a statement.
He was representing his country in the two-day summit in the absence of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who cancelled his US trip in the aftermath of the Lahore terror attack.
Pakistan laid its claim to be a responsible member of the global nuclear community unmindful of the fact that the international community is yet to recover from the dreaded A Q Khan network of nuclear proliferation.
The country has been lobbying hard to become a member of the NSG, the 48-member nuclear club, whose members can trade in and export nuclear technology.
The NSG is a powerful multinational body concerned with reducing nuclear proliferation by controlling the export and re-transfer of materials that may be applicable to nuclear weapons development.
Pakistan has been saying that if it is deprived of the NSG membership while India is accommodated, it would be taken as discrimination and lead to an imbalance in the region. Its National Command Authority has noted with concern India's rapidly expanding conventional military asymmetry and dangerous limited conventional war policy called the 'Cold Start' doctrine.
Fatemi, while describing Pakistan as a responsible nuclear state, also said his country takes nuclear security very seriously and accords it the highest priority in its security construct.
Pakistan, he said, is strongly committed to the objective of nuclear security and has been proactively engaged with the international community to promote nuclear safety and security.
"Our nuclear security paradigm, evolved over the years, is effective and responsive against the entire range of possible threats. Nuclear security regime in Pakistan is dynamic and regularly reviewed and updated," he said.
Asserting that Pakistan believes that safe and sustainable civil nuclear energy is essential to advance its economic development plans, Fatemi said his country's Energy Security Plan includes a Nuclear Power Programme 2050, to meet current energy shortfalls and future requirements of a growing population and economy.
"Towards this end, we envisage generation of nuclear energy of 40,000 MW.
"To realise this plan, Pakistan seeks international civil nuclear cooperation," he said.
Fatemi said Pakistan has an elaborate programme for harnessing peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
"We operate power plants, research reactors, agriculture and biotechnology research centres, medical centres, and also employ industrial applications of nuclear technology," he said adding that Pakistan is proud to have more than 42 years' experience in safe and secure operations of nuclear power plants under the International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards.
The statement claimed that as a country with advanced nuclear fuel cycle capability, Pakistan is in a position to provide nuclear fuel cycle services under the IAEA safeguards, and to participate in any non-discriminatory nuclear fuel cycle assurance mechanisms.
Image: US President Barack Obama holds a press conference at the conclusion of Nuclear Security Summit. Photograph: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
'Islam has nothing to do with terrorism or terror acts.'
M I Khan reports from Patna.
The imam of the Kaaba in Mecca, Islam's holiest shrine, has denounced terrorism in the name of Islam and says there is no place for violence in the religion.
"Islam is against violence and terror. Islam has nothing to do with terrorism or terror acts," Sheikh Saleh bin Mohammed bin Ibrahim Aal Talib told a news conference in Patna, Saturday, April 2.
"Islam is what the Quran and Prophet Mohammed stand for, it is not what the terrorists claim," he said.
Without naming terrorism unleashed by Islamic State, Al Qaeda and other terror organisations, Sheikh Saleh said Islam was against the killing of innocent people and creating terror.
"These days some terror outfits have been killing innocent people and using suicide bombers. It is wrong. It has nothing to do with the teachings and preaching of Islam," the cleric said.
Killing of innocent people and the use of suicide bombers to kill people are haraam (forbidden) in Islam, he said.
"What happened in Brussels and other places, where innocent people were killed, Islam has nothing to do with it," he said.
Muslims were the main victims of terrorism, Sheikh Saleh said, stressing the need for peace and harmony across the world.
"A large number of Muslims in Muslim countries have been killed. Islam is a religion that guarantees security of life. Islam stands to protect five things including human life irrespective of region and religions across the world," he added.
Some people have been trying to defame Islam, he said.
"Forcing someone in the name of religion is not permissible in Islam. One cannot convert others to Islam or Muslims to other religion by force," he said.
Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Saleh said, is working to end terrorism, adding that the kingdom had faced terrorism for the last 20 years.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Muslim ulema in India have denounced terrorism in the name of Islam, Sheikh Saleh said.
"There is no religion of terrorism or terrorists."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed by Governor of Riyadh Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz after his arrival in the Saudi capital on Saturday. Photograph: @MEAIndia/ Twitter
Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh on Saturday on his maiden two-day visit to the oil-rich Saudi kingdom as both countries are set to firm up a raft of pacts to bolster their strategic partnership besides exploring ways to enhance security and counter-terror cooperation.
Combating threat of terrorism and radicalisation are expected to figure high on the agenda of the talks between Modi and the leadership of Saudi Arabia, a country known as spiritual home of Islam which recently has formed a major coalition of 34 Muslim nations to fight terror, particularly the Islamic State.
India's ties with Saudi Arabia, one of the worlds leading oil producers, have been on an upswing over the last two decades based on burgeoning energy ties and both countries may look to move beyond buyer-seller relationship in the sector and go for joint ventures and investment in refineries and oil fields.
In this context, Modi may seek deeper involvement of Indian companies in upstream and downstream oil and gas sector projects in the Gulf nation whose economy has been hit due to falling crude prices, cut in oil exports and slowing down of domestic consumption.
The prime minister will hold extensive talks with King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud on range of bilateral issues on Sunday following which both sides will sign a number of memoranda of understanding.
Separately, he will also meet Crown Prince and Interior Minister Mohammed bin Naif and Deputy Crown Prince and Defence Minister Mohammed bin Salman.
The prime minister arrived in Riyadh from Washinton on the final leg of his three-nation tour that began on March 30 with a visit to Brussels.
Security and counter-terror cooperation between India and Saudi had gotten a boost after then prime minister Manmohan Singhs visit here six years ago during which both countries had elevated their ties to the strategic partnership level.
The security cooperation has been improving since then.
Saudi Arabia has close ties with Islamabad and the India may raise the issue of Pakistan-based terror groups carrying out attacks on it. Modi had visited United Arab Emirates, another close ally of Pakistan, in August and both sides, in a joint statement, had called on all states to abandon use of terror against other countries which was seen as a message to Islamabad.
Modi and his delegation are staying at the majestic KingSaudGuestPalace at the heart of the city.
He is the fourth Indian Prime Minister to visit Saudi Arabia after Manmohan Singh in 2010, Indira Gandhi in 1982 and Jawaharlal Nehru in 1956.
Modis visit here comes amid the current turmoil in West Asia and the issue is likely to figure prominently in the deliberations he will have with Saudi leadership.
There are over 2.96 million Indian nationals working in Saudi Arabia, the largest expatriate community in the country, and Modi is expected to raise issues concerning them during his talks with the king.
Modis engagements include meeting top chief executive officers of major Saudi companies, visit the famous Masmak fort, interaction with the Indian community and visit to a Tata Consultancy centre which had trained over 1,000 Saudi women.
Saudi Arabia plans to invest $1 trillion (about Rs 65 lakh crore) in infrastructure development over the next five years and Modi is likely to pitch for participation of Indian companies in the projects.
Congress vice president says his visit is not political. Death toll mounts to 26.
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi during his visit to under construction flyover which collapsed recently at Vivekananda Road, in Kolkata on Saturday. Photograph: PTI Photo
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday visited the spot of the flyover collapse in Kolkata as the death toll in the tragedy mounted to 26 with one more body being recovered from the rubble.
Rahul said he had come to extend support to the victims and did not want to politicise the issue.
Later, he met the injured people in the CalcuttaMedicalCollege and Hospital.
There has been a tragedy here. I have come here to give them whatever little support I can provide, Rahul said after meeting the injured in the hospital.
When asked to comment on the allegations of lapses in the construction of the flyover, Rahul said, I have come here to meet the injured. Ill not talk about politics.
Rahul, accompanied by state Congress President Adhir Chowdhury and party leader Deepa Dasmunsi, earlier talked to the National Disaster Response Force officials at the accident site.
An under-construction flyover collapsed in the city on Thursday.
Police had on Friday arrested three top officials of the Hyderabad based construction company which was building the flyover and slapped murder charges on them. PTI PNT PR
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday took a swipe at Rahul over his visit to the site of the flyover collapse, calling it a photo-op which is the lifeline of the politics of the Congress vice president.
The party also asked him to explain his stand on the award of contract for building the flyover to an alleged blacklisted firm by the then Communist Party of India-Marxist government in West Bengal, questioning if the alliance between Congress and the Left there is based on the foundation of corruption.
Rahul Gandhi is known for photo-ops. That is his politics. His political lifeline is photo-op, BJP national secretary and West Bengal co-incharge Sidharth Nath Singh said reacting to the visit.
He also claimed that the BJP took a conscious decision that its Union ministers, who were in the state for electioneering, would not go to the spot so as to avoid hampering rescue operation and drew a comparison with demonstration by Congress workers there that, he alleged, hindered rescue work.
Singh said Rahul must answer if Congress exhibited responsibility with its demonstration on the spot on Friday.
On the other hand there were two senior ministers on the day setugate happened, he said, adding that Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh monitored help by the NDRF and Army team. Another Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi was in Kolkata but did not go to the site of rescue operation.
A special Central Bureau of Investigation court on Saturday relaxed bail conditions of retired Indian Police Services officer D G Vanzara, a key accused in the alleged fake encounter case of Ishrat Jahan, by allowing him to enter and stay in Gujarat.
A court of special judge S J Raje on Saturday allowed his bail modification plea to enter and stay in Gujarat, but on the condition that he will mark his presence in the court on every Saturday.
Vanzara was granted bail in the encounter case involving Jahan and three others in February last year on condition that he will not enter Gujarat.
He was also barred from leaving the country.
The former officer had applied for bail modification last month after Lashkar-e-Tayyaba terrorist David Headley in his deposition before a Mumbai court revealed that Jahan was a LeT operative.
Vanzara served as deputy commissioner of police in the city crime branch when a Mumbra-based college girl Ishrat, Javed Shaikh alias Pranesh Pillai, Amjadali Akbarali Rana and Zeeshan Johar were killed in an encounter with Gujarat Police on the outskirts of the city on June 15, 2004.
He was also made accused by the CBI in fake encounter cases of Soharabuddin Sheikh and Tulsi Prajapati as it was during his stint as head of state Anti-Terrorism Squad that those encounters took place.
He was arrested on April 24, 2007, by Crime Investigation Department in connection with the 2005 Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case, and was behind bars before being granted bail.
In September, 2014, a Mumbai court granted him bail in the Soharabuddin Sheikh and Tulsi Prajapati alleged fake encounter cases.
Leland Harden saw what he considered the future of education when he applied for a job.
"I was applying for a job with College Plus that I eventually didn't get," said Harden, the chief operating officer of SpeedyPrep, an Abilene company that offers students the material to prepare for College Leveling Examination Program tests. "I saw this program called SpeedyPrep and I thought, 'This is way cool.' I told them, 'This is your gold mine.' "
Harden didn't get the job, but earlier this year, he contacted Jeff Rogers, the CEO of Mid America Learning and a trustee of the Wylie school board, and told him about a program he saw that helped students prepare for CLEP tests. It turned out it was exactly what Rogers was looking for. Harden and Rogers got some other investors and purchased SpeedyPrep from College Plus.
"It (SpeedyPrep) was succeeding in spite of them (College Plus)," said Harden. "And they would tell you that. It didn't fit their focus because they deal mainly with home-school students."
CLEP is a program of The College Board and its tests allow students to test out of college courses if they are able to pass the test. SpeedyPrep offers programs in 25 of the 34 CLEP tests and will ask students a question seven times, in various ways, to help ensure the student learns the material that will be on the test. The program also has 3,200 instructional videos to help students grasp difficult concepts.
Once a student achieves 90 percent mastery of the material, he or she is ready to take the test. CLEP tests are accepted by 2,900 colleges and universities in the U.S. and Rogers said they are accepted by universities that may not accept college credits from other schools.
The potential savings to students, and their parents, is significant.
"The average cost of a college hour is more than $300," said Rogers. And it can be higher, even locally.
As Harden said, "the cost of education is at a pain point."
The cost of SpeedyPrep is $19.95 a month and the cost of a CLEP test is $80.
"Let's say it takes a student a couple of months to prepare for a test," said Rogers. "The test is $80. That's $120, compared to a couple of thousand or more for a college course."
Rogers said that if a student uses SpeedyPrep and doesn't pass the CLEP, his or her money is returned. He said the program's success rate is more than 98 percent.
"It's the best kept secret in education," he said.
SpeedyPrep is self-paced and questions are presented as fill-in the blanks, rather than the multiple choice format of CLEP tests.
"It teaches you in a difficult form to prepare you for a test that will be given in an easier format," Rogers said.
The program accomplishes the same end as do dual credit courses in high school, but Rogers said the program has two advantages. One is that students don't have to spend an entire semester in a course, meaning they can pick up more college credit while they're in school. The other is that high schools are limited in the number of dual credit courses they can offer. Still, Rogers said that SpeedyPrep complements, rather than competes with, dual credit courses.
"This augments dual credit," he said.
Harden and Rogers have made a presentation of SpeedyPrep to the Region 14 Education Service Center in Abilene, which services most of the school districts in the Big Country. They hope to be able to pitch the program to the other 19 ESCs in the state.
However, high school students aren't the only audience for the program. Rogers said that members of the military can use the program even when they're deployed and that nontraditional college students, those who attend college years after they've graduated from high school, are using the program.
Harden said the validity of the programs is confirmed in letters he receives from customers, or the parents of customers, who have used SpeedyPrep.
"It's cool to get letters from people thanking you because you saved them thousands of dollars," he said.
Halloween events, fall festivals pack October in Abilene, Big Country
From family-friendly to frightful, there are plenty of opportunities to don the costumes and scare up some treats.
Community baby shower
A communitywide baby shower will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. today at the Alliance for Women and Children, 1350 N. 10th St. The shower benefits the Baby Room at St. Mark's Episcopal Church. The Baby Room works through the Basic Needs Network of West Central Texas to provide free baby goods to people in need. Items requested for the shower include diapers and wipes and new or gently used walkers, car seats, high chairs, strollers, etc. The shower is come-and-go. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call Peggy Valentine, 325-829-3425.
St. Luke Orthodox Christian Church
St. Luke Orthodox Christian Church, 501 Sunset Drive, will hold the following services this week:
Great Vespers at 5:30 p.m. today.
Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great with adoration of the Holy Cross at 10 a.m. Sunday.
Divine Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Little Compline with the Akathist Hymn to the Theotokos at 6 p.m. Friday.
Great Vespers at 5:30 p.m. April 9.
Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great with Commemoration of St. John Climacus at 10 a.m. April 10.
Visitors are welcome at all services.
St. John's Sunday
The Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest, 602 Meander St., will have a special recognition and appreciation of St. John's Episcopal School at the 10:30 a.m. worship service on Sunday. Children will participate in the worship and there will be a special appreciation of all the teachers at St. John's. Following the service there will be a party on the church's new playground.
Unitarian Universalists
The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Abilene, 1541 Sayles Blvd., welcomes people of all religions and non-religions to learn about the use of micro-aggressions, the 'New Face of Racism,' at 11 a.m. Sunday. For more information visit uuabilene.org.
Send news of your religious organization or group to Religion Editor, Abilene Reporter-News, P.O. Box 30, Abilene, Texas 79604; fax it to 325-670-5242; or email it to jan.woodward@reporternews.com. Deadline is noon Monday.
Around O.H. Ivie, 'come a rain' and worries will dry up
O.H. IVIE RESERVOIR This lake may be down, but it's not out.
The O.H. Ivie Reservoir is split between Concho, Coleman and Runnels counties and opened in 1990. It was named after the water district's general manager.
Since then it has successfully served as a water supply and a recreational hub, particularly fishing. Like other Texas lakes, Ivie would deplete during drought, and then refill when the rains eventually returned.
Last year saw many lakes across the state and in the Big Country fill up thanks to a wet spring and fall. But Ivie seems to have missed out on that bonanza so far, currently sitting at 12.3 percent full. What little rain is has caught has only allowed it to tread water.
Lynn Owens, the owner of Big O's Restaurant in Valera showed me around the lake last week so I could get an idea of just how low it's gotten. Big O's place is around 17 miles from the lake at the intersection of State Highway 503 and U.S. 67. He gets a mix of sportsmen and locals, as well as travelers shuttling to and from West Texas oil fields.
Most years he could count on seeing increased traffic from Ivie's professional bass fishing tournaments during the spring and fall.
"Well, we're not getting the big tournaments that we usually get," he said. "There's not as many people coming to the lake because they think it's real low."
It's difficult to quantify how much the lake has affected his business, his location and Coleman County's overall reputation attracting outdoors activities mitigates a lot of the impact. There are still evenings when it's hard to get a seat inside.
Closer to the lake, on the other hand, it gets a little more complicated.
Jerry Hunter's family has had their store at Elm Creek Village on the lake's east side since 1991.
"It wasn't full when we moved down here, but it filled up the winter of '91 and the spring of '92," he said. "It stayed in pretty good shape until the early 2000s and then it started dropping."
Photographs of exuberant fishermen and their prizes hang framed on a pegboard wall.
"Normally during the week we might see three or four boats a day. Then on the weekends we'll see from 30-60 depending on how big the bass tournaments and how nice the weather is," he said.
That keeps them going, but it's a far cry from even just a few years ago.
"In 2010, '11, and '12 when all those pictures were made?" he asked, gesturing toward the wall. "Man, it was people every day. It was just solid people."
He has 30 motel rooms behind the store and said each one was typically booked from the middle of February through December.
"But yeah, it's steadily gone down. Until we get some water, it's going to keep doing it," he said.
He said they have to close the grill during the week at 3 o'clock because nobody is around. Hunter has a small crew so he hasn't let anyone go, but they have reduced hours until things change.
Kenneth Morris has guided fishermen on the lake since it opened. We met along the overgrown Concho River channel, an area in years past that otherwise would have been underwater.
He has seen Ivie lower, but not by much. A diminished lake makes the fishing tougher, but not for the reasons you'd believe.
"Everybody thinks it concentrates the fish but it doesn't. It concentrates the bait fish, and therefore the fish have all the food they want," he said. "There's not enough cover in there for all those bait fish to stay hidden."
But as low as it is, Morris says there's still big catches here.
"Everybody is under the impression that this is a mudhole. There's a lot of water here, I can still show you 70 feet of water up on the main lake," he said. "It's not a bad place to fish, it's just a lot tougher than it used to be."
Rainfall in the right spot would cure that.
"When it rains right directly over the lake two inches, you get a two-inch rise," Morris said. "But if it rains two inches just west of us, we might get a four or five-inch rise. That's where we get our rises, from our watershed."
Hunter said that ideally the rain needs to fall from Paint Rock to Winters for it to do Ivie any good.
"From that highway right out there, that y'all came in on?" he said, waving at Highway 503. "If it rains on the other side of that, if it got 20 inches right there, this lake wouldn't get a drop. I mean, that's just the way it is."
Too many "sipping straws" in the glass might be keeping the lake down too, but not necessarily from municipalities. There's a lot of salt cedar growing in the lake.
A large tree can absorb 200 gallons a day. There are some large trees around the lake but there are zillions of small, feathery ones growing in the bed.
"The problem is if you poison the salt cedar, whatever you put in it eventually ends up in this water, and that's our drinking water," Morris said. Fire and bulldozing might beat it down, but the nonnative plant has a habit of coming back twice as thick.
El Nino might still be the answer to their problems, but they're still waiting.
"El Nino has done boo-boo," Hunter said. "If we got ten inches over there right now, we could probably put ten feet of water in here.
"But it's got to come in a day. We got three inches last week, it came over three days. That don't get it, we need to get that ten inches in a day."
Until then, he and Morris share the same strategy; just keep on keepin' on.
"It's just one of them deals," Hunter said, laughing. "It's part of being in the lake business."
(Via GoSanAngelo.com)
SAN ANGELO - San Angelo police have arrested seven youths in the aftermath of a March 26 shooting that left two teens dead.
Eric Ramos and Giliberto Salvador Reyes, both 18, Fred Angel Garcia, 17, and four male juveniles were arrested and charged with murder, according to a news release from the San Angelo Police Department.
Ramos was booked into the Tom Green County Jail at 8:37 p.m. Thursday. Garcia was booked at 1:44 a.m. and Reyes at 3:28 a.m. Friday. No bond is set for the teens.
The juveniles were also charged with murder Thursday and were being held at the Tom Green County Juvenile Justice Center, according to the release.
The arrests were made following an investigation by SAPDs Criminal Investigations Division into the deaths of Zane Lopez, 16, and Juan Guerrero, 17.
Lopez, who had been in critical condition in the intensive care unit at Shannon Medical Center, died of his injuries Thursday, the release stated.
Medical personnel pronounced him dead about 9:32 p.m. Thursday. His body has been taken to Lubbock for autopsy Friday morning, the release stated.
Officers were dispatched to the 1100 block of East 22nd Street at 9:46 p.m. March 26 in response to a report of a shooting, according to the release.
Police found two teens suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. Juan Guerrero, 17, was pronounced dead at the scene, and Lopez was taken to the hospital, according to SAPD.
Police obtained statements and forensic evidence that resulted in the arrest and charges for Ramos, Garcia, Reyes and the four juveniles, according to the release.
The investigation is ongoing and no further information is available for release, the release stated.
Ramos and Garcia did not have any other arrests listed in Tom Green County Jail records. Reyes was arrested Jan. 25, charged with unlawful carrying of a weapon, possession of marijuana less than 2 ounces and failure to satisfy court agreements.
Garcia is enrolled at Central High School, said Jamie Highsmith, public information officer for San Angelo Independent School District.
The two boys killed in the shooting withdrew from SAISD this school year, one in the fall and the other in spring, Highsmith said.
SAISD is bringing in extra counselors for students, she said.
Members of the SAPD Criminal Investigation Division, Special Operations Section, Narcotics and CSI are conducting an investigation, and Detective C Kolbe is the lead investigator.
Details about funeral services for Lopez and Guerrero were not available Friday.
---
The San Angelo Police Department released the following:
"Seven suspects have been charged in connection to last weeks fatal shooting that left two San Angelo teens dead.
On Thursday, March 31, 2016, 18-year-old Eric Ramos was booked into the Tom Green County Jail, charged with Murder in connection to the homicides of 17-year-old Juan Guerrero and 16-year-old Zane Lopez that occurred last Saturday evening. Two additional adult males, 17-year-old Fred Angel Garcia and 18-year-old Giliberto Reyes were taken into custody and booked early this morning; both men have been charged with Murder. In addition to the arrested adults, four male juvenile suspects have been apprehended and charged with the murders. The juveniles were taken into custody on Thursday and were booked into the Tom Green County Juvenile Justice Center. Their names are not being released.
These arrests came as a result of an investigation that began on Saturday, March 26, 2016, at 9:46 p.m., when Officers responded to the report of a shooting in the 1100 block of E. 22nd Street.
Officers and medical personnel arrived and located Guerrero and Lopez suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. Guerrero was pronounced dead at the scene and Lopez was transported to Shannon Medical Center for treatment. Lopez later succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead by medical staff around 9:32 p.m. last night. Lopezs body was transported to Lubbock this morning for autopsy.
Members of the San Angelo Police Departments Criminal Investigations Division has continued to work tirelessly since the fatal shootings of Guerrero and Lopez, obtaining statements and forensic evidence which resulted in the probable cause to arrest Ramos, Garcia, Reyes, and the four juveniles for the charge of Murder.
This investigation is still ongoing and no further information is available for release at this time."
Hardin-Simmons University has decided to opt out of allowing concealed handguns on campus, according to a university news release Friday.
The school's board of trustees voted Thursday to not allow the handguns, which were made legal on all college campuses with Texas Senate Bill 11, passed in 2015. But the law allows private colleges and universities, like Hardin-Simmons, the ability to opt out of the mandate after consulting with students, faculty and staff about the option.
"The University has decided to opt-out in a way that is consistent with our current system of operation," said Dave Rozeboom, vice president for student life. "We're going to operate as we have been."
Senate Bill 11 goes into effect for public universities like Texas Tech and the University of Texas in August 2016, while public colleges and technical schools like Cisco College and Texas State Technical College have until August 2017 to comply.
Hardin-Simmons said more than 25 other private universities have opted out of the concealed handgun law.
An Albany city councilman who was indicted on two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child, will remain in his elected position until the legal process plays out, said Mayor Rodney Alexander in a news release.
A Shackelford County grand jury indicted Kidd Thomas Waddell, 40, on a charge of sexually assaulting a child younger than 14.
Waddell turned himself in to the Taylor County Sheriff's Office on Thursday and was booked into the county jail. He was released the same day after posting a $150,000 bail, according to online jail records.
'This is obviously a very serious legal matter that Mr. Waddell is facing,' the mayor said. 'Because Mr. Waddell is innocent until proven guilty, at this time, the Albany City Council does not anticipate taking any action regarding this indictment and will let the legal process run its course.'
Twitter: BrookeCrum_ARN
Dyess Air Force Base will not receive a state grant to fund security upgrades at the base Visitors Control Center, the Office of the Governor announced Friday.
The city of Abilene had requested $1.75 million for the improvements at the Dyess entrance gate from the Texas Military Preparedness Commission, which oversees the Defense Economic Adjustment Assistance Grant program. The program aids defense communities that may be affected by a future congressional Base Realignment and Closure round, according to a news release.
The Development Corporation of Abilene agreed in February to contribute $200,000 to match the grant, which required 20 percent in matching funds, or $350,000 in this case. The remaining $150,000 came from in-kind, or non-monetary, contributions from the federal government.
Because the city did not receive the grant, the DCOA will hang onto its money, said Kent Sharp, DCOA CEO.
If another round of grants becomes available, the city would have to request the money again, he said.
Brian Yates, vice president of the Abilene Chamber of Commerce Military Affairs Committee, said it was a disappointment that the city did not receive the grant but that it would continue to look for opportunities to help the base. Eventually, the upgrades will be made, he said. The grant was a chance to make the changes sooner.
Yates helped the city apply for the grant and presented the item to the DCOA in February.
The upgrades were intended to help the base during the Base Realignment and Closure process, which evaluates military facilities. The ratings from that process impact which bases remain open.
The Office of the Governor awarded $15 million in grants Friday to these entities:
Bexar County, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph $4.71 million
City of Killeen, Fort Hood $3.47 million
City of Del Rio, Laughlin Air Base $3.3 million
Tom Green County, Goodfellow Air Force Base $2.04 million
City of El Paso, Fort Bliss $2 million
A "precious gem" now resides at the Abilene Zoo, and "Kito" is his name.
The former is the literal Swahili meaning of the name picked by voters for the zoo's baby giraffe, the zoo said in a news release Friday. The name was selected by a wide margin, the zoo said.
The young male giraffe came to the zoo at the end of January from the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, where he was born Dec. 27. Zoo staff has been bottle-feeding Kito, while one of the females in the herd has been "aunting" the calf.
Zoo visitors already have seen Kito running around the giraffes' new exhibit space as the animals become accustomed to the grounds and learn to be hand-fed from zoo-goers atop the Giraffe Safari feeding deck, the zoo said.
Giraffe Safari, a multispecies exhibit, will open April 23.
Seven-year-old Parker Miller-Ienatsch, of Odessa, won the naming contest for Kito and will get to meet the giraffe this weekend as his prize. The child's name was drawn from all of the ballots submitted for the winning name.
Members of the Texas Silver-Haired Legislature will travel to Austin on Sunday through Thursday to narrow down a list of top issues of interest to seniors that subsequently will be presented to legislators and other governmental officials.
The Silver-Haired Legislature's goal is to work for passage in the regular Texas Legislature of resolutions adopted by the group.
"When we get to Austin, we'll be meeting at the Capitol in the House chambers for four days," said Walter Graham, of Cisco, who currently is serving as speaker for the organization.
The group will consider 85 resolutions this session, said Graham, who has been involved with the group for 12 years and for 29 years was head of the city of Abilene's senior services division.
Some of those resolutions came from an intergenerational town hall meeting at Abilene Christian University in February, he said.
Each of the resolutions has been assigned to one of nine legislative issues committees, Graham said. As the weekend wears on, a list of priority resolutions ultimately will be created, he said.
Nancy Byler, of Brownwood, said education always is a recurring topic because many members are retired teachers or educators.
Other common areas include health care, food for the elderly, and transportation, especially in rural Texas.
"Many (seniors) have to leave home at 6 a.m. if they ride the Rural Rides, and they may not get home until 6 p.m. even though their (doctor's) appointment is at 9 a.m. or 10 a.m.," she said. "They have to sit and wait until the transportation can take them home."
C. Bruce Davis, of Abilene, currently in charge of the group's communications committee, said expanding and preserving the rights of seniors is an important priority.
"We're in a budget era this year in which tax funds are dwindling due to reductions in the oil industry," he said. "Any time we have a reduction of funds like that on the state level, senior issues are at risk. So a lot of what we're going to do is try to protect some of the advances that we have."
Davis said a personal background in housing colors much of his work.
"There are some things I think we can do to make affordable housing through the Texas Department of Housing and (Community) Affairs," he said, specifically through tax credits.
"There's some tweaking of their points system that needs to be done to encourage more senior housing and more senior housing that has some services attached to it," Davis said. "Most of their housing is simply apartments for seniors."
But what many seniors need to keep their independence, instead of going into nursing care or assisted living, are things such as housekeeping assistance, laundry assistance or perhaps a minor food service for which they would pay extra, he said.
Those types of things are many times not available in those tax credit housing projects that are just apartments for the elderly," Davis said.
With the increases in the cost of food, many home meal delivery programs are in a bind, he said. So Davis said he plans to encourage through a resolution more state funding for home-delivered meals, something he sees as the "best nursing home prevention program that we have in the state of Texas."
Those seniors may not see anyone else during the week, so such programs ensure that someone is looking in on them and help many stay independent, Davis said.
Another important resolution one frequently passed by the group is an attempt to increase the allowances Medicaid patients receive while in nursing homes.
Basic Medicaid rules for nursing home residents say that they must pay all of their income, minus a few deductions, to their nursing home facility. Those deductions include a $60 per month personal allowance.
"We're hoping to get that up to $75," Davis said, noting that "during the last budget crisis," the amount was knocked down to $45 a month.
That total represents "everything they (can) spend, from gifts to grandchildren to extras such as pajamas, robes or slippers," he said.
Especially at lower levels, even a soda and a candy bar become a major expense.
"That's probably going to be one of our top 10 bills," he said.
After the wider list of resolutions is narrowed, those considered most vital will be bound into book form, Davis said, which then will be taken "personally to each legislator each House member, each Senate member, to the governor, to the lieutenant governor, all the offices of state government."
"And (then) we will start working on getting those things passed," he said.
Six women who have achieved high levels of success and six who are on their way will be honored Monday by the Abilene Chapter of the American Association of University Women.
The seventh annual Women of Outstanding Achievement/Women of Promise & Courage luncheon will be held at the Hunter Welcome Center on the campus of Abilene Christian University. Ticket deadline has passed and no tickets will be sold at the door.
More than 300 guests are expected, said Courtney Vletas, event chair. Being named a Woman of Outstanding Achievement is an honor that is cherished by the recipients, Vletas said.
"Often, they are just so honored and humbled and surprised," she said.
This year's honorees include a business owner, four executives and one retired executive.
Six Women of Promise & Courage also will be honored at the luncheon and each will receive a $2,500 scholarship, made possible by gifts from foundations and businesses. All the women are enrolled in either an undergraduate or a graduate program.
WOMEN OF OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT HONOREES
CATHY ASHBY is the president and chief executive officer of United Way Abilene. The leadership she provides to both the United Way and its nonprofit agencies is focused on helping those who struggle and on giving back to the Abilene community. Before working at United Way, Ashby had a long career with the Abilene Independent School District as a teacher and administrator.
LYNN BARNETT is the executive director of the Abilene Cultural Affairs Council. Her years-long dedication to community availability of visual arts is evident in the downtown sculptures, Paramount Theater restoration, the National Center for Children's Literature, Children's Art and Literacy Festival and the Center for Contemporary Arts. In 2004, she was honored with the Selina Roberts Ottum Award from the Americans for the Arts Convention for her significant contributions to the local community.
MYRA DEAN is the director of development for Global Samaritan Resources and she has served the community in numerous capacities. In 1993, she was Volunteer of the Year for KACU-FM, Abilene Public Radio. She received the "Pathfinder Award: Pioneering Women of Taylor County" for "volunteerism" in 1995 and the "Hats Off" Award from the Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau as "top volunteer" in 2009. Before moving to Abilene, Dean served on Saipan, in the Northern Mariana Islands as Liaison Secretary for the Attorney General of the Trust Territories of the Pacific Islands.
PAT EVANS was executive vice president of the Big Country Medical Society for 48 years and executive director of the 17th District Dental Society. She also has served as a lay member of the State Bar Grievance Committee, president of the Abilene Zoological Society, secretary of the Grover Nelson Park Zoological Foundation and has been active in the Walk to Emmaus Movement and women's prison ministry.
SHIRLEY GOSSARD has served as both site coordinator and executive director of the Christian Women's Job Corps of Abilene, whose mission is to equip, empower and encourage women to find stability in life and employment through Christ. Under her leadership, with the help of an army of volunteers, the Abilene program was organized and continues expanding. She serves as a national trainer for Christian women's and men's job corps.
YANELL RIEDER, owner of Casa Authentique, has a long history of business expertise, contributions to the community and encouraging young women to pursue their dreams by example. She is a model for girls and women who are willing to work hard and "risk" success in the business world. Rieder opened her first retail store, Village Shoes, in 1986. She is an entrepreneur who believes in her ability to succeed and who has generously given her material support, energy, time and influence to help many non-profit and civic groups in Abilene.
WOMEN OF PROMISE AND COURAGE SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS
BRITTNEY RICE is in the master's program in marriage and family therapy at Abilene Christian University. Her first psychology course in college led her to want to help people change from the inside out, resulting in her undergraduate major of psychology and, ultimately, her graduate program.
VERONICA ESCALONA is studying public health at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center to expand her knowledge and prepare herself for her career goal and set a standard for her family to continue post-secondary education. She has a personal interest in ministering to those around her and is the first person in her family to earn a college degree.
SANIDA TONCHE, RN, is in the family nurse practitioner program at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and plans to practice in a rural or underserved area following graduation. She started out as a nurse's aide and has worked her way through the levels of nursing, learning new skills at each level. She is the first person in her family to complete college.
RANDA TINER is in the graduate program in school psychology at Abilene Christian University, a program to which she was drawn due to her own background. As a student with special needs throughout her educational career, schoolwork was extremely difficult, yet she learned to persevere and study harder to make it to the honor roll.
CHERYL JACKSON is in the graduate program in family studies and psychology at Abilene Christian University. Her major objective in returning to school is to help those with various addictions. She volunteers at nursing homes by taking her dog to cheer up residents as well as at Serenity House to help others overcome adversities in life similar to the ones she has overcome.
BROOKE GUSTAFSON, who is studying nursing at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, served as a linguist in the Navy. Being a nurse will fulfill many of her life goals, including teaching her children that anything is possible. Her ultimate goal is to continue her education to become a nurse practitioner and to encourage and support others who have experienced obstacles to achieving their educational goals.
Afghan officials say 11 mine clearers have been kidnapped by gunmen in the west of the country.
Police in Herat Province said on April 2 that all 11 were Afghans employed by the HALO Trust mine-clearing organization and that they had been abducted on April 1.
A military operation has been launched in the area to secure their release. Six suspects have been detained, police said.
Local tribal leaders had earlier tried to negotiate the deminers release.
Abduction for ransom is widespread in Afghanistan, and deminers are easy targets as they usually work in remote regions.
After almost 40 years of war, Afghanistan is one of the most heavily mined countries in the world.
Based on reporting by AP
KYIV -- Ukrainian officials said vile Russian missile strikes on civilian energy sites have caused power outages nationwide, leaving more than a million households without electricity, while Russian authorities ordered residents to leave Kherson "immediately" ahead of an expected effort by Kyivs forces to retake the crucial southern city.
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.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Telegram on October 22 that Russia carried out a "massive attack" on Ukraine overnight and that "the aggressor continues to terrorize our country."
"At night, the enemy launched a massive attack: 36 rockets, most of which were shot down...These are vile strikes on critical objects. Typical tactics of terrorists," he wrote. "The world can and must stop this terror."
Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of Zelenskiys office, said Ukrainian air defense forces had shot down 18 of the missiles.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said a number of missiles had been shot down on the approach to the capital.
"Several rockets flying toward Kyiv were shot down in the region by air defense forces. Thanks to our defenders!" Klitschko said.
There was no immediate word on deaths related to the missile attacks, but officials said several people had been injured.
It was not possible to verify the reports on either side.
In the face of continued Russian strikes, Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba again urged Ukraine's Western allies to speed up the delivery of modern air defense systems.
"We intercepted some, others hit the targets. Air defense saves lives. In [Western] capitals, there should not be a single minute of delay in the decision regarding air defense systems for Ukraine," Kuleba said.
Local officials said power stations were hit in the regions of Odesa, Kirovohrad, and Lutsk, while other regions reported problems with electricity.
"Another rocket attack from terrorists who are fighting against civilian infrastructure and people," the Ukrainian president's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, wrote on the Telegram app.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told a government meeting that from October 10 to October 20, Russian strikes damaged more than 400 facilities in 16 regions of Ukraine, including dozens of energy facilities.
"The Russian Army has identified our energy sector as one of the key targets for its attacks," Shmyhal said on October 21.
"Russian propagandists and officials speak openly about the purpose of all these attacks: Ukraine, according to them, should be left without water, without light, without heat," he said.
Meanwhile, Russian-appointed authorities in the occupied and illegally seized southern Kherson region on October 22 ordered the estimated 60,000 residents of the region's eponymous main city to leave "immediately" in the face of Kyiv's advancing counteroffensive.
"Due to the tense situation on the front, the increased danger of mass shelling of the city and the threat of terrorist attacks, all civilians must immediately leave the city and cross to the left bank of the Dnieper River," the region's Russia-backed authorities said on social media.
Russina-installed officials are moving people out of the strategic city in what they are calling an evacuation but which Ukrainian officials label as deportations.
The order came in spite of a claim by Russia's Defense Ministry on October 22 that its forces had prevented an attempt by Ukraine to break through its line of control in Kherson.
"All attacks were repulsed, the enemy was pushed back to their initial positions," the Defense Ministry said, adding that Ukraine's offensive was launched toward the settlements of Piatykhatky, Suhanove, Sablukivka and Bezvodne, on the west side of the Dnieper River.
The ministry's statement said Russian forces had also repelled attacks in the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk.
Kherson city, which had a prewar population of 280,000, is one of the first urban areas occupied by Russia at the start of the invasion.
Zelenskiys office said 88 settlements in the southern Kherson region and 551 settlements in the northeastern Kharkiv region have been de-occupied, while the Ukrainian forces' counteroffensive in the Kherson region moves ahead.
Ukraine is trying to drive Russian forces in Kherson back east across the Dnieper. Russian soldiers on the western bank, where the city of Kherson is located, are reportedly close to being cut off from supply lines and reinforcements.
Natalya Humenyuk, a spokeswoman for Ukraines southern operational command, said the Ukrainian military struck the Antonivskiy Bridge over the Dnieper in the city of Kherson during an overnight curfew Russia-installed officials put in place to avoid civilian casualties.
We do not attack civilians and settlements," Humenyuk told Ukrainian television.
Ukrainian strikes made the Antonivskiy Bridge inoperable, prompting Russian authorities to set up ferry crossings and pontoon bridges to relocate civilians and transport supplies.
Russia has sent in thousands of recently mobilized troops to reinforce the defense of Kherson, the General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces said on October 21.
Zelenskiy again on October 21 urged the West to warn Russia not to blow up a dam at the Nova Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant on the Dnieper River as this could flood settlements toward Kherson.
Zelenskiy said Russian forces had planted explosives inside the dam, which holds back an enormous reservoir, and were planning to blow it up.
"Now everyone in the world must act powerfully and quickly to prevent a new Russian terrorist attack. Destroying the dam would mean a large-scale disaster," he said in his nightly address.
With reporting by Reuters, AFP, AP, and the BBC
India is protesting that its bid to put a top Pakistani militant leader on a United Nations terror blacklist is being blocked.
New Delhi wants the UN Security Council committee that monitors sanctions against extremist groups like Al-Qaeda and Islamic State to designate Maulana Masood Azhar as a terrorist. He is leader of the Pakistan-based group Jaish-e-Muhammad, or Muhammad's Army, which is already on the blacklist.
India has accused the group of masterminding an attack on its Pathankot air base on January 2, which killed seven Indian soldiers. The group was also blamed for a 2001 attack on India's parliament.
Indian Foreign Ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said the failure to list Azhar is "incomprehensible" and demonstrates "a selective approach to combating terrorism" which could have "dangerous consequences" for India and the world community.
UN diplomats said China put a "technical hold" on the designation. China is a permanent member of the council and has longstanding ties to Pakistan, which has said it found no evidence linking Azhar to the Pathankot attack.
Based on reporting by AP and Reuters
The nominee for the post of Iraq's oil minister, Nizar Saleem Numan, who is a Kurd, has withdrawn his candidacy apparently because he had not been formally put forward by the main Kurdish groups.
"Because there is no political agreement over the form of the future government, I withdraw my candidacy for the ministry of oil position, "Numan told reporters on April 1.
Numan was among 14 new cabinet minister nominees in Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's proposed cabinet.
Abadi said the candidates are the kind of policy experts protesters have been demanding for months to fight corruption in the government.
On March 31, Abadi presented his choices to the Parliament.
The announcement prompted influential Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to end a two-week sit-in by his followers in Baghdad's Green Zone, where they had been demanding the replacement of political cronies in the cabinet with technocrats.
Lawmakers, who thwarted previous efforts at reform proposed by Abadi, said they would take up to ten days to respond to the new cabinet plan.
With reporting by AP, Reuters, and AFP
More than 1 million people have fled eastern Ukraine since war erupted in April 2014. Some have since returned. Others never left. From teachers to pensioners to families with children, residents of separatist-held towns are struggling to get on with their lives amid the chaos and uncertainty.
RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service continues to publish their testimonies. The names of the authors of the letters have been changed to protect them.
Postponing Life Till Later In Luhansk
Yana Viktorova, teacher, Luhansk
"What would we have talked about three years ago? We would have said that summer vacations start in three months and that this means there are three months to go until we head to Crimea for holiday," one of my colleagues remarked pertinently today. "In April, we would have said that there are only two months left. This was our main concern -- waiting for the holidays to begin."
In May, we have almost two weeks off. Now the traditional May holidays end untraditionally with "Republic Day." We will have a two-week holiday with just a brief stint at work. We can plant potatoes and even manage to harvest them.
Today, I asked my pupils about their plans for the May holidays. It turns out that no one is going anywhere. Leaving is expensive and unrealistic, going to the river is dangerous, the forests are full of mines, and there's no running water at dachas within the boundaries of the "republic"... So people are staying in the city, between the same four walls, and for many it's an apartment, not even a house.
Youngsters speak about this sadly. In recent years, there have been no prospects of holidays at the sea, trips abroad, or closer visits to granny. Of course, if you consider problems such as unemployment or soaring prices, holidays are not really a big issue. On the other hand, how long can you postpone your life? One year? Two years?
Postponing means not leaving, not traveling, not writing letters, not sending or receiving parcels, not welcoming guests. "No, really, it's better if you visit us," our friends now joke.
This is true, of course. It's better not to come here unless you really have to. And this is definitely not a good place to spend holidays. But what about family feelings? What about all these friends and memories from Luhansk? What about our lively and cozy train station whose innovative glass-and-concrete design won several nationwide competitions?
Our entire life seems frozen...like meat in the freezer. It looks preserved, but it's not what it used to be. You can pretend that things are great, that nothing is happening. You can dress up and smile. You only live once, after all! You can dwell on what has been lost and fall into depression.
There are people who make the most of everything, who are able to seize the day like those butterflies that only live for one day. These people are doing fine. They go to cafes, they accept invitations. Life with them is easy! They don't make a fuss because that's just how they are.
I asked the kids today if they ever went to the movies. They don't. Movies theaters here don't show any new films, only films downloaded from the Internet. And youngsters don't see any point in paying to watch films that they can watch at home.
As for traveling, this is a ghastly business. We have travel agencies that can purchase tickets in both Russia and Ukraine. Anything you want! But just imagine the journey even to the point of departure, whether its the airport in Rostov or Kyiv. How early must you leave to make it to the resort? No driver can tell you exactly when you will reach your destination in Russia or Ukraine due to waiting time. How do you make sure you catch your flight? And how badly must you want to go on holiday to gracefully wait for hours at the borders?
This only covers to question of "how." There is another question: With what money? In the "republic," the "official currency" is the Russian ruble. If you want to vacation in an area controlled by Ukraine, you need to buy hryvnyas. Our local salaries and pensions, which are officially paid at the exchange rate of 1 hryvnya = 2 Russian rubles, rule out holidays in Russia. We can only afford to spend our holidays in the "republic." Those who have a car and are brave enough can do so at local rates.
So we can write letters to ourselves, and spend our holidays here.
My friend moved to Russia. She hopes to build a life there. I asked her what persuaded her to leave her flat in Luhansk and undertake such drastic changes. "Life will probably be good here one day, but no sooner than in 15 to 20 years," she answered. "And this is my life, a big chunk of my life. I'm not ready to wait that long and put up with that much."
Those who stay here feel like never before that life has been postponed till some other time. Someday we will see our relatives, someday we will go on holiday, someday we will gather everyone around a big table, someday we will build what we were planning to build before the war. Someday.
But will we live long enough too see this "someday?"
Will A Mobile Operator Called Phoenix Take Flight?
Miroslav Tolkoviy, pensioner, Torez
In early March, directors of companies and institutions in the so-called "Donetsk People's Republic" (DNR) received orders to make sure their employees and subordinates purchase starter kits worth 120 Russian rubles ($1.70) and monthly 50-ruble ($0.72) payments for unlimited packages from Feniks (Phoenix), the new mobile operator.
The news instantly spread across the city and sparked outrage among residents. Most people in Torez use the mobile operator MTS because they have relatives outside the occupied territories. Not all are thrilled by the prospect of having to spend their already small salaries and pensions to bolster the image of yet another PR project of the "terrorists in power" and create a pretense of commercial success.
Torez residents had previously used the three main mobile operators: MTS, Kyivstar, and Life. After Donbas was occupied, the separatists, with the help of weapons, "nationalized" Kyivstar's equipment and its network of stations and towers, obviously because the operator's name contained a word they hate: Kyiv. Those who had used this operator switched to MTS, which helped many people find each other amid the hell of hostilities in summer 2014.
Feniks, established on the basis of stolen equipment, limits communication to residents of territories controlled by the "DNR." It only allows users to connect to the Lugakom network, in occupied territories of the Luhansk region. In the future, users may be able to call Russia for 5 rubles ($0.07) per minute. The rate for calls to landlines in the "DNR, 2.5 rubles ($0.03) per minute, is surprising. Fenikss tariff plan was named "National," and its ads on the Internet promote it as "Communication for the Victory." But what victory, where, and whose?
The arguments invoked to force Feniks onto people are odd. People are told that Ukrainian authorities are planning to shut off MTS and Life and impose an information blockade in occupied territories. People are made to believe that the Ukrainian Security Service will no longer be able to eavesdrop on their conversations and that they will be free to share their innermost thoughts among themselves with the knowledge they are not being recorded. The third and most convincing argument is the threat of being fired from work because employees who don't subscribe to the "republican operator Feniks" violate the safety and the secrecy of their company.
People were given one month to think about it. Feniks currently has 45,000 subscribers. The network was tested and ready to operate in late February. This is why people were pressured to buy these starter kits and pay their fees for March.
Another scam has been running for the second year now: Residents of occupied territories are forced to watch Russian propaganda. Ukrainian television and radio channels were blocked. Digital television was deactivated, although many of the previously available channels have nothing to do with politics.
The so-called "republican channels" show Russian content: films, serials, various shows. Is someone paying for this? Is this also part of the humanitarian aid delivered by the aggressor to its victims, just like the humanitarian convoys whose arrival are followed by renewed shelling in occupied territories?
The aggressor's broadcasting also feeds propaganda. Boastful marches, distorted coverage of world events, chauvinistic world views: All this arouses feelings of opposition among many people.
How do people escape the pressure of propaganda? Some buy new Viasat receivers in areas controlled by Kyiv and pick up Ukrainian channels. Sometimes, they have to manually enter the channels' frequency data. How fortunate that the "DNR" doesn't have its own missiles and that they can't launch satellites, that Torez residents still have a chance to watch Ukrainian television! Satellite dishes look strange on houses demolished by the war, but they give hope for a return to normal, peaceful life.
Some people watch Ukrainian channels online. This way, here in the occupied territories, we watch programs like Fakty, TSN, and Okna.
Schoolchildren were recently handed the "DNR" anthem and instructed to learn it within a week. Totalitarian pressure in schools is gaining momentum with the arrival of spring.
Payday In The Krasnodon
Nadezhda Fyodorova, student, Krasnodon district
It's a small mining town with towering slagheaps and tired people. Almost nothing has changed here since the war began. Ordinary residents wanted a better life, but in the end, they got something very different from what they had hoped for. People's tastes, their thoughts and lifestyle, have remained the same. The only things that have changed are the prices, the salaries, and the quality of life.
The mines, which people could always turn to for work and at least some sort of income, are now closing one after the other. Most mines are out of operation and the ones that still function are massively laying off workers. People find themselves with no work, no money, and no confidence in the future. Now, the average salary in small towns is about 1,500 to 2,000 rubles per month. At the local exchange rate, this comes to 530 to 700 hryvnyas ($20-26).
Salaries in the Krasnodar region are paltry. Local residents always wait excitedly for their salaries, but this excitement rapidly vanishes. What local employers pay their staff is barely enough to last them until the middle of the month. By that time, all people can do is save on food and pray that their next salary is paid on time.
Margaret Mitchell's novel Gone With The Wind, in which small-scale merchants, opportunists, and speculators stream into town following defeat in the Civil War, springs to mind. Even local residents could become speculators. Here, too, representatives of the trade sector became heroes overnight. But in our case, this didn't bring them any popularity among the local population.
Vendors change prices every day as they please. People's fates now depend on them. Speculators, in their endless pursuit of profit, continuously push up prices. They hoard goods in the hope of selling them later for even higher sums.
The prices make saving money difficult. This partly answers the question of what salaries are spent on. First: food. Second: utilities. Third: debts. Roughly every third citizen has debts.
So, we go to the market to buy food for the month. What do we see? The variety of products leaves much to be desired. Instead of Ukrainian lard, Russian "delicacies" are on display, from sausages to pork meat. In terms of quality they lag behind Ukrainian -- now foreign -- products, but they are not as low as "Luhansk People's Republic" level.
"Republican" food products deserve special attention. You can find locally made sunflower seeds and alcohol in many shops. But vendors are in no hurry to remove the Ukrainian stickers, first because it's expensive and second because they believe that local residents, unaware of the ploy, will go precisely for these products.
Prices in shops are much higher than in areas controlled by Ukraine. After a substantial shopping trip at the market, you will find that the bulk of your salary is gone. Let's say you spent 500 to 1,000 rubles, or 177 to 354 hryvnyas ($7 to $13). The rest of your salary will not even cover utilities, let alone other expenses. Consider yourself lucky if you still have money from your previous salary or if your relatives also work and are able to help. Utilities will set you back another 1,400 rubles or 495 hryvnyas ($19), and that's without the Internet, which will cost you an extra 1,700 rubles or 601 hryvnyas ($22). With your average salary, now you can't pay Internet access. The only way out of this situation is to have helpful relatives or a partner who also works and contributes to the family budget.
You can also save a little money by stocking up on products in Russia. Prices there are not lower, but if you know where to go you can stay afloat, or at least not go into the red. For example, there is a chain of stores in Russia called Fix Price where you can buy nonperishable and basic goods at the fixed price of 50 rubles or 18 hryvnyas ($0.72): tea, coffee, peas, corn, cosmetics, etc. There are even special deals when you get one item free for the purchase of two or three items. An average shopping trip there costs about 500 to 600 rubles or 189 to 226 hryvnias ($19 to $23).
What if you have already run out of money? Well, you will have to do without tea and cosmetic sessions, even ones at home.
But the saving strategy detailed above presents inconveniences: endless queues at the border and transportation problems. Traveling from the border is fine in summer, when you can stand outside and wait for the minibus. In winter, however, you will be seriously cold. And people are ready to freeze, because this is their only solution.
How do you survive from one month to another? you will ask. One way is to borrow money from your neighbors, from your relatives, or from other trusting persons. The question of when you will give the money back is a purely rhetorical one.
Why don't people leave in search of a better life? People's attitudes and plans for the future don't differ much from each other. Here are the standpoints of several residents of the Krasnodon district:
"I have a house here, a car, and a motorbike, I can't leave all this behind," says Oleh, who is unemployed. "If I could take all of it with me, then perhaps I would leave. But I've never been far from home and I'm afraid of leaving. Over there, I have no relatives and no loved ones; no one will help me. Concerning my plans for the future, I will wait. Of course, I would like to find work and settle down comfortably. I would also like the war to end so that people can travel freely. I want to get through these difficult times."
"I don't have the possibility of going anywhere, even to Ukraine," says Svitlana, who works as a cleaner and a guard. "There is no work there and no money. Abandon everything that I've worked for over the past 25 years, hand it all over, and leave? If only I had any savings. I won't be able to sell; either people would be afraid of buying a flat in a war zone or I would have to sell my flat for a song. I have no idea what I will do. We hope that our rulers will take a wise decision and that peace will come. I would like war to end and a better life to start."
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Intense fighting has been reported in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh inside Azerbaijan, with heavy casualties reported on both sides and the OSCE expressing its "grave concern" at developments.
The Armenian military accused Azerbaijani forces of launching a major offensive, involving tanks, heavy artillery, and helicopter gunships.
The Azerbaijani military said its frontline forces had first come under "intensive fire" from mortars, grenade launchers, and artillery and that the Azerbaijani Army had to take "urgent measures" to respond.
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said that 12 soldiers had died in the fighting. It said one Mi-24 helicopter was shot down and that one tank had been destroyed in a mine explosion.
The ministry claimed the army had "liberated strategic heights and settlements" in the region.
"Six Armenian tanks were destroyed [and] more than 100 Armenian servicemen were killed and injured," it said in a statement.
President Serzh Sarkisian said Azerbaijani troops had killed 18 ethnic Armenian soldiers.
"From our side, 18 soldiers were killed and some 35 others wounded," Sarkisian said at a meeting of the National Security Council in Yerevan, according to his press office.
He did not specify if the soldiers belonged to Yerevan-backed separatist forces in Nagorno-Karabakh or Armenia's armed forces.
Reports from the region said two civilians had also been killed, including a 12-year-old boy.
WATCH: Several soldiers wounded in fresh fighting in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh inside Azerbaijan were transported to a military hospital in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, on April 2. (RFE/RL's Armenian Service)
Nagorno-Karabakh lies inside Azerbaijan but is controlled by ethnic Armenians.
The Armenian Defense Ministry called it the most serious escalation of fighting in the conflict since a 1994 truce and called on the United States, Russia, and France -- who lead international efforts to mediate the conflict -- to urgently intervene.
Armenian Prime Minister Ovik Abrahamian convened an urgent meeting over the "unprecedented large-scale hostilities from the enemy," the Armenian government said.
"Armenia is ready to take the necessary steps to stabilize the situation," Abrahamian said.
Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian is expected to convene a Security Council meeting on the situation later on April 2.
WATCH: Sarkisian Calls For Military Cooperation With Nagorno-Karabakh
In a statement, the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, which has been mediating the conflict, expressed "grave concern over the reported large-scale cease-fire violations that are taking place along the Line of Contact in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone. We strongly condemn the use of force and regret the senseless loss of life, including civilians.
The statement -- by ambassadors Igor Popov of Russia, James Warlick of the United States, and Pierre Andrieu of France -- called upon the sides to stop shooting and take all necessary measures to stabilize the situation on the ground.
Warlick said on Twitter that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will meet in Vienna on April 4 and convene the Minsk Group on April 5 to address the violence.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin's press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, said Putin is "deeply concerned about the reports on resumed military actions along the line of engagement in Nagorno-Karabakh." He said Putin called on the parties to the conflict to implement an immediate cease-fire and to exercise restraint.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov later spoke separately by phone with the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia to urge calm, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Russia has sold arms to both sides in the conflict.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry condemned in the strongest terms the cease-fire violations while extending Washingtons condolences to all affected families.
We urge the sides to show restraint, avoid further escalation, and strictly adhere to the cease-fire, Kerry said in an April 2 statement.
He added that the unstable situation on the ground demonstrates why the sides must enter into an immediate negotiation under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs on a comprehensive settlement of the conflict.
The U.S. top diplomat reiterated that there is no military solution to the conflict.
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini called on the parties to stop the fighting immediately and observe the cease-fire.
The sides must show restraint and avoid any further actions or statements that could result in escalation, Mogherini said in a statement.
She said both sides should refrain from the use of force and resume efforts towards a peaceful resolution of the conflict.
Hikmat Hajiyev, a spokesman for Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry, called on the international community to condemn Armenia's actions.
The conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh broke out in the dying years of the Soviet Union and killed about 30,000 people.
Years of diplomatic efforts, led by the OSCE, have been largely unsuccessful at resolving the simmering crisis between the two heavily armed neighbors.
The fresh outbreak of violence came as the presidents of both Azerbaijan and Armenia, Ilham Aliyev and Sarkisian, were winding up visits to the United States.
Just hours before the fighting broke out, Aliyev and Sarkisian met jointly with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, who called on the South Caucasus leaders to peacefully settle the protracted dispute.
On March 30, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry called for an "ultimate resolution" to the conflict during talks in Washington with Aliyev.
At his meeting with Kerry, Aliyev thanked the United States for trying to end the conflict but said it could only be resolved through a United Nations Security Council resolution calling for the "immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Armenian troops" from Azerbaijan.
Nagorno-Karabakh, populated mainly by ethnic Armenians, declared independence from Azerbaijan. A 1988-94 war claimed an estimated 30,000 lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of people.
Internationally mediated negotiations with the involvement of the OSCE's Minsk Group have failed to result in a resolution. The Minsk Group is co-chaired by France, Russia, and the United States.
WATCH: At least two children were hospitalized in Stepanakert, the main city of Nagorno-Karabakh, after clashes erupted on April 2.
U.S. President Barack Obama accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of slowing progress on nuclear arms reduction by focusing instead on building up Moscow's military might.
"My preference would be to bring down further our nuclear arsenal," Obama said at a press conference on April 1 after his two-day Nuclear Security Summit in Washington.
The Obama administration approached Russia about a possible new phase in arms reduction talks in 2010 after Russia and the United States signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty II.
But no further negotiations ensued, and Obama said that was "because of the vision that [Putin has] been pursuing of emphasizing military might over development."
Putin, who boycotted the summit attended by dozens of other world leaders, said in June that Russia would add more than 40 intercontinental ballistic missiles to its nuclear arsenal to modernize its program and overcome NATO anti-missile defense systems near its border.
Obama said the possibility of progress in future years on arms reductions with Russia remains as both countries continue to abide by the START agreement. But he said reductions during his remaining 10 months in office are unlikely.
Based on reporting by AP and Reuters
U.S. President Barack Obama said that his administration is preparing to address concerns that Iran is not getting the full benefit of sanctions relief under its nuclear accord with world powers.
At a press conference following a Washington Nuclear Security Summit with world leaders on April 1, Obama said because Iran has been keeping its side of the deal, the United States will do what it can to ensure Tehran experiences promised relief from nuclear-related sanctions.
"Some of the concerns that Iran has expressed, we are going to work with them to address," he said.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and his counterparts in Europe "will be clarifying for companies what transactions with Iran are in fact allowed" under the nuclear agreement so businesses do not risk running afoul of remaining U.S. restrictions on transactions with Iran, he said.
Despite the lifting of most global economic sanctions on Iran in January, many restrictions remain in place in the United States because of Iran's status as a state sponsor of terrorism, its repeated testing of ballistic missiles that could carry nuclear warheads, and violations of human rights.
Obama did not provide details at his press conference, but he stressed that some of the disappointment Iran is experiencing with sanctions relief thus far is due to Tehran's own misbehavior, not the remaining U.S. sanctions.
"Iran so far has followed the letter of the agreement, but the spirit of the agreement involves Iran also sending signals to the world community and businesses that it is not going to be engaging in a range of provocative actions that might scare businesses off," Obama said.
"When they launch ballistic missiles with slogans calling for the destruction of Israel, that makes businesses nervous," he said.
"Iran has to understand that businesses want to go where they feel safe," he said. "There is a geopolitical risk that is heightened when Iran ships missiles to Hizballah and threatens Israel."
Iran also "faces the challenge that companies have not been doing business there for a long time, and they have to get comfortable" with the idea of going back into Iran, he said.
"It is going to take time over the next several months for companies and their legal departments to feel confident...there may not be risks of liability if they do business with Iran."
Earlier in the day, Obama cautioned that "it will take time for Iran to reintegrate into the global economy, but Iran is already beginning to see the benefit of [the nuclear] deal."
With reporting by Reuters, AFP, AP, and dpa
The United States has urged Dutch voters to approve Ukraine's cooperation agreement with the European Union in a referendum on April 4, even as Ukraine's president predicted victory.
"We're absolutely sure that European integration and the implementation of our Association Agreement will not be stopped," Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said on April 1.
Poroshenko met with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington and afterward stressed the friendship between their countries.
He accused the Dutch anti-EU activists who demanded the referendum of exploiting the Ukraine question as part of an agenda to strike a blow against the EU. The cooperation deal with Ukraine puts Kyiv on a path toward eventual EU membership.
"The real purpose was an internal Dutch discussion about the future of the European Union and internal political clashes," Poroshenko said. "This is very dangerous -- that a 45-million-person country could become the victim of this."
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau said that while it is up to Dutch voters to decide, "we believe that an Association Agreement is in the best interests of Ukraine, the Netherlands, and Europe."
The agreement "is critical to ensuring that Ukraine's leaders continue to make the needed and important reforms that will contribute to a more peaceful, democratic, prosperous, and stable continent," she said.
Trudeau added that "it will provide new economic opportunities for the Netherlands, for Ukraine, and for Europe as a whole."
European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker last month sought to assure Dutch voters who oppose further expansion of the EU after years of incorporating other Eastern European states that he doesn't expect Ukraine to join the EU for another 25 years.
He has warned that a rejection of the treaty by Dutch voters could lead to a "continental crisis."
Earlier in the day, Poroshenko met with U.S. President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the summit and the two discussed the prospects for creating a new governing coalition in Ukraine.
Poroshenko has sought to assure U.S. leaders as he made the rounds in Washington that he is close to getting an agreement with other parties to form a new coalition, despite a failed attempt at doing so earlier this week.
With reporting by Reuters, AFP, and TASS
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in a phone conversation on April 1 that militants are still crossing from Turkey into Syria, Russia's foreign ministry said.
"Lavrov once again drew attention to the Turkey-Syria border which still has holes and, according to our data, is actively being used to transfer militants via Turkey to Syria," the ministry said.
Lavrov last month called for full implementation of United Nations Security Council resolutions demanding a halt to trade in oil with the Islamic State group and an end to "terrorists" crossing into Syria from Turkey and other countries.
In the phone conversation, the foreign ministry said the two top diplomats also discussed taking "concrete measures aimed at strengthening the ceasefire process in Syria," which was established in late February and has generally been holding.
Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP
The Saudi-owned news channel Al-Arabiya shut its offices in Beirut and dismissed 27 employees in a sudden move reflecting tensions between Riyadh and Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah movement.
The channel on April 1 cited employee safety as the reason for closing its office and that of its sister channel Al-Hadath. Some other Saudi news outlets in Beirut have been hit with protests recently.
Al-Arabiya, one of the main Arabic language broadcasters in the Middle East, said it will "continue to closely cover Lebanese affairs" and will help laid-off employees find jobs elsewhere.
The move reflects ongoing tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran's allies. Last month, Riyadh cut $3 billion in military aid to Lebanon after the Lebanese government failed to condemn an attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran in January.
The Sunni Gulf monarchy interpreted Lebanon's lack of public solidarity as a sign that it had become beholden to Hezbollah.
Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden met with the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan separately on April 1 and called on them to peacefully settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Biden "expressed concern about continued violence, called for dialogue, and emphasized the importance of a comprehensive settlement for the long-term stability, security, and prosperity of the region," the White House said.
Both of the Caucasus leaders, in turn, said they encouraged the United States to take an active role in reaching a settlement.
In his meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, "the Vice President welcomed the recent releases from prison of human rights and civil society activists and encouraged continued progress, underscoring the importance of civil society and rule of law to Azerbaijan's economic prosperity and development," the White House said.
Biden also said "there are good possibilities of further broadening bilateral ties in all areas, including the economy," Aliyev's office said.
In his meeting with Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian, Biden thanked him for recently welcoming more than 20,000 Syrian refugees and said the United States is "committed to a democratic, prosperous, and secure Armenia at peace with its neighbors," the White House said.
With reporting by TASS and Interfax
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden spoke with Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar Al-Abadi by phone on April 1 and applauded his move to replace political cronies in his cabinet with policy experts, the White House said.
"The vice president welcomed the Prime Minister's political reform efforts and reaffirmed continued U.S. support for steps, in concert with Iraqi political leaders, to strengthen transparency, national unity, and accountability," it said.
Biden also stressed "the critical importance of sustaining momentum" in the fight against the Islamic State group. The two leaders discussed U.S. efforts to support Iraqi security forces.
Biden also "commended" Abadi for "engaging constructively" with the International Monetary Fund "to address fiscal challenges and unlock access to international financial assistance."
With reporting by Reuters
On March 13, Floyd-based coffee roasting company Red Rooster Coffee Roaster won first place in the Americas Best Espresso competition at Coffee Fest, an annual specialty coffee and tea industry event held in New York City. The competition featured 24 roasters from 11 East-coast states.
Grace McCutchan, a roaster and barista at Red Rooster, represented the company in the two-day competition using an espresso blend developed specifically for the event. She had 10 minutes to pull three shots of espresso and present them to a panel of selected judges while answering their on-the-spot questions.
The judges evaluate the espresso in three categories: flavor complexity/balance; mouthfeel/appeal/body; and aftertaste/session.
I knew I would be competing against some talented roasters, so I didnt really know what outcome to expect, McCutchan said. I think as a company we prepared ourselves as best we could.
My sister Rose trained with me almost every day for three weeks to perfect my barista skills, so I went in feeling confident when it came to technicalities, pulling the shots, and presenting them.
I also researched the background of each component that made up the espresso to ready myself for the questions that might be asked during the competition.
In the specialty coffee industry, having a clear understanding and being able talk about the product is a unique way to engage with the audience or customer and have them fall in love with what they are drinking. To me, thats what its all about.
Americas Best Espresso is a triannual competition that determines and acknowledges the three best coffee roasters in North America.
A maximum of 32 roasters are selected to compete for each regional title with the top three advancing to the National Championship, which will be held in Nashville in 2017.
Along with the first-place title, Red Rooster also took home the grand prize of $2,000 and the championship trophy. The award- winning blend is now available for purchase at their location in Floyd and online at www.redroostercoffeeroaster.com.
Red Rooster was founded in 2010 in Floyd. Its mission is to roast distinctive coffees with care and connect to their customers through the process.
Standing straighter than they have in years, 8-year-olds Raven Harris and Miracle Harewood played kickball Thursday in the physical therapy room at Childrens Hospital of Richmond at Virginia Commonwealth University, the day before their trip home to Barbados.
Six months ago, Henrico County-based health care charity World Pediatric Project brought the girls to Richmond to have surgery to fix severely bowed legs, a condition called Blounts disease. After the complex surgery and months of rehabilitation, the girls returned home Friday.
She is not back to her full potential in walking as yet, said Catherine Harris, Ravens mother, speaking with the accent of her island country. She still uses the walker, because her legs get a little tired because she is now using these muscles that she never used before.
Natalie Harewood, Miracles mother, described the experience as a bit challenging.
It was a hard experience. But in the end, you end up happy, she said.
For the surgery last October at St. Marys Hospital, Dr. Chester Sharps, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon at Tuckahoe Orthopaedics, cut the girls leg bones apart just below the knee and repositioned them with pins and screws, holding them in place with external frames or braces. The braces were adjusted gradually to straighten the leg bones.
The girls problem wasnt just bowed legs, Sharps said. Their legs also were bowed forward, something called procurvatum, he said.
They were also internally rotated, so the foot wasnt straight with the knee, Sharps said. So you have to build that into your calculation that you are doing to straighten the bowedness, the procurvatum and also de-rotate the tibias.
Sharps delayed taking off the frames an additional four weeks to make sure the girls bones were healed.
Its always a little dicey when you take the frames off. Youre never completely sure if the bones have completely healed or not. When I took the frames off, they were healed, said Sharps, who added that he was pleased with the outcome.
The girls leg growth plates, which had been damaged by the bowed legs, recovered and started to function normally, he said.
They are still very young. It took them seven years to get into that crookedness, and they still have seven years of growth left. I was so worried that as they grew they would just grow back to being bowed, but they look like they are not going to. It looks like they are going to stay with this correction.
***
Catherine Harris and Natalie Harewood said they had no idea how painful the procedure would be for their daughters.
Harris said her daughter cried almost nonstop for the first two weeks after the surgery. As she healed from the surgery, the pain eased.
But both mothers said they would go through it again, because the outcome was worth it.
I would do it again but you have to be prepared for it, because its a challenge, Harewood said. She had the operation, she got better, then she had to go back (for surgery) again.
Miracle had a rougher time initially, having to go back for a second surgery after she developed complications and an infection.
Harris said her daughter remembers how difficult it was to get around before the surgery.
She feels good about her feet now because she remembers a time when she could not walk long, Harris said. She could not do anything much long: stand long, walk long, play long. Everything would hurt afterward. She is happy. She is glad.
Both girls celebrated their eighth birthdays while in Richmond.
The Harrises stayed at The Doorways, which provides lodging to families and individuals in medical crisis at its facility at 612 E. Marshall St. The Harewoods stayed at the Ronald McDonald House on Monument Avenue.
***
Both girls will continue with physical therapy back home.
How much additional therapy before they are walking unassisted depends on their progress. Both have walkers and wheelchairs for long distances.
Barbados, an independent island country with a population of about 285,000, has a public health care system that provides services for free.
Dr. Sharps and his nurse Tina, and Sam, they were the best, Harewood said. The people in the (pediatric intensive care unit) and the nurses at St. Marys Hospital were great. The therapists, the people at World Pediatric Project, she added, thanking everyone.
At the final therapy session Thursday, the girls and their mothers gave goodbye hugs. But not before that last workout.
Physical therapist Melanie Gray worked with Miracle, who usually was smiling when she wasnt puffing with exertion. At one point, the girl rested her upturned hands on her thighs and closed her eyes in a meditation pose.
Im tired, Raven, her face gleaming with perspiration, moaned to physical therapist Jenna Saunders as they walked along a blue line on the floor of the room.
When they were betrayed to the communist Khmer Rouge regime in spring 1977, Phan Meas and his wife, Sakan Ou, were removed from their work camp in Battambang in northwest Cambodia to separate prisons and later to tiny wooden cages.
Three times a week, a soldier would take them separately into the woods and try to discover their identities, according to their youngest daughter, Pharoat Chandra Meas of Boulder, Colo. Despite beatings with electric batons, submersion in muddy water and fainting induced by plastic bags secured about their heads, both kept the counsel Mr. Meas gave his eight children when the family arrived in Battambang: keep a low profile, guard your words, call each other by nicknames and never reveal your identity.
This was essential as the Khmer Rouge, led by a radicalized schoolteacher called Pol Pot, emptied cities under its control to start wiping out all Western influence in the nation and set up a primitive agrarian society. It targeted city people, who were sent to villages and urged to confess their identities, anti-communist pre-revolutionary lifestyles, and crimes against the Cambodian people. Those crimes included speaking a foreign language and using any kind of technology, such as eyeglasses.
Since city people were deemed unnecessary in a utopian society of equals, genocide followed. Adults were poisoned or bludgeoned to death to save bullets. Soldiers often smashed children against trees. Those so executed or who died of starvation and privation were dropped into mass graves in areas now called the killing fields.
Both parents fought to convince captors that they were peasants. Born in Takeo Province, Mr. Meas not only had graduated from college as an architect, but also had worked for The Royal Railways. He was a director with the California-based relief agency World Vision International of Cambodia when the communists took power. His wife hailed from a family of prosperous rice farmers.
More than two lives were at stake, Chandra Meas said. If one person of a family was found to have done something, they would come to get the children and kill the children, too. In order to save the children, my parents had to keep lying.
Mr. Meas hung on to save his family from horrors that killed nearly a quarter of the Cambodian population from 1975 to 1979. He found them safe haven in the Richmond area in 1981.
He led us to a great country, however, many of his grandchildren still do not know his story, Meas said of her father, for whom a Buddhist 100-day prayer service will be held today, Saturday, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Cambodian Buddhist Association, 8180 Windsor Way in Mechanicsville, for friends of the family. He died Jan. 10 in a Richmond-area hospital at age 83.
I dont know if I will die tomorrow with my story, so I share it with my kids all the time, Meas said. My other sisters think it is too sad to tell theirs.
Mr. Meas, who lived in Cambodias capital, turned down a chance for his immediate family to be helicoptered to safety by the American Embassy as Khmer Rouge insurgents captured Phnom Penh in April 1975. He and his wife refused to leave behind three of their children not living in the city.
After the family reunited, the regime sent them to Battambang, where they lived in a one-bedroom house built over a swamp. There was no furniture, no kitchen, no running water and a hole in the floor for a toilet.
Mr. Meas rebuilt damaged railroads while his wife worked in rice fields. Their children were taken away to labor camps. Meas remembers the January day in 1977 when, at 4 years old, the Khmer Rouge took her away to a camp surrounded by barbed wire to make fertilizer from manure. My parents woke me up at 3 a.m., she said. They had been crying all night and were hugging me. By 5 a.m. she was gone.
Mr. Meas and his wife were released from prison just before Vietnam attacked Cambodia in 1978. Labor camps freed inmates, who ran to find families and safety.
The Meases raced to Battambang to look for their youngest children. As they began to despair, Mr. Meas saw a little girl running to him calling, Pa! Pa! Pa! He picked up a daughter and started weeping because she was so frail and malnourished. She led him to her sisters, Meas said.
They occupied an abandoned home and hoped their older children would find them. They started a rice winery to make a living and bartered wine for the means to escape to Thailand, where the United Nations had set up a refugee camp.
Everyone came at the right time and at the right hour, except their sister Bopha, said Meas. When they assumed her dead and dared not wait longer, they set off for the Thai border with Chandra Meas riding piggyback on her father. They stole through land mines, rice fields, killing fields, jungle and forest, led by paid guides and traveling in small groups by night to avoid detection.
As soon as the armed Thai border guard had his back to them at a safe distance, they signaled with flashlights and one by one leaped into a deep concrete ditch, where a brother awaited to boost them out to the Thai side, where guides parted a barbed-wire fence.
Four months after they reached the refugee camp in 1981, a church in Highland Springs agreed to sponsor them to the United States.
Mr. Meas worked as a church janitor, security guard and many other jobs until he descended into depression and quit working because of post-traumatic stress disorder. When we would talk about (Cambodia) we had to wait for Dad to leave the room. He would start crying, get too emotional. He kept having nightmares, Meas said.
He and his wife lived with Chandra Meas for a time. After he almost died with pneumonia, he moved back to Richmond. In September 2015, doctors found that a lung was failing.
In addition to his wife and daughter, survivors include four other daughters, Samngath Meas and Phara Meas, both of Mechanicsville, Kunthy Meas of Richmond and Chantary Meas of Dracut, Mass.; two sons, Somithea Meas and Sometha Meas, both of Richmond; a sister, Ngeth Meas of Takeo Province, Cambodia; and 15 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
Of her fathers six siblings, two survived. His wife lost all eight of hers. (Of) all the (Cambodians) around my age, most are orphans. Its really sad. Its like a whole generation was wiped out, Meas said.
Our cousins call us a God-chosen family. We are fortunate to have (an almost) complete family.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
A Blacksburg dance teacher who won a new home from ABCs Extreme Makeover: Home Edition has published a memoir on the 10th anniversary of her television appearance.
Carol Crawford Smiths self-published book, Give Take Be, chronicles the life of a world-class ballerina, who retired in 1988 and moved to Virginia in 1991 to raise her family. She was later stricken with multiple sclerosis.
The longtime owner of the towns Center of Dance suddenly found it difficult to teach students, and even to function in her home. Tragedy struck again in 2014, when Crawford Smiths eldest son, Hunter, died unexpectedly. He was a student at the University of Virginia.
Crawford Smith said the book deals with many of her life experiences, beginning with her tenure with the world-famous Dance Theatre of Harlem at age 14, and goes through to the present.
It is a very positive and uplifting story. It is also a very revealing story about my life, she said.
Writing it was an opportunity to tell readers and those who know her: This is who I was, as well as this is who I am, she said.
A chapter of the book discusses Crawford Smiths 2006 appearance on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, and the building of the house on Ardmore Street where she has lived since then. It talks about how the community, Blacksburg, as well as beyond was very involved in the home makeover experience 10 years ago, she said. More than 4,000 people contributed, even if they did not know me.
I talk about how grateful I am to the community and to those people, Crawford Smith said. The makeover remains a dream come true, she said.
The show, which aired on ABC, was canceled in 2011 after nine seasons. It featured needy families from across the country who were selected to receive new homes. In each episode, an existing home was demolished for a new home or extensively remodeled in seven days.
The show portrayed its stars as the builders, but all of the work on Crawford Smiths house was done for free by regional contractors and Virginia Tech architects. None of the expenses the businesses incurred were tax-deductible and most received little recognition on the episode.
Building Specialists president Bob Fetzer, the lead contractor on the project, said he was glad ABC tapped his company in 2005 to do the project. If the show had come to town later, as the economy declined in 2006-07, Fetzer said it would have been much harder to recruit the other businesses needed to do it.
It was one of the most difficult builds in the shows history, Fetzer said, and snow and freezing temperatures threw them behind. Near the end, it looked like they would miss the deadline, but one marathon overnight building session with a crowd of volunteers brought it in just under the wire.
To me, it tells you about the grit of the business community, Fetzer said. This community, if theres a need, they come together to help families. Its a very generous community.
In 2006, Fetzer estimated the value of local materials and labor to be about $1 million.
The builder said he has kept in touch with Crawford Smith over the years, and he admires her grit and tenacity despite hardship and setbacks.
Carol, no matter what ... shes always looking at ways to keep going, Fetzer said.
Fetzer said Crawford Smith has maintained the home in excellent condition, something that could not have been easy for her physically or financially. In 2006, the old property was assessed for tax purposes at $121,000. Today the town values it at $428,600, according to tax records.
For her part, Crawford Smith said this week that the house is well-built and is as beautiful today as it was when she first saw it.
In 2005, volunteer builders also refurbished the downtown Blacksburg space Crawford Smith originally rented for the Center of Dance. But not long after the remodel, she was forced to relocate because of ongoing roof leaks. Town officials shut the building for a time over safety concerns.
Crawford Smith moved her business to a space in what was then called Collegiate Square on Turner Street. But, financial problems eventually forced her to leave that studio, too, she said. Today, she holds classes at Northside Presbyterian Church, but hopes eventually to move to a permanent space one she owns.
Crawford Smith said she will continue writing, saying the process was healing, and that in addition to being a dancer, she now considers herself a literary artist with something important to say.
Id like to get across the message that we all have a story to tell. And, with each of our stories there is opportunities to be inspired by what we have to say, Crawford Smith said. How we choose to tell our stories has a impact on our strength, as well as our resilience in the face of adversity.
So, she added, how I chose to tell my story helps to keep me strong as a woman, as a mother, as a person, as a human.
CULPEPER A group of Culpeper residents has created a king-size quilt to be raffled to raise money to help victims of a tornado which struck Appomattox County in February.
Catherine Beale said she and her husband, Barry, moved to Culpeper from Appomattox County in 1965, after Barry got a job here working for C&P Telephone.
The first 11 or 12 years of my life, I lived in Evergreen, and we still have family there, Beale said. The first house I saw on the television that was damaged was one of my friends homes.
Reports indicated that more than 100 homes were damaged or destroyed by the EF3 tornado as it passed through the area at about 3:30 p.m. Feb. 24.
There was one reported fatality, and seven other people were injured. The tornado had winds between 135 and 165 mph, was 400 yards wide and was on the ground for a distance of 17 miles.
It really just hit me to see all of those homes totally destroyed, Beale said. I felt I just had to do something to help.
Beale said a friend, Elizabeth Hutchins, suggested she make a quilt to raffle to raise money, but Beale said she didnt think she could complete a quilt quickly enough working by herself.
Around midnight that Friday evening I sent messages to eight of my friends on Facebook to ask if they could help me make a quilt, she said. Within 15 minutes, four of them responded, asking me how could they help.
By the next morning, the remaining four friends had also signed on to the project. Others, including Beales sister, Cynthia Megginson, soon followed.
In all, Beale said there were 12 women involved with the project, including herself, Megginson, Kelly Ann, Mary Grogan, Rosanne Hines, Phyllis Keesee, Alice Kennedy, Lisa McCellan, Becky Rector, Susanne Reisch, Maureen Rogers and Wendy Weakley.
Within about a week, the group which is calling itself Culpeper Friends of a Friend helping Friends had completed a 100- by 103-inch king-sized quilt to raffle off to raise money to help the tornado victims.
Beale said she traveled to one of the top quilting shops in Virginia to purchase the needed materials, and the group went to work.
The materials to make the quilt totaled more than $200. With the quilts size and the amount of labor involved, Beale estimated the quilt is worth about $600.
Weve already covered that with the donations weve received so far, she said. Weve had people give us $50 and $100 donations. Were hoping to raise at least $1,000. Well take every little penny we can get.
Keesee, who did the quilting on the piece, said it took her about 10 hours over one-and-a-half days to complete her work on the quilt.
I have a commercial quilting machine with a 14-foot table, Keesee said. It takes an hour just to put it on the machine.
Reisch, who did the binding for the quilt, said, We just cant say no to Catherine.
The quilt is currently on display at Village Frameworks at 206 South Main Street in Culpeper, where $1 tickets for the raffle are available.
Tickets are also available from Art and Design at 145 East Davis Street, Beale said.
Beale said the raffle is scheduled to be held in late April. Details are still being ironed out on where and when the drawing will be conducted.
Anyone wishing to make a cash donation to help the tornado victims can drop checks off at the above locations as well, with checks made payable to Evergreen Baptist Church, a collection point for donations to aid the victims of the tornado.
All the checks go directly to the church, as does the cash, Beale said.
Beale said she thinks helping out is the least she can do for her former hometown.
Its hard to image that in the blink of an eye you can lose everything, she said.
Cyndi Grace could count on two hands the number of times she and Chad P. Dermyer took a lunch break at a sit-down restaurant during the four years they were partnered at the Newport News Police Department.
Instead, they bagged their meals most days, eating in their squad car. They often cut their meals midway for a traffic stop or for other police work. They shared a strong work ethic and a deep desire to make Newport News a safer city.
They bonded quickly and became inseparable, and were known on the force as Gracemyer.
Sometimes, you get lucky when you meet someone you connect with, she said, adding that they shared a similar sense of humor a cops humor and outgoing personalities.
A day after Dermyer, a Virginia State Police trooper, was fatally shot at the Greyhound bus station on the Boulevard in Richmond, Grace remembered her former partner as someone who possessed an unrelenting sense of right and wrong.
As a police officer, he was dutiful and always kept going. As a friend and partner, he was uplifting and had a genuine smile that made you feel good, Grace said.
He exemplifies everything good you would want in a partner or a son or a best friend, she said.
Others who knew Dermyer similarly recalled him as a skilled and talented law enforcement officer who had a memorable spirit.
Dermyer was a Marine Corps veteran who worked for a time at the police department in his native Jackson, Michigan.
A former Newport News police officer, he graduated from the Virginia State Police academy in 2014 and was transferred to a counterterrorism and criminal interdiction unit after working patrol in the Newport News and Hampton areas. He was married with a daughter and son.
He was a very good individual. Had his head on, squared away, said state Trooper Benjamin Canning, who graduated from the same state police academy class as Dermyer. He was going to do big things in the state police organization.
Dermyer volunteered for and was elected by his peers as the class vice president, Canning said. At the academy, he was one of the most accurate marksmen in his class and often motivated his classmates.
Canning was among several hundred civilians and law enforcement officers who turned out to a prayer vigil at Virginia Commonwealth Universitys Siegel Center on Friday organized by Richmond United for Law Enforcement and United Communities Against Crime.
Many in the audience wore navy blue to show support for police and held white roses in their laps as dignitaries from the state police, Richmond and surrounding localities expressed their condolences.
State police Maj. Lenmuel Terry talked about Dermyers public service, describing him as remarkable.
He was a great man and I cant say enough about him, he said. I ask that you remember his wife, Michelle, and his two children. Theyre a wonderful family because of him.
Mayor Dwight Jones said Dermyers death was a reminder of the risks law enforcement officers often assume.
For those of us who are not sworn officers, we get up with the expectation that we will return to our families at the end of the day. But when I look at persons who are in this audience tonight and when I think about Trooper Dermyer, I think about people who leave their houses every morning, kiss their children, kiss their wives, not knowing if they will return in the evening.
During a news conference Friday , Flaherty praised Dermyers accomplishments as an officer and noted his role in the case of Tonya Slaton.
A Hampton grand jury indicted her in February on a charge of murdering her son, who was last seen in 2004 while attending Virginia Beach Middle School. His remains were found in her trunk during a traffic stop by Dermyer last summer on Interstate 64 in Hampton. Slatons last known address was in Richmond.
Had it not been for his thoroughness and his perseverance in that stop, more than likely that case would have gone unsolved certainly for a longer period of time, Flaherty said.
Dermyer called Grace after the body was found, asking her to guess what happened. She jokingly asked if he found a dead body.
No, seriously, she said he responded.
The Newport News Police Department, where he worked from June 2003 to June 2007, posted photos of Dermyer to its Facebook page hours after his death.
Colleagues within the department have shared stories among themselves about Dermyer, recalling him as a skilled officer who always wore a smile, said Assistant Police Chief Joseph Moore.
He was the best of the best, Moore said. There was nothing bad to say about him. He was a genuinely good person.
Dermyer progressed quickly through the ranks in Newport News. Early in his time there, he was assigned to a high-impact patrol unit that consisted of five or six officers and a sergeant who were often dispatched to the highest crime areas.
Officers in that unit, Moore said, have good police instinct and skill but also a temperament such that they treat criminal suspects with the utmost respect and dignity.
Chad was the epitome of that, he said.
Newport News Police Chief Richard Myers said in a statement that Chad epitomized what we strive for at the Newport News police: a tireless pursuit in reducing crime while compassionately and humanely engaging the community as partners in improving our quality of life.
Outside of law enforcement, Dermyer focused all of his remaining attention on his family, Grace said. Some of her fondest memories with him are of being at his house and watching him go outside and play ball with his children.
He was family man, she said, who adored his wife.
He was so thankful she was his.
Doris Esteppe Norris of Roanoke, Va., passed peacefully to her Heavenly home on Wednesday, March 30, 2016. She was born on August 8, 1923, in Chattaroy, W.Va. She was preceded in death by her husband of 69 years, Lloyd Elwood Norris; as well as her parents, Trudy and Lon J. Esteppe; and brother, Jackson Esteppe.Doris remained devoted to her immediate and extended family through the years. To know her was to love, appreciate, and respect her as a very special and caring individual. Always a devout Christian woman whose strong faith was evident, she consistently reached out to others as life brought challenges as well as victories.Doris attended Hollins University and received her undergraduate and masters degree from Radford University. She was a retired counselor from the Virginia Employment Commission, was an active participant on the Mayor's committee for years, and throughout her life always remained engaged in both community and church related functions.Doris is survived by her daughter, Sybil N. Taylor and husband, Paul, of Salem, Va.; daughter, Becky N. Jones and husband, Bob, of Riner, Va.; daughter, Kathy N. Goodall and husband, Bob, of Fredericksburg, Va.; son, Paul E. Norris and wife, Melonie, of Charlotte, N.C.; sister, Iris L. Lewis of Roanoke, Va.; and her faithful friend and caregiver, Marlene Ferreira. Doris was blessed to have 10 grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; as well as devoted nieces and nephews near and far away. The Funeral Service to honor her life and memory will be held at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 5, 2016, at Oakey's South Chapel. Entombment will follow in the Chapel of Light Mausoleum at Evergreen Burial Park. The family will receive friends at Oakey's South from 1 until 2:30 p.m. preceding the service on Tuesday. Online condolences may be made at www.oakeys.com.
50% of Indian mobile users wish to upgrade to new device in 5G era
About 50 per cent of smartphone users in India plan to buy a new device within the first year as 5G ...
Travelers who booked trips through Brussels have options while the airport in the Belgian capital remains closed after last month's bombings.
Passengers whose flights on U.S. airlines are canceled can get a full refund. The airlines are also allowing passengers to rebook without paying the usual ticket-change fee, but the terms differ by carrier.
Customers who want to rebook or request a refund should call the airline rather than do it themselves online in order to avoid surprise charges or fare changes.
Once the airport reopens, it will take time for flights to build back up. British Airways says it won't fly to Brussels until Tuesday at the soonest.
The good news is that April is a slower travel time than the peak summer months, and there are seats available to many other European destinations.
Here are the latest Brussels policies for several major airlines:
Delta suggests that customers reroute to or through Paris, Amsterdam, Dusseldorf or Luxembourg. Passengers with Brussels tickets through April 18 can rebook with no penalty although the fare could be higher if they begin their rescheduled travel by April 30. Or they can cancel their reservation and apply the ticket's value toward a new ticket for one year, according to Delta's website, although they could incur change fees and higher fares.
United says it will waive change fees and any difference in fare for passengers who reschedule a Brussels flight through April 30 if the new trip follows the same route or goes to or from London, Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf or Luxembourg. For trips after April 30 and within a year of the ticket's purchase, United says it will waive change fees but the fare could increase.
American has canceled its Brussels flights through April 15. It is waiving change fees for Brussels trips that were bought before March 29 and scheduled to fly through April 22 on American, British Airways or Iberia. Passengers can rebook to or through several other European cities London's two main airports, Paris' two main airports, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, and Liege Bierset, Belgium with no change fee. In some cases, American says it will waive any change in fare as long as the passenger flies in the same class of seat covered by the original ticket.
Air France says that passengers who bought tickets to Brussels before March 23 for travel through April 18 can get a refund or rebook their trip through April 18. Rebooked travel must be completed no later than April 30.
British Airways passengers booked for Brussels flights through April 9 can claim a refund, rebook a later date at no extra charge, or pick another destination. The airline says it will operate flights to and from Liege, Belgium, through Monday.
Lufthansa has canceled flights to and from Brussels until at least Wednesday and is offering passengers flights from Munich and Frankfurt to Liege instead. It has a shuttle service between Frankfurt and Brussels. Passengers whose Brussels flights on Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Germanwings or Eurowings have not been canceled can rebook in the same class for travel before Oct. 31.
- AP
Its been an interesting week. One that can perhaps be characterised by promises, denials and lots of feel good statements from our government leaders.
Indeed, words like integrity, honesty, dignity and terms like putting people first were thrown around a lot.
Its great. Seriously.
Its the stuff we all want to hear, isnt it?
In other words, it is pretty reassuring coming at the start of a new government administration with Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi recently completing the naming of his Cabinet line up.
The first good news came from the Minister of Finance, Sili Epa Tuioti. He has apparently resigned from his previous role with a leading financial management consultancy to avoid a conflict of interest.
I had always meant to resign. Its for good governance that I do so I dont have any conflict of interest, Sala told your newspaper. I resigned the day I was sworn in and never appointed people in the position I was in.
Its not just Sala of course.
On the front page of the newspaper you are reading, the new Minister of Communications and Information Technology (M.C.I.T), Afamasaga Rico Tupai, has also washed his hands clean of a potential conflict of interest with his new role.
There is really no conflict at all in this, Afamasaga said. Through my office, it has informed all sectors and everybody they do work for, that I am no longer involved with the work (of Skylite).
I have pulled out completely in terms of position and involvement.
By the sound of things, Afamasaga is a man on a mission. And he intends to do exactly that.
I have given my oath to prioritise (and work) for the interest of the government and the general public, he declared. That is what I focus on. You can have your own interests and Skylite can have their own but an individual interest is not my main concern as my decision is based on the general needs of the public.
Well there is a good man, isnt he?
Samoa without a doubt surely needs more leaders like Afamasaga and Sili Epa. We hope all their colleagues will look to Sili and Afamasaga and follow their lead.
We say this because looking at the past, its undeniable that Cabinet Ministers, Associate Ministers, Members of Parliament and senior government officials have been known to use their positions to advance their private business interests.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is a small country. You do not need to be a rocket scientist to know there are so many cases of conflicts of interest involving Government officials who run private businesses, robbing certain sectors of the hard working business community of the opportunities they shouldve been given.
That, we repeat, is greed, pure and simple.
And in a country where the government gloats openly about being transparent and accountable, there should be no place for preferential treatment based on conflicts of interest. Which means that greed, corruption and conflicts of interest must be done away with once and for all.
The truth is simple enough.
Corruption has infiltrated our systems despite people holding positions of power and responsibility talking about honesty, good governance and making those feel good promises every day.
Naturally, one cannot help but wonder why the world including our small piece of paradise - is such a mess when leaders are saying all the right things.
Ladies and gentlemen, when we watch our leaders make them grandiose statements about integrity, dignity, honesty and putting people first, it raises our hopes.
We say this because there is so much rubbish that needs to be cleaned up. Were talking about the unresolved cases of corrupt practises staring them in the face that must be addressed.
Indeed, in Samoa today, there is an elephant in the room that must be removed.
There are also cases of abuse of power and positions that should be dealt with.
As a matter of fact, it should have been dealt with a long time ago.
Truth be told, some people holding positions of power shouldnt be occupying those positions because their characters are shot. But they cannot run forever. That much is undeniable. The past will always catch up with them somewhere, somehow.
The problem today is in that in our politics, principles are ignored. Some leaders enjoy pleasure without conscience; they want wealth without work and there are leaders who have science without humanity.
Folks, we need a new breed of leaders to be emerging.
Out there on the streets of Samoa today, there are real people with real problems screaming out for real solutions.
Suicide is real. Depression is real. Poverty is real. Hardship cannot be denied.
These problems are due to the lack of incomes, growing unemployment and children who are forced on the streets to sell whatever they could at all hours so they could provide for their families.
Ladies and gentlemen, these people need help. And they need it quickly.
What they do not need is the silly rhetoric weve become so accustomed to being fed by leaders who have become so good with words but extraordinarily poor with action. Have a peaceful Sunday Samoa, God bless!
Dear Editor,
Interesting to read Minister Tuitamas comments about the shortage of antibiotics.
Why are these antibiotics sitting on the wharf? Why are these medicine being shipped instead of flown into the country which is safer?
Why not air ship some to replenished stock incase of a delay on an ocean carrier? If the shipment is sitting at the wharf, why cant the Minister of Health order the staff on the dock to release a partial shipment so the hospital can administer the drug to people who are in need?
A government that claims to own its own ocean freight carrier but would not do anything to ease the stress of its people is beyond anybody with a sense of moral. This party is setting themselves and families to benefit from these operations well beyond their lifetime.
This party is ensuring Samoa will not have any middle class. More sign of us sinking into poverty regardless of how many new infrastructure are being built.
All these new infrastructure will be accessible only by the rich and members of this party along with all their families. The poor will be chase and discarded as non-existence by these folks.
Sad future on the rise for our great Island Nation.
L.M.S.
Dear Editor,
What happens if tourism doesnt take off due to factors such as global economic slowdown because of low oil prices that most likely wont recover as developed nations move slowly and stubbornly towards green energy?
What happens when more and more potential tourists start to look seriously at their carbon footprints and decide to reduce or eliminate air travel because of its impact on climate change?
This is happening PS Jeffrey. Right now Australia is in a bit of a slow down as is Canada, China, the US and etc....How will the 2% loan get paid if there are no tourists for the next 10, 20, 30 years, or ever? No brainier. LAND!!!
But of course the Chinese arent interested in land! Something tells me you havent travelled much PS Jeffrey. I think Australia has passed laws preventing foreign investors, the Chinese, from buying all their land and leaving it sitting empty, thus raising land prices so average Australians cant afford their land anymore and Canada is in the process of debating whether to pass similar laws for the same reason.
Its hard to pass laws in countries wishing to protect land for its citizens when it operates under a British private property model. Its controversial because of free market, land value crap and the taboo the elites brainwash regular people to believe that its wrong to interfere in the free market system, principles which benefits only them.
So if youre not already being dictated to by this model believe me dont jump into it so blindly as you seem to want to do. What makes you think that a country with over a billion people, and that hold trillions of dollars in US government bonds, so they have money to buy what they want, who needs to find their people employment and land, would not be interested in nice fertile land like Samoa?
China has always operated for the long term and it knows that their people will get real hungry over the next 50 years? Wake up and smell the coffee while Samoa still owns their land to grow some.
Samoa is the only place in the world that has the opportunity to protect land ownership and keep it the hands of the Samoan people through customary land laws. Look around. Private property ownership based on the British system has never benefited one indigenous culture nor is it now benefiting the descendants of the colonizers who were middle or lower class.
Land, as in the original British aristocracy model, will again be only in the hands of the elite and right now China is buying up all the land all over the world. Why are you so eager to give Samoa up to the new Chinese aristocracy operating under a British monarchist model of land ownership when you are the only country in the position to hang on to your land because of customary land laws. Go speak to some indigenous Hawaiians if you dont believe me.
Ask them how they feel about the British private property land laws that have taken their land from them. You would be better off spending your time and using your education helping those Matai who are trying to prevent your PM from giving away what rightfully belongs to the Samoan people-Samoa!
In addition for the Samoan government to allow foreign labour into the country to build anything while so many Samoan people are unemployed and begging on the streets and young Samoans are graduating from school but have no jobs to go to this is not a good economic plan no matter how much you try to spin that it is.
Sorry PS Jeffrey, that is a no brainier and on those grounds alone the PM and his HRPP government should be tossed out of office because they are not serving the people of Samoa but rather they are serving themselves.
One other thing to consider, when Im a tourist and thinking of where to travel not once have I made my decision on where to go because of the look of the destination airport. Samoa has so much more to offer as a tourist destination I doubt people would not come because they can only come on Friday or Tuesday to a simple airport.
Finally, cost of airfare might be a factor for a tourist but right now I pay the same to get to NZ from Canada as I do to fly to Samoa and last I looked Auckland had a pretty fancy airport, so it seems nice airport doesnt necessarily mean cheaper airfare.
More and more tourists are traveling by cruise ship now anyway because the only people that have any money for travel are old people who bought their land a long time ago in developed countries and they prefer cruise ships over planes. Young people in developed countries cant afford to travel anymore because they are paying astronomical rents to all the Chinese landlords in their home countries. Is that what you want for Samoa?
Wendy Wonder
Being a young man with responsibilities that include being a husband, father while studying medicine is no easy task but Raymond Poe Laulu has overcome the odds.
Married to Helen Tuitagaloa Laulu, the 24-year-old father of Karl James Laulu, of Apia has graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, capping off a tough journey thats taken six challenging years.
Dr. Laulu was among the Medical students who graduated during the N.U.S graduation on Friday.
I never really knew how tough it was until I started my clinical stage, Dr. Laulu recalled. Ideally everything was fine in our pre-clinical years which is just studying, long hours in the library but we never really knew what medicine was truly about until we started up in the hospital.
We were bombarded by our senior supervisors during our ward rounds about certain questions and thats where it really hit me that I need to take a step back.
It showed me that I really didnt know as much as I thought I knew back at school, and then it really pushed us all to keep on studying.
There is also more to life than studying.
I initially started my journey as a single man but I met my wife in medical school who is a year behind me. We had our child while I was starting my clinical years and it was quite tough, he said.
Managing to get up early in the morning to be there before my seniors and also at the same time making sure I dont neglect my fatherly duties was tough especially when certain family issues came up. I had to try and balance whether or not I should come to work these days or to stay home and help Helen with baby.
But the weight was happily shared by his loved ones. Family members who simply baby sat - including his father Karl Snr and mother Kukuana Laulu - when needed and those showed unlimited amounts of support. Looking back, Dr. Laulu says that although the journey has been challenging, it has been worth it.
First and foremost I would like to acknowledge our Heavenly Father who is the source of all knowledge and strength and I wouldnt be here today without him, he said. Secondly is my family; My mom, dad, wife, son, brother (and his small family), uncles, aunties, and not forgetting my grandmothers Laufa Eli and Lave Laulu.
They molded me into the man I am today and I couldnt have done anything without them. Without them all I wouldnt have been able to graduate and serve the Samoan people.
My family sacrificed a lot to make sure I stayed on track with graduating on time and I have finally reached that goal. They made my workload so much easier.
According to the young doctor, this line of work requires a lot of time management and nothing can be left to be done at a later time.
As doctors we are required to always be there because we are dealing with peoples lives, he said. We cant just say I have to go quickly and check up on this family issue at home. Things can change real quickly and the value of human life is really important.
Whether it be the non stop reading requirements or the hassle of translating medical terms into Samoan, Dr. Laulu toughed it out through it all with his wife by his side.
In order to be a competent doctor it requires a lot of reading, there are so many disease processes that are linked to just one disease.
In the six years that I have been in medicine, I can say that I dont even know half of what I could know.
Dr. Laulu is just happy that he can take a small break from the sleepless nights.
Sometimes I would come home late and I would be too tired to eat so Id go straight to bed and then wake up the next morning at 6:30 and then repeat that cycle, he said. If Im lucky I would get 6 7 hours but even when Im lucky the little guy would take some of that sleep time away especially when hes sick.
But none of it compares to what my wife took on to make sure I got some rest. She dealt with a lot of sleepless nights too.
Asked about his future plans, Dr. Laulu is just anxious to start helping people.
The immediate future plans are to complete some paper work so I could start working straight away but hopefully I would be able to further my education, he said. Im interested in covering areas where our hospital is really lacking right now which will probably be in the emergency department.
I just want to be able to help the people; even if they do not need any medical care and just someone to talk to I would be happy to help in that way too. Thats all part of what a doctor does.
According to Dr. Laulu, being able to help someone is the most rewarding feeling.
After tending to a patient and I see them later when theyre all better with a smile on their face walking with family. That sight is payment enough for me. The only thing that counts is being able to help people in need.
The Office of the American Samoa Attorney General has launched an investigation into reports about a warrant of arrest for the Minister of Justice and Courts Administration, Fa'aolesa Katopau Ainuu.
This was confirmed by the Attorney General for American Samoa, Talauega Eleasalo Ale, during a telephone interview with the Sunday Samoan.
The territorys top lawyer was responding to questions from the Samoa Observer in relation to a report in American Samoas Samoa News about the warrant.
Talauega said he hasnt seen the warrant.
I dont know if its a warrant or whatever the document is, he said. (We) will definitely look into it. This is something that happened before I came into office.
A copy of the warrant obtained by the Sunday Samoan shows that it was issued by the American Samoa Attorney Generals office in 2008, containing a number of allegations. It was signed by Associate Justice John L. Ward, during the time of Fepuleai Arthur Ripley as the Attorney General.
Im not sure of the detailsits been looked at and someone is following it up, Talauega said. He added that an email with questions about the issue from the Samoa Observer has been passed on to the criminal division to look through it for information.
I dont have any information to give to you at this point.
Asked for a comment on Thursday, Faaolesa, the M.P for Vaimauga West, said he was unaware about the warrant. He asked to have a copy of the document before he could comment.
Emails sent to Faaolesa for a comment were not responded to at press time.
But according to Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, the report about the warrant surprised the Minister.
I have spoken with the Minister who is shocked about it, said Tuilaepa.
He said he has contacted his lawyer in American Samoa who is also shocked about it. (From what Ive been told) the matter had been resolved long time ago but it has been dug up again.
A man, who only wants to be identified as Valea has blamed the National Health Services (N.H.S) board for the recent shortage of Amoxicillin Suspension and Augmentin Suspension from the hospitals pharmacy.
Referring to the situation as putting peoples lives at risk, Valea said the composition of the Board renders them vulnerable when it comes to pharmaceutical matters.
If you look at the N.H.S Board, there is no one person with specialized knowledge about pharmaceutical matters sitting on it, he said.
I find this surprising given the importance of getting the right information about the medication thats being brought into Samoa.
Valea is a government official who contacted the Sunday Samoan to raise his concerns because he wants to avoid a repeat of the shortage.
The next time something like this happens it might have deadly consequences, he said.
I truly believe the Chairman of the Pharmacy Council should be sitting on that board. There should also be a member of the Dental Association on it.
If you look at it, both representatives are absent which doesnt make sense. It's worrying in fact.
The Chairman of the Pharmacy Council is Lemalu Mathew Mualia.
Contacted for a comment by the Sunday Samoan, he declined.
But Valea said the shortage was the result of the failure of the Board.
Its a very serious matter, he said. It has everything to do with the failure of procurement process which does not reflect well on the Board.
I blame the Board because the procurement process should be their priority.
Last week, the Minister of Health, Tuitama Dr. Talalelei Tuitama, rejected reports that the shortage was the result of a debt owed by the Ministry.
There was an official announcement on TV to correct this matter, he said.
But Valea is not convinced.
He claims that the shortage was the result of the N.H.Ss budget being blown and that the Health official who spoke about the debt was telling the truth.
Valea added that from what he knows, Samoas alleged debt to the suppliers of medication could be as high as $500,000.
"In an ideal world there would be no need for the Samoa Victims Support Group. In an ideal world there would be no need for the Ray of Hope Foundation, in an ideal world we would all have perfect families.
Unfortunately, we do not live in an ideal world.
With these words, the Chairman of the Ray of Hope Foundation, Pepe Fiaailetoa Fruean, presented the Ray of Hope house dream, founded out of the outpouring of love from musician friends of the late Raymond Fruean, after his untimely death.
Prime Minister and Ray of Hope Foundation Patron, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, officially handed over the Ray of Hope House to the Samoa Victims Support Group in order to house pregnant teenage victims of sexual violence and incest.
Since 2007, 92 young girls who were victims of sexual violence and incest have needed S.V.S.G support during a time of emotional and physical distress in their lives, said Pepe.
For these girls S.V.S.G has been their shining light and pillar of hope during a time when even their own families had deserted them.
Today the Ray of Hope Foundation has lent its shoulder to assist S.V.S.G in their work of rebuilding the lives of these young girls and giving them a Ray of Hope to rebuild their young lives and look towards a positive future.
The Ray of Hope house was built to accommodate up to 18 pregnant teenage victims and their trained caregiver.
A medical consultation room has been included for onsite consultations by volunteer medical professionals.
During the S.I.D.S conference in September 2014 the Ray of Hope Concert was organised by Brotha D, Andy Murane of Dawn Raid in partnership with Digicel to raise funds with the proceeds donated to S.V.S.G.
The Ray of Hope concert raised $100,000 towards the cause. The concert coincided with Digicel owner, Denis OBriens trip participation at the SI.D.S private sector forum. Upon hearing about the fundraising effort for such a worthy cause, Mr. OBrien donated a further $300,000 towards the project and challenged The Ray of Hope to use the money to make a difference.
The Ray of Hope Foundation was created as a vehicle to implement an infrastructure project and provide the necessary governance to ensure that the donors generosity would achieve its noble objectives of making a difference.
After engaging Samoa Victims Support Group, the Ray of Hope Foundation decided that there was a pressing need to build a house of refuge and sanctuary; a Ray of Hope house for the young pregnant victims and set about putting together the project to make the dream a reality.
At the time, a lot of the young pregnant victims were in the larger general dormitories at S.V.S.G with limited access to specialised antenatal medical care, counselling and private rooms.
For Siliniu Lina Chang and the S.V.S.G, the Ray of Hope house is a dream come true.
Every day the Ray of Hope house had only been just a dream, she said.
To see this dream become a reality is amazing, what more could we ask God for? This is something that you can cry and think about, emotionally looking at that place, the young girls and their heart breaking stories.
I hope one day we might be able to let Samoa know the positive results of this labour of love. As a result of good medical attention, counselling, comfort, a safe and secure environment of the Ray of Hope house, the girls are put in a positive place to help them to rebuild their lives.
Moving forward the Ray of Hope Foundation with the strong support of Digicel, will continue to call upon the Corporate community and development partners to take up the funding challenge of ensuring the long term sustainability of the Ray of Hope house. In addition, the Ray of Hope Foundation will continue to raise community awareness of these serious social issues impacting our society and provide advocacy and voice for the young victims.
About Ray of Hope Foundation
Established March 2015
Patron
Hon. Auelua Fatialofa Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi
Trustees
Salausa Dr. John Ah Ching Associate Minister of Health.
Sua Hellene Wallwork Partner for Wallwork Lamb Lawyers.
Suluimalo Amataga Penaia C.E.O of M.N.R.E.
Seugamaalii Jammie Saena Managing Director for S.W.A
Kristabelle Westurlund Cowley . Farmer Joe & Ah Liki Group
Leaupepe Talai Lene Digicel Samoa.
Pepe Fiaailetoa Fruean Digicel Samoa Chairman.
The Minister of Communications and Information and Technology (M.C.I.T), Afamasaga Rico Tupai, has denied that a conflict of interest exists with his business interests and his new role in the telecommunication sector.
Responding to questions from the Sunday Samoan in light of his appointment, the new Minister has assured that he is not letting anything get in the way of performing his duties.
That includes Afamasaga stepping away from Skylite Productions, a production company co-owned by Afamasaga, which does a lot of work with Digicel in Samoa and around the region.
As the Minister of Communications, Afamasaga is also responsible for the Office of the Regulator, which deals with disputes between the major telecommunication competitors, Digicel and Bluesky.
There is really no conflict at all in this, Afamasaga said. Through my office, it has informed all sectors and everybody they do work for, that I am no longer involved with the work (of Skylite). According to Afamasaga there are managers who are running the company. I have pulled out completely in terms of position and involvement.
But in the circumstances where Skylite is involved, the M.P for Aana Alofi No.3 has his way of dealing with it. While he made reference to other M.Ps who are also in that circle of running businesses, Afamsaga said he takes his oath seriously.
I have made my oath to prioritise (and work) for the interest of the government and the general public, he said.
That is what I focus on. You can have your own interests and Skylite can have their own but an individual interest is not my main concern as my decision is based on the general needs of the public.
With just less than a month into his new line of work, Afamasaga has set his priorities for the next five years.
One of it is to have the multimillion submarine cable up and running by June next year.
The Minister says the cost of internet is expensive and that needs to change.
The current costs are tying up a lot of people including the private sector and the government.
That hasnt helped our economy in terms of development in education, health, especially our grassroot level in schools, he said.
The Minister said that once the cable is established, it will have a positive impact on education in the rural villages who are being suppressed from developing because of not being able to access the internet.
Afamasaga and his Associate Minister, Lealailepule Rimoni Aiafi, were officially welcomed by Bluesky on Friday during an ava ceremony.
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
Tammy Ferguson, the longtime Blanchard Community Library bookkeeper, pleaded guilty Wednesday to charges related to the embezzlement of almost $500,000 from the publicly funded library.
Ferguson, 55 of Santa Paula, pleaded guilty to a felony count of misappropriation of public funds, and a felony count of falsifying public accounts; she also admitted a special allegation that she took more than $200,000.
According to a District Attorneys Office press release, The anticipated sentence is four years in state prison and an order to pay $499,254 in restitution, to the library Ferguson worked for from 1993 to 2013.
If she had gone to trial and been convicted on the charges Ferguson could have received a maximum sentence of 12 years four months in a state prison. As it is even with several charges dismissed in the plea deal Ferguson could be sentenced to a maximum term of seven years instead of a reduced sentence of four years.
I think justice has been served, said BCL Director Ned Branch who attended court Wednesday with several library board members and supporters.
Im pleased that we dont have to go through a long trial that could drag out for a couple of years before we saw some sort of resolution.
Ferguson was arrested in October following an investigation that lasted for more than two years.
Said Branch, I think given that this was resolved at such an early stage, in the trial process, I think the District Attorneys office did well to get what they got this early and not having to wait until the day before an actual trial.
Ferguson was fired from the library on May 30, 2013, after a BCL trustee visited a bank where a hefty Certificate of Deposit had been listed on financial reports prepared by Fergusonthe trustee was told there was no such account.
In the last 10 years of her employment Ferguson worked as the librarys financial officer and allegedly used her library credit card to make personal purchases, transfer library funds to her personal credit cards, and withdraw cash from various ATMs $500 at a time on regular basis using the librarys debit card.
Although she was charged with embezzling almost $500,000, library officials believe it was much more, but due to a bank merger and the lack of financial records only the period of 2006 to 2013 could be traced.
A heat wave moving through the Bay Area next week could bring record highs with temperatures predicted to reach the 90s in parts of the region, forecasters said.
Saturday will bring conditions in the mid-60s in San Francisco, and then the warm up should peak on Wednesday, said Mark Strudley, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service in Monterey.
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A missing woman and her young daughter, who have been linked to Stanislav Petrov, a man under investigation by the FBI, were found safe and unharmed Saturday.
After a search that began Friday, Dana Rinta, 23, and her 17-month-old daughter, Scarlett, were found in good shape and are currently speaking with (the) SFPD, Officer Albie Esparza, a San Francisco police spokesman, said in an email sent shortly before 7 p.m.
Rinta walked into the police station with her daughter and reported that they were not missing, Esparza said. They are doing fine and are unharmed.
The pair were reported missing Friday by Rintas mother under what police described as suspicious circumstances after having last been seen March 14.
According to police, Rinta had a relationship with Petrov, 29, an auto theft suspect who was recorded being beaten by Alameda County sheriffs deputies in a Mission District alley in November after a high-speed chase that began in Castro Valley.
There is a relationship between the missing person and Petrov, Esparza said early Saturday afternoon, although he declined to say what that relationship was. They know each other.
The FBI and San Francisco police raided Petrovs Visitacion Valley residence on Teddy Avenue near San Bruno Avenue on Friday, hours after a man was shot and critically wounded on the street outside the house.
Petrov was booked into jail and is expected in court Monday. The complaint against him was sealed, and no further information about the reason for his arrest has been released.
In multiple photos on his Facebook page, Petrov is shown posing with a stack of what appear to be $100 bills. Other photos show guns, bullets, fancy cars and gold jewelry. Gold Ru$h, reads a photo collage of Petrovs accessories, including a crucifix and watch.
Petrov has had multiple run-ins with the police, including the November incident where police spotted him in a stolen car in Castro Valley and gave chase.
Two Alameda County deputies were placed on paid leave after a surveillance video was released showing one of them punching Petrov while the other struck Petrov in the head with his baton. In the clip, Petrov was on his knees, screaming for help. The officers contended that Petrov rammed two patrol cars and led deputies on a chase, indicating that he was dangerous.
The beating sparked an internal investigation by Alameda County Sheriff Gregory Ahern. The incident is also being investigated by San Francisco police and the San Francisco district attorney.
Last week, Michael Haddad, a civil rights attorney, filed a claim against Alameda County on behalf of Petrov, alleging the deputies used excessive force. The claim also contends that a third deputy stole a medallion, gold chain and cash from Petrov to bribe some homeless witnesses for their silence.
Lizzie Johnson is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: ljohnson@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LizzieJohnsonnn
With a new group of San Francisco police officers accused of exchanging racist and homophobic text messages, the citys criminal justice leaders are fighting again, this time over whether police properly notified prosecutors and defense attorneys of the texts last year and that they might harm officers credibility as they testify against crime suspects in court.
San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi called for an independent probe into how the notification was made, saying Friday that the issue had great ramifications because the implicated officers probably provided evidence that contributed to convictions evidence that may now be tainted.
Adachis concern revolves around the landmark 1963 Supreme Court ruling in Brady vs. Maryland, which requires prosecutors to give the defense any potentially favorable evidence, including when there is either evidence of police misconduct or bias, the public defender said.
If the district attorney had this information in September, as the chief has said, they would have failed in their duty to provide the evidence under Brady vs. Maryland, Adachi said. I know there hasnt been a good relationship lately between the Police Department and the district attorneys office, but youd think with something like this, both would be motivated to notify the other.
Battle between SFPD, D.A.
The investigation that led to the discovery of the messages and their public disclosure Thursday began in August, when a woman reported she had been sexually assaulted by Taraval Station Officer Jason Lai.
District Attorney George Gascon said his office only learned of the text messages last week while preparing to charge Lai. The officer was charged with misusing police databases but was not accused of rape.
However, Police Chief Greg Suhr said he he took swift action when he learned of offensive text messages exchanged among four officers, suspending the officers in October and notifying prosecutors of their discovery.
We repeatedly notified your office of the existence of the text messages on September 21, 2015, October 6, 2015, November 2, 2015, and in January 2016, Suhr said in a pointed letter he wrote Thursday to Gascon, with whom his officers have been engaged in a bitter and public battle over issues including the district attorneys efforts to reform the police force and the citys spike in property crime.
Gascon fired back with his own letter Friday, saying the notifications made by police were regarding the broader criminal investigation into Lai, and made no mention of racist or antigay texts discovered during that probe.
I am hopeful that any future incidents that jeopardize the fair administration of justice will be disclosed from the outset to both myself and the public, Gascon wrote. Such misconduct does an extraordinary amount of damage to the public trust andthe already strained relations between police and the communities they are sworn to protect. Delaying disclosure of such misconduct only adds to the current climate of distrust.
The text messages, which allegedly included use of the racial slur n and antigay remarks, were exchanged among at least four officers, police said, three of whom were identified as Lai, Officer Keith Ybarreta and Lt. Curtis Liu, who retired after being accused of obstructing the rape inquiry.
Three more officers were found in an internal affairs investigation to have received questionable text messages from Lai, but did not respond, Suhr said. He said each of the four officers who were directly implicated faces either termination proceedings or has already left the force.
Dismissing criminal cases
Gascon said the messages were exchanged on the officers personal phones, but that it had not been determined if the texts were sent and received while the officers were on duty. He said there were dozens of messages in which the use of the n-word is very prevalent, and that the messages mocked the public outcry around an earlier racist-texting scandal in the police force.
The new messages came to light a year after a separate batch of bigoted texts allegedly exchanged in 2012 among 14 additional officers became public in a federal corruption case.
Those messages prompted the district attorneys office to dismiss 13 criminal cases and review 4,000 arrests to make sure the officers biases didnt infect their actions. Gascons office has launched a similar review of the new set of officers.
Adachi said he is also delving into cases that might involve the newly implicated officers. He asked the district attorneys office to give him a list of all arrests the officers made in the past 10 years, as well as police reports, complaints of misconduct or statements made by those officers that could be relevant to their credibility or bias.
Officials handling of the earlier texting scandal was also controversial. In December, a San Francisco Superior Court judge ruled that the Police Department could not fire or discipline the officers most of whom remain with the force because it had waited too long to take action.
Suhr said the department was ordered not to take disciplinary action in deference to the federal corruption investigation, and the city is appealing the ruling.
He said that when confronted with the more recent text messages, he took immediate action, leaving no question about whether it fit within the one-year statute of limitations set for disciplinary cases under the states Peace Officer Bill of Rights.
This isnt something that happened on March 31 or even in 2016, Suhr told The Chronicle on Thursday. When this happened in August, it got dealt with and this is the way its going to go every time.
Learning of text messages
Gascon said his prosecutors only learned of the text messages while going through 5,000 pages of evidence in the criminal case against Lai.
In his letter to Gascon, though, Suhr said investigators provided the district attorneys office with criminal investigative materials, including the text messages, on Sept. 21. He said the text messages were included when police sent prosecutors the criminal case files against one officer on Oct. 6, and again when they sent a case against another officer on Nov. 2.
For you to suggest that you discovered the text messages through your own criminal investigation would be disingenuous, Suhr wrote in the letter, which his office distributed to the media. This is not new information as our offices have been working closely on this case with at least three members of your staff to ensure the fair administration of justice.
Suhr said police also made formal notifications required under the Brady vs. Maryland ruling. The police force and the district attorneys office both have units dedicated to handling that information, and Suhr said his unit contacted Gascons unit in October and January.
Gascon wrote in his letter that the information police provided to prosecutors made no mention of questionable text messages. In fact, he said, prosecutors did not receive a copy of text messages sent from Lius phone until March 17.
Unintentional violations
As for the Brady notifications, Gascon said, Pursuant to SFPD policy, we are not provided any additional information as to the underlying conduct which prompted (the polices Brady) review. As a result, there was no notice that the Brady implications stemmed from an administrative investigation into explicit bias by these officers.
Suhr said Friday that he believes the departments Brady unit notified prosecutors of both the broader criminal investigation and the text messages, but said he could not confirm the detail with investigators in that unit until Monday.
Rory Little, a former federal prosecutor who is a professor of law at UC Hastings, said a flagrant disregard for Brady notifications can result in court sanctions.
The issue of how quickly should a lawyer for one government agency give things to another and how quickly should another act on it, thats a whole different issue thats a question of good government, Little said. My experience is that most Brady violations are unintentional. Most cases of Brady violations that I have seen have involved bureaucratic mix-ups or government incompetence.
Vivian Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: vho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @VivianHo
Medical testing done by closely watched startup Theranos was plagued by quality-control problems that could have led to inaccurate results for patients, according to an inspection report.
Among other findings in the 121-page report, released late Thursday by federal regulators, the company used unqualified or inadequately trained personnel and stored samples in freezers that were not at the proper temperature. It also failed to ensure that the quality control for an important blood-clotting test was acceptable before reporting results for patients.
The report is from an inspection last fall of Theranos laboratory in Newark by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which regulates clinical laboratories. Failure to correct the problems would put that laboratory in danger of losing its certification.
Brooke Buchanan, a spokeswoman for Theranos, said the company had revamped its procedures.
Weve made mistakes in the past, she said in an email, but when the company was made aware of the deficiencies we have dedicated every resource to remedy those failures.
Privately held Theranos has become known for its claim of being able to perform numerous medical tests using only a finger prick of blood. Its founder, a 32-year-old Stanford dropout named Elizabeth Holmes, has graced various magazine covers and is a billionaire on paper.
But news reports have raised questions about whether Theranos can do what it says it can.
Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai published the first independent assessment of Theranos this week, finding that the company produced more irregular results than two more conventional laboratories.
The new inspection report followed a much shorter one released by federal regulators in January, which cited Theranos for various deficiencies, including one that posed immediate jeopardy to patient health and safety.
The new report is revealing, because it contains data from Theranos internal testing. However, some of the data is redacted to protect what Theranos views as its confidential information, making it difficult in some cases to tell what test is being referred to and whether the testing was done using proprietary technology or machines that Tharanos bought from suppliers like Siemens.
Perhaps the most serious findings involve a test of blood clotting used on patients who take the blood thinner warfarin. Too much warfarin can lead to internal bleeding and too little can leave a patient with an increased risk of a stroke. Theranos executives have acknowledged that this was the test cited for the immediate jeopardy to patients.
The new report says that some equipment for this test was run numerous times without obtaining acceptable quality control. Yet results were provided to patients. The document said that a review of the results from April to September of last year found that 81 of 81 reported final patient results were not accurate.
Theranos also provided some results of vitamin B12 tests to patients, despite warnings that quality control was off.
The report contained what appeared to be comparisons between results from Theranos proprietary technology and results on the same samples from conventional equipment. It notes that the results should have been within 20 percent of one another.
But for one test, the results differed by 21 to 130 percent based on nine random samples. For another, the difference ranged from 21 to 39 percent, and for a third it ranged from 22 to 146 percent. The things that were measured in these tests were redacted.
The document also contains the companys responses to the findings. Time and again the company wrote: The lab has completed an assessment to identify any patients affected or having the potential to be affected by this issue.
But it is not clear from the document how many patients were affected and what they were told.
When unregulated food is sold around the world in markets, grocery stores and online, it puts consumers at risk.
Sometimes, rotting food is treated with chemicals to make it appear fresher. Other times, food is labeled as a high-quality product or a name brand when it is in fact adulterated with fillers or is another type of food altogether.
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Liquor store robbery yields 2nd suspect
TROY A second person was arrested in the Feb. 27 armed robbery of Bob DeMeo's Wine and Liquor.
Justin Walker, 20, was arrested about 7:15 a.m. Thursday at the Griswold Heights Apartments where he lives, Capt. Dan DeWolf said. Walker was charged with felony robbery, arraigned in City Court and sent to Rensselaer County Jail.
Anton Gumbs, 25, of Southern Boulevard, Albany, was arrested March 9 and arraigned March 25 in Rensselaer County Court on two counts of robbery, a count of criminal use of a firearm and grand larceny, all felonies, in connection with the robbery, District Attorney Joel Abelove said. Gumbs was jailed without bail.
Police said Gumbs pulled a gun and held it to the 501 Campbell Ave. store owner's head, demanding money. Gumbs allegedly fled DeMeo's with about $6,000 taken in the robbery, authorities said.
Cops accuse women of carrying cocaine
MALTA Two Vermont women were charged with felony cocaine possession after State Police said they caught them with 54 grams of the narcotic after a traffic stop Tuesday on the Northway.
Lindsay A. Landon, 24, and Caitlynn M. Duval, 21, were taken into custody after troopers said they found a small amount of cocaine after stopping the Pontiac Landon was driving on the highway.
Once the two Middlebury women were at the State Police barracks in Malta, troopers said they found them with 54 grams of powder cocaine.
Landon and Duval were charged with felony and misdemeanor drug possession as well as a felony count of criminal possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell.
Both women were arraigned in Malta Town Court and sent to the Saratoga County jail on $20,000 bail, troopers said.
Police: Knife used in two holdups
SCHENECTADY City police said they arrested a 47-year-old city man on robbery charges after he allegedly held up two gas stations with a knife.
Christopher A. Bell was accused of pulling heists on March 27 at the Citgo gas station, 1605 Broadway, and March 12 at the Sunoco gas station, 127 Erie Blvd.
Bell also was charged with weapons possession and petit larceny. He was arraigned Friday and sent to the Schenectady County jail without bail.
Assault suspects turns himself in
AMSTERDAM The suspect wanted for assaulting a woman earlier this week in Amsterdam turned himself in to Schenectady police Friday and is in custody, Amsterdam Detective Sgt. Thomas Hennessy said.
Michael Donyell Norwood, 39, was to be arraigned in Amsterdam City Court on charges of felony assault and endangering the welfare of a child.
The victim is in critical condition at Albany Medical Center, Hennessy said.
Police: Woman stole Amazon package
A Clifton Park woman took a package delivered by Amazon from a home in town and gave some of the contents as Christmas presents, State Police said.
Troopers investigated for almost four months before arresting Jennifer Knapp, 36, on Thursday.
A package from Amazon.com containing three tablets valued at approximately $300 was delivered Dec. 2 to a Clifton Park address, police said.
Knapp still had one tablet and admitted she gave the other two as Christmas presents, State Police said.
She was charged with criminal possession of stolen property, a misdemeanor, and is due to appear in court April 7.
LPN accused of patient abuse
ARGYLE A licensed practical nurse is accused of repeatedly pushing a rehabilitation facility patient into a chair and calling him vulgar names, Washington County authorities said Thursday.
Karen Robison, 52, of Salem was charged Tuesday with felony endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person, according to Sheriff Jeffrey J. Murphy.
Robison also showed the incident to a friend while video chatting on her cell phone and turning the camera on the patient, officials said.
Robison was ordered to appear in court on April 12 and the case is being forwarded to the District Attorney's Office for review, possible grand jury action and possible additional charges, authorities said.
Pedestrian, 82, struck in Saratoga
SARATOGA SPRINGS An 82-year-old pedestrian sustained injuries throughout his body early Friday, when he was hit by a vehicle at Ballston Avenue and Finley Street, police said.
The victim, Carlos Tripp of Saratoga Springs, was struck by a car driven by Cody Gatzendorfer, 21, of Ballston Spa while crossing Ballston Avenue at around 2 a.m., city police said. Tripp was taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital and was expected to survive, police said.
Alcohol is not believed to have contributed to the accident, though police said it remains under investigation.
Ballston accident victim dies
BALLSTON A man from Greenfield Center died from injuries sustained in an accident last week on State Route 50 in Ballston, the Saratoga County Sheriff's Office said Friday.
Sheriff's deputies responded to the accident at around 3:30 p.m. March 25. An investigation revealed a Lincoln Continental being driven south by John E. Duane, 55, crossed into the northbound lane of Route 50 and struck a Kia sedan operated by Richard Madarassy, 68, of Glenville, and a Chevrolet Tahoe operated by Maria Huggins, 69, of Scotia, according to police.
Duane was flown to Albany Medical Center Hospital with serious injuries. He died from his injuries on Thursday, the sheriff's office said. Huggins was injured and taken to Saratoga Hospital for treatment.
Staff reports
CHICAGO The first major research of its kind shows that cholesterol-lowering statins can prevent heart attacks and strokes in a globally diverse group of older people who dont have heart disease.
The results bolster recommendations in recent guidelines on who should consider taking the drugs.
The aim was to prevent heart problems using a statin alone, blood pressure drugs or a combination of the two. The three approaches are commonly used in high risk patients or those with evidence of heart disease. The patients in the study did not have heart disease and faced lower risks of developing it, and the statin approach worked best.
The research involved nearly 13,000 men and women from 21 countries on six continents. Most previous studies on heart disease prevention have been in white, North American patients with higher risks because of high blood pressure, unhealthy cholesterol levels or other conditions.
But with heart disease a leading global killer, causing 18 million deaths each year, there is a trend toward recommending preventive drug treatment to more borderline patients.
The benefits of this strategy were seen in people from every part of the world, said study co-author Dr. Salim Yusuf, a professor of medicine at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. This is globally applicable.
The research was published online Saturday in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at an American College of Cardiology meeting in Chicago.
Study sites included Canada, Europe, China, South America and South Africa. About 20 percent of patients were white.
Patients were at moderate risk because of age men were 55 and older and women were at least age 60 and because they had another heart disease risk factor, including obesity, family history or smoking. On average, their cholesterol levels were nearly normal and blood pressure was slightly lower than the cutoff for high blood pressure, which is 140 over 90.
They were randomly assigned to receive one of the treatments in low doses or dummy pills for almost six years. The drug treatments all reduced cholesterol and blood pressure levels but other results varied.
Statin-only patients were about 25 percent less likely to have fatal or nonfatal heart-related problems than those given dummy pills. Those in the combined drug group fared slightly better and the researchers credit the statin for the benefit.
Patients on statins had slightly more muscle pain or weakness known statin side effects, than those on dummy pills. Statin patients also had slightly more cataract surgeries but the researchers said it isnt known if the drug played a role.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- President Obama talked about global security from the Nuclear Security Summit in his weekly address.
He discussed the global effort the U.S. had been leading to secure the worlds nuclear materials and said that by working with other nations, the international community had removed or secured enough nuclear material for more than 150 nuclear weaponsmaterial that will now never fall into the hands of terrorists.
"All of South America is now free of these deadly materials," he said. "Central Europe and Southeast Asia are on track to be free of them later this year. That means that as terrorists and criminal gangs look around for the deadly ingredients for a nuclear device, vast regions of the world are now off limits."
President Obama stressed that it was continuing to be a difficult fight, but officials were working hard to protect Americans at home.
Read the president's full address:
Hi, everybody. This week, Im speaking to you from our Nuclear Security Summit. I welcomed more than 50 leaders from around the world to make sure were working together to meet one of the greatest threats to global securityterrorists getting their hands on a weapon of mass destruction, like a nuclear weapon.
Fortunately, because of our efforts so far, no terrorist group has yet succeeded in obtaining a nuclear device or producing a dirty bomb using radioactive materials. But we know that al Qaeda has tried. ISIL has already used chemical weapons in Syria and Iraq. And if they ever got hold of a nuclear weapon or nuclear material, we have no doubt theyd use it.
Thats why weve been leading a global effort to secure the worlds nuclear materials. And with summits like this, weve made important progress. Working with other nations, we have removed or secured enough nuclear material for more than 150 nuclear weaponsmaterial that will now never fall into the hands of terrorists.
All of South America is now free of these deadly materials. Central Europe and Southeast Asia are on track to be free of them later this year. That means that as terrorists and criminal gangs look around for the deadly ingredients for a nuclear device, vast regions of the world are now off limits. This is a remarkable achievement. And at this summit, we pledged to keep up our efforts to prevent the worlds most deadly networks from obtaining the worlds most deadly weapons.
Our summit was also another opportunity to make sure the world remains united and focused on destroying ISIL. A majority of the nations who came here are part of our global coalition against ISIL. A number of our countries have been targeted by ISIL. Just about all our nations have seen citizens travel to join ISIL in Syria and Iraq.
In Syria and Iraq, ISIL continues to lose ground. Our coalition continues to take out its leaders, including those planning terrorist attacks against our countries. Theyre losing their oil infrastructure and revenues. Their morale is suffering.
As ISIL is squeezed in Syria and Iraq, its lashing out elsewhere, as weve seen most recently and tragicallyfrom Turkey to Brussels. During our summit, we focused on ways to step up our efforts to disrupt terrorist attacks. It requires even more cooperation to prevent the flow of foreign terrorist fighters and sharing even more information and intelligence. Thats why I invited all the nations represented at this summit to join us in a broader discussion among our intelligence and security services on how we can improve information sharing to prevent terrorist attacks.
This continues to be a difficult fight. But every day, our dedicated professionalsmilitary, diplomatic, intelligence, counterterrorism, homeland security, law enforcement, nuclear expertsare working to protect us. Because of the progress we made this week, and over recent years, more of the worlds nuclear material is secure. Its harder for terrorists to get it. And as Commander in Chief, I want you to know that were going to keep doing everything in our power to keep our nation safe and strong and free.
Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
A: Commercial property supports commerce, jobs and revenue. Any slowdown in this sector would suggest instabilities for the residential sector as well.
But is this happening in San Francisco?
I havent seen deep rental or sales discounts or long days on the market. O0n the contrary, rental spaces that have come onto the market have had tremendous interest and demand, and this demand outnumbers the sales inventory.
Even with hundreds of new residential condominium under construction, San Francisco will continue to have a supply deficit with the influx of new permanent residents coming here for the increasing number of jobs. According to a recent study, between 2014 and mid-2015, about 134,000 new jobs were created in the Bay Area
If anything, the commercial market is adjusting, and not actually slowing down.
Juliette Vo,
Vanguard Properties,
(415) 967-0108,
juliette@teamvosf.com.
A: There will be a direct correlation between what happens in San Franciscos commercial markets and the East Bays residential real estate. Our job market has driven some remarkable wealth creation and real estate prices.
In turn, this has been able to fund start-ups and expansion of already established businesses and the incredible increase in our real estate prices.
It appears that the San Francisco commercial market has become so expensive that many of these start-ups and businesses are leaving and many are headed out of the city and moving to the East Bay.
Ubers Oakland headquarters brings 2,500 new jobs to the East Bay, which will increase the desirability and prices of homes there. Being close to corporations in major cities will always be important to commerce, and this is one of the reasons why our housing market has been in consistently strong demand.
The East Bay housing market can only prosper as more companies and their employees are priced out of the city.
Matt Heafey,
the Grubb Co.,
(510) 541-1754, heafey@grubbco.com.
A: A slowdown in commercial real estate could signal a shift in the economy. Such a shift could lead to slower job growth or even job losses. If that were to happen, it would have a real impact on residential real estate, leading to fewer qualified buyers which in turn would impact demand. That would then affect values and how fast property sells.
With potential increases in unsold properties, prices could pull back, with the condo market being the first to take a hit. The single-family home market always tends to remain solid.
Any slowdown would have to be significant to have a real negative impact. Many buyers certainly are in need of a place to live. Yet San Francisco is unique. There are also buyers who just want to own homes here even if they dont necessarily plan on living here.
Several of my contacts are cautiously optimistic. Lets not forget that San Francisco is the tech center of the universe. Any weakness would be temporary. If people stop using mobile devices or stop living in houses, Id start worrying. My take? Not going to happen.
Frank Castaldini,
Coldwell Banker,
(415) 846-1899, fc94114@aol.com.
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The Bay Area and the rest of the state may as well get comfortable with drought.
Stanford scientists, along with researchers from Northwestern University and Columbia University, say the atmospheric conditions that have paved the way for Californias record drought have occurred at increasing intervals in recent decades, signaling that the current conditions may be the new norm.
In other words, the scientists said, moderate California weather may be a thing of the past, with weather trending toward extremely warm and dry years, with intermittent extremes of warm and wet weather.
We are now in a new climate where the atmospheric configurations that lead to drought are much more common, said Noah Diffenbaugh, a Stanford professor of earth science and an author of a study published Friday in Science Advances.
While the years with warm and wet weather extremes have also become more common in the state, increased temperatures accompanying the precipitation tend to lead to quicker evaporation, Diffenbaugh said. That, along with inadequately adjusted water management, would reduce any benefit of the wetter weather, he said.
For the study, researchers tracked the atmospheric conditions for the wettest and driest and coolest and warmest years of the states typical winter seasons from 1948 to 2015.
From those records, they produced a composite for what the atmosphere looks like during each of the years with the most extreme weather conditions by California standards. They determined that the atmospheric conditions responsible for those years have become increasingly more common.
The conditions for both the warmest and driest years is generally created, the scientists said, when increased coastal temperatures warm air in the lower atmosphere, creating a ridge of high pressure that ramps up temperatures even further and blocks rain-bearing storms from reaching the state.
When these ridges persist for most or all of our rainy season we lose our opportunity for rain that season, said Daniel Swain, a doctoral student at Stanford and lead author of the study. If one sticks around for the winter, thats pretty much it for the year.
Swain compared the high-pressure ridge to a boulder blocking water in a stream: It sits in the atmosphere and essentially blocks weather systems that would otherwise bring rain to the area.
More research is needed to explain the exact causes of the increase in temperatures along the coast that triggers the ridge, Swain said. One explanation, he said, could be man-made causes.
The scientists were sure that ongoing, gradual climate change adds to the overall rise in temperatures and drought.
We are superimposing this on top of the warming trend that is already occurring here, Swain said. Its a combined effect.
Overall, the scientists said, the study adds to a substantial body of evidence that Californias weather is changing.
California is now in a new climate, Diffenbaugh said, a different climate than we had when our legal water rates were designed more than a century ago and when our water infrastructure and management systems were built half a century ago.
Our climate is on a trajectory to continue to change, and managing our water resources will require some catching up.
Kevin Schultz is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kschultz@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @KevinEdSchultz
BAKU, Azerbaijan At least 30 soldiers and a child were reported killed as heavy fighting erupted Saturday between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The fighting was the worst outbreak since a full-scale war over the region ended in 1994. Since then, mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh officially part of Azerbaijan has been under the control of local ethnic Armenian forces and the Armenian military.
Armenian forces also occupy several areas outside Nagorno-Karabakh proper. The sides are separated by a demilitarized buffer zone, but small clashes have broken out frequently.
Each side blamed the other for Saturdays escalation. In a statement, Azerbaijans Defense Ministry said 12 of its soldiers became shahids Muslim martyrs and said one of its helicopters was shot down. The statement also claimed that more than 100 Armenian forces were killed or wounded and that six tanks and 15 artillery positions were destroyed.
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told his national security council that 18 Armenian soldiers were killed and 35 wounded.
Armenia earlier claimed to have inflicted heavy damage on Azerbaijani forces, but did not give figures. A statement from the Nagorno-Karabakh defense ministry claimed more than 200 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed, but there was no corroboration for that number.
David Babayan, a spokesman for Nagorno-Karabakhs separatist president, said a boy of about 12 was killed and two other children were wounded in a Grad missile barrage by Azerbaijani forces.
Russian President Vladimir Putin urged all sides to hold fire and show restraint, Russian news agencies quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying.
Years of negotiations under the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe have brought little progress in resolving the territorial dispute.
BRUSSELS A partial, symbolic airline service will begin Sunday at Brussels Airport after a 12-day shutdown of passenger service caused by a deadly bombing attack, the airports chief executive said Saturday.
Arnaud Feist, CEO of Brussels Airport Co., said the Brussels Airlines flights to Athens, Turin in Italy and Faro in Portugal, the first of which he said should take off around 2 p.m. were chiefly symbolic.
Effective Monday, Belgiums biggest airport should be back at around 20 percent of capacity and able to process 800 passengers an hour.
The facility has been closed since devastating suicide bombings in the airports main terminal and a Brussels subway train killed 32 people and wounded 270 on March 22.
The March 22 attacks, in which three suicide bombers also died, were claimed by the Islamic State group. To minimize the chances of a repeat, Belgian Federal Police spokesman Michael Jonniaux said new security measures have been ordered at the airport, including spot checks of vehicles before they arrive, the closing of a drop-off parking area outside the terminal, and the screening of all people, their ID and travel documents and baggage before they are allowed to enter the facility.
The bombers had been able to enter the airports check-in area with suitcases packed with high explosives and nails, and the resulting blasts collapsed the ceiling, shattered windows and caused widespread damage.
Also Saturday, Belgian police, some on horseback, moved in to detain about two dozen protesters at Brussels Bourse Square, breaking up a demonstration to protest Islamophobia. Authorities in the Belgian capital banned all demonstrations after a group of right-wing hooligans congregated at the same square last Sunday.
In the Molenbeek neighborhood, where a far-right France-based group had planned to demonstrate, at least one person was detained, and witnesses saw several minor clashes between police and young people.
Molenbeek, home to one of the largest Muslim communities in Brussels, has been a hotbed of radical Islamic sentiment and was home to some of the men who staged the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris that killed 130.
Also Saturday, the Federal Prosecutors Office announced that a Belgian national has been charged with participating in the activities of a terrorist group for his alleged role in another plot to attack France, which was uncovered after the arrest of a Frenchman and the discovery of a huge cache of weapons and explosives.
A statement from the prosecutors office identified the 33-year-old suspect only as Y.A. It said hes in custody and has been charged.
Ronnie Corbett, the diminutive comedian who teamed with Ronnie Barker to delight audiences for almost two decades on the hit BBC comedy show The Two Ronnies, died Thursday. He was 85.
His death was confirmed by his agent, Mandy Ward, who did not specify a cause or say where he died.
Mr. Corbett, who stood just over 5 feet tall, delivered a gentle brand of comedy that appealed to a vast audience. He specialized in clever wordplay, self-deprecation (he titled his autobiography High Hopes) and the effortless delivery of one-liners.
Classic one-liners
A few examples:
All those who believe in psychokinesis, raise my right hand.
A cement mixer collided with a prison van on the Kingston bypass. Motorists are asked to be on the lookout for 16 hardened criminals.
Weve just heard that in the English Channel, a ship carrying red paint has collided with a ship carrying purple paint. It is believed that both crews have been marooned.
Mr. Corbett began working with Barker in 1966 on The Frost Report, David Frosts short-lived British satirical show, which also featured future stars of Monty Pythons Flying Circus, including John Cleese, who wrote on Twitter on Thursday that Mr. Corbett had the best timing Ive ever watched.
Mr. Corbett and Barker quickly developed an onscreen rapport. On The Two Ronnies, which aired from 1971 until 1987, the pair performed sketches, delivered mock headlines and sang. A seated Mr. Corbett often delivered a seemingly straightforward joke that meandered into a digressive monologue.
In one of their most enduring sketches, titled Fork Handles or Four Candles depending on ones interpretation, Mr. Corbett plays a shopkeeper who becomes exasperated as he misinterprets a list of items that Barker asks him to fetch.
The Two Ronnies attracted more than 20 million viewers at its peak in Britain and was broadcast abroad to great popularity, including on many U.S. PBS stations. The series ended after Barker retired, although the two reunited for occasional specials. Barker died in 2005.
The show has continued to be seen in reruns, and the duos routines are familiar to audiences decades after it went off the air. Prime Minister David Cameron praised Mr. Corbetts abiding appeal Thursday, writing on Twitter that he had the rare talent of making all generations laugh.
In recent years, a number of contemporary British comedians irreverently cast Mr. Corbett against type. In a 2006 episode of Ricky Gervais HBO series Extras, Mr. Corbett, playing himself, was caught snorting cocaine in a bathroom stall.
Military to showbiz
Ronald Balfour Corbett was born on Dec. 4, 1930, in Edinburgh. He served in the Royal Air Force, where he was reportedly the shortest commissioned officer in the British forces.
He moved to London in the early 1950s to pursue acting and also worked as a bartender. He first met Barker when he served him a drink. Barker later joked that Mr. Corbett had stood on two boxes to reach over the bar.
Mr. Corbett wooed the actress and dancer Anne Hart in the same bar. They married in the mid-1960s.
She survives him, as do their daughters, Emma and Sophie Corbett, and four grandchildren. He and his wife lived in Surrey.
HAVANA: The U.S.-led trade embargo remains a "suffocating reality" for the Cuban people, Cuba's Foreign Affairs Minister has said.
Despite restored diplomatic ties and a recent visit by U.S. President Barack Obama, the embargo continues to cripple Cuba's economy and any prospects for real progress, Bruno Rodriguez said on Tuesday.
With no end in sight to the half-century embargo, as Obama himself admitted in Havana, the policy, which Cuba defines as a blockade, stands in the way of normalising bilateral ties between Cuba and the U.S., Xinhua quoted Rodriguez as saying.
"I can say the blockade continues to be a daily reality and the main obstacle to our economic development, and the fundamental cause of hardship for all Cuban families," said the minister.
At a joint press conference with Cuban President Raul Castro in Havana on March 21, Obama said: "The embargo is going to end. When? I can't be entirely sure, but I believe it will end."
As long as Washington continues to inflict the "suffocating reality" of the embargo on Cubans, then it "persists" in its goal of achieving "economic domination" over the island, said Rodriguez.
Echoing the general sentiment among Cuban officials that Obama's visit was little more than feel-good diplomacy, Rodriguez said: "A kind phrase, a smile or a gesture of sympathy cannot erase from memory what has been a long, complex history that has marked the lives of Cubans, 77 percent of whom were born during the embargo, which still continues."
Rather than promoting bilateral ties, Obama's visit served to "show his personal charisma and... effective use of the media," said the foreign minister.
Obama travelled to Cuba from March 20-22 as part of a two-nation tour of Latin America that included Argentina.
Read Also: Top 7 Successful Tech Leaders Who Could Probably Sell Anything!
U.S. Sees Great Potential for Doing Business With India: Envoy
WASHINGTON: Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, met in Washington with the chairman of the Republican National Committee, as tensions ran high between the candidate and his party.
Although Trump had previously announced he would be in Washington for meetings, his visit to the RNC, where he met with its chairman, Reince Priebus, came as a surprise.
It followed an announcement two days ago by Trump that he would refuse to support any candidate but himself as nominee in the race for the White House.
He also announced on Tuesday that he no longer felt bound by the commitment he made in September to respect the outcome of the primaries and not run as an independent in November if he does not receive the party nomination.
"I have been treated very unfairly. By basically the RNC, the Republican party, the establishment," Trump said in an interview on CNN aired Tuesday.
Details were slow to emerge about his meeting with Priebus, but CNN, citing Republican sources, reported that the discussion was about convention rules and the delegate process.
Afterwards, Trump tweeted: "Just had a very nice meeting with @Reince Priebus and the @GOP. Looking forward to bringing the Party together --- and it will happen!"
According to Politico, he also held a meeting with his new foreign policy team and rolled out a committee led by two congressmen who will spearhead attempts to garner support among Washington's political establishment.
If Trump does not win the 1,237 delegates needed to secure his party's nomination outright, the nominee will have to be chosen through delegate voting at the July convention in Cleveland, Ohio.
At that point, delegates would no longer be bound to vote for the candidate they were sent to represent, and Trump could risk losing the nomination.
One of his two challengers, Texas Senator Ted Cruz or Ohio Governor John Kasich, could feasibly become the party's nominee.
The process, which is called a contested or brokered convention, is extremely rare.
To help avoid the chance of a brokered convention, Trump announced Tuesday that he had hired Republican operative Paul Manafort to manage his delegate strategy.
Manafort has worked on strategy for former US presidents Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and George HW Bush during nominating conventions.
Read Also: Obama, Biden Attack Donald Trump For Exploiting Fear
WH Against Trumps Stand On S Korea, Japan Acquiring Nukes
Source: PTI
radiation great kills
An Advance file photo shows portions of Gateway National Park, Great Kills, still closed due to radiation.
(Staten Island Advance/Irving Silverstein)
CITY HALL -- A federal probe aims to see if hazardous waste at Great Kills Park will affect the future construction of a buried seawall and levee system on the East Shore.
That will be the initial focus of a longterm investigation into what might be done about high levels of radiation where the city dumped dangerous contaminants decades ago, officials said.
The city's Department of Sanitation will spend upwards of $10 million over the next four years on the overall remedial investigation and feasibility study at the 265-acre site, now operated by the National Park Service.
The five-year review is meant to help officials characterize the nature and extent of the contamination at Great Kills, where the city once used medical and sanitary waste to turn wetlands into recreational land along the waterfront.
Soil and water sampling for both radiological and chemical components will be conducted as part of the study, and options for future remediation will be evaluated.
Two common solutions to radiation include capping over the contaminants and excavation.
STUDY BEGINS THIS SPRING
The first phase of the investigation will begin this spring and concentrate on a 43-acre area within and along the northeastern perimeter of the park, said Kathleen Cuzzolino, an environmental protection specialist at the National Park Service.
This has been prioritized to see if any potential contamination requires cleanup before the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers starts building a $579 million seawall and levee system intended to protect Staten Island from flooding caused by storm surges. Construction of that project is supposed to begin in spring 2018.
"The NPS is currently working with federal, state and city agencies to finalize the work plans for field investigation to start this spring and run through the summer," Cuzzolino said.
Is the site dangerous?
Exposure to radium can cause cancer and improper handling of its sources can be harmful. This is why the National Park Service has closed off portions of park with elevated levels of radioactivity.
As part of the upcoming study, officials will also test for potential chemical contaminants of concern.
Findings from the first leg of the study are expected by the end of the year or early 2017.
The Army Corps, on behalf of the park service, awarded the contract for the study to the Virginia-based engineering service AECOM - Tidewater Joint Venture.
The first phase will cost $2.5 million and the total bill is expected to cost about $12 million.
The city will pay the whole cost under an agreement with the National Park Service, which is overseeing the investigation. This is meant to resolve the city's responsibility for dumping hazardous waste at the site in the 1940s.
HAZARDOUS WASTE
Between 1944 to 1948 the city used about 15 million cubic yards of fill and and waste to increase usable land at Great Kills. The debris contained radium -- a natural element once used in cancer treatments -- and that likely leaked over time and contaminated surrounding soil.
Great Kills was transferred to the National Park Service in 1972. A police flyover found elevated levels of radioactivity at the park for the first time three decades later.
The contamination was eventually found to be widespread, contrary to early hopes of discrete pockets of radioactivity. Waste material is now thought to have mixed with both radiological and chemical contaminants, festering for decades.
A National Park Service survey found more than 1,200 radioactive areas across the park.
The public can read about the contamination at the Great Kills library branch and the Staten Island Museum's environmental collection. The National Park Service will also present an update to Community Board 3 on April 12 and Community Board 2 on May 19.
nws weather
The Staten Island Ferry leaves Manhattan under stormy skies. The National Weather Service has issued a hazardous weather outlook for the high winds expected this weekend.The high-wind watch is in effect from Saturday night through Sunday morning for New York City, Long Island and areas in New Jersey and Connecticut. (Staten Island Advance/Steve Zaffarano)
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Just when you thought snow would be a thing of a season gone past, the weather forecast begs to differ.
The National Weather Service has issued a hazardous weather outlook for the rest of this weekend, with a mix of rain, snow and high winds.
The high wind watch is in effect from Saturday night through Sunday morning for New York City, Long Island and areas in New Jersey and Connecticut.
Rain, that started Saturday morning is expected to continue until at least 2 p.m., and it will be cloudy with a high around 58 degrees, the Weather Service said.
Rain showers will begin again likely after 8 p.m., mixing with snow after 5 a.m. Some thunder is also possible, with temperatures around 38 degrees.
Saturday night will be windy, with gusts reaching as high as 55 miles per hour after midnight, according to the Weather Service.
Snow accumulation of less than a half inch is possible.
SUNDAY FORECAST
Rain and snow showers will taper off by 8 a.m. Skies will become mostly sunny, with a high near 43, but wind gusts could be up to 60 miles per hour.
On Sunday night, clouds will move in and temperatures will drop to about 34 degrees.
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System error
error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.
context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28: 29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25
/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948
/var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17
/usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149
Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01b0920)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f05035f8)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01b0920)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f05035f8)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01b1070)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f05035f8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f05035f8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eff067c8)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f04fad10)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f04fad10)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
System error
error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.
context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28: 29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25
/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948
/var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17
/usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149
Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f0219068)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f020a800)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f0219068)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f020a800)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01e57e8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f020a800)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f020a800)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612ee50c4e0)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f02905e8)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f02905e8)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
System error
error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.
context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28: 29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25
/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948
/var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17
/usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149
Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe3d8e8)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02671e8)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe3d8e8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02671e8)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe3e290)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02671e8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02671e8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612ee50bb08)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f02a0e10)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f02a0e10)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
I cannot recommend my own books too highly, but then again I could. However, if I were to recommend another, it would be Lyndall Hobbs', A Girl From Oz.
Lyndall Hobbs is among the most energetic bunch of girls I've ever known. This remarkable memoir is a sociological drilling core sample of the whirly-gig life, so far, of one of Australia's truly unsung heroines.
One of Australia's truly unsung heroines: Writer and director Lyndall Hobbs.
She loved and was loved by the most interesting men in the world. Lyndall always gave more than she got, as she was the Mother Theresa to great and powerful men, who desired as much of life as it could give, a new only Lyndall could deliver.
There are more than 50 shades to the portrait of "Dorriene" Gray, as played by Lyndall Hobbs, and the only shade of grey on her head that Lyndall had was platinum, well before Cher, who she ticked off for stealing her look without a note or so much as a thank you.
Ben Quilty will leave Australia if politicians do not campaign for the abolition of the death penalty in countries like China and the United States.
The Archibald Prize-winning artist and Art Gallery of NSW trustee said, with a dose of black humour, he would rather live on Indonesia's execution island than witness Australian politicians kowtow to countries that kill their citizens.
"I'm intrigued and attracted and repulsed at the same time": Ben Quilty. Credit:James Brickwood
"Next year is the 50th anniversary of the last person executed in Australia and if some politicians don't get up and use a soap box to proclaim that to the world, I'm leaving," he said.
Penny Arcade is on a roll. "People are not smart," she announces to the room containing me, her audience of one. "This is the biggest problem in the world the stupidity of people and the fact we are living in the golden age of stupidity and mediocrity. And people like mediocrity, people develop a taste for mediocrity, people have a taste for banality, because they don't want to rise above it! They're lazy so they don't want to rise above within themselves and they don't want anyone around them to rise either."
That's just one spray from the torrent that is performance artist Penny Arcade's running commentary on the world; aphorisms, opinions and swirling contradictions pour from her even when she is apparently in a resting state. On stage this all gets turned up to 11: she's like a Greek Fury infused with the spirit of the Energiser Bunny, bouncing up and down to intermittent flares of rock music between rants.
Penny Arcade: hormone-free and ''at the top of my game''.
"I know what I'm here to do," she says afterwards. "I'm here to entertain people and to be kind of a little lighthouse for them I understand that there is just a small percentage of people who really have a rigorous inquiry into their life and into society. So partly my audience comes to see me because I think about more deeply what they think about."
Miss Arcade to borrow the moniker favoured by Quentin Crisp, whom she quotes often as a friend and mentor first toured Australia in 1994 with a self-penned show called Bitch! Dyke! Faghag! Whore!. The title was eye-catching; the final sketch about a brothel, in which Miss A delivered a comic monologue while standing on the end of the stage catwalk naked, certainly got her noticed. Initially invited to perform at the Adelaide Festival of the Arts, she went on to do 140 shows around the country that flew the flag for queer culture, niche fetishists and sex workers while cocking a snoot at censors and the censorious. If anyone was offended, good. It's our right to be offended sometimes.
He has so far managed to avoid the McHany tag the benchmark for dashing TV doctors having been set by Grey's Anatomy's McDreamy and says the through line in his work is not their qualifications, but rather their institutionalised nature.
"I don't know if it's a disadvantage for me, just because I'm fascinated by medicine," he says. "I kind of always wanted to study medicine, too."
But the 40-year-old Sydney-born actor describes the white coat and stethoscope as something of an occupational hazard.
He spent a long spell as the dashing Dr Chris Havel in the Ten medical drama Offspring, but Don Hany has accumulated a broad spectrum of credits to his name: playing a cop, a gangster, a politician and a priest, among other things.
Team Oz: Melissa George as Dr. Alex Panttiere and Don Hany as Dr. Jesse Shane.
Serangoon Road's Sam Callaghan was a former soldier. And in Devil's Playground he played Bishop Vincent Quaid. Both men, he says, "kind of go to war or feel like they've got to go continue a fight with something an ideology or a philosophy about the way to work".
"There's something about medicine that divides people, and that's why I guess medical dramas are so successful," he adds. "They're a great format to look at dramatically ... People are sick, there are different schools of thought on the approach, there's different schools of thought on healthcare in general."
In Heartbeat, Hany plays Dr Jessie Shane, an Australian surgeon who has a past with the show's lead character, Melissa George's Dr Alexandra Panttiere. The pilot for the series was filmed in Vancouver, though in it Hany played the character as an American. The producers decided to switch the character's nationality to Australian, and let Hany use his native accent.
"We re-voiced some of the scenes, and re-shot some of the pilot, which is a luxury we don't get in Australia," he says. "We just never have the time, the budget, the infrastructure, and the audience, in a way, to kind of do that. With this one I think they've had the luxury, so that's how we've ended up with a character that's migrated from one part of the world to the other."
7pm, Barry O'Keefe Library, 605 Military Road, Mosman, $10, events.mosman.nsw.gov.au. FILM The beloved and oft-quoted family favourite The Princess Bride (rated PG) gets a big-screen outing as part of Dendy's 2016 program of cult classics. Ken Done. 10am and 6.30pm, Dendy Newtown, Newtown, $12, 9550 5699, dendy.com.au. Tuesday April 5
TALK Scholarly Musings: Masculinity in First World War Letters and Diaries looks into ideas of manliness during the Great War as presented by postgraduate modern-history student Michael Nicholls as is based on research conducted at the State Library. The circus playground at stART. 11am, State Library, Macquarie Street, city, free (bookings essential), 9273 1414. MUSIC The Australian Chamber Orchestra and Synergy Percussion join forces for Cinemusica (until April 6), a film-inspired program directed by Richard Tognetti and featuring Thomas Newman's score for American Beauty, Bernard Herrmann's famous strings from Psycho and a world premiere work from Synergy's artistic director, Timothy Constable. 8pm, City Recital Hall, city, $49-$117, aco.com.au.
Wednesday April 6 STAGE You might have seen the film version of Grease a million times on television reruns, but The Original Grease (until May 7) shows a different side, presenting a raw and raunchy vision of the musical, including songs and scenes cut prior to its 1972 Broadway debut. 11am and 7.30pm, Seymour Centre, Chippendale, $48, 9351 7940. COMEDY Penny Arcade (also known as Susana Ventura) got her first taste of fame when she was recruited to be one of Andy Warhol's superstars. Catch her award-winning Edinburgh Festival Fringe show Longing Lasts Longer (until April 8), an night of humour railing against the conformity of the modern era. 8pm, Giant Dwarf, 199 Cleveland Street, Redfern, $35, giantdwarf.com.au.
Thursday April 7 MUSIC Crooner Chris Isaak reaches The Star to perform tracks from his new record, First Comes the Night, alongside older hits like Wicked Game, Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing and Somebody's Crying. 8pm, The Star Event Centre, Pyrmont, $101.35-$147.20, ticketek.com.au. STAGE Catch David Lindsay-Abaire's critically acclaimed 2011 comedy of manners Good People (until May 21), starring Strictly Ballroom's Tara Morice as a struggling single mother who hits up an old flame in the hopes of improving her lot in life. 8.15pm, Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli, $65, 9929 0644.
Friday April 8 COMEDY As part of the planned Seniors Week activities, comedians and media personalities come together for a playful debate to try to figure out whether youth truly is wasted on the young. 11am, Sydney Town Hall, city, free (bookings essential), whatson.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au. MUSIC Hear the harmonies of husband-and-wife musical team Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker as indie rock group Low returns to Australia for the first time in six years. Their most recent album, 2015's Ones and Sixes, was praised by Mojo as "one of the most impressive albums of their career". 8pm, Factory Theatre, Marrickville, $51.70, 9550 3666.
Saturday April 9 ART Tang: Treasures from the Silk Road Capital (until July 10) displays archaeological findings of gold, silver, ceramics and mural paintings more than 1000 years old, with 130 objects on display from the Chinese province of Shaanxi. 10am-5pm, Art Gallery of NSW, The Domain, city, $16, artgallery.nsw.gov.au. MARKETS Get dusty fingers sifting through the discs on offer at the bi-annual Glebe Record Fair, with more than 100 stalls selling vinyl, CDs, DVDs and books. 9am-4pm, Peter Forsyth Auditorium, Frances Road, Glebe, $3-$6, eggrecords.com.
Sunday April 10 COMMUNITY The Rockdale Arts Festival kicks off with stART, a family-friendly celebration of arts and crafts. Visitors can get in touch with their creative side as they take part in a calligraphy or sketching workshop, perform in the circus playground or stroll through the outdoor art gallery. 11.30am-3.30pm, Cook Park, General Holmes Drive, Kyeemagh, free, www.rockdale.nsw.gov.au. MUSIC London-based trio Daughter upgraded from their original venue to make space for their swelling fan base, fueled by the success of their second album, Not to Disappear. 8pm, Enmore Theatre, Newtown, $64.90, ticketek.com.au.
A majority of Australians believe Tony Abbott is trying to get his old job back but only 12 per cent think he's in with a chance and almost two-thirds want him to pull the pin on his political career and leave Parliament now.
A new poll commissioned by The Australia Institute has found 63.4 per cent of Australians want the former prime minister to retire. Just 26.3 per cent believe he should stay on, while the rest are undecided.
More than half of Coalition voters want him to go, while about three-quarters of Labor and Greens voters think he should leave.
Ben Oquist, the executive director of the left-leaning think tank, says the message is clear.
The company that was paid more than $1.6 million to promote Immigration Minister Peter Dutton's anti-refugee telemovie is owned by a man known as the "Rupert Murdoch of Afghanistan" who himself came to Australia as a refugee.Saad Mohseni fled to Australia as a teenager with his family in the early 1980s, shortly after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
He went to school at Brighton High and Taylor's College in Melbourne before starting a career in banking and finance.
He moved back to Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban in 2003 and started his company, the Moby Group. He has since enjoyed spectacular success, setting up a range of media companies across the Middle East and central Asia.
Now headquartered in Dubai, Moby employs more than 1000 people and operates 16 businesses in six countries.
A woman's body has been found off Sydney's Bondi Beach, with police appealing for public help to identify her.
Witnesses who found the body in the water brought it to shore at the southern end of the beach at around 9.30pm on Saturday, but police and ambulance paramedics called to the scene were unable to revive the woman.
Police are appealing for help in identifying the woman. Credit:Peter Rae
Police have established a crime scene but say the woman's death at this stage is not being treated as suspicious.
She is described as being of Asian appearance and about 25 to 30 years old.
One of the most pressing and mysterious questions for humans, the self-centered beings that we are, is what other people think about us. We expend a huge amount of time and mental energy wondering if our date finds us attractive, or if our co-workers noticed that stupid thing we said in the meeting last week. We agonise over our public speaking skills, our waistlines and our hair.
If you're wondering how you're perceived by others, research actually provides some clues. In a study first published in 2010 and discussed in a new book, Nicholas Epley, a behavioural scientist at the University of Chicago, and Tal Eyal, a psychologist at Israel's Ben-Gurion University, reveal a fascinating technique to help get inside the minds of the people around you.
The crux of this technique is that people think about themselves in very different ways than they think about other people. They tend to scrutinise themselves at an incredibly close level of detail, much more closely than they examine the actions or appearance of others.
That's in part because you have a huge amount of information about yourself - far more information than you have about other people. You know what your hair looked like yesterday, a month ago, and four years ago. You know whether you've put on weight recently, or if you look tired today. Compare how you evaluate yourself to how you evaluate a stranger: You might make judgments about their overall level of attractiveness, their outfit, their mannerisms, but not much else.
New York: As Brazilians have protested corruption scandals in their government and called for the impeachment of their president, a Dutch artist has mounted a singular protest of his own. He says the giant yellow rubber duck that protesters have hauled into the streets as a makeshift mascot in the past month is too similar to his own creation.
The duck used in the demonstrations has X's in place of its eyes and a Portuguese slogan across its chest that says: "We won't pay for what is not our fault anymore." But representatives for the Dutch artist, Florentijn Hofman, who is known for his outsize creations depicting animals, say they saw too many similarities between his rubber duck and the one used in Brazil - and they are not amused.
Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman's giant yellow rubber duck creation. Credit:Kate Geraghty
Hofman's six-story-tall version of the bathtub toy appeared in a harbour in Hong Kong as part of an art festival in 2013. A Brazilian industrial group, FIESP, used a similar rubber duck in the demonstrations, and Hofman's representatives say that it featured the same design and technical patterns of the previous work and that it's just odd that the protest duck was produced in the same factory where Hofman's art duck was created.
A spokeswoman for Hofman, Kim Engbers, said in an email: "Of course we want to emphasise that it is a shame that this parody is used for propaganda. Our project is meant to be nonpolitical."
Washington: Long before gunmen burst into Berta Caceres Flores' house in rural Honduras, Beverly Bell gave up any hope that her friend would live to an old age. "This was a marked woman," said Bell, who kept a long list of the death threats. "Everyone knew it."
The March 3 slaying of the internationally known environmentalist was condemned from the US State Department to the Vatican. But for activists who work in Latin America, Caceres' murder was tragically familiar.
Environmental activist Berta Caceres Flores, who was killed last month. Credit:Tim Russo via AP
Two-thirds of environmentalists who died violently around the world since 2002 lost their lives in that region. For the five years ending in 2014, more than 450 were killed, according to an international watchdog group. More than half were in Honduras and Brazil.
Among the more recent deaths: A young worker who protected sea turtles in Costa Rica was kidnapped and brutally beaten. A farmer in Peru was shot 12 times for protesting a hydroelectric dam. A Guatemalan activist who linked a massive fish kill to pesticides sprayed by a palm oil company was gunned down near a courthouse in broad daylight. A Brazilian activist who fought logging in the rain forest was ambushed and fatally stabbed while returning home with his wife.
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This one got lopsided in a hurry, and that was just what Notre Dame needed
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Thanks to Darkness for the heads up.
Its been a few years now since Shonda Rhimes tries to produce a comedy in order to expand her empire and explore a new territory. No surprise here: shes deeply in love with shows like The Mindy Project (where she guest-starred) or Cougar Town. She developed several projects for ABC but Toast, which was already in contention last pilot season, only got an order this time around and will be her first real attempt. The idea was brought to her by fellow actor Scott Foley, a series regular in Scandal, and his longtime friend Greg Grunberg they met way way back on Felicity with Foley writing the script. None of them will act in it. Toast is not really in ABCs wheelhouse since its not what we can call a family comedy, though theres a family component, and romantic comedies didnt really work them (Selfie, Manhattan Love Story, Mixology). But who knows, maybe this is the one? Maybe its their How I Met Your Mother? At least, theres a concept.
STAMFORD For 26 years, Christopher Williams quietly lived under an assumed name, got married, raised a family and even opened a neighborhood restaurant in Philadelphia.
But what became a tranquil life was turned upside down when members of the U.S. Marshals Service tracked him down last month for walking away from a 1990 Stamford manslaughter conviction.
Williams, who was extradited back to Stamford this week, appeared Friday in state Superior Court with his attorney, Noah Kores. Williams said nothing as a judge ruled his court appearance bond would remain at $1 million.
Judge Auden Grogins also transferred the case to the Stamford courthouses Part A docket, where the most serious crimes are adjudicated. Williams is next scheduled to appear in court on April 14. The courthouses top prosecutor, Stamford States Attorney Richard Colangelo, has taken over the case.
Hes a completely different person, Kores said after talking to family members, including Williams 21-year-old daughter. The family declined to comment on the case.
Kores told the judge that Williams, now 44, has led a quiet life, married 15 years ago and has raised his daughter and a 17-year-old son. He said his client has also been running his own restaurant for the past 13 years.
Kores declined to comment on the defenses potential legal strategy.
Its inappropriate to comment at this time," he said. We are taking it one step at a time.
Williams and two others were arrested soon after the early-morning homicide on Jan. 29, 1989.
In a confession to police immediately after the killing of Kevin Trick Harrison, the 16-year-old former Bridgeport resident said he was driving around with his cousin Mark Robinson, 23, and Robert Johns, 19, a friend of his cousin.
The Bridgeport youths contrived a plan to go to Stamford and use a pistol they had to rip off a dealer and sell the drugs in Bridgeport, police said.
Williams told officers Robinson needed the money because he was three months late on his car loan and they thought they could find a drug dealer who wouldnt know them in Stamford, police said.
They found Harrison, 25, on the corner of Ann and West Main streets about 5 a.m. Williams paid Harrison $50 for cocaine, but his cousin said the drugs weren't good, according to police. Williams, who was carrying a .32-caliber semiautomatic gun, demanded his money back, police said.
When Harrison refused, Williams pulled the gun out and pointed it at him, police said. Williams said Harrison threw his hands out, striking the gun and causing it to fire, police said.
I didnt fire the gun, it just went off, he told police.
Williams said he grabbed the $50 he gave Harrison and ran back to the car and the three fled for Bridgeport.
About 40 minutes later, a state trooper pulled them over in Fairfield and confiscated three loaded weapons in the car as well as cocaine police said they stole from Harrison.
Harrison eventually died from the bullet wound to the head.
Williams, Robinson and Johns were each charged with felony murder, armed robbery and first-degree assault along with conspiracy charges, which were eventually reduced.
Former Assistant States Attorney David Cohen said Robinson was acting as a lookout during the robbery and he ended up pleading guilty to first-degree manslaughter and was sentenced to eight years in prison.
Cohen, who retired last year as Stamford States Attorney after 36 years as a prosecutor, said at the time Johns was sleeping in the car during the shooting, and he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment and was sentenced to one year in jail.
On Aug. 29, 1990, the day those sentences were handed out, Williams, then 17, was also scheduled to appear before Judge Joette Katz. Like Robinson, Williams had pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and was facing up to 12 years in jail.
But Williams never showed up.
The courthouses Chief Public Defender at the time, Terrence Murphy, told Katz Williams was with his mother and girlfriend the night before. Katz, who is now the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families, gave his mother two days to find him.
The trail for Williams went cold after police received a tip in 2004 that led them to the Philadelphia area.
Stamford police began re-examining their files last year after being contacted by Harrisons brother. Stamford police worked with the U.S. Marshals Service to finally track down Williams last month.
jnickerson@scni.com;
Connecticut consumers are hemorrhaging money thats rightfully theirs.
How, you ask? By not getting cash back when a gift card has only a small balance remaining.
Connecticut does have laws in place that prohibit retailers from putting expiration dates on gift cards or charging service fees that slowly drain the balance. These laws were a huge win for consumers. Yet, as gift card sales grow, its clear that Connecticut must join other states in allowing consumers to redeem small unused gift card balances for cash.
You have probably experienced this frustrating and all-too-common situation:
You receive a gift card and happily make a purchase at the given location, only to find that youre left with an unusable balance on the card.
You could put the remaining balance toward another purchase. But spending your own money would defeat the purpose of the card as a gift or perhaps you dont have the funds. And the retailer youre shopping at doesnt have an item youre interested in that costs less than your card balance.
Why cant you ask for that awkward remaining balance in cash? In 11 other states, you can. Texas is the most recent state to allow cash back from low-value gift cards. A bill proposed this legislative session in Connecticut would allow consumers to ask for cash back for gift cards that have less than a $10 balance remaining.
Consumers should get what they paid for. When someone purchases a $30 gift card, they expect that the recipient will get $30 of value out of it, not $25. For people with more flexible budgets, this may not seem like much of an injustice. Its more likely that they can put their remaining balance toward another purchase, whether on that day or at another time. Yet for those who cant afford a purchase thats more than their gift card balance, that money is truly lost.
These individual losses add up to big profits for retailers. Close to a billion dollars in gift card sales went unused in 2015, up from $750 million in 2014. Companies are even claiming unredeemed gift card balances as revenue. Best Buy reported $53 million in revenue from unredeemed cards in 2014.
Companies should not be relying on unused gift card balances to pad their bottom line. As company profits from gift cards soar, Connecticut needs to enact this legislation to balance the rights of consumers and retailers. Allowing cash back from gift cards with low remaining balances is a simple and fair solution.
Opponents of the bill claim that it will lead to fraud or that customers shouldnt be allowed to profit off of a gift card. Since when is redeeming the full value of a card that has already been paid for considered making a profit? Most people call that getting your moneys worth. The fact that companies view consumers redeeming the full amount of their gift card as some sort of fraudulent scheme further illustrates the issue.
Additionally, imposing a threshold below which a card can be redeemed for cash should quell any fears of fraud. In fact, when Texas passed its cash redemption bill last year, the President of the Texas Retailers Association was quoted as saying, We dont think that its going to be a very heavy burden. Its consistent with good customer service to volunteer to do that.
This legislation comes down to basic fairness. Many of us remember the excitement that was generated when Connecticut prohibited expiration dates on gift cards. That legislation was meant to balance the rights of consumers and retailers as the popularity of gift cards grew. Now, with gift card purchases reaching new highs, we must continue to ensure Connecticut customers get what they paid for.
State Rep.Patricia Billie Miller represents Stamfords 145th Assembly District.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of GBH after a woman needed treatment for a broken jaw following an attack in east London.
Police in Havering were called to Ardleigh Green Road in Hornchurch at 12.17pm on Wednesday, March 16 to reports of an assault.
A woman, in her 40s, was taken by ambulance to an east London hospital to receive treatment for a broken jaw after she was found suffering with facial injuries.
She has since been discharged.
On Saturday, a 20-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of GBH. He has been bailed until a date in May.
P olice are investigating dozens of "revenge porn" cases every month in London, a year after it was made a criminal offence.
Officers have received up to 47 allegations per month since the legislation came into force 12 months ago, with an average of 32 complaints each month.
The latest figures available show that between April 2015 and January 2016 there were 319 so-called revenge porn offences reported to the Metropolitan Police in all.
It became a criminal offence on April 13 last year to disclose private sexual photographs or films with the intent to cause distress.
Although in the first month just three cases were reported to officers, followed by only six the next month, by July last year - just three months after the legislation was introduced - the number of reported incidents had risen to 47.
And over the six month period to January 2016, an average of 40 people a month were coming forward to the Met Police to report being victims of revenge porn.
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Cases include that of Samantha Watt, 31, thought to be the first woman to be jailed for publishing revenge pictures of another woman.
Watt, from Enfield, took intimate photographs of the woman while they were in a relationship, which the victim later discovered online alongside the caption: "This girl pays for rent with sex and dirty pics lol she wants a taste of Sams life shes getting a taste of how I can be."
Watt admitted disclosing private sexual photographs with the intent to cause distress and was jailed for 18 weeks in November.
Jailed: Samantha Watt / Metropolitan Police
William Nelson, 52, was spared jail after he set up a fake Facebook account and posted approximately 30 sexually explicit photographs of a woman, then sent friend requests to her friends and family from the fake account.
Nelson, from Lewisham, was sentenced in September at Croydon Magistrates' Court to two months imprisonment suspended for 18 months, for one offence of disclosing private sexual photographs with intent to cause distress.
Former Liberal Democrat MP Julian Huppert was one of the leading voices calling for the new law to be introduced.
However, he said that legislation alone would not solve the problem and that "societal change" is needed in order to stop people from posting intimate pictures as revenge.
He added that while successful prosecutions of perpetrators may deter other potential offenders, better education was needed in order to truly tackle the issue.
Mr Huppert told the Standard: "The legislation was very, very important because previously people who did this awful thing could say it was not illegal.
"They could say there was nothing wrong with what they were doing.
"Now it's clearly illegal that stops them being able to delude themselves into thinking it's okay.
"However, the point of the system is to catch the perpetrators, not to stop there being victims.
"We need much more active work in schools, proper PHSE to make it clear that this is completely unacceptable.
"We need societal change, it's about people thinking this behaviour is not acceptable, it's not about catching a few people."
A National Police Chiefs Council spokesman said: Police take revenge pornography seriously and will pursue all lines of inquiry to prosecute people where appropriate.
"Forces have more powers than ever before to prosecute those who maliciously share private sexual images of someone without their consent and with the intention of causing them distress.
P olice have carried out a controlled explosion at an Asda supermarket in south London after a "suspicious package" was found in a ladies toilet.
Officers in Sutton said they were investigating the item at a store branch in Beddington Lane, Croydon and warned people to avoid the area.
It was later revealed the package was a box of ceramic tiles wrapped in plastic.
An Asda spokeswoman confirmed the alarm was raised after the object was discovered in the ladies toilet and added it had been disposed of following an explosion.
She said: "I can confirm that the Asda Beddington Lane store was shut due to a suspicious package found in the ladies toilets.
"The store was immediately evacuated and the police contacted. A controlled explosion, with minimal damage, has been carried out by the police and the store will be reopened."
One Twitter user said they were forced to leave their bags at the checkout before the store was evacuated.
Shopper Nadine Cannon, 33, said the supermarket was cleared shortly before 4.30pm
She told the Standard: "Half way through the checkout process an alarm went off. The till was locked and we were asked to leave and not take our trolley with us.
"A few moments of hanging about outside a manager told us it would not be a five minute thing as a suspicious package was found.
"Police were outside with the red and white tape cordoning off the main entrance."
A leading charity is calling for London to be made more accessible for the 72,000 people living with dementia in the capital.
One of the main difficulties raised by those living in London with dementia is navigating the city and its public transport, the Alzheimers Society says.
It has launched a campaign in a bid to make London the first 'dementia-friendly' capital city by 2020.
This campaign includes making public transport timetables more accessible and for the criteria of the Blue parking badge to be changed to include people with dementia.
Gary Whiting, 64, from Carshalton in south west London, spoke about the difficulties living with dementia in London.
He said: I have problems when I go out shopping, my awareness of money has completely gone and I have no idea how much I am spending.
He added: "Were quite lucky where we live with the buses and trains but because I cant drive anymore and because my sense of direction is awful now, doing journeys that are beyond the local area is very difficult as I cant work out timetables.
Mr Whiting is one of over 4,000 people in the capital with early onset dementia, where they have been diagnosed with the disease before the age of 65.
Many with early onset dementia are still physically able but find it difficult to carry on with normal life without the aid of a carer.
I had been having problems for so long that when the diagnosis came it was like a release and it all made since, he said.
Tim McLachlan, the Alzheimers Societys operations director for Greater London, said: People with dementia need to be able to get out and about, to get around London to keep active.
We can unlock one of the best public transport systems in Europe for people affected by dementia and take a huge stride in making London dementia friendly.
Dementia affects 850,000 people in the UK, resulting in the loss of brain cells with the most common type of dementia is Alzheimers.
Nationally, the government has doubled research funding to 60m a year and invested 150m to develop a national Dementia Research Institute to drive forward new treatments.
F ears are growing tonight for the safety of a 20-year-old woman and her six-week-old baby.
Police said they are increasingly concerned for the welfare of Isobel Hughes and her daughter Mya after they were last seen at 10pm on Friday in Ealing.
Miss Hughes is described as white, 5ft 8ins with a slim build. She is known to have links to Windsor, Slough, Reading and Hampshire.
Her baby Mya needs regular medical checks as she has a heart condition.
Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to call Ealing Police on 101 or Missing People on 116000 - ref 16MIS013225
P illow fighters enjoyed a huge fight in a south London park today despite fears the event had been scrapped.
Dozens of people arrived at Kennington Park on Saturday to celebrate the 7th International Pillow Fight Day but saw police officers guarding the area, sparking rumours it had been cancelled.
The event, which was celebrated in cities across the world, was due to take in Trafalgar Square but was moved to the park after failing to secure official approval.
In a Facebook post, organisers Focal Local said they wanted to make the pillow fight legal this year but had been threatened with legal action.
Armed and ready: Fighters met at Kennington Park to celebrate International Pillow Fight Day / PA
World celebrations: The 7th International Pillow Fight Day was celebrated across the world / PA
Despite warnings the pillow fight had been cancelled a flash mob began softly hitting one another as police watched from the sidelines.
Nikki Patel and Dom Man, both 25, who attended last year's event in Trafalgar Square, said: "It's a ritual. It's not as violent as last year - it definitely seems a bit more mellow.
Enjoyment: There were fears the event had been cancelled after police officers kept guard at the park / PA
"It's all in good spirits. The purpose of this is to have some fun - and it's free."
P rotesters gathered outside the US embassy to demand the release of two prisoners who featured in the hugely popular documentary Making A Murderer.
Demonstrators met outside the embassy on Saturday before they marched to Parliament Square.
They called for the release of Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey, who are currently serving life sentences for the murder of Teresa Halbach.
Their convictions became widely publicised after featuring on a Netflix documentary which has raised concerns about the American criminal justice system.
Support: Harry Potter star Miriam Margoyles joined protesters in Parliament Square / PA
The Making A Murderer show included claims police framed Avery and Dassey for the 2005 murder in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, by planting evidence and manipulating witnesses.
Harry Potter star Miriam Margoyles was among the protesters in London.
She said: People have got to know what's going on because this corruption and injustice affects everyone in every country.
Controversial: The convictions were highlighted in the Netflix documentary Making A Murderer / PA
I watched the programme on Netflix and I was very shocked to see that two innocent men have been sent to prison for life. I felt I had to come and make a protest.
"You can see the evidence that they got from Brendan Dassey when he was 16. He is educationally challenged, and there was nobody with him. Not his lawyer, not his mother.
Convicted: Steven Avery is serving a life sentence for murder / Netflix/Rex
Organiser Kayleigh Brandon, who has been writing to Dassey in prison, said she wanted to raise awareness of the case.
She said: After finally succumbing to the manipulation of seasoned interrogators, Brendan immediately recanted his coerced confession.
Yet despite not a scrap of DNA evidence linking him to the crime scene, Brendan was sentenced to life in prison. He hasn't done any of that."
P olice have shut a busy road in south-east London after several pedestrians were hit by a car.
Officers were called to Lee High Road in Lewisham just after 5.30pm to reports of a collision in which it is believed involved a woman and two children.
The injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.
The car stopped at the scene.
Lewisham neighbourhood officers warned motorists to expect delays in the area and paid tribute to passers-by following the incident.
Lewisham Central SNT tweeted: "Massive thank you to all the members of public that helped at the RTC on Lee high road. You did an amazing job helping before emergency services arrived."
The road was reopened shortly before 8pm.
Anyone with information about the collision is asked to contact police on 101.
M ore than 70 firefighters tackled a huge blaze which broke out on an industrial estate in Tottenham.
London Fire Brigade said 10 fire engines were sent to the fire at a single-storey bakery unit in West Mews, near West Road, at 6.20pm.
A spokesman said no-one was injured.
He added crews fought to prevent the blaze from spreading to neighbouring units until it was brought under control at about 1am on Sunday morning.
Fighting the flames: Ten fire crews have been called to the industrial unit in West Road, Tottenham / Paul Wood
Station Manager Charles Hanks, speaking from the scene as the fire was still raging, said: Crews were confronted with a large fire when they arrived and are now working hard to confine it to the bakery and stop it from spreading to any neighbouring factory units.
"There is some fuel stored on site but crews have isolated the supply and it is not involved in the fire.
The fire is producing a lot of smoke so we are advising residents to keep their doors and windows closed as a precaution while it is going on. Thankfully though no injuries have been reported.
Police were also called to the scene at around 7pm and closed roads in the area.
Blaze: 70 firefighters are tackling a fire at an industrial unit in Tottenham / Francois Herisse
Firefighters remained at the site throughout the night.
Pictures from the scene show huge plumes rising over north London.
IT manager Francois Herisse, 47, took a picture from his home of the smoke rising.
He said: "We first noticed a smoke and the very strong smell. I took the picture from my balcony and closed all windows."
The cause of the fire is unknown at this stage but an investigation has been launched.
B russels Airport is set to partially reopen tomorrow for the first time since suicide bombers struck 12 days ago.
Passenger flights to Faro in Portugal, Turin in Italy and Greek capital Athens will leave from Zaventem it has emerged.
The flights, operated by Brussels Airlines, are the first to leave the airport since 16 people were killed in the terminal on March 22 when bombs detonated by so-called Islamic State extremists ripped through the departure hall.
A further 16 people were killed in a separate blast at an underground Metro station.
CEO of Brussels Airport Company Arnaud Feist said the number of flights will increase before a full reopening / EPA
Arnaud Feist, CEO of the Brussels Airport Company, said: I am extremely grateful to all airport staff, federal police and the federal government for their efforts and commitment.
"These flights are the first hopeful sign from an airport that is standing up straight after a cowardly attack.
"That we are able to make this start only 12 days after the devastating attacks is a sign of our collective strength at Brussels Airport.
Damage: 16 people died at the terminal when bombs ripped through the departure hall on March 22 / EPA
"On Sunday 3 April, for the first time since the bomb attacks on Brussels Airport, three symbolic passenger flights will depart.
"In the days following, the number of flights will be gradually increased and passenger flights will also land at Brussels Airport."
According to Sky News, passengers will be dropped off at car parks before being taken to check-in desks.
The airport is scheduled to fully reopen by the end of June or early July.
The Nebraska Supreme Court has affirmed a judges dismissal of a lawsuit against a former Scottsbluff Public School Board member.
In May 2011, former Scottsbluff High School teacher Pat Sulu sued then-board member Kim Magana, alleging that Magana had initiated a letter that led to Sulu resigning after 25 years of teaching. Sulu accused Magana of conspiring with Scottsbluff High School teacher, Luke (Dan) Keener, in getting a student to write a letter to administration complaining about Sulu and her teaching methods. In a lawsuit against Magana, Sulu alleged that Magana overstepped her role as a school board member and interfered with Sulus business relationship and expectancy with the Scottsbluff Public Schools. Sulu testified that the superintendent of the district had asked her if she wanted to turn her resignation in and that she felt pressured to quit.
In July 2014, Scotts Bluff County District Court Judge Leo Dobrovolny dismissed the lawsuit, saying that while Magana was involved in arranging a meeting with the student and urged the student to write a letter to the superintendent and board, Magana had no input as to the substance of the letter. Though Maganas actions may have been interference, he said, it did not mean that her actions were unjustified and Sulu had sued Magana as a private citizen, not as a board member.
Dobrovolny ruled on the case after a motion for summary judgment, which is a motion asking the judge to rule on the merits of the case before there is a jury trial. Sulu, represented by Scottsbluff attorney Maren Chaloupka, appealed Dobrovolnys ruling. Sulu also appealed a motion assessing costs and attorney fees incurred by the school district in being subpoenaed for documents and other costs.
The Nebraska Supreme Court affirmed Dobrovolnys ruling, ruling that Sulu had not presented evidence that contradicted Magana and others testimony that she had not been involved in the actual writing of the letter. The burden was on Sulu to prove that Magana, Keener and the students testimony were untrue and Magana had been involved in writing the letter, the court said.
Conclusions based on guess, speculation, conjecture, or a choice of possibilities do not create material issues of fact for the purposes of summary judgment; the evidence must be sufficient to support an interference in the nonmovants factor without the fact finder engaging in guesswork, the court said in the ruling.
Magana did not run for re-election when her term ended in 2012. Sulu now teaches Spanish for Kimball Public Schools.
ST. LOUIS Every morning, workers from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency buy 40 pretzels from Gus Koebbes shop on Lemp Avenue. They then drive down Arsenal Street, roll past the agencys stone walls and barbed wire, flash their cards through security and walk the warm dough into their cafeteria.
Two weeks ago, the agency held an employee appreciation day and sent two workers to Koebbes shop, Gus Pretzels, to buy 3,500 of the treats, plus 2,500 cups of honey mustard and cheese sauce.
And if anyone needs an example of the impact of the 3,100-worker federal employer, that, area business owners say, is a pretty good one.
Employees at NGA, as the agency is called, go to Big Daddys Bar & Grill in Soulard for lunch. Night-shift workers stop at Benton Park Cafe for breakfast burritos. Security guards visit Joels Shell Food Mart, every day, for gas, coffee and cigars.
Theyre fabulously nice, said Benton Park Cafe bartender Laura Dazz Alter. Well be sad to see them go.
Some have questioned whether a secretive spy agency can have any impact on its surrounding neighborhoods. Business owners and managers around the nations three current NGA facilities, however, say that the federal workers while a bit closed-lipped make for wonderful and regular customers.
Civic officials, meanwhile, tout the impact of the agency on area development and business.
That many employees, with technical jobs and good pay, theyre going to buy lunches and gasoline and all sorts of things, said Gerald Gordon, president and chief executive of the Economic Development Authority in Fairfax County, which houses the NGAs large eastern headquarters.
The NGAs western headquarters, wedged between the riverfront and the Anheuser-Busch brewery here, is closing after years of preparation. The agencys director, Robert Cardillo, announced on Thursday that a 100-acre site in north St. Louis is his preliminary choice for the NGAs new location. In doing so, he skipped over 182 acres among the cornfields of southwestern Illinois, near Scott Air Force Base.
Officials on both sides of the Mississippi River fought vehemently for the employment center. Many have said both sides made compelling arguments.
Multiple Illinois officials did not return calls seeking comment for this story. Several said last week that they intend to keep fighting for Scott and the Illinois site.
City leaders believe St. Louis won in part because officials pitched the NGA as a cornerstone of urban redevelopment in a swath of city only pockmarked by life.
Cardillo said as much in a three-page letter to staff on Thursday evening. The future of the agency, he wrote, rests on the next generation and todays millennials want to be in bustling cities, close to their workplace.
We face tough competition for employees, he said, and offering an environment that appeals to these future generations is critical to our success.
FIRST MONEY IN
The city has long been planning for just such growth. But private projects in that area, such as Paul McKees beleaguered NorthSide Redevelopment, have rarely even broken ground.
Nobody wants to be the first money in, said Jeff Rainford, Mayor Francis Slays former chief of staff, who worked on the project for two years before leaving last year. As a secured facility, NGA isnt a perfect investment, he said. But it will jump-start redevelopment.
Its like a drop of ink in a glass of water, said Otis Williams, executive director of the citys development arm. The ink swirls, dips and eventually spreads throughout the glass.
A $1.7 billion facility including $1 billion in construction will overhaul the areas landscape, he said.
Williams has stacks of maps, drawings and fact sheets that outline the citys hopes:
Leaders intend to spend more than $15 million on median, streetscape and bicycle facility improvements on Cass, St. Louis and Jefferson avenues, probably after the NGA facility is built.
They say they have attracted interest from the AFL-CIOs Housing Investment Trust in building a $52 million, 250-unit infill housing revitalization project just east of the site.
They hope a north-south MetroLink expansion could run tracks from the city center, along Jefferson Avenue, and up to the NGA site.
And, at the overgrown site of the demolished Pruitt-Igoe public housing towers, they envision 20 blocks of brand-new retail, restaurants, office and service businesses, directly across the street from the spy facility all projects that would require significant private investment.
The city has months of work ahead of it before turning over the site to the NGA in 2017, Williams said.
The agency will formally confirm its choice by June 1, he said. City and NGA officials will begin discussing terms of the land transfer around August or September. And the city will have about a year to buy homes, move residents, demolish buildings, clear land, reroute utilities and clean contaminated ground.
It will cost about $50 million to buy the sites 551 parcels, relocate residents and, in at least one case, move a historic home, Williams said. The city will pay almost $10 million to pull out and reroute all electric lines, gas pipes and other utilities, plus $36 million, funded through state Brownfield tax credits, to clean the ground.
NGA employees pay about $2.4 million a year in city earnings taxes. Of that, city officials have set aside $1.5 million annually to repay bonds for site expenses, leaving $900,000 a year and growing, as the agency adds workers and workers get raises for city coffers.
The state will add almost $100 million more in tax-increment financing for site preparation.
Its worth it, Williams said. This project, he said, could truly be catalytic to the North Side.
SPINOFF DEVELOPMENT
The NGA runs three campuses, one on Fort Belvoir in Virginia and two in St. Louis.
Mary Holden, the community development director for Arnold, said the NGAs smallest site, just west of Highway 55 off Vogel Road, has been an important neighbor.
The agency built the facility, which is unaffected by the St. Louis move, in the mid-1990s, she said. Before long, housing tracts came in around it. A strip mall developed across the road, with an NGA-frequented Mexican restaurant, plus a Target and Home Depot, among other stores.
There are quirks to a spy facility. When it needed building permits more recently, leaders didnt want to turn them in to the city, so the city sent inspectors to them. And the facility as a whole doesnt exactly reach out to the public. They keep a very low profile, Holden said.
The agency doesnt interact with the community as would more-public companies, agreed Gordon, the Fairfax County economic development chief.
But the 8,500-employee NGA office in Fairfax County has an impact, he said. It elevates the education level, the income levels of that area of the county, generates added tax revenue from contractors and all contributes to greater patronization of retail space around it, he said.
The NGA moved its national headquarters to the 51,000-worker Fort Belvoir military base in 2011. And with its arrival came contractors, Gordon said.
He figures new private companies have added at least a million feet of office space several buildings worth since the NGA arrived.
Moreover, Gordon said, he expects the agency to keep growing.
There are costs, he warned. Federal property isnt on tax rolls, but the children from all those employees still use public schools. And area roadways have clogged some, no question.
But, with an educated workforce and good public schools, Fairfax County has become a coveted location, he said.
That could eventually happen in north St. Louis, too, said Sarah Coffin, an associate professor of urban planning at St. Louis University.
The federal government is about to plant its flag, she said. That sends a message to developers.
While it might not happen overnight, 10 years after it opens, I am sure there will be spinoff development, she said.
Its very important, she added, for the city to guide that growth and hold on to its historic feel.
Guys like Joel Platke, owner of the Shell station on Arsenal by Anheuser-Busch, are worried about the loss of their regular patrons. This is going to affect my business, no doubt, he said. Its going to hurt the South Side.
But the move, said St. Louis Regional Chamber President and Chief Executive Joe Reagan, should only end up as a positive for the region.
The federal government has chosen to invest billions of dollars in this region and this economy, Reagan said. This investment is going to create jobs throughout the entire region.
Theres only one way to lose, he said if St. Clair County cant use the momentum it created over the past few years to draw new jobs, new companies, to its site in the cornfields.
Nobody can predict at this moment what the next opportunity will be, he said. But there will be a next opportunity. There will be.
SunEdison Inc. is planning to file for bankruptcy protection in the coming weeks, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The Maryland Heights-based solar energy company is preparing to file for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 and is in talks with two creditor groups for a loan to fund its operations during the process, the newspaper reported.
SunEdison creditors are likely to take control of the company and its portfolio of power projects, the newspaper reported, citing the sources.
The newspaper reported that SunEdison has been meeting with creditors to negotiate a loan to see it through bankruptcy, but competition for the deal among lenders has delayed an agreement.
A spokesperson for SunEdison did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The companys shares were down 58 percent at 17 cents in extended trading on Friday.
The share price already had tumbled 20 percent in Fridays regular trading session on news that the Department of Justice was investigating the companys failed deal to buy Utah-based Vivint Solar Inc. and transactions with its two publicly listed units, TerraForm Power Inc. and TerraForm Global Inc.
Early in March, solar panel installer Vivint terminated the cash-and-stock deal worth $2.2 billion when it was forged in July last year after SunEdison failed to close on the planned acquisition.
The Justice Department also sought details on investigations by SunEdisons audit committee and financing of its Uruguay projects.
On Feb. 29, the company announced that the board of directors audit committee was investigating allegations by former company executives concerning the accuracy of its liquidity position and cash needs in the most recent quarterly filing.
The Journal reported on Monday that the Security and Exchange Commission is checking SunEdisons disclosures to see if the company exaggerated its liquidity last year.
The Choir of St. Johns College, Cambridge, a traditional Anglican choir of men and boys, has made more than 90 recordings and tours all over the world. Director of music Andrew Nethsingha and the choir will bring the group 17 boy choristers, 15 male choral scholars, two organ scholars and the conductor, along with four adults to look after the boys to sing a varied program at the Cathedral Basilica on Friday. Nethsingha talked about the choir by email.
Q What is your approach to directing the choir?
A My main aim has been to continue the tradition established by my predecessors George Guest, Christopher Robinson and David Hill, in terms of the choirs distinctive sonority, expressiveness and phrasing. Every day I think about this style and sound world, and I try to keep it unique and distinctive.
Q How are the choral scholars and boy choristers selected? What kind of training do they receive?
A Choral scholars must be accepted for an academic place at the University of Cambridge and pass my musical auditions for the College Choir, including singing solo songs, ear tests, vocal exercises and sight-reading.
Our boy choristers must be accepted at St Johns College School, where they are boarders, and selected at audition processes not dissimilar to the choral scholars. Several of our choristers live locally in Cambridge; some come from farther afield. At present we have two choristers who live in Massachusetts, so they have the farthest distance to travel! This morning I auditioned, by Skype, a boy who lives in Malaysia. I am always keen to hear from boys all over the world who are interested in benefiting from the unique musical training we offer here.
Choristers are usually with us for five years, from the age of 8 to the age of 13. The boys sing at six choral services a week, one on a Sunday morning and the others at 6:30 p.m. Evensongs. Each service is preceded by an hours rehearsal. In addition, the boy choristers have an hours rehearsal most mornings before school starts, as well as individual singing and instrumental lessons. My aim is that during the daily rehearsals I should teach them not only the music to be performed that day or that week, but also give them a gradual program of training for their five years.
I aim to teach them to listen to themselves and to each other, to be sensitive musicians, to be self-confident and also self-critical, to be team-players, to have attention to detail, to have a sense of musical personality, to be thoughtful about the text they are singing, to be imaginative, to have a strong sense of pulse, to think about the direction of a phrase.the list could go on and on!
Q Please say something about the music youll be singing at the Cathedral Basilica.
A I have chosen a range of British music from the past 500 years. The earliest music in the program is by William Byrd from the 16th century. Our college was also founded in the 16th century, in 1511. Our College Choir was not founded until rather later, in the 1670s. We sing two pieces by Henry Purcell composed just a few years after that.
At the other end of the historical spectrum our program includes three pieces which I have commissioned within the past decade, music by Jonathan Dove, Jonathan Harvey and James Burton. In between we have various choral classics. I chose much of the program with the particular acoustic of the Cathedral Basilica in mind.
Q What are the challenges of a tour like the one youre undertaking? How do you meet them?
A There are many challenges. We need to make our organization and preparation as extensive and as careful as possible.
By the time we reach St. Louis, we will already have traveled to London; San Francisco; Washington, D.C.; New York and Atlanta, Ga., amongst others. Avoiding over-tiredness and avoiding vocal fatigue are crucial. We give a huge amount of thought to the pastoral care of members of the choir, especially of the young boys. A huge number of logistical arrangements are necessary in terms of arranging travel, accommodation, visas, work permits, etc. It becomes harder every time we come to the USA.
Cathedral Concerts: Choir of St. Johns College, Cambridge
When 8 p.m. April 8
Where Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, 4431 Lindell Boulevard
How much $19-$42
To Jessie Pearl Hairston, every life has a purpose. It just took her 68 years to find hers.
After a lifetime of terrible adversity, shining hope and spectacular redemption, she has finally found her calling. It is baking. As the owner and sole employee of Jessie-Pearls Poundcakes, Etc. she calls herself CEO of Sugar and Butter she makes pound cakes, cobblers and other baked treats with an old-time feel.
Hairston is blessed with a boisterous personality, a hearty laugh and a never-ending supply of down-home phrases. Her food is so good, she will tell you, your tongue will slap your brains out, and she says she doesnt want to fold up like a $2 suitcase. She refers to her baked goods as culinary crack.
Hairston now lives in a modest apartment near Tower Grove Park; it is decorated with wholesome Norman Rockwell prints. A few blocks away live her daughter, Yaunah, and her grandson, Seth.
But life was not so easy when she was growing up the eighth of nine children in Forest, Miss. She was just 4 when her mother died from a botched illegal abortion. That left Hairston and her siblings in the hands of her father, whom she called an alcoholic pedophile with a second-grade education.
Her youth was hellish.
I was taught that I was incapable of achieving anything. I was taught that I was dumb, that I was stupid, that I would never accomplish anything, she said.
For years, until she was 13, she never knew which night her father would climb into bed with her.
Because I was raised in a home of debauchery, my greatest aspiration was to grow up and become a good hooker, she said.
One small light in the darkness was baking. She learned how by watching her grandmother and an older sister bake, and when she took a home economics class in school. When she was 13 she made her first sale, a vanilla pound cake.
But she did not continue it. Her attention turned elsewhere, to abusing any drug she could find hashish, cocaine and pills. She became, as she put it, a borderline addict. And to pay for the drugs, she became a prostitute. In a sense, she felt as if she were fulfilling her destiny.
But that whole lifestyle ended when she was 27. That year, she said, I had a divine appointment. I met with God.
A genuine American heathen
Hairston did not grow up in a religious household. There was no Bible in the home.
I never heard anything about God in the house except goddamn. I was a genuine American heathen.
But then she had two experiences a month apart that changed her life forever.
The first was medical. During her years in prostitution, she underwent four illegal abortions. Each one cost her just $25, but they took a terrible toll.
They left me internally rotten, but I did not know it until years later, she said.
One night, she was dancing at a club when she experienced severe pain. One misdiagnosis later (the emergency-room doctors assumed she had a reaction from the drugs she was taking), she wound up back in the emergency room. She was told she was two hours from death when her life was saved by an emergency hysterectomy.
The second life-changing event happened just a month later, when she was still recovering from the operation. She was a passenger in a car when the driver ran a red light.
It was a horrifying crash. Only two things kept her from going through the windshield: a woman in the back seat who held her back and an internal voice she heard telling her to brace her feet against the dashboard. She got out of the car and ran, as fate would have it, to a nearby cemetery.
Someone wanted her dead, she said, and the Godfather made me an offer I couldnt refuse.
Shortly afterward, she was given an evangelical pamphlet from Chick Publications, a company that spreads the word of the Gospel. She read the tract and took it to heart.
I was seated on the side of my bed in Sharon, Pa., and a big movie screen popped down in front of me, a giant screen that took up the whole wall, and I was looking at myself and Jesus. I was looking at a preview of coming attractions.
He was teaching me how to be born again. I put my face in my hands and said, Jesus, help me.
At that pivotal moment, she said, all of that pain that was in my soul, that made me want to do the drugs, all of the stress, all of the self-loathing, all of the hatred and the bitterness left me.
For the first time in her life, she felt as if she had a purpose. And purpose, she said, is the original intent that a person is born with.
Freed from the burdens of her youth, Hairston attended Bible schools in Oklahoma and Florida. She started her own ministry and became a speaker in churches and at revivals, telling the story of her life sprinkled with quotations from Scripture.
I live out loud. I dont push Jesus on anybody, but Im one of his love letters. And you can read me if you dont read the Bible, she said.
From a hobby to a job
When she was well into her middle age, she determined to go back to school. Though she had never been studious when she was young, she made a 4.0 grade-point average and was on the Deans List at community colleges in Durham, N.C., and St. Louis. But physical ailments finally cut her studies short. She suffers from problems with her joints that officially render her disabled.
That doesnt stop her. Nobody could look at me and say that I have challenges, she said.
She returned to baking when she was in Bible school in Oklahoma, she took a job cooking for nuns in a convent so in 2008 she turned her hobby into a job by opening her business. She baked her goods in restaurants and other professional kitchens, and sold her goods at a number of area farmers markets before the work became too much for one person.
She closed the business. But, sure that she had found her calling, she opened it again last year. This time, she bakes to order instead of trying to sell her goods at markets, using the food incubator at the Salus Center at St. Louis University as her kitchen. After she broke her wrist last May, her grandson Seth came to help with the stirring and lifting. He recently baked his first dessert, a vanilla pound cake just like his grandmother.
Adversity struck one more time. About 10 years ago she suffered an attack of Bells palsy, which affected the right half of her face, her right arm and right leg. She could use her right foot, but she couldnt feel it, a condition known as foot drop.
In the world of politics, it can be hard to tell when things that seem to be over really are.
I read with 1976 eyes the news Thursday that the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency had picked St. Louis over Scott Air Force Base as the site for its new $1.75 billion western headquarters, keeping 3,100 jobs in the city.
What I mean is that behind the words I imagined not the face of the NGA director, Robert Cardillo, but the face of a U.S. transportation secretary of the past, William T. Coleman. He announced in my presence 40 years ago (egad, that long?) that the regions then enormous economic plum a federally subsidized replacement for Lambert-St. Louis International Airport would be in Metro East.
Hah. Only over a pile of Missouri politicians dead bodies, I figured. In fact, the Show-Me State prevailed without a single fatality. Lambert was never replaced, just expanded. Then St. Louis role as a top-tier aviation hub flew away. Dumping the Columbia-Waterloo plan may have been the best outcome for everybody.
The lingering lesson is that in a period of political flux, the definitive word from Coleman who served President Gerald Ford, a Republican did not hold.
Within months, Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, would move into the White House, and the political realities would shift. In that same 1976 election, Democrat Joseph Teasdale replaced Republican Christopher Kit Bond as governor of Missouri, and Republican James R. Thompson took over for Democrat Dan Walker as governor of Illinois. Change, change, change.
Missouri will elect a new governor this year; Illinois will not. The administration that picked Cardillo (and helped make Thursdays preliminary selection of a St. Louis site) will be gone in 9 months, as President Barack Obama moves on. What, if anything, that means here is anybodys guess.
Would a President Hillary Clinton or President Bernie Sanders intervene to move the prize a little ways east, from a red state to a blue? It seems improbable, but remember that the Columbia-Waterloo airport announcement also felt, at the time, unambiguous.
Theoretically, things could change even before Cardillo makes the selection final, after a public comment period. Illinois officials have pledged a thorough examination of whether the choice is really the best for the NGA, although with wan hope of a reversal.
When is final really final?
Heck, I would have thought that the U.S. Supreme Courts refusal a few days ago to hear the appeal of Rod Blagojevich would have brought a conclusion to the case of the former Illinois governor who is four years (again, egad) into his 14-year stay in federal prison. But, despite the appearances, it was not necessarily the end of arguably the goofiest corruption case in the states ample history of malfeasance.
Unlike Jefferson City, where sex-related scandals seem to visit the Missouri State Capitol with the regularity of the High Street bus, virtually all Springfield political embarrassments are about money and power. Blagojevich was distinguished from the others by what he had for sale.
For Gov. Otto Kerner, it was quiet favors to an upstate horse racing track. For Gov. George Ryan, it was quiet favors to contributors. For Gov. Dan Walker, the fall was about a savings and loan fraud that had nothing to do with his electoral office. But for the ever-audacious Blagojevich, it was, in part, whom he would choose to fill the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by Obamas election as president.
Blagojevichs attorneys argue that some of the most egregious of the accusations were in the five of his charges struck down by the 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. That presumably will trigger a resentencing hearing that might or might not reduce his decade remaining behind bars.
Eventually, analysts have suggested, his attorneys could even take another shot at the Supreme Court over the central defense issue: a claim that prosecutors over-reached to criminalize what was really only old-fashioned political maneuvering. Indeed, what politician would not at least have a flash of Blagojevichs realization that the Senate appointment was as he was heard describing it on an FBI recording (obscenity) golden?
Was there any political maneuvering with that golden NGA site? Or might there still be? Consider that probably every major politician in two states has a spoon in the soup pot, then answer that for yourself.
ST. LOUIS Surveillance cameras aimed toward the area where a police officer shot a man in a confrontation in the Central West End this week failed to show the incident, the head of a neighborhood security group that controls them said Friday.
The wounded man, 22, remained in critical condition Friday at a hospital from a gunshot wound to his upper chest, police said. No charges have been filed against him.
A traffic detail officer, 51, shot the man once about 11:45 a.m. Thursday at McPherson Avenue and Kingshighway after a struggle that was believed to be rooted in a traffic ticket, officials said. An investigation continues.
A group of activists gathered Friday near the scene to demand that police release any audio and video recordings of the incident. They said they have questions about Police Chief Sam Dotsons initial account.
If theyre sticking to their story then they should be comfortable with releasing the video, said Jacob Crawford, one of the founders of WeCopWatch. The public has a right to know what happened.
But Jim Whyte, executive director of the Central West Ends Neighborhood Security Initiative, told a reporter Friday that he personally reviewed the recordings from the four cameras conspicuously mounted on the nearby Reliance Automotive shop, and none showed the event.
Its frustrating, he said of the cameras failure to record the incident.
The organization controls 87 cameras funded by property owners. Whyte said one of the cameras caught part of the top of the officers patrol car as it pulled up and parked on McPherson, but did not show any of the encounter. Whyte said he also shared this information with Dotson, and provided copies.
Whytle explained that the recordings were already accessible to the police departments Real-Time Crime Center at police headquarters. He said the Reliance cameras are controlled by the association, not the business. A shop manager said its lone camera shows only the inside of the business.
Crawford provided a copy of an activists video showing an officer moving a black SUV at the shooting scene, obviously after the investigation was started, and asked why it was done. A department spokeswoman said Friday that the SUV already had been photographed in place and that the movement of the vehicle has little to no evidentiary value to the incident.
Police said the wounded man had received tickets for running a stop sign and having improper license plates, left, then returned to confront the officer. The man approached the patrol car and began yelling, officials said.
The officer tried to arrest him, police said, and the dispute moved to the mans car, where he allegedly held the officer with one hand while using the other to try to open a closed knife and jabbing him with it. Unable to break free, Dotson said, the officer fired one shot.
The officer, a 27-year veteran of the department, was placed on administrative leave under standard policy. A department summary shows that both the officer and the wounded man are black.
HONOLULU Cheryl Konrad has spent the last 35 years educating visitors to her Lahaina, Hawaii, store about the centuries-old history of scrimshaw.
Konrad fills the shelves in Lahaina Scrimshaw with the etchings of area artists on fossilized walrus and mammoth ivory. But if a bill to ban the sale of ivory becomes law this year, she worries that she will be forced to close.
I feel like Ive been a part of history. Its just so hard to fathom that it could be criminal eventually, Konrad said.
Past legislation has failed largely because of opposition from area merchants who make a living selling legal ivory carvings and jewelry. But increased awareness of the poaching of elephants in Africa is leading lawmakers to reconsider.
I think we have a good shot at it, said state Sen. Mike Gabbard, a Democrat who introduced the bill in the Senate.
The Humane Society of the United States says Hawaii is the third-largest ivory market in the nation after California and New York, which have banned its sale altogether. With the world in the midst of a poaching crisis, they say Hawaii could become Americas largest market if left unregulated.
Poaching of African elephants has reached the highest level recorded since international organizations began keeping track in 2002, according to the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The agency estimates 100,000 elephants were killed across Africa for ivory between 2010 and 2012.
Both the Hawaii House and Senate have passed their own version of bills that would ban the sale of certain wildlife parts, including elephant ivory, rhinoceros horn and shark. The bills include some exemptions, including for the age of the ivory and cultural uses.
Lawmakers opposed to the ban say its too broad.
I just think this is a meat-ax approach when it didnt have to be, said Sen. Rosalyn Baker, a Democrat, who added that the legislation could hurt people who have spent years collecting ivory.
It could also criminalize art forms that have long been a part of the states history, she said.
Even today, there are dozens of Hawaii residents who earn a living selling ivory. Ray Peters, who has lived on Maui since the 1970s, said he had built his life off scrimshaw and it would be difficult for him to find another job in his late 60s.
I will be forced to leave our islands which have been my home for 45 years, Peters said.
Konrad, who owns Lahaina Scrimshaw, acknowledges the exemptions for antique bone, but says getting documentation to prove ivory is over a century old is difficult. Most ivories werent regulated until the 1970s, so ivory imported into the U.S. before then often doesnt have documentation, she said.
I just hope to God that we are able to continue on for a few more short years, Konrad said.
Keith Swindle, a special agent at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Hawaii, said a ban on nearly all ivory was necessary because it was tricky to tell its age, especially in the form of small carvings or jewelry. Some will stain poached ivory to disguise it as an antique or fossil.
If I gave you two pieces of ivory, you could not tell them apart if one is legal or illegal, Swindle said. So if you have a legal ivory market, it makes it very easy to have a market to illegally launder ivory.
If the execution is carried out, it too will leave a grieving family, in addition to having lost a little boy who might have survived if he could have gotten to the hospital in time.
TRAFFIC NOTE
The right lane of the two eastbound lanes of the Martin Luther King Bridge will be closed to traffic between 6 a.m. and 3 p.m. from Monday through Friday, the Illinois Department of Transportation said. The lane closure is needed so crews can make repairs as part of the ongoing bridge rehabilitation project.
SunEdison (NYSE: SUNE) is preparing to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the coming weeks, the Wall Street Journal reported late Friday.
The company is in talks with two creditor groups to obtain a loan to fund its operations during the process, according to people familiar with the matter.
While not a complete surprise given news of liquidity trouble in recent weeks, it is a dramatic turn of fortune for the company whose market value was nearly $10 billion in July.
A number of hedge funds, including David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital, owned the stock.
Pompano Beach, Florida, April 02, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --
DS Healthcare Group, Inc has initiated an internal investigation of officers and directors to determine the cause of recent events that led to the rapid decline in company securities; class action lawsuits and other liabilities; misleading press releases; and the unsuccessful attempted termination of Daniel Khesin, Founder, President, and Chairman of DS Healthcare Group, Inc.
The investigation has revealed that the former board member Michael Pope, CEO Renee Barch-Niles, and company attorney Stephen A. Weiss conspired to defraud investors by arranging a transaction to issue 2,000,000 shares of DS Healthcare Group, Inc common stock to each other within days of filing a false 8k statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission proclaiming that Daniel Khesin had been terminated for cause as President and Chairman of the Board. No such action took place.
Michael Pope, Renee Barch-Niles, and Stephen A. Weiss attempted to remove Daniel Khesin from the company under threat of an imminent SEC investigation, implying allegations of wrongdoing that were never revealed.
The fraud began to unfold when the Chairman appeared to be removed from the company at which time Michael Pope, Renee Barch-Niles, and attorney Stephen A. Weiss began to conspire to enrich themselves with a transaction that the Chairman would have never approved and that would be inappropriate for executives who recently arrived at the company and have not yet delivered any performance.
Michael Pope was attempting to receive 500,000 shares and additional cash and bonuses when his compensation for serving on the board is otherwise 15,000 shares per year with no cash compensation. Attorney Stephen A. Weiss commented in his email that "Given the extraordinary effort that the executive officers (Mark, Renee, Manny) and Mike Pope as head of the audit committee have made in dealing with the recent DSKX crisis not to mention the time expended" that it would be appropriate to issue 2,000,000 shares in a crisis that they themselves had engineered with dishonest press releases and other negligent acts. The scheme also enabled the transaction to be booked at a lower valuation and allow lesser tax consequences for a greater number of shares due to the depressed stock price.
The conspiracy was further perpetrated when attorney Stephen A. Weiss indicated that his firm, CKR Law, would reduce its future legal fees as a "show of support" for the transactionindicating that attorney Weiss was likely receiving a kickback from Michael Pope in the transaction. It was also discovered that Stephen A. Weiss has had a relationship with Michael Pope for many years and it was unethical and breach of attorney-client duty to have Stephen A. Weiss acting as company counsel when in fact he was representing interests of Michael Pope and himself.
Upon Daniel Khesin's return to headquarters, shareholders have formed a group to remove the Board of Directors and a legal hold has been placed on all documents and evidence. Access to emails and company servers have been blocked for management. Within minutes of shutting off access, the company's IT manager received aggressive phone calls and emails from attorneys stating that his "actions have and are causing serious damage to the Company. Further, your unauthorized actions constitute violations of the Federal Computer Fraud Act which carries serious consequences under federal law." Further in the email additional threats were made that "if you do not immediately cease your illegal activity and provide immediate access to the database to the Company executives, the Company will file a securities fraud action in U.S. District Court, will name you as a Defendant and will seek injunctive and other relief and damages against you" in what may have been an attempt to conceal the crime.
The findings from this internal investigation have been reported to the DOJ, FBI, Secret Service, and local law enforcement. An exhibit of actual communication is attached. Additional evidence is being collected.
DS Healthcare appreciates the support of all shareholders who have contributed their votes to remove Michael Pope from the Board of Directors.
About DS Healthcare Group
DS Healthcare Group Inc. develops novel biotechnology for topical therapies. It markets through online channels, specialty retailers, distributors, pharmacies, and salons. Its research has led to a highly innovative portfolio of personal care products and additional innovations in pharmaceutical projects. For more information on DS Healthcare visit www.dshealthgroup.com
Forward-looking statements
Except for statements of historical fact, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking and made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies, and are generally preceded by words such as "future," "plan" or "planned," "expects," or "projected." These forward-looking statements reflect numerous assumptions and involve a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company's control that may cause actual results to differ materially from stated expectations. These risk factors include, among others, limited operating history, difficulty in developing and marketing products, intense competition, and additional risks factors as discussed in reports filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available at www.sec.gov
Investor Relations DS Healthcare Group (888) 404-7770 ext. 3 [email protected]
Source: DS Healthcare Group, Inc.
SHENZHEN, China, April 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- KIMSUN, the international brand of KIMREE, one of the largest electronic cigarette manufacturers, has launched a new product -- TC40W MINI KIT. The mini box mod vaporizer is approximately the size of a small matchbox, making it easier than ever before for the users to enjoy vaping anytime, anywhere.
TC40W MINI KIT is a multi-functional mini vaporizer with exquisite design. It supports two vaping methods by airflow adjusting-- straight to mouth and straight to lungs, and Users can choose between Temperature Control Mode (/F( and Power Control Mode (Wattage). The product also comes with dry-heat protection function when you are careless to heat the new coil without the E-liquid inside.
Key product features:
9.9cm only on the longest side (with the atomizer)
Total Weight: 95g only (with the atomizer)
Material: 0.32 ohm medical grade titanium coil, which is non-toxic and harmless to human body
Safety: Short Circuit protection, Low Voltage protection, Over-charging protection and Overtime pressing protection
Built-in STMicroelectronics chipset with low power consumption feature & No.18400 big battery
Corrosion-resistant aluminium alloy shell with light & high strength feature
Software Update Function: support downloading the new software from KIMSUN's website to upgrade the new function by USB cable connected with the mod and computer; also support the Nickle200 coil material
The two airflow valves support adjustment of the air volume efficiently and make the biggest vapor possible. The LED display screen at the top showing temperature and power allows users to easily control the mod status when vaping.
KIMSUN has participated in several international vape exhibitions in Poland, Paris, Las Vegas. Many visitors were impressed by the functionality and portability of TC40W MINI KIT and showed great passion for the product.
KIMSUN has always embraced a green and environmentally friendly R&D concept. It provides high-quality vaporizers with distinguished and stylish design. With the launch of TC40W MINI KIT, and complemented by the brand's leading business model and excellent after-sales service, KIMSUN is stepping steadily closer to its vision -- "To be a respected industrial leader who provides customers with healthy and high quality products".
About KIMSUN
KIMSUN is the international brand of KIMREE. Established in 2006, KIMREE is a high-tech enterprise specialized in R&D, production and marketing of electronic cigarettes. KIMREE has 548 R&D engineers, 182 senior engineers and owns more than 3,500 domestic and international patents. Products of KIMREE are exported to Europe, North America, Asia and other more than 50 countries and regions. KIMREE always take "to be a respected industrial leader who provides customers with healthy and high quality products" as our company vision.
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160401/350397
To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/latest-kimrees-portable-fashion-vaporizer----kimsun-tc40w-mini-kit-300245133.html
SOURCE KIMREE
Protesters holding poster of Saudi Shi'ite cleric Nimr al-Nimr protest against his execution by Saudi authorities in the village of Sanabis, west of Manama, Bahrain January 3, 2016. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
DUBAI (Reuters) - Bahrain's foreign minister said on Friday that Gulf Arab states were prepared to confront Iran over its foreign policy and Tehran should drop its support for Middle East factions.
Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmed al-Khalifa also played down any difference with the United States over remarks by U.S. President Barack Obama last month telling Saudi Arabia and Iran "to find an effective way to share the neighborhood".
Ties between Bahrain and Washington remained strong, he said.
Bahrain cut diplomatic relations with Iran in January, one day after Saudi Arabia severed ties with the Islamic Republic following attacks by demonstrators on its diplomatic missions in Tehran and Mashhad in response to Saudi Arabia's execution of a prominent Shi'ite Muslim cleric.
"We send a message to Iran and to all its followers. We are now serious about confronting it and we have no hesitation to defend our people, states, interests and brothers in the region because this is a vital issue for us," Sheikh Khaled said in an interview with the Dubai-based al-Arabiya channel.
Bahrain accuses Iran of fomenting unrest in the country and of supplying weapons to Shi'ite militants behind several bomb attacks on security forces. Iran denies the charges.
Sheikh Khaled said Bahrain and other Gulf Arab states were ready to turn a new page with Iran if it changed its policies.
"The main step is that Iran must completely change its foreign policy towards the countries of the region," he said.
This included Iran dropping its support for the Lebanese Hezbollah organization and other groups.
Asked about Obama's remarks to The Atlantic magazine, in which he urged Saudi Arabia and Iran to work together, Sheikh Khaled said: "The issue does not carry a change in policy."
(Reporting by Ali Abdelaty, writing by Sami Aboudi, editing by Angus MacSwan)
PARIS (Reuters) - Syrian government air strikes on the outskirts of Damascus that killed 33 were designed to "terrorize" the Syrian people and erode attempts to find a political solution to the conflict, French Foreign Ministry spokesman Romain Nadal said on Friday.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said earlier that the strikes on the Deir al-Asafir district southeast of the Syrian capital on Thursday had mostly killed women and children.
"France condemns the air strikes carried out by the regime," Nadal told reporters in a weekly briefing. "This attack, which deliberately targeted civilians, including children, show that the regime is continuing its abuses and violating the truce.
"This abject act is designed to terrorize the Syrian people and sap efforts by the international community to find a political solution."
(Reporting by John Irish; Editing by James Regan)
ATHENS (Reuters) - Hundreds of migrants and refugees on the Greek island of Chios tore down part of the razor wire fence surrounding their holding center on Friday and began walking to the port in protest, police officials said.
Under a European Union deal with Turkey, migrants and refugees arriving after March 20 are to be held in centers set up on five Aegean islands, including Chios, and sent back if their asylum applications are not accepted.
Returns are supposed to begin on April 4, though neither Greece nor Turkey are fully ready and uncertainty remains over how many will be sent back and how they will be processed.
About 1,500 migrants and refugees who arrived on Chios since March 20 were being held at the facility as of Friday morning.
Video clips on Greek websites showed dozens of migrants and refugees, many of them women and children, carrying their belongings and walking along the tree-lined road to the port.
A police spokesman for the northern Aegean region to which Chios belongs said about 300 people had left the center. Police were monitoring the situation, he said.
Clashes broke out at the site late on Thursday, during which windows were smashed and 10 people were injured lightly, another police official said.
"They say they don't want to go back to Turkey and that they are afraid for their safety after yesterday's clashes," a police official on Chios said.
"The police tried to persuade them to return back but they refused and now walking to the port of the island," he said.
Before the deal, arrivals on the islands were free to leave the camps and head for ferries to the Greek mainland, from where they would mostly head north via the Balkans in a bid to reach western Europe.
Since March 20, however, they are meant to be held in the five centers set up on the Aegean islands of Samos, Chios, Lesbos, Kos and Leros.
(Reporting by Lefteris Papadimas and Karolina Tagaris; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
The UK has tightened its immigration rules, which could make it a whole lot harder for some Kiwis to get a working visa in the UK - an estimated group of around 600 out of the 150,000 that travelled to the UK last year.
A 50 per cent hike in the minimum salary migrant workers can earn in the UK, could make it a whole lot harder for many Kiwis to stay there.
Changes announced earlier this month, to the Tier 2 general visas, would see employers charged a yearly $2000 levy to employ immigrant workers from April next year.
Those "experienced" workers would require employment that pays a minimum salary of $52,000 by autumn, rising to $63,000 by April next year.
That was up from the current minimum of about $43,600, which still stands for new entrant migrants.
READ MORE:
* New income rules for expat workers in UK could see New Zealanders deported
* UK hits Australia, New Zealand with health charge
* Is the great Kiwi OE over?
* What to do when the OE ends
Some health and education professionals would have a longer grace period; exempt from a higher threshold until July 2019.
But the majority of New Zealanders travelling to Britain, were not expected to be affected by the latest changes.
In 2015, about 150,000 Kiwis visited the UK with only 600 falling under the Tier 2 visa category.
British High Commissioner to New Zealand Jonathan Sinclair said the British Government had taken steps to improve access for young Kiwis.
"New Zealanders (18-30 years old) on the Youth Mobility Scheme can work for two years in the UK, up from one year last decade.
"We have increased the number of places on that scheme to 12,000 a year. Anyone on this scheme is unaffected by the recent changes."
Last year, about 4000 New Zealanders entered the UK under that scheme. New Zealanders travelling to the UK for fewer than six months do not require a visa.
The changes are not unexpected, as Britain grapples with an immigration crisis that, according to the latest figures from the UK Statistics Authority, saw more than 1.6 million migrants from within the EU alone moved there in the past nine years.
Sinclair said the purpose of some of the changes was to incentivise UK employers to invest in training their resident workforce and reduce reliance on migrant labour.
"The UK benefits from immigration and is open for business. Migrant workers fill skills gap and help boost our economy, but it is right that UK employers look first to the resident workforce.
"At the same time, the government runs many routes for New Zealanders to visit, study or work in the UK. Along with Australia and Canada, New Zealand has more visa and non-visa routes than any country into the UK outside the EU," he said.
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Otorohanga dairy farmers are getting a financial reprieve after the council extended its compliance dates for building the stock bypasses.
Federated Farmers has hailed the Otorohanga District Council's decision to give struggling dairy farmers a reprieve from building stock bypasses.
According to regulations set by the council, there are eight stock bypasses due to be built in the next 12 to 18 months in the district, at an estimated cost of about $100,000 each.
The bylaw requires that farmers who shift above a certain number of stock across roads above a certain traffic volume must build a bypass. However, in a policy review, the council has decided to push out the required completion of the underground tunnels until June 2018.
"We thought it was unrealistic to put extra costs on farmers at the moment with the low milk prices. It was something we could do to make life a little bit easier," council roading manager Martin Gould explained.
The bypass policy was enacted in 2014 and only bypasses on relatively low-traffic roads and for farmers with less stock to shift that remain to be built, he said.
"It will give them breathing room for a year or two."
Letters were to be posted on Friday to inform affected farmers of the decision, he said.
It's nice to be the bearer of good news for once, Gould said.
"It's the lower risk end of the programme in any case."
Although it is being pushed out, the bypasses must eventually be built, Gould said, for both safety reasons and to keep "mess" off the roads, he said.
Waikato Federated Farmers president Chris Lewis described the move as proactive.
"I do congratulate the ODC for being realistic and for pushing for this. I do hope others take note," Lewis said.
It's a hard time for farmers and taking away extra financial pressure is commendable, he said.
Compliance with council regulations can be costly.
However he hoped there are things being done for other businesses also.
"Farmers don't have a monopoly on tough times. All businesses go through them."
This book is so much fun! Set in Tainuia Junction, it's the story of two conmen, Wes Pennington and Cyril Kidman, who land on the town in their beloved "cream coloured Chevrolet sedan" ready to embark on their next scam. It transpires that the townsfolk are more than a match for the two men.
There's a regular rogues' gallery of characters, each more colourful than the last" drinkers, gamblers, womanisers and a bad guy to boot! We become familiar with all the hotels and gambling spots, including a woolshed in the middle of nowhere. The book opens with an arson.
Needless to say, the scam goes wrong, compounded by twists and turns in the plot and a lot of meddling from the locals. The denouement has a showdown and introduces the Te Whakinga Kid, a Maori Zorro-like figure complete with Spanish accent, completely out of left field! It's hard to believe that the author didn't have Billy T James in mind when he created the character (the book was published in 1964), but he was perfectly cast in the 1985 movie.
The strength of this book is that it's simply a damn good story. There's not much character development or analysis. Further, Morrieson chooses instead "not to analyse but illustrate the anti-Puritan underside of New Zealand small town life". And illustrate he did!
Morrieson lived his whole life in Hawera. His first two books, this and The Scarecrow, were first published in Australia to immediate success. He was, however, largely unknown in New Zealand in his lifetime, despite being championed by Maurice Shadbolt and CK Stead. He confided in Shadbolt that he feared he "would be one of those poor buggers who get discovered when they're dead". And he was right.
Even so, I urge you to discover him now!
Mineral supplements help Theo with his ADHD. (Video first published in April 2016)
Weeks before the final reading of the Government's Natural Health and Supplementary Products Bill, the University of Canterbury is showing exciting results using micronutrients to treat children with ADHD. ASHLEIGH STEWART reports.
Concern. Embarrassment. Uncertainty.
Eleven-year-old Theo* knows all the words people associate with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
DEAN KOZANIC/FAIRFAX NZ Jos and Darryl Bartlett with their grandson, Theo, who has had positive results with his ADHD while on a drug free supplement.
They're not the ones that leap to his mind when he thinks about it though.
"I'm really proud."
The origins of his feelings are pretty straightforward. He reads a lot of Percy Jackson and the Olympians the main character of which has been diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia. That reason alone is enough for him.
DEAN KOZANIC/FAIRFAX NZ Theo has practised martial arts for three years.
"I think I'm pretty cool having ADHD if I'm like that."
Theo has overcome much more than ADHD. His grandparents chose to be his foster parents over his young parents and safety issues.
The ADHD diagnosis came about three years ago.
He has never been medicated, but what has made a difference is the micronutrients he now takes three times a day, as a milkshake or juice.
It has allowed him to get to sleep again. He is finally connecting with his peers. He can concentrate at school. And in little over a month, those micronutrients might no longer be available.
Theo and his grandparents, Jos and Darryl Bartlett, have been participating in the University of Canterbury's Child ADHD study, led by Professor Julia Rucklidge, which tests how receptive children with ADHD are to micronutrients. The results of the pilot study showed 79 per cent of participants were much, or very much, improved.
It is a timely reminder of the looming threat from the Government's Natural Health and Supplementary Products Bill, expected to be passed in to legislation this month. Rucklidge campaigned through a petition on change.org earlier this year to highlight the ramifications of the bill. The petition attracted 7000 signatures and 127 pages of comments. Those 127 pages were hand-delivered to the Ministry of Health.
The legislation is "very complicated", she says, and she has learnt much since she started her crusade last year.
Restrictions are already in place, but Rucklidge says the "sledgehammer approach" in restricting certain substances may put their research at risk.
"Here is an opportunity for the government to regulate Natural Health Products separate from medicines and that does not appear to be happening.
"You're preventing a very small risk [from overdose] but in doing so you're causing harm for the rest of the population."
Not so, says Medsafe.
Acting Group Manager Chris James says it is "not about banning products".
"The purpose of both medicines and natural health products regulation is to ensure appropriate oversight over products to ensure consumer safety," he says.
"Even natural substances can be risky if taken in very large quantities and may be best taken with health professional guidance."
It may be so, Rucklidge says, but some restrictions just do not make sense.
Selenium is regulated to a limit people could breach from eating five Brazil nuts. The recommended dosage for potassium is half that of an adults recommended daily dose, and almost a quarter of what is in a standard banana.
The micronutrients Theo might be restricted, because one of the ingredients, vanadium, is not on the database of permitted substances.
Theo's grandparents worry about that too.
"That is the concern, that the Government is going to hold back on something that is natural in your body. It's enhancing something that is too low," Jos Bartlett says.
It is hard to deny the results they have seen in Theo. His teacher has noticed his improvements too.
Jos Bartlett is hopeful micronutrients could be his long-term answer.
"It's important for kids to be able to have their emotions, to experience anger and learn how to control it. They should be able to cry and feel normal."
Theo is aware of the change in himself too.
"I'm a bit more active now, rather than I was sitting on the couch watching TV . . . and now I can think much clearer," he says.
"When we were doing times table grids, I did all of it in about 1:48. We get three minutes to do it . . . and I thought that's a definite improvement."
He has been the victim of schoolyard bullies. Being a boy who "makes no secret of the fact he has broad spectrum ADHD" is a blessing and a curse, Darryl Bartlett says. Children who know how to push his buttons often do. But he has learnt to live with it.
"I've realised that there are certain people that I get along with, whereas others I don't," Theo says.
"I'm still figuring it all out [living with ADHD]."
He is wary of his inability to pay attention in class, his anger, and his "bad attitude". But he's working on it.
His latest achievement is one that causes his face to break out in a grin when his grandmother mentions it in passing.
"You can go into a mall with him now," she says.
Theo smiles: "I didn't like too many people. I was scared of big crowds."
Now, he is dreaming big. He sees himself one day as a policeman, or a computer technician. The former because he gets a dog, cool weapons, gets to stay up late and doesn't get told when to go to bed. The latter because "it's what I'm good at".
The self-assertion is an indication of the "small" side-effect of his treatment. And that is the confidence itself, which has made him somewhat brash at times. But it could also be puberty, Jos Bartlett says.
Besides, she would take that, and the monthly $120 pricetag (and that is with a $60 discount) for the micronutrients over the alternative any day.
Rucklidge assumes many others in her study have similar concerns. She has been given assurances her research will not be affected, but wonders how dealing with restricted substances will appeal to participants.
"They benefit from the nutrients that they've been using, but buying it will become even more difficult, so what message am I giving to the public?
"All of those people in New Zealand who are currently benefiting from nutrients that we have studied . . . they might no longer have access. This is going to cause harm."
She is also concerned the regulations will lead to higher prescribing of medications something were are "far too willing" to do.
"We're ignoring the data that shows in the long term we're often making people worse, not better."
The Ministry of Health says the permitted substance list has not been finalised. It was open to submissions until March 4. A request to include vanadium to the list had been received and was being "actively considered", James says.
The bill will simplify things, he says, with the ability for products to be bought and sold without health professional oversight.
"It also outlines processes that a product should go through before it is sold, so that health professionals know that the products they recommend have met scientific standards."
The ingredients list will not be finalised before the bill was passed into legislation. Perhaps it will be enough time for Rucklidge to sway the powers-that-be on the benefits of vanadium.
Rucklidge certainly hopes so.
"This is about helping people with mental illness, and eliminating the stigma. We're saying these people just don't have enough nutrients in their system, so let's just feed them."
* Surname withheld
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Local banks strengthen vigilance on foreign transfers By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera View(s): View(s):
Many Sri Lankan banks are beefing up monitoring and surveillance mechanisms following Februarys near US$ 100 million hack-in heist involving banks in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh and the US Federal Reserve, officials said. As soon as we heard about this (heist) we reviewed our Know Your Customer (KYC) mechanisms and other surveillance according to the SWIFTs security recommendations. We found that were in line with it, Jegan Durairatnam, CEO Commercial Bank (Commercial) told the Business Times. SWIFT is a messaging/payment service used by more than 11,000 financial institutions in more than 200 countries. Mr. Durairatnam added that the staff was briefed to be more vigilant when scrutinising foreign transactions.
Chinese hackers breached the computer systems of Bangladesh Bank in early February and attempted to steal US$951 million from its account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which it uses for international settlements. An attempted transfer $20 million in Sri Lanka through the Pan Asia Bank to Shalika Foundation run by businesswoman, Hagoda Gamage Shalika Perera was blocked, but $81 million was transferred to accounts in the Philippines in one of the biggest cyber heists in history. This shook up the entire banking sector in terms of handling cyber/digital transactions, a top HNB official said. Mr. Durairatnam also said that Commercial is re-evaluating how they handle their digital mode transactions and customer requests.
For example we are relooking at how our emails (by customers) are responded to, etc, he said noting that recommendations for implementing security measures to thwart cyber crimes along with advises to staff to pay close attention to best practices were communicated. Amana Bank has also circulated Central Bank (CB) guidelines on KYC and extensively briefed their staff. Several other banks are known to have stressed to staff the need to be vigilant in foreign transfers. Through SWIFT, banks, custodians, investment institutions, central banks, market infrastructures and corporate clients, can connect with one another exchanging structured electronic messages to perform common business processes, such as making payments or settling trades.
Near zero population growth would be reached after 2062 Reviewed by Sharmini de Alwis and Nimal Sanderatne Book Review View(s): View(s):
The publication Sri Lanka: 25 Million People and Implications, Population and Housing Projections 2012-2062, jointly by Prof Indralal de Silva and Dr. Ranjith de Silva presents comprehensive population projections for the period 2012-2062 incorporating the latest information revealed in the Census of Population and Housing 2012. This book is valuable for many reasons. It contains useful comparisons of demographic variables between Sri Lanka and other countries. It has been written in simple non-technical language and all assumptions used have been clearly spelt out. The vast amount of information contained in the book is presented concisely in just over 100 pages. It should prove useful and interesting to policy planners, researchers, students and others from diverse academic backgrounds and those concerned with future of the country.
This latest population projection has been eagerly awaited by policy planners and researchers alike, ever since it became clear that the countrys fertility rate had increased appreciably in the last 10 years or so that was totally unexpected. The projections that had been made hitherto were therefore biased downwards, and policy recommendations made based on these projections became outdated. The latest population projections in this publication are revealing. They are somewhat of a reversal of what was expected. The new projected population profile has significant implications for the countrys economic and social policies. This book does not merely provide an update of the population projection, but also discusses a vast array of issues related to demography in Sri Lanka and abroad.
These projections must be considered in the planning of health facilities, education and social welfare (particularly the care of the elderly).There are also serious implications for the public finances of the country, labour force participation, retirement benefits and retirement age. The book has four key themes: Population change until 2012 and reliability of projection results; Projection of population 2012-2062; Projection of households 2012-2062 and projected increase of population and its implications.
Interesting comparisons
The book provides projections of both population and households. Further the discussion under the theme projected population increase and its implication deals not only with the standard issues of demographic dividends and population ageing but also covers aspects such as future demand for housing and environmental degradation, which are of great relevance for policy formulation at present. Trends in the historic growth in population are discussed under the theme population change till 2012 and evidence of population levels prior to the first Census in 1871 is briefly presented. The growth in population as revealed in the more systematic Census conducted during 1871 to 2012 is analysed in greater detail. Authors make an interesting comparison of the accuracy of past projections of researchers in Sri Lanka and the UN. The central theme of this publication is the Projection of the Population 2012-2062. Here the cohort component method has been used to compute the population for a 50-year period with the base year information of the Census of Population and Housing 2012.
Population growth is driven by three components: fertility, mortality and migration. Fertility trends are most crucial in population projections. Indeed it was the totally unexpected increase in fertility above the replacement level in the last 10 years that gave rise to an urgent need for revision of the population projection. According to the authors, Sri Lanka is unique among South Asian countries in experiencing this upturn in fertility. The projection of determinants of population growth is done under three scenarios; standard, high and low, with the standard projection representing the most plausible path. For the purpose of these population projections, the precise fertility rate assumed for each 5-year interval for each scenario is discussed and provided in tabular form. Measures relating to male and female life expectancy at birth have been used to examine the mortality transition in the country. The assumptions with respect to mortality in each of the scenarios are also provided in detail in a table. This chapter also provides a comparison of Sri Lankas life expectancy with other selected countries. Sri Lanka would reach a life expectancy close to that of contemporary Japan by 2057-2062.
Migration trends
The projection of migration is preceded by a discussion on past migration trends in the different phases of the countrys development and the nature of contemporary migration is discussed. The assumptions on net migration have been formulated both through past trends and consultations with officers of the Department of Immigration and Emigration and the Foreign Employment Bureau. The expected migration trends are presented in tabular form by 5-year intervals. The availability of assumptions on fertility, life expectancy and migration during the projected period in tabulated form is extremely useful for analysts. Whenever a deviation from these assumptions is observed in the future, users would realise that the projection has become outdated, and would in general be able to gauge the direction of the bias and accordingly make amendments to plans based on the population projection. Further the projection on life expectancy would in itself be useful for the health sector and planning of geriatric care.
The projection of the population is presented in three scenarios: High, Standard and Low. The most plausible scenario is the standard population projection which is based on standard projections of the three components fertility, mortality and migration.
Under the standard projection, the population would reach 21.3 million in 2017 and 22.2 million by 2022. The size of the population would reach 25 million by 2042 and 25.8 million by 2062. This implies that the population grows until 2062 and reaches stability between 25-26 million. This is a significant departure from earlier projections that indicated population stability would be reached much earlier and the population would actually begin to decline in the early 2030s. This deviation is mainly due to the increase in fertility from below replacement level to above replacement level in the past 10 years or so.
Reproductive age for women
Since a large number of women will enter reproductive age in the next few years and the expected total fertility rate would be above the replacement level for some time, there is an in-built momentum for the growth of population in the next three to four decades. However, the rate of growth in the population will be on a declining trend and it is estimated that a near zero population growth would be attained after 2062.
The population projection is used to derive the components of population growth such as the crude birth rate, the crude death rate and the natural increase in the population for the period 2012-2062. According to a-priori expectations there is a convergence between birth and death rates, with the natural increase in population steadily declining. The authors point out that as the number of the elderly grow, the higher mortality among them would override the conditions for declining mortality and result in an increase in the crude death rate.
The projection implies that the sex ratio would favour females for the next two decades. However due to an expected improvement in male health in the next decade, and the elimination of some factors, such as the war that reduced male life expectancy in the past, male survival rates could improve. However, if male migrant rates exceed female migrant rates, the sex ratio would increase marginally in favour of males after about two decades. The shape of Sri Lankas population pyramid has been changing rapidly over the years. This pyramid, which had a classical shape in 1981, changed into a pagoda like structure by 2012. The authors draw attention to the fact that during the interim period, the working age population had grown significantly. The proportion of children (below 15 years) had declined from 35 per cent in 1981 to 25 per cent in 2012. The book presents the projected population pyramids for 2022, 2042 and 2062. The declining fertility over the years is depicted by the progressive decline in the base of the pyramids.
Decline in child population
The authors point out that children less than 15 years are the most susceptible to the assumptions made in the projections and their number will depend on the changes in the number of women in reproductive age and changes in child and infant mortality. An accurate estimate of the number of children is of much importance when making projections on expenditure on education. This number which stood at 5.1 million in 2012 and will increase to 5.3 million in 2017, will remain fairly static for the next 10 years, and fall once again to 5.1 million by 2032. Thereafter, it would be on a declining trend and drop to 4.4 million by 2062. Earlier predictions expected a continuous decline in the child population.
The projection of households covers the rate of increase in households and age and sex distribution of household heads, while a comparison is made between the structure of base year and end year projection of households.
The discussion of the implications of population increases has some interesting observations. The period when the demographic dividend accrues according to this new projection spans 1991 to 2019 when the working age population is taken to be 15-59 years, whereas it spans 1991-2034 if the working age population is taken to be 15-64. This is a slight increase in the period of the demographic dividend that was estimated under the earlier predictions. However, it is emphasised that we have already passed the most attractive period of the demographic dividend which was around 2001. The authors point out that many countries in East Asia experienced rapid economic growth during the period of their demographic dividend. Sri Lanka now has just a few more years in this regard and it is imperative that economic planners urgently identify growth sectors in the economy in order to generate sufficient economic opportunities for the influx of workers into the labour market during the rest of the period in which the demographic dividend prevails.
Ageing
The issue of ageing that is discussed is of utmost importance. According to the projection the percentage of elderly (defined as those over 60 years) will increase from 12.4 per cent in 2012 to 25.8 per cent in 2062. The growth rate in the elderly population will increase until 2022 and thereafter decline. The composition of the elderly would change over the years with the proportion of the old elderly (80 years and above) among the elderly increasing from 1.3 per cent in 2012 to 6.4 per cent in 2062. These figures are striking and have vast implications for geriatric health care services. The future demand for housing and deforestation are discussed in the book.
The required housing stock that has been estimated until 2062 imply that unless Sri Lanka engages private or civil society organisations to build and upgrade houses and housing facilities, without the involvement of government, it would not be possible to meet the future demand for housing. The brief section on deforestation discusses the depletion of forest cover in the past with the population increase and concludes that forest cover would definitely be reduced in the future with population growth as more land would be needed to meet the demand for food production and for development activities.
Invaluable book
This book is invaluable for policy planners and researchers who need to use population projections in their work. Population projections are used by policy makers and planners to project future demand for necessities and for services like health and education. A large number of documents and research papers have been produced by national and international agencies using earlier population projections. Their conclusions and recommendations would need to be revisited in the light of these new population projections. Earlier population projections showed that the labour force would begin to decline from the mid-2030s. Manpower planners should take note that this is now not the case and the labour force would continue to expand in the first half of this century.
The prediction that the number of children would begin to decline continuously has changed as according to this latest projection the child population will grow in 2017 and remain static until 2027 and thereafter decline. Therefore the expenditure on educational infrastructure will not be contained. These are only two instances where implications based on previous population projections would have to be revised. This book is valuable for policy planners, researchers and students from diverse academic backgrounds. All those interested in the future of the country should take note of these population projections and their implications.
ETCA: A taste of bully brothers View(s):
Here is food for thought for promoters of the Economic and Technology Co-operation Agreement (ETCA) between India and Sri Lanka. A Sri Lankan businessman was invited by an Indian outfit to talk about the settlement of a claim he has made. A committee of four was appointed to go into the matter.
After hours of small talk, with no settlement in sight, and in sheer disgust, the local chappie told his counterparts that they should be ashamed, having used his services to obtain the said contracts for the outfit, they were still holding payment despite an arbitration award in his favour.
Did the word ashamed touch a raw nerve of the legal head of the outfit -PSU. He who let off a verbal barrage at the local man, much to the bewilderment of those present?
Talk of non-tariff barriers, one has now to contend with obnoxious officials too! ETCA lovers beware, a contract in big brother land is just a piece of paper of no value nor is an arbitration award settled by their own judges.
The message to Sri Lankan businessmen and the Government is clear. Go with your eyes open and expect the worst in big brother land where bullying mandarins do not respect executed contracts. ETCA, here we go!!
The leopard was not on spot for VIP
A VIP in the south, a shutterbug among many other things, is in the usual habit of ignoring one way rules in a wildlife park.
In the Yala National Park, when he was driving on a widely used track, to his dismay he found others were speeding in the opposite direction or the right way. They had spotted a leopard.
As our photograph shows, the VIP missed the shot though he had a powerful close up lens. His vehicle just could not turn and the leopard was right behind.
High-level media gang wheels in deal after deal
A newly emerged media gang has taken the advertising world by storm raking in one top deal after another.
The latest is how they are set to win a Rs. 800 million deal for a specialised engagement which requires digital expertise.
Insiders say that five local bidders who vied for the deal and were shortlisted have now been knocked off unceremoniously much the same way, lines are disconnected for non-payment of bills.
They say the road is now being paved for new connections with a powerful albeit influential member of the gang and an even more influential boss who decides on deals.
Minister blasts CEB engineers
Megapolis and Western Development Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka has hit out at the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) engineers for the recent power shortages. Its a robbery, he charged at Wednesdays weekly ministerial meeting.
A former Power and Energy Minister and an electrical engineer by profession, Mr. Ranawaka said steps should be taken to ensure nothing went wrong.
The ministers decided that as a temporary measure the Government should buy electricity from private power producers. It was, however, decided that a long-term plan would have to be formulated. The CEB had proposed to introduce power cuts. However, the Ministry of Power overruled the move.
Envoy clarifies position
Karunasena Kodituwakku, Sri Lankas Ambassador to China, has sent in what he calls a clarification regarding PMs visit to China. He states:
Please refer to your news item that appeared on 27th March 2016 under the caption, Former Envoy to Prepare Way for PM, creating the impression that the said former envoy was sent to Beijing to make arrangements for the PMs upcoming visit, and implying that this was done since the present envoy, who is a political appointee, is incapable of doing so.
As the said present envoy, I would like to clarify that all the necessary arrangements were finalized before the said former envoy arrived in Beijing. The factual position is as follows:
The first discussion regarding the schedule was held in early March with the participation of Chinese Foreign Ministry representatives, including the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, and two visiting Ministers, Hon. Malik Samarawickrama and Hon. Sagala Ratnayake and myself.
The second discussion was held few days later between senior members of the Embassy staff including myself and the senior officials of the Asia Department in the Foreign Ministry of China to finalize the PMs programme, including the agreements to be signed. This programme was sent to Colombo on following day itself.
Reservations for accommodation including inspection on par with the dignitaries, was also finalized.
Therefore, you can see that all the necessary arrangements were finalized before the former envoy arrived in Beijing.
When a senior leader of any country visits a foreign country, it is a standard practice for this visit to be preceded by the arrival of senior officers from the relevant dignitarys office and the Foreign Ministry, including security personnel. Therefore, the former envoy, who is an Additional Secretary to the Foreign Ministry, arrived in Beijing ahead of the PM, not to organize the visit, but to assist the Embassy, which welcomes such cooperation..
MPs called to the bar
Ministers at their weekly meeting on Wednesday decided that a list containing parliamentarians who held liquor licences should be publicised.
The list is being prepared by the Ministry of Finance.
Finding himself and a riveting tale in translation View(s):
Paul M.M. Cooper, who got to know the country while teaching English in remote schools here has written a debut novel, River of Ink, set in medieval Sri Lanka and primarily based on the Sanskrit epic Shishupal Vadha. Smriti Daniel finds out more about the book in this email interview
In the darkest period of his life, the poet Asanka turns to an old habit for comfort. He begins, obsessively, to make lists: lists of round things, sorrowful things, lists of things that can only happen in dreams. Paul M. M. Coopers surprising, beautiful debut River of Ink is speckled with such lists: There are lists of detestable things (Being caught in the rain so that your sarong and travelling coat stick together and steam) and unsightly things (The inside of a cats ear); then there are the lists that exist outside the poets mind: the lists made by soldiers that determine who is to live and who to die, the list of apprentices in which Asanka must hide the name of the woman he loves, the list a tyrant makes of his favourite lines of poetry.
The last, in particular, is a clever choice of trait for an author to bequeath on his darkest character, because it immediately muddies our notions of pure evil. But Cooper has ensured that a love of poetry is something that both his villains and his heroes have in common. The aforementioned tyrant is one Sri Lankan readers should know; Kalinga Magha, the 13th century Indian prince, is believed to have been the founder of the Kingdom of Jaffna. I very much fell in love with Sri Lanka from afar, Cooper tells the Sunday Times in an email, explaining that while studying in England he was also reading a lot of Sri Lankan history such as the Mahavamsa and Culavamsa. He became, he says, obsessed with the idea of writing a story set in Sri Lanka during the middle ages, at the time of Kalinga Magha.
For this work of historical fiction, he turned to some of the islands most ancient texts. I think the Mahavamsa is one of the most amazing documents in the history of the world: a painstaking effort to record the history of the country in as much detail as possible at a time when the concept of history was still quite loose around the world, Cooper says. The author found he could glean an incredible amount of detail about how people lived at the time purely from this one document. For more discrete details of how people felt, and the colour and sensations of their life, he turned to poetry.
In the case of River of Ink, this is where the beauty lies. Poetry etched on to the walls of a prison, read aloud in the village square, recited in luxuriously appointed palace rooms is the engine that drives the plot. We meet Asanka the court poet, just as his liege King Parakrama is about to throw open the gates of the city to a brutal invader. The king expects no mercy Tomorrow youll write your poetry in heaven, he tells his frightened bard. But in this he is mistaken, because Kalinga Magha has other plans for Asanka. Already intimately acquainted with Asankas work, he demands the poet translate the ShishupalVadha from Sanskrit into Tamil. Each chapter is to then be circulated widely, a way for the new ruler to school his reluctant subjects in the values he holds dear.
Asanka, who often reiterates that poetry makes nothing happen, is surprised by his own compulsion to subvert the work that has won him a reprieve from execution. In a city tense with rebellion and dissatisfaction, his words are spark to tinder. But for all this, Asanka is no insurgent. The book is very much about bravery and cowardice, and how we understand the two. I didnt want Asanka to be a typical hero like Rama and Krishna, the heroes of the epic poems who grab their weapons and run out to save their wives or their friends. I wanted him to be a more complex character, a normal man who finds himself committing brave acts reluctantly and against his better nature, Cooper says.
The Sanskrit epic ShishupalVadha is at the heart of the novel its translation, its subversion, its bastardization, are all critical to the story. Cooper knew his decision to anchor the novel in the ancient epic was the right choice when he realised that the story of a man who is killed for insulting Krishna was one of the most intricate and complex poems ever written. Since no English translations were available, he read the poem in German and then made his own rough translation. I think its strange how sometimes your life can start to mirror whatever youre writing: I wrote about a man translating a poem and ended up doing exactly the same thing myself! he says now. He admits his task was both joyous and frustratingly difficult.
But if Cooper has an obvious trait, its his willingness to do the hard work, to commit himself fully. If he writes with deep appreciation and confidence about Sri Lanka, it is because he is someone on clearly intimate terms with the island. He came here to work as an English teacher, first at a school in Gurutalawa and then at another in Polonnaruwa. He learned to speak Sinhala a very logical language and has a particular fondness for the prasthawapirulu which he feels gives the language so much colour. He quotes one that says when you are in the house of a bat, hang from the ceiling its something I aspire to when I travel.
I do not know whether Cooper writes verse, but River of Ink is poetry in prose, filled with sentences you want to linger over. Where there are parallels between Sri Lankas past and present, he doesnt belabour the point. He says: I have not tried to write a book about Sri Lanka, or about how Sri Lankan people should see their own history. At its heart, this is a story of a man struggling between loyalty to his art and fear for his life, and I wouldnt want people to think I have tried to make some grand statement about Sri Lanka itself. Explaining that he would like to have people from everywhere in the world to relate with characters from another time and place, he adds, If I do my job right, the world should feel a little smaller once these people finish the book.
Happy Birthday Father of Sri Lankan cinema Dr. Lester James Peries turns 97 View(s): View(s):
Dr. Lester James Peries unarguably the father of Sri Lankan cinema and the legend who inscribed the name of Sri Lankan cinema in the world turns 97 on Tuesday, April 5.
Starting his career as a young cub reporter as young as 17 years, Lester wrote to the blue pages of the Ceylon Daily News. Later In 1939 he joined the Times of Ceylon newspaper and displayed his writing ability under the Indian Editor Frank Moraes and also reviewed books on Radio Ceylon. On the advice of his mother Lester travelled to England in 1947 to join his brother Ivan who was on a scholarship in London. From there too Lester went on contributing to the Ceylon Daily News column from London under the heading Letter on Arts from London. Lesters debut in production was the Farewell to Childhood in 1950 a short film based on the story written by him called Saree.
The Amateur Cine World Silver Plaque was awarded to this experimental film among the ten best films produced in Great Britain. His second film was A Sinhalese Dance and the final film Soliloquy was produced in London in 1951 a 20 minute short film based on a threefold love story. The Mini Cinema Cup for short films was awarded to this production for its best technical proficiency by the Institute of Amateur and Experimental Film Makers Festival-Great Britain (1951).
On his return to Sri Lanka Lester joined the Government Film Unit (GFU) and worked with Ralph Keene who was the Director of the GFU. In the first instance Lester assisted Keene to make a documentary film Nelungama. Later two documentary films Conquest in the Dry Zone (1954) on the Malaria epidemic and Be Safe or Be Sorry (1955) were produced for the GFU by his own creation. The film Conquest in the Dry Zone won the Diploma of Honour at the Venice Film Festival in 1954. He left the GFU in 1955 after his ambition for production of Sinhala films on his own.
This was the time when the Indian film industry had its influence in Sri Lanka monopolizing their power of technology on the production of Sri Lankan films. With the technology South Indian culture, traditions, music and sometimes even substandard stories were forced on Sri Lankan filmgoers.
In order to free Sri Lankan cinema from the clutches of South Indian stereotyped cinema, Lester embarked in a cinematic revolution with his debut film Rekhawa. It was this revolution that brought independence and identity to Sri Lankan cinema.
Over the years Dr Peiris made about 20 films, enlivening Sri Lankan cinema with accolade after accolade both locally and abroad.
Some of his international acclaimed cinematic productions include Rekhawa (Line of Destiny 1956), Sandeshaya (The Message 1960), Gamperaliya (Changing Village 1964), Delovak Athara (Between Two Worlds 1966), Ran Salu (The Yellow Robe 1967), Golu Hadawatha (The Silence of the Heart 1968), Akkara Paha (Five Acres of Land 1969), Nidhanaya (The Treasure 1970), Desa Nisa (The Eyes 1972), The God King (1975), Madol Duwa (Enchanted Island 1976), Ahasin Polowata (White Flowers for the Dead 1978), Pinhami (1979), Veera Puran Appu (Rebellion 1979), Baddegama (Village in the Jungle 1980), Kaliyugaya (The Era of Kalli The Changing Village Part II, 1982), Yuganthaya (The Changing Village Part III, 1983), Awaragira (The Sunset 1995), Wekande Wallauwa (Mansion by the Lake 2002) and Amma Varune (Mothers 2007).
We at TV Times wishes this legendary filmmaker a happy birthday and long life.
Virtual bulletin board with Buzzbird By Adilah Ismail Chief Executive Officer of Buzzbird, Amrit Rupasinghe speaks with the Mirror Magazine about the challenges and elations of entrepreneurship. View(s): View(s):
The idea for Buzzbird, Chief Executive Officer Amrit Rupasinghe explains, was prompted by an onslaught of communication channels. His previous workplace had three offices located in three separate sites and required constant liaising between each other. There was a Facebook group for the younger people to communicate with each other, official notifications were sent via group email and formal channels, skype was used to check in with the sales and research teams and top it all off, micro-Whatsapp groups would punctuate the day with updates, anecdotes and general office banter.
You get the picture here -the communication overload is one that weve become all too familiar with daily. Youd have to scroll through selfies and brunch pictures on Facebook, to get any information of an event youd be interested in. Getting updates on Twitter means you have to be following the right people and that also, gets lost in the noise of other real time news and updates. And when youve woken up to 156 messages on awhatsapp group or a series of trailing emails, youre hardly likely to painstakingly read every message to catch up on the conversation.
In one sense, Buzzbird helps cut through the clutter youre subjected to daily and acts as a location-based digital sieve and a virtual public noticeboard. From a larger perspective, it opens up some interesting possibilities for geofenced communication by establishing a virtual fence around a predefined area. But were getting ahead of ourselves, lets backtrack a bit.
Buzzbird is the first product developed by its holding company, Bailatalk. Bailatalkwas established with a focus on building globally recognized social networking products with a Sri Lankan touch Baila in its name is a nod to the Portuguese-gifted music and dance unique to Sri Lanka. The idea was that if we do succeed in making software that delights users globally, we want our software to be acknowledged as Made in Sri Lanka. The lighthearted name was also because the world knows us as friendly and fun loving people, notes the company.
The idea for Buzzbirdcame about a while back and finally realized fruition last year. The app was launched earlier this year but has been cautious about creating any buzz about itself until some of the initial kinks were ironed out last week. With new updates being added to the app, the company is now rolling up its sleeves to kick things off properly. A small but dedicated team works behind the scenes while mobile architect,Nuwan Dehigaspitiya joined as co-founder and CTO.
Buzzbird began on the realization that there are certain location-specific conversations which needed to be had on a different platform but in a simplified manner. By fencing off conversations within a certain area and eliminating any other social media white noise, Buzzbird allows people to feel the pulse of a community. Amrit explains that Buzzbird functions in the same way a noticeboard functions at a university, only virtual and with more possibilities. He points that a lot of events and updates which take place are publicized largely through the grapevine and if youre not following the right people on social media, you might be missing out on the conversations.
Since all the content is public, Buzzbird acts as a leveller. Buzzbirds clear strength would probably be its use at event venues, workplaces and universities all of which are hives of activity. In a university for instance, Buzzbird could help geofence conversations to specificities and encourage micro-conversations a textbook for sale or a debate being organized for example giving an aerial, birds eye view of events which unfurl. For now, the app has been globally launched with a focus on Australia and Sri Lanka.
As all content is crowdsourced, Buzzbird is reliant on creating a vibrant user base which propels the conversation. A point system and leaderboard have been built into the app to encourage users while security measures have been taken to prevent the abuse of anonymity, the app gives its users.
A mobile social start-up in Sri Lanka is a hard sell, as mobile in Sri Lanka is at a nascent stage and data conscious consumers would eye a data-heavy app dependent on video and photo with an understandable degree of apprehension. For Bailatalk, Buzzbird would be a technological springboard and a calling card the technology built for the social product offers spin-off solutions for a number of problems which could be solved using the same technology.
Having studied and worked in the U.S., when Amrit moved back to Sri Lanka in 2011, he was excited by the possibilities that mobile afforded and its easy to see this enthusiasm in his work. Embarking on numerous side-projects and a continuous learning trajectory, the next few years were spent learning and experimenting until Buzzbird got off the ground. Embarking on a tech start-up and taking the risk to be an entrepreneur is never as easy or as rosy as all the inspirational articles on the internet paint it to be. The biggest thing you learn as an entrepreneur is that it is continuous learning, explains Amrit.
The driving force for any budding entrepreneur would be a natural sense of curiosity and a desire to augment the existing. For Amrit, Buzzbird began out of a communication problem which kept tugging at the back of his mind and needed solving. I feel like if you dont take a shot, youll never know the result you miss a 100% of the shots you dont take, he explains, adding that the experience has been challenging but rewarding.
If you see something wrong out there in the world and the problem keeps persisting and if you have an idea on how to fix it takethe plunge, he concludes.
At a glanceBuzzbird acts as a public virtual bulletin board, providing news and real-time updates within a certain radius. Your newsfeed is filtered according to your proximity and updates are received via text, online links, photos and videos.Ability to tune-in to the buzz in a location of interest from the comfort of your home and adjust the radiu s accordingly. Content is crowdsourced and offers anonymity. A Buzzbird leaderboard features the top contributors.
For more information, check out www.buzzbirdapp.com or the apps Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Buzzbird1987/
A holiday that cost an arm and a leg By Chris Kamalendran German TV presenter describes horror accident View(s): View(s):
A speeding car changed the life of a well-known former German television presenter on holiday in southern Sri Lanka.
Michael Mross, 57, arriving in Tangalle from Bentota on March 6, spent a few hours on the beach, and shortly after 5 p.m. had crossed the road and stopped at a wayside thambili seller.
The tourist was seated on a bench under a margosa tree and drinking the thambili when a car came towards him at high speed and knocked him down, the thambili seller said.
Soon after the incident the car driver, who appeared to be under the influence of liquor, sped away along with two others in the vehicle, the streetside vendor said.
The German was severely injured, with part of his hand and part of the leg severed. Bystanders rushed him to the Tangalle Hospital, the seller said.
Inquiries found that the car was driven by a person who was attending a wedding party in a nearby hotel.
The following day the owner of the car turned up but the driver appeared only three days after the incident.
The 32-year-old driver, M.K. Shiran Nirmal, hailing from Beliatta, was produced in court and although initially remanded was later granted bail on March 30.
Mr. Mross, who was rushed to the Tangalle Hospital and transferred to Colombo National Hospital on the advice of Medical Superintendent of the Tangalle Hospital, Dr. Muditha Amerasinghe.
Now recovering in a hospital in Germany, Mr. Mross has described his harrowing experience to the media there.
He said due to a huge loss of blood he had been unconscious for four hours and then transferred to Colombo.
Wrapped in sheets, my battered body was manoeuvred into a vehicle, he said. I thought I would die of pain. Then came a three-and-a-half-hour drive to the Colombo Hospital. This trip was hell. There was nothing to drink and nothing to eat as I had to undergo surgery. The ride was barely tolerable: I repeatedly fainted with the pain, he told media.
He had been placed in the Intensive Care Unit and was in fear, drifting in and out of consciousness.
He spent two days in hospital, receiving regular blood transfusions.
On the following Thursday he was transferred to Colombo airport but at the airport it was an agonising wait as there was a delay in take off due to a malfunctioning AC on the flight.
Finally, he arrived in Berlin where he underwent another four-hour operation.
Mr. Mross says his main fear is about the lasting effects of his injuries on his way of life.
Former LTTEer brought to Colombo for questioning over explosive find View(s):
The suspect arrested over the detection of a suicide jacket, explosives and ammunition in Chavakachcheri, Jaffna was brought to Colombo yesterday for further investigation by Terrorism Investigation Department(TID) officials.
The TID came to the scene after Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP ) S. M. Wickramasinghe handed over the investigation to the anti terrorism unit of the police under the supervision of a senior DIG.
Based on a tip-off, the police recovered from a house located at Maravanpulo, Chavakachcheri, a suicide jacket, four side chargers, three parcels containing about 12 kilograms of TNT, two packets containing 100 rounds of 9 mm pistol ammunition and two battery packs used to detonate side chargers. The explosives had been wrapped in a old Sinhala newspaper dating back to 2008.
The house owner, identified as a former LTTE cadre, had fled the area but police arrested him in Kilinochchi. His wife was also arrested and later released following an inquiry.
A Defence Ministry official said that last month alone at least ten thousand military materiels related to war were found in the North and East.
This kind of isolated incident does not pose any threat to national security, he said.
Meanwhile former Foreign Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris yesterday appeared before the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) following his remarks over the incident that those explosives were to be dispatched to Wellawatte.
Mr. Peiris said at a press briefing this week that he was aware that the explosives were to be transported to Colombo from Chavakachcheri and claimed that this was a serious threat to national security.
Hambantota Ridiyagama Safari Park opens to the public By Samantha Rahul Hettiarachchi View(s): View(s):
The Hambantota Ridiyagama Safari Park was declared open this week attracting hundreds of visitors to Hambantota.
The Safari Park is 500 acres in extent and divided into several sections holding different animals found worlwide.
The Zoo Dept said the first section of the park opened to the public, has a 16-acre service station, a 35-acre lion enclosure, a 54-acre Sri Lankan elephant enclosure and 80 acres for herbivorous animal species of the world.
Around 22 species of animals including African lions, zebras, giraffes, Bactrian camels, Arabian orix, Lechwe, Indian blue bulls, African cape buffaloes and large birds such as ostriches are found in the park.
They said the construction of the Park started in 2008 December and built at a cost of Rs 2,600 million.
The officials explained they have further plans to expand the Park to include areas for Bengal tigers, Sri Lankan leopards, bears, Australian beasts and reptiles.
At the Parks opening ceremony Wildlife Minister Gamini Jayawickrama Perera said that, if one government starts a project, it should be improved by the next.
He explained that, earlier Rs 1,600 million in excess of the estimate had been spent on construction, and investigations will be launched against them, but for now the Park would continue to expand.
He also called on private investors to join hands with the Wildlife Ministry and help develop the Park to attract more visitors
Several other MPs including Sajith Premadasa and former Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa too attended the opening.
Lets do our duty by our country View(s):
The British rule in Sri Lanka had its good and bad. The colonialists had a system of governance to suit their agenda and in the process, the people benefited and also suffered. However, we have learnt many a lesson from our past. Later, the country developed and the economy improved, because of actions of competent leaders, one of them being the then Trade Minister Lalith Athulathmudali.
Once I went to the Registrar of Companies to register a company. This is because the law requires that a place of worship should be registered as a company. Though I followed the procedure, I could not register the place of worship. It took me more than a year to do so, after going through a lot of problems and formalities. We changed the temples constitution several times. At long last I filled up the forms as required by the Companies Registrar and registered our place of worship as a charitable institution. One day when Mr. Athulathmudali visited our temple, I told him about this. He immediately took steps to rectify the situation and enabled an institution to be registered as a company within one day.
The British set up the Public Trustees Department probably with the intention of destroying the temples and the economy of the Buddhists. The action was certainly not to protect them. But still this department with all its archaic regulations is active. Even though philanthropists vest their wealth and properties in the department, what benefits do the people derive? Though many temples, kovils and other places of worship have been placed under the department what good or development has resulted?
The late Mr. Athulathmudali took steps to develop the country and improve the economy. To strengthen the state-owned Insurance Corporation, he set up the Ramada Hotel. He also started Club Bentara Hotel in Bentara. I officiated at the foundation stone laying ceremonies of both these projects. His Mahapola Scholarship scheme is now a burden to the state. But during his time, this was an asset and he found the money for it.
When the country was cash-strapped, the then President R. Premadasa started the programme to give free uniform material and lunch to schoolchildren. These programmes were started with the support of the Gangaramaya. But today these programmes are not being carried out the way it was first envisaged. The programmes apparently suffer due to lack of funds. I am not finding fault with anyone, but feel this must be told.
We must recall with gratitude the role played by Ranil Wickremesinghe for the development of Pirivena education. The Pirivenas are not permitted to conduct classes from Grade One to Five. When a child is born, we recite Angulimala Piritha. We recite Pirith at the childs first meal, the first haircut and at the first reading by a child. Piriven can teach children from Grade five to University level, but they are not allowed to teach from Grade One to Five.
When Bandula Gunawardene was the minister of education, I requested him to start this. But this was not done. Why are there so many obstacles to temples and Bhikkus? Is an unseen hand controlling the affairs of this country?
All religions must come together. The temple, the church, the kovil and the mosque must unite. Today the greatest threat to the world is from ISIS terrorism. It can reach even Sri Lanka. All must be on guard. We must cast away all our differences to protect this country.
The Rajapaksa Show must come to a halt. If they have done wrong, it must be looked into. If ministers have done wrong, they should be probed. It is good to have a special High Court to look into cases of this nature. Today there are many opportunists. Wrongs done by anyone must be punished. It is advisable to constitute a separate court and set up a separate police unit.
There are rumours to say that police are resorting to unethical questioning methods when dealing with women suspects. We must put an end to any action that degrades women. We must end bribery, corruption and all forms of harassment.
If we try to trace the owners of the mansions that are coming up in Colombo, we will be able to have an idea about the scale of corruption. There are mansions built for the pleasure and play of the powerful. They are complete with lifts and security systems. Whose money are they spending for their pleasure? Where is the CID? Where are the detectives? Why are they not effective? There should be freedom to enjoy life. But this enjoyment is from ill-gotten money.
There are opportunists who are bent destroying the country. Information on them and their acts is readily available. The media are silent about these. They have to be woken up to face the reality. For the good of everybody we must put an end to all forms of robbery, lustful behaviour, and all forms of evil. Those who are old and those who are getting old must think of the next generation. There are more divorces than marriages. Sudden deaths and illnesses are increasing. We must take notice of these. Let us all protect this country. If there are any suspicious things happening around your area, please write to us. We will bring them to the notice of those in authority.
We bless you. This is our address: Gangaramaya, 61, Sri Jinarathana Road, Colombo 02.
Port City: Govt. wants compromise on compensation claim over delay By Damith Wickremasekara View(s): View(s):
The Sri Lankan Government will renegotiate with its Chinese counterparts a demand for compensation for the delay in granting approval for the continuation of the Colombo Port City project. The Chinese company has demanded US$ 125 million or permission to reclaim additional land in lieu of the delay of the project by more than a year, Megapolis and Western Development Minister Champika Ranawaka told the Sunday Times. The Ministry of Megapolis is the project proponent.
Mr. Ranawaka said the issue of compensation or additional land area would be taken up during Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghes visit to China from April 6. The project is expected to be on top of the agenda during the China-Sri Lanka talks.
The company, CHEC Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd, which is handling the project for the Chinese investor, China
Communications Construction Co Ltd (CCCC), has made the demand after the project was put on hold by the new Government after it took over in January last year.
Mr Ranawaka said a concession agreement was due to be finalised before Mr. Wickremesinghe travelled to China, but further time had been sought to reach agreement on a range of issues, including compensation. After renegotiations, the proposals would be placed before the Cabinet before any new agreement was signed.
He said one of the renegotiated terms would focus on the reclaimed land of 263 hectares. The land would be given on a 99-year lease agreement instead of a freehold system. Initially the Environmental Impact Assessment was prepared only for an extent of 200 hectares.
The minister said some of the areas to be scrapped under the new agreement would be the space for casinos and tracks for car races. Megapolis Ministry Secretary Nihal Rupasinghe said the Government would point out that at the initial stages of the project the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) had been violated.
He said 72 new conditions had been laid down in the permit now issued by the Coast Conservation and Coastal Resources Management Department and the Chinese company had agreed to them. He said once the project gets underway a special traffic plan will be put in place in the Fort area.
The agreement for the project, costing US$ 1.5 billion, the largest private investment ever, was inaugurated by Chinese President Xi Jinping on September 17, 2014. The land reclaiming process is expected to take three years and construction thereafter. It is estimated to create at least 80,000 jobs.
Shalika says Im innocent, vested interests used Foundation for illegal cash transfers By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera View(s): View(s):
Founder of the controversial Sri Lankan NGO allegedly embroiled in an elaborate money laundering scheme involving three countries and the US Federal Reserve, is claiming innocence and that, her bank account credentials were abused by unknown persons.
Shalika Foundation Director Shalika Perera yesterday told the Sunday Times that her companys credentials were used by vested interests for illegal cash transfers.
I am a person from Attidiya (Ratmalana) and my family has been living in this area for generations. I started this foundation to help Sri Lankans, as I believe I can do something more for this country, Ms. Perera said, stressing she has long term political aspirations, hence this foundation to conduct social work.
The Shalika Foundation director broke her silence this week, nearly two months after Chinese hackers broke into the website of the Bangladeshi (Central) Bank, stole credentials and codes and sent instructions to the US Federal Reserve to transfer nearly US$ 1 billion, partly to accounts in the Philippines and Sri Lanka.
While the money (US$ 81 million) reached account holders in the Philippines, in Sri Lanka, an alert bank, sensing the sum of US$ 20 million to be unusually high for the recipient- Shalika Foundation-, tipped off international banking authorities.
Details of the heist and its local links were first broken by the Sunday Times on March 13 and a week later, a Colombo court impounded the passports of its directors including Ms Perera, based on a CID report.
Ms Perera evaded calls and SMS from the Sunday Times for the past two weeks, although the paper was in possession of her mobile number. She, however, agreed to speak to the paper on Friday, after giving an interview to Reuters news agency.
I am hoping to get into politics in the future, and I have communicated this fact as the main reason I started this foundation, to the officials of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Central Bank (CB) and the Criminal Investigations Dept (CID), when I spoke to them, Ms. Perera said by phone.
CID officials together with the CBs FIU recently recorded a statement from her and four other directors of the Foundation. Ms Perera had told them she expected US$ 20 million to come from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to fund a power plant and other projects in Sri Lanka.
She said she had no direct dealing with JICA, but the deal was arranged by an acquaintance she met in Sri Lanka, with connections in Japan.
A local businessman Priyankara Jayadeva whom she met in August 2014, introduced her to Sasuki Thadasi, a Japanese vehicle supplier to Myanmar. Mr Thadasi had told her that funding for a power project (which Mrs. Perera was planning to launch through the Foundation) through JICA can be arranged. Then in October, she had set up the Foundation which, according to independent checks by the paper, was registered with the Registrar of Companies on October 16, 2014, as company number GA2974. JICA officials said they were unaware of these developments.
Mr Thadasi is an investor chain member in Japan with extensive business connections. Hes an innocent party in this transaction, as is Mr Priyankara. They are both good people, Ms Perera says adding, however, that she was unable to reach Mr Jayadeva despite several calls to him. She has not contacted Mr Thadasi as he is mainly conversant in Japanese, a language she cannot speak.
She said this is the first time she has received money from abroad. Before this, I didnt know what a telegraphic transfer was.
When the case came up on Thursday, the CID informed court that the transaction of US$ 20 million had been electronically transferred to the Foundation, under the international SWIFT process, allegedly as a JICA loan for a Rural Electrification Upgrading Project. The payment was eventually suspended.
Colombo Chief Magistrate Gihan Pilapitiya issued order extending the travel ban on the directors- Ms Perera Don Prasad Rohitha of Piliyandala, Nishantha Nalaka Walakuluarachchi of Homagama, Sanjeewa Tissa Bandara of Dehiwala and Shirani Dhammika Fernando of Dehiwala, while impounding their passports. The case will resume on June 22.
The Foundation was set up to construct low-cost houses and provide other social services.
Voting rights under consideration for migrant workers View(s):
The possibility of enabling more than 1.5 million migrant Sri Lankan workers to vote at elections here is to be examined by a Parliamentary Select Committee. A motion for this purpose signed by 23 MPs was submitted last month and will be approved by Parliament when it meets on Wednesday.
The motion says Sri Lankans employed overseas have been deprived the chance to vote until now even though they make an invaluable contribution for the sustenance of the economy of Sri Lanka at present through the earning of foreign exchange.
It states that creating the necessary background for the migrant workers to engage in their employment with dignity is the responsibility of the Government and hence a Parliamentary Select Committee be appointed to look into the difficulties faced by Sri Lankans employed overseas and the possibility of providing them the opportunity to exercise their franchise in elections and report to Parliament on the same with observations and recommendations.
All parties have agreed to pass the motion without debate on Wednesday.
A man of the wilds takes over the reins After 23 years as the Lead Environmental Specialist for the World Bank office, Sumith Pilapitiya is the new Director-General (DG) of the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC). Here he talks to Kumudini Hettiarachchi of his vision. View(s): View(s):
He is in one of the hottest seats in Sri Lanka and not because of the current heat wave scorching the country. It is a seat which has been rocked by the strong winds of political pressure and turbulence of accusations against its occupiers over sacrificing duty at the altar of alleged vested interests and personal gain.
The just-appointed Director-General (DG) of the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC), Dr. Sumith Pilapitiya, 57, needs no introduction.
As Dr. Pilapitiya reiterates that he will ensure the protection and conservation of wildlife resources, so that Sri Lankas natural heritage will be a lasting legacy for future generations, conservationists and environmentalists hailed his appointment as the right man for the right job.
His premise is simple: As an environmental professional, during my tenure as DG, I will not violate the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance or do anything detrimental to wildlife conservation in Sri Lanka. I would rather resign than be instrumental in causing a negative impact on wildlife conservation.
Having taken up the onerous duties of running the DWC on Wednesday, March 30, he laughingly points out that many did not think it right for him to do so on April 1 as it is April Fools Day.
Jokes apart, as he sits down with the Sunday Times for an exclusive interview to outline his vision for the DWC on Thursday, oft are the interruptions, for there has been a robbery the night before at the Yala National Park office. Troubleshooting and instructing his officials with amazing dexterity, while fending the questions posed by us, we get a glimpse of who Dr. Pilapitiya is.
Steely of will he seems to be, set on doing right by the job which has literally been thrust upon him. Under his jurisdiction comes more than a thousand staff and 13% of this countrys land, making up the Protected Areas (PAs) which include the National Parks (NPs), the Strict Nature Reserves (SNRs), the Sanctuaries and the Jungle Corridors.
Equally at home in the wilds of Yala or Wilpattu; the humble mud-and-thatch huts of villagers affected by the human-elephant conflict (HEC) in Wayamba; the plush offices of the international financial institution that is the World Bank in Colombo which was his workplace for 23 years; and the overseas meetings in other global capitals to discuss climate change, we meet him clad in his signature khakis in his mothers home in Colombo for he and his wife, Jameeleh live in Weligama.
It is in this southern town that he imparted his technical knowledge and gave of his time to the local authority to manage its solid waste, a model which has been replicated by several other local authorities.
Wide and varied are his interests, having a basic degree in engineering and a doctorate in environmental science with his thesis being on the urban environment, while his work at the World Bank has pointed him in the direction of the conservation of charismatic flagship species such as the elephant, the tiger, the snow leopard and the one-horned rhinoceros as well as how to deal with carbon emissions, the greenhouse effect and global warming. Armed with all this knowledge about wildlife conservation, he is also well-versed in how the natural environment is threatened by the urban environment.
Just last year, Dr. Pilapitiya bid goodbye to his job as the Lead Environmental Specialist for the South Asia Environment, Water Resources and Climate Change Unit at the World Bank office, five years ahead of retirement, to indulge in his passion for wild elephants by spending long hours covered in dust at Yala to study their social behaviour.
For Dr. Pilapitiya there is no ambiguity about what needs to be done at the DWC he needs to act as a professional and take a principled stand to ensure that wildlife conservation in Sri Lanka is elevated to a higher status. Taking the agenda of wildlife conservation forward, while standing up to political pressure, will be his guiding light.
Currently, he has no doubts that he will be able to do his job as he thinks fit in the best interests of wildlife conservation, as President Maithripala Sirisena himself has given due importance and commitment to this issue and taken the environment portfolio under him, while Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is very keen to improve the PA network and also boost wildlife tourism and Minister Gamini Jayawickrama Perera is committed to wildlife conservation. Therefore, Im certain that the political leaders would never ask me and my team at the DWC to do anything which is improper.
Referring to the DWC staff, he says that though fingers have been pointed at them over the years for problems linked to National Parks and the HEC, they have been performing a silent and difficult service. The DWC is the guardian of the key watersheds of Sri Lanka which ensure that our streams and rivers flow and we can carry out our agricultural activities while also supplying hydropower. The DWC and the Forest Department own most of the forest lands which act as a carbon sink helping the country to counter climate change. The DWC, along with the Forest Department, also protects the countrys biodiversity.
Boosting the morale of his team, Dr. Pilapitiya has told the DWC staff how unique their position is, for they are not doing just any job. We are the custodians and protectors of Sri Lankas natural heritage which needs to be handed down intact to posterity.
Mitigation of HEC closest to his heart Moving onto the main priority areas that need urgent attention, Dr. Sumith Pilapitiya points out that he will ensure that there is heavy focus on wildlife conservation. This is in the light of more emphasis in the past being placed on wildlife tourism. We need to understand that the revenue we earn from wildlife tourism would peter out if we do not invest in conservation, resulting in such tourism not being sustainable, he explains. The second priority is a subject very close to his heart, the mitigation of the human-elephant conflict (HEC) to create a win-win situation for both humans and elephants. For, he had been enthralled by the majestic wild elephants from the first time he set eyes on them at the Yala National Park as a little boy of about four. Yes, it is the HEC which pulls at his heart strings, whenever the village-folk are affected or a wild elephant dies and he is determined to implement measures to mitigate the HEC on concrete, science-based information collected in coordination with the DWC. While fire-fighting the HEC in all parts of the country, he along with his team at the DWC will make concerted efforts at mitigation through a comprehensive plan in the north-western and then the southern regions which are wracked by the HEC. A firm believer in electric fences to make a critical difference by halting the wild elephants coming into villages, Dr. Pilapitiya points out, however, that elephants are no respecters of the administrative boundaries of the DWC. As the DWC shares Protected Areas (PAs) with the Forest Department, we cannot tell the wild elephants to stop at such administrative boundaries, he says, adding that in the future the DWC will work closely with the Forest Department on ecological boundaries which will act as deterrents to keep humans and elephants apart, rather than as boundary markers. Under some pilot projects in the Ehatuwewa divisional area in Galgamuwa, Wayamba, where permanent electric fences have been put up around village communities, the HEC has eased to a large extent. Temporary electric fences, meanwhile, around agricultural lands such as paddy-fields prior to cultivation and fence-removal after harvesting seem to work as a co-existence model, it is understood. The farmers get the yield of their hard work and once the fences are removed the elephants get whatever food is left in the fields, says Dr. Pilapitiya. His third priority is addressing the troubling situations in the National Parks. Even though it looks unmanageable, he does not think it is out of control. Serious problems are being reported from Yala, Minneriya and Horton Plains where heavy over-visiting is providing a low-quality wildlife experience to tourists. Suggestions to curb the issues are many including the restriction of the number of vehicles entering the National Parks. Yala is a particularly complex problem, he concedes, adding that the understanding is that nearly 800 commercial safari vehicles from Kirinde, Tissamaharama and Kataragama visit the park on peak days. If there is sudden restriction of these vehicles, many of the safari jeep drivers who are owner-operators will lose their livelihood, creating a bigger problem. Working on global PA management principles which are clear that the sustainability of a PA depends not only on conservation but community benefits garnered through the PA, he along with his team are hoping to implement a phased approach to overcome the challenges. The approach includes the initial registration of all such commercial safari jeeps with a training for drivers in expected behaviour and etiquette in a PA, after which would be introduced an annual licensing scheme for both driver and vehicle. Each year they would have to undergo reinforcement training, while strict disciplinary action would be taken against errant drivers who misbehave in the park. No political pressure will be tolerated, underscores Dr. Pilapitiya, laying down the penalties as: a weeks suspension from Yala of both driver and jeep for the first violation; two weeks suspension for the second violation; a months suspension for the third violation, three months suspension for the fourth violation and debarment from the park for a year after being blacklisted for the fifth violation. Meeting with the Jeep Drivers Association recently, he has urged them to help me to help you, and cooperate to put Yala in order. Some other matters of urgency he will look into are staff shortages and also ensuring that no unnecessary constructions are erected within PAs.
Mummified tales of Lankas ghostly diplomacy View(s):
UNITED NATIONS When successive Sri Lankan governments of all political stripes continued to appoint a rash of retired army officers as our envoys overseas, a senior career diplomat famously remarked: if retired army generals can be ambassadors, why cannot retired ambassadors be army generals. Perhaps there was pure unadulterated logic to it but no political justification, at least for now.
So, when Major General Shavendra Silva was Sri Lankas Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN with the rank of Ambassador, I told him if he is ultimately appointed to head the countrys armed forces one day, he could make diplomatic history: the first retired Sri Lankan ambassador to be an army chief proving fact is stranger than fiction.
In the Sri Lankan diplomatic service, there is apparently never a dull moment judging by recent revelations in the Sunday Times, including the hilarious story of a newly-appointed Ambassador, accredited to an Asian country, who downgraded his brother-in-law to the rank of a cook just to make him part of the entourage so that the Foreign Ministry can pick up the tab for his travel and his upkeep.
What next? An ambassador taking his wife listing her officially as a designated kussiamaand collecting wages (even though one envoy is known to have taken his mistress in the same capacity to a Western capital and took the Foreign Ministry for a ride, along with her?
And then we have the story of a Sri Lankan ambassador a political appointee in an Asian capital who is in his early 70s proving we have no age discrimination in our foreign service. But that is certainly not due to the paucity of younger professionals in the ranks of the public and private sectors or younger career diplomats in our foreign service. As with earlier diplomatic appointments, history has a way of repeating itself, first as tragedy, then as tragi-comedy.
Speaking of tragedy, successive governments, for some unaccountable reason, kept appointing 70 and 80 year old ambassadors to our embassy in Egypt, some of them dying in office. One ambassador had to be assisted as he stepped out of the aircraft on arrival in Cairo to take up his appointmentmercifully not in a wheel chair.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry was intrigued as to why Sri Lanka kept posting ambassadors who apparently had one foot in the grave and the other foot on a banana skin. The classic observation came from an Egyptian official who told a Sri Lanka Foreign Ministry official: The only thing older than your ambassadors are our pyramids and mummies.
Which reminds me when Sri Lanka took a prominent role in the early days of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike (1960-65) delivered a vibrant speech at the first NAM summit in the Yugoslav capital of Belgrade in 1961 with a catchy opening phrase: As a mother and as a Prime Minster
And three years later, in 1964, Egypt was hosting the second NAM summit in Cairo. The Sri Lankan delegation, holed up in a ritzy hotel overlooking the pyramids, was racking its brains trying to come up with an equally catchy phrase for the Prime Ministers speech when Felix Dias Bandaranaike, known for his biting humor, suggested a more appropriate opening para against the backdrop of Egypt: As a mummy and a Prime Minister.. Mrs B apparently did not find it amusing. Felix got away because he was her nephew. Or so the story goes.
But I digress. Our High Commissioners in Malaysia too were known to pass away while holding office.
At least two of them died in office while a third died less than 24 hours before he could fly to Kuala Lumpur to take up his assignment.
Tragically, the Daily News had a front-page story about the departing High Commissioner while, unbeknownst to the night editor working the graveyard shift that night, the back page of the same newspaper ran the High Commissioners death notice in the late-breaking obituary column.
As a result of the deaths, there were unconfirmed rumours the High Commissioners residence was haunted instilling fear into the minds of some envoys who had second thoughts about taking up assignments.
And so was a rumour about the ambassadorial residence in Geneva. Ambassador H.M.G.S. Palihakkara, a longstanding friend, who held the posts of Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN office in Geneva (2004) and later in New York (2008), sent me a message before he left for Geneva.
Pali, who knew my weakness for cashew nuts, told me he will be carrying some devilled cashew nuts which he would mail to New York no sooner he arrives in Geneva. I messaged him back rather jokingly: Pali, forget the devilled cashew nuts. Id advise you to take a devil dancer with you to drive the evil spirits from the ambassadorial residence.
But, as usual, he had the last word: when I was in Geneva to cover a UN conference. I had pitched my tent at his residence, along with a couple of Sri Lankan artistes who were in town to perform at the UN that week. As we continued gossiping past midnight, I asked Pali whether the rumour about the haunted house was true. Yes, he said rather mischievously, thats the bedroom in which you will be sleeping tonight.
Mercifully, I survived. But as Pali would have it: the spirits took a long hard look at me and ran for cover.
The writer can be contacted at thalifdeen@aol.com
Pakistani tiger in police net for smuggling South Asians into HK View(s):
The Pakistani mastermind of a human smuggling syndicate was arrested in an operation involving police in China and Hong Kong, authorities announced this week.
Law enforcement agencies announced that the Pakistani was known by his nickname, Lofu Chai, or little tiger. He had links to Hong Kong and was named as the kingpin of one criminal syndicate charging thousands of HK dollars to arrange illegal entry into Hong Kong for Pakistanis and others.
The Pakistani and his gang charged HK$8,000 per person, police revealed. That is the equivalent of 108,000 Pakistani rupees, or slightly more than US$1,000 (Rs 146,675). As they announced the arrest of the Pakistani kingpin, police also said they detained 142 important figures from three syndicates involved in smuggling people into China and then on to Hong Kong.
Police from the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, as well as Guangxi and Yunnan provinces said they arrested 2,943 suspected illegal immigrants in three major operations. Among those held were 83 South Asians, including Indians, Bangladeshis and Pakistanis.
The majority detained were Southeast Asians such as Vietnamese. Most Pakistanis, Indians and Bangladeshis are smuggled into Hong Kong in speedboats from the southern Chinese city, Shenzhen, a notorious center for crime, the illegal sex trade, and the counterfeit mafia, while also known as an industrial city.
Sri Lankan politicians have praised Shenzhen as a model worthy of emulation in the island. Many Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, who get caught in Hong Kong after sneaking into the city illegally, file for asylum to prevent deportation and prosecution. When their asylum application is rejected after review, they then apply for protection under UN laws against torture.
Thousands of Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi immigrants come to the city mainly in search of work menial or otherwise.
Many are seen roaming the streets, and idling on street corners wearing sarongs and slippers in the popular tourist town Tsim Sha Tsui peddling narcotics day and night, counterfeit watches and luxury goods, dodgy suits from Sindhi tailors, lodging in filthy guest houses, and offering meals in unsanitary curry joints. There are even Indian and Bangladeshi sex workers loitering on streets, smoking and drinking in public.
The impression they create tarnishes all South Asians including Sri Lankans. Locals and visitors frown on them and avoid eye contact. Locals privately complain of the red betel chew stains on the streets of Tsim Sha Tsui, on walls of buildings, and even on the walls of stairways leading into the subway train. In Hong Kong, asylum applicants are prohibited from working.
The Secretary for Security, Lai Tung-kwok, told Hong Kong lawmakers recently that 232 asylum seekers (South Asians and Vietnamese) were arrested in 2015, compared with 166 the year before.
Amid a flood of dubious asylum-seekers from India, in particular, as well as from Bangladesh and Pakistan, Hong Kong is now considering increasing the jail terms for human smugglers. In mid-February, police arrested 45 South Asians for illegally entering Hong Kong just after they had landed on Hong Kongs shores. Days before that, in an embarrassing episode for the Immigration Department, two young Indians, aged 27 and 35, fled into Hong Kong from a China-bound train after they were denied entry at a main terminal. They bolted from the train just before the doors closed.
Operations aganinst illegal immigrants and human smuggling syndicates will continue for some time to come in China and Hong Kong. Yin Chengjun, the head of the Border Control Department of Chinas National Ministry of Public Security, was cited as saying this week that people smugglers in Hong Kong were operating with gangs in South Asian and Southeast Asian countries. They help smuggle immigrants to southern Guangdong Province and then through to Hong Kong.
In early March, a boatload of 14 Pakistanis, including two women, as well as seven men from India and Bangladesh was seized by police in the waters off Hong Kong International Airport.
Among them was a three-year-old Pakistani girl.
In all, the wooden boat carried 22 people and was seized in the early hours on a foggy day. A suspected smuggler, a Chinese, who steered the boat was also detained.
Every hour, 52 New Zealanders call 111 for an ambulance. This highlights the need for St John during their annual appeal week, from April 4-10. Karla and Scott McCormick share why they want to see St John raise money.
Karla McCormick woke up to her husband Scott making a noise on Monday September 28, 2015, at 5.59am.
John Middleton and Rick Hannay from PEERS Group with Tauranga City Councillors Leanne Brown and Steve Morris Photo: supplied.
While many focus their attention on discretionary projects in the CBD, this major piece of core infrastructure for our city is underway. Were on track to deliver the promised road right down to Emerald Shores Drive by 2018 as well as additional water supply and stormwater upgrades said Cr Morris
We are continually putting pressure on our transportation and planning departments to expedite roading in Papamoa, balancing the just-in-time infrastructure commitments, and we are making progress, albeit not quite as fast as we would like, but every incremental section of new road is a step in the right direction" said Cr Brown
Construction has also been welcomed by Rick Hannay from the Papamoa East Evacuation and Road Safety Group (PEERS) who brought a 1,400 strong petition Council in 2013 calling for construction of the road to be brought forward.
PEERS Group is keen to ensure that the first stage of Te Okuroa Drive is completed as a priority and urges Developers to commit to bringing forward the access/egress route connecting both the Palm Springs and Golden Sands subdivisions via Te Okuroa Drive through to the Parton Road/Tara Road roundabout.
To cater for the rapid growth of Papamoa East and ease the burden on existing residents the new Council brought the project forward five years.
It will ease congestion on the eastern section of Papamoa Beach Rd.
The 6,000 residents of Papamoa East have been very patient. The small road started in the 1950s to service a few baches doesnt serve existing residents well at peak times anymore let alone cater for future growth.
Thats is why Ive argued for this project from day one on Council. Residents are quite right to demand that core infrastructure affecting their everyday lives comes first said Cr Morris.
In addition to Te Okuroa Drive Council is investing $200,000 constructing a new roundabout on the corner of Papamoa Beach Rd and Parton Rd.
The new roundabout should be completed by the end of June, easing tension and improving connectivity at the busy intersection said Cr Brown.
The Prime Minister is doing the big sell for more foreign students to prop up under-funded public education and private education businesses, says New Zealand First.
Unsuspecting students from overseas are being used.
GlaxoSmithKline are being taking to task over the mark-up on two of their products: Voltaren Osteo Gel and Voltaren Emugel, products used primarily to ease arthritis pain.
Both products contain exactly the same ingredients, but it appears consumers are paying an additional $9.66 to have a cap that is easier to open for those with arthritis.
Kiwi communities will have easier access to life-saving technology thanks to Z Energys nationwide installation of more than 200 defibrillators at Z service stations across New Zealand.
Last month, Z purchased the 214 defibrillators from St John. Work is underway to ensure every Z service station across the country has a defibrillator installed.
A Tauranga solicitor is urging business owners to take the new Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 seriously, saying they may not realise the effects the amendments will have.
The new Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 comes into effect next week and aims to address the issue of more than one in 10 workers claiming for a workplace injury in New Zealand each year.
Harris Tate director Oliver Moorcroft.
From April 4, New Zealands health and safety laws will undergo a significant reform the first in 20 years with changes to the Act coming into effect.
Harris Tate director Oliver Moorcroft says as a result company directors in particular are set to personally feel the heat of new and increased liabilities and potential penalties.
Its not a matter of simply pulling out your old policy and blowing the dust off it. Now is the time to be looking at it properly and for many businesses this seems like a pretty daunting exercise, says Oliver.
It is fundamental that this is done properly and if you need assistance there are numerous experts who can help.
The main changes focus on accountability, clarifying whos responsible for health and safety, and everyones obligations for eliminating or minimising health and safety risks in the workplace.
From April, directors can be held personally responsible for any breaches of the Act.
Potential penalties have increased, with the maximum penalty for the most serious breach being $600,000 or five years in jail, or both.
The maximum fine for a corporation has been considerably increased to $3 million. Under the current law, the maximum penalty for a director for a serious breach is $500,000 or two years imprisonment, or both.
Oliver supports the changes, believing these will add another level of accountability to the workplace, given New Zealands less-than-desirable track record particular in the farming and horticulture industries, which have poor track records.
People deserve to come home from work safely every day.
The new changes also assist government agencies such as ACC and Worksafe to become a more cohesive in sharing information and collaborating in order to enforce breaches.
Oliver says seeking competent advice to iron out any unanswered questions or concerns is a proactive step.
Most business owners will probably need to completely review their current system, to ensure they manage and reduce risk across all aspects of their businesses.
In fact, all employers should be reviewing their policies now as the changes to the law are significant, says Oliver.
This is because the duties under the Act fall upon a Person Conducting a Business Undertaking referred to as PCBU.
A PCBU has responsibilities to employees and contractors who are engaged, or caused to be engaged, by the PCBU and workers or contractors whose activities are influenced or directed by the PCBU.
As there is more than one PCBU for an undertaking, managers and heads of departments will also have duties to workers in the business.
Meanwhile, workers must understand how to minimise risk, which means managers will play an important role in communicating the legislative requirements to their staff.
In the coming weeks Oliver urges employers tofamiliarise themselves with the key concepts of the legislation, review their health and safety practices, identify health and safety risks in their business and take steps to prevent these from causing harm, lead by example, and make health and safety part of their workplace culture.
The first team reached home plate in Oxfams Trailwalker, held in Whakatane, at 12.16 am this morning.
Oxfam reports that in a storming 10 minutes of action at the finish, we just had the three fastest teams cross the line within minutes of each other. And they were all mixed teams with 2 of them locals.
Sullivan Crash 1.JPG
Four people were injured Friday in a crash that occurred at 3:19 p.m. on a remote stretch of state Route 31 near Smith Ridge Road in the town of Sullivan.
(Ken Sturtz | ksturtz@syracuse.com)
SULLIVAN, N.Y. -- Four people were seriously injured Friday afternoon in a head-on crash in Madison County after a car crossed into the opposite lane and hit a minivan.
The crash occurred at 3:19 p.m. on a remote stretch of state Route 31 near Smith Ridge Road in the town of Sullivan.
Trooper Jack Keller, a New York State Police spokesman, said 22-year-old James J. Horrigan, of Chittenango, was driving a 2005 Chevrolet sedan west on Route 31 when his vehicle crossed the center line, went into the opposite lane and hit a 2015 Toyota Sienna minivan head-on. He sustained severe head injuries.
The driver of the minivan, Stanley G. Prue, 70, of Baldwinsville, suffered internal injuries. His wife, Marjorie A. Prue, 67, of Baldwinsville, was a front-seat passenger. She suffered severe head injuries. A 92-year-old man, Robert J. Blakeman, was riding behind the driver's seat in the minivan when the crash occurred.
All four people injured were taken to the hospital.
Both vehicles suffered heavy damage. Firefighters from Bridgeport and North Chittenango responded as did state troopers and sheriff's deputies.
All four people injured in the crash were rushed by ambulance to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse. A helicopter was initially called to help transport some of the patients, but it was later called off, Keller said. Blakeman was revived several times at the hospital with CPR. All four people were in serious condition.
Investigators are not sure what caused Horrigan to cross into the opposite lane. Keller said alcohol, drugs and the weather do not appear to have caused the crash.
Both directions of Route 31 were closed between Hamilton and Smith Ridge roads, but they were expected to reopen Friday night after troopers had finished taking measurements and collecting evidence.
Stanley G. Prue retired from the Syracuse Police Department in 2003. He served as president of the department's Police Benevolent Association for 16 years.
Contact Ken Sturtz: 315-766-7833 | Email | Twitter | Facebook | Google+
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One man was killed and three other people were injured when a car struck a van Friday afternoon on Route 31 in Sullivan, Madison County.
(New York State Police)
All four people injured were taken to the hospital.
SULLIVAN, N.Y. -- An elderly man injured Friday afternoon in a Madison County crash has died.
Robert J. Blakeman, 92, died after he was rushed from the scene of the Sullivan crash to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse, said the New York State Police. The accident left three other people seriously injured.
Blakeman died just over a month after his wife of 70 years, Margaret D. "Peggy" Blakeman, died, according to Margaret Blakeman's obituary. His daughter and son-in-law were injured during the crash.
Troopers gave the following account of the Sullivan crash:
James J. Horrigan, 22, of Chittenango, was driving west on Route 31 in a 2005 Chevrolet sedan when his car crossed over the center line and into oncoming traffic. The car collided head-on with an eastbound 2015 Toyota Sienna minivan near Smith Ridge Road.
Horrigan was rushed to Upstate with a serious head injury.
The driver of the minivan, Stanley J. Prue, 70, suffered internal injuries.
His wife, Marjorie A. Prue, 67, was riding in the front passenger seat of the van. She sustained a "severe" head injury.
The Baldwinsville couple was also rushed to Upstate.
Blakeman, who was riding in the backseat behind the driver's seat, suffered internal injuries. After being revived several times with CPR at the hospital, he died.
Marjorie Prue is Blakeman's daughter, and Stanley Prue is Blakeman's son-in-law, according to Margaret Blakeman's obituary.
Marjorie Prue, Stanley Prue and Horrigan were listed in serious condition.
Troopers are investigating what caused Horrigan's car to cross the center lane. Trooper Jack Keller said alcohol, drugs and weather conditions don't appear to have caused the accident.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Four people, including two 15-year-olds, had loaded guns in a car they used to lead officers on a high-speed chase, Syracuse police said.
Just after 6 p.m. Friday Officers Sean Carleo and Joel Dorchester, who work on the department's Crime Reduction Team, tried to stop a vehicle in the 800 block of Midland Avenue. Police said the driver had committed several traffic violations.
When Carleo and Dorchester turned their emergency lights and siren on to pull the car over, the driver refused to stop and sped away, police said.
The driver, who police later identified as 18-year-old Ernest Singleton-Shaw, kept trying to get away, police said. Winston Brown, 17, and two 15-year-old boys were also in the car during the chase, police said.
Backup responded and joined the pursuit, which went past the Syracuse University campus and lasted several miles.
The car stopped in the 600 block of Burnet Avenue and all four people in the vehicle ran away, police said. Patrol and Crime Reduction Team officers later found and arrested all four suspects.
Police said one of the 15-year-olds arrested had crack cocaine and a loaded Charter Arms .38-caliber revolver with a defaced serial number. He was charged with criminal possession of a firearm, second and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, and resisting arrest.
Officers also found a loaded Smith & Wesson .38-caliber revolver in the car, police said.
The second 15-year-old was charged with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of a firearm and resisting arrest. Both 15-year-olds were taken to the Hillbrook Juvenile Detention Center to await arraignment.
Singleton-Shaw was charged with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of a firearm, reckless driving and several vehicle and traffic violations.
Brown was charged with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and criminal possession of a firearm. Police said Brown was also wanted as part of another investigation and was charged with second-degree burglary, third-degree criminal mischief and petit larceny.
Singleton-Shaw and Brown were held at the county jail pending arraignment.
Ernest Singleton-Shaw
Winston Brown
Contact Ken Sturtz: 315-766-7833 | Email | Twitter | Facebook | Google+
Weyant, Joseph.JPG
Joseph Weyant
(New York State Police)
LINCOLN, N.Y. -- A Madison County man was arrested Thursday and charged with repeatedly raping a child.
Joseph M. Weyant, 34, of Canastota, has been charged with sexually abusing a child. The New York State Police said Weyant had sex with a child under the age of 15 multiple times over the course of more than one year.
Weyant was charged with first-degree course of sexual conduct against a child and second-degree rape, both felonies. He was arraigned in Lincoln Town Court and held in the Madison County Jail in lieu of $75,000 cash or a $90,000 bail bond.
Troopers said the Madison County Child Advocacy Center assisted with the investigation.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Several million New Yorkers will go to the polls April 19 to vote in the 2016 Democratic and Republican presidential primaries.
And Kate Huddleston will work about 10 hours that day to help keep democracy alive.
The Syracuse woman is better known as an actress who's starred in about 60 theater productions in Central New York or, in some circles, as a former parole officer who rode herd on everyone from burglars to murderers.
But on Election Day, she's a poll inspector.
Huddleston will be one of about 100,000 poll inspectors across the state, many of whom are retirees, whose presence is required in countless school gyms, churches and community halls or New York's presidential primary would have to be called off.
The Onondaga County Board of Elections doesn't keep records that identify which of its poll inspectors have done the job the longest.
But the board's staff identified Huddleston - who has worked the polls every election day for 12 years - as one of the longest-serving of its current crop of about 2,000 inspectors.
Huddleston, 64, has played everyone from Lizzy Borden's step-mom to Abe Lincoln's wife on stage, and she appeared as a child as a stand-in in the classic "The Sound of Music" movie.
She's won two Syracuse Area Live Theater awards for her performances, but likes her Election Day role, too, even though it comes with no standing ovations.
Huddleston is a registered Republican. She first signed up to be a poll inspector in 2004, the year Republican George W. Bush was running against Democrat John Kerry for president, because she was interested in that race.
"It was quite a controversial election. I certainly felt Mr. Bush would be re-elected. I was quite interested in following through and seeing how it worked out," she said. "I have worked every election since. Local, state and federal elections."
New York state law says you have to be a registered Democrat or Republican to be a poll inspector. The county board of elections assigns an even number from each party to work at each polling site. The system is designed so that the two parties can make sure there's no funny business with the votes.
A 17-hour workday
For general elections, like the one scheduled Nov. 8, Huddleston will arrive at the polling site at 5 a.m. to set up the optical scan machines that scan paper ballots. The polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 9 p.m.
As a voting machine specialist, Huddleston will be paid $235 for the 17-hour workday.
"I feel tired at the end of the day. But it is a delight, a pleasant thing to see the voters come through. Ninety-nine point nine percent of them are extremely appreciative," she said.
For the April 19 presidential primary, inspectors' workdays aren't as long because the polls will be open noon to 9 p.m., except for New York City and some surrounding counties, on Long Island and near Buffalo.
Huddleston will be one of six inspectors stationed at the primary election polling site at LeMoyne Elementary School on Syracuse's north side.
Throughout the day, she'll help any voters who have trouble using the vote scanning machines. After the polls close, she'll remove from the machine a memory card that registers every vote, and it will be driven to a board of elections' central office.
During the day, poll inspectors also have to make sure no one breaks any election laws at the polls.
She's no pushover
Huddleston is quick to laugh and has a friendly smile. But she's no push-over at the polls.
For 27 years, she supervised convicts after they were released on parole from state prison.
A handcuffed parolee once suddenly dove head-first out a fifth-floor window at the State Office Building after Huddleston told him he had violated his parole and was going back to prison.
The man suffered broken bones but miraculously survived the 47-foot plunge, which included smacking onto a foot-deep snow bank on a concrete ledge one story off the ground and then dropping to the sidewalk.
Afterward, "he claimed I tried to push him out the window. That I tried to kill him," an amazed Huddleston said.
A judge didn't buy the prisoner's story.
Huddleston retired in 2012 as deputy chief of parole violations, supervising 35 parole officers. She doesn't carry a gun anymore, like she did for 27 years at parole, but she's still pretty strict about enforcing rules.
Remove that baby
On Election Day, it's illegal to wear political buttons or carry a candidate's sign within 100 feet of the entrance of the polling site.
The first year she worked as an inspector, Huddleston recalled, she asked a voter with an infant in a stroller to leave a polling site because the baby was dressed in a T-shirt that promoted Kerry's presidential campaign.
"I actually made one young mom quite angry," Huddleston recalled. "I did, as the inspector, tell her, 'Excuse me, you'll have to go out into the hallway and either take off the infant's shirt or change it.' She said, 'You're kidding me.'"
Huddleston wasn't.
But most of the time, the only Election Day hiccups at the polls are when voters go to the wrong site, Huddleston said.
She said poll inspectors find out where the voter is supposed to vote and provide them with the location. If there is any issue that can't be resolved, the person is allowed to fill out an affidavit ballot, and the election commissioners determine if it's valid.
"We make every effort to help voters be able to cast a vote," Huddleston said.
Voter fraud?
Across the country, there's been lots of talk in recent years about voter fraud. But Huddleston said she doesn't think it occurs often, if at all, around here.
"Voter fraud? Not in the Syracuse area that I've run into," she said.
She only remembers one possible incident in her 12 years at the polls. She and other poll inspectors suspected a person casting a ballot was impersonating a registered voter because the person's signature in the voting book didn't match the signature of the voter's.
"An inspector said that's not your signature (to a voter)," Huddleston recalled. "We had at least four inspectors look at the signatures. The signatures did not match. So we had real questions about whether it was actually the person."
That person was permitted to cast an affidavit ballot, but the incident was reported to the elections commissioners. She does not know how it was resolved.
"In this state we cannot ask voters for ID," Huddleston said. "It's not part of the elections law. You'd be surprised at how many people walk up to the table with their driver's license in their hand. But it's not a legal requirement that you provide it."
Another thing that Huddleston can't do on Election Day is actually cast a vote, she said. She spends the whole day working at a polling site that's not at the location where she's supposed to vote.
During their training, inspectors are given applications for absentee ballots so they can vote. So that's how she votes.
Shortage of inspectors
Many of Onondaga County's longest-serving inspectors quit about six years ago when the county began using optical-scan machines and paper ballots to register votes, replacing the familiar mechanical voting machines that had been used for decades, said Dustin Czarny, the Democratic elections commissioner.
"We have turnover every year. But when we switched over, there were long-time inspectors...there was some drop off," Czarny said. "After any change in the technology, there's always some who don't want to learn the new technology."
There's other "old-timers" beside Huddleston who are still working the polls.
For instance, there's Patricia Sinay, a senior citizen from Westvale, who said she's done it for the past 16 years, ever since she retired in 2001 from her full-time job at the board of elections. She'll be at Taunton Memorial Presbyterian Church on Fay Road for the April 19 presidential primary.
But most counties in New York have a hard time recruiting enough inspectors, said Czarny.
Anyone in Onondaga County who wants to apply to be a poll inspector should call 315-435-VOTE.
"It's a struggle for every county board to fill the slots," he said. "We have never not been able to staff a polling place. But there's never enough."
The job is fulfilling, even if the pay won't make you rich, Huddleston said.
"I would definitely recommend it. Along with the stipend you're given, I have felt I'm able to do a civic duty. I'm able to help others in the process of voting," she said.
Contact Mike McAndrew anytime | email | Twitter | 315-470-3016
Emergency personnel enter the home at 8545 De Havilland Court on Oct. 19, 2014, after Eric Deffendall was found shot to death on the floor of the first-floor family room in the Vero Beach home. (FILE PHOTO)
SHARE Mark Deffendall Eric Deffendall
By Dan Garcia, Special to Treasure Coast Newspapers
VERO BEACH A 41-year-old man who is claiming a "stand your ground" defense after fatally shooting his older brother in 2014 during a drunken fight in their Indian River Aerodrome home testified April 1 he simply can't remember any details of the shooting.
Mark E. Deffendall, who is charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Eric Deffendall, 42, testified he and his brother argued during a long night of drinking and drug use, but he could not recall details of the actual shooting.
Under questioning by Assistant State Attorney Chris Taylor, Mark Deffendall repeatedly testified "I don't remember" when asked to recall how the violence culminated on Oct. 19, 2014.
The hearing before Circuit Judge Cynthia L. Cox was the first of several pretrial hearings in which witnesses will testify for the defense and the prosecution. Cox will issue a ruling on whether the "stand your ground" defense applies in the case.
According to Florida's "stand your ground" law, a person may use deadly force in self-defense if he or she is in imminent threat of death or great bodily harm.
If Deffendall is successful in claiming a "stand your ground" defense, the charge of first-degree murder cannot be brought before a jury, and it would be dismissed.
However, Deffendall did not shed much light in the case by repeatedly claiming he could not remember critical details of the shooting.
Deffendall testified he and his brother fought frequently, but this time he said he feared for his life after they physically fought downstairs in their home, at 8545 De Havilland Court.
Both brothers previously had been arrested for DUI and battery and had frequently fought, "but this time it was different," Deffendall testified, because Eric Deffendall angrily followed him up the stairs after a fight downstairs.
Deffendall testified he feared for his life because his brother had not previously chased him up the stairs, where Mark Deffendall slept.
But Taylor asked Deffendall why he took the time to take a shower if he feared his brother would come upstairs and attack him.
"I don't recall," Deffendall testified Friday.
Deffendall said he grabbed his gun, a Russian 9 mm Makarov, because his brother also owned guns, but he admitted Eric Deffendall did not have a gun when he headed upstairs.
Under questioning by his lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Kiernan P. Moylan, Mark Deffendall said that before the shooting, the brothers fought in their Aerodome home after drinking and smoking cocaine.
Deffendall said "he (Eric Deffendall) grabbed me by the neck and slammed me over backward and started pummeling me. I had a gash in my head and my nose was busted."
Mark Deffendall was arrested at Indian River Medical Center in Vero Beach, where he had gone for treatment of cuts and bruises and an injury to his nose.
But Taylor asked Deffendall: "How big was the laceration? Does 1 centimeter sound correct? And your nose was not treated because your nose was not broken, correct?"
"I'm not sure," Deffendall replied.
Mark Deffendall testified he fired two shots as his brother was coming upstairs, but he does not know if he hit him as the victim retreated.
Prosecutors charged Deffendall with pursuing his brother into the living and dining rooms, shooting him four times.
"Was he facing down?" when Eric Deffendall was shot, Taylor asked.
"I don't recall," the defendant replied.
"What was going on in your mind when you shot your brother in the face point-blank?" Taylor asked.
"I don't remember," Deffendall replied.
"How many times did you shoot him downstairs?" Taylor asked.
"Are you asking me from my memory or from what I have read?" Deffendall said. "From my personal knowledge, I don't remember going into the living room."
Taylor asked Deffendall: "Do you know if you shot your brother at all?"
Deffendall's attorney called two witnesses who were boyhood friends of the Deffendalls and they recalled Eric Deffendall got the better of his brother in fights.
But one witness admitted he knew Eric Deffendall "in eighth grade."
Soren Andersen Sorensen
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By Bartholomew Sullivan, bartholomew.sullivan@tcpalm.com
WASHINGTON A St. Lucie County Sheriff's deputy killed in the line of duty 81 years ago will be honored in May at a candlelight vigil on the National Mall and at a memorial service usually attended by the president.
Soren Andersen Sorensen is one of 129 law enforcement officers "forgotten by time" who researchers discovered had been killed in the line of duty but never given national recognition, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund announced Thursday. Those 129 names will be engraved on a memorial stone panel along with the names of 123 officers killed in the line of duty in 2015.
St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara helped dedicate a memorial to Sorensen in Fort Piece last year on the 80th anniversary of his passing.
Sorensen, a motorcycle cop, was found unconscious in a ditch on Okeechobee Road 10 miles west of Fort Pierce on March 14, 1935. He never regained consciousness and died six days later at age 56.
A native of Denmark, he came to the United States in 1898 and moved to White City. A citrus grove owner and carpenter, he joined the Sheriff's Office in 1913.
OTHER OFFICERS
Other Florida officers who will be honored include:
William J. Myers of the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office, who died in September 2015
Jared J. Forsythe of the Ocala Police Department, who died in April 2015
Hezekiah H. Williams of the White Springs Police Department, who died in 1937
Charles Blackburn Autry of the Cocoa Beach Police Department, who died in 1990
President Barack Obama and Attorney General Loretta Lynch attended last year's memorial service honoring 131 officers killed in the line of duty in 2014. Each of the officers' names was read slowly as family members were given medals. The national memorial service was inaugurated by President John F. Kennedy in 1962.
POLICE WEEK EVENTS
What: National Mall candlelight vigil
When: 8 p.m. May 13
How to watch: Live stream onUnitedByLight.org
What: Memorial Service, sponsored by Grand Lodge Fraternal Order of Police and its auxiliary
When: 11 a.m. May 15
Where: West front of U.S. Capitol
More events: policeweek.org
The confederate flag. (AP FILE PHOTO)
By Andrew Atterbury of TCPalm
Indian River County schools could be the first in Florida to ban the Confederate flag but whether it does or not it is joining the list of districts to have talked about it, even without taking action.
The issue came to the forefront Tuesday when the Indian River County NAACP chapter asked the board to prohibit the flag on school campuses. Some School Board members agreed it deserved consideration.
But enacting such a ban wouldn't be easy.
Rarely is the flag specifically barred within school policies prohibiting disruptive, offensive or distracting messages on campus.
Those proposals bring out two camps: those arguing the flag is part of history and outlawing it would violate the First Amendment, and others insisting the flag is a racist symbol that provokes African-Americans.
"You have one heritage stepping up and disavowing the other," said Dale Landry, president of the Tallahassee NAACP chapter.
In Indian River County, the debate was sparked by an incident last month at the Freshman Learning Center in Vero Beach, where some students created and distributed a racist flier that contained the Confederate flag. The students were suspended.
The district, which is under a federal desegregation order calling for a more equitable school system for minority students, should ban the flag before it leads to further problems, NAACP officials said.
But even in cases where the flag incites violence, banning the flag isn't a typical result.
In January, three Marion County students waved Confederate flags and taunted other students until an altercation erupted, according to school officials. Social-media rumors of further violence kept about 1,000 students home from school, officials said.
The students were punished for causing a disruption, but the School Board didn't change its policy on the Confederate flag, officials said.
"Anybody has the right to (bring the flag on campus)," said Kevin Christian, spokesman for Marion County School District. "It's what they do with the flag that causes the issues."
Here, however, there's already mixed opinion on the board.
Board members Claudia Jimenez and Dale Simchick said they are willing to consider prohibiting the flag on Indian River campuses.
But the "reprehensible" statements made on the flier are more of an issue than is the Confederate flag, said board member Charles Searcy.
"There's a lot of hurtful things that go on in this country," Searcy said. "We can't make rules for all of them."
Searcy said he would withhold his decision until Superintendent Mark Rendell makes a recommendation.
Other board members did not return calls seeking comment.
The romanticism of the Confederate flag began in the early 1900s, said Robert Cassanello, a history professor at the University of Central Florida.
A "lost cause" phenomenon swept the U.S., and people began looking favorably upon the Civil War as a struggle to preserve states' rights while downplaying slavery's role, Cassanello said.
The flag's symbolism shifted during the civil rights movement, when hate groups used it as a blatant display of white supremacy, Cassanello said.
The Confederate flag also was incorporated into numerous state flags including South Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi during the period, Cassanello said.
"To say (the flag) doesn't have this (racial) context ... attached to it is really absurd if you look at the history of when these flags begin to appear in public spaces," Cassanello said.
Still, Cassanello said, outlawing the flag would only make it appear more tantalizing and give it new meaning.
While the flag remains a hotbed for controversy, it hasn't recently been an issue in Martin or St. Lucie counties, officials said.
Kathryn Hensley, chairwoman of the St. Lucie County School Board, said she couldn't recall an incident with the flag in her nearly 20 years of service. The district's strict dress code allow only for collared shirts without messages of any kind, she said.
"We decided that the school district was going to do what it could to keep things from disrupting students at school," said Hensley said.
Martin County has had no problem with the flag, but would evaluate situations case-by-case should they arise, said Marsha Powers, chairwoman of the Martin County School Board.
"I feel a proactive approach is more appropriate, and can be accomplished by teaching young adults tolerance and respect for diversity," Powers said in an email.
For its part, the NAACP embraces the notion of one flag the American flag, Landry said.
The Confederate flag has the potential to provoke students, which can be increasingly dangerous in a "stand-your-ground" state such as Florida, Landry said.
"School districts need to remove (the flag)," Landry said. "They set the stage for violence to happen on that campus."
The bike lanes on the Alma Lee Loy 17th Street Bridge in Vero Beach were modified following the death of Cole Coppola, who was killed while riding his bike over it the night of Sept. 27, 2014. (FILE PHOTO)
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By Colleen Wixon of TCPalm
VERO BEACH A $1.6 million road-construction project will give bicyclists a safer ride along 17th Street east of U.S. 1, but it won't extend safety upgrades across the bridge where a teen bicyclist died about two years ago.
The Florida Department of Transportation plans to widen 17th Street and build a 7-foot-wide bike lane on both sides of the road from U.S. 1 to the 17th Street Bridge, officially known as the Alma Lee Loy Bridge.
The yearlong project, to begin summer 2017, includes repaving, drainage improvements and new signs.
Metropolitan Planning Organization Director Phil Matson said improvements are needed along what he calls the "urban core" of the city because bicyclists use the road to get to restaurants, shops and Vero Beach High School.
"I'm really happy to see this," Matson said of the proposed project. "I think it is really a good thing for cyclists."
Wider lanes will give cyclists a greater sense of safety, Matson said.
"The wider (bike paths) are, the better they feel about it," he said.
The public can talk about the project with designers and FDOT officials from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday at Vero Beach City Hall, 1053 20th Place. No formal presentation is planned about the improvements.
Despite thousands of signatures on an online petition last year asking for protected bike paths, the project would stop at the bridge. The bridge itself would be unable to handle additional weight from concrete bike path buffers, FDOT spokeswoman Barbara Kelleher said.
In September 2014, Cole Coppola, 16, was riding west over the bridge about 1:50 a.m. when he was hit by a motorist, sending him over the bridge and into the lagoon. The state last year added raised reflective pavement markers along the bike lanes to alert drivers.
Matson said the raised markers on the bridge were an improvement that helped protect bicyclists.
Kelleher said the new project creates a designated bike lane connecting to connect to the existing ones on the bridge and west of U.S. 1.
"There is already a designated bicycle lane on the bridge itself and to the west of U.S. 1," Kelleher said in an email.
Nintendo isn't the only gaming company with serious mobile ambitions. Capcom on Friday said it has established a mobile business division tasked with reorganizing its mobile operations.
Capcom said the goal is to aggressively utilize its popular intellectual property to create hit mobile titles that'll be sold both domestically and abroad. By March 31, 2017, Capcom aims to release four titles from popular brands such as Mega Man, Monster Hunter and Sengoku Basara.
Some may be surprised to learn that this isn't Capcom's first foray into the world of mobile gaming. Through its Beeline Interactive Japan Inc. subsidiary, Capcom indirectly released a handful of Android and iOS titles including Monster Hospital, Monster Pet Shop, Ghostbusters Puzzle Fighter and nearly half a dozen Smurf games.
Moving forward, Capcom said Beeline Interactive Japan Inc. has been renamed Capcom Mobile Co., Ltd. Combining the efforts of Capcom's mobile division with Beeline will afford the company the luxury of being able to make fast decisions in rolling out titles around the world.
Just the other day, Nintendo brought its first mobile game - Miitomo - to the US. More of a communications app than a game, Miitomo launched in Japan last month and was downloaded more than a million times within the first three days. That's quite the surprise considering the criticism Nintendo received when it first revealed the title.
Results of a new survey released on Friday highlight an alarming trend worldwide. The findings revealed that more than one in eight adults worldwide are obese, the ratio having more than doubled over the span of four decades.
The number of obese people in the world in 1975 was 105 million, but this has significantly risen to 641 million in 2014.
The findings were based on a pooled analysis of 1,698 population-based studies involving more than 19 million participants who represent 99 percent of countries worldwide.
Obesity rates increased from just 3.2 percent to 10.8 percent among men, and from 6.4 percent to 14.9 percent among women.
If the current trend continues, a fifth of adults worldwide will be obese by 2025, which could bring potentially disastrous consequences as weight problems have long been linked to increased risks for a range of potentially fatal health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
Researchers likewise said that, without changes to the current trajectory, it is unlikely that the world would meet the target set by the United Nations for halting the rising obesity rate by 2025.
"If post-2000 trends continue, the probability of meeting the global obesity target is virtually zero," the researchers reported in their study, which was published in the journal Lancet.
"If these trends continue, by 2025, global obesity prevalence will reach 18 percent in men and surpass 21 percent in women; severe obesity will surpass six percent in men and nine percent in women."
What's driving the increase in global obesity rates? Researchers behind the study said that the spike could be attributed to better access to cheap food as people's incomes rise.
Healthier foods, such as whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, are likewise more costly to buy compared with highly-processed foods that are known to fuel unhealthy weight gain.
The researchers said that the obesity epidemic is too extensive to be addressed only with medications and treatments. Much more needs to be done to curb this public health problem.
"We need coordinated global initiatives such as looking at the price of healthy food compared to unhealthy food, or taxing high sugar and highly processed foods to tackle this crisis," said study researcher Majid Ezzati from the Imperial College London.
Despite the growing obesity problem, particularly in developed nations, extremely low weight remains a problems in the poorest parts of the globe. Nearly one-quarter of people who live in South Asia, for instance, are underweight.
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Many couples refrain from sexual intercourse during "the period" simply because it's too messy. The Flex Company aims to provide an alternative to conventional pads and tampons, which can block blood and can be worn during intercourse.
Dubbed Flex, the sleek and disc-shaped menstrual blood blocker can be worn for up to 12 hours and it comes in just a small packet.
"Flex is a revolutionary device that is changing the way women think about their menstruation," said Dr. Jane van Dis, an OB-GYN.
"Unlike other feminine hygiene products, Flex conforms to any woman's body making it the most comfortable product on the market. It's safe, easy to use, BPA-free, and hypoallergenic, and is not associated with TSS," she added.
Flex is a device that temporarily blocks the passage of menstrual blood by creating a soft barrier to the cervix. It's barely detectable by partners and can be disposed every after use.
"Flex is so shockingly comfortable that women tell us they forget they're on their period while they're wearing it," said company CEO Lauren Schulte.
The company said its mission is to help couples become more intimate even during periods. The lack of education drives a lot of stigma about women's periods, however, making them feel more comfortable during this time by better products could create a positive change.
"If we can begin educating men and adolescent boys about female anatomy and menstruation in a positive light, knowledge will help shift our ideas - not only about menstruation - but about women," the company said.
On the company's site, the tampon alternative will be out in the market by fall of 2016. The company, however, said they are open for preorders in April to be shipped by September. About 20,000 women have already signed up for a free trial of Flex, but the definite price of each packet is yet to be released to the public soon.
The San Franciso-based company was funded by Amplify.LA.
Photo: Wyatt Fisher | Flickr
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Microsoft is dousing water on reports that it intends to build a native ad blocker into its Edge browser.
On the first day of MS Build 2016, which kicked off on March 30 in San Francisco, attendees noticed a curious line in a slide in one of Microsoft's presentations. ZDNet's Ed Bott snapped a picture of the slide, which appeared in a session titled "Microsoft Edge: What's Next for Microsoft's New Browser and Web Platform."
The slide, labeled "Organized around listening," offered an overview of some of the top requests Microsoft has been hearing about its Edge browser.
In fourth place on that list was a line that read: "Build ad blocking features into the browser." The entry was labeled as a "feedback request," but its status was "Targeted for next version deliverable 4682811."
While all of that seems like solid enough evidence to point to the delivery of a native ad blocker in the next version of Edge, Microsoft's Jacob Rossi, an Edge engineer, has asserted via a tweet that the company won't be doing so.
We are not building a native ad blocker within MS Edge, but we will support third party ad blockers like AdBlock and AdBlock Plus Jacob Rossi (@jacobrossi) March 31, 2016
Despite the info on that slide, it would seem that Microsoft has more reason to stay out of the debate over pop-up ads than to insert itself in the middle of it by blocking marketing materials natively.
Supporting third-party ad blockers is one thing and blocking them natively is something else something that could adversely affect some of its relationships with Microsoft's advertising partners.
The Bing search engine has only just started becoming profitable for Microsoft, bringing the company $1 billion in revenue during the first quarter of its 2016 fiscal year. Microsoft hadn't reported numbers on Bing since 2011, back when the search engine was bleeding at about $1 billion per quarter.
So while native ad blocking might help Microsoft's image with consumers, it could be really bad for business. It's harder to sell ads when pushing tools to block them.
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The worst of the Ebola epidemic that hit Western Africa and killed thousands may be over, but flare-ups are still to be expected. If not properly contained, new cases have the potential to spiral out of control.
In a bid to prevent the highly fatal hemorrhagic virus from wreaking havoc again, hundreds of people in Guinea are being vaccinated with an experimental Merck vaccine for Ebola, the World Health Organization (WHO) revealed on April 1.
The VSV-EBOV vaccine has been found highly effective against Ebola infection based on results of a large trial conducted in 2015.
Those who received the vaccine were possible contacts of eight people who were infected in a flare-up of the disease. WHO's office in Guinea said that more than 1,000 of the possible contacts of the eight latest Ebola patients are now under medical observation.
The UN health agency said that of these contacts, 800 have already been vaccinated including 182 who were considered as high-risk contacts.
The approach called "ring vaccination" involves swiftly giving vaccine to those who have come into contact with somebody infected with Ebola as well as those who had contact with them.
"The 'ring' vaccination method adopted for the vaccine trial is based on the smallpox eradication strategy," John-Arne Rttingen, from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health explained in an earlier WHO statement about the VSV-EBOV. "The premise is that by vaccinating all people who have come into contact with an infected person you create a protective 'ring' and stop the virus from spreading further."
Ebola's re-emergence in Guinea is the first since the major outbreak was declared over for the country in December last year. Eight cases were identified in this flare-up, seven of which were fatal. Six of those who died were from one extended family. WHO has said that new clusters may occur because of the reintroduction of the virus.
WHO's chief of emergency responses Bruce Aylward said studies of Ebola survivors show that the virus could persist in semen up to 15 months, which means survivors are still capable of spreading the disease.
"WHO has continuously stressed that flare-ups like this one should be anticipated, largely due to virus persistence in some survivors, and that the three Ebola-affected countries must maintain strong capacity to prevent, detect and respond to further outbreaks," WHO said in a statement.
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Starwood Hotels is again open for bidding, as China's Anbang withdraws its $14 billion deal.
The abrupt withdrawal of China's Anbang Insurance Group Co. seems to end the three-week bidding war for the takeover of Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
Just last weekend, Anbang made a non-binding cash offer of $82.75 per share after a multitude of bids over a month. Its $14 billion offer only came about four months after Marriott International Inc. completed a merger deal with Starwood, making the sudden withdrawal a surprise.
According to the company who was working with Primavera Capital Group and J.C. Flowers and Co, "various market considerations" prompted them to discontinue the talks.
"My guess is it boils down to some regulatory risk," said James Corl, managing director of real estate private equity company Siguler Guff & Co.
Experts say that the latest offer is more than what Anbang can offer after Marriott publicly addressed the financial capacity of the former.
Primavera founder Fred Hu shared that the withdrawal is not a surprise for a company like Anbang. He explains that a disciplined buyer like Anbang does not take interest in protracted bidding wars.
"While attracted to Starwood's high-end global hotel portfolio, at the end of the day Anbang is a disciplined buyer," Hu said.
With the falling out, Sheraton's operator is expected to reconsider a previous offer from Marriott International Inc.
On April 8, shareholders of Starwood are expected to vote on Marriot's $13.2 billion cash-and-stock offer or $77.94 per share, which excludes Starwood's timeshare spinoff.
The sudden withdrawal caused Starwood and Marriott shares to fall by 4.1 percent to $80.05 and 4.9 percent to $67.69, respectively.
Starwood Chairman Bruce Duncan said that merger with Marriott would offer the best value for their company. Should Marriott acquire Starwood, it would become the world's largest hotel company by adding Sheraton, Westin, and W to its existing chain of hotels, which include Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, Protea, Bulgari, and Moxy.
They are also looking at being more competitive with other hotel chains like Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc.
"Our board is confident this transaction offers superior value for Starwood's stockholders, can close quickly, and provides value-creation potential that will enable both sets of stockholders to benefit from future financial performance," Duncan said.
Although Anbang backed out of the talks, Hu said that Anbang is not out of the race. The Chinese company has been continually expanding their business into U.S. hotels with its $1.95 billion takeover of New York's Waldorf Astoria last year. Anbang also acquired 16 luxury hotels and resorts in a $6.5 billion deal with Blackstone Group.
Hu is confident that under Chairman Wu's leadership. Anbang is still a company to watch out for in cross-border deals.
"Though Anbang has decided to withdraw from the Starwood situation, don't count it out," Hu wrote in his email.
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This may be an alien invasion of a different kind. A certain insect species, the harlequin ladybird (Harmonia axyridis), is literally "invading" our planet Earth.
According to reports, this Asian beetle covered in orange spots has been found to be invasive and increasing its spread at a rapid pace. At a global level, it is has been "spotted" in a few regions across U.S., Canada, Europe, South America and Southern and Northern Africa.
Farmers and agriculturalists commonly welcome these beetles to their flock as they are mighty helpful in keeping the pests at bay. However, the sudden increase in the number of beetles has left them quite baffled.
This phenomenon has also stirred the interests of the scientific community; researchers and biologists alike. They are all guns in, trying to figure out the reason behind this sudden insect invasion and the impact it can have on the planet's ecosystem.
Helen Roy is the lead author of a study paper that collectively documents the wide insights of researchers from all over the world. It has been published on Springer's journal Biological Invasions dated March 23.
"The rapid spread of this species has inspired biologists to study the process of invasion on a global scale," said Helen Roy from the UK-based Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.
While the ladybirds' invasive attack is being keenly monitored and researched, the impact that their growing presence might have on the ecological balance has still not been ascertained. Citizen scientists have also joined in to help monitor these insects.
"The involvement of the public in monitoring this species in a number of countries around the world is inspiring and has provided data on scales that would be otherwise unachievable," said Roy.
Its successful growth rate and expansion has been seemingly linked to the bug's innate ability to adapt and thrive under different climatic and geographical conditions.
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The emergence of ransomware is getting more prevalent since the start of 2016. It has crippled major establishments and caused the government to raise alarms.
These harmful software target any computer and encrypts the user's files and data, restricting access. It then demands a ransom to be paid if the user wishes to decrypt the files and restore access.
Recent attacks of the malware have targeted hospitals across the U.S., causing these medical establishments to shut down their operations and in turn, affect the healthcare system.
Just last month, LA hospital Hollywood Presbyterian gave in to its attackers and paid a ransom of $17,000 to regain access to its systems.
Last week, Methodist Hospital in Kentucky fell victim to the ransomware and had to declare an "internal state of emergency."
The U.S. capital region's largest healthcare provider, MedStar, was not spared and is now shutting down most of its systems to weaken the spread of the ransomware across its systems. Attackers encrypted most of MedStar's data and had demanded a ransom of $18,500.
A recent report, issued March 31, by The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in collaboration with Canadian Cyber Incident Response Center (CCIRC), is calling for vigilance to keep the ransomware from propagating any further.
Ransomware can be obtained from a number of ways: opening unsolicited e-mail with infected attachments; unknowingly downloading the malware by just visiting an infected website (drive-by downloads); and receiving malicious files through social media messaging platforms. Vulnerable websites canbe attacked as well and its network breached by the malware.
Infected systems may not only contain the ransomware but other malware too. In the case of CryptoLocker, malicious files are downloaded once a user opens an unsolicited e-mail. The files contain Upatre, a malware downloader, which installs GameOver Zeus on the system. GameOver Zeus will gather personal, legal and billing information from the user. Upatre then downloads CryptoLocker, which locks down the whole system and prompts the user with a ransom.
This ransomware is effective because it will "instill fear and panic into their victims, causing them to click on a link or pay a ransom, and user's systems can become infected with additional malware." The agency, however, warns that paying the ransom does not guarantee decryption nor removal of the ransomware. They add that "it only guarantees that the malicious actors receive the victim's money, and in some cases, their banking information."
These infections can cause major damages to a user or establishment's operations and recovery may require "services of a reputable date recovery specialist." The report suggests that people be more wary of what they visit, open and download on the Internet as negligence warrants vulnerability. Listed on their announcement is a number of ways people may protect their systems and avoid fatal attacks by ransomware.
Picture: Christiaan Colen | Flickr
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The Egyptian government had shunned the Facebook Free Basics services in December 2015 without providing any proper explanation. However, it is said they banned the service because Facebook refused to allow spying on the users through this medium and chose to enforce their privacy policies.
Formerly known as Internet.org, Free Basics basically provides access to free Internet services like news, local jobs, healthcare information, travel, sports, government details, to name a few. The aim is to reach out to an audience with limited facilities and income, and improve connectivity around the globe. However, the service faced a lot of criticism on the grounds of security. For instance, India voiced their protest saying it breached the laws of net neutrality along with data security.
But the reasons for Egypt bailing out are still murky. According to Mohamed Hanafi, Egypt's Ministry of Communication spokesperson, "The service was offered free of charge to the consumer, and the national telecommunication regulator saw the service as harmful to companies and their competitors." The statement is still pretty vague and cites no specific cause. But two individuals familiar with the matter claim the government arrived at this decision because they did not get the permission to carry on their surveillance activities. No light has been thrown on the nature of the information the government wanted access to.
According to Facebook reports, almost 3 billion people were using Free Basics in Egypt ever since its launch in October, of which 1 million did not have any Internet access. Currently, almost 90 million people remain on the primary Facebook site that is still available in the country, through computers and mobiles.
The Egyptian government is not yet looking at shutting down Facebook completely as an option, as this would lead to major unrest among the population. But apparently they can control the social network's rising popularity among the lower-income group by removing Free Basics, says Ramy Raoof, a digital security researcher and consultant.
Although this is not the first time the social media giant has been caught between government demands and protection of users' privacy, Facebook has nonetheless expressed its disappointment over the suspension and hopes to "resolve (the) situation soon."
Photo: Alkan Boudewijn de Beaumont Chaglar | Flickr
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Google's April Fool's gag for Gmail this year was an alternative send option named the Mic Drop. Through the feature, sent emails will include a GIF of Despicable Me Minion dropping a microphone, and the sender will not be receiving any replies from the recipient of the Mic Drop email.
The prank, however, went horribly wrong. The company received backlash from users who felt insulted by the Minion GIF, with the animation even inadvertently included in serious emails.
Google heard the complaints of users, immediately taking down the feature and apologizing for the headaches that the feature caused.
In the updated blog post wherein Google announced the feature, the company said that it is now working to return the replies that users did not receive for their Mic-Dropped emails.
"We realize many of you use Gmail for very important messages, and we are sorry if Mic Drop was in any way harmful to you," Google wrote, apologizing once again for the debacle. The company, however, noted that the feature was not activated for Google Apps users for business, education or government.
Google also listed some learnings regarding the prank gone awry, with the first one being that the company have asked users first if they would have liked to turn on the Mic Drop feature in their Gmail accounts, along with asking for confirmation from the user before sending a Mic-Dropped message.
Google added that it did not anticipate that users would accidentally click the Send with Mic Drop option, despite it being located near other Send buttons. In addition, Google admitted that there was a bug that caused emails to include the Mic Drop GIF even when the regular send option was selected.
"Again, sorry. We love April Fools jokes at Google, and we regret that this joke missed the mark and disappointed you," the company said.
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One of the main reasons why wild animals go extinct is the loss of habitat. Tigers, one of the world's most endangered species, however, may be able to proliferate and double in number by 2022, as a new study has found that there are enough forests to serve as their habitat.
In the span of 10 years, the tiger species was greatly reduced by 97 percent, with only about 3,200 left in the wild today. This has prompted international leaders from 13 Asian countries, where tigers predominantly live, to decide on doubling the tiger population. In order for it to happen, they must be able to provide enough habitats where the tigers can proliferate.
In their contribution to the conservation efforts, researchers monitored several forests and their rate of destruction from 2001 to 2014. The study also included efforts to track wild habitat destruction and its prevention.
Using the satellite-based monitor, Google Earth, and tree-cover-loss alert system Global Forest Watch, the team was able to track the evolution of forests in 13 countries. The study allowed them to draw analysis from the 14-year forest loss data that covered 76 landscapes highlighted for tiger conservation. The data gathered from the study helped conservationists plot out tiger proliferation.
Scientists have found that even if there was a forest decline over time, it was much lower than what they had suspected. Since 2001, habitat lost was only 7.7 percent. Many of the habitats did not show major changes, but about 10 of them had a combined habitat loss of 98 percent. Had this been conserved, 400 wild cats could have been supported. The largest habitat loss was found to be in forests used in palm oil expansion.
From the 76 landscapes monitored, only 29 were considered ideal for tiger conservation and proliferation, and this would be enough to allow tigers to double in number by 2022.
"Before undertaking the analysis, we predicted habitat loss to be much higher, considering that (i) the 13 tiger range states represent some of the fastest-growing economies in the world and (ii) many of the South Asian habitats that dominate the 29 highest-priority Tiger Conservation Landscapes are surrounded by human-dominated areas supporting the highest rural population densities on Earth," researchers wrote.
Experts believe that the tiger population could grow three times in 20 years if no further forest loss would occur. But it is rather too ambitious, as industrialization comes with deforestation and destruction of corridors.
Researchers recommended that continuous forest loss monitoring is necessary, as it would be a useful real-time tracking tool to prevent future habitat loss. They also recommend, ensuring that forest loss would be kept to a minimum, that officials look for a greener alternative when building infrastructures. Ultimately, the researchers are pushing for the immediate transfer of the tigers to the best conserved forest so they can start doubling up.
The recent study highlights the efforts in conserving these endangered wild cats. In India, tiger population increased by 30 percent in just a span of three years. From 1,706 in 2011, tiger population grew to 2,226 in 2014. The increase is due to efforts to curb poaching and the careful planning of tiger-human interaction by limiting encroachment on native tiger habitats.
Photo: Jojo Nicdao | Flickr
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Slack reports that it now has 2.7 million daily active users as it raises $200 million at a $3.8 billion post-money valuation, showing competitors in the collaboration tool game that it means business.
Thrive Capital led the funding round along with GGV and Comcast Ventures. Current investors of Slack such as Accel, Index Ventures and Social Capital also had a hand in it.
The company has now garnered a jaw-dropping $540 million worth of total funding.
"As has always been the case, we are taking this opportunity to further secure our leadership position as we continue to execute on our ambitious growth plans. This capital adds to our existing reserves and increases our ability to focus on an uncompromising long-term, strategic view," Stewart Butterfield, CEO of Slack, says.
Meanwhile, the daily active user base grew from 16,000 on Feb. 1, 2014, to 2.7 million with 800,000 paid seats on April 1, 2016. Compared to April last year's 750,000, it increased by about fourfold. Interestingly enough, notable corporate clients of Slack include LinkedIn, NASA and Spotify, to name a few.
Slack also has plans to roll out voice and video chat soon, potentially setting the collaboration tool up to go toe-to-toe with the likes of Skype, Google Hangouts and other similar apps. The company's Vice President of Product April Underwood revealed the 2016 product road map at Public Works in San Francisco during a customer conference.
It's also worth mentioning that Microsoft was set to pose an $8 billion bid to acquire Slack, but the idea didn't pan out when Bill Gates and Satya Nadella didn't like it, preferring to work on the company's own messaging platform Skype instead.
Slack's future is looking bright based on the figures. In other words, it now has the means to carry out highly rewarding steps to make it even more prominent than it is now.
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The Conagua indicated that the atmospheric phenomenon registered maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometers per hour with gusts of up to 165 kilometers per hour. | Read More
KCR slams Congress, TDP for skipping presentation
Hyderabad, April 2 (INN): Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao on Saturday alleged that the opposition parties, Congress and TDP, have lost the trust of common people in Telangana State.
Speaking to media persons after performing a special pooja in Timpapur Gutta of Biknoor mandal of Niziamabad district, the Chief Minister said that the opposition parties were not serious about serving the people and they were causing obstructions for those who wants to serve the common man. He criticised the Congress and TDP legislators for boycotting his power-point presentation in Assembly on irrigation projects.
The Chief Minister said instead of taking part in the presentation, the Congress and TDP leaders were criticising the TRS Government. With such behaviour they are losing people's faith across the State while the TRS Government has been gaining support of all sections of the society.
KCR expressed confidence that the TRS Government would complete all irrigation projects in the next five years to create irrigation facilities for one crore acres of land.
News Posted: 2 April, 2016
AP cabinet gives nod to fill 20,000 vacancies
Hyderabad, April 2 (INN): The Andhra Pradesh cabinet has given its nod to fill nearly 20,000 vacancies in various departments of the State Government.
The decision was taken during the cabinet meeting, which was held in Vijayawada on Saturday morning, under the chairmanship of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu. During the six-hour long meeting, the cabinet has decided to fill the vacant posts in a phase manner.
The cabinet has also discussed the proposed tour of the Chief Minister to various districts during April and May. Naidu will visit one or two districts every week. He will inspect the irrigation projects in those districts and later hold review on various developmental works.
The cabinet has decided to retain the present sand policy.
News Posted: 2 April, 2016
KCR wanted to involve opposition, alleges Bhatti
Hyderabad, April 2 (INN): TPCC Working President Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Saturday alleged that Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao wanted to involve leaders of all opposition parties in his corrupt practices on irrigation projects.
Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan here, Bhatti said that the Chief Minister's invitation to all parties to participate in power-point presentation on irrigation sector in Assembly had a hidden agenda. He alleged that the ruling party was planning large scale corruption and irregularities to execute irrigation projects worth nearly Rs. 1.5 lakh crore. Since these irregularities would get exposed in future, the Chief Minister wanted to involve all parties so to give an excuse that it was a collective decision.
Bhatti said that the Congress party boycotted the presentation as it knew that it would prove to be a launching pad for a major corruption scandal. He said that the Congress party too had sought time to give its own presentation in Assembly. He said letters were given to Speaker S. Madhusudan Chary twice. However, the Congress MLAs were denied permission for the same. He alleged that the Chief Minister wants to sideline the opposition parties by taking unilateral decisions.
He claimed that the previous Congress regime has already initiated projects which would irrigate about 96 lakh acres of land. Therefore, KCR's claim of providing irrigation facilities to one crore acres of land was purely misleading. If KCR was fair in his approach, he should also admit the number of projects which he had kept pending, he said.
News Posted: 2 April, 2016
Congress slams TRS Govt over drought relief
Hyderabad, April 2 (INN): TPCC Kisan Cell chairman M. Kodanda Reddy has accused the State Government of failure to get adequate relief for the drought-affected areas of Telangana State.
Speaking to media persons here on Saturday, Kodanda Reddy said that the State Government has failed to properly assets the damages due to drought. Instead of seeking at least Rs. 5,000 crore relief, only Rs. 2,000 crore were sought from the Centre and in turn, the Central Government provided only Rs. 380 crore. He said that these funds were insufficient to help the farmers in drought affected areas.
Kodanda Reddy accused Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao of deliberately neglecting the farmers and agriculture sector in the State. He said if KCR was serious, then he would have consulted experts and opposition parties to help the drought hit people.
News Posted: 2 April, 2016
It is advertised as "more fun than giving blood", but Canberra's single women and other childless couples are still relying on American donors for 80 per cent of their sperm options, a specialist said.
Canberra Fertility Centre's scientific director Chris Copeland said they're not alone, with Australian men generally renown for their virility in US popular culture not coming anywhere close to meeting national donor sperm demand.
This isn't just a puzzling curiosity, but is rather an urgent concern that affects reproduction, possibly even our species' future.
"I think a lot of it is cultural, Australians are not good donors across the board how many times do you hear the Red Cross putting up their hand, and we are one of the poorer organ donors," he said.
"I think most women would prefer a local donor, but at the end of the day they have to take what's there."
Two former employees including a manager have claimed underpayments at Canberra Crust pizza stores extended to another two shops and management teams.
The claims, backed in part by Fair Work Ombudsman findings and a repayment, mean half of Canberra's eight Crust Gourmet Pizza Bar stores and four different ownerships have been found to have underpaid their staff.
In addition, a quarter of all requests for assistance from Crust employees to the Fair Work Ombudsman have come from the ACT, the industrial watchdog said on Friday.
The long-term workers, who both parted ways with Crust late last year after at least four years each in ACT stores, said the alleged breaches were a structured part of the franchisees' business.
One, an employee who worked at Kingston, said that drivers were paid cash as standard throughout his time there, missing out on penalty rates and superannuation. There was a "big push to put everyone on the books correctly" after Fairfax Media revealed underpayments at the Gungahlin store last September, he said. The Gungahlin issues triggered a call by UnionsACT for an independent audit of every store in the chain.
A woman who allegedly kissed her friend then robbed her of jewellery and later ran from police has been remanded in custody after an alleged breach of a bail condition.
Cassie Wright, 26, from Amaroo, had been charged with aggravated robbery and theft and granted bail after an early morning incident with her former partner on March 6.
The couple and a female friend were in a mutual friend's flat in Ainslie Avenue, Reid, about 2.30am, when the three visitors moved to the bedroom and the couple began going through a bag of second hand clothes they had picked up earlier in the day, court documents said.
The female friend said she was going to leave, leading to the former partner, now a co-defendant, allegedly grabbing the woman and putting his arm around her neck. The defendant then put a piece of material around the friend's neck and pulled tightly, scaring the friend, the documents said.
The defendant let go soon after, then kissed the female friend on the neck. The former partner asked the defendant to pull the alleged victim's pants down but she refused. Her own request for the friend to return the kiss was refused, the documents said.
You may have read recently that the late John Ehrlichman, a senior policy adviser to disgraced United States president Richard Nixon, admitted that the administration's 1971 declaration of a "war on drugs" was an invention, a lie.
Its purpose was a political diversion; to create the perception of fear and uncertainty among the US population. It was directed at young blacks and leftist "activists" who became the scapegoats and collateral damage of the so-called "war". Know thy enemy.
The war on drugs has filled prisons while achieving little benefit.
The drug war was framed around several premises: drugs are innately dangerous; people who use drugs are dangerous and subversive; and governments will always act in your best interests.
"Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course we did," Ehrlichman said.
Illustration: Matt Davidson He had a mandate for climate action, his personal popularity was still strong, and no one took Tony Abbott seriously. Had Rudd gone to an early election, there's every chance he would have won comfortably. But he hesitated. He shelved the ETS, shredding his credibility. His support plummeted and his colleagues tore him down. Illustration: Michael Mucci A Rudd victory in 2010 would have changed everything; it would have cemented his authority and he might still be in office today.
OK, maybe not his colleagues hated him and may well have found another reason to remove him eventually. But think how different the political landscape would be: at the very least, the climate-change fight that still afflicts Australian politics would have been settled. Abbott may have gone the way of Brendan Nelson and Malcolm Turnbull before him, opposition leaders steamrolled by the Rudd juggernaut. Turnbull probably would have left Parliament, as he'd planned to. Labor may well have made an orderly transition from Rudd to Julia Gillard, who presumably would have done a much better job under more conventional circumstances. Or who knows maybe Wyatt Roy or Clive Palmer or Ian Goodenough would be prime minister today. Or maybe the world would be a nuclear wasteland. But make no mistake, if Rudd could go back in time and make a different decision, he would regardless of the risk of unintended consequences.
Now consider this: what if Turnbull had pulled the election trigger late last year? Because after yet another ragged week, he's probably wishing he could hop in a time machine and do just that. What if he had gone to the Australian people shortly after he replaced Abbott and said: "I don't want to govern without a mandate. I want your approval to take this government in a new direction." He surely saw Gillard's experience as a cautionary tale a woeful campaign that resulted in a hung Parliament that drove the nation nuts. But it wouldn't have panned out like that for Turnbull. After the past three months marked mainly by scandal, policy paralysis, the tax debate mess and the ghost of Abbott past the PM's honeymoon feels like a distant memory. But in 2015, his approval ratings were stratospheric and it increasingly looks as if he should have capitalised and gone to the polls then.
There would have been some practical hurdles, sure; most notably, coming up with an election platform that differentiated him from Abbott without sending the right-wing attack dogs completely crazy. But think of the advantages. He could have gone to the people before his numbers both personal and party started to slide; before voters realised their expectations were unrealistic; before the attacks on his weak-kneed approach to same-sex marriage and climate change and republicanism started to bite; before the Mal Brough, Jamie Briggs, Stuart Robert and Arthur Sinodinos affairs; before the conservative cabal started feeling emboldened; and before Abbott started making real trouble. He could have avoided the tax debate, which seems to have done little but hand his opponents ammunition. He could also have avoided the Herculean task of crafting an election-year budget with no money. Even if October or November 2015 had proven too difficult, March this year was surely doable. Yes, the honeymoon was over by then and government had started looking wobbly, but it still would have won comfortably. And yes, despite some recent 50/50 polls, the election is still Turnbull's to lose. His personal numbers are still much stronger than Bill Shorten's and Labor just has too many seats to win to form government.
Somewhere up in LA's Santa Monica Mountains, just south of Nichols Canyon, is the sprawling Malibu home of Caitlyn Jenner, the Kardashian-in-law turned poster girl of the transgender community. After a year in which Jenner's gender flip seemingly became the most talked about story in the world, she has become the personification of Shakespeare's ominous warning about politics and power: uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.
Not everyone in the trans community is comfortable with Jenner's prominence within it, least of all the 66-year-old former Olympic decathlete. Among the less flattering observations: that she is "an insult to all trans people" and "a disgrace" to the trans community. "You have no right to speak for us," exclaimed one protester.
The extent to which Jenner sought the fame she now must grapple with is a thorny issue. At times her manner has suggested that such responsibility was neither sought nor fully anticipated. At the same time, since embarking on her journey, beginning with a much-discussed Vanity Fair cover, and a reality show on the E! channel, one hand and one hand alone has been on the tiller: hers. As an extension of the Kardashian brand her reality TV series I Am Cait, is produced by the same US reality TV factory that makes Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Bunim/Murray it is hard not to see that the spotlight burns on her because she craves it.
As she strides into the room, Caitlyn Marie Jenner is confident, resilient, even triumphant. Our conversation dances across topics, from her sense of "style", and her famous family, to the complex trans politics for which she has become an inadvertent spokeswoman and the maelstrom of media noise that surrounds her. Which brings us to the subject of that Malibu house. It is now Jenner's oasis, an escape from a world in which every detail of her daily life has become inches of tabloid website copy.
Marina, now 25, clearly remembers the first time a friendly online exchange became unwanted sexual suggestions. She was about 13 and swapping messages with someone in an online chat room for kids. "It went very quickly from what books I liked and what I like to do, to how did I look and what he'd like to do to me."
In her later teens, she says, it became "pretty common" for mild flirting to escalate very fast into both demands for intimate pictures or unwanted "dick pics".
Online bullying of teenagers creates a sense of despair, as images placed online are there forever.
"No build-up or flirtation and they're sending you pictures of their dick."
These days, Marina says, she is better at shutting down unwanted online requests, but as a teenager her response was to feel she should go offline, or hide. She says there is a definite need for schools to talk about what's OK online, and not just in the annual sex education classes, but as a regular part of the curriculum.
Death Row: The dog kennels at Wagga pound. Credit:Laura Hardwick Skye Paproth received a letter advising that her lost, microchipped dog, Cindy, was safe and well and that, as per requirements under the Companion Animals Act, she had 14 days to collect the pet before it was put down. But it later emerged the dog was euthanised after one week. In a media release, Wagga Wagga mayor Rod Kendall said: "I know no staff member sets out to do the wrong thing ... but mistakes do happen from time to time." The wet floor in the dog kennels at Wagga Wagga pound in a photo from the council's website. Several weeks on from that scandal, retired school teacher and shelter volunteer Myriam Hribar wrote to the council, claiming the "welfare" of animals had become "the last priority on the rangers' list of duties".
Quoting from a diary she had been keeping, Ms Hribar reeled off a series of horror stories in which animals had allegedly been left to suffer, including one cat trapped inside a "crush cage" with no food or water for five days. Belinda Oakman with Saviour, who was rescued from a freezer at the Wagga Wagga pound. "It is very sad to see dying dogs just left to die," she wrote. "I am not a vet, but just like a parent knows it is time to take a child to the doctor or hospital, a dying dog should automatically have vet treatment. How can you see this and not do anything?" Other volunteers have accused some pound staff of an "overwhelming lack of compassion for animals". As evidence, they point to the council's own shelter website which in August last year, featured a post that mocked a surrendered, disabled dog which was days away from being put down.
Beneath a banner that read: "Where are all you rescue groups and bleeding hearts now", a photo of the deformed animal was uploaded, alongside the words: "Lovely Kelpie needs someone with a special heart. Badly misshapen but that doesn't stop him. Available now." In October last year, the RSPCA received a signed affidavit from a volunteer, Belinda Oakman, who during the course of weekend work at the pound last March, stumbled upon a kitten, approximately 12 weeks old, that had been dumped in a freezer while still alive. Several months earlier, volunteers photographed another cat in the same freezer. In a statement to the RSPCA last December, one of those witnesses, Simone Lieschke, wrote: "The cat was bleeding from the nose and there were blood stains all around the freezer walls. The position of the blood stains looked like they were from the cat trying to get out of the freezer. "The way the cat was crouching in the freezer struck me as strange - it did not look like a cat that had been euthanised normally."
Following mounting pressure for greater transparency, the council has since released "activity level" data for all incoming and outgoing animals at the pound. But statistical analysis of those figures only serves to raise further questions. During the past three financial years, 3165 dogs arrived at the pound. Of those,1330 were reunited with owners, 387 were sold, 940 were released to organisations for rehoming and and 395 were euthanised. When the 69 dogs that "died at the facility" are added to the tally, there are 44 dogs unaccounted for. When the corresponding figures are compiled for the 1318 cats received, 573 were destroyed, 23 died within the facility while 37 mysteriously fall off the grid altogether. After Fairfax Media presented those findings, Mr Eldridge responded by saying the "discrepancies" were the result of data having been "duplicated" during a transition to a new "electronic impounding system". He added the figures had now been "adjusted". "On a daily basis, staff are faced with the end result of irresponsible pet ownership," said Mr Eldridge, adding that despite the confronting nature of their daily duties, they "endeavour to act with the utmost professionalism".
RSPCA NSW Chief Inspector David O' Shannessy said following an extensive investigation, it was determined that "no proceedings" should commence as the RSPCA was not confident of proving "criminal charges beyond reasonable doubt". "It should also be noted that there is currently no pound-specific animal welfare code of practice in force. This presents challenges when the RSPCA investigates complaints relating to the management of council pounds," he said. 'I opened the freezer lid and there was a black kitten' Belinda Oakman, a volunteer worker at the Wagga Wagga animal shelter, spends endless hours cleaning cat litter trays, washing bedding, filling food bowls and topping up water dishes. She does so because many of the surrendered animals have lived miserable lives, are about to be put down and have "never once" felt the hand of human kindness.
She also claims that if volunteers never attended the shelter, routine neglect would pass unnoticed. In a signed affidavit to the RSPCA last October, Ms Oakman outlined how a routine day at the shelter was suddenly interrupted by a "muffled noise". "I opened the door to the cattery, and nothing. It sounded like it was over near the freezer area. I saw nothing. I went back to cleaning and heard it again. I thought 'no, it wouldn't be coming from the freezer'," she said. Ms Oakman then described the moment she slowly opened the freezer to reveal a kitten, no older than 12 weeks, slumped over a heap of black garbage bags. "I very slowly put my hand in and touched it. It let out a muffled cry. I was in total shock."
A man who bashed his partner and held a samurai sword to his daughter's chest has been granted access to the nine-year-old following his release from jail.
The long-running dispute in the Family Court has incensed anti-violence advocates, who say the court still has a poor understanding of domestic violence and is too often granting access when there has been a history of violence.
It comes amid calls to nationalise the recommendations from Victoria's landmark Royal Commission into Family Violence report released during the week. It recommended an overhaul of the entire court system, including the creation of specialist family violence courts.
Given the pseudonyms Ms Tindall and Mr Saldo, the couple from Sydney have been bitterly fighting over parenting orders since their relationship ended in 2008.
Police called in the dog squad to find a van that had rammed a police vehicle at Mount Nathan early on Saturday.
A police patrol in a marked police vehicle parked in front of a van that had stopped by the side of the road at 1.50am.
Police said the police vehicle was rammed at Mount Nathan. Credit:Paul Rovere
The van drove forwards and hit the police car before driving away. The officers were not injured but stayed at the scene on Pademelon Pass with their damaged vehicle.
Police found the van parked nearby with drugs, knuckle-dusters and property suspected of being stolen.
A bake sale that will charge customers based on their gender for a 'Feminist Week' at the University of Queensland has sparked outrage online with some students calling it discriminatory.
University of Queensland Union posted a list of events for an organised 'Feminist Week' from April 4-8 to their website including a Gender Pay Gap Bake Sale at the campus on Tuesday.
The event welcomes anyone to come and purchase a baked good, but created cost divisions between men and women.
"Each baked good will only cost you the proportion of $1.00 that you earn comparative to men (or, if you identify as a man, all baked goods with cost you $1.00!)," the UQU outlined on their site.
On the outside of this nondescript building there are no signs with words like family violence, child protection or housing assistance.
The reception area of this Berry Street office on a main road in Eaglemont, in Melbourne's north, is neutral and friendly. This is deliberate, says family violence director Jenny McNaughton.
But glance at pamphlets on the wall and the services are clear: family violence, housing, child, family and adolescent support, and that's just for starters.
On the face of it, Vesna Luketic is a winner in the free-range egg fracas that broke out this week.
The federal government announced an "agreement'' that will allow big producers free range status whilst maintaining a bird density of up to 10,000 per hectare or a chicken per square metre. There will be conditions attached to be made clear over the next 12 months and the bird density must be included on the package labelling.
Vesna Luketic on her free range chicken farm in Myrniong. Credit:Jesse Marlow
Ms Luketic's Family Homestead 15,000 chickens have a not-so squeezy life of 750 birds per hectare more than 10 times the room to scratch around than Coles own-brand, free range chickens that, according to Choice, are run at 10,000 per hectare.
Ms Luketic's are also presumably happier because they don't suffer de-beaking or beak trimming. Bigger producers, with higher bird densities, need to trim their birds' beaks to avoid the animals pecking each other to death aggression caused by them living at such close quarters.
The Geelong council is at risk of being sacked in the wake of a 100-page report into the council's alleged bullying culture.
The Commission of Inquiry report, delivered on Thursday to local government minister Natalie Hutchins by head commissioner Terry Moran, reportedly highlights the impacts of bullying and other internal conflicts on the ability of the council to govern the city of more than 220,000 people.
On borrowed time? Geelong Mayor Darryn Lyons. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
Commissioners Mr Moran, Jude Munro and Frances O'Brien were appointed to the inquiry by the state government in December in the wake of a damning report into the council's culture by former Australian Human Rights Commissioner Susan Halliday.
At the time of its release, Ms Hutchins said the Halliday report "revealed some deep flaws in the Geelong City Council".
A Maidstone man has been charged with multiple counts of drug importation after $13 million worth of LSD was seized.
The 39-year-old man was arrested after officers from the Altona North Divisional Response Unit and Taskforce Icarus raided addresses in Maidstone and Tottenham on Wednesday
A Maidstone man has been charged with multiple counts of drug importation after $13 million worth of LSD was seized. Credit:Paul Rovere
The joint taskforce known as Icarus includes investigators from Australian Federal Police, Victoria Police and Customs.
It was established to target people using international mail for criminal activity within Victoria.
It is 7pm on a Thursday and WorleyParsons engineer Mihaela Carpo is hanging out with her workmates in the city.
It is a once-in-a-two-month ritual at the usual place Flinders Street Station, opposite Degrave Street.
Corporate volunteer Mihaela Carpo serves food at The Big Umbrella mini pop-up restaurant for the homeless.
Tonight on the menu is a quick bite of dumplings from around the corner, and then helping out at The Big Umbrella street soup station, handing out "A Real Meal".
Before the night is over, the team of eight from the ASX top 200 company specialising in engineering, procurement and construction, will have served about 200 homeless people.
A man left with serious injuries after an incident in Scarborough has told police he can't remember what happened.
Brady Shutter was found bleeding on the ground in Hastings Street in the early hours of Friday but the 24-year-old does not know what happened to him.
Brady Shutter was rushed to hospital in a critical condition.
On Saturday police asked the public to come forward with information.
"We have spoken to him yesterday and today and unfortunately he does not recall anything of what happened that night," Detective Senior Constable Andrew Curtis said.
Kim also strengthened a crackdown on mobile phones smuggled from China, deploying more soldiers and modern surveillance devices along the border to jam signals or trace them to those using the banned phones. Choi Hyun-joon, a North Korean defector in Seoul who hired a middleman in China to help him connect with relatives, checks text messages on his mobile phone. Credit:New York Times In a 57-page report titled "Connection Denied", Amnesty International said this month that North Koreans caught making calls on the phones could face criminal charges. If they call someone in South Korea or other countries labelled enemies, they could face charges of treason as well as incarceration in prison camps. "Nothing can ever justify people being thrown in detention for trying to fulfill a basic human need - to connect with their family and friends," said Arnold Fang, the author of the report, which relied on interviews with experts and 17 recent defectors from North Korea. Kim's clampdown on phones linked to Chinese mobile networks also heightens the risk for those who help bring news about his totalitarian country to the outside world. North Koreans use the phones to talk or send text messages and even photos to reporters and activists in South Korea and elsewhere.
If they are caught by officials from the North, bribes are virtually the only way to avoid prison, or worse. "When my sources call me, they shut the doors of the house and keep a lookout outside," said Kang Mi-jin, a reporter for Daily NK, a news website based in Seoul that focuses on the North. "I tell them to have a place to quickly hide their phone and carry bribe money, usually 2000 Chinese yuan, with them, always. It can decide whether they live or die." Thanks to her sources in North Korea, Kang, 48, broke some of the most talked-about news on Kim's secretive government in recent years. She was the first to report that Kim's wife, Ri Sol Ju, was pregnant in 2012 and that the leader was limping in 2014 because of ankle surgery. "The people I talked to in the North are thirsty for outside news - asking as many questions of me as I do of them," said Kang, herself a defector. "They want to know how defectors live in the South, how much a South Korean worker makes a month, whether it's really true that South Korean housewives have so many pieces of clothes they throw some away." North Korea runs its own mobile phone network. Started in 2008 as a joint venture with the Egyptian company Orascom, the network, Koryolink, has more than 3 million subscribers. But it does not allow international calls. For ordinary citizens, landline calls are monitored and mostly confined to domestic connections.
Internet access is also restricted to foreign visitors and a select elite. North Koreans are also not permitted to exchange letters, emails or telephone calls with people in South Korea. Thus, for ordinary North Koreans, virtually the only means of communicating directly with outsiders is to travel to the border with China and use mobile phones. North Korean traders began using mobile phones during a famine in the 1990s to help illegally bring food and other goods from China. But North Koreans who have fled to the South since the famine also started hiring smugglers to send Chinese phones and SIM cards to relatives left behind. Defectors and Amnesty International said the illicit trade in Chinese mobile phones in the North was growing. In 2008, Choi Hyun Joon, 51, a North Korean defector in Seoul, hired a middleman in China. The middleman called his contact in North Korea on his Chinese mobile phone and told him to find Choi's daughter, Choi Ji Woo, in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital.
It took two months for the middleman to get his daughter to the border for a call with Choi. He first had to forge a travel permit for her; in North Korea, travel from town to town is closely monitored. Later, Choi wired his daughter 8 million won, or $8700, in a transaction made possible by the Chinese mobile phone. Each year, defectors in South Korea send millions of dollars to their families in the North through intermediaries in China and North Korea who use Chinese mobile phones to arrange the transactions. By the time the money reached her, the sum had shrunk by half, the rest deducted as "brokers' fees" for the middlemen. "You lose 30 to 50 per cent of the money, but still it is the only way to send money to our loved ones," said Choi, who managed to get his daughter out in 2010. Ju remembered the day that the middleman her father had hired appeared at a workers' restaurant in Chongjin, a port city in northeast North Korea, where she was working in 2009.
The first people to discover Irelands particular value to aviation were glad to see it looming up ahead early one summer morning in 1919. The two men had been flying across the North Atlantic for 16 hours and 28 minutes, at heights varying from 12,000 feet to sea level.
Their airplane was a converted twin-engine British World War I bomber, with an average top speed of 120 mph. The pilot, Captain John Alcock, identified the masts of the Marconi radio station, the key communications link between Europe and North America, signifying that they had reached Irish coast, and decided to land. The navigator, Lieutenant Arthur Witten Brown, had plotted the course from St. Johns, Newfoundland, just under 1,900 miles, and agreed that it was time to call it quits.
Alcock switched off the engines and glided toward what seemed firm and level ground near the radio station. The wheels touched down, and the airplane appeared to settle magisterially as it stopped.
But then, slowly, the nose dipped and the tail lifted, giving the appearance of a crash landing.
Alas, Brown had landed on a bog.
Alcock and Brown stepped clear and became the first people to fly the Atlantic non-stopeight years before Lindberghs solo flight from Long Island to Paris.
Alcock and Brown won a prize of 10,000 from a British newspaper, but never came close to Charles Lindberghs celebrity. (Lindbergh was gallant enough on his arrival in Paris to say that Alcock and Brown had shown the way.} Yet they had foretold the real future of transatlantic flight with far more precision than Lindberghto be realistic it would require multi-engine airplanes like their Vickers bomber.
Ireland in 1919 was in the violent turmoil of its struggle for independence from Britain after the brutal repression that followed the 1916 Easter Uprising. Aviation was also in flux, as airplane builders struggled with the challenges of figuring out whether a new technology that had been concentrated on war machines could be adapted to peaceful purposes.
In such times, despite Alcock and Brown, the strategic significance of Ireland for Atlantic crossings did not register.
This began to change in December 1936, when Lindbergh flew low over the magnificent estuary of the Shannon River near Limerick. He had been sent to Europe by Juan Trippe, the visionary creator of Pan American World Airways, to survey possible landing sites for the flying boats that Trippe planned to use on the airlines first transatlantic flights.
The Irish government had selected a spot on the Shannon estuary, Rineanna (Gaelic for meeting place of the birds) to be developed as both a seaport that could handle the flying boats and an airfield with four grass runways.
In July 1939 Pan Ams Yankee Clipper made the airlines first round trip from the U.S. to Shannon. The Boeing flying boats were massive, with a wingspan not far short of todays jumbo jets. They were slow, not able to top 200 mph, but they carried only 22 passengers in spacious cabins, paying a one-way fare of $375 ($6,400 in 2016).
They were what they were called, literally, a flying boat and a cultural hybrid as well as a mechanical one: The crews had the nautical nomenclature and that has carried over to this day: Captain, First Officer, Purser, Chief Steward, and so on.
However, within two years World War II brought an end to the Clipper flights across the Atlantic. But the strategic value of Shannon was swiftly grasped. In the 1940s, as U.S. built bombers and fighters began to be ferried to bases in Britain, Shannon became a key landfall for pilots taking the North Atlantic route from Gander, Newfoundlandthe very same route that Alcock and Brown had pioneered.
All this was prelude.
In the last years of the war there was an outbreak of unholy scheming by aviation interests in the U.S. and Britain to grab dominance of the future air routes of the world. The North Atlantic route would be the first and most singularly instructive step in establishing aviations most vaulting promisea secure and permanent air bridge between North America and Europe, the ultimate conquest of The Pond.
Little of the technology needed to sustain regularly scheduled services between continents actually existed, but with the advantage of the technical breakthroughs achieved under the pressure of war, both the U.S. and Britain believed they now had the resources needed to develop the airplanes, the airports, and the supporting infrastructure.
But they had very different ideas about how this system should be regulated and, essentially, who would get which routes. Britain, like a number of other countries of the old imperium, believed in the principle of dominance by one national carrier, a fly the flag airline. Before the war, under the name of Imperial Airways, the Brits had built the infrastructure for routes throughout the British Empire. Now they promoted the interests of a new airline, British Overseas Airways Corporation, BOAC.
Some American politicians believed that the U.S. should do the same thing, and force a merger of a few of the principal airlines to create a single American flag carrieror, in a phrase that revealed that there was a larger, geopolitical motive involved, a chosen instrument where the airline would be a Trojan horse for political purposes.
The airline bosses would have none of it. Among them, Trippe was by far the best-connected in Washington and the wiliest of schemers. In order to get favored treatment in the allocation of international routes he became a champion of the people, a visionary promising the democratization of air travel.
Air transport does have a choicem said Trippe. The very clear choice of becoming a luxury service to carry the well-to-do at high pricesor to carry the average man at what he can afford to pay. Pan American has chosen the latter course.
Pan Am said it would sell a one-way trip from New York to London for about $148as compared with the $300 cost of taking the Queen Mary ocean liner. (They would never come near that figure, the economics did not allow it.)
What followed, executed in a series of deliberately prolix international treaties, was a chain of route monopolies masquerading as necessary regulation. Pan Am disputed the proposed arrangement for Europe, partly because although it won the rights to fly through Shannon it failed to win Dublin. This was gained on appeal.
For passengers the late 1940s and early 1950s were the first years when regular, dependable year-round Atlantic crossings by air became a reality. Looked back on from todays experience they seem a combination of rare comforts (no more than 70 or 80 passengers, generous seating, no lines at the airport) and primitive machines.
Flying at half the speed of a modern jet and unable to cruise at a jets high altitude the first post-war airliners were noisy and in bad Atlantic weather the ride was often a white-knuckle endurance test.
Of course, since nothing superior was then imaginable, and most of the passengers were either rich, famous or politically powerful, the more emetic features of the new age of air travel were concealed behind a promotional narrative that portrayed an elegant crowd indulging the finest epicurean tastes as they flew above lesser mortals.
Pan Am introduced the Boeing Stratocruiser, fondly remembered for its lower deck lounge where there was a cocktail bar for first-class passengers. Booze was surely an effective antidote to the noise and turbulence and all the transatlantic airlines traded on the caviar and champagne culture of their first class cabins. This reinforced the impression that Trippes vaunted democratization of international air travel remained a long way offwhich it did.
The Stratoliner and its rivals, the Douglas DC6-B and Lockheed Constellation, could fly no further than 3,000 miles nonstop. Eastbound flights, with prevailing tail winds, could usually make it to London non-stop, but no deeper into Europe. Westbound flights, far slower because of headwinds, needed pit stops at Shannon and, quite often, eastbound flights would need to land there, too.
These flights gave birth to a minor media industry, the airport photo op. Celebrities who flew belonged to a new subset of fame, the VIPVery Important Person. Airlines had VIP lounges reserved for them, and the photo op was understood to be an essential transaction between the airline and the celebrity. In return for getting a free flight, the stars would agree to pause at the foot of the stairs to the airplane and do the big glam for the photographers.
Shannon was one of the places where a sharp photographer could make a buck by intercepting a celebrity arrival, not only those staged by the airline but those occurring inadvertently because of an unscheduled refueling stop.
The Irish were innovative and in 1947 they made Shannon a customs-free zone. Passengers, both departing and in transit, did not have to endure customs inspections of their baggageat other European airports this was often carried out with an invasive belligerence that suggested that the customs officers were taking revenge on the privileged. Travelers returning to Europe from the U.S. were viewed as most likely to be carrying the contraband of a place where many pleasures heavily taxed in Europe were untaxed: even LP records were subject to punitive duty in the U.K.
And then, in 1951, Shannon took a small step that can truly be claimed as the precursor of the idea of the airport as shopping mall. The airport opened a small ships store where airline stewards could buy duty-free cigarettes for re-sale on the airplane. Very soon, this morphed into the worlds first duty-free airport store for passengers, eventually extending from tobacco and liquor to perfumes and the now familiar range of stuff likely to produce buyers remorse.
But Shannons utility as a pit stop was slowly disappearing. By the late 1950s the last generation of propeller-powered airliners were being replaced by the first generation of jets could safely fly for as far as 3,500 miles or more. The Atlantic non-stops went directly between New York, London and Paris.
Shannon couldnt develop as a hub because it made no sense as a location for connecting flightsDublin had that sewn up. Nor was there a major city to attract its own traffic.
But, in the end, Shannon was saved by an asset that is priceless: It is surrounded by the kind of natural beauty that should be on anyones bucket list. As a gateway to Ireland (almost all of which should be on that bucket list) it has no equal, certainly not Dublin. Boosted by summer flights from Boston, Chicago, New York, Newark and Philadelphia the airport is now handling around 1.7 million passengers a year.
Of course, given its off-center location, you could say of Shannon what, according to an old Irish joke, a local who was asked by a traveler for directions said: If I was going there I wouldnt start from here. In fact, when I was lost on a road in western Ireland, not far from Shannon, thats more or less what I was told by the first person I encountered. Nevermind. There is no finer country to be lost in, believe me.
One of my favorite television shows growing up was a Ramadan special featuring an Egyptian performer called Sherihan. One year she had a Ramadan special called Sherihan Around the World, a twenty-minute singing and dancing extravaganza, which had her dressing in exquisite costumes from around the world and performing elaborate song and dance routines. Sherihan was a woman, but she was the best drag queen I had ever seen: camp, self-aware, and fabulous. She had planted in me, without my knowledge, the first seeds of my own gay identity.
Twelve years later, when I was living in Amman, my boyfriend broke up with me. I was becoming too open with my sexuality, he said. I had confided in too many people. Being with me was becoming dangerous. I told him that no one would kill us, let alone threaten us. The Jordanian police dont have a history of targeting gay men, I reasoned, especially those of our social class. But that wasnt the danger, he explained. The danger was that being seen with me was making people think he was gay. And he did not want to be seen as gay.
I did not see this transformation coming, but it happened. The Gay Identity had unknowingly been growing inside me like a tumor, until suddenly one morning I woke up and realized I was infected, and the disease was terminal. I had become someone who identified as gay.
I blamed Sherihan. After all, she started this mess.
***
Many Arabs who engage in same-sex practices do not identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. For every queer Arab who has formulated their sense of self by watching Will and Grace and Paris is Burning are countless others who do not feel it is unusual to engage in same-sex practices and remain unconnected to the word gay. Even amongst those who may feel at home in their gay identity, the notion of publicly coming out rings hollow in a culture where who you share your bed with is a private matter.
Like everywhere else in the world, sexual identities in the Middle East intersect with class, gender, and the complex interplay of private and public, making it impossible to speak of a singular queer Arab experience. There are a multitude of queer Arab experiences: from gender rights activists providing underground abortion services to long romantic partnerships between Bedouin men in Siwa, each queer life in the Arab world is unique. Trying to write about a singular gay Arab experience would be, as one Lebanese gay rights activist put it, the equivalent of writing a story about gay life in the US, and just interviewing someone from the Westboro Baptist Church, a closeted teenager in Nebraska, and Adam Lambert.
Despite this, queer Arab bodies have become a battleground in a much larger war. After all, it is no secret that both liberals and conservatives in North America and Europe have, since 9/11, waved the flag of womens rights, and to a lesser degree LGBT rights, as a way to gain Western public support to wage wars in the Middle East. Images and stories of oppressed Afghan women drove the call to war in 2001, and the more recent footage of ISIS throwing gay men off towers and enslaving Yezidi women stoked the fires of intervention in Syria.
Queer Arabs face a dual struggle: we are battling oppressive forces within our own communities, and we are also resisting the global narrative that tries to use our oppression for broader military or political goals.
The question then becomes: who owns queer Arab bodies?
***
Without my boyfriend by my side, I did not know what to do with my days. I chain-smoked and cried in my bedroom. At work, I wrote long, rambling e-mails to myself about what value a private relationship would have if it could not be celebrated publicly, in the same way the relationships of my straight friends were being celebrated in the lavish weddings I attended every other night.
In the afternoons, I watched Oprah, because she seemed to have all of the answers. But then a feminist friend told me that Oprah propagates an individualism that goes against the collectivist values needed to address structural problems like homophobia and patriarchy.
Besides, you still have it easier than us women, she said. At least you can rent a hotel room with a guy and no one will ask to see marriage documents. At least, as a man, you can leave the house in the middle of the night without anyone breathing down your neck.
I shaved my head, because I felt that a shaved head might make me less gay.
Is this better? I asked my boyfriend.
No, he responded. Im sorry.
***
Who owns queer Arab bodies?
On May 11th, 2001, 52 men were arrested in Egypt. The men were aboard the Queen Boat, a floating nightclub on the banks of the Nile. The men were charged with obscene behaviour, beaten, and forced to undergo humiliating examinations to determine their sexuality.
The story remained in the headlines for months. Images of the men were plastered on government newspapers and television screens. In one particular photo, the men were dressed in white, crammed together in a cage as they waited for their sentence. Most of the men had covered their faces with white cloth in a futile attempt to protect their privacy.
The bodies of the Cairo 52, as they had been called, became a battleground for academics, intellectuals and rights activists to project their own theories about queer lives in the Arab world. The condemnation and shaming of the men became a way to bring some legitimacy to President Mubaraks corrupt regime. Western LGBT organizations and human rights groups framed the raid as the Arab worlds Stonewall, with one group staging a protest at the Egyptian embassy in Paris with signs demanding the Egyptian government free our lovers. Meanwhile, anti-imperialist critics like Joseph Massad argued that it wasnt the same-sex sexual practices the Egyptian government was attacking, but rather the socio-political identification of these practices with the Western identity of gayness. After all, he said, the men did not identify as gay. In fact, they desperately hid their faces. These are hardly manifestations of gay pride or gay liberation, he argued.
The 52 men, their faces covered in white cloth, were further obscured as their lives became political scoring cards: for authoritarian regimes, Islamists, western human rights groups and anti-imperialist academics.
***
Who owns queer Arab bodies?
When ISIS threw two men off a tower last year as punishment for being gay, western media fuelled international outrage against the terrorist organisation. But among gay friends in the Middle East, the incident had nothing to do with them.
ISIS did not kill those guys as a message to us, a gay friend told me as we drank gin and slim-line tonics in a bar in Beirut, less than 90 miles from Homs, where the incident took place. The message was meant for the West: ISIS wanted to show that they stood against everything the West believed in.
In other words, ISISs message was the political equivalent of Come at me, bro. Queer bodies flung off a tower are a footnote in a larger political and military bro-down.
When I first read about the incident, I wanted to know how these men were caught. Was it just a vicious lie spread by someone with a personal vendetta? Were those men in a relationship with each other? Were they in love, and if so, did they have any dreams? Or was it just a quickie in a dark alleyway? I wanted to know more. But as I opened my browser, I began to worry that, given my Arab background, perhaps searching about ISIS and Syria may flag me up to some Western intelligence officers as a terrorist threat, and I already had enough trouble traveling across borders as it was. Maybe its better not to know, I thought to myself as I closed the browser.
Later that week, the same Lebanese friend looked up from his phone and said to me: The one good thing about having so many Syrian refugees in Lebanon is that you can find some gorgeous Syrian escorts on Grindr.
He was chatting to one as he said this. He invited the man over later that evening.
The Syrian man arrived. They chatted for a while. The Syrian man explained how he had escaped Syria and was trying to make some money to support his mother. Upon hearing this story, my friends arousal dampened, and as the escort went in for a kiss, my friend pulled back.
No, my friend said. Im sorry I cant do this.
Please kiss me, the Syrian said. You think Im a bad person, I know it.
No, I dont, my friend said. He put $100 in the mans hands. Please take this and go.
I dont want the money, the Syrian man said, bursting into tears. I want to get to know you. But now you think Im a bad person.
ISIS kills gay people. Assad creates gay refugees.
***
In 2012, 36 men were arrested in a cinema in Bourj Hammoud, a neighbourhood in Beirut. Cinema Plaza was a notorious cruising spot for gay men. The raid happened after a similar cinema in Tripoli, a working class city in northern Lebanon, was exposed in a Lebanese television show called Inta Hurr (You Are Free). Neither the police nor the media paid any attention to the multitude of gay bars in the more upscale neighbourhoods of Beirut.
In response to the raids, Lebanese gay activists released pictures of the host of the TV programme partying in a gay nightclub in Mykonos. The host shot back, saying that his privacy was invaded. In a statement released by the television station that aired the show, the host claimed that he will not apologise [for exposing the cinemas], because the breach of public morality is one thing, and sexual freedom is something else.
The message was clear: privacy is a luxury that is only afforded to those who can pay for it. If you have money you can buy yourself a gay identity in Mykonos. If not, then head to a rundown cinema and hope for the best.
***
Who owns queer Arab bodies? Is it the authoritarian regimes who trample on queer bodies for moral legitimacy, the jihadists who burnish their religious credentials by tossing these bodies off the highest towers, the western human rights groups who enforce their own narratives to save these bodies, the anti-imperialist academics who argue that these bodies are naively adopting colonialist discourses, the neoconservatives who shake dead queer bodies in front of their constituents to justify wars and occupations, or the rich who dictate the line between sexual freedom and public morality?
As a queer person in the Arab world, everywhere you turn someone wants to use your body, your story, or your life for their own purposes.
***
In one scene in my novel, Rasaa young gay Arabcomes out to his college friend in America. She responds by asking if he is at risk of being killed if he returns to the Middle East.
I dont think so, Rasa replies. He pauses for a moment before adding, Listen, people dont just kill each other like you hear on TV.
A few months after my boyfriend broke up with me, I decided to move to Europe.
I did not leave the Middle East because anyone was going to kill me.
I left because I wanted a western passport that would allow me to travel without having to book visa appointments months in advance, without having to prepare income statements and letters from employers and hotel bookings and return tickets. I left because I wanted a passport that would give me protection, a passport that would raise the value of my life in the global hierarchy.
I left because I felt that the region was knee-deep in frustration and hopelessness, that things were going to collapse, and that with my Arab passport I would have nowhere to go. I left because I knew enough to know that the world does not care about Arab and Muslim bodies washing up on the shores of the Mediterranean.
I left because I was tired of finding ways to justify why I had to keep my gay identity hidden, and I felt that my sexuality was becoming yet another weapon that could be used against me: if someone developed a personal vendetta against me; if I spoke out of line; if I engaged in the wrong kind of politics; if I was not a good citizen who shut up and took it. I left because my sexuality had become yet another knife held against my throat.
Here are other knives held against peoples throats: Being a refugee on a boat in the Mediterranean. Being a black man in the U.S. Being a Palestinian in Israel. Being a woman pretty much anywhere.
Twenty years after I first saw Sherihan dancing on TV, I came across a YouTube video of her leading the crowds in a chant in Tahrir Square in 2011. My drag mother had joined the revolution for freedom and dignity. Watching this while sitting in London, I couldnt help but smile. We had come full-circle, I thought to myself, naively assuming that the worst of the violence was over.
Listen, people dont just kill each other like you hear on TV. I didnt leave the Middle East because I feared for my life. I left because I was escaping another sort of death.
***
The truth is, I almost didnt write my novel.
I almost didnt write my novel because, whenever I opened the Microsoft Word document, I thought of my parents, and the shame my father would feel as his son exposed himself so openly.
I almost didnt write my novel because, as my fingers hovered over my English language keyboard, my thoughts turned to various articles, opinion pieces and books written by some Arabs and Muslims in western media; pieces that indulged narratives of oppression and talked about the need for sexual liberation in the Arab world; stories that pandered to orientalist fantasies and Islamophobic stereotypes. The same fantasies and stereotypes that get me detained and interrogated every time I pass through an American airport. The same fantasies and stereotypes that justify closing borders to refugees fleeing war zones. The same fantasies and stereotypes that help Western citizens sleep easy at night as their governments drop bombs on Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Palestine and Iraq.
I almost didnt write my novel because I feared that writing it would make it more difficult to go back to the Arab world, the place I call home and that I love above all else.
But not to have written my novel would be to admit defeat to all of these forces. And while the novel remains only one story among thousands of other queer Arab stories waiting to be told, in the end, the only story each of us can tellthe only body we ownis our own.
Saleem Haddad is the author of the new novel GUAPA published this spring by Other Press.
The United States Navy is paradoxically the most traditional and innovative of Americas armed services. It is also by far and away the most diverse in terms of missions and capabilities. In addition to its fleet of cutting-edge surface ships and submarines, the Navy possesses its own ground forcethe Marinesand an air force, both land and carrier-based, which has greater strike capability than the air forces of most developed nations. The Navys supercarrier battle groups function as mobile military cities, extending American power and influence across the entire globe.
Because the Navy bears primary responsibility for guaranteeing freedom of the seas, and because it invariably finds itself at the center of the international communitys response to geopolitical crisis, violent and otherwise, it could very well be said that the U.S. Navy is a world institution as well as an American one.
The purpose of Craig L. Symondss The U.S. Navy: A Concise History, is to explain in broad strokes how this enormously powerful and complex institution came to be what it is today, and to describe its myriad contributions to the nations wars, as well as to American foreign policy. With admirable economy, Symonds traces the sea services evolution from its origins in the Revolution as a scrappy, ad hoc force punching well above its weight against the mighty Royal Navywith more than a little help from the French Navyup through the War of 1812, where its record was a mixed bag of startling successes on the Great Lakes and in the great frigate duals (e.g., the USS Constitution vs. the HMS Guerriere) on the open ocean, and outright defeat on the east coast, where American gun boats proved no match for British ships of the line as they landed forces and sacked Washington.
In a unanimous vote, the Utah House of Representatives passed a resolution this week branding pornography a public health hazard; a crisis its citizens need to be protected from.
The resolution calls for education, prevention, research, and policy change at the community and societal level in order to address the pornography epidemic that is harming the people of our state and nation, but does not offer any solutions. This from a state that ranked number one in online porn subscriptions, according to a 2009 Harvard study.
Renowned New York City sex therapist Dr. Stephen Snyder says the availability of internet porn is not any more of a problem than other socioeconomic issues Americans today face, including stagnant middle class wages and the continued decline of the two-parent household. Any time you put limits on what can be communicated about sex, you increase the potential for sexual shamewhich lets face it, is already pretty high for most Americans even under the best of circumstances, says Dr. Snyder. And whenever you increase sexual shame, youre going to see an increase in compulsive sexual activity, whether it's compulsive porn use or any other kind. Shame is rocket fuel for compulsions.
The heavily-Mormon state seems to have a love-hate relationship with pornography, and a sense of shame over it as well. Here, the desire for porn has also birthed a plethora of anti-porn groups to combat the evils of consumption. On March 12th, the Utah Coalition Against Pornography held its 14th annual conference in Salt Lake City. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the LDS church, was one of its keynote speakersand likened porn to the plague.
Pornography ought to be seen like a public health crisis; like a war; like an infectious, fatal epidemic; like a moral plague on the body politic that is maiming the lives of our citizens, said Holland .
Concerned for future generations, anti-pornography groups like the Utah-based non-profit, Fight the New Drug lecture at high schools on pornographys so-called deleterious effects. Unfortunately, no one seems to be lecturing about STDs at these same high schools. Are the perceived dangers of pornography worse than the threat of STDs?
In lieu of sex-ed, most of Utahs schools continue to offer abstinence-only programs and prohibit public school teachers from encouraging contraceptives, which could be why chlamydia was the most frequently reported communicable disease in Utah in 2011. Two-thirds of those cases were among 15 to 24 year olds.
However, Utah Senator Todd Weiler isnt advocating for the expansion of sex-ed. He instead wants policies that further protect underage consumers from pornography, admitting in the resolution hes spearheaded that exposure to pornography often serves as childrens and youths sex education and shapes their sexual templates. Porn should not fill those educational voids abstinence-only programs create, but in the absence of information, unfortunately, it does. When kids have questions no one will answer they dont head for a stack of well-worn encyclopediasthey search for it online.
People like to preach their religious ideologies about family values, saving the kids, and making sure they still have good moral fiber which they say porn destroys, but I could make the same argument for social media, says adult actor Derrick Pierce. Those same kids that are told sex is bad, dont do it, its only for reproduction, when those kids get older and figure out they can make their own choices, they do and they make them tenfold because they want to know what all the fuss is about.
You cant blame porn for everythingeven in Utah. There are plenty of mainstream influences to consider as well. HBOs Game of Thrones is notorious for its nearly softcore sex scenes and not yet banned in Utah. In fact, porn actress Jessy Dubai says it wasnt porn that compelled her to enter the adult industry, but a popular mainstream movie. The movie that made me want to do porn was [Kevin Smiths] Zach and Miri Make a Porno, says Dubai. I wanted to become a porn star not for sexual gratification but to pay bills.
Once legislation is enacted to blame peoples various problems on explicit material created for and accessed by legal consenting adults, it may be a slippery slope. Porn is the scapegoat for now, but in some years time, it could just as easily be a Kevin Smith movie.
Utahs resolution on porns public health crisis implies early exposure to pornography can create a biological addiction which, according to the resolution, may later lead to risky sexual behaviors, extreme degradation, and violence, as well as reduced interest in marriage and deviant sexual arousal. Sounds like lawmakers simply want to protect adults from themselves and shield the children from any accidental early exposure to sex and explicit content.
Weilers resolution is a half-measure and a diva-esque attempt to grab headlines says award winning adult performer and director, Tanya Tate. If Weiler were truly committed, he would look at Harvards 2009 study that found Utahs religious residents were the nations top consumers of online porn and work on religion and the reason it drives so many in his home state to explore porn, says Tate.
Being deprived of [porn] makes you want itespecially when you are told you shouldnt watch it, adds porn star Sadie Santana. I have friends in Salt Lake City, so I know what goes on there and theres plenty of escorting. Doesnt surprise me at all. Isnt Utah a very religious state?
Weiler isnt suggesting a ban on porn and even likens it to cigarettes, saying, we have taken steps to protect people from tobacco, but we haven't done that for pornography.
Just as cigarettes come with a warning label from the surgeon general, so do a number of porn sites. Huge, red warnings are the first barrier to entry, followed by a request that the user be at least 18 years of age (or in some states 21). The potential consumer then chooses between two buttonsenter or exit, the choice is theirs. After that, users are presented with a tour of sexually explicit images that loop back to a join now prompt. To see more of the explicit acts, a credit card is required, and even if kids had access to one, their parents would see the bill.
Blaming pornographers for teenagers accessing their content may be short-sighted. Few adult companies offer their products for free and, warnings aside, payment prompts also act as barriers. For immediate and free access to porn, people go to tube sitesno credit card required. If anyone bothers to read the terms of service, users are supposed to be 18 or older. But whos really reading the fine print on a porn site?
Easy access to free porn has had negative effects on adult companiesa problem many blame on tube sites. Its this same ease of access to pornography that Utah lawmakers and anti-porn groups abhor. Perhaps pornographers and anti-porn groups should put aside their differences and fight not to end porn, but to end free access to it. Like the old adage, An enemy of my enemy, is a friend. At least temporarily.
The College Station City Council approved an engineering contract Thursday for a $15.1 million road that is intended to provide better connectivity to the Scott & White Hospital off Rock Prairie Road, and could help spur development in the medical district.
As part of Thursday's consent agenda, the council approved a $944,474 contract with Mitchell & Morgan, LLP for the professional engineering services related to the design and associated construction phase services of the Lakeway Drive-Pebble Creek Parkway extension project. The project will extend Lakeway Drive from where it ends near William D. Fitch Parkway and connect with existing roads near the hospital. Pebble Creek Parkway will also be constructed from its intersection with the new section of Lakeway Drive to the northbound Texas 6 frontage road.
Emily Fisher, assistant director of public works, said the roadway extensions will provide an alternate route to the hospital and alleviate traffic at the intersection of William D. Fitch Parkway and Texas 6 near Lowe's. The Lakeway Drive extension will add approximately 8,500 linear feet, or about 1.6 miles. Pebble Creek Parkway will extend from the new portion of Lakeway Drive to the frontage road near Christ United Methodist Church for about 1,400 linear feet.
The project was approved as part of the 2008 bond election. About $15.1 million is included in the Streets Capital Improvement Projects Fund for the street component of the project, and another $705,000 is included in the Water Capital Improvement Projects Fund for a water line component.
Natalie Ruiz, director of economic development, said the extension project will help with connectivity in the Texas 6, William D. Fitch Parkway and Rock Prairie Road triangle and open up that area for future development.
"What this will help do is not only will it provide connectivity, but there's additional water and sewer extensions that will be done to activate a lot of that property for private development," Ruiz said.
The area is just green space now, Fisher said, and a large amount of planning had to be done to determine the alignments because the roads will cross some creeks. It will probably take another year before construction begins, and the project could take a year to 18 months to complete, Fisher said.
"I think it's so exciting that an area that's really centrally located will be activated for development," Ruiz said. "It really kicks off the medical district master plan. It's a big piece of the larger puzzle."
The conviction of a Texas A&M professor who assaulted his wife drew a comment from U.S. Congressman Bill Flores on Friday partly because the professor holds an endowment in Flores name.
Yong Chen, 40, was convicted Thursday of assaulting his wife, causing a dislocated shoulder and bruising. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail and 20 months on probation Friday morning. Chen is an upper-level finance professor at the Mays Business School and holds the Gina and William H. Flores '76 Professorship in Finance.
Flores released a statement Friday condemning Chens actions, and saying he has asked the university to take the endowment from Chen.
Gina and I are appalled by [Chens] actions and do not believe that he is deserving of the benefits from our endowment, Flores said. Accordingly, we have asked Texas A&M and the Mays Business School to transfer the professorship to a more deserving faculty member.
Flores said he and his wife have traditionally not had a role in awarding the endowment, but asked that Mays consider their values when picking the next recipient of the professorship.
The Mays Business School did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but university spokesman Shane Hinckley said Thursday in response to the conviction A&M would review Chens situation in accordance with system policy.
The professorship was originally endowed to the Mays Business School in 2002. According to Chens online resume, he received the endowment earlier this year.
Frank Boyett Columnist SHARE Gleaner file photo Officer Jason Hargitt poses with Santo, who composed the Henderson Police Department's canine unit between 2005 and 2013.
The Henderson Police Department was walking the dog back in 1966.
Probably nowhere is the tie between man and his best friend stronger than in police work. The Henderson Police Department has maintained a canine unit largely unbroken since Jan. 1, 1992, but there were at least a couple of outliers.
The first one I've run across had a dog and apparently patrolled the Downtown and Union Station areas in the late 1930s, according to information on a negative sleeve in the Jack Hudgions collection at the Henderson County Public Library.
His name was George O. Baker, who was identified as the "merchant policeman" and was accompanied by his "famous dog" in the 1938 photo. He died March 5, 1956, but I could find no local obituary for him.
Former Police Chief Charlie West remembers hearing stories about Baker from HPD old-timers.
"He was a legend in the police department," said West. "I don't remember anything about the dog. He just looked after the merchants' end of it."
Skip ahead to the spring of 1966. James Robey was the new city manager and he was upgrading the way city government was run. The Police Department in particular saw many changes including dramatic boosts in pay scales for officers.
The Gleaner of March 16, 1966, had Robey announcing that HPD would probably be getting a German shepherd in the near future, provided the program was approved by the Henderson City Commission.
Homer Browder, commander of the investigation division, said Officer Ronnie Gibson had been chosen as the dog handler, and would keep the dog at his house when not on duty. The department would reimburse him for the dog's feeding and care.
Browder said the dog would fill a valuable niche in the department. "For example, if we got a report that a place is being burglarized, we would send the dog in and he'd let us know whether or not someone was in the building," which could "possibly save an officer's life."
The March 20 issue reported that Gibson was leaving that day for training at the K-9 Training Academy Inc. in El Dorado, Arkansas, which local officials said had been founded in 1938 and was one of the two best schools in the country for training police dogs and their handlers.
The city's new dog, which had been in obedience training for 10 weeks already and was undergoing specialized training for police work. That training had cost the city $687.
The dog didn't cost the city anything, because it had been owned by Gibson prior to the program, according to West.
The April 5 issue of The Gleaner reported the dog's name was King and that he and Gibson were reporting for duty that day. A photo accompanying the article by Hugh Edward Sandefur showed King rearing on his hind legs while Gibson held the leash.
Sandefur called the dog a "90-pound package of well-disciplined, hair-trigger alertness ready to explode into action at the first whiff of trouble."
Gibson had spent 15 days in Arkansas training with the dog, and in the process the dog lost 25 pounds and Gibson lost 10. So it apparently was some pretty rigorous training.
"King is a handsome 14-month-old German shepherd," Sandefur reported. "His colors range from tan to dark brown and black." Because he and Gibson were trained together, "no other officer, even if he were qualified, could handle the animal.
"There is little doubt that King could be a very vicious adversary for someone bent on crime, but this is a mood that can be controlled by his handler.
"The dog will not attack a man who is stopped with his hands raised, but he will go into action just the second the subject moves. He works on leash or off leash."
The Gleaner editorial of April 6 gave its approval to the new addition to the police department. "Since burglaries seem to be the most persistent problem for our law enforcement people, perhaps King will be allowed to do some night patrol duty from time to time.
"The decision to hire a dog for police work is a sign that our city is willing to use new techniques in making the police department efficient . It's encouraging to see the police department willing to try different approaches."
The experiment with King was short-lived, however.
"That's the only police dog we had," said West, who said the department didn't maintain the canine program very long in the mid-1960s.
"We just didn't have all the equipment to keep the dog trained. So we gave it up. I think he (Gibson) sold it" and the dog later went into private security work guarding businesses here and in Evansville.
HPD revived the program Jan. 1, 1992, when Officer Dwight Duncan went on duty with Aris, who served until 2000. They were followed by Officer Scott Rice and Argo, 2001-04; Officer Jason Hargitt and Santo, 2005-13 and the current canine unit, Officer Kyle Stone and Exo, who began in 2014, according to HPD records.
Most of those dogs went to live with their handler's family after reaching retirement. That didn't happen to King although Gibson's4-year-old daughter certainly wanted that to happen.
The day before King went on duty, Janet Lynn Gibson told her father: "King is my dog, but I will let you use him."
100 years ago
Spalding Trafton was getting some good press in his job as Henderson postmaster, according to The Gleaner of April 9, 1916.
The April issue of "The Union Postal Clerk," a publication of the union for postal workers, praised Trafton for his improvements to the post office's operations and to the working conditions of postal workers.
75 years ago
The construction of a $15 million plant here to manufacture ammonia for high explosives was having repercussions, according to April 8, 1941, issue of the Evansville Press.
All tourist camps in Henderson County were placed under regulations governing war industry zones, which meant that a survey of conditions at local tourist camps had just been completed by the county health department and the state Division of Foods, Drugs and Hotels.
25 years ago
A double-murder and suicide March 31, 1991, caused a huge controversy that led to an investigation by the Kentucky Attorney General's Office whether local authorities were doing enough to protect women who had sought emergency protective orders, The Gleaner reported.
On Easter Sunday Wendall A. Payne shot and killed his estranged wife, Marla Payne, and her mother, Lavita Sue Septer, before turning the gun on himself.
The state attorney general's office released an exhaustive report in December that identified a number of deficiencies in local policies and procedures.
Frank Boyett can be found on Facebook or on Twitter at @BoyettFrank
West Burlington pool shooting suspect found not guilty
After two days of testimony, the suspect in the shooting at the West Burlington Swimming Pool was found not guilty of all charges.
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MONTROSE, Colorado -- Keith Carey is a gunsmith in Montrose, a town with a frontier flavor set amid the mesas of western Colorado. He's a staunch, though soft-spoken, defender of the right to bear arms.
Yet now he's a willing recruit in a fledgling effort to see if the gun community itself -- sellers and owners of firearms, operators of shooting ranges -- can help Colorado and other Western states reduce their highest-in-the-nation suicide rates.
"Suicide is a tragedy no matter how it's done," said Carey, whose adult daughter killed herself with a mix of alcohol and antidepressants a few years ago on the East Coast. However, he sees the logic in trying gun-specific prevention strategies in towns like Montrose, where guns are an integral part of daily life.
"It's very expedient for people to commit suicide by a firearm, without too much forethought," Carey said. "Unfortunately, it's generally effective."
At the urging of a local police commander, Carey agreed last year to participate in the Gun Shop Project, a state-funded program in which gun sellers and range operators in five western Colorado counties were invited to help raise awareness about suicide. It's a tentative but promising bid to open up a conversation on a topic that's been virtually taboo in these Western states: the intersection of guns and suicide.
Carey's shop counter now displays wallet-sized cards with information about a suicide hotline. A poster by the door offers advice about ways to keep guns away from friends or relatives at risk of killing themselves.
Carey says some customers take materials home, or ask a few questions. The conversations tend to be brief.
"Suicide is one of those morose subjects that a lot of us don't want to talk about," he said. "But it's all too common. I believe any method of suicide prevention is worth a good hard try."
Across the U.S., suicides account for nearly two-thirds of all gun deaths -- far outnumbering gun homicides. In 2014, according to federal data, there were 33,599 firearm deaths; 21,334 of them were suicides. That figure represents about half of all suicides that year; but in several western Colorado counties, and in some other Rocky Mountain states with high gun-ownership rates, more than 60 percent of suicides involve firearms.
Along with Alaska, the states with the highest rates form a contiguous bloc -- Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, Colorado, Utah and New Mexico. All have age-adjusted suicide rates at least 50 percent higher than the national rate of 12.93 suicides per 100,000 people; Montana's rate, 23.80, is the highest in the nation.
Between 2000 and 2014, gun suicides increased by more than 51 percent in those states, while rising by less than 30 percent nationwide.
Theories abound as to why such high rates. Commonly cited factors include the isolation and economic hard times in rural areas of these states. There's also belief that a self-reliant frontier mindset deters some Westerners from seeking help when depression sinks in.
"We embrace the cowboy mentality," says Jarrod Hindman, director of Colorado's Office of Suicide Prevention. "If you're suffering, suck it up, pick yourself up by your boot straps. But that doesn't work very well if you're suicidal."
Underlying all these explanations is the fact that firearms are more ubiquitous in the West than in most other parts of the country.
Catherine Barber, a suicide prevention expert at the Harvard School of Public Health, says residents of gun-owning homes are at higher risk of suicide than other people -- simply because a suicide attempt is more likely to involve a gun. According to federal estimates, suicide attempts involving firearms succeed 85 percent of the time, compared to less than 10 percent of attempts involving drug overdoses and several other methods.
"It's not that gun owners are more suicidal," Barber argues. "It's that they're more likely to die in the event that they become suicidal, because they are using a gun."
Colorado's Gun Shop Project is modeled after a program pioneered in New Hampshire. Barber helped design the initiative and hopes collaboration on firearm suicide prevention can spread nationwide.
"In the past, people shut up about this issue because they thought raising it meant raising the issue of gun control," she said. "It makes so much more sense to look at gun owners as part of the solution."
Hindman said that when he joined the state health department in 2004, talking about the role of firearms in suicide was discouraged. It's still a sensitive topic, he said, but some funding has materialized for gun-specific initiatives.
In Montrose, Police Commander Keith Caddy has been around guns since childhood. Now he's doing outreach for the Gun Shop Project -- and most of the businesses he has visited agreed to display suicide-awareness materials once they were assured it wasn't a gun-takeaway program in disguise.
"It's my duty to protect the community I serve," Caddy said. "If I can go out there and spend a little time talking to the gun shops, maybe the reward will be saving someone's life."
Suicide presents a distinctive challenge for shooting ranges: Occasionally, someone will rent a gun, then use it to commit suicide.
At the Family Shooting Center in Denver, there have been three such incidents, including two since Doug Hamilton began managing the range in 2004. Hamilton is open to letting his staff get suicide-prevention training, though he's unsure it would help. Those who killed themselves at his range exhibited no signs of stress beforehand.
"Suicide prevention brochures aren't something that anyone's going to pick up who has come out to our range to kill themselves," he said.
Such challenges are familiar to Dr. Michael Victoroff, a Denver-area physician whose leisure-time passion is competitive shooting. He was at the Family Shooting Center in Denver when one of the suicides occurred there.
Victoroff belongs to the American Medical Association and the National Rifle Association, and has qualms about both.
"The medical community has been content not to know anything about gun culture and gun safety," said Victoroff. As for the NRA, he'd like to see suicide prevention highlighted in its training materials.
Over the years, firearm suicide has not been a high-profile issue for the NRA; it worries that the topic might be used to advance a gun-control agenda. Though the NRA has no position on Colorado's Gun Shop Project, it has endorsed a bill in Washington state encouraging gun dealers to participate in suicide prevention efforts, said spokeswoman Jennifer Baker.
Throughout Colorado, prevention efforts are fueled to a large degree by people who've lost friends and loved ones to suicide.
Cindy Haerle, a teacher and board member of the Grand Junction-based Western Colorado Suicide Prevention Foundation, grew up in "a real gun family" in Salida, Colorado, and had her own gun by the time she was 5. But she gave up shooting after her brother John killed himself with a pistol in 1980 at age 29.
"Nothing is as final as a gunshot," said Haerle, who was 13 at the time.
In the northwest counties of Routt and Moffatt, the Gun Shop Project is coordinated by Meghan Francone, who constantly reassures gun owners and sellers that the outreach program poses no threat. She got involved after her 15-year-old brother-in-law fatally shot himself in 2010.
"Keep your guns. Keep a dozen. I don't care. But please make sure they are locked and out of the reach of someone who's in crisis," she said. "I'm not asking any gun shop owner to be a psychologist. I'm asking them to be their brother's keeper."
Follow David Crary on Twitter at http://twitter. com/CraryAP
KEARNEY A missed opportunity for Taiwan resident Kevin Cheng opened many doors for the student musician in Nebraska.
Now, he wants to thank his Nebraska friends by organizing a concert scheduled for April 10 in Central City.
The story started in Taiwan.
I didnt even know that Nebraska is a state, he said. Everyone who wants to study music in Taiwan has to take an exam to see which school you can sign up for. After I finished junior high school, I took my exam. It looked just fine. I got good enough grades that I could get into one of the best music high schools in Taiwan, but ...
Cheng and his family had missed the sign-up date.
We went to the senator in our county and asked him to talk to the school, Cheng said.
He attended a junior high school with very few students who excelled in the arts. Because of that, Cheng hadnt heard of the application deadlines until it was too late.
No matter how we tried, I just couldnt get into any school, he said. We went to the capital city and talked to the foreign study agent. He told me they would help me pick a school. He picked Nebraska Christian. At that point, I didnt know what Christian stood for, and I didnt know Nebraska was a state.
Cheng arrived in Lincoln from Taiwan late on an August night.
When I flew into Lincoln, everything was dark, he recalled. That whole night, as the high school teacher drove me down the interstate, I saw nothing but darkness. The next morning, I woke up and saw nothing but corn.
He was in Central City.
Looking back on those days, Cheng, 20, feels amazed at how God worked in his life.
Now a piano student at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, Cheng wants to present an orchestral concert at 3 p.m. April 10 at the Central City Performing Art Center for the residents of Central City to celebrate his good fortune at ending up in Nebraska. Admission to the concert is free.
He plans on playing the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 3, Liszt-Schuberts Wanderer Fantasy, the Concert Fantasy, also by Tchaikovsky, and Liszts Totentanz. The Kearney High School Camerata honor orchestra will accompany Cheng, along with a list of professional performers from Central Nebraska.
In a press release, Cheng said of the works, Because of the cost and difficulty of the concerto, most professional pianists or any other solo instrumentalists choose to play only one concert at the end of a recital or concert program. However, we are playing four concertos in one program during the Central City Spring Concert.
Cheng feels strongly enough about this concert that he contributed some of his own money to fund the $7,000 event. He received some funding from the Merrick Foundation in Central City and then began raising funds on his own. He must also pay the transportation costs of the student orchestra as well as purchase music for the performers.
Cheng grew up in a non-religious household. His parents followed Buddhist traditions.
My parents go to a Buddhist temple and follow certain rules that Buddhism has, but they arent Buddhists, he said. They just do it because everybody does it in Taiwan. I dont believe in Buddhism. I never really knew Jesus as a personal savior until the second year I was here.
At the private Christian school in Central City, Cheng attended classes, unaware of the religious nature of the school.
I was there for about half a year before I found out in detail that this school is a very religious school, he said. And then in the middle of Christmas break, I met someone who totally changed my life.
After the schools Christmas program, Cheng took a few minutes to play on the rented Steinway piano. Dave Deichmann began listening, and the two bonded over music and hunting. Cheng learned about Christianity from his new friend.
We were talking about music and suddenly the topic changed to guns, Cheng said. He told me that he had a bunch of different guns, and he wondered if I would be interested in shooting. That was the first time I got tied into the local people.
Cheng used to play computer games.
Ever since Dave took me hunting and shooting, I got away from the technology, he said. The moment I touched a rifle, I never went back to playing computer games because I enjoy the outdoors more.
Cheng and Deichmann talked about Christianity, too.
He would take me out raccoon hunting at night and then sit down and talk to me about Jesus, Cheng said. I began to know more about who this historical person was.
Cheng hopes the Spring Concert will act as a thank you to the community he grew to love and that it will provide the small town with high-caliber classical music.
When he approached Camerata director Dave Klein with the idea, Klein agreed and then looked at the music.
I went ahead and ordered the score from the Internet, Cheng said. Mr. Klein picked the shortest two pieces to perform. I dont think he actually heard the pieces before. When he picked the Franz Liszt, he didnt know it was that hard and that fast.
He agreed because of the length.
Mr. Klein told me one day that he woke up in the morning and listened to the music, Cheng said. And then he said it was so difficult it was like I stole three years off his life.
A new exhibit opening April 15 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum will give visitors intimate glimpses into Lincolns family, career, finances and presidency.
The Unfinished Work exhibit features documents and artifacts from the immense Taper collection. Among them:
A promissory note in which Lincoln promised to pay $379.82, an amount he called my national debt.
His patent for a mechanism to get stranded riverboats off of obstructions. No other U.S. president has held a patent.
His beloved stepmothers X signature on a receipt.
A gorgeously illustrated copy of the Emancipation Proclamation.
A ticket to his funeral at the White House.
The exhibit takes its name from the Gettysburg Address, in which Lincoln described the unfinished work of bringing freedom to the nation. The name refers both to Lincolns life being cut short and to the mission of ensuring that these and other irreplaceable artifacts find a permanent home at the Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation has raised almost $14 million in in-kind and financial support for the Permanent Home Campaign, which has some $11 million remaining to be raised until its completion.
Unfinished Work runs April 15 to May 15. Most of the exhibit's items on display are underwritten by generous donors; others remain available for sponsorship.
This exhibit is important not only because of the historic documents and artifacts it showcases, but also because in very quiet and understated ways it honors the generous individuals who underwrote each item to ensure they all have a permanent home at the Lincoln Presidential Library, said Dr. Carla Knorowski, chief executive officer of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation.
The exhibit is divided into several sections: Career, Family, Presidency, Friends, Mary and Assassination. They guide visitors from Lincolns days as a struggling shopkeeper to his presidency to the tragedy of his death. They take visitors beyond Lincoln to the lives of his widow, his son and his sole grandson.
The lives of everyone around Lincoln were made more poignant by association. His elders, his friends, his colleagues, his loved ones - we learn about Lincoln by learning about them and vice-versa, said James M. Cornelius, curator of the presidential librarys Lincoln Collection. The Taper collection offers us these rare chances to understand his relationships.
Unfinished Work will be presented in the museums Illinois Gallery. The exhibit is free with regular admission to the museum.
The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, a division of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, is dedicated to telling the story of Americas 16th president through old-fashioned scholarship and modern technology.
The library holds an unparalleled collection of Lincoln books, documents, photographs, artifacts and art, including the Gettysburg Address, Emancipation Proclamation, 13th Amendment and Abraham Lincolns stovepipe hat. It also serves as the states historical library, with some 12 million items pertaining to Illinois history.
The museum uses traditional exhibits, eye-catching special effects and innovative story-telling techniques to educate visitors. It also presents an array of temporary exhibits about Lincoln and Illinois.
The museum is open seven days a week. The library portion of the ALPLM is open free of charge Monday through Friday for research. For details, visit www.PresidentLincoln.illinois.gov.
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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, April 2, 2016
PT Agung Podomoro Land president director Ariesman Widjaja has been named a corruption suspect, in relation to the deliberation of draft bylaws on Jakarta's zoning plans.
Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman Agus Rahardjo announced the alleged involvement of the Agung Podomoro executive in the corruption case on Friday evening, expressing his concern that the business community had not been able to maintain its integrity.
Ariesman voluntarily came to KPK headquarters about two hours after the KPK named him a suspect.
"The businessman tried to influence the city administration and councilors without paying attention to the greater public interest, especially that related with the environment," Agus alleged in a press conference.
On Thursday, KPK investigators arrested Jakarta city councilor Mohamad Sanusi of the Gerindra Party and another suspect, identified as Geri, at a shopping mall in South Jakarta. During the operation, Sanusi and Geri allegedly received money from Trinanda Prihantoro, an employee of Agung Podomoro Land.
During the operation, investigators also arrested Trinanda at his office in West Jakarta and Berlian, a secretary at Agung Podomoro Land, at her house in Rawamangun, East Jakarta.
"Geri acted as a middleman to give the money or gift to the councilor in an effort to influence the deliberation of draft bills on Jakarta's Zoning Plan and Coastal Northern Territory (RZWP3K) for 2015-2035 and on the North Jakarta Strategic Area Regional Spatial Plan," Agus said.
If the bills are enacted into bylaw, they would among other things, help the Jakarta administration carry out its reclamation plans in Jakarta Bay in which Agung Podomoro Land is a major investor.
The anti-graft body seized Rp 1.14 billion (US$86,717) from two transactions. In the first transaction on March 28, Sanusi allegedly received Rp 1 billion, while in Thursdays transaction, he allegedly received Rp 140 million.
Ariesman is accused of violating Article 5 and Article 13 of Law No. 31/1999 on corruption eradication, while Sanusi is accused of violating Article 12 and Article 11 of Law No. 31/1999 on corruption eradication. Trinanda is accused of violating Article 5 and Article 13 of Law No. 31/1999 on corruption eradication. (bbn)
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Linkedin John-Thor Dahlburg and Lorne Cook (Associated Press) Brussels Sat, April 2, 2016
Struck by suicide bombers 10 days ago, the airport known as "the heart of Europe" has stopped beating temporarily, causing headaches for thousands of business and vacation travelers, and painful financial losses for Belgium's capital and tourism industry.
It's still unclear when Brussels Airport will reopen. But a key hurdle appeared to have been cleared Friday evening when police unions, which had threatened a strike, reached a preliminary deal with government negotiators on how to bolster security to minimize more violence. The agreement, which must be formally approved by both sides, calls in part for hiring 200 additional airport police officers, said Stephane Deldicque, an official with the CSC Public Service Union.
A Belgian government official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to make public statements, told The Associated Press things now appeared on track for passenger service to resume at a reduced level on Sunday morning.
Patrick Bontinck, general manager of Visit Brussels, the official municipal tourist organization, said hotel reservations have dropped by half since the March 22 attacks at the airport and the Brussels Metro, meaning a loss of 8,000-10,000 visitors a day to the city that is home to the headquarters of the European Union and US-led NATO alliance, and styles itself as "the capital of Europe."
One cause for the drop in business, Bontinck said, is the suspension of the 600 daily passenger flights to and from the Brussels Airport, transporting more than 1.5 million passengers in February. But he said there has also been an overall "decline in image" for Belgium's capital, a popular destination for lovers of beer, chocolate and Flemish art and architecture. The city has been identified in countless international media accounts as a hotbed of Islamic radicalism.
Brussels may not be the only capital to be suffering economic consequences from the bloodiest explosion of extremist violence in Belgium since World War II. Bontinck said figures received by his office indicated hotel reservations over the same period dropped 35 percent in Paris, 38 percent in Berlin and 29 percent in London.
"The impact is general," he said.
TUI Belgium, one of Belgium's biggest tour operators, said the attacks came at a tough time for the industry: just days before the two-week Easter school vacation.
The company said that it only canceled one flight from Brussels Airport, on the same day two suicide bombers struck the departure hall, killing 16 people. A separate suicide bomber in a Metro train killed another 16 people.
TUI spokeswoman Florence Bruyere said a convoy of buses was quickly put in place, running travelers to and from Brussels to another airport on the North Sea coast at Ostend.
"We were all shocked and shaken by the attacks, but life continues. Family holidays are really important," she said. "People have made plans, they've made reservations, and they really want to head off on vacation."
According to Eurocontrol, the European agency for air traffic control, since the suspension of passenger service, some airlines, like TUI, have been using smaller airports in Belgium, including at Liege, Charleroi and Antwerp, while other carriers are shuttling passengers to and from Brussels by bus from major European air hubs like Frankfurt.
But many travelers have been inconvenienced. Three groups of 17 students and three adult chaperones from Freed-Hardeman University in Henderson, Tennessee, on spring study programs were supposed to rendezvous in Brussels the day of the bombings. Instead, the group flying in from Athens was diverted to Duesseldorf, Germany, their colleagues in Spain had to wait a day and fly to Frankfurt, and students who expected to travel to Brussels by train from London had to go to Frankfurt by jet as well.
"It took us 48 hours to get all the kids back together," said Barbara England, chairman of the university's Department of Fine Arts. Organizers decided to cut the semester short, but due to the continuing travel disruptions caused by the Brussels attacks, she said, "it took us a week to get back to Tennessee."
Brussels Airport CEO Arnaud Feist told RTBF state broadcasting that temporary repairs now completed will permit the processing of 800 passengers an hour, about 20 percent of the airport's original capacity. Feist said he hopes terminal areas heavily damaged by the bombs can be rebuilt in time to restore full capacity by the onset of summer vacation season.
According to airport officials, the arrivals area was only slightly damaged, and passengers flying into Brussels will go through the usual baggage claim and other procedures.
Bruyere said her company has no idea when the facility will reopen but "hopes to recommence as soon as possible."
"We are just starting the travel high season now," she said. "July and August are really important months for us."
The Brussels attacks were claimed by the Islamic State group. In the city center, a multifaith wreath-laying ceremony was held Friday to demonstrate Belgium's unity in the face of the extremist violence.
"We want to send the message that we are one indivisible people: Muslim, Jew, Christian, and other," said Salah Echallaoui, president of an umbrella group for government-authorized mosques and Islamic organizations.
"We have always lived in harmony," said Albert Guigui, Brussels' chief rabbi. "This is why we are here together, to show that there is no tension between Jews and Muslims."
In Maastricht, Netherlands, a joint funeral was held for a Dutch brother and sister killed at the airport as they were flying back to New York where they lived.
Alexander Pinczowski, 29, was on the phone with his mother when a bomb detonated and the line went dead. Sascha Pinczowski, 26, was a 2015 graduate of Marymount Manhattan College with a degree in business.
The EU's police coordination agency Europol said it held a joint operational meeting Friday with Belgian Federal Police to exchange information about the operating methods of the bombers and also support follow-up inquiries in other countries. More than 50 counterterrorism experts and investigators from 30 countries attended, Europol said. (bbn)
Associated Press writers Danica Kirka and Helene Franchineau in Brussels and David Keyton in Maastricht, Netherlands, contributed.
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Linkedin thejakartapost.com (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, April 2, 2016
Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama has said his administration will not revoke development permits for PT Agung Podomoro Land (APLN) after the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) named its president director, Ariesman Widjaja, a suspect, following the arrest of a city councilor.
The reclamation project in Jakarta Bay will go ahead. Ahok argued that the reclamation project was based on Presidential Decree No. 52/1995 on the Reclamation of the Jakartas northern coastal Areas. We still refer to a presidential decree and already passed bylaws, the governor said as reported by kompas.com on Saturday.
Pluit City is a planned 160-hectare reclamation project to be developed by PT Muara Wisesa Samudra, an affiliate company of PT APLN.The reclamation permit for G Island (Pluit City) was issued on Dec. 23, 2014, based on Jakarta Gubernatorial Decree No. 2238.
The draft bylaw on the zoning of coastal areas and small islands, which is being deliberated in the Jakarta City Council, would be another legal basis for the development of the project.
Because the draft bylaw has not been approved, it [PT APLN] cannot obtain the building construction permit [IMB], said Ahok.
On Thursday, KPK investigators arrested Jakarta city councilor Mohamad Sanusi of the Gerindra Party and another individual identified as Geri at a shopping mall in South Jakarta.
During the operation, Sanusi and Geri allegedly accepted money from Trinanda Prihantoro, an employee of PT APLN, whose CEO Ariesman Widjaja surrendered to the KPK on Friday evening after being named a corruption suspect.
Ahok claimed the arrest of Sanusi, who is a bother of city council deputy speaker Muhammad Taufik, explained the delay in the draft bylaw approval. I was curious why the approval was delayed. It seems there was blackmail, he added.
Meanwhile, KPK investigators raided several offices at the City Council on Friday and Saturday, including the offices of Sanusi and city council speaker Prasetio Edi Marsudi and Taufik. (bbn)
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Linkedin Markus Makur (The Jakarta Post) East Manggarai, Flores Sat, April 2, 2016
The administration of East Manggarai in East Nusa Tenggara is stepping up the planting of bamboo and mangroves to prevent erosion in river basins and coastal areas across the regency, which has reached a critical point.
Working together with nature conservation group the Flores Bamboo Foundation, the regency administration has increased efforts to plant bamboo in several large river basin areas, such as Waebobo and Waelaku, and cultivate mangroves along coastal areas in southern and northern East Manggarai.
Rokus Jumpa, secretary of the Environmental Management Agency (BPLHD) in the regency, said the administration had last year planted 830 young bamboo trees in the Waemokel river basin area in Rana Mbata village, Kota Komba district.
He said various environmental issues in East Manggarai, including erosion in river basins and coastal areas, were continuing to worsen.
Thus, we are also stepping up mangrove planting in coastal areas along the Flores Sea and in the Sawu Sea National Park. We are cooperating with the local forestry agency to move forward mangrove planting efforts in coastal areas, which are facing erosion, Jumpa told thejakartapost.com in a recent interview.
He further explained that planting trees in river basin areas, coastal areas and on critical land owned by local people in nine districts across East Manggarai were part of the East Manggarai BPLHD's nature conservation programs this year.
Based on our temporary data, there are 20 river basin areas across East Manggarai. We are still updating the data. We are also still in the process of collecting data on environmental issues and business activities with high potential of environment pollution, such as garages and hotels, said Jumpa.
Flores Bamboo Foundation staff member Jefrianto said the foundation had planted around 1,000 young bamboo trees in the Waelaku river basin area in 2016, after a similar number were planted in the Waebobo river basin area last year.
Our foundation has coordinated with the East Manggarai administration to jointly encourage bamboo planting in river basin areas. Bamboo planting is one of main priorities of the Environment and Forestry Ministry, he told thejakartapost.com.
Jefrianto said Flores was widely known as the Bamboo Island because of the prevalence of the trees, both wild and cultivated. Denizens of Flores used to use bamboo as a building material before they knew about stone and wood, he added.
The government should continue to encourage local people to plant bamboo. Currently, they use bamboo but fail to replant it," he said.
An environmental activist from Mbengan village, Norbertus Ndolu, told thejakartapost.com that he had routinely and independently planted bamboo in a river basin area in his village. The activist also claimed he had planted thousands of eaglewood trees, which produce prime timber known locally as "gaharu".
[...] Im ready to work with local people in Mbengan village to plan bamboo trees. I hope the government will support us by providing young bamboo trees, said Ndolu. (ebf)
(lead article)
Working-class alternative to brutality of capitalism
SWP candidates say Join todays struggles
Militant/Mike Shur
NEW YORK The Socialist Workers Party is running against capitalism and its brutal consequences for working people the world over. The Socialist Workers Party campaign is presenting a working-class alternative to everything that capitalism and its candidates, from Trump to Cruz to Kasich to Sanders to Clinton, stand for, said Alyson Kennedy, the partys candidate for U.S. president in the 2016 elections at a public forum here March 25. At the center of the partys campaign is joining struggles that advance the interests of the working class, including organizing unions, opposing police brutality and fighting government frame-ups, she said.
Workers we meet ask, What can we do? Join these fights, and join the SWP. Workers are always going to fight, but to take power we need a revolutionary party forged in struggle well ahead of time. The SWP has a history and continuity going back many decades, said Kennedy.
The event, and a similar meeting the next evening in Philadelphia, kicked off the Socialist Workers Party 2016 campaign in the region. Both programs featured Kennedy and Osborne Hart, SWP candidate for vice president, along with state candidates.
Norton Sandler, SWP chairperson in New York, urged those present to help the efforts over the next two months to put the partys ticket on the ballot in Colorado, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Jersey, Tennessee and Washington state. The New Jersey petitioning drive will begin April 16. These efforts are an important part of protecting the ability of working-class parties to participate in politics, Sandler said.
Kennedy said she had planned to join a picket line at JFK airport for a one-day strike for $15 and a union March 23. But the action was called off by Service Employees International Union officials after the brutal terrorist bombings in Brussels. The SWP is against calling off the class struggle in the name of fighting terrorism, she said. We need these actions. They help defend our political space.
We start with the world, with the interests of working people worldwide. The bourgeois candidates start with America, she added. They dont care about the lives of workers, whether its here or in Syria, where the U.S. government is collaborating with the governments of Russia and Iran to assure Washingtons continued domination and plunder in a part of the world the imperialist powers have carved up over and over again, said Kennedy.
U.S. out of the Mideast!
Although there has been some easing of bombings in recent weeks, the brutality of the war in Syria continues. The Socialist Workers Party demands Washington get out of the Middle East now. Its one more obstacle in the fight against the Bashar al-Assad regime, the greatest enemy of Syrian toilers today, and to the ability of working people in the region to put together the revolutionary working-class leadership they need, said Kennedy.
She described the impact of the world capitalist crisis of trade and production on the lives of workers and farmers, including growing layoffs from the oil fields to railroads. The capitalist class cannot make a high enough rate of profit from industrial production, so they invest in stocks, bonds, hedge funds. You can see these bubbles of speculation spiraling again, like in 2008, said Kennedy.
The Socialist Workers Party candidates point to the need to fight for a federally funded jobs program to put millions back to work.
Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders talk about unemployment, and some capitalist candidates even mention the working class, she said. But they will never point to working people fighting in our own interests as the answer. The SWP is explaining that our class can organize a revolutionary movement and make a socialist revolution, a road forward.
SWP vice-presidential candidate Osborne Hart spoke about why opposing the scapegoating of immigrants, including attacks on Muslims and their mosques, is a life-and-death question for the working class. These are fellow workers, part of the fight for jobs, for unions, for dignity, he said. Unless we approach every worker that way, we cant build a movement to overturn capitalism.
Workers need to build a labor party, based on the unions, that organizes independently of all the capitalist parties, Hart said. We need to act as a class, I dont care what country youre from, what language you speak, what religion you practice.
As the crisis of the capitalist system deepens, there is more pressure on women. The right to control their own bodies is fundamental to womens equality, said Hart, who took part in a March 2 rally in Washington, D.C., to defend womens right to choose abortion.
Return Guantanamo, end embargo
Jacob Perasso, SWP candidate for U.S. Senate, joined Kennedy and Hart on the platform in New York. Perasso is a freight rail conductor for the CSX railroad and a member of United Transportation Union Local 1447, on leave from his job for the campaign.
The SWP calls on working people to demand that the U.S. government return Guantanamo to Cuba, said Perasso, and end the embargo, which is still enforced against the Cuban people. U.S. imperialism has changed its tactics, not its objective to overthrow the Cuban Revolution.
The main thing Barack Obama tried to do in Cuba was ramp up pressure on the Cuban government and push capitalist dog-eat-dog values, he continued. The Cuban Revolution has proletarian values, exemplified by the Cuban Five. In Cuba, as Ramon Labanino explains in the new book The Cuban Five Talk About Their Lives Within the US Working Class, its normal for people to help one another, to cooperate. The SWP points to the need to emulate that revolution as a precondition to building a society based on those values here. SWP campaign supporters will get this book out broadly, to explain what we stand for. (See book specials on page 3.)
You explain what we can do
John Staggs, SWP candidate for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, chaired the March 26 program in Philadelphia, which also celebrated the opening of an attractive new campaign headquarters.
Pennsylvania has the distinction of being one of the top states for deaths due to drug overdoses, said Staggs. The SWP campaign is speaking out about the abysmal failure of the capitalist system to provide health care and jobs for millions.
The other candidates are not for the working class, Cecelie Brown, a Walmart worker who attended the meeting, told Kennedy. Youre explaining what we can do. I like that. Brown met Hart at a protest for $15 and a union last year on April 15. SWP candidates will be joining similar protests being organized in many cities April 14.
Carmen Guerrero, who is active in opposing attacks on immigrant workers in Philadelphia, brought greetings. Delphine Matthews, whose son, Frank McQueen, was killed by police in June 2014, stopped by after a day of leafleting for People Against Injustice, an anti-police brutality group.
Jim Moran, chair of the Joseph Dougherty Legal Defense Fund, also spoke. Dougherty, 74, who was business manager of Ironworkers Local 401, was sentenced last year to 19 years in prison on frame-up charges of racketeering, conspiracy, arson and extortion.
A 10-person SWAT team appeared on his lawn in full battle array. Joe told me all that they had to do is pick up the phone. The case against him doesnt pass the smell test and workers shouldnt put up with it, Moran told the meeting.
Participants in the two meetings contributed $6,841 to the campaign.
Related articles:
We need a workers party independent of capitalists
Who the Socialist Workers Party candidates are
Join in campaigning with the Socialist Workers Party!
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(front page)
Washington backs deal to keep Assad in power in Syria
Secretary of State John Kerry met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow March 24 and agreed to promote a political deal that maintains Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad in power, at least for now. Washingtons aim is to establish stable conditions to defend the U.S. imperialist interests in the region. The deal is combined with a stepped-up U.S. military offensive against areas in Syria and Iraq controlled by Islamic State.
The five-year civil war that began with the Syrian governments crushing of protests against Assads tyranny has been devastating for working people throughout the country. Nearly half a million people have been killed and millions displaced.
The plan promoted by Washington and Moscow involves Assad being part of a transitional governance structure thats under discussion at U.N.-sponsored negotiations involving the governments of the U.S., Russia, imperialist powers in Europe, capitalist rulers in the region, the Assad regime, and some opposition Syrian forces. The Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), which is leading the effort to establish an autonomous federation in the Kurdish-controlled region in northern Syria, is not invited. The next round of talks is set for April 9.
Over the last six months, Russian airstrikes and troops from Iran and its allied Lebanese-based Hezbollah militia have helped Assads forces regain territory in western Syria from opposition groups, some backed by Washington.
As the White House has accepted the Russian governments role in consolidating Assads control over these territories, it has backed away from demanding an end to Moscows threats against Ukraine. The atmosphere during Mr. Kerrys three-day visit [to Russia] appeared better than at any time since Moscows annexation of Crimea in early 2014, the Financial Times noted.
Obamas theory here is simple, writes Jeffrey Goldberg in the April Atlantic magazine. Ukraine is a core Russian interest but not an American one. The president told Goldberg, The fact is that Ukraine, which is a non-NATO country, is going to be vulnerable to military dominance by Russia no matter what we do.
Weakening of Islamic State
The reactionary Islamic State is being weakened in both Syria and Iraq. Its expansion in Libya and its terror attacks against civilians in Brussels are signs of that weakness. While Kerry was conducting talks in Moscow, the Syrian army, backed by Russian airstrikes, took control of Palmyra in central Syria from Islamic State March 25. Many of the citys ancient ruins have been destroyed since the jihadist group seized the city in last May.
Russian strikes have also aided the Syrian regime in making gains against Islamic State in the city of Bab, near Aleppo in northern Syria, and parts of Raqqa province, where the groups de facto capital is located.
Washington is continuing its operations throughout the region as well. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said March 25 that U.S. special forces had killed a top Islamic State commander, Haji Imam, in a raid that week. And a U.S. airstrike killed at least 40 people in Yemen March 22 at what Washington said was an al-Qaeda training camp.
Backed by forces from the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, Iraqi government troops recently retook four villages in Nineveh province. The area is about 40 miles from Mosul, Iraqs second-largest city, which Islamic State seized in June 2014. Washington is trying to build up a local ground force to recapture it. Its unclear whether Iranian-backed Shiite militias will play a role in such an operation; the Kurdish forces oppose their involvement.
Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said March 25 he is recommending an unspecified number of additional U.S. troops be sent to Iraq as part of the effort to retake Mosul. Officially, the number of U.S. troops in Iraq is capped at 3,870, but there are already nearly 5,000 on the ground, according to the Military Times.
Syrian Kurds set autonomous region
In mid-March the PYD, together with representatives from Arab, Assyrian, Turkmen and other groups, voted to establish an autonomous federation known as Rojava in the Kurdish-controlled areas in northern Syria. Kurds an oppressed nationality living in Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey have been fighting for a homeland against imperialist powers and local capitalist rulers for a century.
The move was opposed by both the Assad regime and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Washington also expressed concern about Kurds in the northwestern area of Afrin, Syria, taking action against Islamic State that would expand their control of areas further east along Turkeys border.
The Kurds now control some two-thirds of Syrias 560-mile border with Turkey. The Turkish rulers fear the gains won by Kurds in Syria, along with an autonomous regional government in northern Iraq since the early 1990s, will inspire some 15 million Kurds living in Turkey in their fight for self-rule.
Round-the-clock curfews in Kurdish cities of Turkey since August 2015 continue with full force, said a statement issued by the Kurdish-based Peoples Democratic Party (HDP) in Turkey March 23. Entire towns have been razed to the ground by heavy military offensives, while hundreds of thousands of Kurds have been forced to evacuate their homes.
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(front page)
Oregon ranch land protesters could be tried in 2 states at once
In a decision that makes a mockery of the constitutional right to legal counsel, a federal judge March 22 ruled that Ammon Bundy and six other participants in the January occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon could face prosecution in separate cases in both Oregon and Nevada at the same time. They are part of a group of 26 people indicted for their roles in the non-violent occupation.
Bundy organized the occupation to protest the jailing of Harney County, Oregon, cattle ranchers Dwight and Steven Hammond for a second time on the same frame-up charges of arson and to draw attention to federal policies often in the name of protecting endangered species that are driving many small ranchers and farmers off the land.
The seven face frame-up charges ranging from conspiracy to impede a federal officer to possession of firearms and dangerous weapons in federal facilities in connection with the Malheur occupation. After those charges were filed, they were then indicted on similar criminal charges, along with 12 others, for joining an April 2014 protest in Nevada that blocked federal agents from confiscating 400 head of cattle belonging to Cliven Bundy, Ammons father.
In her ruling, U.S. District Judge Anna Brown in Portland, Oregon, said that Ammon Bundy, Ryan Payne and the others could be sent to Nevada April 13 to be arraigned there and then returned to Oregon within 10 days.
Paynes attorney in Nevada, Shari Kaufman, told the judge she cant have meaningful preparation with her client with constant shuttling back and forth.
Federal prosecutor Craig Gabriel said its not the governments doing if the trials are simultaneous, but the fault of the accused for their part in crimes that were committed here and in Nevada.
This is not a fair fight, Ammon Bundys attorney, Mike Arnold, said by phone March 24. There are teams of FBI agents working around the clock. They have unlimited resources. Because the defendants have little money, we have to get permission from the court to hire a single investigator.
The point of the prosecution is to make an example of them and to chill future protests, Arnold said.
While opinions on the wisdom of the Malheur occupation are mixed, opposition to the frame-up of the Hammonds is widespread among small ranchers, farmers and other working people in rural areas of Oregon and beyond.
A lot of people thought Ammon went about it the only way he could, given that other avenues to win justice for the Hammonds had all been exhausted, Harney County rancher Erin Maupin told the Militant. Others support the sentiment 100 percent but thought he went about it the wrong way. And there are some people in town that think it was evil. Maupin and her husband, who grew up with Steven Hammond, have a small ranch with 350 mother cows.
Dwight and Steven Hammond, father and son cattle ranchers, had a running dispute with federal land agencies that for years have wanted them to sell their land to expand the Malheur refuge.
In April 2014 they were found guilty of arson under the 1996 Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act. They had set controlled fires on their own land a common practice by ranchers and federal land agencies alike to combat invasive juniper trees and block wildfires. The government says this burned a tiny amount of federal land.
The judge imposed sentences of three months for Dwight Hammond and one year for Steven Hammond. Prosecutors successfully appealed, saying that under the 1996 act the required minimum sentence was five years. The Hammonds returned to prison Jan. 4.
Small ranchers change their views
I used to support mandatory minimum laws. It came across as do you want murderers and rapists running around, Maupin said. And then you see it applied to the Hammonds.
Every step we take were told by our political representatives that theres nothing anybody can do for the Hammonds, she said. That we have to change the mandatory minimum laws for the next person.
Weve been pretty sheltered out here, Maupin added. What boggles my mind is how the media twists everything around. Maupin was one of hundreds of ranchers that attended community meetings during the occupation. She is widely known for speaking out for the release of the Hammonds. Then Id go home and watch the TV news report and it was like they were at a different meeting than I was.
On Jan. 26 Oregon State Police and the FBI ambushed and killed Robert LaVoy Finicum, a leader of the occupation, and arrested Bundy and others who were on their way to a community meeting 100 miles from the refuge.
After Finicum was killed, the FBI kept up highway roadblocks for two more weeks. Some ranchers report being stopped, thrown on the ground and handcuffed with the FBI pointing automatic weapons at them before letting them go.
Because of these experiences many ranchers and other working people are changing their views. Maupin used to see people protesting police brutality in big cities as rioters. But now I wish that LaVoys family and the mothers and wives of people killed by the cops in New York could communicate and see that they have something in common.
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Cuba anti-Zika fight shows difference revolution makes
Before there was one case of Zika, a mosquito-borne virus, in Cuba the revolutionary government began organizing to combat it. In February President Raul Castro issued a Call to our people to join the efforts of health care workers, unions and other mass organizations to keep mosquitos at levels that are not dangerous.
In the U.S. colony of Puerto Rico, however, government officials have almost given up the fight before it has begun. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told the New York Times they expect a quarter of Puerto Ricos 3.5 million people will get the disease within a year.
The Zika virus has spread to 32 countries in the Americas. It is transmitted by the Aedes mosquito, which also carries dengue and the chikungunya virus.
Zika came to international attention when news broke that it was linked in Brazil to an outbreak of microcephaly an abnormally small head in infants of pregnant women who catch the virus. There are 508 confirmed cases with the birth defect in Brazil and may be as many as 3,900. Some 1.5 million Brazilians have been infected with the virus.
Cubas response is graphic proof of the difference a socialist revolution makes. In Cuba health care is not a business with the central goal of maximizing profit but a human right and central priority of the entire society.
In his call, Castro announced that 9,000 soldiers and army officers, both active duty and reserve, and 200 police officials, had joined the effort to eliminate breeding grounds as well as fumigate at workplaces and in residential areas, both inside and outside.
Soldiers, health workers and student volunteers have being going door to door to educate people on how to prevent the disease and to eliminate stagnant water, trash and other conditions that allow the mosquitos to breed.
In Mayabeque alone, more than 1,500 medical students are going door to door, reported Juventud Rebelde.
In Havana more than 9,000 members of the Federation of University Students and 1,200 members of the Federation of High School Students have been part of the day-to-day effort.
We check 30 houses a day, first-year medical student Diolexis Torres Salabarria told the paper. We explain the precise health measures, the causes and symptoms of Zika, chikungunya, dengue and yellow fever, as well as other tasks that contribute to a clean and healthy city.
Students from around the world who are studying medicine in Cuba have joined the effort.
Ive learned a lot, above all how to find the breeding grounds of Aedes, said Caetano Zumba, from Angola. In Cuba the training is not just theoretical, but practical. This will be a big help when I return to my country.
In some parts of the country, the anti-Zika teams have faced some resistance. Most people cooperate, Manuel Angel Sobrino Prado, a health care worker in Cienfuegos who fumigates house to house, told Juventud Rebelde. But there are always those difficult cases.
In Sancti Spiritus, more than 3,335 fines have been issued to people and workplaces that dont eliminate stagnant water or leave out garbage. The focus of the effort is on raising consciousness about the risks, Norma Martin Alonso, a government worker there, told the paper, but fines are issued for repeat offenders.
The revolutionary effort is paying off. As of March 25 there were only seven cases of Zika in Cuba, most in people traveling from other countries.
Puerto Rico heads to disaster
Under colonial rule Puerto Rico, in contrast, is heading for a disaster. Health officials reported March 28 that there are 350 confirmed cases of Zika, including 40 in pregnant women, with 100 new cases last week.
Under the impact of the capitalist economic crisis, thousands of Puerto Ricans have been immigrating to the United States. Abandoned homes abound, many with birdbaths, pools and unsealed septic tanks. Many schools have no air conditioning or even window screens. Thousands of government workers, including health care workers, have been laid off in massive budget cuts.
The response in Puerto Rico has been lackluster at best. The government did move 900,000 used tires, potential mosquito breeding grounds, away from residential areas.
With no plan to wipe out the mosquito, install screens at all the schools, or systematically fumigate homes, officials there say they will focus on pregnant women.
About 5,000 pregnant women have attended lectures on Zika at government-operated clinics.
At one class of seven women attended by a New York Times reporter, the clinic had already run out of kits it was supposed to give to participants with insect repellent, a mosquito net and condoms the disease can also spread through sexual contact. It had only received 30.
Im not going to oversell this, Dr. Johnny Rullan, a special Zika adviser to the governor of Puerto Rico, told the Times. Its not a perfect world. Well do as much as we can.
Related articles:
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We need a workers party independent of capitalists
MINNEAPOLIS David Rosenfeld, Socialist Workers Party candidate for U.S. Congress here, joined a March 26 protest of 400 people demanding prosecution of the two cops who killed 24-year-old Jamar Clark in November.
It seems like were back in the 50s and 60s with the way the cops act, Oscar Day, a blues musician, told Rosenfeld.
I think persistent actions like this and others around the country have increased the number of prosecutions of killer police in the past year, responded Rosenfeld.
Day told the candidate, I dont know who Im voting for, but Im definitely not voting for Trump. Maybe having a woman president will make another war less likely.
Both the Democrats and Republicans are the bosses parties, Rosenfeld said. The challenge for the working class is to stop looking to them to solve our problems. We need to organize a political movement that is independent of the capitalists. Day decided to buy the book Is Socialist Revolution in the U.S. Possible? and a copy of the Militant.
A day earlier Rosenfeld joined hundreds of supporters of the right of women to choose abortion outside the Vandalia Street Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Paul. They were countering the yearly Good Friday rally by opponents of abortion rights.
Who the Socialist Workers Party candidates are
John Staggs, U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania
John Staggs, 69, was born and raised on a farm in Illinois. He participated in fights against foreclosure and for government-funded cheap credit and price supports for working farmers.
He took part in civil rights movement struggles of African-Americans and their supporters in the 1960s and 70s.
A Walmart cashier, Staggs is part of the fight for $15 an hour minimum wage, full-time work and a union for fast-food, Walmart and millions of other workers. Staggs has used his campaign to support and join rallies and picket lines of Steelworkers who were locked out for seven months by Allegheny Technologies Inc., and of workers at ArcelorMittal and U.S. Steel fighting against concession contract demands.
Staggs is an opponent of Washingtons imperialist wars in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere. He calls for protests against the US-backed Turkish bombing of Kurdish fighters in Iraq and Syria and assaults against Kurds inside Turkey as well.
A supporter of the fight against police brutality, Staggs has joined protests against the killings of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, Eric Garner in New York, Frank McQueen in Chester, Pennsylvania, and others.
Staggs joined the 2015 Philadelphia march celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and backs continuing fights to win equality and access for those with disabilities, including millions of veterans maimed by Washingtons wars.
Seeking to expand the space for working people to organize and fight from the picket line to voting rights Staggs used his 2006 campaign for State Assembly to successfully overturn a Pennsylvania loyalty oath law barring ballot status to communists and other opponents of U.S. government policies.
Jacob Perasso, U.S. Senate in New York
Jacob Perasso, 39, is a freight rail conductor for CSX railroad and a member of United Transportation Union Local 1447 in New York. He grew up in a working-class neighborhood in San Jose, California. As a 19-year-old student there he witnessed the cops cover up the killing of an unarmed worker on the block where his family lived. Perasso joined the fight to jail the cop and has been part of similar struggles ever since, including the case of Mohamed Bah, killed by police in Harlem in 2012.
As a high school student Perasso became active in struggles to defend immigrants from deportation and other forms of victimization. He joined the Young Socialists in 1996 and the Socialist Workers Party three years later.
Over the past two decades, Perasso helped organize activities in defense of Cubas socialist revolution, demanding an end to Washingtons strangling embargo and the return of Cuban territory at Guantanamo. He was part of the successful international campaign to win the release of the Cuban Five revolutionaries framed up and imprisoned by Washington for defending their country against violent attacks organized from south Florida.
Perasso is using his campaign to speak out in defense of rail workers Tom Harding and Richard Labrie, who face frame-up charges for the deadly oil train wreck that killed 47 people in Lac-Megantic, Quebec. The 2013 disaster put a spotlight on the disregard of the bosses and government regulators for the safety of workers on the railroad and the communities near the tracks. Perasso opposes bosses efforts to cut train crew size and he points to the need for strong unions to enforce safer working conditions.
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Local hotels, government in pact for marine, turtle conservation
The Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation, in collaboration with the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources and business partners, hosted The Marine Turtle Nesting Site Conservation and Rehabilitation Project and the grand opening of The Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation, an on-site Turtle Shelter and Education Centre located at JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa, on March 23.
By The Phuket News
Saturday 2 April 2016, 03:48PM
On this occasion, the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Gen Surasak Kanjanarat, participated in the event along with Phuket Vice Governor Dr Prajiad Aksornthammakul and parties. The event welcomed the Honorary Chairperson of The Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation, Mrs Katherine Heinecke, and the executive management team of Marriott International, Mr Carl Hudson, Area Vice President of Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia and Japan and Mr Oriol Montal, General Manager of JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa.
The successful event was a great opportunity to officially launch the grand opening of The Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation, also known as the turtle shelter and education centre, opening its doors to the public as well as marking the special occasion of the Mai Khao Marine Turtle Conservation Declaration signing ceremony among 10 hospitality operators, and three government sectors including Anantara Mai Khao Phuket Villas, Anantara Vacation Club Phuket Mai Khao, Dvaree Mai Khao Beach, Holiday Inn Resort Phuket Mai Khao, JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa, Maikhao Dream Villa Resort and Spa Phuket, Marriott Vacation Club Resort, Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa, Sala Phuket Resort & Spa, Baan Maikhao Phuket by Sansiri, Mai Khao Subdistrict Administrative Organisation, Phuket Marine Biological Centre, Sirinath National Park and Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation. A total of 19 turtle were released back to the Andaman Sea as a significant gesture of the special occasion.
I am very honoured to be here today to represent the Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation at the Turtle Shelter and Education Center Grand Opening. I was personally involved with this project when it started 14 years ago when we had a very large leatherback come and lay her eggs in front of the hotel during the hotel opening time, I am very happy to report that she was back again last year laying more eggs. Together with the PMBC, IUCN, our partners and local community we have spent 14 years protecting the turtles of Mai Khao and educating people about their plight.
We are very excited to have signed a new Turtle Declaration for Mai Khao and will be working with all of the hotels in Mai Khao in a strategic manner to further positively impact the conservation of turtle and the amazing beauty of this natural area we call Mai Khao.
The private sector partners are working closely together to sustain this project financially long term so that we can continue to welcome nesting turtles back to Mai Khao.
We are hugely proud and excited about the opening of our on-site turtle and education center where we can share our resident turtles with the community, guests and schools, said Ms Heinecke.
Declaration of Marine Turtle Conservation at Mai Khao Beach
1) The association realises the state of the threatened marine turtles at Mai Khao Beach and is also aware of how important turtle conservation is. Thus, it initiates a joint action for the restoration of Mai Khao Beach as marine turtles habitat and nesting site in Thailand and the region.
2) The association will abide by an ecofriendly strategic effort for the marine turtle and its environment upon the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources code of conduct of turtle nesting ground management and also the Indian Ocean South East Asias MoU.
3) Hospitality operators will promote and create the economic mechanism to support marine turtle conservation activity at Mai Khao Beach.
4) Local authorities will promote and support the participation of the public for the preservation of relevant local traditional culture regarding the marine turtles at Mai Khao Beach.
5) Sirinath National Park performs an effective protection for the marine turtles nesting site and habitat and promotes the participation of owners for turtle conservation and management in its own property.
6) Phuket Marine Biological Centre (PMBC) is doing scientific research, monitoring and assessing the status of marine turtles at Mai Khao Beach as well as providing technical advice to the association.
7) Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation is acting as a coordinator in promoting and supporting collaboration among the associations.
Under this declaration, the association will conduct an annual meeting to stimulate Mai Khao turtle conservation programme into an evident success.
Phuket commercial fishing operators warned to obtain new 2-year 'E-license' or else face stiff penalties
PHUKET: The Phuket Fisheries Department has warned commercial fishing operators who fail to comply with new licensing regulations of harsh penalties, including fines of up to B30 million.
marinenatural-resourcesenvironment
By Suthicha Sirirat
Saturday 2 April 2016, 02:43PM
A Fisheries official shows what the new temporary 'E license' document and QR Code look like.
A meeting yesterday (April 1) at the Phuket's Sapan Pla fishing port was told that the new fishing license requirements, which stipulate that all operators of commercial fishing vessels equal to or larger than 10 gross tonnes, must possess a new E-license from April 2, 2016, or else face stiff penalties.
Presided over by Mr Pisanu Na-anan of the Phuket Fisheries and Mr Yosathon Chaleewan of Phuket Muang District's Fisheries office, the meeting was attended by representatives of the province's main commercial fishing operators.
The new two-year licenses, which will all expire on March 31, 2018, are part of the government's latest efforts to regulate the fishing industry so as to to ensure sustainability of the Kingdom's dwindling marine resources.
Previous paper commercial fishing licenses, which were due to expire by the end of the Thai fiscal year, on September 30, 2016, are no longer valid and must be replaced by the new two-year E-license, explained Mr Pisanu.
Fishermen who applied for the new license have all been issued a temporary license, which they must possess every time they go out to fish, otherwise they willface harsh penalties under the new regulations, explained Mr Pasanu.
Mr Yosothon Challewan went on to explain that as part of the new regulations stipulated in the Fisheries Act of 2015, the Fisheries Department are now implementing the 'e-license' system to replace the old paper licensure system (for natural resource commercial prospecting activities, including fishing) known as "Achaya Butt.
The new E-licenses will be issued to commercial fishing vessels weighing 10 tonnes gross and up. Each of [these] vessels must have the respective permits for commercial fisheries equipment and must obtain its own fisheries marking by no later than April 30, 2016 reiterated Mr Yosothon.
As part of the new E-license protocol every vessel with a fishing license will be giving a QR Code, to be attached to the vessels control room, along with a marking, to be written at the front part of the vessels hull.
(See this explanation posted by the Royal Thai Embassy in Warsaw for more specifics.)
Mr Yosothon noted that in Phuket Province, the Fisheries Department have issued new commercial fishing licenses to 303 vessels already, which is in line with the Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) allocated to the province's fishing sector.
According to Section 129 of the Fisheries Act of 2015, any commercial fishing vessels caught operating without the correct license face fines of between B100,000 and B30 million, in addition to seizure of fishing equipment and tools, and immediate halting of the vessel and evoking of [any of its] licenses, he said.
According to Agriculture Minister Chatchai Sarikulya, a total of 10,666 commercial fishery operators had applied for the new fishing licenses from among a total of 11,237 documented commercial fishing vessels.
Unauthorized fishing activities in Thai waters in both the Gulf of Thailand and Andaman Sea may also be subject to criminal charges, Minister Chatchai warned.
Phuket teacher sets off for charity motorbike ride around Thailand, aiming to cover 5,000km in 10 days
Hamant Manjit Singh, English Teacher and Coconut Club Coordinator with the Phuket Has Been Good To Us (PHBGTU) Foundation will be taking on a special trip and challenge this April during the Thai school holidays.
By The Phuket News
Saturday 2 April 2016, 10:13AM
Hamant seen here with some of the kids from PHBGTU in Kamala.
He is going to ride 5,000km in 10 days along the border of Thailand in order to raise money for PHBGTU. He already has over B70,000 pledged from friends in Singapore, and hopes to spread news about his journey and raise even more. Here, The Phuket News speaks with Hamant about the trip.
Tell us about yourself and how you got involved with PHBGTU
I am a Singaporean English teacher with PHBGTU in Kamala. Ive been teaching overseas since I graduated and I love engaging with new cultures and people. I have now been teaching for close to five years in Southeast Asia. I love exploring the region and I find that I learn more with each passing year. My other interests include film, hiking and swimming. I first came across PHBGTU when I returned home from Vietnam. I had spent some time in Singapore before discovering the foundation on the internet. Through the modern communicative conveniences that the internet allows, the interview process was both smooth and successful! I have been teaching in Phuket for 10 months now and I am proud and happy to say that I will be here for another year at least.
What inspired you to do this motorbike ride?
Charity was never really my sort of thing to be honest and I mostly just wanted to focus on teaching. Being with the foundation and experiencing the backgrounds that the children come from has opened my eyes to want to do more. I now understand how important giving back is especially if the gift youre giving is education; no one can take that away from them. If the children can go the extra mile for education, then so can I!
Can you tell us your specific route, and how you determined it?
The initial idea was to do a border ride around Thailand and after several weeks of streamlining and re-configuring plans, I settled on the following route. It will be a tenday journey that begins at the school where the children live and ends at Phuket Bike Week on Patong Beach:
Day 1 - 36th Rajaprajanugroh School to Prachuap Khiri Khan
Day 2 - Prachuap Khiri Khan to Nakhon Sawan
Day 3 - Nakhon Sawan to Mae Hong Son
Day 4 - Mae Hong Son to Chiang Rai
Day 5 - Chiang Rai to Loei
Day 6 - Loei to Ubon Ratchathani
Day 7 - Ubon to Chanthaburi
Day 8 - Chanthaburi to Samut Songkhram
Day 9 - Samut Songkhram to Prachuap Khiri Khan
Day 10 - Prachuap Khiri Khan to Phuket, with the ride ending at Phuket Bike Week 2016(See map)
What kind of motorbike will you use, how much do you anticipate your costs to be?
I will be using a Honda Click 110-cc Scooter (fuelinjection) for the duration of the ride. Costs consist mostly of hotels, gas refills, food and on-the-road maintenance, for both my vehicle and the safety car that will follow. The estimated costs of the ride are about B25,000 for the entire 10 days.
Anything else you want to share with readers before your trip?
Id like to urge everyone to be part of this ride by contributing an amount, however small through the various avenues for donations:
a) Online at https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/a13qe7
b) Through our Paypal account, info@phukethasbeengoodtous.org
c) Via cheque by mail or in person addressed to 80/14 Moo
3, T.Kamala, A. Katu, Phuket, 83150 Thailand
Together, we can give the underprivileged children of Kamala a chance for a better tomorrow.
The Phuket Newswishes Hamant a safe journey and looks forward to catching up upon his return
How to watch and what to know about South Dakota State at North Dakota
So Canada is back, is it? Who says so? And who is advising this new Trudeau government on foreign policy? Then again, isnt that Stephen Harper I see slipping furtively in through Parliaments side door?
In spite of increasing criticism both at home and abroad, Canada seems determined to go ahead with the largest arms export contract in the countrys history, to Saudi Arabia, one of the worst human rights violators in the world.
Once again, we see the triumph of profit over human rights, and pragmatism over principle. I thought those days were over. Didnt Canadians vote last October to get rid of Harper in an effort to open a new chapter for Canadas role in the world?
At issue is a controversial 14-year, $15-billion arms contract with Saudi Arabia, a deal brokered by the former Conservative government and supported by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion says it is in the countrys interests to go ahead with the deal.
Here are five reasons why Dion and Trudeau are wrong:
1. Canadians oppose it
The view of Canadians on this issue is rarely mentioned but it should be. In a poll taken in February by the Angus Reid Institute, 48 per cent of Canadians said the governments determination to go ahead with the deal was a bad decision. Fewer than one-in-five (19 per cent) supported it. The view extended across party lines. Even among those who voted for Conservatives in the 2015 election, the majority opposed the deal. Also striking in the poll was the hostility among Canadians toward Saudi Arabia. More than half of Canadians say that the Saudi government should be condemned rather than respected.
2. Canada is being bought off
Perhaps the sharpest criticism of the deal has come from a man who now works in Dions office. Jocelyn Coulon wrote a column for Montreals La Presse newspaper a few weeks before joining Dions staff. He wrote that Western countries stifled their criticism of Saudi Arabia because of money: For a long time now, Saudi Arabia has bought the silence of Westerners with its juicy civilian and military contracts. He wrote that the Saudis purchase billions of dollars of unnecessary armaments from Western manufacturers, but its armies barely know how to use them.
3. Saudi Arabia is an awful regime
The Washington-based Freedom House ranks Saudi Arabia as among the worst of the worst human rights violators in the world. The Saudi regime receives similar condemnations from Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. Freedom of speech, freedom of association and academic freedom are restricted. And its treatment of women is regarded as the worst in the world.
4. Canadian arms are undoubtedly killing innocent people
Canada claims not to know whether any of the armoured vehicles already sent to Saudi Arabia have been used against civilians. There is also no indication that Canada has made much effort to find out. In 2011, Saudi troops with armoured vehicles were sent to neighbouring Bahrain to crush the popular protests. More recently, Saudi Arabias violent efforts in the war in Yemen have been devastating, with more than 6,000 people already dead. Reports from the war suggest that Canadian-made vehicles are being used by the Saudi army.
5. Canadas arguments have no moral core
Dion said in a speech this week that cancelling the Saudi deal would have no effect on human rights. The Saudis would simply go elsewhere for their arms. Louise Arbour, former UN high commissioner for human rights, was in the audience for the speech. She correctly told reporters that Dions point was the weakest argument he could make: It is not infused with moral, ethical values.
Another influential critic is former Liberal justice minister Irwin Cotler. An acclaimed law professor and human rights lawyer, Cotler has stated that Canada should not sell arms to a country with such a pattern of human rights violations.
In the face of all this criticism, how long can the Liberals cling to their position?
Tony Burman, former head of CBC News and Al Jazeera English, teaches journalism at Ryerson University. Reach him @TonyBurman or at tony.burman@gmail.com .
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The past 40 years have seen an unprecedented increase in the number of obese adults worldwide, climbing to about 640 million from 105 million in 1975. If the current trend continues, about one-fifth of adults will be obese by 2025.
The rate has more than doubled for women and tripled for men, according to a new analysis published in the Lancet. Under the present trajectory, the chance of meeting a goal set by the World Health Organization to halt the increase over the next decade is, according to the study, virtually zero.
Behind the global spike is greater access to cheap food as incomes have risen. Its been very easy, as countries get out of poverty, to eat a lot, and to eat a lot of unhealthy calories, said Majid Ezzati, the studys senior author and chair of global environmental health at Imperial College London. The price of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains are often noticeably more than highly processed carbohydrates, he said.
A person who has a body-mass index (BMI) higher than 30, or weighs at least 92 kilograms and is 5 feet 9 inches tall, is considered obese. The world populations average weight has increased by about 1.5 kilograms per decade since 1975, the researchers estimate. Excess weight raises the risk of diabetes, heart disease and other chronic conditions.
Governments need to prepare for the jump in medical costs that accompany unhealthy weight and focus on prevention now to avoid higher costs in the future, said Bill Dietz, director of the Sumner M. Redstone Global Center for Prevention and Wellness at George Washington University.
They should be as nervous as a cat on a hot tin roof about the tsunami of diabetes thats coming their way, Dietz said. The cost of this rise in the prevalence of obesity is going to be staggering.
Working under the banner of the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration, Ezzati and hundreds of colleagues from around the world gathered data from surveys that measured the height and weight of 19 million adults. They then used statistical methods to estimate trends in global and national weight patterns from 1975 to 2014.
The main take-away? Excess weight has become a far bigger global health problem than weighing too little. While low body weight is still a substantial health risk for parts of Africa and South Asia, being too heavy is a much more common hazard around the globe.
For women, this transformation took place many years ago. Obese women have outnumbered those who are underweight for more than a decade, according to the Lancet analysis. For men, being underweight was still a bigger problem until about 2011. Adults are considered underweight if their BMI is below 18.5, or weighing less than 56 kilogramsfor someone 5 feet 9 inches. In 1975, more than twice as many people were underweight than obese.
Ezzati said the trends are related. The issue really comes down to people either not having enough to eat or not having enough healthy food to eat, he said. It becomes a manifestation of the same problem.
No government has found a way to stop rising obesity, though some are trying. Mexico, with almost two-thirds of its population overweight or obese, enacted a national tax on sugary beverages in 2014, the first large country to do so. An early evaluation suggests the peso-per-litre levy steered soda sales lower. Ezzati said the world also needs to focus on making more healthy foods competitive with cheap, processed foods. To me, how to change the price of good things is perhaps the bigger question going forward, he said.
The Lancet analysis also estimates an alarming rise of extreme cases of obesity. The global rate of severe obesity, or BMI over 35, is on pace to surpass 9 per cent in women and 6 per cent in men by 2025. That category now includes 39 million adults in the U.S. In 1975, it was 4 million.
Meeting the WHO target of halting the rise in obesity by 2025 will require action of monumental proportions, Boyd Swinburn, a professor of population nutrition and global health at the University of Auckland in New Zealand, said in an email. The goal is likely to be impossible for adults but may be feasible for children in some countries, he said. The increase in obesity has been steeper in low- and middle-income countries compared with wealthier ones where the epidemic started early and rose more slowly, Swinburn said.
The rich world can blunt the health impacts of unhealthy weight with drugs to help control diabetes, harmful cholesterol, high blood pressure and other health consequences. Health systems in the developing world may not be equipped to do the same. Are they prepared to deal with downstream effects as we enter this situation of severe obesity? Ezzati said.
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Google Donald Trump, and it wont be long before the f word comes up.
The word is fascist. And its back in a way that hasnt been seen for years, as opponents grope for a term that matches the repulsion that a majority of Americans feel for The Donald.
Former Mexican president Vicente Fox has all but called Trump a fascist and used another f-word for his proposed border wall.
Historian Fedja Buric compared him with founding fascist Benito Mussolini. And New Republic editor Jamil Smith said it straight out: yes, Donald Trump is a fascist.
Trump even went too far for tub-thumping far right radio host Glenn Beck, who lumped him with Adolph Hitler in 1929, on ABC-TV.
But those who have made an academic study of fascism say although Trump and his Coalition of the Chilling may share some of the characteristics of past fascists, the jaw-jutting reality star doesnt quite squeeze into the classic 20th-century mould.
The issue isnt merely of interest to academics or tabloids. For although Trump may so far fall short of a strict definition of fascism, his frequent switchbacks, unpredictable policy lurches and apparent fondness for violence leave serious questions about the direction he might take his campaign, and the country.
Were all eager to explain him, says historian David Greenberg of Rutgers University. But the phenomenon will look very different if he wins, loses heavily in the fall, or doesnt get the nomination. We dont know how this movie ends.
Roots of fascism
Some analysts rule out direct comparisons with the past.
Trump is fundamentally a blustering political opportunist courting votes in a democratic system, argues Gianni Riotta of Princeton Universitys French and Italian department, who grew up in a country that was still in Mussolinis shadow.
(Trump) has not called for the violent overthrow of the system itself, he wrote in the Atlantic. The fascists who marched on Rome in 1922 were relentlessly, violently focused on a clear goal: to kill democracy and install a dictatorship.
Mussolini himself known as the father of fascism was a practitioner of political opportunism who switched from ardent socialist and workers advocate to repressive anti-socialist, ally of wealthy capitalists and the Catholic Church.
He came to power through military muscle and political manoeuvring and made himself the supreme strongman of a nation seething with discontent and laid low by war, poverty and unemployment.
Although Trump may share some of Mussolinis pretentions, says Kevin Passmore of Cardiff University, author of Fascism: A Very Short Introduction, it does his critics no favours to apply the label that is the linguistic equivalent of the nuclear option.
Fascism is the ultimate insult, he says. The problem is that if you obsess over the term you can easily miss the importance of what is actually happening now. Trump doesnt have to be a classic fascist to be dangerous.
Individual vs. nation
One of fascisms main goals is an ironhanded, all-controlling state that reaches into citizens private lives, the opposite of Trumps individualistic rhetoric.
Trumps blaring views on immigrants, Muslims, Hispanics, Mexicans, women and violence against dissidents are similar enough to fascism to send shock waves through a Republican party that has tried to keep them sotto voce. But Mussolinis rants were amped up by a strident Italian fascist party.
Fascism opposed individualism in favour of the national interest, and supported the kind of military expansionism that Trump recently told the Washington Post he rejects, in spite of promises to make America great again. He claims to favour downsizing U.S. military presence overseas and reviving an isolationism that appeals to libertarians as well as pacifists.
But even in its heyday, in the 1920s to 1940s, fascism was a slippery term to define, representing a grab-bag of often competing interests.
Even fascists couldnt agree on who is fascist, Passmore says. Some avowed fascists identified with the free market, others trade unions. Corporations and businesses embraced fascism but opposed state control. Monarchists were in the fascist fold, but paid homage to Il Duce.
The scene was further complicated by the rise of Adolph Hitler and German Nazism a term often used interchangeably with fascism, but with differences as well as similarities. Hitlers Third Reich was a predominantly racist state that personified ethnic cleansing.
Trumps rhetoric has echoes of fascism but springs from expediency rather than ideology, says Columbia University historian Robert Paxton, a leading chronicler of fascism.
Superficially he seems to have borrowed a number of fascist themes, he writes in Project Syndicate. Xenophobia, racial prejudice, fear of national weakness and decline, as well as readiness to suspend the rule of law to deal with supposed emergencies.
But he adds, in spite of Trumps hectoring tone, his qualities are at most derivative of fascist themes and styles; the underlying ideological substance is very different, with the entitlements of wealth playing a greater role than fascist regimes generally tolerated.
The perils of Trumpism
If Donald Trump isnt a classic fascist, should we all just relax and enjoy the wild ride?
The chorus of nos rings louder by the day, as Trump claws his way up the political ladder to the July Republican leadership convention. And the voices are resounding across the political spectrum.
The argument about whether Trump is a fascist or not is really a diversion, says Henry Giroux of McMaster University, author of America at War With Itself. He is an authoritarian who terribly threatens democracy.
He adds, Trump is the result of a long series of attacks on democracy, and now the real divide is between those who do and dont believe in democracy.
The U.S. has a complex political system, and has so far avoided the violent demagoguery that overran Europe in the 20th century. But the authoritarian vein runs deep in the American body politic, and can quickly rise to the surface, warned Sinclair Lewis in his eerily prophetic 1935 novel It Cant Happen HereIt Cant Happen Here.
In it, a charismatic populist politician wins the presidency on promises of making America great and by taking advantage of public disillusionment and anger against government. It doesnt end well: the plutocrats take over in a reign of fascist-style racism, repression, fear and violence.
Trumps wildfire rise is uncomfortably close to Lewiss fictional vision.
Trump takes you partway toward fascism by playing on xenophobia and race hatred, its cardinal elements, says Todd Gitlin, a Columbia University professor of journalism and sociology.
There is a lot of nativist feeling today, and I can imagine circumstances in which a sense of wild panic grows and Trump drives people wilder. A big terror attack, another economic meltdown. Growing race friction from incidents leading to black riots or white recoil.
With a number of Trump supporters devoted to guns, Gitlin says, I could imagine armed confrontations.
When I started watching old films of Mussolini rallies I saw a lot of dangerous echoes, warns historian Fedja Buric of Bellarmine University in Kentucky. No. 1 is dismissiveness of democratic institutions, with promises made not on policy but personality. Trumps machismo appeals to angry white men.
Second, he stokes racial animosity and calls for violence. He cant go as far as Mussolini, because in America hed be arrested. But theres the same rhetoric about making the country great again.
Is Trump exaggerating?
How far a President Trump would go in office is still a moot point. Some supporters scoff at his public rhetoric as strategic blanks fired by a shrewd deal-maker who is targeting only votes.
His lack of coherent policy has kept analysts scratching their heads over his real intentions.
I would say he has authoritarian qualities, says David Greenberg of Rutgers University, author of Republic of SpinRepublic of Spin. But I dont think he would brazenly defy the law and the constitution in using the power of government to punish enemies. We flirted with that in (President Richard) Nixon. But Trump hasnt shown himself at that level.
Nevertheless, a spark once ignited has unpredictable consequences, especially in the dry tinder of a country that has lost faith in the much-touted American Dream and is looking for someone to punish for it.
Not surprisingly, Mr. Trumps politics of hate is now metastasizing into violence, says Peter Wehner, a veteran of three Republican administrations.
On social media in particular, one sees how he gives his supporters permission to express dark and ugly sentiments that existed before but were generally kept hidden from view, he wrote in the New York Times.
A strongman stalks
But says Giroux, the Republican partys extremists have quietly fanned the flames and the party is now afraid that the house will burn down. Nor will the danger go away if Trump is defeated.
Trump is about a number of things that have been present in the party for 30 years. Islamophobia, resentment of Mexicans, an appeal to the past that is romanticized in white nationalist terms.
Massive inequalities of wealth have left many angry and powerless. A culture of fear has created enormous mistrust and sense of vulnerability. Democratic education has failed. And theres a sense of radical individualism that makes it impossible to translate personal into public issues.
Although Trumps rise is painful to some Republicans, says Wehner, his high-profile support within the party makes things even worse.
Americas founders devised a system that has kept authoritarian leaders from power, he points out.
But we have never before faced the prospect of a political strongman becoming president. Until now.
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This is a column on diversity, a laudable quality in any workplace, beerfest or indeed public washroom. It always has been admirable but it took Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to actually start doing something about it. Hes all action, that man. The rest of us, not so much.
Yesterday, sick with fever and doing that fatal thing, noodling around weird bits of the Internet I diagnosed myself as having lung Glanders with aspects of asbestosis, but the doctor says no and came across a photo of myself on the Ryerson Review of Journalisms website. To my surprise, it was under the headline The Unbearable Whiteness of Canadian Columnists.
I am so steamed at you, Ryerson. What a travesty, what a canard. It is perfectly bearable being Scottish, which I half am. In fact, thats the essence of Scottishness, that it can be endured, no matter how painful, joyless, banal. Do your worst, I can take it, says the Scot.
Ryerson did its worst, as it also has in its spring 2016 magazine edition which contains the hypocritical headline Because It's 2016: An Unflinching Five-Part Look at Diversity. The blog post had dozens of photos of grim-looking newspaper columnists, and almost all were white. To be honest, I was the palest person there but maybe I was having a bad day that summer of 2010 when the photo was taken.
It then occurred to me that the Review had discovered, possibly by reading, that my late father was from India. So it was using my Anglo-Indian face to make a different point, equally repellent. Review editor Kat Eschner politely, indeed kindly, told me her team had made a fair attempt to show a variety of Canadian columnists. They didnt say everyone in the 24 blog mug shots (about 35 in the GIF) was white and they were not, she said, making any statement on [my] identity.
But they were. They didnt use words, just called us all bags of faulty skin and asked readers to pick favourites. (Note: I will not say POC.) So am I a splendidly colourful columnist, a sort of wee Toronto Star brooch, or the human equivalent of a kilt and bagpipes?
Why were there no captions? Or even catchphrases?
Personally I think I deserved a Just about right under my photo. I see the Globes European analyst Eric Im almost Italian now Reguly, my Toronto Sun pal Lorrie What, not Jewish enough? Goldstein, Globe analyst Barrie I hate dairy supply management McKenna, and of course, Margaret You can say that again! Wente.
I am diverse. I contain multitudes. In fact, I am diversity incarnate. When it comes to race, Im practically transgender, which is cool right now. Wait, thats close to a compliment and my mother trained me never to accept such trinkets. We are not put on this earth for pleasure, she would sigh. But my dear father disagreed.
I just bought a chair at Design Republic. You already have a chair, my mother says. Buy two, says my fathers ghost. Youre not paying $95 for delivery, my mother says, shocked. My brain makes grinding hern hern noises.
My dad was all about enjoying life, saying yes to everything. I love men like that. I understand that stale, pale and male is a problem for most institutions, including Ryersons journalism department, but I spent my career being hired by these good humans. Why didnt the Review go after editors and their unbearable choices instead of the recipients of their largesse?
I love Ryerson, good old polytech that it was. It trained me, gave me a goal. But I could not make the Review understand that it had insulted/flattered me for something beyond my control. Here I sit inflattered, guilted, flinsulted.
Anti-racism can take strange turns. Witness the ongoing shaming of the dark actor Zoe Saldana for not being dark enough to play Nina Simone in a biopic. I dont like commenting on skin as it always makes me think of Nazi lampshades. But what it really reminds me of is South African apartheid which so hideously rated coloureds and bloodlines.
But fair enough, Ryersons journalism department, lovely people all, posts photos online of its teaching staff, including faculty, adjuncts, contract lecturers, etc. There are 49. How many appear to be white? About 44.
The total includes six who have chosen not to be photographed, appearing instead as an area maple tree. Its the same tree. Ryerson doesnt even have deciduous diversity. I asked the Review to check my math, which takes five minutes, but didnt hear back.
All this is unfair to writers. What matters most is talent, and whether columnists nailed by the Review have it is beyond my remit. The blog post itself lacked the most necessary thing, a fresh angle on this ancient tangled problem, and that made me sad.
But Im Indian. I can laugh. And Im Scottish. I can take it.
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Re: The troubling message from the Ghomeshi trial, Opinion March 25
Re: Consent is still the key, Editorial March 25
Re: Time to drop distinct crime of sexual assault, Opinion March 29
Re: No justice for anyone with Ghomeshi verdict, March 26
Re: Id fail the Ghomeshi courtroom test too, March 26
Re: Judge shreds the three women as he finds Ghomeshi not guilty, March 25
Re: Ghomeshi trial proves one thing: we need a different system, March 25
Jian Ghomeshi is not guilty and thats that. The verdict delivered by Judge William Horkins was based on a careful examination of the truth behind the complainants accusations and that gives me assurance in our legal system.
The shame brigade, as columnist Rosie DiManno put it, does not represent the interests of victims of sexual assault, whether it is men or women; neither does it represent the attitudes and opinions of many women in general.
The deportment of the protesters in front of the Court House on March 24 was deplorable. The topless woman displaying the message, Women declare Ghomeshi Guilty does not represent my values as a woman.
Sexual assault is a serious problem. Lucy DeCoutere and her followers have turned it into a farce, and done nothing but a huge disservice to real victims who may need to seek justice in the court of law. DeCoutere and her followers need to stop blaming our legal system, Judge Horkins, Marie Henein, the police, and the Crown for her own downfall.
The case is over. Victims of sexual assaults should not be scared away by this case. Instead, lessons could be learned about how best to prepare oneself for trial.
Libuse Balogh, King City
The justice system is in need of a major overhaul in terms of how it deals with cases of sexual assault. Victims of sexual assault should be treated with respect and dignity and not blamed for their assault. Memory, particularly over an extended period of time, can be fickle and unreliable.
Having said that, lets respect real victims of sexual assault and not demean them by referring to the three complainants in the Ghomeshi trial as victims. Each one of them maintained a connection with the accused, either by words or actions, after the alleged assaults (as much as a year after).
The three complainants, singly or collectively, lied, fabricated evidence, knowingly omitted evidence and conveniently forgot what they so blatantly communicated in emails and letters.
That they should become poster women for real sexual assault victims is a travesty.
A.H. Shearer, Toronto
The troubling message from the Ghomeshi trial, Opinion March 25
Its obvious that Anna Leventhal did not read the judgment of Justice Horkins as she totally missed his message. Justice Horkins understood that victims of violence have complicated reactions to assaultive behaviour. He also knew that witnesses testifying to historical offences may have lapses of memory.
His real message was that navigating the criminal justice system is really quite simple: tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Witnesses must do so to the best of their ability, from their initial complaint to the police right through to the trial.
This means answering fully direct questions put to them by police in initial investigations, not suppressing obviously relevant evidence, and not fraternizing with other witnesses so their evidence might be tainted by collusion.
As Justice Horkins wrote, the harsh reality is that once a witness has been shown to be deceptive and manipulative in giving their evidence, that witness can no longer expect the court to consider them to be a trusted source of the truth.
The system does work. Witnesses need only heed the real message of the Ghomeshi decision and the potential for a conviction will improve.
Marion Lane, Toronto
As Anna Leventhal so clearly wrote, sexual assault is about violence. It is an assault. She also asked, if the three women had remembered every detail, would that have changed the judgment?
I stand with these three women. I have four daughters and one granddaughter. This is personal. The law has to change. What would the Supreme Court say?
Elinor Egar Reynolds, Halifax, N.S.
As a lawyer and father of five daughters who has lived through the helpless hell of one of them being doubly victimized by flaws in our criminal justice system relative to the onus of proof on issues of capacity and consent, I nevertheless have to decry the outrageous conclusion drawn by Anna Leventhal as to the message to be drawn by sexual assault survivors from the Ghomeshi verdict: be a good victim.
Nothing could be further from the truth. The message to be drawn goes much more directly to the heart of our process of criminal adjudication: if a victim is called to testify under oath, he or she should tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. In other words, be a credible witness whatever your evidence is.
Hypothesis-saving drivel does nothing whatsoever to help victims or further the cause of the reforms to our criminal justice system in the area of sexual assaults that are both necessary and possible.
That the Star descended to publishing such a misguided article is regrettable in the extreme.
Alfred Apps, Toronto
Consent is still the key, Editorial March 25
Consent is not the key in the difference between rape and sex, any more than it is the key between kidnapping and having someone over to your house, or between a holdup and giving someone a gift.
By your and the judges definition, a battered woman who stays with her batterer was not really beaten; someone who develops Stockholm Syndrome was not really kidnapped; and someone who has been sexually or racially harassed but who does not quit their job was not really harassed. Their continued presence would be proof of their consent, and thus the absence of a crime.
Force, coercion, power differences, fear, extortion, cultural expectations and a host of gendered and other social factors are also relevant in determining the difference between crimes and ordinary social interactions.
Karen Wendling, Guelph
Soul searching is not enough. The odds of these three women making this conspiracy up is laughable. The system needs to change to work for the victims that we have, rather than the imaginary victims that we would like to have. The system needs to change to ensure cases like this are prosecuted successfully and the Star needs to be active in pushing for that change.
Jason Dumelie, New York, N.Y.
Time to drop distinct crime of sexual assault, Opinion March 29
After reading Reid Rusoniks article, I had tears in my eyes. Never has anyone so succinctly cleared up my many and conflicting thoughts about this subject, and the Ghomeshi case in particular. Mr. Rusonik writes like a man with heart and soul, and I thank him for his insights.
Sharon Riley, Niagara Falls
No justice for anyone with Ghomeshi verdict, March 26
I disagree with Edward Keenan. There is, it turns out, considerable justice with the Ghomeshi verdict.
Start with Keenans question in the first paragraph: Was anything at all resolved to anyones satisfaction by that trial? To my satisfaction, a great deal was resolved by that trial, the most important element of which being that Judge William Horkins, in his written decision, ruled, in no uncertain terms, that the Canadian criminal justice system does not allow criminal defendants to be convicted on falsified statements to police and collusion among crown witnesses, both of which were clearly present in this case.
That, as a prominent defense attorney covering the trial pointed out, is a significant victory in itself, not just for Ghomeshi, but for all accused.
The mind boggles as to how Keenan could possibly view such an outcome as a failure of the criminal justice system when in fact it was a resounding affirmation of exactly how the criminal justice system in this country is supposed to work.
K. Alan Fenton, Toronto
Contrary to Mr. Keenans opinion, justice was served in the Jian Ghomeshi trial. While Mr. Ghomeshi is not a bastion of virtue, the legal process, represented by a very competent representative, Marie Henein, exposed the alleged victims also as graduates of the same moral and ethical institution.
Justice Horkins is to be commended for doing an outstanding and professionally responsible job with full awareness that womens activist organizations would take the position that the law is broken should the verdict not be to their liking.
According to Blair Crew, an expert in sexual assault law at the University of Ottawa, delayed disclosure of evidence and the credibility of the witnesses were key in the case.
One is innocent until proven guilty and in the case of Mr. Ghomeshi this was not the situation. He was tried in the media before the case was presented to the courts and a verdict given.
Douglas M. Thom, Oakville
Id fail the Ghomeshi courtroom test too, March 26
There is a stark, paradoxical contrast in how our public institutions interpret the idea of a woman attempting to normalize and thereby defuse her relationship with a man who has degraded or abused her.
On the one hand, Dalhousie University dental schools Facebook fiasco last year showed why women may attempt to rebalance a toxic relationship. Dalhousie actually facilitated the women students to assist the adult male classmates who had degraded them. Turned out it was the womens job, after all, not only to process the betrayal and complete their own exams, but to introduce the men to difficult new concepts, such as respect and professionalism, so they could graduate on schedule.
On the other hand, and perhaps paradoxically, Judge Horkins excoriated the Ghomeshi witnesses for their clumsy attempts to normalize their relationships with the accused after the incidents as described.
But all things considered, these witnesses were lucky: at least they werent ordered to do unpaid community service with Ghomeshi, explaining to him why assaulting women is bad.
Polly Thompson, Toronto
If the Jian Ghomeshi produced any good it was to emphasize once again the difference between law and justice. Law is a process whose application may or may not produce justice. We do not have courts of justice, but courts of law, supported, and occasionally restricted, by arcane rules of procedure.
A practitioner of law should not be styled as Justice Judge Smith, rather Law Judge Smith. A Minister of Justice in a government is a Minister of Law. Justice by definition is never flawed, only denied at times in a court of law.
These objective descriptions would help the protesting public understand the sometimes bizarre judgment rendered by a court.
Raymond Peringer, Toronto
Although the Crown prosecutors case was ill-prepared, the other most disturbing part of the trial was that Ghomeshi was never put on the stand to give his version of events and face cross-examination. A basic premise of law should be that if Ghomeshi had done nothing wrong, then he should have nothing to fear by testifying on his behalf and thereby clearing his reputation.
In such a highly sensitive and controversial case, the judge should have the discretion to compel the defendant to testify. This did not happen for a few reasons, one of which is that our criminal justice system is outdated and broken, requiring some much-needed reforms.
That Ghomeshis accusers were ill-prepared and under a cloud of microscopic cross-examination, while Ghomeshi was exempt from cross-examination, is a clear example of how the criminal justice system works against women.
Robert Ariano, Scarborough
I cannot sympathize with these women. Why should they be allowed to resurrect Ghomeshis alleged assaults when they were quite prepared to forgive them and pursue what might have been an even more violent relationship with him? Theres only so much you can do to protect people from their own bad decisions.
Mirek A. Waraksa, Toronto
Why do accused persons have the right to not take the stand in their own defense? Shouldnt they be required to give evidence in their own words instead of hiding behind a lawyer? Wouldnt this be a fair and even ground on which to base the evidence being considered?
If the court seeks to determine with [an] acceptable degree of certainty what is true and what is false, how is this done with such unfair acceptable practices?
Mrs. Marva Chung, Mississauga
It was indeed a sad and humiliating result for the victims. However, by lying and distorting the facts, the result could not have been other than it was.
Frances Weingarten, Toronto
The attack on the legal standing of alleged victims of sexual violence brings to my mind the treatment of rape victims in Saudi Arabia. In that country, in a surreal reversal of rationality, rape victims are routinely punished for having brought violence upon themselves.
The reasoning, if one may call it that, is that the victim put herself in a situation where she was defenseless against the perpetrator. This is usually based on her having been outside the home without the requisite male accompaniment. Thus, courts grant her no legal standing, and she finds herself severely punished.
Make no mistake, the Ghomeshi verdict is a reactionary counterattack against years of progress in protection of victims of sexual violence.
Al Eslami, North York
Ghomeshi is probably guilty of being a creep, but based on the evidence he was obviously not guilty of what he was charged with. The system worked, as well as any system made by fallible human beings, can work. We should not change it, because an ideologically based social media hate campaign demands that we should.
Marcus Shields, Brampton
The Ghomeshi trial offers useful lessons: the phase between the alleged offense and the sworn statement to the police is critical. We need to support women getting physical evidence (rape kits, drug tests, etc.) as soon as possible, give them the right to have this evidence held without charges laid until they are ready to proceed (to protect women in relationships, and to give them time to get some perspective on the events), and provide support for women to strategically prepare their sworn statement.
The justice system is a battlefield, not a warm hug of compassion. This case progresses our collective understanding of how we can assist women to use this system more effectively.
Andrew Bray, Toronto
Now that Ghomeshi has been found not guilty, could we have him back at CBC Radio, hosting Q? Please.
Kathy Millard, Toronto
Society often tolerates misbehaviour and bullying from celebrities, pop intellectuals and other cads. Yet, whether consented to implicitly or not, Ghomeshis rough play wound up shaming, if not traumatizing, three women, and he is paying dearly for it. Do you think its cheap to hire a lawyer like Marie Henein?
Ron Charach, Toronto
Law school 101 states that a lawyer should never ask a question to which he/she doesnt already know the answer. Only one set of lawyers in this case did their homework. The cross examinations in this trial were right out of an episode of Perry Mason. The credibility of the complainants was shattered beyond any reasonable doubt resulting in the only credible, legal and correct verdict.
Rob Cowan, Toronto
Judge shreds the three women as he finds Ghomeshi not guilty, March 25
This headline is disturbing and misogynistic. The judge didnt shred the women. He shredded their testimony. Your readers deserve objective and respectful reporting. In this case, we didnt even have to read between the lines, we just had to read your front-page headline. Shame on you.
Donald Fernandes and Debra DSouza, Keswick
Had this been a trial by jury and not a judge, might the outcome have been different? Just a thought.
Joseph Wright, Oshawa
Rosie DiManno tells us that a verdict of not proven guilty . . . doesnt exist in jurisprudence. She appears to have overlooked Scots Law. There are three possible verdicts in a Scottish criminal case: guilty; not guilty; and not proven.
James Hunter, Toronto
Anna Leventhal wants an accused man to speak to the accusations of an assault against a woman. If he does not do so, the only way to obtain his evidence is to sue him in the civil courts where he will be subject to questions under oath by her on discovery before trial and, if he gives evidence, cross examined at trial.
The test for whether the woman was assaulted is not the criminal test beyond a reasonable doubt but rather a lesser civil test on a balance of probabilities. The man and the woman are subject to the same legal test in both criminal and civil cases to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Willson McTavish, Mississauga
Once again women are told how they should behave. And reprimanded for not obeying the rules of engagement. And so the violence continues.
Iva MacCausland, Woodstock
The cringe-inducing spectacle women raked over the coals and humiliated; a man protected in cloak of silence, asked no questions must change. If Justin Trudeau is a feminist, this is his opportunity to act, to change the system.
Judy Steed, Toronto
It is not often that life events can be put into categories of strictly black and white. Most of lifes events are nuances of multiple shades of colour.
Upsetting as it may be with regards to the Ghomeshi trial, it is not all that surprising if one had done even a small amount of listening to the women and their version of events.
A good defense would not be very good if it allowed comments to go unchallenged, especially when there is evidence that disputes the version of events as remembered, lo, these many years later. That is not shocking. Time rarely stands still, events and circumstances change.
Join all the marches and protests you want but it does not alter the verdict; it does not make it black and white, good conquers evil, etc.
Catherine Hetu, Merlin
Ghomeshi trial proves one thing: we need a different system, March 25
Catherine Porter advocates for an alternative system for trying cases of sexual assault. We have many groups of people who feel that the justice system lets them down or puts them at a disadvantage people of colour, native people, the poor, etc. If this reasoning is followed, we will end up with a multiplicity of systems to accommodate everyones concerns.
The current system is not perfect, but the answer is not to create more specific courts with different standards and procedures. Instead we must review very carefully the existing system and make reforms that address the concerns of all parties.
Adam Quinan, North York
I understand the outrage over the Ghomeshi trial, but I think it should be directed at the Crown prosecutor who did a terrible job. The judge had little choice, given the very bad case presented.
Bruce Nagy, Toronto
I am a female senior now, but at age 19 when attacked at business, I acted vigorously and fought back. The women in this case were actually complicit, at least at the beginning, in not instantly fighting and using common sense in ending all contact. They were poor examples of womanhood.
Lets hope that any young women viewing and reading about this case are wiser than those who were involved.
Shirley Bush, Toronto
How silly of me. I thought Jian Ghomeshi was on trial, not the victims.
Charles Dickens was right: The law is an ass.
Mignon Elkins, Toronto
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Secretary of Education John King announced that a new wave of student loan write-offs were being approved by the Department of Education (ED). The March 25 decision came as EDs special master, Joseph Smith, delivered his third report on borrower defense claims, paving the way for more than 8,800 additional loan discharges from former Corinthian College students, to the tune of $130 million.
The announcement was venue was significant. Rather than hold it at ED headquarters in Washington, it took place in the Boston office of Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey. Healy, along with other state attorneys general and some Senate Democrats, have pressured the Obama administration to more provide debt relief to former Corinthian students with a view toward expanding similar relief to other colleges. Those who want to file student loan relief claims must download a form at the Departments Website (www.ed.gov).
Through these important partnerships with states attorneys general, we are pleased to offer relief to Corinthian students who were defrauded, said King. We will continue to take action to protect students and taxpayers from unscrupulous companies trying to profit off of students who simply want to better their lives.
Healey said ED's decision was completely unprecedented in terms of how many borrowers would get student loan make-goods in one fell swoop.
At the same time, advocates for people with student loans were concerned about what the future holds when the Obama administration leaves town. Healy said that clear rules were needed that govern federal loan forgiveness going forward. Negotiation over such rules shut down in mid-March, when an ED rule-making panel could not come to an agreement on when people with federal student loans can have their debts forgiven on the grounds that they were defrauded or misled by their schools. Ambitious proposals, such as restricting the use of mandatory arbitration clauses in school enrollment contracts or a requirement that financially dodgy schools post letters of credit went by the boards.
Ironically, ED is now free to promulgate its own rules on these issues. But advocates for people with student loans are concerned about getting this done before a new administration takes office next year. There is a tight timeline to get these rules finalized before the end of the Obama administration, Healey said.
Special Master Smith's report suggest the borrower defense to repayment (BD) claims have increased this year and are becoming a part of the higher ed landscape--one that may not be easy to roll back. More than 1,000 federal loan borrowers attending the Art Institutes, owned by Education Management Corporation, and 344 ITT Tech borrowers have asked the department to cancel their loans. Initially, ED wanted to tamp down a debt relief tidal wave.
Smith said in his report that "[t]he Borrower Defense Team and I are working diligently on these matters. I believe that we are proceeding in a way that will serve the interests of distressed borrowers and taxpayers and that will promote public trust.
The Department's expansion of its findings of Corinthian misconduct to include additional campuses, as noted in the Special Master's Report, should mean more former Corinthian students will have a clearer path to relief, but critics say it doesnt go far enough. "This is certainly a positive step, said National Consumer Law Center attorney Abby Shafroth. But the Department is still not acting on or even offering guidance as to what process, standards and timeline it will use to review the application of borrowers who attended schools other than Corinthian.
Montreal, CA (H4T1V6)
Today
Partly cloudy this morning, then becoming cloudy during the afternoon. High near 65F. Winds light and variable..
Tonight
Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low around 50F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%.
Members of Iraqi security forces place flowers at the site where the tent of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr was inside the heavily guarded Green Zone, in Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, April 1, 2016. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim, Pool)
Donald Trump says his decision to stand behind his campaign manager, who was charged in an altercation with a female reporter, is a sign of loyalty a trait that Trump has displayed, for better or worse, through much of his career.
The Republican presidential candidate said in an interview that he wouldnt have accepted Corey Lewandowskis resignation even if it had been offered. But he also seemed to acknowledge that hes had a difficult week leading into what could be a crucial primary in Wisconsin Tuesday.
When asked whether Lewandowski had offered his resignation at any point this week, Trump replied, Well Id rather not say, but it wouldnt have mattered.
When I looked at that tape, I said Im just not going to hurt this man by doing something that should not be done, he said in a brief phone interview with The Associated Press Thursday evening.
Lewandowski was charged with simple battery, accused of grabbing a Breitbart News reporters arm after a press conference, an encounter that was captured on surveillance footage. And that was just the start of a difficult week for Trump, who was already under fire for comments about rival Ted Cruzs wife.
The Cruz incident Trump said the Texas senator started it prompted new concerns about Trumps ability to appeal to female voters in the general election. So did the Lewandowski episode, which brought calls from rivals to fire the man who has been a driving force for Trumps unorthodox campaign.
Then came a town hall taping on Wednesday, where Trump was asked whether abortions should be illegal and whether women should be punished for having them if they are. His answer, that there has to be some form of punishment drew quick criticism and then an unprecedented written reversal from the typically unapologetic candidate.
That was followed by polls that show him trailing Cruz in Wisconsin, a state that will help determine whether Trump can emerge from the primaries with enough delegates to avoid a contested convention.
Asked whether he was having a difficult week on the trail, he sounded resigned. But he also found a bright side, pointing to events in Wisconsin that were packed with supporters.
He has repeatedly framed his decision to stand by Lewandowski as a sign of loyalty and a demonstration that he will not give in to outside pressure.
Folks, look, Im a loyal person. Im going to be loyal to the country. Im going to be loyal to Wisconsin, he said at a town hall event.
Trump stressed that theme in the interview. Its so important, he said. And its one of the traits that I most respect in people. You dont see it enough, you dont see it enough.
And its a two way street. I really expect them to be loyal to me, he said. Its a very important element, is trust.
Trump has often said that, if he has a fault, its that he trusts too long and reacts to slights too harshly. He rarely gives second chances.
I trust too long, then I never, ever forget, he says.
And Trump has indeed shown a history of standing by people who may have been easier to dump.
Roy Cohn, his longtime lawyer and friend until his death, for instance, was a controversial figure who was the chief counsel for Sen. Joseph McCarthy during the red-scare days of the 1950s. Cohn later became a political wheeler-dealer, and he faced disbarment proceedings in the 1980s.
Cohn was eventually disbarred, but Trump was among the people who testified as character witnesses for him, according to accounts at the time.
Trump has also maintained relationships with others, despite shady dealings, including Felix Sater, a man he named as a senior business adviser in 2010 despite his previous conviction in a Mafia-linked stock fraud scheme.
A more upbeat story involves Brian Baudreau, who started working for Trump back in 1987 as a security officer at Trump Tower in New York. He was eventually promoted to personal security for Trump and his family a job that included serving as a personal limo driver to Trumps then-young kids.
When Trump needed someone to oversee development of a hotel project in Las Vegas, he could have hired an outside expert. Instead, he turned to someone he knew and trusted: Baudreau.
I probably wouldnt have been able to do that anywhere else, said Baudreau, who is now the managing director of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas.
I just feel that loyalty is a very, very important part of life, not only of business but of life, says Trump.
On the other hand, he appeared to blame his Iowa staff when he said publicly that he hadnt had a robust enough ground operation in that early caucus state.
And Sam Nunberg, a former Trump adviser, was fired by the campaign back in the summer for racially charged social media posts. Nunberg is now supporting Ted Cruz, but he worked with Trump and Lewandowski for months before his departure.
He says that Trump is generally a very loyal, caring employer who rarely fires people, despite his former Apprentice persona.
(AP)
The horse racing industry is planning to launch a new pooled betting business to take on the Tote.
Key players including The Jockey Club, Racehorse Media Group and a number of individual racecourses, have set up a joint steering group to investigate the plans. Talks have been held with technology suppliers and overseas betting organisations.
The steering group also plans to enter talks with the rest of the UKs 60 racecourses as well as leading betting shop chains such as William Hill and Ladbrokes, which offer Tote betting products in their shops.
Rivals: The racing industry tried several times to buy the Tote during the sale process early this decade
The Tote, which was set up as a state-sponsored betting operation by Winston Churchill in 1928, was privatised in 2011 and sold to bookmaking business Betfred.
The sell-off gave the new owners an exclusive licence to offer pooled betting in the UK until 2018. Rather than gambling on fixed odds, pooled betting involves gamblers putting stakes into a single pot with returns then paid out to winning bets. The bigger the pot, the bigger the winnings available.
Racecourse Media Group represents the media rights of 34 racecourses across the UK, including Ascot. The group also includes the 15 courses owned or operated by The Jockey Club.
A spokesperson for RMG said: Racecourses are beginning to explore a range of options for what happens when the current Tote exclusive licence expires and that will include discussions across the sport as part of that process. Racecourses want racing to have a pool betting service that delivers for racegoers, punters and the sport.
The racing industry tried several times to buy the Tote during the protracted sale process early this decade, but was rebuffed by the then Labour government. The industry then supported a bid by former British Airways chief executive Martin Broughton, but that also lost out to Betfreds 265 million offer.
Bets: Gamblers stake an average of 5million a week on the Tote
However, sources close to racing denied that this was about revenge, saying: The industry would have liked to have bought it at the time, but it was a bungled sale and the Government didnt want to split the shops from the pool business.
We think that a racing-owned Tote would return more money to racing as well as revitalise a product which is looking rather old and tired now.
Any operator of a rival Tote would have to set up a corporate entity, decide on a brand for the new business and get the correct licences from the Gambling Commission, which regulates the industry.
Betfred declined to comment other than to say: We are not in a position to comment at this stage.
However, sources said that Betfred believes it has stuck to promises it made during the Tote takeover and returns 13.5million a year to racing more than the 9million pledged.
The new tax year begins on Wednesday, bringing a raft of changes for pensioners, landlords, savers and workers. The Mail on Sunday explains what is happening and how it affects you.
Looming changes: The new tax year begins on Wednesday, bringing a raft of changes for pensioners, landlords, savers and workers
PENSIONS
STATE PENSION
A new state pension applies to men born on or after April 6, 1951 and women born on or after the same day in 1953. It is worth 155.65 a week, but an individual could get more or less than this amount.
The sum depends on your National Insurance contributions. You need 35 qualifying years to get the full amount. Each year adds 4.44 a week. Anyone with less than ten years gets nothing.
Those who contracted out of the State Second Pension (and its predecessor Serps), with the contributions going to a personal or workplace pension, will also see a deduction from their starting sum.
If your contributions to the State Second Pension mean you have already built up an entitlement of more than 155.65 a week, the excess will be paid as a protected payment when you draw the pension. But from Wednesday the sum cannot rise further even if you add more qualifying years before reaching state pension age.
Meanwhile, those already receiving a state pension under the old system will see the amount rise by 2.9 per cent to 119.30 a week for a basic pension. The income is taxable.
We have challenged Pensions Minister Ros Altmann on state pensions read about it here.
PRIVATE OR WORK PENSIONS
The total amount any person can save tax-free into private and workplace pensions over their lifetime will be cut from 1.25million to 1million, which includes the tax relief on contributions added by the Government.
Protection is available for those who have already accrued the lifetime allowance or are close, to shield them from a surprise bill. Those who have hit 1million can apply for protection in July, allowing them to protect their pot up to a value of 1.25million.
A pension saver who had 1.25million accrued by April 5, 2014 can apply for protection of up to 1.5million until April 5, 2017. For final salary schemes, the equivalent pension pot is usually calculated as 20 times the annual amount payable on retirement, plus any lump sums.
INHERITED PENSIONS
Lump sums from an inherited pension, typically one passed on by a spouse to their widow or widower, are no longer subject to a 45 per cent death tax for the over-75s.
Instead, a beneficiary pays tax at their usual rate of income tax.
TIPS: Anyone needing pension and retirement advice including those affected by the shrinking of the lifetime allowance can use the websites unbiased and VouchedFor to find expert advisers on the subject or get guidance from The Pensions Advisory Service at pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk call 0300 123 1047.
To get a state pension statement visit the website tax.service.gov.uk/checkmystatepension, call 0345 3000 168 or write to: The Pension Service 9, Mail Handling Site A, Wolverhampton WV98 1LU.
SECOND HOMES AND BUY-TO-LET
STAMP DUTY
As of Friday homeowners buying a second home have been liable to higher rates of stamp duty in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The supplement is three per cent on top of existing rates.
Different rates apply to the portion of a propertys value that falls into each stamp duty band. For a property worth 250,000, a landlord would pay 3 per cent on any value up to 125,000 and 5 per cent on any sum between 125,000 and 250,000. This means a total stamp duty charge of 10,000.
By comparison, a buyer purchasing the same property as their main residence and who do not own another property would pay just 2,500.
The Scottish version of the tax the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax also adds 3 per cent of the propertys value to purchases of second homes.
Pay day: Maike Currie at Fidelity Personal Investing recommends income funds
WEAR AND TEAR
Landlords who own furnished properties will no longer be able to use the wear and tear allowance. The norm was to deduct 10 per cent of rental income before calculating what tax to pay on profit.
This was to allow for repairs and replacements of fittings. Under new rules only actual costs for furnishings and appliances can be deducted, including the costs for disposing of old items. The new rules do not apply to furnished holiday lettings.
TIPS: Investment house Fidelity says some customers who tapped pension pots last year, when rules for doing so were made more flexible, did so to invest in property. But such plans might seem less appealing now, and it could be time to put money elsewhere in Isas and funds, for example.
Maike Currie, at Fidelity Personal Investing, says: Retirees like buy-to-let as it offers the prospect of monthly income and underlying growth in capital values so youre arguably going to be looking for an investment which offers income and growth. The Henderson UK Equity Income and Growth Fund, as its name suggests, focuses on just this. Cautious investors wanting monthly income could look at the Jupiter Distribution Fund.
Currie also warns about drawdown drifters retirees who take a tax-free lump sum from their pension but drift into income drawdown for the remainder without checking the investment choices or how money is diversified.
She says: Countless retirees make the mistake of taking their tax-free cash lump sum and then doing nothing. Make sure underlying investments are in line with retirement goals. Pension income needs to last.
SAVINGS AND INVESTMENTS
DIVIDEND ALLOWANCE
Investors receiving dividend income from shares held outside a tax-friendly wrapper will be able to receive up to 5,000 a year tax-free.
For earnings higher than this, basic-rate taxpayers pay a rate of 7.5 per cent. For higher rate taxpayers it is 32.5 per cent and for those in the additional rate band it is 38.1 per cent.
PERSONAL SAVINGS ALLOWANCE
Income from bank and building society accounts is currently taxed at 20 per cent at source, with higher and additional rate taxpayers having to declare any extra owed on their tax returns.
But from Wednesday a new personal savings allowance scraps tax on savings income up to 1,000 a year for basic-rate taxpayers and 500 a year for higher rate taxpayers. Those in the highest tax bracket get no allowance. Banks and building societies will no longer deduct tax at source and Revenue & Customs will collect the tax it believes is owed by adjusting an individuals tax code.
Holding off: Hannah Maundrell urges caution on new peer-to-peer Isas
ISAS
Long-term savers can meet their annual Individual Savings Allowance of 15,240 before Tuesdays end of tax-year deadline, and add a maximum 15,240 from Wednesday.
This is also when peer-to-peer Isas become available, expanding on the existing choice of cash Isas or stocks and shares alternatives. Known as innovative finance Isas, they allow investors to shelter profits from loans to businesses and entrepreneurs from the taxman.
The annual allowance can be ploughed into any combination of the three Isa types.
TIPS: Not all peer-to-peer companies planning to offer the new Isa have the permission needed from regulators to launch straight away.
Hannah Maundrell, editor of consumer website money.co.uk, says: I would urge savers to bide their time and wait for more providers to launch the new-style Isas as and when they get permission.
And you do need to make sure you understand how these accounts work before you part with your cash.
TAX
NEW TAX BANDS
Workers tax-free take-home pay known as the personal allowance rises by 400 to 11,000 from April 6. The level at which earners are tipped into the 40 per cent tax band rises to 43,000. Any employees aged 25 or over will be guaranteed a new national living wage of at least 7.20 an hour.
CAPITAL GAINS TAX
This is the slice of any profit that goes to the taxman when assets such as shares, property or possessions are sold. Adults have an allowance of 11,100 a year before tax is owed, in addition to profits sheltered from tax inside an Isa or pension.
Capital gains tax rates will fall this week from 28 to 20 per cent for higher rate taxpayers, and from 18 to 10 per cent for basic rate taxpayers. But buy-to-let property is exempt so landlords selling up must pay the old rates of tax.
TIPS: Use all tax-free allowances both before and after the new tax year. Pension savers should pay what they can, particularly those earning more than 150,000 a year, whose annual allowance will taper from Wednesday, from 40,000 to as little as 10,000.
Gifts of up to 3,000 a year can also be given without inheritance tax being payable when the donor dies.
Sebastian James, chief executive of Dixons Carphone, has spent the past few years fighting off Amazon. Now he has a stark warning for the grocery market: Amazon is coming for you next and it doesn't care about making a profit.
'Why is Amazon getting into the food market?' asks the boss of the group that owns Currys, PC World, Dixons Travel stores and Carphone Warehouse. 'Does it really think it can make money by selling food online? Definitely not. It's all about how it can get its customers more and more addicted to Amazon Prime and the rest of the Amazon story.
'Amazon doesn't want to make money out of food, whereas every-body else does and that could make it a threat for big supermarkets.'
The write stuff: Sebastian James at HQ where employees can sign their names on a wall
The theory that Amazon might buy online food retailer Ocado, aired in stock market chatter earlier this year, has piqued his interest.
'The question is, can Amazon get to significant scale in the food market and can it do so without making a big move? If it were to acquire Ocado, suddenly it would have unlimited capital, unlimited market-ing budget and a fantastic brand. That could be quite uncomfortable for existing players,' he says.
Amazon's global sales are $107billion (75billion) a year but it appears to shrug off the need to make a profit. It has decimated the bookselling market and many electrical chains have closed in its wake. It has also been widely criticised for the amount of tax it pays in the UK compared with other retailers.
James's comments will be music to the ears of Ocado's chief executive and online food retailing evangelist Tim Steiner.
But not to big chains such as Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury's, already engaged in an historic price war with German interlopers Aldi and Lidl.
Dixons Carphone has undoubtedly benefited from the collapse of its main rival, Comet, in 2012. But Sebastian James or 'Seb' as he is known to employees of the 6.5billion turnover electricals group, who can write their names on a wall at its head office in Acton, West London knows a thing or two about withstanding competitive onslaught.
Competition: The new Dixons Carphone group has added 500 jobs
He has been battling Amazon in its core target market ever since he arrived at Dixons eight years ago, and particularly since he was promoted to chief executive in 2012.
'What we have been able to do is make selling electricals hard work for Amazon so that, a bit like the way Neighbourhood Watch works, it will move on to other areas,' he says.
That may sound flippant. But, like most good bosses, James, full of energy and exuding confidence, has a knack for making things sound simple even if marshalling 24,000 staff to withstand Amazon is anything but. He is well rewarded for this. James is in line for an 820,000 base salary this year with a possible 1million bonus and 3million in shares if targets are met.
James has formidable connections, but it does not put him off speaking his mind on a matter that has divided some of his old school chums David Cameron and Boris Johnson.
There were fears of some cultural differences in the merger, a potential Game Of Thrones
James, an Old Etonian who, like Cameron and Johnson, joined the Bullingdon Club the notorious drinking fraternity at Oxford University warns that leaving the European Union would create 'years of uncertainty'.
He says: 'There are real advantages to knowing what the future is going to look like for the next decade and I will be pleased to see uncertainty one way or the other resolved by June 23.
'Like many business people, we tend to shy away from very large uncertain change in a world where we're doing OK. We quite like the world as it is. You are not going to catch me saying I want that to change.'
James is no stranger to uncertainty. Less than two years ago he and his team pulled off a mega-merger which defied its critics.
Dixons Retail and Carphone Warehouse were worth about 1.8billion each when plans for a merger emerged in 2014. They have combined to make a 5billion giant far more than the sum of the parts and a dream merger by City standards.
It's a long way for the photography studio set up in Southend-on-Sea in 1937 with a name picked at random from a phone directory.
Dixons took over electrical retailer Currys in 1984 and PC World in 1993. But it was the 2014 merger of two high street names with 3,000 stores between them at the height of the online boom that provoked fears of widespread closures and job losses.
Classic: James's wife gave him an Austin-Healey
The merger has since added about 500 jobs, James says. Dixons Carphone was awarded Retailer of the Year by venerated industry magazine Retail Week and IT firm Oracle last month in acknowledgement of the success.
'There were worries that there were risks of cultural differences the potential for a big Game of Thrones. But Dixons had gone quite far down the road to being a bit nicer,' says James candidly, adding that his predecessor, John Browett, had already begun the job of uniting the firm with its suppliers.
'Years ago, Dixons was quite testosterone-fuelled. If you have that kind of blokey business the potential is that everything is a fight and conversations with big suppliers would just be a battle,' he says.
In a world with real threats, you cannot be fighting with your partners and colleagues
'But in a world where you've got real threats, such as Amazon, you can't be fighting forever with your partners, suppliers and colleagues. You've got to just get on with it. Because of that we've become more creative about how to get the best value out of relationships with suppliers.'
James adds: 'We weren't direct rivals with Carphone Warehouse so we hadn't spent our lives hating each other. I think that makes a big difference. We were complementary businesses and we were pound for pound the same value, which is rare in mergers true equals.
'What we've got now is the operational rigour and let's-get-on-with-it atmosphere of the new Dixons with the swashbuckling and creative Carphone.'
He admits that he only knew Carphone Warehouse founder and chairman Charles Dunstone to 'smile and wave' at before the two firms began speaking about the potential.
However, James's wife, Anna, had previously worked with Carphone Warehouse chief executive Andrew Harrison and the two had sparked a friendship, with James even attending Harrison's 40th birthday.
'We just came to the conclusion that people wanted all this stuff we were both selling to be connected all the time, either at home or on their mobile phones,' he says.
James recently turned 50. To mark the occasion his wife bought him a classic Austin-Healey, known as the Frogeye Sprite.
Britain's economy could be boosted by 1.5billion by 2020 if as few as 30 towns are given access to better digital infrastructure and technology, according to a report.
The study, which assesses a Digital Communities pilot scheme run by mobile phone giant O2 in St Helens last year, also argues that replicating the scheme in just eight towns could boost the Norths economy by 410million in four years, helping to narrow the economic divide with the South.
Entitled Rebalancing Britain: Inspiring Thriving Digital Communities, the report suggests that with smartphone ownership doubling in the past five years, every local authority should have a digital strategy.
Technlogy: The report suggests that, with smartphone ownership doubling in the past five years, every local authority should have a digital strategy
It recommends that digital should be a key pillar in City devolution deals; that Local Enterprise Partnerships the voluntary partnerships between local authorities and businesses set up in 2011 by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills should each have a dedicated digital expert; and that the Government should prioritise the development of digital infrastructure.
O2s study argues that without reform of planning laws and the Electronic Communications Code rules by which telecoms companies can build and maintain networks coverage and capacity difficulties will become more commonplace and the national and local digital economy will suffer.
As well as O2, rivals EE, Vodafone and Three are campaigning to cut the rent they pay for phone mast sites and are urging the Government to help them avoid being held to ransom by farmers trying to ramp up charges for access.
The pilot scheme, which ran from October to December last year in partnership with St Helens Council, was designed to show how connectivity can help communities across the UK prosper. Eight local small firms underwent a digital makeover with free consultations on the latest technology to help them grow.
Going digital: Mobile phone giant O2 run the Digital Communities pilot scheme in St Helens last year
A disused shop in the town centre was turned into an O2 digital hub and more than 1,200 people attended more than 40 advice sessions, from digital careers clinics to social media surgeries for small and medium-sized firms, and online safety sessions for parents.
O2 also set up two wi-fi hotspots in the town centre and at a local college, which were used by more than 5,000 people and businesses.
Meanwhile, 30 grants of 300, half-funded by the local Chamber of Commerce, were given to digital start-ups.
The report claims that longer-term measures in the pilot could, if implemented, inject 46.3million into the St Helens economy by 2020, which represents ten per cent extra growth compared with the current economic trajectory.
It said the growth would be driven by increased job creation, enhanced workforce productivity and supply chain multiplier effects.
Wholesale and retail trade, business support services and professional services would see the biggest rise in extra jobs.
It also said that due to improved infrastructure and increased digital engagement in the town, St Helens moved 17 places up the Digital High Streets Index, which was created by the Future High Streets Forum and announced by the Government in March 2015.
Mike Palin, chief executive of St Helens Council, said: We feel were at the forefront of a digital revolution by showing whats possible.
Dan Butler, owner of Unite Healthcare, which provides home care to patients with dementia and learning disabilities in Merseyside, was given a free digital makeover, including digital skills training, tablets and mini printers to work on the go.
China last night snubbed David Cameron as it dramatically escalated its steel war against Britain by slapping damaging new tariffs on our products.
After days of being battered by charges that he and George Osborne have been kowtowing to China, the Prime Minister challenged the countrys president in Washington and urged him to end the attacks on UK steel plants.
But in a humiliating rebuff, China responded by introducing a 46 per cent duty on a type of steel made at an under-threat Tata plant in South Wales. It heaped even more pressure on the PM and the Chancellor who stand accused of being so in hock to China that they stood back while Britains steel industry was pushed to the brink of extinction.
At a summit in Washington today, David Cameron challenged China's president in Washington and urged him to end the attacks on UK steel plants but instead they introduced a 46 per cent duty
Former deputy PM Nick Clegg said last night Mr Osborne was guilty of putting his special relationship with China above the UKs best interests. On another day of high-stakes drama:
Business Secretary Sajid Javid flew back from a controversial trip to Australia to Port Talbot, where he held a series of meetings with managers and was confronted by hundreds of angry steelworkers;
German engineering firm ThyssenKrupp was revealed to have had been in talks with Tata about a merger which was contingent on the Indian company closing its UK plants;
Employment minister Priti Patel said Britain would be unable to protect its steel industry while it was a member of the EU;
It emerged that business ministers have held more meetings over how to curry favour with the Chinese than meetings on the steel industry.
Up to 40,000 jobs are under threat from Tatas shock decision earlier this week to pull out of Britain, and the Government faced growing criticism yesterday over claims it had been a ringleader in the EU opposing moves to hike tariffs to 66 per cent on certain types of steel being dumped by China.
Detractors say the Chancellor has been more concerned about rolling out the red carpet to China than protecting the British steel industry, claiming he was concerned only about safeguarding a deal with the country to fund the UKs first nuclear power station for a generation at Hinkley Point.
The GMB union said the Tories were allowing the Chinese Communist Party to dictate the fate of vital industries.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4s Today programme yesterday, European Steel Association spokesman Charles de Lusignan accused the UK Government of blocking moves to combat cheap Chinese steel.
Javid at Tata in South Wales yesterday after he flew back from his controversial trip to Australia for crisis talks over industry meltdown
We have been talking about the lifting of the lesser duty rule, in particular, for a long time, he said.
The fact is, the UK has been blocking this. They are not the only member state but they are certainly the ringleader in blocking the lifting of the lesser duty rule.
When the government says its doing everything it takes to save the steel industry in the UK, but also in Europe: its not. Its not true. But speaking in Washington, Mr Cameron leapt to his Chancellors defence.
He said the claims by Mr Clegg that Britain was kow-towing to China by opposing EU plans to put up tariffs against cheap Chinese steel were absolutely not the case, adding that the plan to increase tariffs to 66 per cent could have been applied to goods other than steel turning the EU into a protectionist bloc.
Aides said Britain had been one of 13 countries which opposed the tariffs, along with the Netherlands and Ireland. Germany abstained.
They also revealed that Mr Cameron held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Washington terror summit on Thursday night and had highlighted his concerns about the dumping of Chinese steel.
He made clear the concerns that we have on the impact this is having on the UK and other countries, an aide said. But just hours later, it emerged that China had imposed anti-dumping duties on under-priced steel from the EU, Japan and South Korea.
The Chinese ministry of commerce said imports of grain-oriented electrical steel will be charged duties ranging from 14.5 to 46.3 per cent. In what appeared to be a tit-for-tat move, it accused European countries of dumping cheap steel and causing substantial damage to Chinese producers.
Business Secretary Sajid Javid flew back from a controversial trip to Australia to Port Talbot, where he held a series of meetings with managers and was confronted by hundreds of angry steelworkers
Orb, in Newport, is the only site in the UK that makes this type of steel. It is run by Cogent Power, a subsidiary of Tata Steel.
Mr Clegg said: The Conservative Government have continually failed to take action and missed many opportunities to help the UK steel industry, such as taking steps to prevent the dumping of cheap Chinese steel.
The Government must now act before more steel jobs across the UK are put at risk.
The Conservative Government have continually failed to take action and missed many opportunities to help the UK steel industry Nick Clegg
Tim Roache, of the GMB union, said: Never in our wildest dreams did we consider that the Tory Party would allow the Chinese Communist Party to dictate the fate of vital industries like steel and energy in the UK. There was a time when the Tories sought to root out the Reds under the bed. Now they want to get into bed with them.
Roy Rickhuss, of the Community union, added: The Chinese are slapping 46 per cent tariffs on Welsh steel it must be April Fools Day.
Mr Cameron said: Were in favour of the anti-dumping tariffs and voted accordingly; and if you look in Europe it was actually Britain that assembled the steel summit some months ago, to galvanise action on this front, and we support tariffs. The only thing we havent supported is there was an attempt to rewrite not simply the tariff rules on steel, but the entire tariff infrastructure of the EU, which we have not supported, because what we want to do is target the dumping of steel, rather than turn the EU more generally, into a more protectionist bloc, blocking other industries, putting up prices, and damaging our businesses and consumers. We have been supporting steel tariffs on dumped steel, and we will continue to do so.
The GMB union said the Tories were allowing the Chinese Communist Party to dictate the fate of vital industries
The PM also insisted that Britain had a long-standing plan to save the steel industry, which included waving green energy levies worth 400million over the course of the Parliament. Mr Osborne told Sky News the Government was doing everything we can to help the steel industry, including working on introducing tariffs.
He rejected suggestions that the Government had not acted on cheap Chinese imports for fear of offending the country.
Internationally were working to make sure that there are tariffs on unfair cheap imports, domestically were doing everything we practically can, everything we possibly can to help the steelworkers, to help the steel industry, he said.
Miss Patel, a key Leave campaigner, said: I have serious concerns that the EU is hampering our ability to provide that vital economic security and flexibility to act.
She added: At present we are fighting with both hands tied behind our backs as EU restrictions on our trade policy and red tape have cost the British steel industry thousands of jobs, leaving entire communities devastated.
Javid faces wrath of the Welsh steelworkers
BY DAVID WILKES FOR THE DAILY MAIL
Back from the sunshine of Sydney, Sajid Javid felt a very different kind of heat yesterday as he was confronted by workers at the countrys biggest steel plant.
The Business Secretary was met with a handful of boos and handed a Save Our Steel badge as he left a meeting that took place inside the steelworks. It came after he cut short his controversial trip to Australia to make the flying visit to Port Talbot in South Wales.
Although he was keen to offer words of reassurance to staff possibly facing redundancies, he remained unrepentant about his trip abroad, saying: I certainly wouldnt call going to Australia for a couple of days and then packing it with meetings a jolly.
The Business Secretary was met with a handful of boos and handed a Save Our Steel badge as he left a meeting that took place inside the steelworks yesterday
Around 800 workers had waited in the cold for over an hour and a half for Mr Javid to depart, many having come in on their days off or hours ahead of a long night shift so they could make him aware of their feelings.
Holding up placards saying Save Our Steel, they questioned Mr Javid about whether a buyer had been found and whether the UK steel industry would be safe after the shock decision by Tata to sell its loss-making UK assets. One protester shouted: Youre not going to let us go to the wall? Another added: Have we got an industry?
But Mr Javid refused to say whether the plant would be saved. He added: Obviously theres a process and the most important next step, which we all agree on, everyone Ive talked to today the Welsh government, the unions, Tata itself is that whichever buyer comes forward, the UK Government and the Welsh government will work closely with them to help sustain a long-term future here.
Around 800 workers waited in the cold for over an hour and a half for Mr Javid to depart, many having come in on their days off or hours ahead of a shift
During a four-minute face-to-face meeting with the workers, Mr Javid repeated the Governments claim that everything possible was being done and that there was interest in Tatas steel portfolio, but insisted specific details could not be discussed for commercial reasons.
He told them: We are on your side. The time is there, meetings today have been constructive, but also Tata management in India have been very responsible. Theyve had to sell things in the past. I take confidence from that and so should you.
Asked why it was okay to bail out the banks but not nationalise the steel industry, he said: Almost everyone I have spoken to agrees nationalisation is not a long-term and viable solution. What everyone wants to see is something that is viable for the long term.
Christopher Walters, 48, one of the workers who quizzed the minister, said: He did give some positive remarks about potential buyers. It was encouraging but words are one thing cash is another. Time will tell if he is going to be true to his words. Lyndon Jones, a worker at the plant for 30 years, said: It was more positive than what we had all weekIt is nice to talk it, he just has to walk it now.
Mr Javid faced calls to quit this week after it emerged he had planned a holiday with his daughter in Australia in the middle of the steel crisis.
He was already under fire for taking a business trip to Australia in the week when the Tata group put 40,000 jobs at risk by making the decision to sell its UK operations.
Airport development adding to economy, jobs in the region
Pittsburgh may always be known as the Steel City, but a wave of new industries are popping up near its airport to redefine business in the region.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Premier High Schools took the first step into opening a campus here by notifying districts that might be adversely impacted financially. The next step, said a representative of the charter school, is to look for a building, find a campus director and see if there's a demand in the community.
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By Lana Sweeten-Shults of the Times Record News
A representative of an open-enrollment charter school looking into opening a Wichita Falls campus said it does not believe the school will impact local districts significantly.
"Our schools are smaller, they are more personalized, so it's not going to be a big impact," Responsive Education Communications Coordinator Bridget Weisenburger said of the intention to open a Premier High Schools campus here.
The Wichita Falls ISD at its board meeting Monday approved sending a statement of impact form to the Texas Education Agency. It believes the campus would "negatively impact" the district. Losing students to another school would mean less funding from the state, since funding is based on student attendance numbers.
Weisenburger said "some of our schools can be very small." She mentioned some might have 30 students, others might have more.
Premier High Schools' charter is operated by Lewisville-based Responsive Education.
"We were asked to look into the community," Weisenburger said, adding, "We look to open several schools every year."
More than 30 Premier High Schools operate across the state, from Austin to El Paso, Abilene, Richardson and Beaumont, to name a few.
The plan is to open in the 2017-18 school year, the same year the Wichita Falls ISD plans to debut its $35.75 million career and technical education center.
The first part of the process of opening a campus, Weisenburger said, is to notify districts that might be adversely impacted financially. Those districts then submit a statement of impact to the state.
A negative impact statement, she said, can be a common reaction.
"But it's not our goal to compete. It's to make sure students there are supported."
Weisenburger said Premier High Schools sees itself as a credit recovery program.
"The environment is different from traditional schools. Some students need to accelerate their learning; some need to catch up. ... It's more flexible than a traditional school."
She said some of the class coursework would be online.
The next step in the process would be to secure a facility.
"That is normally the slowest step. We don't want to have a building that won't be a good atmosphere," Weisenburger said.
She said Premier High Schools is looking for a location here, but no campus address has been secured.
"That's something I wouldn't be able to tell you," she said.
The last charter school in Wichita Falls, Bright Ideas, was closed by the state at the end of the academic year in 2015. It was one of 14 underperforming open-enrollment charter schools whose charters were revoked.
"Once the TEA comes back with a response and we do a little research on finding a building, then we look for a campus director and see if there's a demand in the community. At the end of the day, it's meeting the needs of the local community."
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WASHINGTON After dozens of contests featuring cliffhangers, buzzer- beaters and a ton of flagrant fouls, we're down to the Final Four: Sanders, Clinton, Cruz and Trump. (If Kasich pulls a miracle, he'll get his own column.) The world wants to know: What are their foreign policies?
Herewith, four candidates and four schools: pacifist, internationalist, unilateralist and mercantilist.
(1) Bernie Sanders, pacifist.
His pacifism is part swords-into-plowshares utopianism, part get-thee-gone isolationism. Emblematic was the Nov. 14 Democratic debate which was supposed to focus on the economy but occurred the day after the Paris massacre. Sanders objected to starting the debate with a question about Paris. He did not prevail, however, and answered the first question with some anti-terror pablum that immediately gave way to an impassioned attack on his usual "handful of billionaires."
Sanders boasts of voting against the Iraq War. But he also voted against the 1991 Gulf War. His reaction to all such dilemmas is the same anti-imperialist/pacifist reflex: Stay away, but if we must get involved, let others lead.
That's for means. As for ends, Sanders' foreign policy objectives are invariably global and universal, beginning above all with climate change.
Don't be surprised if President Sanders hands Guantanamo Bay over to the Castros, although Alaska looks relatively safe for now.
Closest historical analog: George McGovern.
(2) Hillary Clinton, internationalist.
The "Clinton/Obama" foreign policy from Ukraine to Iran to the South China Sea has been a demonstrable failure. But in trying to figure out what President Clinton would do in the future, we need to note that she often gave contrary advice, generally more assertive and aggressive than President Obama's, that was overruled, most notably, keeping troops in Iraq beyond 2011 and early arming of the Syrian rebels.
The Libya adventure was her grand attempt at humanitarian interventionism. She's been chastened by the disaster that followed.
Her worldview is traditional, post-Vietnam liberal internationalism America as the indispensable nation, but consciously restraining its exercise of power through multilateralism and near-obsessive legalism.
Closest historical analog: the Bill Clinton foreign policy of the 1990s.
(3) Ted Cruz, unilateralist.
The most aggressive of the three contenders thus far. Wants post-Cold War U.S. leadership restored. Is prepared to take risks and act alone when necessary. Pledges to tear up the Iran deal, cement the U.S.-Israel alliance and carpet bomb the Islamic State.
Overdoes it with "carpet" it implies Dresden although it was likely just an attempt at rhetorical emphasis. He's of the school that will not delay action while waiting on feckless allies or farcical entities like the U.N.
Closest analog: Ronald Reagan.
(4) Donald Trump, mercantilist.
He promises to make America strong, for which, he explains, he must first make America rich. Treating countries like companies, he therefore promises to play turnaround artist for a foreign policy that is currently a hopeless money-losing operation in which our allies take us for fools and suck us dry.
You could put the Sanders, Clinton and Cruz foreign policies on a recognizable ideological spectrum, left to right. But not Trump's. It inhabits a different space because it lacks any geopolitical coherence. It's all about money.
Imperial Spain roamed and ravaged the world in search of gold. Trump advocates a kinder, gentler form of wealth transfer from abroad, though equally gold-oriented.
Thus, if Japan and South Korea don't pony up more money for our troops stationed there, we go home. The possible effects on the balance of power in the Pacific Rim or on Chinese hegemonic designs don't enter into the equation.
Same for NATO. If those free-riding European leeches don't give us more money too, why stick around?
The one exception to this singular focus on foreign policy as a form of national enrichment is the Islamic State. Trump's goal is simple "bomb the s out of them." Yet even here he can't quite stifle his mercantilist impulses, insisting that after crushing the Islamic State, he'll keep their oil. Whatever that means.
Closest historical analog: King Philip II of Spain (1556-1598).
On Jan. 20, one of these four contenders will be sworn in as president. And one of these four approaches to the world will become the foreign policy of the United States.
Don't say you weren't warned.
Charles Krauthammer's email address is letterscharleskrauthammer.com.
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New York
The courage that a teenage Patty Duke portrayed on-screen as Helen Keller in "The Miracle Worker" was breathtaking and Oscar-winning.
Duke's own gritty struggle against bipolar disorder was equally admired. She opened up about her condition at a time when such candor was unusual and she became an activist for mental health causes.
The actress, who died Tuesday at age 69, was "a warrior," said her son, actor Sean Astin. "You watch this 4-foot-10, tiny imp of a lady who's more powerful than the greatest military leaders in history."
"We're so grateful to her for living a life that generates that amount of compassion and feeling in others," Astin told The Associated Press in reflecting on the outpouring of sentiment from fans at the news of her death.
Colleagues responded with equal passion.
"I will miss her every day but I will find comfort in the words of Helen Keller: 'The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched they must be felt with the heart,'" wrote Melissa Gilbert, who starred with Duke in a TV remake of "The Miracle Worker."
Duke died of sepsis from a ruptured intestine in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho, where she had lived for the past 25 years, according to Teri Weigel, Astin's publicist.
She astonished audiences as the young deaf-and-blind Keller first on Broadway, then in the acclaimed 1962 film version, appearing in both alongside Anne Bancroft as Helen's teacher, Annie Sullivan (Bancroft won an Oscar of her own).
"Her performance in 'The Miracle Worker' brought Helen Keller's indomitable spirit to life and inspired generations to pursue careers serving the deaf-blind community," Joseph F. Bruno, chief executive of Helen Keller Services, said in a statement.
In 1963, Duke burst onto the TV scene starring in her own sitcom, "The Patty Duke Show," which aired for three seasons. She played dual roles as identical cousins Cathy, "who's lived most everywhere, from Zanzibar to Berkeley Square" while (according to the theme song) "Patty's only seen the sights a girl can see from Brooklyn Heights. What a crazy pair!"
In 2015, she would play twin roles again: as a pair of grandmas on an episode of "Liv and Maddie," a series on the Disney Channel.
Born Anna Marie Duke in the New York borough of Queens on Dec. 14, 1946, she had a difficult childhood with abusive parents. By 8 years old, she was largely under the control of husband-and-wife talent managers who kept her busy on soap operas and advertising displays.
They also supplied her with alcohol and prescription drugs, which accentuated the effects of her undiagnosed bipolar disorder.
In her 1988 memoir, "Call Me Anna," Duke wrote of her condition and the diagnosis she had gotten only six years earlier, and of the subsequent treatment that helped stabilize her life. The book became a 1990 TV film in which she starred.
With the end of "The Patty Duke Show" in 1966, which left her stereotyped as not one, but two squeaky-clean teenagers, Duke attempted to leap into the nitty-grittiness of adulthood in the 1967 melodrama "Valley of the Dolls," in which she played a showbiz hopeful who falls prey to drug addiction, a broken marriage and shattered dreams.
The film, based on the best-selling Jacqueline Susann pulp novel, was critically slammed but a commercial sensation.
During her career, she would win three Emmy Awards, for the TV film "My Sweet Charlie," the miniseries "Captains and the Kings," and the 1979 TV version of "The Miracle Worker," in which Duke played Annie Sullivan with "Little House on the Prairie" actress Gilbert as Keller.
In the 1980s, Duke starred in a trio of short-lived sitcoms: "It Takes Two," ''Karen's Song" and "Hail to the Chief," cast as the first female president of the United States.
"Her career ebbed and flowed," said Astin, her son with her third husband, actor John Astin, "and sometimes she was stressed about it and sometimes she was at peace with it. And then she'd get to do something that she could sink her teeth into, that reminded her of what she was capable of."
In addition to her acting career, Duke served as the president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1985 to 1988.
She starred in several stage productions, including a return to Broadway in 2002 to play Aunt Eller in a revival of the musical "Oklahoma!"
By then, she already had spent a dozen years living in Idaho with her fourth husband, Michael Pearce (who survives her), seeking refuge from the clutter, noise and turmoil of big cities, and from the tumultuous life she had weathered in the past.
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Albany
As the Assembly late Friday was debating and voting on the 2016-17 state budget, the leader of the Democratic majority touted the spending plan as a legislative dream come true.
"I couldn't be happier as speaker and my members couldn't be happier," a visibly tired Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie told reporters as members began voting.
The Senate had pushed through the night debating and voting on budget bills, finishing up at almost 10 a.m. Friday.
The Assembly had left shortly before 5 a.m., returning later that morning and beginning their votes in the afternoon.
Heastie said the budget included signature items that Assembly Democrats, along with Gov. Andrew Cuomo had long desired, including a phased-in $15-an-hour minimum wage and a paid family leave bill.
Heastie downplayed any brinkmanship or conflict with Cuomo on last-minute budget negotiations earlier in the week, especially with sensitive issues such as the $250 million in Medicaid savings the governor wanted to extract from New York City but gave up.
Rather than describing that as a "line in the sand" that could hold up a budget deal, he characterized it as making it "more difficult to move forward."
As to the lack of a millionaires or high-earner income tax hike his conference had pushed for earlier in the year, Heastie said they would return to the issue in 2017.
"Last year we said we wanted minimum wage and they thought that we were dreaming," Heastie said.
This year's $150 billion budget also includes what Republicans and Cuomo said was middle class income tax cut starting in 2018 and which would apply to families with incomes up to $300,000.
Heastie also spoke about Hillary Clinton's scheduled meeting with Democratic lawmakers in Albany on Monday, although he downplayed the notion that she is reaching out to them in order to rally get-out-the-vote efforts on April 19 when she faces Sen. Bernie Sanders in a primary.
"She just wants to come and talk to us,'' he said. "Many of us, pretty much all of us, are supporters of her."
Not everyone was pleased, however.
Assembly Republicans, who had tried but failed to slow the process and who opposed the higher minimum wage, kept up their criticism on Friday,
"We are going to see small businesses close and be replaced by big box stores with this minimum wage plan," predicted GOP Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, who represents Staten Island.
And some lawmakers noted that a pension buy-back measure for "peacetime" veterans who went on to jobs in the public sector, didn't make it in the budget, despite earlier assurances from Cuomo.
"We kept fighting for the Veterans' Equality Act (VEA) down to the last minute of the budget process," Hudson Valley GOP Sen. Bill Larkin said in a prepared statement.
Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said negotiators were unable to arrive at either a proposal for inclusion in the executive budget plan or the final budget deal. He said the governor hopes to nail something down by the end of the session.
rkarlin@timesunion.com 518-454-5758 @RickKarlinTU
Albany
A new center to help immigrants and their attorneys navigate legal obstacles across a 14-county section of upstate stretching from the Capital Region to the Canadian border is up and running and a top official says it is "long overdue."
The Regional Immigration Assistance Center, announced in January, opened in early March under the direction of Albany attorney James Milstein, who until recently was the county's public defender. Milstein wore two hats for the first few weeks of his new role before James Long eventually succeeded him as public defender.
"We've been doing outreach into the community. We've been doing networking," Milstein told the Times Union in a joint interview with Albany County Executive Dan McCoy.
More Information About this series The Times Union series "Our Immigrant Story" is being published in conjunction with a community-wide celebration of immigrants and cultural diversity in the Capital Region. A monthlong series of exhibits, lectures and performances (schedule online at http://www.timesunion.com/immigration) will culminate in an Albany Pro Musica Concert, "A City of Immigrants," on April 3 at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. See More Collapse
The mission of the center, located on the seventh floor of the county building at 112 State St., is to provide training and assistance to lawyers who represent non-citizens including illegal immigrants in both criminal and civil matters, such as those in Family Court. The emphasis is on cases involving indigent immigrants. The center will train and assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, officials said.
"It's something that a lot of attorneys don't deal with every day," McCoy said. "It's one of these things that's long overdue."
The center will cover the counties of Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Warren, Washington, Montgomery, Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton and St. Lawrence.
Funding for the center will not come from county tax dollars but rather the state Office of Indigent Legal Services. The center is set to receive $450,000 a year over three years. It will not provide attorneys for the defendants, but rather offer advice. McCoy noted that, in general, there ais a variety of services that immigrants and lawyers may not realize are available.
"It's going make the difference in quality of life, help people transition from their country to our country, help students and business people here," McCoy said.
The center and five others in the state were added in compliance with a 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that requires defense lawyers to advise noncitizen clients about the risks a guilty plea might have on their immigration status. McCoy said some immigrants and their lawyers may have little idea of the consequences of pleading guilty to a seemingly low-level offense. It could potentially cost the person a work or student visa.
"Let's say you're talking about someone who is illegally in the country. Somebody might go, 'Well, that person has no rights,' " Milstein said. "Sometimes, you have to look deeper into why the person is here. They may be a victim of human trafficking. They may be a victim of labor trafficking. In these 14 counties, we're not going to have people that are just working at Nanotech. We're going to be working with large agricultural populations, so you may have people entitled to rights that people might not think they are."
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Milstein said he forged ties with groups, including the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants and the Capital Region Anti-Trafficking Task Force, to help the center's mission.
When McCoy announced the center in January, he sharply criticized Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump's proposal to keep Muslims from entering the U.S. and the tycoon's calls for a database for all Muslims living in the U.S. McCoy, a Democrat, has not backed away.
"This is a very important issue ... a lot of this isn't popular right now," McCoy said.
But he stressed the center is not solely devoted to the plight of undocumented immigrants. Many cases involve people who are in the United States legally but run into the same problems as those who are not.
"Say you're on vacation and you're in a foreign country and you get robbed or mugged or whatever may happen, you want to make sure you fair representation and understand the law of that country," McCoy said. "That's the same thing we want to make sure happens here. And I try to break that barrier down with people because, as you know with this presidential race, there's so much animosity being thrown out there and so many people getting false information from reading the Internet. We're trying to take a positive approach from county government and really send a message of being positive (about safe guarding) people's rights. This is what this country is based on. We're a land of immigrants."
rgavin@timesunion.com 518-434-2403 @RobertGavinTU
THE ISSUE:
The governor and lawmakers wrap up a budget deal that goes down to the wire.
THE STAKES:
Will they get the big unfinished business of ethics reform done in the remaining time?
More Information To comment: tuletters@timesunion.com or at http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion See More Collapse
Pick your aphorism, whether it's "Politics is the art of compromise," or "Half a loaf is better than none," or "Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good." Gov. Andrew Cuomo employed all three as he talked up the state budget deal to editorial writers and editors on Friday.
And well he should have. The budget the governor and legislative leaders produced this week certainly reflects all three of those adages.
There was compromise, and at least a portion of a loaf, on minimum wage. The governor had originally sought to raise it from $9 an hour to $15 by 2018 in New York City and 2021 in the rest of the state. With objections from the business community and Senate Republicans, the final plan is more complex - with the raise implemented at different times in New York City, Long Island and Westchester, and the rest of the state; phased in differently for large and small businesses, and only reaching $12.50 by 2020 upstate, after which the state will take another look at going higher. So to say the state passed a $15 minimum wage comes with quite a few asterisks and a big unknown how much it will really be worth when it finally comes years from now.
The budget also spares State University of New York students a sixth consecutive tuition hike, though it still leaves them paying the lion's share of SUNY's operating costs, an imbalance the state must rectify. It gives a much-needed $12.5 million boost to the city of Albany, though by borrowing from future promised aid. It ends the Gap Elimination Adjustment that was sapping schools of aid to help balance the state budget, and targets more money at troubled schools in the form of $175 million to turn them into community schools. And it comes with an important new benefit for working families: a paid family leave program.
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There was one conspicuous surrender: no ethics reforms. Mr. Cuomo says he still views ethics reform as a priority and maintains he still has leverage to achieve it: Legislative elections come later this year, and his OK is needed if lawmakers want a pay raise.
Yet it's hard to be optimistic that a legislature that couldn't achieve a single ethics or campaign finance reform in the last three months mainly because of staunch resistance by Senate Republicans will accomplish major reform in the next three.
It seems all the more unlikely when, for all politicians' talk of transparency, the budget was again rushed through without the usual three-day "aging" period to allow lawmakers and the public time to actually read the bills. It was just last month, remember, that the Assembly made a grand show of openness by declaring that there will be no more dead-of-night sessions in which legislation is pushed through except, it turns out, when the governor sends a message of necessity, as he always does on major legislation like the budget. And that's just what happened this week.
So here's a saying New Yorkers might employ when they hear of great reforms to come: We'll believe it when we see it.
Last month, the Times Union published an excellent article on lung cancer and the tremendous personal and financial costs of this devastating disease. It described how effective screening tools and new treatments have contributed to a decrease in the death rate for lung cancer patients.
Prevention, particularly around tobacco use, is an important ingredient to further reduce the incidence of lung cancer. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes 90 percent of lung cancers are linked to cigarette smoking. We know 90 percent of smokers start before they are 18. As a community, we need to put in place effective public health policies that will prevent youth initiation to tobacco use and build a healthy, tobacco-free generation.
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The April 4 target for the start of a 1:1 resettlement scheme of refugees from Turkey remains, European Commission spokesperson for migration issues Natasha Bertaud said on Thursday. On April 4, she explained, the EU will begin returns of asylum seekers whose applications have not been accepted and can receive protection in Turkey, at the same time as a programme for the resettlement of Syrian refugees from Turkey to the EU.
Bertaud did not go into the operation's practical details, noting only that Greek and Turkish authorities were working together closely, with the assistance of EU coordinator for the refugee crisis Maarten Verwey. European Commissioner for Migration Policy Dimitris Avramopoulos and Verwey will visit Ankara on April 3, she added.
With respect to the legislation that needs to be passed in order for asylum seekers to be returned to Turkey, Bertaud said that Greece was expected to pass this over the next few days. Turkey, on its part, must also pass the relevant legislation by April 4 and the visit by Avramopoulos to Ankara aimed to facilitate this, she added.
Bertaud stressed, however, that Turkey's policy regarding refugees must be fully compatible with international standards on human rights.
Greek government: Decongestion of Idomeni and Piraeus top priority
In the meanwhile, the progress in work to prepare an additional 30,000 places for the accommodation of refugees and migrants and how to speed up the process dominated Friday's Greek Government Council on Refugee and Migration Policy, in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.
According to an announcement, the meeting focused on the situation in Piraeus and Idomeni, with a decision to reduce the numbers at the port at an accelerating rate over the next 10 days, so that the port was fully operational before the start of the Easter peak, when the number of travellers will increase sharply. The Council also decided to intensify the information campaign for refugees at Idomeni, as well as the state's presence, and to begin the transfer of refugees and migrants from Idomeni to alternative accommodation centres.
With regard to the April 4 target for the launch of returns to Turkey, the Council underlined that the EU-Turkey agreement must begin to be implemented in practice. The transfer to Turkey would not apply for those in the process of seeking asylum nor for those arriving before March 20, the date when the agreement went into force, the announcement clarified.
It also stressed that the Greek side was ready to meet the obligations arising from the agreement and expressed hope that the same was true of the other parties involved, including the European Union, the individual member-states and Turkey.
Source: ANA/MPA
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
According to the WikiLeaks transcript, the two IMF officials discuss an event that would force the Europeans to accept the IMFs position so the bailout review can be concluded
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras was reportedly to chair an emergency meeting with key ministers on Saturday after the publication of a leaked transcript of a conversation that is alleged to have taken place between Poul Thomsen, the head of the IMFs European department, and Delia Velculescu, the IMF mission chief for Greece.
WikiLeaks, which made the revelation, said it obtained the details of the conversation, which took place last month, and in which the two leading IMF officials apparently discuss putting pressure on Germany over the eurozones position regarding Greeces bailout review by threatening that the IMF will leave the program.
According to the WikiLeaks transcript, the two IMF officials discuss an event that would force the Europeans to accept the IMFs position so the bailout review can be concluded.
What is going to bring it all to a decision point? In the past there has been only one time when the decision has been made and then that was when they were about to run out of money seriously and to default. Right? Thomsen is claimed to have told Velculescu.
Tax credit and the supplementary pensions
I agree that we need an event, but I dont know what that will be, Velculescu allegedly added a little later in the conversation.
The transcript quotes Velculescu as saying: What is interesting though is that [Greece] did give in they did give a little bit on both the income tax reform and on the both on the tax credit and the supplementary pensions.
Thomsens view was that the Greeks are not even getting close [to coming] around to accept our views.
Velculescu argued that if [the Greek government] get pressured enough, they would But they dont have any incentive and they know that the commission is willing to compromise, so that is the problem.
A Greek official told the ANA-MPA news agency that the government is not willing to allow games to be played to the detriment of the country.
Source: ekathimerini.com
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
Nadia Murad Basee Taha, who managed to escape from the ISIS, wants to become the voice of the refugees seeking legal ways to Europe.
Yazidi rights' activist is paying a visit to Athens these days in order to stand by the refugees.
Murad met with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras earlier on Friday and discussed issues related to the refugee crisis. She also sent a message to refugees at Idomeni to "accept to be transferred at accommodation centres in order to be safe as the borders will likely remain closed."
In statements to ANA-MPA, she said that she asked the Greek prime minister to create accommodation centres for all the refugees. "I am aware of the difficult situation in Greece and the fact that Greeks are really helpful. The refugees have rather hard times at Idomeni and the port of Piraeus. When they are transferred to accommodation centres, we can ask for more support and assistance from the international organizations," she added.
Accommodation centres
Murad will visit accommodation centres to see the conditions and discuss with refugees. "When these people are safe at hospitality centres, I will go to Germany and other countries to ask for their relocation," she underlined.
After the borders closed, a lot of migrants have been stranded in Greece, she said adding that she wants to become "their voice." She estimated that the opening of all borders is probably not possible open after the terror attacks in Brussels and Paris. However, she stressed the importance of a plan that will offer refugees that want to survive from the war, the death and terrorism the opportunity to apply for asylum and allow them to be relocated.
"There must be provisions for people that have no alternative. It is not that they seek a better life, but they have no other solution," she stated.
Nadia Murad Basee Taha was abducted from her village last August, she was used as a sex slave and raped until she managed to escape and go to Germany. More than 3,000 Yazidi women and children remain prisoners of jihadists, according to estimates.
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
The national May Day Holiday (or Protomagia in Greek) celebrated on May 1st 2016 will be moved to Tuesday May 3rd 2016 due to it coinciding with Greek Orthodox Easter Sunday
The national May Day Holiday (or Protomagia in Greek) celebrated on May 1st 2016 will be moved to Tuesday May 3rd 2016 due to it coinciding with Greek Orthodox Easter Sunday.
This was a decision taken by Labour Minister George Katrougalos.
What the Greek law says about working on this day*:
"Business operation and employing employees is prohibited, except those who are legal to operate on Sundays and public holidays, such as companies in the health sector, tourism, transportation, food & beverage, factories with continuous hours, etc.
Employees who are paid by a wage, but who will not work on the May Day public holiday are entitled to receive their paid wages without any deduction. For employees paid by wage who will work on May 1, they are entitled to receive their wage with an increase of 75% which will be calculated at the statutory hourly rate for any hours worked.
If you are paid a monthly salary, and the company typically does operate on Sundays and public holidays then you are entitled to receive an increase of 75% calculated at the statutory hourly rate for any hours worked on this day. If you are employed with a company that typically does not work on Sundays and public holidays then you are entitled to receive an increase of 75% calculated at the statutory hourly rate for any hours worked on this day."
Source: Paidorama
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
*Please note, the information outlined is based on a report that has been translated from Greek and should be confirmed with your employer and local employment offices.
Austria has suggested setting up a bridging mission that would help EU border agency Frontex process and deport migrants arriving in Greece from Turkey until Frontex is fully staffed there
Austria and its neighbours in central Europe and the Balkans will press the European Union to create a new auxiliary force to help countries deal with any influx of migrants, Austria's defense minister said on Friday.
The country has suggested setting up a bridging mission that would help EU border agency Frontex process and deport migrants arriving in Greece from Turkey until Frontex is fully staffed there, which Vienna has said could take months.
Meeting defense and other officials from the region in Vienna on Thursday, Defense Minister Hans Peter Doskozil said those present backed a modified version of that concept, which could be sent to Greece or elsewhere.
It is ... a mixed civil-police-military mission that should be deployed where necessary, Doskozil said, adding the aim was to help secure the European Union's external borders and deport migrants not entitled to stay in the bloc.
Austria has broken ranks with its neighbour Germany on how to deal with Europe's migration crisis, coordinating a cascade of border restrictions through the Balkans that have left tens of thousands of migrants stuck in Greece.
Common European measures
Germany says it prefers common European measures, but Austria said it risked turning into a crowded waiting room if migrants had kept streaming across its territory towards Germany and its larger neighbour tightened its border controls further.
With the main migrant route through the Balkans and Austria now largely closed, Vienna says there is a risk that new routes will develop through Bulgaria or Albania, as Mediterranean crossings to Italy from Libya resume.
Greece, which is furious at the border restrictions coordinated by Austria, was invited to Thursday's meeting but did not attend, Doskozil said. Italy was also not present.
Doskozil said those present - including EU members Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Croatia - would send a letter detailing the proposal to EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini ahead of an EU defense ministers' meeting on April 19.
Source: Reuters
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the sovereign wealth fund of the gas-rich emirate, is in talks to boost its stake in Spains largest listed property group Colonial.
A benchmark leader in the Paris commercial property market, Colonial said it was in discussion with QIA on a possible contribution of its shares in Societe Fonciere Lyonnaise via non-cash capital increase.
According to experts, even after the transaction, the Qatari fund will not reach 30 per cent of voting rights in Colonial.
No date has been reached on the agreement yet, said QIA.-TradeArabia News Service
Bahrain's foreign minister said that Gulf Arab states were prepared to confront Iran over its foreign policy and Tehran should drop its support for Middle East factions.
Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmed Al Khalifa also played down any difference with the US over remarks by President Barack Obama last month telling Saudi Arabia and Iran "to find an effective way to share the neighbourhood."
Ties between Bahrain and Washington remained strong, he stated.
Bahrain cut diplomatic relations with Iran in January, one day after Saudi Arabia severed ties with the Islamic Republic following attacks by demonstrators on its diplomatic missions in Tehran and Mashhad in response to Saudi Arabia's execution of a prominent Shi'ite Muslim cleric.
"We send a message to Iran and to all its followers. We are now serious about confronting it and we have no hesitation to defend our people, states, interests and brothers in the region because this is a vital issue for us," Sheikh Khaled said in an interview with the Dubai-based Al Arabiya channel.
Bahrain accuses Iran of fomenting unrest in the country and of supplying weapons to Shi'ite militants behind several bomb attacks on security forces. Iran denies the charges.
Sheikh Khaled said Bahrain and other Gulf Arab states were ready to turn a new page with Iran if it changed its policies.
"The main step is that Iran must completely change its foreign policy towards the countries of the region," he said.
This included Iran dropping its support for the Lebanese Hezbollah organisation and other groups.-Reuters
Saudi Arabia has donated $10 million to establish a specialised centre to combat nuclear terrorism at the headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in Vienna, Austria.
The kingdom had earlier pledged $10 million to the UN to establish the center in 2008. Then six years later, it had donated $100 million to the centre for building its capabilities and effectiveness in helping countries combat terrorism.
Saudi Arabia also donated $570,000 for the project to modernise the IAEA laboratories in Seibersdorf, Austria, said a statement from Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia.
Dr Hashim Abdullah Yamani, President of King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy made the announcement during his visit to Washington. He is heading a Saudi delegation to the Nuclear Security Summit being held in the US capital.
Dr Yamani said Saudi Arabia was one of the first countries that supported international resolutions related to nuclear security, said the statement.
He said the kingdom has ratified the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and supports the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism as a party to the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism.
Dr Yamani also reiterated Saudi Arabia's commitment to international activities in the field of nuclear security, citing the country's support for the establishment of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Center in 2011.-TradeArabia News Service
Tanzania travel tips is tourism information for booking cheap flights, Tanzania safaris, Kilimanjaro climbing trips, budget travel and Gap year adventures.
(TRAVPR.COM) TANZANIA - April 1st, 2016 - Travel tips, Tanzanite mine tours, flights and discount travel are among weekly travel updates which help tourists to plan and book African safaris.
Travel tips and tourism information resource links are update weekly travel needed by tourists. Travel tips and tourism review include hotels reservation, cheap flight tickets booking, discount airfares and budget travel adventures. Gap year travel abroad for backpackers and volunteers are adventure camping safaris, Kilimanjaro climbing expeditions and wildlife safaris Tanzania. Honey moon and family safari holidays are exclusive private safaris available.
Tanzania Tours after trekking Kilimanjaro include short Tanzania safaris and vacation holiday safaris of more than 5 days. To see all big 5 African wildlife species and wildebeest migration, it is advised to book minimum holiday of 4 days Tanzania safari package.
SAFARI 4 DAYS SERENGETI AND NGORONGORO CRATER is Tanzania safari itinerary planned to see wildebeest migration and all big 5 Africa wildlife big mammals.
Kilimanjaro climbing trips is a journey to explore natural wonder which is among 7 new Africa natural wonders. Mount Kilimanjaro is among 7 summit World peaks.
Mount Kilimanjaro Nature forest and beauty wildlife flowers make part of Kilimanjaro. Kilimanjaro forest hosts big wildlife mammal and a lot of birds.
Kilimanjaro has a large variety of forest types over an altitudinal range of 3,000 m (9,843 ft) containing over 1,200 vascular plant species. Montane Ocotea forests occur on the wet southern slope. There are unique plants like heath, moor and wildflowers. When travelers climb Mount Kilimanjaro to summit, they cross 5 different climatic ecological zones. Different climatic zones are Chagga villages coffee farms 800 to 1500m, Rain forest zone (~1600 meters 3,000 meters), Low alpine zone (~3,000 meters 4,200 meters,Glacial zone (~5,000 meters to 5,895 meters). High Alpine zone of Kibo and Mawenzi and consists of high altitude artic conditions.
Kilimanjaro routes have varying vegetation and Volcano geographical features. These make each route to have different altitude and time to hike varies as well.
Glacier and Ice fields are more on Machame route. Machame route climbing Mount Kilimanjaro is cheap and beauty. Lemosho route is beauty scenic but need more $ than Machame. So most tourists who trek Kilimanjaro choose cheap travel package which fits pocket budget of most tourists.
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Tribune News Service
Bathinda, April 1
On the directions of the Additional Chief Secretary, Punjab, Suresh Kumar, Punjab Agricultural University and the Agriculture Department are holding block-wise technical training sessions on pesticides and fertilizers for seed dealers at Kheti Bhawan Bathinda from March 30 to April 5.
In the beggining, assistant director Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Bathinda, Dr Jagdish Grover gave information about the module of the programme.
At the onset of the technical session, assistant professor KVK, Bathinda, Dr Angrej Singh gave details about the 38 varieties of recommended cotton seeds and motivated farmers to buy these varieties only.
Dr Angrej Singh also gave information on deep ploughing, seed treatment, weed control and right spray technology.
Dr Sanjiv Kataria, assistant professor, Regional Station, Bathinda, talked about the attack of pests, their identification and control.
He said at present, it was pivotal to control the whitefly attack. The Punjab government was running a campaign to destroy weeds, so that the whitefly can be controlled in time, he added.
He gave detailed representation of the life cycle of whitefly and the chemicals used to control it.
Ashok Jhansi from the All India Radio and Doordarshan also participated with his team members.
Presiding over the training programme, the Chief Agriculture Officer, Dr Nachhattar Singh Aulakh, said the government was very serious about the forthcoming crop season. Last year, the cotton crop had suffered losses due to whitefly so, this time, the PAU and Agriculture Department have collaborated to destroy weeds supporting whitefly before the sowing of cotton seeds.
The farmers and dealers are being apprised of the whiteflys life cycle and control through camps and training sessions. He directed the dealers to sell recommended varieties only and give permanent bills of their sale to farmers. If discrepancy is found in working of any of the dealers, action will be taken against him as per the act, he said.
Aparna Banerji
Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, April 2
On Word Autism Day today as various buildings in India and across the world were lit up in blue to observe the occasion (Guru Nanak Mission Chowk in Jalandhar shall also be dressed in blue light this evening), the greatest irony is the lack of basic infrastructure for autistic children in the district despite years of struggle.
In spite of activists and parents long-drawn-out struggle against the authorities spanning several years, the provision of trained and qualified special educators in schools and proper accessibility means at all public places are still dreams yet to be realised. While qualified staff is willing to be hired, they are being denied jobs on the pretext that parents of special children are not accessing schools.
While as per the 2011 Census, the total population of the mentally retarded (including autistic children and those suffering from Downs Syndrome) children in Punjab was over 4 lakh, there is a substantial number of autistic children in Jalandhar as well.
However, neither do public places in the city have ramps or easier means for the disabled or autistic to access these, nor have private schools ensured that qualified special educators are hired there.
While a Jalandhar-based activist has access to as many as 45 unemployed, qualified to be special educators looking for a job in Punjab, ironically, despite crunch in schools, they are not being hired. This even though schools most common excuse not to hire special educators is that they cant find any.
Disability activist Amarjit Singh said, Earlier, schools excuse was they could not find special educators, now it is that special students parents are not getting their children admitted to these institutions. I know at least 45 special educators - most of them from Himachal Pradesh who say schools wont hire them. When I contacted some schools for jobs to these qualified persons registered with the National Trust they said parents are not sending autistic or mentally retarded students to their institutions. Either way, there seems to be an unwillingness to hire qualified staff for special students. Barring three, four city schools, none have qualified staff for special children.
Ideally, the social security officer should be in touch with such candidates as well as schools and inform them of openings and vice versa. But such a network isnt even a priority in the district, Anand said.
Anjali Dada from NGO Soch, who is coordinating with Action for Autism (New Delhi) and Autism Speaks (USA) to observe the World Autism Day and light up Guru Nanak Mission Hospital, said in all parents, who approached her organisation, there was a dream to send their child to a normal school and not a special one, Our organisation started in 2008 with four to five families. Today, we are in touch with at least 50 of them. All these parents want their kids to go to normal schools first, but later reconsider. Almost all of them have told me you know how our kids are ignored in school. Its the right of autistic parents to teach their kids in any school they want. But very few schools are pursuing this aspect of education intently. The result is a lot of disappointment among many parents on where to take their child where he/she could be safe and well cared for.
Dada added that communication and socialisation are two of the key prerequisites to steer these children towards normalcy, which were being ignored by schools.
Events organised
The Soch Educational Society, an NGO working in Jalandhar for children and families affected with autism, in sync with the worldwide Light It Up Blue (LIUB) campaign, will light up - Guru Nanak Mission Hospital. Coordinating with Action for Autism (New Delhi) and Autism Speaks(USA), a request has been sent to people around the city to light up their homes and work places in blue too.
Soch is an NGO run by two mothers of children with autism, Anjali Dada and Kanchan Aggarwal, that attempts to create awareness and know-how for autism. On April 3 as well, to mark events in view of World Autism Day, 25 to 30 bikers shall take out a rally from the Guru Ravidas Chowk to Jahangir Fort a total distance spanning 56 km.
Charanjit Singh Teja
Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, April 2
Following the project of the Indian Railways in which Ludhiana and Ambala railway stations would be redeveloped, the consultants of SNCF a French railway company held a meeting with the railway officials of Ferozepur Division here today.
The team made a presentation before the railway officials during the meeting. The team also visited the station premises and interacted with station authorities.
Anuj Parkash, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) said: Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited France and made some agreements with the French railways to take their help to improve infrastructure at 400 Indian railway stations. Under the pilot project to give the railway station a world-class status, the French consultants are in the city.
The officials said French consultants would advise them to upgrade architecture, rail platforms, and commercial complex. The facilities of refreshment, restaurants, shopping outlets and modern washrooms would be provided under this project.
The French experts will design things and provide us solutions to implement these. The focus of our joint team will provide a world-class facility to visitors at the railway station. The beautification is also among a priority of the team. The project will start within six months. There will be no scarcity of funds as the government is keen on completing the project soon, the DRM said.
SS Bhatia, Railway Traffic Manager, said: The meeting with the French team was good. We have shared our inputs with them.
Kuala Lumpur, April 2
Gunmen have kidnapped four Malaysians from a ship off the east coast of Sabah state in waters where Abu Sayyaf militants are known to operate, local media reported on Saturday.
If the Philippine Islamist group is confirmed to be behind the kidnapping, it would be their second such hostage-taking in as many weeks and comes amid an uptick in such attacks.
Sabah police commissioner Abdul Rashid Harun told Malaysias official news agency Bernama that authorities were still investigating if the kidnapping yesterday occurred in Malaysian or international waters.
The area is vast and we have our assets there. So we are investigating whether it happened in or off our waters, he was quoted as saying by Bernama.
The five other individuals in the ship comprising Myanmar and Indonesian nationals were released.
There were conflicting reports over whether the boat, the size of which was not immediately known, had been sailing to Malaysia from the Philippines or making the reverse journey.
Many Western and other embassies routinely issue warnings against travelling to most of the Philippines Muslim-populated southern regions, which lie just northeast of Sabah, because of the risk of being abducted by the Abu Sayyaf.
On Tuesday, officials said that 10 Indonesian sailors had been kidnapped in waters off the southern Philippines. The incident was believed to have happened last Saturday.
The Philippine military said initial information indicated the sailors may have been taken by an Abu Sayyaf faction to Sulu, a remote southern island that is a hideout of the militant outfit.
Someone claiming to be from Abu Sayyaf called the vessels owners to demand a ransom for the sailors release.
Other recent kidnappings, including of two Canadian tourists and a Norwegian resort owner in areas previously considered beyond the groups reach, have further raised fears.
Last year, Malaysian Bernard Then was kidnapped from a seaside restaurant in Sabah, about 300 kilometres (180 miles) from the Abu Sayyafs Jolo stronghold. He was later killed by the group. AFP
United Nations, April 2
Clinging to its pro-Pakistan stance, China has asserted that JeM chief and Pathankot terror attack mastermind Masood Azhar does not qualify to be nailed as a terrorist to face UN sanctions as his case did not meet the Security Councils requirements.
Any listing would have to meet the requirements for blacklisting, Chinese Permanent Representative to the UN Liu Jieyi told reporters yesterday in response to questions over Chinas decision to place a technical hold on designating Azhar in the UN Sanctions Committee.
It is the responsibility of all members of the council to make sure that these requirements are followed, he said, but gave no further details.
Lius comments came on a day when China, one of the five permanent members of the 15-nation Council, assumed the rotating presidency of the UNSC for April.
India has reacted strongly to Chinas blocking of its bid at the UN to ban the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief, saying that the sanctions committee was taking a selective approach in tackling terrorism.
In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei on Friday defended Chinas decision, saying that it acts on such issues based on facts and rules in an objective and just manner.
We always deal with the listing issue (banning militant groups and their leaders) under the UN Security Council committee established under resolution 1267 based on facts and relevant rules of procedures in an objective and just manner.
The Chinese side has always been in communication with relevant parties on the listing issue, he said, hinting that China is also in touch with India on the issue.
India yesterday said it is disappointed that a technical hold has been put on its application to include Azhar in the UN sanctions list, terming the move incomprehensible that this is despite the JeM being listed in the UN Security Council Committee as far back as 2001 for its known terror activities and links to al-Qaeda.
This is not the first time China has blocked Indias bid to get Pakistan-based militant groups and leaders proscribed by the UN.
The UN had banned the JeM in 2001 but Indias efforts for a ban on Azhar after the 2008 Mumbai terror attack also did not fructify as China, which has veto powers, did not allow the ban apparently at the behest of Pakistan again.
Last July, China had similarly halted Indias move in the UN to take action against Pakistan for its release of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, saying that its stand was based on facts and in the spirit of objectiveness and fairness, with Beijing again claiming at the time that it was in touch with New Delhi. PTI
When the Broken Arrow Ministerial Alliance met Wednesday, March 30, for their monthly luncheon, Broken Arrow pastors continued a discussion which began a month ago, how to bring peace to the community.
Given the turmoil which began with the brutal murders of a Broken Arrow family last summer and the fallout which will be created when the alleged perpetrators go to trial in May, the pastors wanted to reach out collectively to all.
Police Chaplain Rich Manganaro of Harvest Church said since the first discussion, "Exciting things have been happening." Manganaro said the City of Broken Arrow is getting behind the idea of a benefit concert Everyone who has been approached has been in favor of helping out with a community event.
"We would like as many churches as possible to get involved," Manganaro said. The plan in motion is a community hymn-sing, featuring Gary Chapman and benefiting the surviving Bever sisters. The event will be hosted by the BA police chaplains and is endorsed by the Broken Arrow Ministerial Alliance and other supporters in the BA community.
Pastor Chris Buskirk of Abiding Harvest Church has been working with recording artist Chapman on the event. According to Buskirk, Chapman stayed at the side of his father, a pastor, in his final years of life, every week singing a new hymn and researching it. Chapman said he has fallen in love with hymns again and has a hymn a week on You Tube. "He doesn't want to do big, splashy events, Buskirk shared. "He just wants to do ministry."
Buskirk said he had recently heard a Chapman concert, "and it was just anointing, one of the most soul-nourishing things I've heard in the last." Buskirk added Chapman is excited about doing the concert for Broken Arrow and giving back part of whatever he receives to the love offering.
To be a recognized sponsor, churches and businesses are invited to write a check for $100 to $1,000 to Broken Arrow Police Chaplains with a memo stating "Hymns and Healing" and mail it by May 15 to Broken Arrow Police Chaplains, P.O. Box 610, Broken Arrow, OK 74013-0610. Sponsors will be noted in event handout materials. Funds raised by sponsorship will cover event expenses. Any funds exceeding expenses will be added to the love offering benefiting the Bever children. Final details of date and time will be released shortly.
Checks specifically for the love offering should be made out directly to Bank of Oklahoma (BOK). Although the two Bever girls are now doing well in a foster home, when they turn 18, they will be on their own. The money will be put in a trust for them to have when that time comes.
Many churches have already committed to the event. With details settled in advance the police chaplains are able to present a free event, a beautiful night of singing hymns.
"It's just great for our churches to be doing something together," Buskirk said, "a special expression of faith. It will be a night we celebrate the faith of the community. We really are a community of great faith." He, like many others, feels like "this happened on my watch."
"How did this family fall through the net?" he said. "We hope this will bring healing to the community, pulling together and feeling some responsibility for that family. That is the spirit behind this. With the Bever court case geared up for the first part of May, the community will be in the news. We want to express something healing."
"Encourage people to go. Support this community event," Manganaro reiterated.
"It's not just a concert," Buskirk concluded. "It's a hymn sing. Chapman will also tell the story behind the hymns. It's not just a pastors' event. The businesses and churches can all come together.
"I would like to see the place packed," Manganaro said.
With questions contact Buskirk at 918-519-5874 or Manganaro at 918-237-3946.
BRENHAM, Texas Blue Bell Creameries has told federal inspectors that it believes listeria bacteria spread at its Broken Arrow plant through a drainage system.
The Texas-based ice cream company revealed the findings in documents sent to the Food and Drug Administration.
A listeria outbreak in 2015 killed three in Kansas and was traced back to Blue Bell, prompting a nationwide recall and a voluntary shutdown of the Brenham and Broken Arrow plants, as well as one in Alabama. Another seven people in Kansas, Arizona, Oklahoma and Texas were sickened by listeria, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
KXAS-TV in Dallas-Fort Worth reported Friday that Blue Bell says it believes the bacteria found at its plant in Broken Arrow spread through the drainage system, released into the air and then settled on nearby equipment.
In its filing to the FDA, Blue Bell said cleaned equipment that came into contact with products made at the Broken Arrow plant was being stored in a small room with a floor drain.
The company said an investigation revealed that particles at the plant may have carried listeria and washed into the buildings drainage system, gone through the rooms drain and settled on the clean equipment.
We believe that this mechanism particles emitted from a drain was the most likely source of listeria, Blue Bell wrote in the February filing.
The company said it no longer uses the room for equipment storage, and that the drain was removed and the floor replaced.
Blue Bell also told the FDA that it believes listeria likely entered its Brenham plant from various potential sources and settled on some pieces of equipment, but that investigators could not identify a single common source of listeria in the facility.
The company said it focused on cleaning affected pieces of equipment or removing it altogether, cleaning and sanitizing the plant and enhancing sanitation procedures and testing programs.
We believe that these enhanced programs are enabling us to effectively control for listeria in our Brenham facility, Blue Bell said.
Blue Bell also implemented new procedures, facility enhancements and employee training at its Alabama plant.
The company announced a product recall for the first time in 108 years on March 13, 2015, after a potential listeria problem was found with some frozen snacks.
The company voluntarily suspended operations at the Broken Arrow plant on April 3, 2015, to begin inspection of the facility after a cup of ice cream recovered from a Kansas hospital tested positive for listeria monocytogenes. The cup was produced in the Broken Arrow plant on April 15, 2014.
On April 20, the company recalled all of its products on the market made at all of its facilities.
On May 7, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration released results of its investigations into Blue Bells plants, including the Broken Arrow plant where 17 separate positive tests for listeria were found on equipment and in other locations from March 2013 through February 2015.
Blue Bell announced furloughs and layoffs of 37 percent of its workforce in May, including about 20 layoffs in Broken Arrow. The company then conducted what it referred to as enhanced procedures at its production facilities to improve safety.
In early August, Blue Bell began production again one state at a time. Broken Arrow workers were back at work on Sept. 1 after a four-month furlough.
Before the outbreak, Blue Bell was the third-largest ice cream seller in the U.S., which means it sold about 6 percent of the countrys ice cream.
The Golden Driller spent a lifetime on construction sites, does not smile for photos and was forced to retire from the rodeo at age 74 after breaking his back in competition.
And he did wear pants. No, the pants were not skin tight.
Hes a real guy. Or, at least, a real guy who posed for artists while they created Tulsas most recognizable landmark.
The Golden Driller turns 50 this year. A party is being thrown Saturday at the fairgrounds, the statues residence since 1966, to celebrate.
John Stephens, 79, recalls the project from sketching to installation. He was an unwitting model and oversaw the statues construction. Surrounded by photos from that time and a complimentary cast-iron miniature, he downplays his role.
I had no clue what it was to be. It was just another project in a long list of projects over the years, he said. There is really nothing special about me.
The chosen one: When the International Petroleum Exposition came to Tulsa in 1966, Stephens was the superintendent working for Dallas Meade Constructors.
At two previous expos, temporary driller statues had been created. For this one, the Mid-Continent Supply Co. of Fort Worth, Texas, donated a steel and fiberglass Golden Driller as a permanent symbol of the expo. It was an international oil industry trade show when Tulsa was known as the Oil Capital of the World. The Golden Drillers right arm rests on an actual derrick taken from an oil field near Seminole.
One day, the owner called Stephens into the office. When he arrived wearing his hardhat and boots, he was asked to stand next to a small oil rig replica. Artist George S. Grecco Hondronastas and another artist, who went only by Adrian, were there, he said.
They started sketching, he said. They didnt take my measurements. They would tell me to hold still a minute and things like that. Its not really me there but a figure.
Thats not how his family and friends have viewed it. His co-workers had particular fun asking about the too-tight, seemingly nonexistent pants.
Oh, Ive had to deal with that for years, he laughs.
Stephens has no idea why he was chosen. It could be he was on site every day, making it easier for the artists to refer to their muse. Maybe he had that hardened cowboy look. Or that he was simply available that day.
Its not me. Its a figment of Georges and Adrians imaginations. I was there doing the best I could, he said.
One trait shared between Stephens and the Golden Driller: a neutral, almost stern, face.
You know, there are hardly any photos of me smiling anywhere, he said. When Id luck out, win at a rodeo and have my picture in a magazine, my brothers would say, Why do you look so serious all the time in front of photographers? Its just the way I am, I guess.
Coming to life: Once the sketches and planning were done, the Golden Driller assembly started. Stephens was the coordinator and there at each stage. Photos show him standing in front of a skeleton of a hand, a metal outline of the hat and a still-to-be connected foot.
It was totally different than anything Id done, he said.
The artists would draw a section in chalk on the pavement. Workers would put rebar on top and twist the pieces with heat and muscle to fit the drawings. Then, like a puzzle, it would fit together as the statue came to life.
Adrian and George had a talent and special eye for that, he said. They could look at a piece of metal the size of your finger and know exactly how it should be bent.
The Golden Driller fell into disrepair by the 70s. In 1976, the big man needed $50,000 in repairs, but the Mid-Continent Supply Co. declined to pay the bill. It was going to be demolished before it fell down.
A community-wide campaign raised the money, and the statue was refurbished in 1979. Thats when the belt buckle was changed to TULSA from Mid-Continent. A waterproof finish was applied in 2011.
My heart almost broke when I drove by one time and saw it was in such bad shape, Stephens said. It hurt me to see that. That is as emotional as I could get.
Life before, after Driller: Stephens is as rugged as any wildcatter.
A native of Sapulpa, he entered the Navy at age 19, serving four years. After his discharge, he married Evelyn in 1959 and they went to California for a welding job. On Monday, the couple will celebrate their 57th wedding anniversary.
At one point Stephens worked temporarily in the Texas oil fields, but went back into construction. They returned to Tulsa in 1963 and raised two daughters and a son. They have six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
He retired from construction in 1996 as the superintendent and project manager for the Bank of Oklahoma.
Rodeo has been a lifelong pastime that he is having trouble giving up. In 2011, at age 74, he broke his back while competing in team roping at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie.
Doctors said I couldnt do it anymore. Im having a hard time with that, he said.
Bragging rights: The Golden Driller has become the symbol for Tulsa. Its a must-have stop for selfies. Its in every video footage about the city. Its in pop culture.
For Stephens, its more.
What the Golden Driller represents to me what he was always meant to represent were all of the tough, hard hours and days those oil roughnecks did to produce oil to make our way of life easier for all of us, he said. Those guys were out there when it was sleeting and snowing.
Hes a reminder of all that blood, tears and death a lot died on those rigs. The rigs arent like how they are today.
His daughter, Sapulpa schools physical education teacher Belinda Spears, said she and her siblings would take turns taking the miniature commemorative statue to school.
We all called him the Golden Driller, she said. We were all so proud. Even now, and Im 56, I drive by the Driller and think, Theres my dad. Ill see a coffee mug with the Driller and think, Thats my dad. All our friends and teachers knew it, and we bragged on him all our lives.
A half century after Stephens unsuspectingly became a model, his daughter is gratified by the statues staying power.
Its going to be there forever, Spears said. Its a staple. Its not going anywhere. My dad built it, so its built to last.
The decision left Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler "outraged" over what seemed to him to be a political decision. "It is not in the public's best interest" to release John Hanson to Oklahoma's custody, federal officials said.
Responding to complaints that closing the 23rd Street bridge would cripple industrial businesses in west Tulsa, transportation officials have changed their construction plans to reopen some lanes sooner. But the project will still cause considerable inconvenience, the officials said Friday.
Crossing over Interstate 244 and the BNSF railroad tracks, the 23rd Street bridge offers the only major access route to an industrial area along West 21st Street toward Chandler Park.
The original construction plan involved closing the bridge for up to 240 days starting this summer, forcing trucks and commuters to take a long and cumbersome detour to get in and out of the area.
A new construction plan, however, will reopen one lane in each direction after 120 days.
We listened and made some adjustments, said Casey Shell, chief engineer for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation. Its still going to be a painful project to anybody who works behind it.
Construction will likely start in early June. The entire $13.6 million project, which involves replacing piers and the bridge deck, is expected to take more than 19 months.
More than 15,000 vehicles a day use the bridge, which was built in 1962 and has been classified as structurally deficient.
Over the past two years, four trains have derailed under the bridge and struck the piers, so the railroad company will replace some of the tracks and ODOT will reconfigure some of the piers to create a protective crash wall.
About 30 people, most of them representing various industrial sites along 21st Street, attended a meeting at City Hall to hear ODOT officials explain the new construction plans, which were mostly well-received. But some business leaders expressed concerns about emergency vehicles being unable to enter the area if needed.
EMSA and the Tulsa Fire Department are aware of the bridge project and will plan their response routes accordingly, officials said.
I think weve done everything we can to mitigate the disruption from this project, said Paul Zachary, director of engineering services for the city of Tulsa. Unfortunately, the disruption cant be entirely eliminated.
Thousands streamed into Expo Squares Exchange Center on Saturday to browse hundreds of vendors transplanted garages for deals on antiques, clothes and other items during the Ultimate Indoor Garage Sale.
This years sale included 220 booths, with vendors selling anything from plants, to vintage signs and used books and DVDs.
As event coordinator Samantha Extance put it, there was everything youd find at a street-side garage sale, just all in one spot.
About 8,000 people attended last years sale, and Saturday morning Extance said it seemed this years would attract about the same turnout.
Among the tables of general garage-sale wares, such as clothing and used furniture, it was hard for attendees to not ogle as they passed in front of John Carletons area.
Carleton primarily sold antiques at booth No. 186, and a shining, gold cash register framed on either side by a 1940s era deli meat slicer and a set of self-calculating scales attracted stares from passers-by.
He came across the 1920s-era cash register at a garage sale near Utica Square and hoped he could sell the restored antique in much the same way Saturday. He was asking $1,500. The cash register, which once sat in a drugstore, could ring up purchases of $1 or less.
Standing amid the perpetual crowd motion, Carleton laid out cash register evolution, noting how early cash registers kept money unprotected in a box, making it easy for employees to steal.
So now, he said, mashing the 50-cent button and eliciting a quick ding from the machine as the money drawer sprung open, when you put in 50 cents, you get a bell. The owner of the store knows somebodys in the cash register.
Last year, Carleton made about $1,000 in the sale. He had taken in approximately a fourth of that about two hours into Saturdays sale.
A few black-curtained rows separated Carleton from vendors Lora and Andy Dail, who sold used books, dog collars and a set of white chairs with mustard yellow cushions, among other things, at their booth at a far end of the Exchange Center.
The couple bought a 10-by-10 booth last year and decided to give it another shot this year, purchasing two booths to display their items.
For Andy Dail, the number of possible customers convinced him to participate again. Were in a fairly rural suburb of Tulsa, and we wouldnt have this many people come through if we had a garage sale every Saturday for three months, he said.
Part of Andy Dails hope for the sale was to reduce the amount of clutter in the couples garage.
Im going to be able to put a car in my garage someday, he joked, adding that more specifically, his goal for this year was to fit two cars in their three-car garage.
One of the attendees who helped clear the Dails garage was Sharon Bailey, who drove to Tulsa from Missouri with her husband.
While he perused guns at the nearby Wanenmachers Tulsa Arms Show, Bailey combed over items at the garage sale.
Bailey said she liked the indoor garage sale set up because it was easier to browse a variety of items without having to travel to different houses.
By Saturday morning, Baileys white, plastic garage sale bag was filled with a plethora of purchased items: scissors, a jewelry box, pillow cases and, finally, a Christmas-themed dog collar, purchased from the Dails, for her sons dog.
Next years Ultimate Indoor Garage Sale is scheduled for March 25.
Just a few months ago, Joe Wanenmacher asked his doctor a hard question and got an even harder answer.
I had to ask him if he thought Id spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair, he said.
It really hit me when he said, Joe, Im sorry to say, I think you might spend the rest of your life in bed.
A few months ago, 81-year-old Wanenmacher was in a fight for his life.
By all indications, he should be dead he was, clinically, three times in the past year but today he is back once again walking, once again talking, and running his Wanenmachers Tulsa Arms Show, the largest event of its kind in the world underway through Sunday at the River Spirit Expo.
Wanenmachers ordeal started just 10 days after the show ended last April. He had a few health issues to beat, but he was, more or less, a healthy 80-year-old man at the time. Now he is back as a heart attack and bone cancer survivor with the cancer in full remission.
A born promoter, talking about his show is what was on his mind this week, but he allowed that his health story be told.
I guess I wouldnt mind people knowing I was kind of in bad shape, he said. It may give some of em hope, you know. I had a friend in Claremore who had cancer. She didnt want to face it and she passed away this last summer. Dan Hagerty, who was Grizzly Adams on television, he was a regular at the show and he just passed in January with bone cancer.
You can beat it, Wanenmacher said. I know Im just one of the very lucky ones and it took just five months, but on December 1st I found out the cancer was in full remission.
Last April, he fell in his bathroom, hit his head on the floor and required emergency surgery to relieve swelling that was putting pressure on his brain.
It was during that process they found out I had bone cancer, he said.
Ten days later, he was flown to MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. He received his first dose of chemotherapy there but was apparently too weak after his brain surgery to handle it, he said.
He had a heart attack and nearly died. When he came to in recovery, he couldnt talk or walk. He was imprisoned in his own body.
My mind was clear. I was completely lucid, but my body just wouldnt cooperate, Wanenmacher said. My speech slowly, slowly came back. It took about a month.
In a second attempt with the chemotherapy administered at a slower rate, the results werent any better, he said.
I was dead, clinically, three times, he said.
He had congestive heart failure and then pneumonia. He now has a pacemaker in his chest.
They darn near killed me, but they brought me back, Wanenmacher said with a chuckle.
After four months at MD Anderson, he asked if he could return to Tulsa and get care at Saint Francis Hospital. He would undergo intense chemotherapy once a month, take an extraordinarily expensive pill once a day and have four hours of physical therapy every day.
I was lucky to have very good insurance, he said. When they told me (the pills) were $240,000 a year, I immediately did the math of how many more years I could live.
Even with insurance the cost, just for the pills, was $14,000, he said.
Leaving MD Anderson with the prediction he might be bedridden for life, he was motivated.
I just felt like if I didnt learn to walk in about two weeks I might never walk again, he said.
At first he could barely stand for 30 seconds.
It took three people to get me out of bed into a wheelchair, he said. You dont realize how helpless you are until you have to depend on people to help you around to do everything.
Wanenmachers daughter stayed with him at night and his wife, Kathy, was with him during the days.
At one point they were making funeral arrangements, and it was all almost too much for her and she was taken to the (emergency room), he said. If I had been in her place and saw my wife just about die three or four times, I know thats something that would really, really affect me.
In a few weeks, the St. Francis team had him walking again.
I think I was one of their more eager patients, he said. I got so I could walk 100 yards with a 10-minute rest in between.
Wanenmacher still goes to physical therapy, but has graduated from a wheelchair to a walker to a cane.
Around the house I dont even need the cane, he said.
Five months in the hospital, two months of treatment and physical therapy, and on Dec. 1 he got some of the best news of his life.
My doctor told me the cancer was in complete remission; it was just a complete miracle, he said. Determination had something to do with it, but that doesnt heal cancer; on top of that I was the luckiest guy in the world because I had a lot of good people praying for me.
And now he has a story of survival to tell at his gun show, and to inspire others.
People live a lot longer these days, he said. Im looking forward to doing that.
While the Okmulgee police chief confirmed just after 10 p.m. Friday that the remains were those of four men, he could not confirm that they were the bodies of the four local men who had been missing since Sunday.
Tulsa Public Schools Superintendent Deborah Gist on Friday announced a reorganization proposal to eliminate or defund 172 administrative jobs across several district sites while creating 66 new positions for a savings of about $3.7 million.
Midyear state budget cuts have left the district $4 million short this academic year, and TPS is bracing for cuts up to $20 million next year.
Gist said the reorganization means that many individuals and their families will be negatively affected and services to schools will be impacted.
The recommended staff reduction includes positions at the Charles C. Mason Education Service Center, the Enrollment Center, the Wilson Teaching and Learning Academy, the transportation and maintenance offices and other sites. No school-based positions will be affected.
Gist said district officials knew it was important to make the first cuts in positions that had the least direct impact on students.
So we started here with our central offices, she said. Its important for people to know that there is really important work that happens here in the Central Office.
The new positions that will be created will, in many cases, combine the responsibilities of the eliminated positions. A net total of 106 positions will be lost.
The defunded positions will remain on the organizational chart, but will stay vacant until funding can be secured for them.
The TPS board of education will vote on the proposal at a special meeting scheduled for April 25. District officials declined to provide a breakdown of which departments or offices will be affected the most through the proposal, but they expect a list of all the positions to be included with the April 25 meeting agenda.
The reductions would go into effect July 1.
TPS Chief Human Capital Officer Talia Shaull said: The proposed reductions include positions at every salary level. We have had one-on-one conversations with each affected employee, and we are committed to providing any supports we can to ease the transition.
The savings from the reorganizations come from $2.7 million in savings to help the district offset the expected cuts from the state next year, as well as the freeing up of $1 million in federal funding that can then be distributed to the schools, Shaull said.
Gist said this is simply the first step as many areas will need to be cut in anticipation of the losses coming next year.
The next step is to say, What else are we going to need to do in order to see additional reductions? Gist said.
Gist said right now officials are focused on cutting in areas that are as far away from the classroom as possible.
But ultimately, were going to need to take a look at the staffing allocations at our schools, she said. Were not there yet; were trying to get as much information as we possibly can from the state about what well actually need to cut.
Some of the eliminated positions include those of employees who have already accepted a buyout offered by the district last month. As of Friday morning, 24 employees had accepted the buyout incentive, which offered employees the incentive of immediately ending their current contract in return for payment equal to the remainder of their base salary for the year. The employees would also be paid for eligible accruals, such as unused vacation time.
Shaull said employees can still accept the buyout incentive even those who have already been notified that their position will be eliminated. The deadline for accepting the buyout is expected to be extended until the end of April.
Two days after al-Qaida terrorist attacks in Cote dIvoire killed 19 people, I sat down with a group of Ivorian religious, government, and civil society leaders for a previously scheduled videoconference organized by the U.S. embassy about how to promote religious tolerance and dialogue.
Given what had just happened there, I expected to be asked about confronting Islamic extremism. Instead, a Christian minister dressed in white from head-to-toe stood up and asked, The wind blows from the United States. What is to become of us and our Muslim brothers? How are we to build tolerance if this powerful nation elects someone who calls for banning Muslims? Here was an Ivorian Christian leader, two days after an attack by Islamist terrorists in his country, expressing fear of Donald Trump.
It was a powerful reminder of something often forgotten in the United States, but which I saw time and again during three decades as an American diplomat: What U.S. political leaders say is heard around the world, and it has an impact.
Words count, even in the heat of an electoral campaign. No matter who wins, watching a major American political party place its faith in a strident bigot and women-hater who doesnt hesitate to insult an entire religion has already harmed the United States abroad.
Although we often do not meet our aspirations, the American experience has always inspired advocates for freedom and tolerance around the world. It is a powerful source of soft power that coveted coin of international influence. Republican candidate Donald Trump is rapidly depleting our soft power bank account. Im not surprised that Secretary of State John Kerry says this electoral campaign is an embarrassment for the United States.
As a cultural diplomat, I used to look forward to the presidential election cycle as a wonderful opportunity to showcase American democracy. I organized election night parties, academic conferences and gamely tried to explain the electoral college. No matter where I was posted, everyone was interested in the process, personalities and pageantry.
In 1988, as Glasnost blossomed, I remember the Soviet ambassador to Madagascar surprised everyone by voting in the mock election I organized in a downtown hotel. I recall Tunisian students who slept on a hotel ballroom floor as they waited for the crucial Ohio results during the George W. Bush-Kerry battle in 2004. Sleepy-eyed, they would berate me about the Iraq War and then pull me close to whisper, But Bush is right about one thing we need real democracy. In 2008 earnest 15-year old Comorian immigrants in gritty Marseille neighborhoods would ask me, Does Obama really have a chance? and I realized they were as personally invested in that historic election as any American.
This time around, our election is again the center of global attention, but for all the wrong reasons. I dont envy my former colleagues. My guess is that they are spending a lot of time talking about our system of checks and balances, trying to reassure foreign audiences that even if we elect a Know-Nothing candidate, our system will prevent him from doing too much damage. This is cold comfort for those who look to the U.S. for inspiration, and music to the ears of our enemies.
Philip Breeden spent three decades in the U.S. Foreign Service focused on public diplomacy, directing communication, cultural and educational exchange programs in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. His final assignment was as the minister-counselor for public affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Paris. He now lives in Aix-en-Provence, France, where he teaches international relations at the Institute for American Universities and consults on public diplomacy issues. He is from Tulsa, where he spent his early childhood, and returns regularly to visit family.
OKLAHOMA CITY People arrested for felony crimes would have their DNA collected under a measure moving through the Legislature.
The measure passed the Senate Public Safety Committee last week by a vote of 7-1. It heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee for consideration. If approved, it would go to the Senate floor.
The authors of the measure, House Bill 2275, are Rep. Lee Denney, R-Cushing, and Sen. Clark Jolley, R-Edmond.
Denney said it is the fourth time she has carried the measure.
Meeting with families and victims of unsolved crimes prompted her to run the bill. She said the state ought to be using the technology to solve crimes.
I think solving these crimes is for the greater good of Oklahoma citizens, so people are not out there continuing to perpetrate crimes against our citizens, Denney said.
In addition, it could help solve cold cases, giving victims and their families some closure, Denney said.
Not only does DNA convict, it also exonerates, Denney said.
Jolley said he voted against the measure in the past, but has reconsidered his position and is supporting it.
He said he had been concerned about privacy, but those worries were eased by a U.S. Supreme Court decision affirming the taking of DNA upon arrest.
In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court in King v. Maryland ruled that privacy was not offended by the minor intrusion of a cheek swab.
The court ruled that taking a DNA sample of a person who is arrested is a reasonable search that can be considered part of the routine booking procedure.
The Oklahoma measure allows for the talking of saliva or blood.
If a person is arrested and not charged or goes to trial and is found innocent, the sample would be destroyed, Jolley said.
It is as easy as pressing the delete key, Jolley said.
Sen. Corey Brooks, R-Washington, debated for the proposal when it was before the Senate Public Safety Committee.
It is a more secure form of fingerprints, he said. This isnt too terribly crazy or outside the box. This is being more specific with those out there breaking the law.
The head of the ACLU of Oklahoma does not like the measure.
Ryan Kiesel, executive director and a former member of the Oklahoma House, said bills like this give law enforcement and the government a license to conduct a fishing expedition.
Kiesel said supporters of such measures contend that casting a wide net will catch criminals and solve crimes that may otherwise go unprosecuted, but it upsets a delicate balance.
We cant be entirely safe or entirely free at the same time, he said. There has to be a balance. We think bills like this upset that balance.
In February, the measure failed the House by a vote of 38-56, but Denney held the bill on a motion to reconsider the vote. It then passed the House by a vote of 52-36.
Rep. Eric Proctor, D-Tulsa, voted against the measure.
If someone is guilty, I have no issue with the DNA. But if someone is arrested, in this country you are still innocent until proven guilty, Proctor said. Even though the author says DNA can be expunged, in reality that is not the case. Once it is in the system, it is in the system.
It's Divali time so at TV6 over the next few days, we bring you some of the interesting aspe
The UEFA EURO 2016 Trophy Tour train opened its doors to the general public on Saturday.
The tour, which on Friday was officially inaugurated in the presence of local personalities, UEFA representatives and Saint-Denis ambassador Steve Marlet, will now spend two days at Gare de Lyon in Paris before going on to visit 25 cities in France.
After touring the city on Friday before being exhibited in front of the Basilique Saint-Denis, the Trophy Tour train then travelled to Gare de Lyon.
The train is made up of four carriages. The first one offers visitors the chance to have their photo taken with the trophy, while the second contains a EURO museum comprising photos, videos, shirts and more. The third carriage will be the 'David Guetta recording studio', where fans can play their part in recording the official tournament song. In the last carriage, there will be an exhibition of all previous EURO mascots and some secrets will be revealed about this year's incarnation, Super Victor.
The train will spend three days in each of the UEFA EURO 2016 host cities, as well as two days at all other stops. On day one in each city, the trophy travels round before being installed in the train. It remains in the station for two days, with visitors welcome from 09.00CET to 18.00CET.
Ukraine is negotiating with the international partners on the deployment of the OSCE armed police mission in Donbas with the aim of effective implementation of the Minsk Agreements.
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko said this in Washington on Friday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
"Ukraine's firm position is that it is necessary to ensure the security component for the full implementation of the Minsk Agreements, the Head of State stressed.
The President reminded of the necessity to reach sustainable ceasefire, effective monitoring of weapons withdrawal and effective control over the uncontrolled parts of the Ukrainian-Russian border.
In case of holding elections in certain areas of Donbas on the basis of Ukrainian legislation it is necessary to ensure the withdrawal of Russian troops, the withdrawal and storage of weapons away from the illegal armed formations, he added.
According to Poroshenko, one of the possible solutions would be the international security component in form of the OSCE armed police mission. He added Ukraine was in talks to ensure this security component.
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The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has strongly condemned the travel on March 30 by a group of Greek businessmen
The group was led by a member of the tourism development of Corinth municipality Georgios Iosifidis to the temporarily occupied by Russia territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol city, and pointed out that it was not agreed with the Ukrainian side and violated Ukraine legislation.
The foreign ministry posted its comments on the site.
In connection with this fact the foreign ministry calls on all foreign nationals to fully abide by the legislation of Ukraine and conditions for entry and departure for citizens to the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine. Ukraine will react to any violations of the established procedures.
Ukraine is concerned over the fact that Russia plans to deploy the elements of nuclear weapons in the territory of the occupied Crimea and demands that the international community give clear and coherent response in order to prevent this.
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko said this in Washington on Friday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
"Crimea is Ukrainian territory, and we are very concerned over the plans of the Russian Federation to deploy [nuclear weapons], as stated by our intelligence. We demand very coherent and effective steps of the international community to avoid drastic deterioration of the security situation in the Black Sea region," Poroshenko said at the final press conference for the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington.
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President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko has met with President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda within the framework of his working visit to Washington.
As the press service of the Ukrainian Head of State reports, the parties agreed the plans for the further Ukrainian-Polish contacts at the highest level plans this year.
The President of Ukraine noted that he relied on the Polish support in the decision of the European Commission to grant Ukraine the visa-free regime with the European Union.
The special attention was paid to the ways to intensify the dialogue in the context of Ukraine's relations with NATO. The presidents noted the importance of holding the Ukraine-NATO Commission meeting within the framework of the NATO Warsaw Summit in July this year.
President of Ukraine expressed hope that Poland and other European countries would impose the personal sanctions against those involved in trumping up the cases against Nadiya Savchenko, Oleg Sentsov and other Ukrainian citizens illegally held in Russia.
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The permanent office of the Freedom House international human rights organization will be opened in Kyiv this month.
Freedom House project coordinator in Ukraine Zoryan Kis said this to an Ukrinform correspondent.
According to him, the final formal registration procedures are now being carried out in the Justice Ministry. "The opening of the office has been possible due to the financial support of the Governments of Canada and Norway," Kis said.
One of the Freedom House leaders from the United States is expected to attend the opening ceremony in Kyiv.
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Members of The Hundred Group, the top bean-counters in Britain, have been considering whether to take a public position on the upcoming referendum poll on Brexit. The group members are the finance directors of Britain's largest listed as well as private companies. They are being surveyed to take a stance over the referendum subject related to the UK membership of the European Union (EU).
Chief of the Britain's top business companies are being asked to explain their personal and corporate views on Brexit. The consensus survey asks the group members whether they started to sketch out plans for a decision on leaving the EU as well as its possible consequences. The survey appears following difficult past experiences in cases of other membership based business organizations prior to the referendum, reports Sky News.
John Longworth, former director general for the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), has been compelled to resign following his expression of a pro-Brexit opinion. He has been accused of flouting BCC's neutral stance over the issue.
Supporters of the LGBT community protested the exclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from the anti-discrimination protection bill recently issued in North Carolina. Governor Pat McCrory signed the bill on Wednesday.
The bill which will take effect on Friday, creating a mandatory statewide anti-discrimination policy. Republican legislators drafted the law in an emergency session to overrule a new municipal ordinance in Charlotte, the largest city in North Carolina. The city ordinance was designated to provide protections for transgender, including the permission to use bathrooms according to the gender they identify with.
McCrory, a former mayor of Charlote, had promised to override the ordinance which was passed last month. The left-leaning ordinance in Charlotte expanded protections for individuals on the basis of marital status, sexual orientation, and gender identity or expression. That include allowing transgender people to use their preferred restroom.
In a statment from an email quoted by Washington Post, governor McCrory said, "The only issue I think the state needs to be involved in is the issue regarding locker rooms and restrooms, that's the one that draws concern that has ramifications beyond city limits."
There are about 12,000 people signing the online petition supporting governor McCrory. The people showed concern regarding the risk of putting women and children at the Charlotte bathroom when the ordinance was passed.
On March 21, the Republican-majority legislatures invoked a constitutional provision to call themselves into special one-day session two days later. In the session announcement, Lt. Governor Dan Forest and House Speaker Tim Moore said in a joint statement, "We aim to repeal this ordinance before it goes into effect to provide for the privacy and protection of the women and children of our state."
Opponents of the new bill met with the governor Pat McCrory on Thursday and demanded the law to be repealed. According to Wall Streel Journal, a local transgender woman who met the governor said in a news release from advocacy group Equality NC, "The people of North Carolina are looking for the governor to show the leadership needed to repeal this appalling law."
The executive director of Equality NC is one of the LGBT activists that met with governor on Thursday meeting. The opponent requested the governor to revoke the law and delivered the letter signed by 100 officials from major corporations who oppose the same law. Signatories include the head of Starbucks and Hilton.
Many opponents to the state's law also come from business leaders. CNBC reported that Apple's Tim Cook and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg also stated their objection to the new law.
McCrory said the state's law was issued to ensure privacy in the public bathroom. However, LGBT activists disagreed, urging the state's law to be revoked.
General Electric (GE), a Fairfield, Connecticut-based multinational corporation, has appealed on Thursday to get released from supervision by the Federal Reserve. It has significantly shrunken its former massive financial services arm, posing no more systemic threat to the US financial system.
As a Fed declared Systematically Important Financial Institution (SIFI), GE needs to submit financial information to Fed staffs who allegedly rein in business leverage. These factors have led GE to pull out from most of its lending businesses. This part of GE business, until recent, has provided half of the conglomerate's profits, reports The Wall Street Journal.
GE has informed the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) on Thursday through a regulatory filing that it has its total assets in the financing division cut by more than half. The American conglomerate has eliminated majority of its US operations and omitted company's ties with rest of the financial system leading to keep hold the SIFI labeling, according to a report published in Fox Business.
An FSOC spokesman has welcomed the opportunity to evaluate developments at any designated non-bank financial company and their potential impacts on financial stability. FSOC will consider whether GE Capital continue to hold the label of SIFI, as part of its regular annual review over the companies it supervises. FSOC vows to continue acting within its legislative authority in protecting the US economy, reports MarketWatch quoting the FSOC spokesperson.
The remaining unit of GE Capital is smaller, simpler and less interconnected with the US financial system. It does not pose any conceivable threat to US financial stability.
Resurgent sales in the real estate sector boosted economic activity in China during March, but exports and freight segments remained weak on the same month. Manufacturing index, Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), rose to 50.2 points for March 2016.
FTCR China Business Activity Index has combined results of surveys focusing on real estate, exports and logistics segments moving up 57.9 points in March from 50.6 points in February. This indicated the highest reading since October 2014.
A business survey carried out by FT Confidential Research (FTCR), a research unit of Financial Times, indicates robust activity in the Chinese real estate sector. Home sales volumes were encouragingly up pushing FTCR China Real Estate Index to a record high of 78.2 points in March. However, China suffered from decline in exports and freight segments.
After rebounding during January and February, exports and freight segments declined in March 2016. The real estate-led economic activity is also raising more concerns that Chinese government is back to its old game of stimulus pushing home sales. Some economists opine the old stimulus playbook might be in place for recovery in construction activity and creating demand for industrial goods.
Fortune further adds that China's economy didn't witness any major change during the first two months of 2016. The data from London-based Capital Economics reveals a 4.1 percent economic growth in China, with Electricity generation rising and entering into positive zone. Consumer spending remains sluggish though.
The latest growth stability allayed concerns that China was entering further slowdown mode. This notion comes at a time, when Chinese economy is transforming from infrastructure investment-push growth to consumer spending-driven growth. Ongoing conditions in the domestic economy are not holding view of a consumer-spending driven economy. In the past, real estate activity pushed consumer-led activity for some time. Urban middle class people look for asset appreciation if real estate prices move upwards.
Meanwhile, the manufacturing production during March was positive for the economy. Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), an official manufacturing measuring barometer, rose to 50.2 points for the month, surpassing the forecast of Reuters poll. PMI indicated growth in manufacturing output for the first time since July 2015. The PMI index was 49 in February, the lowest since 2011. China's official services PMI on the other hand, moved up to 53.8 in March from 52.7 in February, as reported by CNBC.
FTCR China survey on consumer activity alone indicates that consumer spending is sluggish, while real estate sales are on a tear. FTCR China Consumer Index is hovering below historical levels. However, a real estate-driven boom is very positive for China's economy for short term. All eyes are on the Chinese government on how it step ups economic reforms and implements changes to its economic structure for sustaining long-term growth.
BayWa, a Munich-based company with the focus on building materials, energy, and agricultural sector, announced its partnership with Spruce Finance to provide finance products for its solar distribution clients in the US. The new product offers homeowners and contractors easy and inexpensive solar loans.
The company said its dealers across the US will have access to loan products from Spruce Finance, which helps them to improve their businesses as well as permits clients to manage their energy options. BayWa assists independent business contractors to create robust sales and also improve their installation potential.
The loans enable BayWa's dealers to boost their cash flow and also improve their pipeline management while at the same time providing smart loans to homeowners. Boaz Soifer, chief executive officer of BayWa Solar System LLC said, "Spruce's loans are a great addition to our finance program. They will allow independent installers to grow with fewer constraints and compete with larger national players."
According to Reuters, stocks of BayWa indicated 2% lower. The group anticipated its 2016 operating profit to improve minutely, on a significant revenue growth.
On Thursday, the German-based firm reported an increase in its annual earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to 158.1 million from 152.1 million in the previous year. The company's revenue for 2015 amounted to 14.9 billion, down by 1.8% from 15.2 billion in 2014. The fall in annual revenue was due to the record low prices of raw components.
The company's growth in EBIT was helped by the strong performance in the renewable energies project business in the domestic and foreign markets. In addition, internationalisation of the country's agricultural industry also contributed to EBIT growth in 2015.
The company's agricultural business registered a revenue of 10.2 billion in 2015, up from the 10.1 billion in the previous year. However, the annual EBIT from the sector declined to 87.2 million from the 107.8 million in 2014. Revenues from the energy arm dropped to 3.3 billion from the 3.5 billion in the previous year, hurt mainly by weak oil prices. EBIT totalled 77.2 million in 2015, up from the 42.3 million in 2014.
Renewable energies business recorded a revenue of 1.02 billion, up from the 786.2 million in 2014. EBIT also increased to 61.8 million from 36.5 million in the previous year. The company's Board will propose a dividend increase to 0.85 from 0.80 a share.
Meanwhile, WealthCap has purchased the new headquarters of BayWa in Munich. The property was acquired from Competo Capital and BayWa AG for 280 million, according to property magazine. Andreas Helber, chief financial officer of BayWa, said there is a growing demand for the company's headquarters and that the selection process for a right buyer seemed difficult.
The company is implementing various monetary policies to strengthen its business portfolio. The current finance scheme mirrors BayWa's effort to build a strong relationship with its customers.
Meketa Investment Group has expanded its employee ownership team, adding seven new shareholders. Meketa hopes that it'll add new expertise and talent that will support its business expansion plan across different geographies. The ltest expansion takes the total number of Meketa Investment Group's shareholders to 27.
As part of the employee ownership team expansion, Principals Alla Barskaya, Paul Cowie, Henry Jaung, Nancy LaBier, Mary Mustard, Lisa Rubin and Alli Wallace have joined the ownership group. These professionals are expected to add more strength to Meketa Investment Group's business growth.
Established in 1978, Meketa Investment Group is an investment consulting and advisory firm.
Yahoo Finance reports that the expansion of employee ownership team enables Meketa Investment Group to leverage dynamic perspectives of an expanded team. Among new professional joined the group is Alla Barskaya, who's a CPA and now serves as the firm's Director of Finance. She holds a master's degree in Business Administration and a bachelor's degree in Economics and Finance from Moscow University in Russia. Barskaya joined the firm's Boston office in 2007.
Peter Woolley, Managing Principal and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Meketa Investment Group, said "Meketa Investment Group is pleased to welcome these individuals to our ownership team in recognition of their commitment to the firm and its clients throughout their tenures."
Paul F Cowie, III, another professional in the employee ownership team will be a consultant on various defined benefit, defined contribution and health and welfare funds for public. Cowie joined the firm's Boston office in 2005 and relocated to the San Diego office in 2006.
Henry Jaung will act as a consultant and advisor on various defined benefit, health and welfare funds for Taft-Hartley as well as public funds. Jaung studied in Mathematics at Columbia University and holds a bachelor's in Mathematics from the State University of New York at Albany. He joined the firm's Boston office in 2010, as reported by BusinessWire.
Stephen McCourt, Managing Principal and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Meketa Investment Group, believe "These individuals are representative of the depth of talent our firm has across many specialties and geographies and we look forward to the firm's continued success leveraging the dynamic perspectives of our expanded ownership team."
Meketa Investment Group in late 2015 expanded its footprint to Chicago. It's the third new location for Meketa Investment Group during the past 16 months. It opened offices in Portland, Oregon and London in 2014. The Chicago office is further supporting the Meketa's network in the US, according to Meketa Group.
Other newly-added professionals to employee ownership team include Nancy LaBier, Mary Mustard, Lisa Rubin and Alexandra Wallace.
Nancy LaBier serves as the firm's Director of Human Resources. She holds a master's degree in Management from Lesley University. LaBier joined the firm's Boston office in 2008.
Mary Mustard holds CFA and serves as a consultant on defined benefit, annuity, health and welfare and investment funds for public. She joined the firm's Boston office in 2010.
Lisa Rubin will be the firm's Director of Marketing and Communications. She joined the firm's Boston office in 2010. Alexandra Wallace on the other hand, holds CFA and serves as a consultant on various Taft-Hartley defined benefit, defined contribution, annuity and health and welfare funds. She joined the firm's Boston office in 2008 and relocated to the Chicago office in 2016.
The US and Nigeria have agreed on Wednesday to form working groups focused on strengthening bilateral security and economic cooperation and abetting corruption. The agreement has been reached following day-long talks at the State Department. The two countries have also announced through a joint statement that the groups would finalize its goals within a month.
Wednesday's meetings have been launched by US Secretary of State John Kerry and Nigerian foreign minister Geoffrey Onyeama. Both countries have acknowledged security threats posed by Boko Haram militants in the northeast and neighboring countries. They have also discussed the ongoing tough economic situation caused by historic low crude oil prices, reports Reuters.
Kerry has reiterated the US commitment in helping Nigeria to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency. However, he has cautioned security forces to avoid human rights abuse despite stepping up the fight against jihadi groups pledging allegiance to the Islamic State (IS).
An Indonesian official on Saturday stated that they may impose a ban on actor Leonardo DiCaprio from entering Indonesia again due to his negative comments that palm oil plantations are damaging the country's rainforests and jeopardizing wildlife.
Last weekend, the 'Titanic' icon visited the protected Mount Leuser National Park in Northern Sumatra and uploaded pictures to his Instagram account reflecting concerns about species losing their natural habitats.
"The expansion of palm oil plantations is fragmenting the forest and cutting off key elephant migration corridors," he posted. "A world-class biodiversity hotspot, but palm oil expansion is destroying this unique place."
Deforestation vanquishes large areas of Indonesian forests every year during the dry season. This practice creates haze polluting neighboring countries, causing huge economic losses aside from adding to Indonesia's carbon dioxide emissions, as reported by MSN.
According to the Directorate General for Immigration at the Law and Human Rights Ministry, spokesman Heru Santoso, stated that DiCaprio used his visit as an excuse to demean the palm oil industry and the Indonesian government. He added that they support his concern to saving the Leuser ecosystem; however, he can be blacklisted for repeated postings of instigating remarks in his social media.
The Oscar winner was defended by the chairperson of the group Forest, Nature and Environment of Aceh, Farwiza Farhan, saying the DiCaprio didn't do anything wrong, as reported by BBC.
"The claim that he was trying to discredit Indonesia doesn't make sense because these environment campaigns are local movements. He just gave his support. Tourists can come and speak their opinion. When Leo arrived in Medan he was shocked that the haze was so thick, he asked us: 'Is this smoke or clouds?" she said.
He posted in his Instagram account a photo from his visit, saying that DiCaprio Foundation "supporting local partners to establish a mega-fauna sanctuary" in the Leuser ecosystem, a habitat threatened by palm oil plantations, logging, mining and other development activities, based on The Guardian report.
HAka, a non-government organization based in Aceh said that the ecosystem "plays a critical role in helping regulate the Earth's climate by absorbing carbon pollution and storing massive amounts of carbon in its lowland rainforests and peat lands.
Leonardo DiCaprio's foundation started in 1998 and will work with Acehnese conservationist Rudi Putra to develop a wildlife sanctuary in the ecosystem, building barriers, training wildlife rangers and patrols as well as giving information about habitat devastation.
photos by DAVID YAMAMOTO/SPECIAL TO THE STAR Andy Nickel (left) and Bobby Kuzma (third from left), both from Core Security, help Garry Boswell, deputy director and information services for the city of Simi Valley, learn how to use hacking software to break into a server next to Rafael Nunez (right) during the Information System Security Association Ventura County Chapter event at California Lutheran University.
SHARE Jordan Wheeler focuses on learning to use software to hack into a server during the Information System Security Association Ventura County Chapter event at California Lutheran University. DAVID YAMAMOTO/SPECIAL TO THE STAR Participants work to attack a target server during the Information System Security Association Ventura County Chapter event. A list tells participants what to hack from the target server during the Information System Security Association Ventura County Chapter event at California Lutheran University.
By Michele Willer-Allred, Special to The Star
As deputy director of information services for the city of Simi Valley, Garry Boswell regularly protects the city's networks from hackers.
But Boswell, along with other information technology professionals and enthusiasts of all levels, recently had a chance to reverse roles playing the role of a hacker to get into and sabotage a fictitious hospital's information system.
It was part of a computer-oriented Red vs. Blue Team event held at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks and sponsored by the nonprofit Information System Security Association Ventura County Chapter.
The primary goal of the event was to teach IT and information security professionals "how to attack their own systems before attackers do" and learn some valuable lessons in the process.
The chapter partnered with Core Security at the event, providing participants with laptop computers loaded with Core's flagship intrusion testing software called Core Impact, which assesses and tests security vulnerabilities in an organization.
Palo Alto Networks provided its next-generation firewalls to help run the event and had an engineer on hand in an adjacent room to show participants what attacks look like in real time and how the company can help manage those threats.
Stephen Maiorca, president of the chapter, said the event was held for participants to "kind of act like the bad guy."
"We don't always get to play on the other side. It's illegal, so we hold events like these. If you don't know how the hackers hack in, you don't know how to protect the networks," said Maiorca, whose full-time job is handling information security for a Los Angeles law firm.
Bobby Kuzma, systems engineer with Core Security, said hacking is "a huge topic of concern because most organizations don't understand how bad their internal security is until they have skilled attackers come against it."
"Core Security deliberately built this self-contained environment so that folks can safely learn to use testing tools. And every single vulnerability is something I've encountered in the wild in actual organizations in the last year or so," Kuzma said.
Event participants got into the hospital's network, which allowed them to gain access to patient medical devices, such as intravenous pumps, for which dosages can be adjusted. They could crack into a phone system that stored voice mail passwords and find bugs in the computer code to take control of the hospital network and steal patient data.
System administrators eventually ended up protecting the system from the hackers.
Maiorca said although the event was staged, hospitals are vulnerable to real-life hacking, which can put people at heightened risk for identity fraud and put patients' lives at risk.
There have been three verified attacks on hospital networks since December.
"There's probably a lot more, and nobody's noticed because hospitals are in the business of keeping people alive, not in the business of keeping their networks secure," Maiorca said.
Other businesses are at risk, too.
Kuzma said he once knew of a large organization that handled financial data and had an unsecured area around its elevators and an Internet-protocol phone so people could call in.
"An attacker could drop a small device on that and they'd be on the inside of that network without ever having to pick a lock or talk to a person. That's the kind of thing I see almost every time I do a test on an organization," Kuzma said.
Kuzma said there are many ways IT professionals can protect their systems from known vulnerabilities, such as making sure all necessary computer patches are up to date and being careful with what is plugged into their networks.
Kuzma said people should not use easy-to-guess passwords and should not share those passwords on other systems.
"It doesn't do a lick of good how good your security is if you've got the same password on your LinkedIn," he said with a laugh.
He said good passwords are not dictionary words, since hackers can take the entire English dictionary and run through it in all variations.
"Most organizations have a 90-day rotation of passwords. It's actually better for you to have a 15-character password that you only have to change once a year," Kuzma said.
"I'm really fond of using favorite phrases from books and movies and using that as the base point for the password or even using the entire thing as a pass phrase."
Kuzma said to think like an attacker when you're looking at your environment and work with management to decide which risk factors you're going to deal with.
He said using Core Security products, such as Core Impact, and also Core Insight, which helps large enterprises prioritize their vulnerabilities, can help.
Paul Witman, an information systems professor at CLU, said playing the role of a hacker was informative.
"As I tell my students, it's really important to know how your opponent thinks and figuring out how to defend against that," Witman said.
Boswell said he learned through role playing how to protect the network better.
He said Simi Valley hasn't experienced hacking, and he hopes it stays that way.
Maiorca said it is important for any IT professional to know their own environment and network "because that's the only way you can possibly hope to catch anybody invading it."
"Most companies these days should have a firm grasp on the fact that is not a matter of if they'll be attacked," he said. "It's a matter of when."
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CAMARILLO
Ministry training on mercy available
Nonprofit Area Christians Taking Initiative on Needs or ACTION will host Rethink Mercy Equipping, which is a Children's Hunger Fund initiative. This program will be offered April 16 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the nonprofit center, 4001 Mission Oaks Blvd.
This Biblically based training teaches how mercy and ministry meet. Church staff and volunteers are invited and will receive training on how to effectively execute gospel-centered mercy ministry and how this relates to meeting physical needs.
The cost is $10 to cover the expense of a workbook and lunch. Bring your Bible. To sign up, visit the ACTION website at http://www.actionvc.org. For more information, visit the website or call 987-0300.
MOORPARK
Elite Israeli fighter to present lecture
The Moorpark Chabad Jewish Center will host a lecture on the "Rescue Mission at Entebbe" 10:30 a.m. to noon April 10 for adults and teens. A children's program, for ages 2-12, will run simultaneously and will teach new self-defense techniques and movements in a martial arts workshop. The lecture and children's program are open to the community.
A veteran of the Israel Defense Force, Elite IDF Cmdr. Sassy Reuven, will share firsthand accounts of how Israel pulled off the famed Entebbe rescue mission. During 1973-1976, Reuven served in the IDF's elite Red Beret paratrooper unit. In July of 1976, he participated in "Operation Thunderbolt," flying thousands of miles over enemy territory to rescue Jewish hostages being held by terrorists in Uganda.
The event will be held at the center, 4219 Tierra Rejada Road. The fee is $10 per adult, $8 child and $30 per family with reservations. The fee will be $15 adult, $10 child and $40 per family at the door. For reservations, call 242-2232 or visit http://www.JewishMoorpark.com/ JED.
OXNARD
Salvation Army hosts prayer lunch
The Salvation Army invites the community to the 43rd annual recognition of the National Day of Prayer noon to 1:30 p.m. May 5 from at the Courtyard Marriott, 600 E. Esplanade Drive.
The program will feature the color guard from Oxnard Police Department, guest speakers, master of ceremonies Cmdr. Eric Sonstegard, music, prayers, recognition of dignitaries and information regarding Summer Youth Camp.
Cost is $35 per person. For more information, call Lt. Gaytan at The Salvation Army, 483-9235.
SIMI VALLEY
Jewish congregation offers Seder dinner
Congregation B'nai Emet's Community Seder will be held April 23 at 6 p.m. at 9 W. Bonita Drive.
Prices for congregation members are $40 per person for adults and $25 for children 6-12. Nonmember prices are $55 per person for adults and $40 for children 6-12. Children 5 and younger are free. Reservations must be made by April 18 at 581-3723 or http://www.congregationbnaiemet.org.
VENTURA
Guided meditation presented by author
Anita Moorjani, New York Times best-selling author of "Dying to be Me," will present a workshop titled "Being Myself" 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. May 7 at the Ventura Center for Spiritual Living, 101 S. Laurel St.
Discover how to love yourself for who you are, not for who the world wants you to be. Moorjani will conduct guided meditations and share tools and exercises which guests may continue to practice at home. She also will take questions from the audience.
The cost of this workshop is $100 before May 1 and $115 afterward. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 643-1933 or visit http://www.venturacsl. org.
SHARE CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Ventura County Sheriff's Office Department.
By Megan Diskin of the Ventura County Star
Minor injuries were reported in a crash Friday night in which a vehicle crashed into a utility pole, officials said.
The crash was reported about 9:20 p.m. near Fulton Street and Ponderosa Drive, according to the Ventura County Fire Department. Although minor injuries were reported, the crash tied up traffic in the area, authorities said.
Deputies with the Ventura County Sheriff's Office were on scene providing traffic control. Nearby Arneill Road was subsequently blocked off for a time, officials said.
Crews with Southern California Edison were called to scene due to the pole being knocked down, authorities said.
ROB VARELA/THE STAR Jane Laut hangs her head as her attorney Ron Bamieh reacts as the guilty verdict is read in court Wednesday.
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By Marjorie Hernandez of the Ventura County Star
Domestic violence was thrust into the forefront of the Jane Laut trial, which concluded last week when jurors found the Oxnard woman guilty of first-degree murder for killing her husband, Dave, at their Oxnard home in 2009.
During the trial, the 58-year old woman claimed she was raped, beaten and emotionally abused by her husband during their 29-year marriage. She said she acted in self-defense and shot him after he threatened her, their dogs and son, Michael.
Dave Laut's family said her claims of abuse were complete lies and an excuse for murder.
Jurors who talked to The Star said even if she was battered by her husband, the abuse did not justify her killing him.
One juror said Jane Laut's family "would have supported her" and "murder wasn't the way out."
LEAVING THE ABUSER
Experts in domestic abuse and battered woman syndrome, however, said the psychological distress victims undergo is complicated by various factors that keep a woman from leaving an abusive partner.
"You have to understand that there is an addictive quality to these relationships," said Mindy Puopolo, associate professor of psychology at California Lutheran University. "These relationships provide an emotional equilibrium where the violence becomes the norm."
Puopolo, who runs Cal Lutheran's Intimate Partner Violence Program, said victims were often raised in abusive environments and "can't tolerate a loving relationship without violence."
The Intimate Partner Violence Program provides individual and group therapy sessions for survivors and families affected by intimate partner violence. Marriage and family therapy trainees or doctoral student trainees conduct the sessions under the supervision of licensed mental health professionals.
"We talk about it as an addictive behavior with our clients," Puopolo said. "They ask themselves, 'Why do I keep going back?' Many say without that relationship, the alternative is an emptiness ... and they don't want to deal with that."
Experts said there are many misconceptions about why someone "chooses" to stay in an abusive relationship. Domestic violence is defined as an intentional pattern of coercive and assaultive behaviors that occur within the context of an intimate relationship, which includes spouses, dating partners and former partners.
Nicholle Gonzalez-Seitz, the director of Family Violence Intervention Services at Interface Children & Family Services, said victims often believe leaving an abusive relationship could mean even more violence. Interface is a Ventura County nonprofit agency that provides 24 programs, including mental health services, youth services, family violence intervention and community development.
"Often, they are not choosing to stay in the relationship so much as they are choosing not to leave," Gonzalez-Seitz said. "Victims are typically well aware that attempting to leave an abusive relationship can escalate the violence as the abuser feels they are losing control, which can make the situation much more dangerous. There may be children and pets involved, along with threats and intimidation that are realistic and keep the victim feeling trapped."
NOT ONLY PHYSICAL
Domestic violence does not only manifest in physical abuse, but also sexual, financial and now technological intimidation.
One of the misconceptions is that victims who have access to financial resources and family support won't tolerate such abuse, said Gail Pincus, a licensed clinical social worker and executive director of the Domestic Abuse Center in Los Angeles.
"There is still that stigma of being a battered woman," said Pincus, who testified as an expert witness for the defense in the Laut trial. "It's not about the resources. That goes back to the old thinking that only poor and uneducated women get battered. Sometimes, the more money and education you have, the harder it is to leave because you think about the stigma that leaves your family."
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 27 percent of women and 12 percent of men in the United States experience some type of domestic violence. Victims of domestic violence are 70 to 80 percent more likely to have serious health concerns such as a stroke, heart disease or alcoholism.
According to Kidsdata.org, a program of the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health, Ventura County has the highest rate of reported domestic violence of any California county with a population of more than 650,000 and is sixth highest overall.
Ventura County reports over twice the number of domestic violence calls for assistance as compared to the state average.
Although the reasons for the high rates of domestic violence are unclear, Gonzalez-Seitz said the numbers could be attributed to higher reporting rates in the county.
In both national and local polling, 30 percent of young people report experiencing some type of abuse in their dating relationships.
Yvette Lozana, director of Intervention and Emergency Services for Peace Over Violence in Los Angeles, said it takes some battered women at least eight tries before they finally leave the abusive relationship.
FEAR AND CONTROL
Lozana said many women stay in the relationship for fear their partner will harm their children. The control their partner exerts over them also causes further isolation from their families and friends.
"It's important to have a good understanding of how domestic violence not only impacts the family as a whole, but also our communities," Lozana said. "Many women who end up leaving the abusive relationship become homeless. How we support survivors and how we address this issue is very important. If you know someone who is in an unhealthy or abusive relationship, try to explore options and let the survivor make the choice on their own."
Pincus said there was a "huge explosion" of awareness and increase in funding on the local and federal level for domestic violence programs after the O.J. Simpson trial garnered national attention in more than two decades ago.
However, when the 2007-08 recession hit, services and funding for those programs were drastically slashed, Pincus said.
Hardest hit were transitional living centers where battered women and their children are able to stay after leaving an abusive and dangerous environment.
Women and their families once were able to stay anywhere from 90 days to a year in some programs, but because of a decrease in funding, some programs have cut that time to 30 to 40 days, Pincus said.
Although funding has rebounded a bit, it's still "a very slow recovery," she said.
Erik Sternad, Interface executive director, said he recently met with various community stakeholders to discuss possible ways to bring awareness and address the growing problem of domestic violence in the county. Plans are in the works to develop a "culturally relevant and community-supported" program where various agencies would use a shared system so all participants could report and evaluate results, Sternad said.
"It's important to educate yourself on the warning signs and the resources that are available in your community," Gonzalez-Seitz said. "If someone is in an abusive relationship or suspects someone is being abused, it's important to know that help is available and that they don't have to go through it alone."
JOSEPH A. GARCIA/THE STAR Frances Ayala (center) is comforted by her daughter Jessica Moreno and Rogelio Calderon while waiting for latest news on a standoff situation on El Dorado Avenue in Oxnard on Thursday. Ayala is grandmother to children who were in a home that a man ran into following a shooting.
SHARE JOSEPH A. GARCIA/THE STAR Oxnard police set up a perimeter on the 2700 block of El Dorado Avenue in Oxnard on Thursday. JOSEPH A. GARCIA/THE STAR Police set up vehicles near El Dorado Avenue and San Mateo Place in Oxnard on Thursday. JOSEPH A. GARCIA/THE STAR An Oxnard Police officer guards a section of El Dorado Avenue in Oxnard as police close in on an armed shooting suspect on Thursday. JOSEPH A. GARCIA/THE STAR Oxnard police surround the 2700 block of El Dorado Avenue in Oxnard on Thursday.
By Cindy Von Quednow of the Ventura County Star
A man was arrested Thursday after shooting at a police officer and hiding in an Oxnard apartment with several children inside as authorities surrounded the neighborhood, authorities said.
The tense situation broke out after Oxnard police responded to a report of a man with a gun about 3:50 p.m. in the 2700 block of El Dorado Avenue (map), which is just north of East Channel Islands Boulevard, authorities said.
When an officer arrived, the man with the gun fled, sparking a foot chase, police said. As the officer rounded a corner, the man with the gun fired and the officer was hit in the neck with "shrapnel," according to police. The officer fired back and the man fled into a nearby open apartment, police said.
The apartment had several children inside, police spokesman Miguel Lopez said.
Officers evacuated some residents and told others to stay inside, meanwhile barricading roads and diverting traffic from the south Oxnard neighborhood as they mounted a massive response that focused on the apartment.
Among those on the outside of the crime scene tape as the events unfolded was a worried Frances Ayala, grandmother of the kids inside the apartment. She was joined by Jessica Moreno, the kids' aunt.
Ayala knew something unusual was gong on when she tried to get to her daughter's apartment earlier in the afternoon but was kept away by authorities.
"I was on my way to help my daughter. She was moving out," Ayala said.
She tried many different ways to get to her daughter's apartment but was redirected at every turn, Ayala said. When an officer told her what was going on and where, she began to worry.
"That's where my daughter lives," Ayala said.
Moreno said her sister was outside her apartment taking things to her car when the man ran inside, where her children ages 8, 13, 16 and 18 were.
Ayala, Moreno and other family members, including the kids' father, waited for news throughout the afternoon as they cried and held each other.
Word eventually came that the children were safe, and about 5:45 p.m., a police car pulled up to take Ayala and the kids' father to see them.
Police posted a video showing officers guiding the kids out a second-floor window of the apartment with a lawman at one point being handed a stuffed doll through the window opening and onto the top of an armored police vehicle.
By 6:30 p.m., police said the man had been detained and they planned to arrest him after he had been positively identified by the officer involved in the shooting incident.
Most roads were reopened, but El Dorado Avenue was expected to remain closed for several hours as investigators worked.
Moreno said Thursday night she was able to see her sister and some of the kids, adding that they were cold and hungry as they waited at the scene.
"My sister is just nervous," Moreno said. "She just wants to go home already."
Staff writer Megan Diskin contributed to this report.
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By John Scheibe of the Ventura County Star
Port Hueneme police have arrested a 17-year-old male in connection with a double stabbing.
Police said they found two stabbing victims along the 700-block of Jane Drive about 10 p.m. Wednesday.
Police said the stabbing was preceded by an argument between "two family members" near the area of Jane Drive and Ann Avenue.
Police said the teen suspected of the attack intervened during the argument, stabbing one of the victims several times. Another family member tried to intervene and was also stabbed, police said.
Police said the teen, who was taken into custody at his home in the 900 block of Maplewood Way in Port Hueneme, was arrested on suspicion of attempted homicide and assault with a deadly weapon. The youth was taken to the Ventura County Juvenile Hall on Friday, authorities said.
STAR FILE PHOTO A sand truck route agreement between Moorpark and the Broad Beach project in Malibu is the subject of a lawsuit by Ventura County and Fillmore.
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By Mike Harris of the Ventura County Star
Ventura County and Fillmore on Friday sued Moorpark and Malibu's Broad Beach replenishment project over an agreement for hundreds of sand trucks a day to avoid Moorpark when traveling to the beach.
The Ventura County Superior Court lawsuit contends that the agreement, which would send the trucks from quarries in Grimes Canyon through Fillmore, Ventura, Oxnard and unincorporated areas, is illegal.
"Moorpark and (the Broad Beach Geologic Hazard Abatement) district lacked the legal authority to enter into ... the Traffic Regulation Agreement," the suit contends. "The agreement ... constitutes an unlawful attempt to enact a regional traffic regulatory program that is pre-empted by state law occupying the field of traffic regulation on public roads."
The lawsuit also argues that the agreement violates the California Environmental Quality Act because it was not subjected to a CEQA analysis.
The suit seeks to invalidate the pact, which was ratified by the Moorpark City Council in October.
The lawsuit was filed after Moorpark and the district refused a county demand to nullify the agreement by Wednesday.
Moorpark City Attorney Kevin Ennis contends the agreement is a lawful one aimed at protecting Moorpark residents from the environmental impacts of the trucks traveling through the city. The agreement is exempt from CEQA because under state law, a project undertaken by a Geologic Hazard Abatement District is not subject to CEQA review, he wrote in a letter last week to County Counsel Leroy Smith.
But Fillmore officials don't want the trucks rumbling through their streets for the same reasons Moorpark officials don't: noise and air pollution.
Ennis said Friday the city is "disappointed that the county and the city of Fillmore have taken this step of filing a lawsuit over the agreement rather than working with the city of Moorpark to find other solutions to the issues involving the Broad Beach sand project and its sand hauling routes.
* Tap the document below to view the PDF.
"The city stands ready to defend its interests and the interests of the residents of Moorpark," he said.
Ken Ehrlich, the attorney for the Broad Beach district, was terse in his response to the lawsuit.
"We've received the complaint," he said. "We're reviewing it."
The district is the group of wealthy Broad Beach landowners, including Hollywood and business elites, who are funding the $31 million restoration project.
Earlier this week, Ehrlich said the district is "working as fast as we can to develop alternate sand sources" so that the trucks won't have to travel through Fillmore or Moorpark.
The most promising such source is also in Ventura County, though Ehrlich said it was premature to identify it. It is not Ventura Harbor, he said.
Greenlighted by a divided California Coastal Commission in October, the Broad Beach project will create a new 1.1-mile public beach, including a restored dune system. The commission's permit is for 10 years, with the potential for an amendment every 10 years thereafter.
The lawsuit argues that the truck agreement precludes the most direct route between the Grimes Canyon quarries and Broad Beach through Moorpark.
"The agreement instead expressly requires all ... truck traffic to travel on a circuitous northern route on state Routes 23 and 126 through Fillmore and the unincorporated county (as well as the cities of San Buenaventura and Oxnard)," the suit states.
In limited circumstances such as a major traffic jam on Highway 126, the agreement allows the trucks to drive through Moorpark proper.
If the beach restoration project lasts 20 years, it is expected to generate about 400,000 one-way truck trips to and from the quarries and Broad Beach, the suit says.
Because it forbids the most direct route, the agreement would add an average of 14 miles to each trip, resulting in about 5.3 million additional vehicle miles over 20 years, the suit argues. That, in turn, would cause the emission of about 100,000 additional pounds of pollutants, and thousands of additional pounds of greenhouse gases, the suit contends.
Smith said once Moorpark and the beach district file their formal responses to the lawsuit, an initial court date will be set.
Before the lawsuit was filed, Ehrlich had said he hoped the trucks would start to roll by the fall, whatever the source of sand is. The lawsuit seemingly could delay that timetable if the beach district sticks with the Grimes Canyon quarries.
SHARE JOSEPH A. GARCIA/THE STAR Members of About Time rehearse Wednesday in Mira Monte. Members are (from lower left) David Roine, Craig Andrews, Walt Dunlop and Trip Brown. JOSEPH A. GARCIA/THE STAR Walt Dunlop rehearses with other members of About Time. Dunlop, who has lived in Ventura for 30 years, recently completed an album of songs about the city called "You Are Here: Ventura, California." The 11 songs were inspired by people and places in Ventura. JOSEPH A. GARCIA/THE STAR Members of About Time rehearse Wednesday in Mira Monte. Band members include (from left) Walt Dunlop, Trip Brown and David Roine. Related Coverage Stories of those who know Ventura well: Edward Jue
By Arlene Martinez, amartinez@vcstar.com
Editor's note:
The city of San Buenaventura, incorporated in 1866, is having a big shindig on Saturday to celebrate its 150th birthday. To mark the occasion, were sharing stories of people who know the city well.
Walt Dunlop likes taking to the streets of his adopted hometown. His five-mile walks take him down Main Street, along the Promenade and Harbor Boulevard, up Sanjon Road, across Poli Street and Ventura Avenue.
What he sees in the city that he finds so "vibrant and beautiful" formed the lyrics and music for "You Are Here: Ventura, California."
The album is a collection of 11 simply told folks songs, a lover's ode of sorts. Since 1985, when he moved here to escape the traffic and crime of his Los Angeles neighborhood, Dunlop's affection for the beach city has grown. It's why two years ago, the freshly retired high school teacher settled in to complete the album.
(Purely coincidentally, Dunlop says, the disc's release coincides with the city's 150th birthday.)
It was during an outing with his daughters and wife that he realized the park with ocean views had gravestones. It got him thinking of the people who had come before him, and the importance of cherishing moments. He tells that story in "Picnic at Cemetery Park."
Dunlop says writing "Hardened and Homeless" helped him reconcile his uneasy feelings toward the population. On one of his walks, a vagrant, perhaps with mental illness, threatened to stab him.
"It bothers me that I feel fear more than compassion," he says.
A poster seeking information into the 2013 murder of a recovery home manager who was shot as he went to a store prompted "The Ballad of Zachary Lee."
"An act of rage, a lonely grave, a family left in grief/Was on Ventura Avenue/They took Zach's life like thieves."
While Dunlop was writing the album, Pope Francis announced plans to canonize Father Junipero Serra, who founded San Buenaventura Mission, among others.
"I want to believe that the intentions were good," Dunlop says. "The outcomes weren't always good, especially for the indigenous."
So he wrote "The Mission," reminded of his own imperfections as a father, as a human. "All is forgiven," goes the refrain.
As no album of Ventura could be complete without some mention of thrift stores, they are there too, in "Goodwill Gal." One person's junk, as they say.
Dunlop is part of About Time, a band also made up of Craig Andrews, David Roine and Trip Brown. What makes the songs effective, Andrews says, is how Dunlop uses tangible imagery.
Dunlop "writes songs in the tradition of the minstrel, focusing on human beings living humble lives."
About Time will perform at 7 p.m. Saturday at The Palm Loft Gallery, 410 Palm Ave. in Carpinteria.
If you go
On Saturday, head to Plaza Park in downtown Ventura for a free family picnic. The event, to mark the city turning 150, includes old-fashioned games and contests and a pie-eating contest for past and present mayors.
The picnic goes from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the park, 651 Thompson Blvd.
That night, native Ventura band Big Bad Voodoo Daddy will perform at Mission Park, which is on the 100 block between Santa Clara and Main streets. Gates open at 5 p.m. with the show scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m.
Tickets start at $25.
Star file photo
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Calabasas
Library to present yoga sessions
The Calabasas Library will present "Yoga and You" at noon Thursday and April 21 at 200 Civic Center Way.
Guests should wear comfortable clothing and bring a yoga mat or large towel and water.
No experience is necessary. Visit http://www.cityofcalabasas.com/library.html or call 818-225-7616 for details.
Ojai
Film society to screen 'Mustang'
The Ojai Film Society will screen the movie "Mustang" at 5 p.m. April 10 at Matilija Auditorium, 703 El Paseo Road.
General admission is $10. Admission is $7 for seniors and students. Visit http://www.ojaifilmsociety.org or call 646-8946 for details.
Thousand Oaks
Professor to give lecture on politics
CSU Channel Islands will continue its Spring Library Lecture Series with a talk Monday at the Grant R. Brimhall Library, 1401 E. Janss Road.
Political science professor Sean Kelly will present "Politics to the Extreme" from 7-8:30 p.m.
Call 449-2660 for details.
Nonprofit plans workshop on Reiki
The Cancer Support Community Valley/Ventura/Santa Barbara will host a workshop, "Reiki for Beginners: Introduction Workshop With Ziona Friedlander, Steven and Ingrid Boehm" from 9-10:30 a.m. Friday at 530 Hampshire Road.
Reiki is a technique for stress reduction and relaxation.
Visit http://www.cancersupportvvsb.org or call 379-4777 for more information, to volunteer or to make a donation.
CLU students will perform
The third annual Cal Lu Palooza will showcase the musical talent of California Lutheran University students at 5 p.m. Friday in Kingsmen Park at CLU.
The free concert will feature a variety of music, including alternative indie trap, indie rock, rap, hip-hop and electronic dance.
Call 493-3306 for more information.
Radio club to give licensing exams
The Conejo Valley Amateur Radio Club will administer Federal Communications Commission licensing examinations at 8:30 a.m. April 10 in the conference room of the Thousand Oaks sheriff's station, 2101 E. Olsen Road.
Test fee is $15. Visit http://www.cvarc.org for more information.
Ventura
Workshops offer tutor training
Laubach Literacy of Ventura County will have free workshops to help volunteers learn to become tutors of adults learning English as a second language.
The workshop will meet from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 16 and 9 a.m. to noon May 14 at Barrister Executive Suites, 1500 Palma Drive.
Visit http://www.laubachventura.org, email info@laubachventura.org or call 385-9584 to register.
Staff reports
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Reason has prevailed!
Guns will not be permitted at the Republican National Convention in July in Cleveland.
Perhaps this has not been on your radar, what with the embarrassing squabbling between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz over their wives, Trump's campaign manager being arrested for battery on a reporter, the total lack of any intelligent response from either man in the aftermath of the terrorist bombings in Brussels, and all the GOP candidates venomously attacking their rivals, then vowing to support the eventual nominee, and now repudiating that pledge.
Even so, more than 50,000 people have signed a petition demanding that guns be in the sulfurous mix when Republicans gather July 18-21, which some can foresee as being something like a zombie apocalypse movie.
Ignoring the fact that Trump rallies have frequently turned violent (or perhaps because of that), so many Americans are terrified of losing the Second Amendment that protects the right to bear arms that they want to see gun-toting delegates swaggering around Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena, commonly known as "The Q."
Ohio, my home state, is an open-carry state. It is not unusual to see good ol' boys with assault rifles in their pickups parked in Walmart parking lots. Guns carried in motor vehicles must be unloaded and secured. Ammunition must be in a separate compartment. If you have alcohol in your system above the legal limit, you are not permitted to have a firearm in your vehicle or on your person. Guns are not permitted in establishments that serve alcohol; businesses may ban guns on their premises. But people who legally own a firearm may carry it loaded with or without a license. (But not in the statehouse in Columbus lawmakers are not completely clueless.)
The Q has a policy against guns or weapons of any kind on the premises, and that has enraged a number of gun advocates. Petitioners are urging Ohio Gov. and presidential hopeful John Kasich to use his executive authority to permit guns at the arena, which holds about 20,000 people.
Surprisingly, or not, the three GOP presidential candidates left standing, Trump, Cruz and Kasich, were initially noncommittal, even ambivalent, about the petition and the idea of guns at the convention. They are terrified of getting on the wrong side of gun advocates, who see any curb on gun sales, ownership or possession as the camel's nose under the tent to total loss of their weapons.
Convention officials shot the whole thing over to the Secret Service, which handles security at the national political conventions. The immediate and quite obvious answer was, "No guns." Despite the problems the Secret Service has been having, what with knife-wielding crazy people getting inside the White House and far too much partying going on among some agents, the service is not stupid. They put their lives on the line every day but are not going to let angry people who don't believe in political correctness, civility or polite discourse carry guns near the candidates or themselves.
Guns and Cleveland have a touchy recent history. In 2014, police shot and killed a 12-year-old child, Tamir Rice, who had a toy pellet gun in a city park. The U.S. Department of Justice investigation concluded that officers in Cleveland are too quick to shoot and beat suspects and rarely face consequences for their actions. The two officers involved in the shooting were not indicted.
The FBI says Cleveland ranks as the fifth most dangerous city in the nation because of crime. The violent crime rate is 1,478 per 100,000 people (Cleveland has a population of 389,000) and a murder rate of 14 per 100,000 people. The median household income is $26,556; one-third of all its residents are below the federal poverty line.
Republicans chose the city for their convention because no Republican has ever won the White House without carrying the state of Ohio
There is so much confusion, chaos, silliness and idle speculation already going on more than 100 days before Cleveland and the real possibility of rancorous debate and actual fighting over the nomination, that it is somehow reassuring to have a simple, well-reasoned answer to at least one issue. No guns.
Ann McFeatters is an op-ed columnist for Tribune News Service. Readers may send her email at amcfeatters@nationalpress.com.
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This year's elections will once again reflect California's evolution over the last two decades from having a middle-of-the-road political ambiance to Democratic dominance.
Democrats hold all statewide offices and the vast majority of congressional and legislative seats. Republican voter registration has declined sharply to well under 30 percent.
Moreover, voters have repeatedly displayed their liberal tendencies, particularly on social issues, in ballot measures.
Notwithstanding all of that, the state would be even more liberal much more were its voters to reflect its adult population, a new study by the Public Policy Institute of California has found.
It's not news that the relatively few Californians who vote tend to be whiter, better educated and more affluent than nonvoters. The characteristic gap has persisted even though the state has undergone a socio-economic and culture metamorphosis.
What's new in the PPIC report is an analysis of how much the attitudes of voters, as liberal as may be, differ from those who could vote but for one reason or another, don't participate in the political process.
The number of potentially eligible California voters has increased by 3-plus million since 2000 to 24.6 million, but just 17.3 million are registered to vote, and if history is any guide, about 10 million can be expected to cast ballots in the November presidential election.
Although the state's adult population is 42 percent white, PPIC calculated, 60 percent of likely voters are white and just 18 percent are Latino, despite the latter's 36 percent share of the adult population. The numbers are reversed among nonvoters 60 percent Latino and 22 percent white.
Two-thirds of likely voters are 45 years or older and are homeowners, while two-thirds of nonvoters are under 45 and renters. Income disparities are similar, with most voters having incomes of $60,000 or more but only 20 percent of nonvoters at that income level.
Those characteristic gaps manifest themselves in sharply different views of economic issues, with 70 percent of nonvoters saying government should do more to close disparities between haves and have-nots, but just 51 percent of voters voicing the same sentiments.
Similarly, less than half of likely voters support extending governmental health care coverage to illegal immigrants, while 75 percent of nonvoters support expansion.
Voters side with Gov. Jerry Brown on building reserves and reducing debt while nonvoters side with the Legislature's Democrats on restoring social service and health spending.
If voting were to increase as much as Democratic leaders hope, California would likely reflect Bernie Sanders more than Hillary Clinton and Republicans would become a truly endangered species.
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It appears that a $15 minimum wage will become law in California. Almost invariably, the rationale offered by proponents includes the assertion that it will help "the poor." But, as labor economist Mark Wilson put it, "evidence from a large number of academic studies suggests that minimum wage increases don't reduce poverty levels."
Beyond the host of logical and empirical issues involved in deciding whether a minimum wage bump will provide more income to "the poor" as a group, there is another ethical issue that never seems to get discussed.
Even if low-income households did gain current income as a group in statistical studies, only individuals bear actual benefits or costs, and such wage mandates redistribute wealth away from many low-income individuals in the name of helping "the poor." As a consequence, much of the desired help for the poor will actually come from others who are poor.
How can a requirement to pay low-skilled workers more harm low-income individuals? Some lose jobs. Others lose work hours. Further, for those who keep their jobs and hours, on-the-job training and fringe benefits will fall, and required effort will rise, to offset hiked wages.
And higher current wages are often less valuable than what is given up, particularly on-the-job training that enables people to learn, and therefore earn, their way out of poverty. That is why labor force participation rates fall and quit rates rise when the minimum wage rises (an effect that will be heightened by the large magnitude of the current proposed hike), which is the opposite of what would happen if all workers who kept their jobs benefited from higher mandated wages.
Higher minimum wages will not only disadvantage the least skilled compared to automation and outsourcing possibilities, their increased cost will also force them to compete with more skilled labor. That explains why unions are the biggest backers of such measures their members will gain from an increased demand for their services regardless of whether the poor gain or lose. But those with more limited skills will suffer from the undermining of their one big competitive advantage a lower price.
And those with the fewest skills, least education and job experience will face the greatest employment losses now, as well as having rungs to advancement removed from their potential career ladders. These effects will be further magnified by the fact that employers pay far more than the minimum wage to those workers, through added costs for the employer half of Social Security and Medicare taxes, unemployment insurance taxes, workers' compensation premiums, etc.
With a higher minimum wage, some of those low-income workers lucky enough to already have job experience and a work history will keep their jobs. Many others will simply find themselves to be unemployable. The main consequence will not be that the poor gain, but that some low-income households benefit at the expense of other low-income households.
Minimum wage hikes thus illustrate a very serious, though all-but-ignored issue. Even if poor people in the aggregate end up with higher incomes (a position far from established), it only means that one subset's increased earnings will be at least somewhat greater that another likely to be even poorer subset's decreased earnings, greatly harming many of them. And such government-imposed harm cannot be justified by the intent to help the poor.
Gary M. Galles, of Camarillo, is a professor of economics at Pepperdine University and research fellow with the Independent Institute.
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Last week we celebrated Cesar Chavez Day, in honor of the farmworker movement. Also in March, we marked International Women's Day, recognizing the ongoing fight for gender equity. These two movements have shaped us, and this week we find ourselves reflecting on the ties that bind them together.
Without the hard labor of women and farmworkers, commonly undervalued, we could not create or sustain human life. Yet both have a long legacy of being silenced, dismissed and disenfranchised. Women and farmworkers have been treated as second-class citizens, or worse (in the case of the original farmworkers, Native-American and African-American slaves), considered not full human beings at all.
Even today, when women and farmworkers speak up about crimes or abuses they face, whether sexual assault and domestic violence or stolen wages and unsafe working conditions, they are met with the assumption, spoken or unspoken, that they must be lying or exaggerating. Rather than responding with action, there is an endless call for more dialogue and more study, as if the brave testimonies of survivors are not credible or significant. When acknowledged as truthful, often they are brushed off as isolated incidents that cannot possibly be part of systemic social problems that require systemic policy solutions.
Women have finally gained just enough political capital for "fair pay" to gain broad support. Last year, California signed into law the Fair Pay Act, led by our own Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, one of the strongest laws in the country enforcing equal pay for women. It drew support from the statewide American Association of University Women (AAUW), California Chamber of Commerce and a majority of legislators of both parties.
Farmworkers in our community are mostly undocumented immigrants, ineligible to vote, many from indigenous communities who speak their native languages like Mixteco, with little formal education to read and write in Spanish, let alone English. So it should come as no surprise that farmworkers have little political capital.
Since the 1970s, farmworkers work more hours, and yet wages in real value have declined. They are still the only workers in California who are not paid overtime after eight hours a day or 40 hours a week, a result of the racist legacy of their exclusion from the Fair Labor Standards Act in the 1930s, a deal brokered between President Roosevelt and Southern congressmen who did not want black farmworkers granted labor rights.
The struggles of women and farmworkers are intertwined. Perhaps the only members of our communities paid less than male farmworkers are female farmworkers. According to census data, while year-round, full-time male farmworkers in the Central Coast earn around $20,000 per year, their female counterparts earn roughly $15,000.
Female farmworkers are especially vulnerable to sexual assault and harassment, where foremen have almost absolute power over their workers. And women farmworkers often have to work while pregnant, despite known links to reproductive health harms from exposure to hazardous pesticides during pregnancy.
As women who continue to fight for equality, we stand in solidarity with farmworkers struggling for justice. We ask our policymakers at the county, state and federal levels to believe farmworkers who are courageously speaking up despite immense fear of retaliation that could cost them their jobs or being deported away from their families. Know that for every person who is able to testify in front of policymakers or file formal complaints or be interviewed by researchers, there are countless numbers of farmworkers who have survived abuses and are fearful to speak about them.
When it comes to issues like AB 2757, the bill that would grant overtime pay equity to farmworkers in California, and the Farmworker Bill of Rights being proposed in Ventura County, we stand with every woman and farmworker who has bravely raised her voice even if it trembled. We stand with those who are speaking out for justice, despite intimidation and retaliation, and saying "We believe you."
Gaye Theresa Johnson, Ph.D., is the president of CAUSE and Sally Hibbitts is the president of AAUW Thousand Oaks.
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Ray LaHood is really disgusted with Congress.
Unlike the disgust that you or I express about Congress, LaHood comes to the position painfully and with an amount of gravitas that we don't share.
LaHood knows Congress. He served on the staff of Rep. Bob Michel of Illinois for the 14 years that Michel was the minority leader of the House. Then when Michel retired, LaHood ran to replace him, and served his hometown of Peoria and central Illinois for the next 14 years. After he decided to retire (because he just did not want to go to anymore local parades, Lincoln Day dinners, bar mitzvahs or Eagle Scout investitures and "hated to tell people no"), he accepted a job offer from another Illinois politician.
He spent the next four years in the cabinet of President Barack Obama as secretary of transportation.
LaHood has written a book about his political life and came to California State University Channel Islands last week at the invitation of his book editors, CSUCI political science professors Sean Q. Kelly and Scott Frisch. He spent the day talking with students and ended with a public conversation about the state of politics and government today.
It does not take long to hear LaHood's ire at what is happening today in Washington.
LaHood cannot believe that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is refusing to vote on Obama's Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland. "It's not for Obama, it's for the American people. It's what the Constitution requires. What they're worried about is Obama has recommended a pretty good person, a qualified person," he said.
He wants Congress to "do something." But he is resigned that "nothing is going to happen" this year.
He attributes much of that to tea party members of the Republican caucus, both in the House and Senate, "who pride themselves on saying no on everything."
LaHood simply doesn't understand that.
The Illinois district he represented sent Abraham Lincoln to Congress. It sent Everett Dirksen to Washington to start a career that culminated in the historic compromises of the Civil Rights Act.
And they sent LaHood to Congress. He helped create congressional retreats, the first of which drew 200 members, 150 wives and 100 of their children. They wanted members to get to know each other. They wanted their families to get to know each other. They wanted their children to play together. "If you know someone, it's very hard to criticize them," he said.
He got to know Obama when the newly elected senator from Illinois called him cold the day after winning the seat to arrange a meeting so they could work together on issues for the benefit of Illinois. They also worked with a Chicago congressman by the name of Rahm Emanuel. Then Obama reached out to him when he won the presidency and asked LaHood to take over the Department of Transportation, "my dream job," he said.
In the turbulent and politically charged Washington of the 1990s, with President Bill Clinton on one side and House Speaker Newt Gingrich on the other, Congress managed to adopt balanced budgets three years in a row. They adopted welfare reform. They passed two six-year transportation funding bills. "People talked to one another," LaHood said. Clinton and Gingrich both "believed in government, they believed in working together."
Now there is Donald Trump, who LaHood says has tapped into the anger created by a do-nothing Congress but is living off his celebrity not solutions. Ted Cruz he dismisses as part of the anti-government gang. John Kasich he supports, although he disagrees with him on some issues, but does not believe he has a chance. Bernie Sanders does not know how to pay for his promises. And Hillary Clinton, who he served with in the Obama administration, he indicated will probably end up winning because "Trump is not going to be president."
He adds, "The Republican Party is in chaos."
Did I forget to mention that Ray LaHood is a Republican?
He's proud of his Republican lineage, from Lincoln to Dirksen to Michel to LaHood. But, he's prouder to be thought of as a public servant.
He puffs up when talking about the accomplishments during his tenure as transportation secretary: distracted driving laws, pilot training, emphasis every day on safety and economic stimulus spending that led to projects like California's high-speed rail (which, yes, he devoutly supports).
"We made a difference," LaHood says. "That's what public service allow you to do, to make a difference, to change lives."
Capitol Hill needs a few Ray LaHoods. Like 535 of them.
John T. Moore is editor of the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at 805-437-0200 or by email at john.moore@vcstar.com.
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To Ventura County
A new evaluation on flood protection efforts means owners of homes and businesses in unincorporated areas of Ventura County will qualify for up to a 25 percent discount on flood insurance beginning in May. It might seem strange to be concerned about flooding in the midst of the drought, but all it takes is one intense rainstorm to wreak havoc.
To Camarillo
Speaking of the drought, your fair city faces the dilemma of new demands for water use while struggling through a Stage 2 water shortage. Your "Will Serve" letters that will allow developers to obtain water meters for completed projects might be a fair interim solution, but the result will still be an increase of 10 percent in water usage. Perhaps a new temporary slogan for your city should be: "Don't touch that faucet."
To El Nino
Thanks a lot for leaving Southern California, especially Ventura County, high and dry. Only a fraction of predicted rainstorms occurred. Though Northern California fared better and the snowpack is at 95 percent of normal, that will barely get thirsty Californians and water-strapped growers through the coming summer. The result: Efforts and regulations aimed at conserving water will continue well into the foreseeable future.
To Ventura
A pair of reports offered a "good news/bad news on the horizon" prognostication of city finances. The good news? The city is catching up on fully funding its pension plan and the city is taking in about $20 million more in revenue than it did five years ago. The bad news? Funding for pensions is likely to recede in the years ahead and the increase in revenue does not leave wiggle room for funding critically needed projects. That suggests adding another notch to tighten up the financial belt.
To motorists
Traffic on streets throughout Ventura County will return to normal Monday after students and educators return to school following the spring break. Be cautious around schools, obey the speed limits, and keep your windows closed to avoid young ones from picking up more bad words than they already know.
To homeless
You have already had to adjust to the winter warming shelter being moved because the National Guard needed to use its armory in Oxnard. Now, your shelter has been disrupted again for military necessity. Kudos to the Mission Church in Ventura for stepping up to meet the needs of the homeless, and at no cost for the space it provides. Everyone should applaud this example of selfless charity and good will.
To voters
Two competing initiatives on extending the Save Open-space & Agricultural Resources measure are vying to be included on the November ballot. One would extend SOAR for 30 years and the other for 50 years. Voters will need to consider a broader question than mere land use. Should future generations be restricted to the beliefs of here and now or should they be allowed to deal with problems and needs no one can yet predict will surface?
To readers
The week ahead will get off to a rousing start with National Hug a Newsperson Day on Monday, giving you a chance to say "thank you" to those who provide not just the news you want to know, but with the news you need to know. Unfortunately, Pa will be unavailable for hugs; he will be recovering from celebrating National Chocolate Mousse Day on Sunday.
To the electorate
Tired of the shouting and naysaying and the general unpleasantness of the candidates seeking their party's presidential nomination? Look on the bright side, by the time the California primary rolls around in June, the matter might be settled and you can concentrate on the more important state and local issues and candidates.
Speaking at a press conference for the local authorities to announce the long-delayed investment projects construction progress on March 31, Deputy Chairman of the Hai Duong Peoples Committee Vuong Duc Sang said if some households still refused to relocate, the committee would use coercive measures.
The plan for Cam Dien-Luong Dien IP in Hai Duong was ratified by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in 2008, with the area of 205.28 hectares and the investor being Phuc Hung Ltd. In 2009 and 2010 Phuc Hung started construction of the infrastructure but was stopped by some households.
In 2014, the prime minister allowed the province to transfer the project to Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park and Township Development Joint Stock Company (VSIP JSC) from Phuc Hung Ltd. In April 2015 Phuc Hung finished the transfer to VSIP Hai Duong, a subsidiary of VSIP JSC. VSIP Hai Duong then planned to carry out the first phase of the project with the area of 150ha and the plan was ratified by the Hai Duong Peoples Committee in October 2015.
Since then VSIP Hai Duong still hasnt been able to start construction due to protests from residents.
According to Nguyen Huu Loc, deputy director of the Hai Duong Department of Natural Resources and Environment, as of now, 70 of the approximately 1,300 households have yet to receive site clearance compensation and refuse to relocate to new locations because they asked for a much higher site clearance compensation than what is outlined in Vietnamese regulations. These households often gathered in front of the work yard, obstructing the process of site clearance.
Loc said that the compensation asked by these households was unreasonably high and fell completely out of line with Vietnamese regulations.
The peoples committee has for many times held dialogues with residents but failed to persuade them to receive the offered compensation and relocate to new locations.
As of now, the Hai Duong Industrial Zones Management Authority has licensed two projects with the total capital of $152 million in Cam Dien-Luong Dien IP. These projects have yet to start. At the same time, numerous investors are completing procedures to receive investment certificates.
A flagship cooperation initiated by the governments of Vietnam and Singapore, VSIP currently has seven projects across Vietnam, in Binh Duong, Bac Ninh, Haiphong, Quang Ngai, Hai Duong, and Nghe An provinces. VSIP has attracted $7.9 billion in the total investment capital from over 583 companies and employs about 160,000 workers.
Photo by ASSOCIATED PRESS
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump waves as he get into his vehicle in Washington on Thursday after following a meeting at the Republican National Committee.
Flights are set to resume on a limited basis Sunday at the airport in Brussels where suicide bombers carried out a deadly attack nearly two weeks ago.
The blasts there and at a nearby metro station killed 32 people and destroyed the airport's departure area.
Three Brussels Airlines flights are scheduled to depart Sunday evening. The airport is calling them "symbolic flights" with more to be added in the coming days.
"A restart of the operations, even only partially, as quick as this is a sign of hope that shows our shared will, and our strength to resurface and not to let our heads down," Brussels Airport Company CEO Arnaud Feist said Saturday.
Feist also announced temporary repair work and security features that will be used at the airport as it works toward a return to full operation, which will take months.
Belgian police complained about what they said had been lax security at the airport and threatened to strike unless certain measures were taken, but have reached an agreement with the government.
Belgian police made several arrests Saturday following a tense confrontation between right-wing protesters and anti-racist youth in Brussels.
A far-right group had planned a demonstration in Molenbeek, a predominantly Muslim neighborhood where a number of the November 2015 Paris attackers had been based. An anti-racist group had called for a counterdemonstration.
Both groups were banned by local authorities, who feared a repeat of last Sunday's disturbance when police fired water cannons to break up about 450 protesters.
Belgian television showed some 30 far-right marchers in a suburb of Brussels, holding a banner reading: "This is our country."
Deal with police unions
The Belgian government reached a deal with police unions late Friday after they threatened to strike unless certain security measures were taken.
Belgian police had complained about what they said was lax security at the airport.
Union leaders demanded that all passengers go through security checks outside the temporary check-in area. But airport operators said this would create very long lines and set up an easy target for another terrorist attack.
Under the agreement, passengers and others will be checked before entering the airport zone itself.
More than 2,000 mourners packed a Brussels mosque Friday for the funeral of one of the terrorist victims, Loubna Lafquiri. The young gymnastics teacher and mother of three was killed at the metro station.
Some of the mourners said they had come to her funeral as a sign of solidarity with victims of all faiths. They said they could not understand why any Muslim would want to take innocent lives.
If U.S. presidential candidate Bernie Sanders were an ice cream flavor, what flavor would he be?
Mint chocolate chip, apparently.
Thursday night in New York City's Union Square, crowds gathered to sample Bernie's Yearning, the latest flavor from Ben & Jerry's ice cream.
Ben & Jerry's co-founders Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield presented the mint chocolate chip confection, which honors Sanders, a fellow Vermonter and presidential contender.
"It is truly what Bernie has been yearning for for 35 years economic justice," Cohen said. "The productivity of the U.S. population is going way up, but nobody's paychecks are going way up except the 1 percent, and so Bernie has been trying to fight that.
WATCH: Fans praise Bernie Sanders, ice cream
The pint label for Bernie's Yearning describes the ice cream as a tribute to "the only presidential candidate who has offered solutions that will actually fix the problems."
A creamy analogy
As volunteers scooped ice cream into cups and topped them with a big chocolate disk, Cohen explained the symbolism behind the presentation.
"It's essentially mint chocolate chip ice cream, except somehow or other, all the chips have risen to the top and congealed in one huge chocolate disk, he said. And that's what's gone on in our country."
Having the chocolate as a metaphor for the concentration of wealth in the U.S., Cohen went on to explain the proper way to eat Bernie's Yearning.
"You take your soup spoon and you whack the chocolate disk into a bunch of chips and then you move it around, mix it around to put that money back where it's supposed to be."
Bernie likes it
Last month, Sanders himself tasted Bernie's Yearning on an episode of ABC's The View.
The senator concluded that it was "excellent."
"His wife said he really meant it; he does really like it," added Cohen, chuckling.
Unfortunately for ice cream lovers hoping to taste the Bern, the pints are a limited-edition batch and will not be mass-produced.
Most were raffled off in a promotional contest sponsored by Ben & Jerry's. When asked if there will be Donald Trump- or Hillary Clinton-inspired ice creams Cohen replied, "I made Bernie's Yearning because I am truly inspired by Bernie. I am not inspired by any of those other people, and I would not waste my ice cream creative efforts on them."
Belgian officials say they expect the Brussels airport, closed since the March 22 terrorist bombings, to partially reopen Sunday with much tighter security.
The government reached a deal with the police unions late Friday after they threatened to strike unless certain security measures were taken.
Belgian police have complained about what they say has been lax security at the airport.
Union leaders demanded that all passengers go through security checks outside the temporary check-in area. But airport operators said this would create very long lines and set up an easy target for another terrorist attack.
Under the agreement, passengers and others will be checked before entering the airport zone itself.
Even when the airport reopens, it will be operating only at 20 percent capacity with a temporary check-in area.
One of two airport suicide bombers destroyed the regular departure hall March 22, while a third bomber blew himself up at a Brussels subway station. Thirty-two people were killed.
More than 2,000 mourners packed a Brussels mosque Friday for the funeral of one of the terrorist victims, Loubna Lafquiri. The young gymnastics teacher and mother of three was killed at the metro station.
Some of the mourners say they attended her funeral as a sign of solidarity with the victims of all faiths.
In 2013, the Westmore News, a small newspaper serving the suburban community of Rye Brook, New York, ran a feature on the opening of a sluice gate at the Bowman Avenue Dam. Costing some $2 million, the new gate, then nearing completion, was designed to lessen flooding downstream.
The event caught the eye of a number of local politicians, who gathered to shake hands at the official unveiling. "I've been to lots of ribbon-cuttings," county executive Rob Astorino was quoted as saying. "This is my first sluice gate."
But locals apparently weren't the only ones with their eyes on the dam's new sluice. According to an indictment handed down late last week by the U.S. Department of Justice, Hamid Firoozi, a well-known hacker based in Iran, gained access several times in 2013 to the dam's control systems. Had the sluice been fully operational and connected to those systems, Firoozi could have created serious damage. Fortunately for Rye Brook, it wasn't.
Hack attacks probing critical U.S. infrastructure are nothing new. What alarmed cybersecurity analysts in this case, however, was Firoozi's apparent use of an old trick that computer nerds have quietly known about for years.
It's called "dorking" a search engine as in "Google dorking" or "Bing dorking" a tactic long used by cybersecurity professionals who work to close security vulnerabilities.
Now, it appears, the hackers know about it as well.
Hiding in open view
"What some call dorking we really call open-source network intelligence," said Srinivas Mukkamala, co-founder and CEO of the cyber-risk assessment firm RiskSense. "It all depends on what you ask Google to do."
Mukkamala says that search engines are constantly trolling the Internet, looking to record and index every device, port and unique IP address connected to the Web. Some of those things are designed to be public a restaurant's homepage, for example but many others are meant to be private say, the security camera in the restaurant's kitchen. The problem, says Mukkamala, is that too many people don't understand the difference before going online.
"There's the Internet, which is anything that's publicly addressable, and then there are intranets, which are meant to be only for internal networking," he told VOA. "The search engines don't care which is which; they just index. So if your intranet isn't configured properly, that's when you start seeing information leakage."
While a restaurant's closed-circuit camera may not pose any real security threat, many other things getting connected to the Web do. These include pressure and temperature sensors at power plants, SCADA systems that control refineries, and operational networks or OTs that keep major manufacturing plants working.
Whether engineers know it or not, many of these things are being indexed by search engines, leaving them quietly hiding in open view. The trick of dorking, then, is to figure out just how to find all those assets indexed online.
As it turns out, it's really not that hard.
An asymmetric threat
"The thing with dorking is you can write custom searches just to look for that information [you want]," he said. "You can have multiple nested search conditions, so you can go granular, allowing you to find not just every single asset, but every other asset that's connected to it. You can really dig deep if you want," said RiskSense's Mukkamala.
Most major search engines like Google offer advanced search functions: commands like "filetype" to hunt for specific types of files, "numrange" to find specific digits, and "intitle," which looks for exact page text. Moreover, different search parameters can be nested one in another, creating a very fine digital net to scoop up information.
For example, instead of just entering "Brook Avenue Dam" into a search engine, a dorker might use the "inurl" function to hunt for webcams online, or "filetype" to look for command and control documents and functions. Like a scavenger hunt, dorking involves a certain amount of luck and patience. But skillfully used, it can greatly increase the chance of finding something that should not be public.
Like most things online, dorking can have positive uses as well as negative. Cybersecurity professionals increasingly use such open-source indexing to discover vulnerabilities and patch them before hackers stumble upon them.
Dorking is also nothing new. In 2002, Mukkamala says, he worked on a project exploring its potential risks. More recently, the FBI issued a public warning in 2014 about dorking, with advice about how network administrators could protect their systems.
The problem, says Mukkamala, is that almost anything that can be connected is being hooked up to the Internet, often without regard for its security, or the security of the other objects it, in turn, is connected to.
"All you need is one vulnerability to compromise the system," he told VOA. "This is an asymmetric, widespread threat. They [hackers] don't need anything else than a laptop and connectivity, and they can use the tools that are there to start launching attacks.
"I don't think we have the knowledge or resources to defend against this threat, and we're not prepared."
That, Mukkamala warns, means it's more likely than not that we'll see more cases like the hacker's exploit of the Bowman Avenue Dam in the years to come. Unfortunately, we might not be as lucky the next time.
Mourners are set to gather north of Birmingham, Alabama, to remember Eternal Word Television Network founder Mother Mary Angelica.
EWTN officials say the funeral Mass for the Roman Catholic nun known to millions of viewers as Mother Angelica is set for 11 a.m. Friday in Hanceville.
EWTN Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael P. Warsaw says she died Easter Sunday at the rural Alabama monastery where she lived about 45 miles north of Birmingham.
Mother Angelica had been in declining health since suffering a severe cerebral hemorrhage on Christmas Eve 2001. She lost her speaking ability and has suffered other less severe strokes.
Mother Angelica was born Rita Rizzo in Canton, Ohio, in 1923. Her television ministry began in the monastery's garage and grew into a worldwide religious broadcasting network.
U.S. President Barack Obama said in his weekly Saturday address "no terrorist group has yet succeeded in obtaining a nuclear device or producing a dirty bomb using radioactive materials," but al-Qaida has tried.
The president delivered his address from the Nuclear Security Summit where world leaders gathered to discuss what Obama described as "one of the greatest threats to global security - terrorists getting their hands on a weapon of mass destruction."
Obama says Friday that global efforts to stop terrorists and others from using nuclear weapons are by "no means finished."
Obama wrapped up the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington by saying world leaders had made "significant and meaningful" progress over the last six years in securing stockpiles of nuclear material.
WATCH: President Obama's Weekly Address
Safeguarding stocks
Obama said enough material to build 150 weapons was now safe from terrorists.
But he said nuclear arsenals in some countries were expanding and stocks of plutonium were growing.
Obama said he and the more than 50 other world leaders in Washington agreed to further strengthen nuclear facilities from cyberattacks and improve intelligence sharing to continue to make sure dangerous materials stay out of the hands of terror groups, such as Islamic State.
The president noted that more than a dozen nations had disposed of their entire supplies of highly enriched uranium and plutonium the radioactive elements necessary to build nuclear bombs.
During six years of international meetings on nuclear security including four summits, which he initiated the U.S. president said, "Weve embraced a new type of thinking and a new type of action."
"This is a perfect example of a 21st-century security challenge that no one nation can solve alone," Obama told the leaders at a plenary session of the summit broadcast worldwide. "It requires coalitions and sustained coordination across borders and institutions. And the good news is weve made significant progress.
Obama also met with a smaller gathering of the nations most closely involved in last year's nuclear agreement with Iran. He told the so-called P5+1 group the deal with Iran had "achieved a substantial success and focused on the dangers of nuclear proliferation in a real way."
He stressed, however, that "full and continued implementation" of the Iran agreement would "take the same level of cooperation" from the international community.
WATCH: Obama Meets with P5 +1 Leaders
This year's nuclear security summit has come at a time of heightened concern about the possibility that Islamic State militants could acquire nuclear materials to build "dirty bombs" that could spread deadly radioactive fallout over wide areas. North Korea's nuclear-weapons development program also has been closely studied.
Obama said the scores of nations working together on nuclear security have made "260 specific commitments to improve nuclear security," both at this year's summit and their previous sessions.
"And so far," the president reported, "three-quarters of these steps have been implemented. More than a dozen nations have removed all their highly enriched uranium and plutonium.
Once again, I am making it clear that the United States will do our part," Obama added. "Today were releasing a detailed description of the measures that our military takes to protect nuclear materials, so that other nations can improve their security and transparency as well.
"For the first time in a decade we are providing a public inventory of our stockpiles of our highly enriched uranium. ... And that inventory is one that we have reduced considerably."
North Korea
Obama has met with leaders from South Korea and Japan on the sidelines of the summit about their mutual concerns over North Korea's provocative gestures and actions.
Although there was no specific response from Pyongyang to the trilateral meeting or to Obama's separate private meeting Thursday with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the North Korean military launched another small ballistic missile into the sea early Friday, officially announced it is blocking popular Western websites and stepped up jamming of global-positioning data beamed to Earth by a network of satellites.
In Geneva, moreover, a top North Korean envoy told Reuters that Pyongyang intends to pursue its nuclear and ballistic missile program in the face of repeated warnings from the United States and other nations.
During the U.S. president's meeting with Xi, U.S. officials reported the Chinese leader said: "We want to enhance communication and coordination on the Korean nuclear issue and other regional and global issues."
Washington views Beijing, Pyongyang's ally, as key in enforcing U.N. sanctions against North Korea for its weapons development.
While some nuclear proliferation experts expressed optimism over China's verbal commitments to keeping the regime of Kim Jong Un in check, they also said China needs to safeguard its own growing nuclear capabilities.
"The United States is very grateful that China is participating," said Debra Decker of the Washington-based Stimson Center. "China is going to be a leader in the international world market for power reactors, and they may be, probably in the next 10 years, the largest possessor of nuclear power reactors.
"If China wants to go forward and say they have the best power plants and [wishes] to export them," they need to prove that they can adhere to baseline nuclear safety protocols, she added.
Robert Gallucci, the State Department's former North Korean nuclear envoy, said both nuclear and non-nuclear states in China's neighborhood have the potential to increase development capacity, and that summit attendees should pay particularly close attention to the regional proliferation of plutonium.
Franklin Miller, former National Security Council Senior Director for Defense Policy and Arms Control, said China is not interested in that dialogue.
There has been a clear reluctance on the Chinese behalf to talk," he said. "We need to factor these issues into our strategic discussions, [but] our Russian and Chinese colleagues have been less than I would say enthusiastic about engaging in those types of discussions."
The possibility of nuclear terrorism was also a key focus on Thursday, the first day of the summit.
President Obama said that in the wake of attacks in places including Brussels, there is not only great urgency around the nuclear issue but eliminating generally the scourge of terrorism.
Some of the world leaders who attended a White House summit dinner Thursday were from countries that have been directly impacted by terrorist attacks.
Slow progress
At a State Department ministerial level dinner, Secretary of State John Kerry said there have been times when nuclear security progress has been slow, and there remains an enormous amount more to do. But every step forward that we take is a step away from danger."
The U.S. and other world powers may be experiencing a heightened sense of urgency in securing nuclear material and sites from terrorists following the March 22 attacks in Brussels.
News reports say two brothers linked to the attacks were part of a plot to gain information about a Belgian nuclear facility.
"We know that terrorist organizations have the desire to get access to these raw materials and their desire to have a nuclear device," said White House foreign policy aide Ben Rhodes.
Weakest links
One U.S. lawmaker, Congressman Ed Royce, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said, "We should assume terrorists will continue to seek out the weakest links at nuclear facilities around the globe."
World leaders also are concerned about the security of nuclear materials and facilities in countries such as nuclear armed Pakistan, where a terrorist attack in Lahore on Easter Sunday killed more than 70 people.
While progress has been made since the first summit in 2010, "the overall objective of securing the most vulnerable nuclear materials in four years I don't think has been achieved," said Sharon Squassoni with the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
"There is still material out there and the material that we're talking about is highly enriched uranium," she said.
Experts say security gaps remain for several reasons: there still is no international framework to monitor nuclear materials; some countries are unwilling to open up supplies intended for commercial use, and some militaries have been unable to agree on how to deal with their nuclear material.
"If you wanted to cause a nuclear incident, you might look for the country with the most vulnerable reactors," said James Andrew Lewis, head of the Strategic Technologies Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
As the summit got under way, the White House released a statement saying the U.S. has declassified and released data on the national inventory of highly enriched uranium. It said inventories decreased from about 741 to 586 metric tons between 1996 and 2013.
Pakistani authorities asked Iran to investigate a suspected Indian spy arrested last month in Baluchistan.
Pakistan's Interior Ministry sent a communique to the Iranian Embassy in Islamabad accusing Kulbhushan Jadhav of involvement in an Indian spy network and saying he was planning subversive activities against the recently launched multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. He had allegedly been living in Chabahar, an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman, west of Pakistan, before illegally entering Baluchistan.
Reuters reported that Pakistan's government aired video footage this week of Jadhav saying he set up an office in Chabahar and later worked for the Indian spy agency. It was unclear whether he made the comments freely.
India has confirmed that Jadhav is a former Indian navy officer, but denied he is a spy and said he had taken early retirement from the military.
Iranian authorities have not publicly commented on the allegations, but the embassy in Islamabad released a statement criticizing Pakistani media outlets for their reporting of the case.
"During the past few days, some sections of the Pakistani media have spread content regarding the detention of an Indian agent and the matter related to it, which could have negative implications on the fraternal and friendly atmosphere of Iran and Pakistan," a statement by the Iranian Embassy said.
Pakistan, Iran pacts
News of the spy came after a two-day visit last month to Islamabad by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who signed a number of pacts to further economic ties with Pakistan.
Pakistani media reported that officials discussed India's alleged spying activities with Rouhani. Iranian media said the matter was not discussed.
Although ties between Iran and Pakistan have been relatively distant with brief periods of economic cooperation, Iran's recent expansion of economic and trade ties with India has drawn attention in Islamabad.
Analysts say that India's recent investments in the Chabahar port project are seen as a countereffort by India to sabotage the China-Pakistan economic corridor project, by providing an alternate route that would bypass Pakistan.
Analyst Saeed Nazir of the Islamabad-based Institute of Policy Studies says that India has invested around $150 million in Chabahar and wants to create an economic route to Afghanistan and Central Asian countries.
There has been little trade between India and landlocked Afghanistan, in part because Pakistan has been reluctant to allow goods to be transported between the two countries.
When he became South Africa's top judge in 2011, Mogoeng Mogoeng was derided as everything from a legal lightweight and political stooge to Christian zealot and apartheid lackey.
Five years later, the 55-year-old son of a miner and a housemaid is being feted as the savior of a young democracy.
Alongside damning findings against President Jacob Zuma, who made him Chief Justice, Mogoeng laid out with unassailable legal clarity and flashes of literary flair the soul of a 20-year-old constitution cherished as a blueprint for a better society.
For the millions who watched on television, it was the day the supreme law, embodied in the 11 judges - black and white - sitting impassively in an old apartheid prison in Johannesburg, reasserted itself in a state that has lost its way since the idealism of Nelson Mandela's four years in office.
In a unanimous ruling, the court ordered Zuma to pay back some of the $16 million spent doing up his sprawling private residence, and declared that he had failed to uphold and respect the constitution, an impeachable offense.
Although the judgment may not mean Zuma's immediate political demise - the African National Congress and its large parliamentary majority could yet protect him - it reaffirmed the faith of many South Africans in their broader democracy.
"It's a winning situation. Everyone is very happy with the ruling," said student Fighter Makobudi. "I'm quite sure that the president is going to do the right thing and step down."
The rand, pummelled since December by a string of Zuma-related scandals, most notably his unexplained axing of a respected finance minister, hit a four-month high.
For many, there was a sense of relief that the ANC, whose dominance has reduced parliament to little more than a rubber stamp, was being held to account.
"I feel like I am breathing new air," said one caller to the Talk Radio 702 station.
"Ugly Head"
Although Mogoeng receded into the background after his ruling, his intervention is likely to be felt for years to come as South Africa's fractured society negotiates and contests the basis of political power.
One of his main detractors, cartoonist Jonathan Shapiro, who has depicted Mogoeng as a moron, Bible-bashing fanatic and salivating Zuma lapdog, admitted publicly he had got it wrong.
"Justice Mogoeng, you have really proved yourself," Shapiro, better known by his pen name Zapiro, said on the ENCA television channel. "I'm eating humble pie."
Newspapers heralded the judgment as the start of a new chapter for a country that has been floundering under the weight of a stagnating economy, sliding credit ratings and a procession of scandals emanating from Zuma's front door.
"South Africa wakes up to a new reality - we must not allow ourselves to be intimidated or abused by those in power," the Times said in an editorial. "Today, we remain resolute that the constitution is the bedrock of our democracy."
Before the ruling, Zuma's legal team had begged the court to keep its judgment as narrow as possible for fear of political fallout months before important provincial elections.
Mogoeng ignored them, laying out how the constitution's checks and balances were designed to stop abuse of power - and how they had been undermined by Zuma, who for two years disregarded the findings of Public Protector Thuli Madonsela, a constitutionally mandated watchdog.
"Constitutionalism, accountability and the rule of law constitute the sharp and mighty sword that stands ready to chop the ugly head of impunity off its stiffened neck," he stated in a preamble that set the tone for the hour-long ruling.
He likened Madonsela to a "Biblical David" taking on the Goliath of state corruption, a simile that spawned lurid cartoons and headlines.
"Chop Zuma the Ugly Head", the Sowetan newspaper, a popular read among Johannesburg's black middle classes, said on its front page.
The government said Zuma was studying the ruling and would decide the appropriate action in due course.
ANC's Choice
This is not to say the ruling has resolved all the questions hanging over many of Zuma's actions.
A policeman denounced by a judge as "biased and dishonest" and a liar under oath is still in charge of the force's elite investigations unit.
Nor has there has been an explanation for the government's flouting last year of its legal obligations to arrest Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir, wanted by the International Criminal Court on genocide charges.
And there is still no clarity about the political role of the Guptas, a wealthy family of Indian-born businessmen with close ties to Zuma accused last month by Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas of offering him the top job in the Treasury.
But it has shown that some of South Africa's institutions are working in the interests of the public, rather than a ruling party that, in the words of opposition leader Mmusi Maimane, must now choose between its leader and its country.
"The choice is final: it's the constitution or Jacob Zuma," Maimane said. "It cannot be both."
The reduction of hostilities in Syria after last month's cease-fire deal has led to a resurgence of demonstrations in rebel-held areas.
Thousands of pro-democracy activists have taken to the streets to demand that President Bashar al-Assad relinquish power. And as political activists and ordinary residents again find their voice, their target isn't only the Assad regime, but also jihadist groups such as al-Qaida's affiliate in the country, Jabhat al-Nusra.
For more than a week, people in the southern suburbs of Damascus have held protests urging al-Nusra to withdraw from districts controlled by opposition forces south of the capital.
The protests were sparked in the town of Beit Sahem after al-Nusra fighters fired on a checkpoint manned by opposition militiamen; then intensified when the fighters killed a protester, according to activists with a group calling itself the Rally for the Syrian Revolutionary Spring.
Protesters have rallied in dozens of towns in the northern Syria province of Idlib, an al-Nusra stronghold since the jihadists and affiliated hardline Islamist factions seized it in March 2015.
Al-Qaida's affiliate has sometimes talked of the province as an emirate, but has refrained from trying to control all aspects of local governance. Grass-roots councils that have sprung up in Idlib oversee education and local services.
Al-Nusra fighters say the protesters waving the three-star revolutionary flag associated with the moderate Free Syrian Army (FSA) are being fomented by rival armed factions. They point to the involvement of Ahmad al-Saoud, leader of the Western-backed FSA Division 13, in anti-Nusra protests in the town of Maarat al-Numan.
The claim is dismissed by Bassam al-Kuwaitli, managing director of RM Team, a monitoring and evaluation research organization that works with local and international NGOs on projects in Syria.
"It is mostly activists trying to reclaim their space back," he said of the protests.
The brandishing of the revolutionary flag is seen as part of that reclaiming. But al-Nusra sees the banner as representing secularism, and recently announced a ban on the flag.
Protests tax al-Nusra
According to Charles Lister, an analyst with the Middle East Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, the protests represent a serious challenge to al-Nusra. The jihadist group is "vulnerable when faced with constrained levels of violence," he said.
Faced with emboldened locals and activists, the al-Qaida affiliate has overstepped in its reaction to the burgeoning protests, he adds.
The jihadists deployed scores of militants on motorbikes to storm a street demonstration in mid-March in Maarat al-Numan. The crackdown quickly morphed into the raiding of weapons storage facilities belonging to the 13th Division and the arrest of some of the FSA militia's members.
For many, the scene was reminiscent of Jabhat al-Nusra's elimination of FSA rivals the Syrian Revolutionaries Front in Idlib in November 2014 and Harakat Hazm in Aleppo in March 2015, according to Lister.
"However, what has followed the 13th Division's subjugation in Maarat al-Numan is markedly different, he added. Both the SRF and Harakat Hazm were widely distrusted by Syria's conventional opposition, but the 13th Division is extremely popular."
Protests have continued demonstrators set fire to an al-Qaida jail and freed detained 13th Division fighters March 13. A similar pushback has been seen in other towns in northern Syria and the Damascus suburbs, where local sheiks and clerics warned al-Nusra that an aggressive response would prompt an explosion.
Growing opposition
Militarily preeminent within the armed opposition to Assad, al-Nusra now risks provoking a widespread popular backlash.
Activists argue that as peace negotiations continue in Geneva, the West should seize the opportunity to embrace the Syrian opposition to Assad and offer greater material support both to non-armed groups and the armed wing of the revolution.
Anti-Nusra protests also have continued in the city of Salqin in the Idlib countryside and in the town of al-Atareb on the outskirts of Aleppo, where al-Nusra seems unable to intimidate opponents into silence by attacking opposition militiamen and local residents.
The same is true in the towns of Beit Sahem, Yelda and Babila in the suburbs of the Syrian capital.
According to the Sham News Network, an anti-Assad media outlet, the unpopularity of al-Nusra is built on "accumulated grievances" between the jihadist group a onetime ally of the Islamic State but now a bitter rival and local residents. Six civilians were injured in protests when al-Nusra members opened fire on demonstrators last month.
The Assad regime's reaction to the anti-Nusra protests isn't helping the pro-democracy protesters. Several towns that have seen protests have been targeted for airstrikes seemingly a regime tactic to undermine political activism and shore up support for al-Nusra. Since the uprising against Assad began, the regime has maintained that all its opponents are "terrorists."
On Friday, Syrian government warplanes targeted Maarat al-Numan with multiple airstrikes in what Lister described in a tweet as an "unsurprisingly cynical move" by the Assad regime.
Donald Trump, the American billionaire Republican Party presidential front-runner, says he does not disagree with those who say abortion is "murder."
In a interview with the CBS news program Face the Nation to be aired Sunday, Trump says he has his own opinion on the issue, but would rather not comment on it.
Excerpts from the interview were released Friday.
Controversial positions
Earlier in the week, Trump shocked many when he said if abortions were outlawed, women who received them should be punished. He quickly backpedaled from that controversial position after a wave of criticism, saying later that doctors who perform abortions should be punished if abortions are outlawed.
The Supreme Court upheld a woman's right to have an abortion more than 40 years ago, but many people are seeking to have that ruling overturned.
In the Face the Nation interview, Trump says abortion "laws are set now" and will remain that way until they are changed.
Change the law
Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks said the presidential candidate meant that abortion laws will not change until he is president. "Then he will change the law through his judicial appointments and allow the states to protect the unborn," she said. He did not make that distinction in his interview, Hicks said.
Ilyse Hogue, the president of NARAL Pro-Choice America - an abortion rights group - said "We know that misogyny will rule in a Trump White House and that never bodes well for reproductive health care or advancing women's equality."
WATCH: Under Fire Over Abortion, Trump Has Rocky Week
The U.N. Security Council has asked Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to present options for deploying U.N. police to Burundi to help monitor the security situation following nearly a year of politically linked violence.
In a unanimous vote late Friday, council members adopted a resolution requesting that Ban consult with the government of Burundi, and within 15 days offer the council possibilities for the deployment.
"This resolution is a first step toward a strengthened U.N. presence in Burundi to help ensure the respect for human rights and alert the international community on the reality of the situation on the ground," said French Ambassador Francois Delattre, whose delegation drafted the resolution.
Russian Deputy Ambassador Petr Iliichev said this week he did not think the number of U.N. police would be more than 100; they would be lightly armed, he predicted, if armed at all.
But Burundi's U.N. envoy said before the vote that he envisioned an international police presence of only about 20 or 30 people.
"I cannot tell you the number now, but it will be a small team of police, experts, to assist Burundi in the security sector," Albert Shingiro said.
Number of observers increased
The resolution also welcomes Burundi's decision to increase to 200 the number of African Union human rights observers and military experts deployed across the country, which has seen an increase in disappearances and acts of torture since its political crisis erupted nearly a year ago. Currently, there are 30 human rights observers and 15 military observers.
The council also expressed its "intention to consider measures against all actors, inside and outside Burundi," who contribute to violence and prevent a peaceful solution to the crisis.
Burundi has accused Rwanda of forcibly recruiting and training Burundian refugees in a Rwandan refugee camp to return home to destabilize the government of President Pierre Nkurunziza.
A U.N. panel of experts backed up the allegations in a January report.
Progress insufficient
The 15-member U.N. Security Council has made two trips to Burundi in the past year to try to quell the violence.
U.N. chief Ban also traveled there in late February. During his visit, Nkurunziza announced he would ease his crackdown on media, cancel arrest warrants and release some 1,200 political detainees as a goodwill gesture. But U.S. Deputy U.N. Ambassador David Pressman said progress on these fronts has been "woefully insufficient."
"There have been plenty of press releases, but not enough prisoner releases," Pressman told the council. "We have been promised that free media would be allowed to operate, but only two out of five banned outlets are today operating."
Ban's special adviser on Burundi, Jamal Benomar, is scheduled to return to the country next week to meet with stakeholders, a U.N. spokesman said Friday.
Violence erupted in April 2015 after Nkurunziza sought what many viewed as an unconstitutional third term. Since then, more than 400 people have been killed and 250,000 have fled the country.
The United Nations has urged the government and opposition to engage in inclusive, substantive dialogue to resolve the crisis, amid fears the country could slip into another ethnically based civil war, as happened from 1993 to 2005.
Seven people, including three intelligence security officers, died Saturday in three shootings in Mogadishu, according to witnesses in Somalia's capital.
The violence came a day after confirmation from a U.S. official that an airstrike had killed a senior member of the al-Shabab militant group.
Two of the shootings in Mogadishu involved masked or unidentified gunmen, with one attack killing two officers with Somalia's National Intelligence Agency. The third incident occurred when government security forces carrying out an operation opened fire on a crowd protesting their actions, killing three and wounding one.
The death of Al-Shabab assassin Hassan Ali Dhore occurred in an airstrike Thursday. The Somali government last year put him on a "most wanted" list of 12 people involved in terror attacks in Mogadishu.
Another suspected U.S. airstrike Friday was reported to have killed a commander known as "Qorilow," the head of al-Shabab forces in Jannaale town, and three other militants. A separate strike Saturday killed six militants in the Lower Juba region, according to local officials and residents.
'Significant' strike
U.S. Defense Department spokesman Peter Cook said the airstrike that killed Dhore was carried out in cooperation with Somali forces. He said Dhore had planned and led previous attacks that killed at least three U.S. citizens, and he was suspected of plotting further attacks against Americans in the East African country.
"While we are still assessing the results of this operation," Cook said, "removing Dhore from the battlefield would be a significant blow to al-Shabab's operational planning and [its] ability to conduct attacks against ... Somalia, its citizens, U.S. partners in the region and against Americans abroad."
Al-Shabab militants, who have staged attacks in Kenya as well as throughout Somalia, are considered to be closely linked to the al-Qaida terror network.
The deputy commander of Somalia's army, General Ali Bashe, told journalists that Somali commandos operating deep in al-Shabab-controlled territory had located and identified Dhore.
"This was a successful operation and it will continue, the general said.
In an interview with VOA's Somali service, Bashe said Dhore was killed at Toratorow village in a battle with Somali forces using the help of U.S. military experts.
Unlike the U.S. official's report, the Somali general said it was not clear whether Dhore was killed by a drone or by gunfire. At least two other Somali militants were killed along with Dhore.
Dhore commanded al-Shabab's Amniyat security and intelligence group, which included a feared squad of assassins that targeted lawmakers and other officials in Mogadishu.
A U.S. defense official said the strike took place about 30 kilometers south of Jilib, southwest of the capital, Mogadishu. He said the U.S. military had been watching Dhore for a long time and the Somali government shared information that led to the attack.
Additional strikes
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said in a note on Twitter Thursday night that his country's army and allied forces were in the midst of a heavy attack against al-Shabab. The presidential tweet was unusual in that it disclosed an operation still underway.
A similar commando raid March 9 in Awdhegle town, 120 kilometers southwest of Mogadishu, was carried out jointly by U.S. and Somali special forces. Awdhegle is near the area where Dhore was hit on Thursday.
The Pentagon said Dhore played "a direct role" in a December 2014 attack on Mogadishu's airport that killed several members of the African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia (AMISOM) and one U.S. citizen.
"Dhore was also directly responsible for the March 27, 2015, attack on the Maka al-Mukarram Hotel in Mogadishu, resulting in the deaths of 15 people, including one Somali-American national," the U.S. statement said.
Recent developments increasingly point to a Botswana government getting weary of the economic meltdown in Zimbabwe.
From the recently introduced shoot-to-kill stray Zimbabwean cattle to suggesting Zimbabwe prison inmates should serve terms in their own country, Botswana's agitation is coming to the fore.
Botswana has always maintained cordial relations with Zimbabwe despite bearing the burden of an influx of illegal immigrants from its neighbor.
An estimated 1,000 Zimbabweans cross into Botswana daily for shopping but critically to look for jobs which have proved elusive in their homeland.
With the economic slowdown in Zimbabwe showing no signs of abating, Botswana is fast showing signs of agitation.
Botswana recently announced that it would shoot to kill stray Zimbabwean cattle as it fights the resurfacing foot and mouth disease which has persisted over the years.
The spread of the disease is blamed on illegal immigrants who cut the fence along the two countries' borders, thereby allowing animals to roam free.
Other immigrants illegally cross with fruits and vegetables for re-sale, in the process carrying across the fruit fly, which causes crop diseases.
Botswana has suggested that the more than 500 Zimbabweans incarcerated at various prisons in its country should be sent back to their homeland to serve the remainder of their sentences.
Political commentator, Thato Kereng, says Botswana is being affected by the meltdown in Zimbabwe.
Botswana is affected because of the situation in Zimbabwe. Now they are forced to tighten with the introduction of the various interventions.
He argues that the moves taken by Botswana are in the interest of its citizens. I think its understandable. If you have a neighbor like Zimbabwe and the situation is affecting you, you have to take steps to make sure you protect your own interests and your own people.
Zimbabwean Clement Zibanani feels as long as the situation in his country persists, the challenges will remain, arguing the solution lies within Zimbabwe.
His fellow countryman, Farai Sibanda, says it is unfortunate that it is the ordinary people who feel the pinch, but believes it's a clear message to the Harare authorities to clean up their mess, which
is now affecting neighboring countries.
At times Botswana has been the lone critical voice, particularly at Southern African Development Community meetings, with President Ian Khama praised for his candid views.
U.S. President Barack Obama says recent comments from Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump show a basic lack of understanding about global politics.
The U.S. leader was asked Friday about Trump's remarks that Japan and South Korea should develop nuclear weapons as a deterrent to North Korea.
Obama said, "The person who made the statements doesn't know much about foreign policy or nuclear policy or the Korean peninsula or the world generally."
Republicans divided
The presidential campaign of Trump, a former TV reality star, has evolved into a divisive segment of the Republican party, with some party members seeking to distance themselves from Trump and the comments he sometimes ends up retracting.
Obama, who taught constitutional law before becoming president, said that even countries that are used to a "carnival atmosphere" in their politics want "sobriety and clarity" in the U.S. elections.
Some Zimbabweans say the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission or NPRC appears to be toothless as local people are not yet ready for healing and reconciliation.
They say the state-leaning commission looks ineffective in promoting healing, peace and reconciliation in the nation.
Some Harare residents who attended a meeting yesterday evening convened by HealZimbabwe, a non-governmental focusing on victims of political violence, said the Commission also appears to be pro-government as commissioners are appointed by the state.
One of the participants, Chitungwiza resident Merjury Marunda, said the commission cant promote national healing in Zimbabwe if perpetrators of violence have not apologized to their victims.
A victim of political violence, Bamine Musekiwa, said there wont be any national healing as long as Zanu PF is still in power.
Kudakwashe Matambo, communications programmes assistant with the Jesuits Province of Zimbabwe-Mozambique, urged government to listen to the needs of the people in order to promote national healing and reconciliation.
Some participants echoed the same sentiments though noting that perpetrators of violence need to be identified and asked to apologize to victims if there has to be peace, healing and reconciliation in Zimbabwe.
According to Professor Rudo Gaidzanwa, impunity given to perpetrators of violence is what has resulted in the continuous violation of some citizens by others.
However, constitutional law expert Professor Lovemore Madhuku blamed the constitution for failure to effectively provide for a truth and reconciliation commission.
He said if the constitution does not work, even the law to operationalize the commission will not work. He said the National Peace and Reconciliation Bill also has some sections that are ultra-vires the constitution.
Section 251 of the Constitution provides for the creation of the NPRC, whose chairperson and eight other members should be appointed by the president after consultations with the Judicial Services Commission and Parliaments Committee on Standing Rules and Orders. The commissioners have already been appointed and former Speaker of Parliament, Cyril Ndebele, leads the commission.
The Bill to operationalise the commission has passed through parliament's first reading.
The Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce is having its second annual Texas Food Truck Showdown on Saturday in downtown Wacos Heritage Square.
Tasty Tickets, which are needed to purchase the food during the competition from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. can be purchased at the event or online at thetexasfoodtruck showdown.com/tickets.
Following the competition, food trucks will reopen for dinner at 5 p.m., Dallas AC/DC tribute band Back in Black will perform from 6 to 7:30 p.m. and an outdoor screening of Despicable Me will begin at 8 p.m.
Sickle Cell Weekend
Central Texas Sickle Cell Anemia Association is having a Sickle Cell Weekend fundraising event Saturday through Monday. Events will include:
Sickle Cell Anemia Radio-Thon from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday on radio station 94.5 The Beat. Call the station to make a pledge.
On Sunday, churches are encouraged to take a love offering to support the association. Offerings can be mailed to Sickle Cell, P.O. Box 881, Waco, TX 76703.
Sickle Cell Spirit Night from 5 to 7 p.m. Monday at Chick-fil-A, 901 S. Seventh St. Customers need to mention the fundraiser for the association to receive the donation.
Miss Waco at museum
Breanna Bush, 2016 Miss Waco, will appear from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday at the Dr Pepper Museum and Free Enterprise Institute, 300 S. Fifth St.
As a part of her community outreach initiative, Bush will greet and take photographs with visitors at the dock entrance to the museum.
Bush will compete for the title of Miss Texas on July 2. The winner there will compete at the Miss America Pageant in 2017.
Clarinet recitals at BU
In conjunction with its fourth annual Clarinet Choir and Chamber Music Festival, the Baylor University School of Music will host two recitals Saturday at Jones Concert Hall in Baylors Glennis McCrary Music Building.
The Mission Winds Clarinet Quartet from the United States Air Force Band of the West and Paula Corley, clarinet instructor at Texas Lutheran University, at 1:10 p.m.
A Lyceum Series recital with clarinetist Kenneth Grant, Baylor assistant piano professor Kae Hosoda-Ayer and Baylor assistant clarinet professor Jun Qian, at 2:20 p.m.
For more information, visit www.baylor.edu/ music or call 710-3991.
TxDOT roadwork
The Texas Department of Transportation will begin a project Monday to upgrade a portion of Farm-to-Market Road 1637, China Spring Road, northwest of Waco in McLennan County.
The 4.3-mile project, designed to increase safety and efficiency, will widen the two-lane facility to a four-lane roadway with raised median, from FM 3051, Steinbeck Bend Drive, to FM 2490, Wortham Bend Road.
The work will take place between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. weekdays, with some Saturday work possible. The work is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2018, weather permitting.
Motorists can expect to encounter flaggers and temporary delays for the duration of the project, with temporary lane closures during the overnight hours.
Garry and Jane Dossey have two decades of toil and joy invested in the turn-of-the-20th-century house they renovated at 3601 Hillcrest Drive, so it was hard to put it on the market, and harder to watch it go unsold for more than a year.
But they finally got the ideal buyer: Celebrity renovators Chip and Joanna Gaines, owners of Magnolia Homes and stars of HGTVs Fixer Upper.
My greatest fear was that the house would fall to someone who didnt appreciate it or have the financial resources to continue to care for it, said Garry Dossey, a Waco dentist. A 110-year-old house needs some care. I think the Magnolia people will have the resources to do it.
The Dosseys sold the six-bedroom, Greek Revival-style house and adjoining two acres a few weeks ago to Magnolia and will live there a few more months as they work on their new house in Groesbeck. Magnolia officials said they havent decided what to do with the building yet or whether it would be included on the popular show.
In the past couple of years, Magnolia has become a business juggernaut, drawing thousands of visitors each week to its downtown retail complex at 600 Webster Ave. and successfully branching into high-end lodging with the Magnolia House in McGregor.
The Hillcrest Drive house is anything but a fixer-upper, judging by a video posted by Doug Eastland of Weicher Realtors at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP3eGeH7cwA.
The sales price was not disclosed, but it was listed last year at $525,000 and later reduced to $498,000.
The house, which dates back to 1903, is known locally as the Bradshaw estate, for well-known retailer Leo Bradshaw Sr. and his wife, Eleanor Rose Bradshaw, who lived there from the 1950s through 1993. The Bradshaws owned Cogdells department store, which later evolved into a gun shop that still exists today, and helped organize Cogdell Methodist Church.
The virtual house tour for 3601 Hillcrest Drive shows wood floors, stained paneling and fine furnishings inside, with an ample back porch and various outbuildings and a chapel-gazebo on the grounds. The house has more than 4,600 square feet of space, plus an old servants quarters with nearly 800 square feet.
Dossey said he and his wife, an interior designer, did a lot of the work themselves to renovate the house.
Its been a labor of love, he said. At times its almost killed us.
The couple has lived in that house longer than anywhere else and have enjoyed hosting their grandchildren there.
We have a little childrens playhouse where theyd make-believe cookies and cakes, Dossey said. Weve really loved that place and spent many Christmases here with our immediate families. Were sad to lose those kinds of things. The house is so absolutely beautiful. But you have to make concessions as you age.
The origins of the house appear not to be well-documented, though Dossey said he understands the central part of the house was an earlier structure that was dragged by mules from its original Speegleville location in 1903. The house is across Hillcrest Drive from the historic Cobbs-Walker Cemetery and a few blocks away from the 1850s farmhouse that centered the homestead of James Walker, a Texas Revolution veteran.
The neighborhood was part of Camp MacArthur during World War I, and the road that passes by the house was named Hillcrest Drive for the hospital that was founded nearby in 1920.
Adam Neziri, a native of Macedonia who moved to the United States about 18 years ago, has opened the Greek Grill in Richland Mall.
We were busy on the day we began serving and have been busier every day since, Neziri said.
The grill serves gyro wraps, salads and baklava, with meats for the wraps that include chicken, steak and beef with lamb, he said.
Sides include steamed vegetables, potato wedges, stuffed grape leaves and more, all with a Greek twist. A salad bar is also available.
The grill is next to Subway in the malls food court, Neziri said.
His hours of business are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sundays.
Neziri said he moved to Waco from Harker Heights, where he prepared Greek food in a restaurant called The Acropolis.
Tarpley Music Co.
Tarpley Music Co., which sells a wide range of instruments and offers lessons, is moving into 1300 Lake Air Drive, the former home of Backstage Pass Music Center.
The company has locations in San Angelo, Amarillo, Lubbock, Wichita Falls and Clovis, New Mexico, and reportedly will open in a week or two, said Chuck Lambert, who will manage the establishment and said hiring has begun.
He described Tarpley as a full-line music store, with its website saying its locations offer acoustic and electric guitars, band instruments, drums and percussion instruments, pianos and keyboards, amplifiers and professional audio equipment.
Music Trades Magazine ranks Tarpley Music in the top 200 music stores in the country, out of an estimated 8,000 stores.
Five generations of the Tarpley family have been involved in the operation of the company, which started when Clara Tarpley, a piano teacher in Wellington, Texas, began selling pianos in the 1920s in a hardware store in Shamrock, later moving to Pampa, where she officially launched Tarpley Music Co.
Economist honored
Waco-based economist Ray Perryman, who frequently weighs in on issues affecting the local, state and national economies, has been named as a recipient of the 2016 Cesar E. Chavez Conscience Builder Award by the Cesar E. Chavez Legacy and Educational Foundation.
The award was presented during the foundations annual scholarship gala in San Antonio.
The citation called Perryman a champion and guardian of the conscience and human dignity and noted that his life is a testimony centered on these core values.
Foundation president Jaime Martinez, a friend and contemporary of Chavez, who was a labor and civil rights leader who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, said Perrymans life has been defined by respect for human dignity and centered on the unifying principles of God, family and serving others.
The citation discussed Perrymans career and impact as an influential economist, with emphasis on work he has provided free of charge related to hunger, child maltreatment, cultural awareness, indigent health care, immigration reform, educational opportunity, drug abuse and homelessness.
More awards for Balcones
Wacos Balcones Distillery, which has become an award-winning maker of whiskey, has received three more medals to add to its accolades.
Judges at the 2016 San Francisco World Spirits Competition awarded double-gold medals to Balcones 1 Single Malt and Baby Blue, and a bronze medal to Brimstone Corn Whisky.
The competition was held March 17-20 at the Hotel Nikko in downtown San Francisco. The organization was founded in 2000 as a way to determine and award exceptional products in the spirits industry, according to a news release by Balcones.
More than 1,850 spirits were judged this year, representing the largest number of entries in the organizations 16-year history.
Texas Farm Bureau exec
The Texas Farm Bureau, whose headquarters are located in Waco, has named Si Cook as executive director and chief operations officer, succeeding the retiring Vernie R. Glasson III. He will assume the responsibility of business manager and COO of the states largest general farm organization on May 26.
Glasson will serve in the role of adviser until his retirement July 5, the organization announced.
Our board voted unanimously today to elect Si Cook as executive director of Texas Farm Bureau, TFB President Russell Boening said. Si has extensive experience in agriculture and our organization. We are confident in his ability to lead the staff of TFB into the future.
Cook has served the farm bureau for more than 28 years, most recently as member of the senior management staff under Glasson. He heads the organization division, and in that role he is responsible for member services, education and outreach, youth programs, young farmer and rancher programs, and training.
A kidney dialysis clinic that allows patients to get more involved in their own treatment has opened on Lake Shore Drive near North 19th Street, in the growing area of far North Waco not far from McLennan Community College, a potential new H-E-B grocery and the booming China Spring area.
Central Texas Nephrology Associates and its physicians will staff the center. It is managed by Fresenius Medical Care, an international firm that has secured investors to underwrite construction of 12 dialysis clinics in Greater Waco, McLennan County, Bell County and elsewhere around the region in recent years.
Dr. Richard Gibney, a physician with the local nephrology group, said about 250 staffers work in the dozen clinics, most of which are so-called hybrids because clients can either let technicians perform all tasks related to dialysis or get involved themselves in their treatment.
The new clinic on Lake Shore Drive has 20 units for dialysis the removal of waste and fluid in the presence of faltering kidneys and all patients will be able to take charge of their dialysis sessions, which typically last four hours three times a week. They will learn to operate dialysis machines, measure and apply fluids and make injections.
Gibney said the empowerment approach has gained traction at all the associates clinics, with about one-third of the 800 patients taking steps toward going it alone with minimal supervision. The staffers really have become guests in their houses, serving as mentors and cheerleaders, Gibney said.
This approach gives patients a feeling of confidence and of having a hand in their own health care, he said. They may become so adept at overseeing their dialysis that they may make the move to home dialysis, giving them more flexible hours.
Gibney said the old way of performing dialysis involved the hunker down approach. Patients received instructions to sit down, remain still and quiet and not to touch anything as the staff attended to details.
We were trying to be helpful, but we taught them to be helpless, he said. Patients would get bored and depressed and would miss treatments or skip taking their medications. Weve found that most people like to be involved in their treatment. It gives them a mental and spiritual boost.
A tone of frustration creeps into Gibneys voice when he talks about the new clinics recent opening, saying it was ready to accept patients a year ago.
It took the Texas Department of Health that long to get here and make an inspection, he said. That represents a real challenge, makes the whole process that much more expensive. Its kind of like building a house that you cant move into for a year. It was frustrating.
Now that the clinic is welcoming clients, a waiting list is growing with patients wanting access to the facility and its empowerment method.
Five years ago, a kidney dialysis facility opened on 27 acres at Bagby Avenue and Corporation Parkway, near Baylor Scott & White Hillcrest Medical Center. Four local businessmen bought the land from the Waco Industrial Foundation to create Greenway Business Park.
That 13,000-square-foot clinic brought nocturnal dialyis to Central Texas, allowing patients to spend the night at the facility and wake up refreshed and, in most cases, ready to return to work. It was built with 16 traditional stations, but Gibney was most proud of plans to offer nighttime treatments from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m.
Like other facilities, the Greenway clinic is moving toward allowing patients to assume more responsibility over their sessions. But nocturnal dialysis represents another approach to Central Texas Nephrologys goal of making the process more convenient and enjoyable for clients.
Fewer hospital trips
The big idea, Gibney said, is to improve quality of life and reduce the number of trips to the hospital and the mortality rate. Meanwhile, between 10 and 15 patients a year who rely upon the local clinics receive kidney transplants in San Antonio, with local facilities providing care before and after the procedures.
Gibney said he hopes the dialysis clinic on Lake Shore Drive is the last Waco and Central Texas will need. He said the use of equipment at home, during nighttime sleep and with very little, if any, outside assistance is making the presence of clinics less critical than it once was, which is a good thing.
Trade magazines report that a growing number of dialysis patients are choosing to purify their bodily systems in the comfort of their residences. Keith Lester, who oversees home therapy services for Fresenius, said home dialysis for its patients increased from 6 percent in 2008 to 11 percent in 2014.
Nationally, about 8 percent of the 400,000 people receiving dialysis do so at home, a percentage well below those of Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Mexico and New Zealand, where figures exceed 20 percent, according to a Modern Healthcare report.
A declining number of people in this country began to undergo treatment at home following passage in 1973 of the Medicare End Stage Renal Disease program, in which Medicare agreed to fund treatments for virtually everyone facing critical kidney failure, according to Modern Healthcare.
That led to an explosion in the opening of dialysis clinics, which only now is beginning to subside.
The cost of annual dialysis treatment typically ranges from $53,000 to $72,000, and Medicare may pay up to 80 percent of that charge.
Five to 10 years down the road, Gibney said, stem cell transplantation may reduce the need for dialysis and organ transplantation, further improving the lives of people suffering from kidney failure. For now, though, clinics remain open to serve in Waco, Hillsboro, Marlin, Temple, Killeen, Harker Heights and Rockdale.
Waco has a total of five clinics in its city limits, and Kileen has two.
The city of Marlins dialyis clinic is one of the smallest in the system, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in quality, Gibney said.
It has been named one of the top dialysis clinics in the United States, receiving a Five Star rating from Medicare and Medicaid, he said.
Gibney himself was selected to receive the Medal of Excellence Award from the American Association of Kidney Patients for 2016.
He was honored in March at the associations national meeting in Phoenix, Arizona.
A bid to build a high-speed rail corridor from Dallas to Houston is facing headwinds in the rural Texas counties where it would cut through. But the bullet train is finding some love from officials in Waco and McLennan County, far off the proposed route.
The Heart of Texas Council of Governments executive board March 24 voted 15-3 to oppose the Texas Central Partners proposal to build a privately funded, 240-mile high-speed line. Passengers could zoom between the cities at 205 mph and arrive in a mere 90 minutes.
Leaders in the counties along the route are opposing the plan, portraying it as an expensive boondoggle that will use eminent domain to gobble up and divide farmland.
The county judges of Limestone and Freestone Counties, which include segments of the rail line, helped push through the HOTCOG resolution. It urges federal and state officials to halt support for the project unless it can be proved that the rail project would only use existing rights of way and would not carry a risk of requiring a public subsidy.
The three dissenting votes came from McLennan County Judge Scott Felton, Waco Mayor Malcolm Duncan Jr. and Waco Councilwoman Alice Rodriguez. McLennan County Commissioner Kelly Snell joined the majority, which also included representatives from the HOTCOG board from Limestone, Freestone, Falls, Hill, Bosque and Coryell Counties.
The Brazos Valley Council of Governments, which includes several counties in the proposed corridor, also recently passed a similar resolution, reversing its earlier support for the line.
Limestone County Judge Daniel Burkeen said hes not opposed to high-speed rail on principle, but he thinks this project is bad for rural landowners.
People dont want to give up their family farms theyve had for generations for a project thats going nowhere, Burkeen said. Theres going to be a lot of land destroyed, and it does nothing for anyone between Dallas and Houston except make them bear the cost of it.
Duncan, the Waco mayor, said he supported the project because it could be the first link in a chain of high speed rail that would eventually connect to Austin, San Antonio, Waco and Fort Worth.
This looks to us to be the best opportunity to get high-speed rail in Texas, Duncan said. Were convinced that we could be adding lanes to I-35 until the day we die and still not have enough. Weve got to look at alternatives, and high-speed rail seems to be the most viable alternative.
In an interview Friday, Texas Central Partners CEO Tim Keith said the HOTCOG and Brazos Valley resolutions mischaracterize his companys plans.
Its disappointing to us that not all aspects of our plans were referred to properly, Keith said. Im disappointed that we were not able to engage in direct conversation with them. . . . Were disappointed that a planning agency would work to turn away jobs and permanent tax base.
The resolution calls the railway a private venture potentially subsidized by funds from taxpayers.
The company, which is backed by a group of mostly Texan investors, says it will not use state or federal grants for the $10 billion to $12 billion necessary for construction, maintenance or operation of the system. The company does anticipate using federal loan programs, but the loans will be repaid, officials said.
The resolution states that farm and ranch land will be divided, and the value of land substantially decreased.
But Keith said thats misleading. Like utilities and other railroads, Texas Central could use eminent domain to take property for public use, with fair market value compensation. But the 100-foot right of way for this project would mostly follow the routes of existing electrical transmission rights of way.
Elevated rail line
The rail line would be elevated on a berm or viaduct and would pass over all public roads. Where it bisects a property, such as a pasture or crop field, the railroad could make underpasses for tractors and animals, officials said.
Rail company officials said the project would benefit rural areas by providing billions of dollars of tax base as well as permanent maintenance jobs. In addition, a midpoint station would be opened in rural Grimes County, providing people in the region a way to get to the big cities.
Texas Central officials said they have held 24 meetings along the route. At some of those meetings they have brought headsets to demonstrate how much quieter the train would be compared to conventional rail lines.
The company would use a Japanese-made N700 Series Shinkansen system, similar to one long in use between Tokyo and Osaka, Japan. Tickets would be very competitive with plane fares, according to the companys website, www.texascentral.com.
The company expects to get its environmental impact statement this summer, allowing it to hone in on a single preferred route alignment, Keith said.
Meanwhile, company officials are coming to Waco on Monday to make a presentation on the project to a city-county intergovernmental committee. The meeting, which is open the public, starts at 3:30 p.m. in the commissioners court at the McLennan County Courthouse.
An attorney for a biker indicted in the Twin Peaks shootout cut a change of venue hearing short Friday, saying he wanted to take a step back and re-evaluate his legal strategy.
Dallas attorney Clint Broden, who represents Hewitt biker Matthew Clendennen, asked the judge not to rule on his motion seeking to move Clendennens trial from McLennan County and said he would call no more witnesses midway through a hearing in Wacos 54th State District Court.
Brodens about-face came after he had called four witnesses, including Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton, and conferred in the judges chambers with District Attorney Abel Reyna and Reynas first assistant, Michael Jarrett. Broden had subpoenaed five other witnesses for the hearing.
Judge Matt Johnson said he will hold Brodens change of venue motion in abeyance and will not rule on it unless and until the attorney asks to take up the matter again.
Broden filed the change of venue motion in February, calling publicity about the May 17 shootout that left nine bikers dead and two dozen injured pervasive, prejudicial and inflammatory.
Broden declined comment after the hearing because Johnson placed a gag order on Clendennens case in June. While the order pertains only to Clendennens case, the district attorneys office, the Waco Police Department and the city of Waco have interpreted it as an order that prevents them from speaking about any elements of the Twin Peaks cases.
Broden showed Swanton a document that said anything Swanton released after the gag order was issued had to be approved by the district attorneys office. Broden asked Swanton, the primary police spokesman, what his motivation was in referring frequently to the bikers as gang members during the more than 10 press briefings he gave following the shootout.
That drew a quick objection from Reyna, and Broden decided to move on.
Broden asked Swanton why he removed at least three Facebook items he posted on the police departments page about the Twin Peaks incident. That drew another objection from Reyna, which was sustained by the judge.
While Broden declined comment after the hearing, Houston attorney Paul Looney, who represents two bikers and was at the hearing, said Broden decided to regroup because he likely thought he wasnt getting a fair hearing.
While Broden was trying to put his evidence on, the prosecution was continually objecting to the questions that he asked, and the judges rulings were making it impossible for Broden to make the record he needed to make to be able to justify the change of venue, Looney said. It appeared pointless to go forward in the face of those adverse rulings, so I suspect that Broden is going to evaluate a way to get around those rulings and re-present his arguments at a later date. The judges rulings were very unfair. It does not mean a change of venue was not justified. It means he was being blocked to be able to present his proof.
Looney represents a husband-and-wife biker team from Brenham who were arrested but have not been indicted. He said those charges against his clients technically were dismissed Thursday night as a matter of law because the term of the grand jury considering their cases expired.
That does not keep the district attorneys office from seeking indictments against them or others in the future.
Still, Looney said, he would not want a change of venue for Twin Peaks defendants.
The district attorneys office here has gone to novel approaches to prosecute a large number of people, when in fact, only a few should be prosecuted, if them, Looney said. That over-the-top approach, I believe, is going to be recognized as an overreach more quickly by the citizens of McLennan County that know their district attorneys office than it will be recognized by a stranger county that would have no history about this district attorneys office previous behaviors.
University High School senior Alicia Martinez hopes her time serving the people of Waco is the beginning of a career as an FBI forensic accountant.
Martinez, 17, is the student director of Universitys tax service program, where about 60 students provide free tax services to the community three nights a week from January through April.
And residents love it.
Id rather get it free than pay to pay, Waco resident Wilbert London said.
The program began 12 years ago with students submitting 300 tax returns on residents behalf, said Dede Moore, one of the programs coordinators.
Its since grown by a factor of 10, with students on track to submit close to 3,000 forms this year, Moore said.
Clients start filing into Universitys hallways shortly after school ends on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Students conduct a short interview to input all the clients information and then transfer the client to another student who files the appropriate tax form.
Each student who participates in the program is enrolled in the Ron E. Smith Academy of Business and Finance and must become certified by the Internal Revenue Service to assist people through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program.
Moore said its a wonderful program because there are so few classes available to students where they learn a concept in an afternoon class and implement the concept that evening.
Martinez has been helping people fill out their tax forms for three years and said she loves it.
Martinez said when she first started, she wasnt concerned about getting any forms or documents wrong, because math is one of her strongest subjects.
She was more concerned about talking to people she didnt know, but helping them through the process gave her more confidence.
I was scared at first, Martinez said.
University sophomore Lessitte Canales began volunteering last year and also said she hopes to make it into a career. She enjoys meeting new people and helping them through the process.
Business is kind of fascinating for me, Canales said.
London said he has been coming to the school for its tax services for the past decade.
The students are always able to answer questions he has, and the wait isnt too long, he said.
Its pretty easy once youve done it before, London said.
As rival politicians in the spotlight toss insults and accusations, some Baylor University students are learning different paths to effective political discourse.
Fourteen Baylor students participated March 19-25 in the National Model United Nations Conference, and the team was named overall Outstanding Delegation, the highest award, while representing Vietnam. Almost 5,000 students from around the world attended the conference in New York City, and more than half came from outside the United States.
While discussing international topics such as terrorism, poverty and energy, the students learned that diplomacy comes from collaboration and treating attendees like people, not only delegates.
Collaboration is almost a dirty word in Congress today, Spanish and International Studies junior Megan Rollag said. It makes you appear as if you are breaking away from values and stances, when really youre trying to accomplish something. Seeing that in our political climate is a little disheartening when students like us participate in conferences solely based on collaboration.
History senior Renie Saenz used the example of Judge Merrick Garland, President Barack Obamas choice to replace Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court. He said if a Republican supported Garland, he or she could be shunned and possibly lose a re-election bid.
I think voters have to be willing to collaborate on issues as well, Saenz said. A lot of people are not willing to swallow their pride and admit when theyre wrong or admit theyve messed up.
That sort of attitude doesnt fly in Model UN, said Rebecca Flavin, political science lecturer and Model UN faculty adviser.
The way that you succeed and the way you get recognized is through excellence in collaboration and cooperation, Flavin said. So the students who are stuck on their idea and hesitant or reluctant to cooperate typically dont succeed.
Though English was the only allowed language, the barrier between international students and native speakers required clear communication.
Most of the time I felt like the minority, but I was in America, International Studies sophomore Joe Yope said. Its a present thought in your mind.
The group said students from Belgium and France, the sites of recent terrorist attacks, had unique perspectives on issues like counterterrorism and peacekeeping.
While collaboration among American politicians isnt always evident, members of Baylors Model UN delegation say theres hope.
You need to see leadership thats reaching across the aisle, International Studies junior Marc Webb said. People will follow whatever the status quo is. For that to change, there have to be major players who say, Regardless of the view, Im here to cooperate because its for the good of the whole, not just the good of my region of the state or my party.
Rollag said the international students she met have noticed the current political climate in the United States. A Canadian student invited her to move north, and others assumed all Texans support Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, she said.
With so many students learning the value of true diplomacy, Flavin said the current state of tough politics could one day improve.
Thats the frustration theyve expressed with Congress and a lot of people in the United States have expressed with Congress, she said. So Im hopeful that even if politics today is nasty and hard to watch and hard to swallow, the next generation will learn from those mistakes and make it better.
Last month Trib Editor Steve Boggs and opinion page editor Bill Whitaker decried the sorry state of the 2016 presidential campaign and, in particular, the awfulness of Donald Trump. They are horrified at Trumps unorthodox campaign and his take-no-prisoners, non-politically correct speech.
They know full well that Trumps brashness and not-a-politician approach is exactly what appeals to his supporters. But, like most professional journalists and a significant portion of the electorate, they cant comprehend the source of the mind-bending anger and, yes, rage, that underline and fuel this political revolution.
Boggs laments the war-like political and social atmosphere in the country and fears that it will produce something or someone far worse than Trump further down the American road. Boggs attitude exemplifies those who just dont get it for many Americans including Democrats, independents, and Republicans, the far worse something or someone arrived some years ago and stole the American soul. To frankly answer Boggs question: Has our country begun the process of passing from this earth as have all great civilizations before it?
Answer: Its far worse; the patient is in hospice care.
The patient took a turn for the worse recently when the North Carolina state government came under withering condemnation from all right-thinking excuse me, left-thinking Americans. Had they reinstated legal slavery? No, they had simply enacted a law directing that public schools and colleges and state government agencies require that all multiple-occupancy bathrooms and changing facilities be designated for use only by people based on their biological sex.
In other words, the man who thinks hes a woman, or wants to be, still has to use the mens restroom. Oh, the horror of it all! The usual suspects, New Yorks Gov. Cuomo and San Franciscos mayor, have banned most official travel to North Carolina. Big loss there!
The terminal patient had to be placed on a ventilator last week when 50 or so entitled, whiny students at Atlantas private, ultra-expensive Emory University took to their fainting couches. The atrocity? Someone had chalked on their campus sidewalks the hateful and intimidating message, Trump 2016. The patients heart stopped and required electric shock when Emorys president, instead of booting the sucklings from his office, declared that the chalking cads would be identified and disciplined if students or prosecuted if non-students. Even Bill Maher mocked this madness.
There are dozens of such non-sensical, infuriating incidents occurring daily in America in the name of progressivism. What say you, Drs. Boggs and Whitaker? Does the patient have a pulse? What do you prescribe that might save his life? Your options are very limited. Well get more of the same foolishness with Hillary. Trump cant possibly do more harm than Obama has or Hillary will.
Sammy McLarty of Waco is a retired veterans benefits claims examiner.
It took 18 months to pass a law to evaluate mental health for veterans.
Mike OBric
Republican are AWOL
Congratulations to Commander Bill Mahon, American Legion Post 121, for helping us remember the Vietnam War at Tuesdays commemoration yes, Vietnam, the undeclared, failed, politically motivated war where some 2.7 million men and women served and more than 300,000 were wounded some 50 years ago.
I looked for Airman Bob Maske, whose March 19 column used veterans to spew politics and half-truths. As a veterans advocate, I wanted to tell him that the real-life decisions affecting veterans and their families are ignored by our Republican Congress, the congressional oversight committees and the Pentagon not the Democratic candidates for president.
Our politicians fake helping veterans and I wanted to ask Maske why he wasnt writing to the Republicans who have turned their backs and are simply giving lip service to veterans. To be specific, it is reported that 22 veterans still commit suicide every day with 70 percent over the age of 50. It took 18 months to pass a law to evaluate mental health for veterans. There is no help from this pointless boondoggle.
Politicians need to be held accountable for passing laws to terminate or discipline poor-performing managers and employees; offer effective treatment programs for post traumatic stress disorder and brain injury; prevent the denial of benefits and care for veterans; provide services for women veterans after hours; and hire more doctors and technicians.
These Republican politicians are incompetent leaders. After years we still have a backlog of some 352,666 disability claims; severe problems with timely appointments; major delays with referrals; and no operational medical records system.
Mike OBric, Marine Corps Mustang, Woodway
Supreme injustice
The recent story in the Trib about the reduction in abortions in Texas is woefully inadequate. The number of safe, legal and reportable abortions in Texas has dropped. An abortion in Texas is now harder to get, both logistically and financially.
They did not count the number of women who now go to the local flea market to get the pill that makes you bleed. There is no way to count the number of women who go across the border to end an unwanted pregnancy. The report didnt mention that the number of abortions performed in New Mexico for out-of-state residents has doubled in the past three years since Texas House Bill 2 went into effect. They didnt report changes in the number of women going to their local emergency rooms for miscarriage management from self-induced abortions. They didnt report the change in the number of unwanted pregnancies that women are forced to have.
The pro-life trap laws have made it much more difficult and dangerous for women to have an abortion in Texas. I pray that the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down House Bill 2.
Cheryl Foster, Waco
Organ donors herald life
I recently saw a letter to the editor in the Trib talking about organ donation as being gruesome. Sure, death is hard to talk about but, let me assure you, organ donation is about life. As a transplant recipient (and former Waco resident), I speak from first-hand, living, breathing experience.
I honor my donors memory and their familys grief by telling others about the gift of life and the importance of registering with Donate Life Texas. Im thankful every day that a donor selflessly gave me a second chance. And Im thankful that the people at Texas Organ Sharing Alliance do the hard work to make sure that a persons decision to be an organ and tissue donor can become the gift of life for someone just like me.
Patrick Buchta, Austin
Table Toppers success
On Thursday, March 24, the Art Center of Waco held its major annual fundraiser, Table Toppers, at the Baylor Club located within McLane Stadium. Events like these do not happen without the support of the Waco community. We are happy to report an overwhelming success again this year.
Thank you once again to the table designers who created unbelievable table-scapes, the live artists who sparked so much interest among the patrons and the underwriters and silent auction donations that were so generous. For those of you who were unable to attend, please visit our website (artcenterwaco.org) and Facebook page to see what you missed. We will be back next year!
Duane Sartor, Chairman Table Toppers 2016, Board of Directors, Art Center of Waco
Vote for Wilbert Austin
Waco is fortunate to have a man like Wilbert Austin to serve as one of our city councilmen. My family business was located in East Waco for more than 50 years and I have seen city councilmen come and go, but I have never seen anybody take the job as seriously as Wilbert Austin. He patrols the streets both day and night and I think he has reduced crime to a great degree.
I have served on several boards in East Waco including the chamber of commerce, YMCA and Goodwill Industries. Everyone I know is proud of the job Wilbert Austin is doing. Go to the polls and re-elect him.
Bill Miller, Waco
Stiffing Mission Waco
Oh, my God. I just read where the city of Waco turned down a grant to help Mission Waco executive director Jimmy Dorrell et company with their plans for an inner-city grocery store. Yet they can grant several grants to Chip and Joanna Gaines who in my opinion only coincidentally happen to benefit our city but, bottom line, mostly themselves.
This tells me where the city places its importance not on its residents. Kind of reminds me of the theme behind The Emperors New Clothes. I cant believe it, but I guess the city is just being pragmatic.
Invest in your citizens, gentlemen not just your image.
Nancy Marquis, Waco
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For some, the Mic Drop sounded like the perfect passive-aggressive office behaviour. But this is April Fool's Day, the worst day of the year and a fertile ground for hoaxes, which are so numerous that many news organisations are live-blogging them.
"Simply reply to any email using the new 'Send + Mic Drop' button. Everyone will get your message, but that's the last you'll ever hear about it. Yes, even if folks try to respond, you won't see it," said a Gmail blog post about the feature.
The feature was called the Mic Drop, and it was billed as a way to have the last word in long email chains by sending a GIF of a regal-looking Minion character literally dropping a microphone.
Gmail, a pioneer in the grand tradition of elaborate April Fool's Day jokes, scrambled on Friday to undo its latest one after disgruntled users complained that they had accidentally sent photos of mic-dropping Minions, the little yellow creatures from the movie Despicable Me, to their business contacts.
Many unsuspecting Gmail users were simply not in the mood for Minions. Since the Mic Drop button was placed a little too close to the Send button, users lamented their misfiring of the cartoon character when dealing with bosses and co-workers.
"I just sent off an email with my resume to the first person who wanted to interview me in months," one user posted in a Google Help forum. " I clicked the wrong button and sent it with the mic drop. Well, I guess I'm not getting that job. Words cannot describe how pissed off I am right now. I'm actually shaking. One click, ONE CLICK and I lost the job. Goddamnit. Not funny, google. I'm going to go cry now."
Another said he had lost his job thanks to the Mic Drop button. "I am a writer and had a deadline to meet. I sent my articles to my boss and never heard back from her. I inadvertently sent the email using the "Mic Drop" send button.There were corrections that needed to be made on my articles and I never received her replies. My boss took offence to the Mic Drop animation and assumed that I didn't reply to her because I thought her input was petty (hence the Mic Drop). I just woke up to a very angry voicemail from her which is how I found out about this "hilarious" prank."
"Unfortunately some of my very intelligent friends are senior engineers in Google," one incensed user named Yihsun Lin wrote in Gmail's product forum. "I almost picked up the phone and shout at them because of this stupid creation made me sound so rude to one important customer when I made a mistake to click this stupid button."
Another user named Connie Mitchell wrote: "If I wanted juvenile prank crap on my computer I would be on Facebook wasting time." (Facebook is a high-traffic zone for Minions and the people who love them.)
Hanoi: Vietnam's parliament has sworn in Tran Dai Quang as president, elevating the head of a controversial internal security agency to one of the communist nation's most powerful political posts.
Vietnam has no paramount ruler and is officially led by a triumvirate of president, prime minister and Communist Party chief, although experts say the presidency is more ceremonial than the other posts.
New Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang takes the oath of office. Credit:Vietnam News Agency
The party runs Vietnam's complex political system by consensus, with big decisions reached in secret by its 19-member politburo.
Patrick Norman Pat Chapman is a 34-year-old, Caucasian male who was last known to be in Piedmont which is near the area of Greenville, Missouri on May 10, 2020.
Pat had stayed the night with a friend and his wife at their home. In the early morning when the friend woke to go to work.
Pat was gone in his own Burgundy color 1995 Ford Escort. That is the last anyone was known to have seen him. The vehicle was later recovered on May 29, 2020 in Mill Spring, Missouri.
A pair of bodies discovered in Kentucky Lake this week
By West Kentucky Star Staff Apr. 01, 2016 | 05:26 PM | PADUCAH, KY
McCracken County Sheriffs Deputies arrested Two Paducah men on drug charges Wednesday afternoon after an incident in the driveway of a Farley home.Shortly before 3:00 pm deputies were in the area of Vasseur Avenue searching for a wanted man, when they saw a vehicle drive by and a man in the back seat duck down like he was trying to hide. The deputies located the vehicle at 1134 Vasseur Avenue, and when two men got out they could smell Marijuana coming from the vehicle.The two men, 27-year-old Michael A. Young and 27-year-old Richard C. Sidener were arrested after deputies reportedly found of crystal methamphetamine and cocaine on Young and synthetic marijuana on Sidener. A search of the vehicle reportedly revealed additional meth, marijuana and a set of scales. Deputies said meth was found near where Sidener had been sitting in the vehicle.Both men were arrested and lodged in the McCracken County Region Jail. Young faces charges of trafficking in methamphetamine, trafficking in marijuana 8oz-5lbs, possession of cocaine and possession of drug paraphernalia. Sidener is charged with possession of methamphetamine and possession of a synthetic drug.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff
Apr. 01, 2016 | PADUCAH, KY
By West Kentucky Star Staff Apr. 01, 2016 | 04:21 PM | PADUCAH, KY
West Kentucky Community and Technical College has begun looking for a new president.
According to a news release, the search began yesterday with Kentucky Community and Technical College System President Dr. Jay Box meeting with the college's board, faculty and staff members.
WKCTC President Dr. Barbara Veazey announced on March 11 that she would retire June 30, after serving 14 years as WKCTCs founding president after 42 years at the college. Dr. Box said finding a leader to succeed her would not be a simple task.
We will do a national search for the new president of WKCTC, Box said. Because of the reputation of West Kentucky Community and Technical College, this will be one of the most sought after positions in the entire United States.
Dr. Veazey has done a fantastic job here, and the recognition that WKCTC has gotten from the Aspen Awards over the last five years brings it to a level of prominence that is not matched anywhere in the country," he said.
Box was in Paducah to participate in the open house and celebration at the Paducah School of Art and Designs 2D and Graphic Design Building. He met with the WKCTC Board of Directors and Paducah Junior College Board of Trustees for lunch before meeting with WKCTC faculty and staff Thursday afternoon.
Box said the search will be conducted with assistance from a search consultant, and with input from faculty, staff, students and the community.
Box said he has secured an interim president for WKCTC who will start work on July 1. He did not, however, name that person saying he did not want to conflict with Veazeys remaining tenure by announcing an interim now. He added that the person he has selected is not someone from within KCTCS, but has had experience with the system.
Box said one of the main duties of the WKCTC Board of Directors is to recommend one candidate for the college chief executive officer from three candidates provided by the KCTCS president. According to Kentucky law, the KCTCS president has the authority to make the final appointment and is not bound by the recommendation of the college Board of Directors.
Officials are expecting a large number of applications for WKCTCs position. Box said they will narrow down the applicants to 8-10 who will be asked to submit a 10-minute video interview. From that list, three finalists will be recommended to Box and will be announced to the public by the end of July.
On-site interviews of candidates will be scheduled in August. Box said he hopes a new president will be selected and able to start October 1.
By The Associated Press
By The Associated Press Apr. 01, 2016 | 09:39 PM | FRANKFORT, KY
Kentucky lawmakers have given final approval to legislation aimed at giving some nonviolent felons a second chance by letting them seek to have their criminal records erased.
The bill cleared the House on Friday and goes to Gov. Matt Bevin.
Bevin recently praised the bill and said he looked forward to signing it into law.
The proposal cleared its biggest hurdle by winning Senate passage this week.
The bill would apply to people convicted of some Class D felony offenses, allowing them to ask a court to clear their records. It would not apply to felons convicted of violent crimes or sex offenses.
The final version requires eligible offenders to wait five years once serving out their sentences, including parole, before requesting to have their criminal records expunged.
Rita Redmond was a true lady who felt that every pupil had something to gift to the world
Jon Lee is currently starring in Forever Plaid at the St James Studio. His previous credits include Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys (Prince Edward Theatre) and Marius in Les Miserables (Palace and Queen's Theatre). He is also well known for being an original member of S Club 7.
We caught up with Jon and asked him: "If you were stranded on a desert island, which five showtunes could you not live without?"
1. "Who Will Buy" from Oliver!
This was my very first job when I was 12 and it really cemented that this was what I wanted to be doing as a career. I have so many great memories from this show and still have some amazing friends from this production 22 years ago.
2. "Mame" from Mame
This is my favourite musical of all time. It's such a brilliant, funny, touching and hugely entertaining show. I was lucky enough to do a BBC Radio 4 production as a kid playing opposite Julia McKenzie as Mame.
3. "A Heart Full of Love" from Les Miserables
Another show that has been a big part of my life, from my parents taking me to see it as a child to playing Marius at the Palace and Queens theatres.
4. "Fallen Angel" from Jersey Boys
I'd been a massive fan of The Four Seasons music all my life so it was a real honour to play Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys for three years and get to meet the man himself. It was also the inspiration and title song for my first solo album.
5. "Love is a many Splendored Thing" from Forever Plaid
This is the finale song for my current show which I just love. The harmonies and melodies from this era of music are just beautiful. I'm having a ball being part of the cast and can't wait to open at the St James Theatre Studio next week.
Forever Plaid runs at the St James Studio from 5 to 24 April.
Opinion
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Wine lovers in this city are already primed for the Winnipeg Wine Festival. The first ancillary events get going April 24, with the public tastings at the RBC Convention Centre on April 29 and 30. And while the final list of wines to be sampled is still being finalized, expect plenty of pleasant surprises in the California theme room as well as from wineries elsewhere. Tickets are on sale at winnipegwinefestival.com and Manitoba Liquor Marts. Tickets to the public tastings are $54.95 each.
The hop-heads out there will still have to wait a bit for tickets to go on sale for the Flatlanders Beer Festival, but a few details about this years fest are starting to emerge. First off, this years event takes place June 24 and June 25 at the MTS Centre once again, but in an expanded capacity. First off, instead of just being held on the two nights, a matinee tasting has been added on Saturday, June 25 (similar to the one held during the wine festival).
Additionally, the fest is expanding from the ice-level tasting area to incorporate the arenas main-level concourse. With that, the number of booths is expanding to 70, up by about 20 from last year. Expect more of a focus on local breweries, as its likely at least a couple of the new kids on the block will be up and running by that time. Tickets arent on sale yet (think early May), but will be $44.95 each for the evening events and $39.95 for the matinee.
BORIS MINKEVICH/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES This year's Flatlander's Beer Festival will add a matinee tasting on Saturday, June 25, and will expand beyond the ice level of the MTS Centre to the main level concourse.
uncorked@mts.net Twitter: @bensigurdson
Muskoka Brewery Legendary Oddity (Bracebridge, Ont. $3.10/473ml can, Liquor Marts)
Deep copper in colour, this unfiltered Belgian-style beer (according to the can) has an intense nose of dried fruit, caramel, toffee, raisin and orange peel (the latter of which, in this beer, as are juniper berries and heather tips). Its medium-plus bodied and gutsy, with spice, dried fruit, malt, citrus rind, peppery notes and some serious kick on the finish thanks to 7.1 per cent alcohol by volume. Its complex, and for the price mimics some killer Belgian-style saisons that are far pricier. Excellent. 1/2
Fort Garry Black Pearl Ale (Winnipeg $6.24/946ml or $10.99/1.89L, growler bars)
Colour-wise, this coffee-infused dark ale is roughly the same as the standard Fort Garry dark ale, albeit with a slightly darker beige head. On the nose theres loads of coffee notes specifically chocolate-covered espresso beans as well as roasted malt, earth and toffee aromas. Its a medium-bodied ale, with espresso, white pepper, roasted malt and mocha notes on the palate. Coffee lovers will dig this brew. 1/2
Central City Red Racer Super Sonic IPA (Surrey, B.C. $7.23/946ml howler or $12.95/1.89L growler, growler bars)
This IPA made an appearance in the 2015 Parallel 49/Central City craft beer advent calendar, and is made using a proprietary blend of hops. Medium golden copper in colour, theres certainly plenty of hops on the nose, with grapefruit, pine resin and herbal aromas out front of roasted-malt notes. On the palate, the bitterness from the hops is pretty intense, albeit in the form of bright citrus notes that work well with the malty flavours. Recommended for hops fans.
Vidigal 2012 Porta 6 Tinto (Lisbon, Portugal $13.99, Liquor Marts and beyond)
This Portuguese red is half Tinta Roriz (known as Tempranillo elsewhere), with the balance comprising 40 per cent Castelao and 10 per cent Touriga Nacional. Aromatically, the raspberry, white pepper, cherry and mild earthy notes show quite well. Its a medium-plus bodied red that melds Old World earthiness with bright New World fruit. Light tannins provide some length; overall its a well-made, consumer-friendly red (as reflected by the contemporary packaging, which is not so common in Portuguese wines). 1/2
Quails Gate 2014 Chardonnay (Okanagan Valley, B.C. $19.99, Liquor Marts and beyond)
Ripe red apple, peach and lemon aromas, as well as modest vanilla and spice notes, are pretty textbook New World Chardonnay. Its medium-bodied and fresh, with the fruit showing well and some texture and vanilla/spice notes thanks to partial fermentation in oak. The splash of acidity keeps things fresh; its an elegant example of Canadian Chardonnay.
Luis Felipe Edwards 2014 Signature Series Syrah (Colchagua Valley, Chile around $15, private wine stores)
When it comes to Chilean reds, Syrahs a bit of a dark horse its widely made (and usually pretty well), but never gets the attention of Carmenere or Cabernet Sauvignon. This example offers brambly dark berry fruit as well as cherry, raspberry and dark chocolate. On the full-bodied palate the fruit is ripe and plush, with raspberry, cherry and blackberry flavours showing well. White pepper, licorice and leafy notes add some complexity, and the light tannins some structure. A nice value; I got it at the Winehouse.
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In the 1980s, Hugh Eliasson joked he had his finger on the economic pulse of the province because there was provincial involvement in just about every aspect of the economy.
Eliasson has been the deputy minister of every different iteration of the provincial economic-development department numbering no fewer than five since 1988 and has had the best view possible on the transformation of the Manitoba economy.
Eliasson retired Friday after 40 years in the provincial civil service, 28 of them as deputy minister.
PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Hugh Eliasson, the longtime deputy minister of the economy departments, is retiring.
When asked in what shape he was leaving the provincial economy after playing such a pivotal role for so long, he laughed at the notion he had much to do with it, but said the province is always within the range of two to four per cent growth as it is now.
That has provided a remarkable place to live and work because it is stable and predictable, the type of predictability that rating agencies love, he said. It is what Manitoba is. It is probably the best place to be in Canada.
Eliasson was at the controls of power through the transition in the 80s from intense public-sector involvement in the economy to the more mature dominance of the private sector we see now.
I actually did know just about everything that was going on because just about everything required some support or assistance from government (in the late 80s), he said. But the economy has changed dramatically since that time.
He is happy to report Manitoba has many exciting things happening now quite apart from government support.
That is very healthy, he said. That is a sign of an economy that is becoming more and more dynamic.
Unlike the predisposition of some of his political masters over the years to take credit for just about any economic success regardless of the role government may have played, Eliasson likely exaggerates on the opposite end of that spectrum.
I do not see myself as having more than a small contributing role to things, he said.
There are many who would disagree.
Theresa Oswald, who worked closely with Eliasson for one year as minister of jobs and the economy in 2014, is one.
He is being modest to the extreme, she said. He had such an incredible influence in making sure that governments of both political stripes were taking measured and thoughtful approaches in the investment they were going to make that impacted on the employability of our citizens and on what kind of risk and exposure there would be.
Eliasson was a quiet, calming presence through a lot of storms.
The MBA graduate had a reputation for having a high-end intellect. Oswald was put on her heels after lengthy, intense meetings discussing weighty subjects, and Eliasson would never take a single note.
I was a deputy minister for 28 years because I do not answer questions like that Hugh Eliasson, on the question of who was his favourite government minister
He was scary that way, she said. He just had an incredible mental filing cabinet that was always in perfect order.
Ever the discreet senior civil servant, Eliasson has never had a large public profile. He rarely, if ever, spoke to the media, deferring to elected officials or specific experts to explain government policy. Asked who his favourite minister was, he refused to answer.
I was a deputy minister for 28 years because I do not answer questions like that, he said.
But when it comes to access to his stakeholders, he was always there.
Dave Angus, longtime president of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, has had countless meetings with Eliasson, who knew what was going on in every sector and always had value to add.
He was a very strong resource for the business community and for government itself, said Angus. He was always very responsive. It was always easy to get a meeting with him.
And it was not just the business leadership Eliasson felt connected to. He contemplated retirement three years ago when he turned 60, but he embraced the prospects of revamping some of the provincial social welfare programs when they were folded into the Jobs and Economy Department.
I was re-energized by the challenge that employment and income-assistance system programs presented, he said. It kept me going for a few years longer than I otherwise would have.
martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca
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ILES-DE-LA-MADELEINE, Que. Initial assessments of the plane that crashed with Jean Lapierre and six other people on board indicate its engines were operational at the time of the accident, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada said Friday.
The former federal cabinet minister, his wife, three of his siblings and both crew members died Tuesday when their aircraft crashed on its landing approach about three kilometres from the Havre-aux-Maisons airport in Iles-de-la-Madeleine.
The TSB said the plane appeared to be flying level when it hit the ground.
National Transportation Safety Board inspector Andre Turenne talks about the gathering of evidence on the site of Tuesday's airplane crash that took the lives of its seven passengers during a news conference Friday, April 1, 2016 in Havre-aux-Maison, Que. THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Noel
A transport truck was expected to arrive at the scene Friday, with the wreckage to be examined during loading before being sent to Ottawa for further examination, investigator Andre Turenne told a news conference.
The process should take a few days.
We have to make sure there is no more aircraft fuel that is leaking, Turenne said. The truck and the container have to be ready. We have to cut the aircraft into sections in order for it to go into the container.
Turenne said air traffic officials in Moncton had given the plane clearance to land.
The aircraft is believed to have been carrying a GPS device.
While the TSB is hoping to produce its report within a year, Turenne said it could take a bit longer.
The entire process will be lengthy but we owe it to the people and the families of those involved in the accident to conduct a thorough investigation, he said.
Turenne also said the plane came to rest about 90 metres from the initial point of impact in a field.
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HALIFAX Dozens of people swarmed Justin Trudeau at a farmers market in Halifax on Saturday as the prime minister took time to shake hands, cuddle babies and take selfies with eager fans.
Trudeau casually dressed in grey suede shoes, jeans, navy blazer and light blue button-up shirt slowly made his way through the busy market on the Halifax waterfront, stopping to talk to vendors and enthusiastic supporters.
Trudeau was passed several babies and was seen gently bouncing them in his arms. He wore a sunny smile as he pressed his cheek up against one tiny blue-eyed babys face.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau poses for a photo as he visits the Seaport Farmers' Market in Halifax on Saturday, April 2, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan
Surrounded by a security detail and swarms of people, Trudeau spent roughly 45 minutes at the market and accepted a few gifts, including a cutting board from Halifax craftsman Steve Hopper.
I gave him a different one last time he was in town, said Hopper as Trudeau headed up the stairs to the second floor of the market with the slow-moving crowd on his heels. He told me he loves it.
Sisters Jillian Brown, 11, and Haley Brown, 17, drove 70 kilometres from Windsor, N.S., for a chance to meet the prime minister.
Haley Brown said shes a Trudeau supporter because of the work hes done to bring Syrian refugees into the country. She said the experience of shaking his hand is one shell cherish forever.
We figured it would be our only opportunity to meet the prime minister so we woke up at the crack of dawn and drove all the way here from Windsor, said Brown, adding that the pair didnt get much sleep last night.
It was an honour to meet him today. I didnt really say anything to him. I just shook his hand and stared at him. It was pretty great. Hes very charming.
Later Saturday, Trudeau reflected on the partys election sweep of Atlantic Canada during a speech to his Nova Scotia counterparts.
Speaking at the Nova Scotia Liberal partys annual general meeting, Trudeau said the provincial and federal parties need to work together.
Right now across Atlantic Canada we have Liberal governments at both the provincial and federal levels, said Trudeau to a packed ballroom at a downtown Halifax hotel.
Its an unprecedented opportunity to advance our shared values and bring real, positive change to the lives of all Atlantic Canadians.
Trudeau also spoke about the need to modernize the federal partys constitution.
Our party must be more open and accessible, he said. Too often, our policy process felt closed off and difficult to navigate. Our existing constitution makes it tough for new Liberals to get in and stay engaged.
The constitution will be discussed at a party meeting in Winnipeg in May, he said.
Trudeau also met with Premier Stephen McNeil on Saturday.
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Opinion
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This article was published 01/04/2016 (2396 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Five years ago this week, sandbag dikes went up around 110 Winnipeg properties as a precaution against Red River flooding.
The river crested that spring on April 7 at an ice-induced level of 20.7 feet James, the third-highest spring peak in Winnipeg since the construction of the Red River Floodway. The Manitoba capital nonetheless escaped any serious damage, thanks to flood-fighting lessons learned during the spring deluges of 1997, 2006 and 2009.
That night, however, ice jams downstream of Winnipeg drove the Red River up so quickly, it destroyed a St. Andrews home. The next week, moving ice on the Icelandic River took out a pedestrian bridge in Riverton and the real, non-ice-related crest on the Red River led the Sheyenne River to back up into the northwestern suburbs of Fargo.
By May 2011, dozens of Manitoba and North Dakota communities were battling floodwaters on a dizzying array of fronts. Historic flooding on the Souris River forced the evacuation of about 11,000 Minot, N.D., residents and forced dikes to be topped up frantically in Melita and Souris. Indigenous communities located along Lake St. Martin, Dauphin River and Fisher River required wholesale or partial evacuations.
Record flooding on the Assiniboine River threatened every community along its course, from Ste. Lazare to Brandon and eventually bedroom communities west of Winnipeg. The Canadian Armed Forces were called in to bolster dikes, the Portage Diversion was expanded in a frantic earth-moving effort, and the entire nation watched while the province deliberately breached the Assiniboine River dike at Hoop and Holler Bend.
And when the Assiniboine threat subsided, water levels on Lake Manitoba wound up so high, storms destroyed homes and cottages at Twin Lakes Beach, Delta Beach and elsewhere along the lake. The province then ordered up a second emergency waterway: a secondary channel to help drain Lake St. Martin into Lake Winnipeg and allow the Fairford River to drain as much of Lake Manitoba as possible.
These events are worth recounting this very dry spring, when grass fires pose a greater threat than floods along Manitoba and North Dakota river valleys.
The severity of the 2011 prairie floods, the most widespread in post-colonial memory, raised questions about whether its even sustainable for so many people to live and farm on the former footprint of glacial Lake Agassiz. In her fortuitously timed book Wet Prairie, environmental historian Shannon Stunden Bower encouraged Manitobans in particular to redefine the southern reaches of their province as wetlands that are sometimes dry, as opposed to dry land that occasionally floods.
Today, this existential crisis seems quaint. As luck would have it, we havent been smacked up by a severe flood for five solid years.
For Greg Selingers New Democrats, the absence of floodwaters is inconvenient. The high cost of flood mitigation was one of the justifications for the one-percentage-point hike in the provincial sales tax in 2013. Hence the embarrassment when budget documents revealed the province planned to spend $9 million less on flood mitigation in 2013-14 than it planned to spend during the previous fiscal year.
The NDP nonetheless spent several more years portraying itself as the party most committed to flood-mitigation projects. Even if you believe this to be true, it doesnt matter much at the ballot box.
Ignoring the political pandering, it would be unwise to assume the severe floods of our recent past were just an anomaly. Climate change models suggest extreme weather events are going to become more common in midcontinental regions.
Manitoba needs to plan for the possibility of spring floods and summer droughts occurring during the same year. That advice comes from scientists, not politicians. Adaptation, as opposed to sexy but costly mitigation strategies, may be the only sustainable way to handle whats coming down the road.
bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca
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When IKEA opened its first Polish store in 1991, the Billy bookcases and Klippan sofas symbolized a new, modern, western lifestyle for a country that had just ditched communism.
A quarter of a century later, the maker of flat-packed furniture heralds another alternative future. This time, its one less reliant on coal for energy and its colliding with the countrys past.
IKEA and French food company Danone are among the international companies planning or already generating their own green electricity sources just as the new Polish government champions traditional coal production. Prime Minister Beata Szydlo astonished European Union lawmakers last month by lobbying for more aid for the continents biggest coal industry while facing a rebuke for trying to renege on emissions targets.
Bartek Sadowski / Bloomberg News A child plays with a plastic spade inside an IKEA store in Poznan, Poland.
We have done almost everything we could to reduce our carbon footprint, said Grzegorz Bobek, an environment engineer at Danones Polish unit. Without new energy sources, we will still do worse compared with western peers.
Danone, which makes yogurt in Poland as well as being its largest seller of mineral water, wants to increase the share of green electricity in its mix to 40 per cent this year. It aims to stop buying fossil-fuel-based power in 2017, thanks to potential investments in biogas generators and purchases of certified electricity from renewable sources.
IKEA, which has more than a dozen factories in the country as well as eight retail outlets, is further ahead.
The Swedish company, which globally has spent 1.5 billion euros (US$1.6 billion) on renewable-energy projects since 2009, said this month it was finalizing a deal to purchase a 51-megawatt wind farm, its sixth and biggest yet in Poland.
The aim is to produce more energy than it uses, allowing it to profit from selling the surplus, said Karol Gobczynski, IKEAs energy and climate manager in Poland.
Wind turbines are still a relatively rare sight in a country where some 85 per cent of output comes from coal and it produces the dirtiest power. It takes 1.6 times more carbon emissions to produce a kilowatt of electricity in Poland than it does in Germany, according to Elchin Mammadov, European utilities analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.
The governments position is unapologetic: while backing coal, it also seeks to reduce subsidies for renewable energy, which needs to stand on its own feet, Piotr Naimski, Szydlos leading energy security adviser, said last week. The governing Law & Justice party also introduced a draft bill to parliament that would require more distance between wind parks and homes, making new investments in such energy more difficult.
The Polish renewable-energy lobby says the four-month-old leadership in Warsaw is missing a trick.
The growing conflict between energy policy in Poland and the rest of the EU may prompt more companies to build up their own green power resources here or to import clean electricity, said Beata Wiszniewska, managing director of the group. Poland is being barred from participation in the current global energy revolution.
Yet with demand from corporate clients, which typically accounts for three-quarters of customers, utilities say they are being forced to adapt.
PGE SA, the utility that operates Belchatow lignite-coal power plant, the EUs largest polluter, plans to reduce carbon emissions by a quarter by 2030. Tauron Polska Energia SA, 94 per cent of whose generation comes from coal, has been increasing green power sales for 2016.
Bartek Sadowski / Bloomberg News Emissions from a factory chimney drift across fields near wind turbines operated by IKEA in Gizalki, Poland.
Under EU law, large consumers must reduce their carbon footprints, or the amount of carbon dioxide they release into the atmosphere. They purchase clean energy and either consume it or sell it back to the grid to offset their consumption of coal-fired electricity.
Polish coal will remain the dominant energy source for years, Bartlomiej Kubicki, an analyst at Societe Generale SA in Warsaw, said in an email. But pressure is mounting for renewables as corporate customers seek to reduce their carbon footprints.
Politically, the diverging interests over energy policy highlight the fault line between Poland, the good European, and Poland, the nation asserting its own interests and detaching itself from the mainstream.
A miners daughter who grew up in the countrys polluted industrial heartland, Szydlo promised to keep all coal mines open in defiance of EU efforts to curb emissions of heat-trapping carbon dioxide gas and the industrys mounting losses. Poland has more than 100,000 miners, the most in the EU.
Silesia needs help from the European Union, Szydlo told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg on Jan. 19. Please show solidarity with Polish coal mines.
Bloomberg News
The Polish Museum of Winona celebrated its 40th anniversary with a volunteer appreciation day dinner on Monday evening, along with a Smigus-Dyngus wet Monday celebration.
The Dyngus day is celebrated the day after Easter remembering a Polish tradition dated back hundreds of years.
The tradition starts with boys throwing water over girls they like and lightly spanking them with willow branches on Easter Monday. The girls do the same the next day. If the boy really likes the girl, he may use perfume.
The appreciation evening started with a dinner of porkloin and many Polish side dishes. The highlight was the naming of this years outstanding volunteers.
This year, Mary Drury and Tim Breza were honored.
Drury was recognized for her work as a Museum guide and administrative aide. Breza was recognized as the past chair of Smaczne Jablka, the museums fall apple festival. Together they have volunteered more than 700 hours of their time to the museum.
The month of April is nationally recognized as Child Abuse Prevention month. The Winona Child Abuse Prevention Council, along with Family and Childrens Center and Winona National Bank, sponsor an art contest for students in grades three through 12 with the theme Hands are not for Hitting. The artwork will be displayed at the downtown Winona National Bank.
The 2016 winners are:
Grades three five:
Most Creative: Mollie Koch Lewiston-Altura
Most Colorful: Adam Kampa Lewiston-Altura
Most Unique: Elise Modjeski Ridgeway Community School
Grades six eight:
Most Creative: Willa Krase Bluffview Montessori School
Most Colorful: Nalani Bausman Bluffview Montessori School
Most Unique: Kaia Hamilton Bluffview Montessori School
Grades nine 12:
Most Unique: Rupa Kahn Winona Senior High
Most Impactful: Grace Albrecht Winona Senior High
Most Creative: Chelsea Griffin Winona Area Learning Center
Each year a program or individual that provides excellent services to families and children is also recognized. This year the council will recognize Marianne Texley, Principal at Goodview and Madison Schools for her contributions to the community and her assistance in helping start the Birth-3 program in Winona. Jen Whetstone will also be recognized for her work with Childrens Mental Health needs in Winona County.
The students and honorees will be recognized at a kick-off ceremony on April 7 at Winona National Bank located at 204 Main St. in Winona. Artwork winners receive gift bags and a $50 Visa gift card. Light refreshments will be served. Doors will open at 5:15 p.m. and the ceremony will begin at 5:30 p.m.
It was not long after the horrifying bombings in Brussels that the so-called security experts were out warning that Europeans must give up more of their liberty so government can keep them secure from terrorism. I guess people are not supposed to notice that every terrorist attack represents a major government failure and that rewarding failure with more of the same policies only invites more failure.
I am sure a frightened population will find government promises of perfect security attractive and may be willing to allow more surveillance of their personal lives. They should pause a little beforehand and consider what their governments have done so far to keep them safe.
The government of France, for example, has been particularly aggressive in its Middle East policy. Then-French President Sarkozy was among the most determined proponents of regime change in Libya. That operation has left the country in chaos, with much of the territory controlled by an ISIS and al-Qaeda that were not there before the liberation. As we learned last week from Hillary Clintons emails, Sarkozy and British Prime Minister David Cameron were much more concerned with getting their hands on Libyas oil after the overthrow of Gaddafi. The creation of a hotbed of terrorism that could easily make its way to Europe was not important. They wanted to secure enormously profitable deals for well-connected French and English energy companies.
Likewise, European governments have been very active in the five-year, American-led effort to overthrow the Assad government in Syria. This foolish move has boosted both ISIS and al-Qaeda in Syria to the point where they nearly over-ran the country late last year. It has also led millions to flee their war-torn country for a Europe that has opened its doors with the promise of generous benefits to anyone who can make it there. Is it any surprise that so many hundreds of thousands took them up on the offer? Is it any surprise that in this incredible flood of people there may be more than a few who are interested in more than just free housing and a welfare check?
Europeans should be demanding to know why their governments provoke people in the Middle East with aggressive foreign policies, and then open the door to millions of them. Do their leaders just lack basic common sense?
Usually the so-called security experts who advise more government surveillance after a terrorist attack have a conflict of interest. They often benefit when the security state is given a bigger budget. Insecurity is the bread-and-butter of the security experts. But why is it that after a terrorist attack, governments are rewarded with bigger budgets and more power over people? Shouldnt failure be punished instead of rewarded?
As in the United States, the security crisis in Europe is directly tied to bad policy. Until bad policy is changed, no amount of surveillance, racial profiling, and police harassment can make the population safer. Europeans already seem to understand this, and as we have seen in recent German elections they are abandoning the parties that promise that the same old bad policies will this time produce different results.
Hopefully Americans will also stand up and demand a change in our foreign policy before bad policy leads to more terrorist violence on our shores.
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Brazils Supreme Court (Supremo Tribunal FederalSTF) intervened Thursday to take the investigation of the countrys ex-president and founder of the Workers Party (Partido dos TrabalhadoresPT) Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva out of the hands of the lower court judge who has directed Operation Car Wash, the two-year-old probe into a massive bribes and kickbacks scandal surrounding Petrobras, the state-run energy conglomerate.
Lula, as the ex-president is universally known, has been accused of accepting favors from top contractors with Petrobras, including the construction of a seaside triplex in a beach town near Sao Paulo. He was forcibly detained earlier this month when scores of Federal Police agents raided his home and took him in for an involuntary interrogation.
The Brazilian high court was openly critical of Judge Sergio Moro, who has presided over the Car Wash investigation, bringing charges against nearly 150 politicians and businessmen. Moro, who attended Harvard and participated in a 2007 US State Department International Visitor Leadership Program, has been lionized in predominantly upper-middle class demonstrations demanding the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff and the ouster of the ruling PT.
The STF judges, however, voted 8-2 to take Lulas case away from Moro, finding that he had violated the law with the release to the media earlier this month of the contents of a secret wiretap that recorded a discussion between Rousseff and Lula. The conversation was widely interpreted as an offer by Rousseff of a cabinet appointment to Lula to protect him from prosecution. The post would have granted him greater latitude for his defense and also moved his case from Moros hands to those of the Supreme Court. The high court has yet to rule on an injunction barring the appointment.
The Supreme Court found that once Moro learned that he had recorded Brazils president, even if fortuitously, his obligation was to turn the matter over to the STF. It further found that the release of the wiretap to the media was illegal. The legality of the evidence itself is called into question by the fact that the recording was made after the warrant authorizing the tap had expired.
Brazils attorney general intervened in the case as well, charging that Moros wiretapping of the president was a violation of national security.
In a thinly veiled threat, the high court decision warned that Moros well-intentioned but probable excesses in duty could jeopardize the validity of the investigation. It recalled that other probes had been called off because of abuses of authority.
There is little doubt that the high courts decision has more to do with political practicalities than constitutional principle.
The ruling came down on the same day that rallies were held in the capital of Brasilia as well as 16 other cities denouncing the ongoing drive to impeach President Rousseff and warning that the extra-constitutional methods being employed by Moro and the Brazilian Congress posed the threat of an anti-democratic coup.
While Rousseffs popularity rating has fallen into the single digits, disquiet over the wiretap episode and the attempt to impeach her without any probative evidence of criminal responsibility has begun to grow. By intervening, the high court may be attempting to assuage such sentiments.
The sole charge now being considered in impeachment hearings is that the president manipulated budget accounts to mask a growing deficit in the run-up to the 2014 election. Rousseff insists that there is nothing criminal about such budgetary measures, which she says have been employed by previous presidents.
At the same time, the courts warning that the investigation could be terminated for abuses of power could provide a means of aborting an investigation that threatens to bring down not only Rousseff and the PT, but virtually every major party and politician, including the top three officials in the line of succession if the president is impeached.
The terminal crisis of the entire bourgeois political setup in Brazil was acknowledged directly by one of the Supreme Courts justices, who was recorded without his knowledge while speaking Thursday to a group of university students.
Justice Luis Roberto Barrosos apparently informal remarks pointed to the glaring political dilemma posed by the drive to impeachment: the fact that all the political actors involved in it are more directly implicated in crimes than the president herself.
Politics are dead, Barroso says in the recording, which was first aired by the Globo television network. We have a political system that doesnt have a minimum of democratic legitimacy.
Id say the problem with politics at this moment is the lack of an alternative, he added. There is nowhere to run. ...This is a disaster.
He directly referred to Brazils largest party, the PMDB (Brazilian Democratic Movement Party), which on Tuesday voted to leave the government, making impeachment more probable. If Rousseff is impeached, Michel Temer, her vice president and a PMDB member, would take charge.
When the newspaper yesterday reported that the PMDB had left the government and showed [a photo of] the people who raised their hands, I looked and said, My God in heaven! This is our alternative power, said the justice. Im not going to name names, but those who saw the photo know what I am talking about.
After discovering that his remarks had been taped, Barroso asked for them to be erased, but it was too late to prevent their disclosure.
The intersection of the spiraling political crisis and Brazils sharp economic downturn, with a 3.8 percent contraction last year and official unemployment rising to 9.5 percent, found expression in a pair of developments Friday.
Petrobras, reeling from the fall in oil prices and the impact of the kickbacks scandal, announced that it will seek to eliminate 12,000 jobs and slash its five-year investment plan by $80 billion.
Meanwhile, the Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht SA, a major Petrobras contractor, revealed plans to sell off $3.4 billion worth of assets to confront mounting debts.
The companys billionaire ex-CEO, Marcelo Odebrecht, was convicted of paying out tens of millions of dollars in bribes and sentenced to 19 years in prison. Records found in a search of a company executives office showed payments by the Odebrecht to 316 politicians from 24 different parties during the 2012 municipal election campaigns and the 2014 national elections.
The lower house of the Brazilian Congress is likely to vote on impeachment this month. Should two-thirds of its members vote to impeach, Rousseff would be removed from office for 180 days while the Senate deliberates whether to approve impeachment, taking a final decision in October.
On April 1, the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) called a phony, one-day strike of teachers who have worked ten months without a contract as the CTU negotiates with the Democratic administration of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
The Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and Emanuel are demanding sharply increased pension costs and health care benefits. The central aim of the walkout was to channel mass opposition among teachers to the attack on their jobs and on public education behind the Democratic Party, which is spearheading school privatization efforts in Illinois and throughout the country.
In order to cover up the role of the Democrats and the Obama administration, the CTU focused opposition on Republican Governor Bruce Rauner and the 10-month budget impasse in the state legislature, which has left higher education and social services crumbling without state funds. State Democrats and Republicans have been unable to conclude a budget agreement since June 30, not due to any principled differences, but rather disagreement on where precisely cuts will be made.
The CTU made teacher participation in the April 1 action mandatory. Numerous teachers expressed outrage on social media that the union threatened teachers with punitive actions if they did not support the stunt strike.
The CTU joined efforts with faculty unions and community groups at state and local colleges, putting on a series of events. Several thousand students and faculty gathered at Northeastern Illinois University, where faculty are under threat of losing their jobs.
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten, a close ally of the Obama administration, addressed the crowd at NEIU.
Weingartens comments set the political tone for the days event, obscuring the class character of the bipartisan attacks on education and portraying the governor as the sole villain: What you see here is the outrage of a community at the blatant disregard by a governor of children, Weingarten declared. Do your job, Governor Raunerand your job is to not hurt schools and not disinvest.
Jesse Jackson opened Fridays proceedings with CTU President Karen Lewis at Chicago State University, currently under threat of closure due to the state budget impasse. Jackson, a longtime Democratic Party operative, was called in by the CTU as it was preparing to shut down the strike by teachers in 2012 and force through a contract that paved the way for mass school closings.
WSWS reporters spoke to teachers participating in the days events, distributing the statement, CTU calls phony one-day strike to back Democrats.
Teachers expressed a determination to fight in defense of public education. Mona, a CPS public school teacher, spoke on the need to fund public education. The government needs to put funds for education and our students. When they start talking about the privatization of schools, they get to choose which students are allowed to have an education, and they are trying to get rid of our neighborhood public schools.
Yet the whole neighborhood is saying, Lets not do charter schools. They say theres no money for education, and the next thing you know they are opening charter schools in those neighborhoods. Theres something fishy going on.
Another teacher, Diane, added, Across the whole nation they say, Theres no money. They found money to pay Wall Street and the system. We want our needs to be met, but now they want to charge us teachers for going out on strike and make us pay.
When reporters pointed to the phony character of the CTUs strike, Mona agreed and expressed the skepticism many teachers felt about the action: Were not opposed to a strike. We were opposed to more of a one-day action. If we were going to be serious, lets have a serious strategy. We felt that we should have gone on strike earlier to organize more effectively.
Jennifer, a teacher walking away from the rainy march, said, I support the walkout because we need to change the way the mayor and the governor are thinking. We are fighting for equal funding, for public education. At the same time, I think whatever they patch up together for the contract will not be sufficient for the long term. Theyve diverted funds into buildings, finance and other places. They have no money for the real priorities. Education should be public, not private.
Asked what she thought about the CTU, Jennifer said, Were also questioning what the union is supposed to be doing. Wed like to trust them, but Im not entirely sure. In some ways, I think youre right, there is a division between the union and the teachers. Its hard to tell, but we may be getting to that point.
A teacher from the South Side said, Our demands are for a good pension, a good salary, good working conditions, classroom sizes. The list can go on and on. I work at a school where they had to do a major cleaning. We had rodents, and they were not maintaining the school. If theyre not maintaining the schools, they are going to fall apart. Its a question of resources. It always goes back to money.
At the same time, the teacher had contradictory opinions about the CTUs role and its politics. She expressed support in the union, saying, The job of the union is to make the right decisions for us. I think Karen Lewis and [CTU Vice President] Jesse Sharkey are working on our behalf. But I dont agree with any cuts to our pensions if thats whats on the table. We are not going to give up our pensions and go backwards.
Sharkey has said that everything is on the table in relation to the negotiations with the CPS and Emanuel.
When WSWS reporters explained that there is a bipartisan attack on public education, the teacher nodded. I agree, and this just didnt happen overnight. We have to bring a light to our problems.
Ryan, a first-year high school chemistry teacher, said that the most important issue for him was funding for the schools. He added, Were being told left and right that were going to lose our jobs, that theyre going to cut positions and close schools. Having funding should be a basic right for education. The money is going somewhere else, but not for us.
When asked about the nature of the strike and whether he agreed with Lewis and Sharkey that concessions need to be made and that everything is on the table, including the seven percent pension pickup, Ryan responded, I do not. Im a first-year teacher, and Im really happy to even have a job. Im going with what our union is saying to teachers. But, no, I dont want to lose more than seven percent of my pay for pensions.
I work overtime, crazy hours for moderate pay, and theyre saying We need you to work more for less. It just kinda shows that the union and CPS are playing a chess game at our expense. Were just pawns. Theyre just using us.
Were told our union knows how to help us. They say they know how to get us what we want. And they talk about how they did so well three, four years ago? And here we are after the last strike to fight for education again.
Theres a lot we dont really know, and were kept in the dark. Were supposed to trust our union to take care of us. What is the alternative strategy for us? Our entire school voted against the walkout. We didnt want to do this without a sense of why were going on strike so late into the school year.
A group of retired teachers and a Head Start educator also spoke to the WSWS. Mary said, Im a retired teacher of 34 years. I come to support the teachers in solidarity. Chicago teachers have not been given support at all. They are taking away teachers position to be able to teach effectively in the classroom.
The people at the topRahm Emanuel and Governor Raunerare setting up children for failure. They need to leave teachers alone, so they can teach effectively. Currently they cant do that because their hands our tied. We dont have adequate resources for the children to be successful. Our classes are overloaded and overcrowded, and the children are not being taught the basic skills they need to be taught at their learning stages.
Were here as educators, and we spend all our money on children in the classroom. Theyre building more jails than schools. And our country is beginning to fail.
Everyone deserves a good public education as a basic right. Theres plenty of money for education. Theres money in Wall Street! Theyre taking our money. And then they are taking our pensions and say they have no money.
Now we have these Democrats like Rahm Emanuel that are closet Republicans, and they are not for education. If you look at Obama with Race to the Top, its the same thing.
Winnie, another retired teacher, added, We need a general strike, like they did in the 1930s and in the old days. Im retired and not working anymore, but I will be out here and march with all teachers and workers. We should shut the entire system down. Not a single wheel should turn.
Five major trade unions issued a statement Tuesday reaffirming their strong support for New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Thomas Mulcair. An arch-right winger, Muclair faces a leadership review or confidence-vote on April 10, the final day of the federal NDPs three-day biennial convention.
Formally Mulcair needs to command the support of a simple majority of voting delegates to remain at the helm of Canadas social-democrats. However, NDP President Rebecca Blaikie has suggested it would be difficult for Mulcair to continue as leader of Canadas third-party if he fails to garner at least a 70 percent approval rating in the mandatory leadership review.
The statement issued by the countrys two largest public sector unionsthe Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the National Union of Public and General Employeesand three of its largest private sector unionsthe United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), United Steelworkers (USW), and International Association of Machinists (IAM)hailed Mulcair for his proven ability to offer a true progressive alternative to the ruling Liberals.
Mulcair, continued the joint statement, is known and respected throughout every part of Canada and has the organic relationship with Quebec to keep and expand our strongest geographic base.
The unions intervention on behalf of Mulcair came as nervousness grew within the party leadership over whether he will be able to meet the leadership review test.
The partys abysmal performance in the October 19th federal electionit lost more than half its seats and more than a third of its voteshas prompted some to conclude that a fresh face, less openly identified with right-wing policies, is needed to distinguish the NDP from the Liberals and muster votes from working people and youth.
A poll conducted by Forum Research last month found that a larger percentage of self-identified NDP voters (36 percent) would vote Liberal if an election were held today than approves Mulcairs leadership of the NDP (35 percent).
An ex-Quebec Liberal cabinet minister, austerity advocate, and avowed admirer of Margaret Thatcher, Mulcair declared his intention to stay on at the NDPs battered helm last November after several weeks of post-election reflection.
In an interim report on the NDP election debacle, party President Blaikie largely attributed it to the social democrats inability to counter the progressive image fostered by Trudeau and his Liberalsin particular the Liberals promise to kick-start a faltering economy through a deficit spending-financed infrastructure program. In contrast, Mulcair ran a Harper-Lite campaign, echoing the tired nostrums of the Conservatives about the need to balance the budget at all costs, vowing to increase military spending, and declaring that the super-rich are paying their fair share in taxes and would not face any tax increases under an NDP government.
In their statement of this week, the unions sought to defend Mulcairs right-wing record by turning reality on its head. In an interview with the Canadian Press, CUPE President Mark Hancock proclaimed, The NDP and the labour movementwe like fighters. We like people who are willing to stand up for values and Tom really exemplifies that.
In a post-election makeover, Mulcair has proclaimed a la Bernie Sanders that he is a democratic socialist, plumped, somewhat sheepishly, for occasional deficit spending and, in a rather hapless attempt to corral the youth vote, has appeared on a popular comedy show dancing to a hip hop song.
After the release of Blaikies report, Mulcair issued an open-letter to all party members accepting full responsibility for the election defeat and promising to listen more closely to the membership. Mulcairs mea culpas notwithstanding, opposition to his continued leadership has begun to emerge, especially from defeated MPs and the hundreds of now laid-off NDP staffers.
First, Montreal-area riding president Alain Charbonneau slammed Mulcair, declaring, He was hired, basicallyvoted in as leaderbecause he was supposed to be the one who could win. That was his mission. He failed. Suitably emboldened, thirty-seven Quebec-based party activists including former MPs and other current riding association presidents released an open-letter to the press calling for party renewal.
The following day, party clubs at Montreals McGill and Concordia Universities condemned Mulcairs electoral platform in a press release entitled Mulcair Must Go. We do not feel he shares our values as social democrats, the statement rather belatedly concluded. His long career in the Quebec Liberal party leaves him disconnected from the social movements, unions, and student movements that have traditionally been the lifeblood of the NDP.
In point of fact, the trade union bureaucracy has been entirely connected to Mulcair throughout his four-year tenure as leader and continues to back his leadership. Not only has he been endorsed by most of the countrys major unions in the run-up to next weeks vote; not a single national or provincial trade union leader has, to this point, called for Mulcair to be removed.
While the NDP officialdom now wrings its hand over the Liberals electoral success, the reality is it was the unions and the NDP who played the pivotal role in the political rehabilitation of Justin Trudeau and his Liberals.
For years, the unions and social democrats promoted the Liberals as a progressive ally in the fight against Harper and his Conservatives. In 2005, the NDP propped up Paul Martins tottering Liberal government; in 2008, it formed an abortive coalition with the Liberals; in the run-up to the 2015 federal election, the NDP repeatedly declared its readiness to join a coalition government with the Liberals.
The unions spearheaded the push for strategic votingi.e., the election of Liberalswith a year-long Anyone but Harper campaign. Millions of dollars were poured into attack ads and initiatives aimed at persuading union members to vote for the local candidate most likely to defeat the Conservative incumbent.
The unions have also fully supported the NDPs shredding of its traditional milquetoast reform program. While encouraging the NDP in its embrace of austerity and war over the past three decades, the unions, like their counterparts around the world, have transformed themselves into appendages of corporate management and the state. Notwithstanding CUPE President Hancocks ludicrous claims about the labour movement preferring fighters, the unions have systematically suppressed the class struggle, imposing concessions and job cuts and presiding over a dramatic decline in the social position of the working class.
No sitting NDP MP has come out against Mulcair. Some, including British Columbia MPs Nathan Cullen and Peter Julian and the entire Quebec parliamentary caucus, have issued strong statements of support. Nikki Ashton, who represents a northern Manitoba constituency and ran unsuccessfully against Mulcair in the race to replace deceased party leader Jack Layton in 2012, and popular Northern Ontario MP Charlie Angus have caused a stir by politely declining to say whether they will support Mulcair at the upcoming convention.
Those that the corporate media have most prominently identified with the campaign to oust Mulcair are former Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) President Sid Ryan and the misnamed Socialist Caucus, led by the former union functionary and Pabloite anti-Trotskyist Barry Weisleder.
Ryan, a perennially failed candidate of the NDP who was recently pushed out of his OFL position, and Weisleder have latched onto the examples of Sanders in the United States and Jeremy Corbyn in Britain to argue that the NDP can garner more votes if it turns left.
As OFL president, Ryan played a central role in the unions support for the Ontario Liberal governments of Dalton McGuinty and Kathleen Wynne. This included prevailing on the NDP to support a minority Liberal government that imposed sweeping social spending cuts and criminalized teacher strikes.
Weisleder, who doubles as head of the NDPs Socialist Caucus and the pseudo-left group Socialist Action, claims that the removal of Mulcair as party leader would open the door to the NDP serving as an instrument of working-class struggle. Ignoring the NDPs fifty five-year record, Weisleder proclaimed in the wake of last falls election debacle that it remains viable as a potential leftist challenger to capitalist austerity, climate injustice, social inequality, racism, sexism and war.
Cribbing from the playbook of Sanders, who is seeking the nomination of the Democrats, one of the twin parties of the US capitalist oligarchy, Weisleder is calling for a political revolution inside the NDP. By this he means changes to the NDPs constitution to make the party leadership, which is comprised of right-wing unions bureaucrats, upper middle class professionals, small business people, and politicians on the make like Mulcair, somewhat more accountable to the membership.
Even bourgeois commentators have been compelled to point out that Mulcair is hardly an aberration. He has merely continued along the right-ward path blazed by his predecessors, including the much-celebrated Jack Layton, who sought to transform the NDP into a party of government by embracing fiscal responsibility, ditching the NDPs rhetorical opposition to NATO, and appealing for support from progressives in all partiesi.e. the Liberal and Conservatives.
Weisleders antics are aimed at trapping leftward moving workers and youth within social-democracy, which around the world, from Australias Labor party to the German SPD and the French Socialist Party, has been demonstrated to be the camp of austerity, war and reactionin all essentials indistinguishable from big businesss traditional right-wing parties.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lashed out on several occasions Thursday against supporters of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and critics of her right-wing political record, amid reports suggesting that her poll lead in both New York state and nationally has become precarious.
A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday showed Clinton leading Sanders by only 54 percent to 42 percent in New York, the state she represented for eight years in the US Senate. This means Sanders has wiped out three-quarters of Clintons 48-point lead, 71 percent to 23 percent, in an Emerson College survey earlier in March.
Even a poll giving her a 12-point lead showed Clinton with a net unfavorable rating, 45 percent to 49 percent among likely Democratic voters, while Sanders has a net favorable rating of 24 points, 54 percent to 30 percent.
The New York primary April 19 will award 291 delegates to the Democratic nominating convention, the second largest number of any state. A Clinton defeat in New York would be catastrophic for her campaign, and set the stage for further defeats April 26, when five states in the same region vote: Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Rhode Island, accounting for another 384 delegates.
The Clinton campaign began the New York phase of the campaign with a rally Wednesday in Harlem. The decision to shift focus to that state amounted to conceding the April 5 Wisconsin primary, where Sanders now has a lead of six-eight points in public polls, and is believed by both campaigns to be safely ahead.
Sanders responded by launching his own New York primary campaign Thursday night with a huge rally at St. Marys Park in the South Bronx, attended by an estimated 18,500 people, many of them black and Latino. The location of the kickoff rally and the endorsers who shared the stage with the candidate, including actress Rosario Dawson and director Spike Lee, marked a deliberate effort by the Sanders campaign to appeal to minority voters in New York City, who could well decide the outcome of the primary.
Claiming that he would support more resources going to the Bronx and other impoverished urban communities, Sanders described his own background growing up in a Jewish immigrant neighborhood in Brooklyn. I learned a little bit about what it means to grow up in a family that has no money and I also learned a little bit about the immigrant experience, he said.
Sanders made his now-familiar denunciation of Wall Street crooks and billionaires, while demanding Clinton release transcripts of speeches she delivered to audiences at Goldman Sachs and other top financial firms for six-figure fees. He said sarcastically, If youre going to get paid $250,000 for a speech, it must be a brilliant speech. It must be an Earth-shattering speech written in Shakespearean prose.
Speaking on CBS Morning News Friday, Sanders cited the large turnout at the Bronx rally as evidence that his campaign had broad support. We are going to win New York, he said, the first time his campaign has suggested it could actually defeat Clinton in the state where she was twice elected to the US Senate. Were going to do rallies all over the state, and I think we have a good shot at this, he said.
Clinton has encountered unexpected public opposition at several New York campaign appearances. Speaking Thursday at the SUNY Purchase in suburban Westchester County, she was interrupted by pro-Sanders hecklers among the college students, who chanted, She wins, we lose, and then marched demonstratively out of the auditorium.
Clinton then told the SUNY Purchase audience that Sanders was making unrealistic promises to win support among young people. He goes around telling young people that hes going to give them free college. Well, I wish it were so. The result, she said, was that young Sanders supporters wont listen to anybody else, and didnt want to hear the contrast between my experience, my plans, my vision, what I know I can get done and what my opponent is promising.
A few hours later, Clinton became visibly angry when an organizer for Greenpeace USA, Eva Resnick-Day, confronted her along a rope line about contributions to her campaign from figures in the fossil fuel industry. Clinton denied taking money from people who work for fossil fuel companies, then exploded, I am so sick of the Sanders campaign lying about that, pointing her finger at the questioner.
Greenpeace later released figures showing that Clinton has received donations bundled by 57 fossil fuel industry lobbyists that total more than $1.1 million. Much larger sums, at least $3.4 million, have been funneled by the industry into Priorities USA Action, the Super PAC supporting Clinton. The environmental organization noted that it has not endorsed Sanders, but has repeatedly challenged all candidates not to take money from oil, coal and natural gas industry.
Clinton has the backing of virtually the entire New York state Democratic Party apparatus, including Senator Charles Schumer, Harlem Congressman Charles Rangel and unions like the United Federation of Teachers, Service Employees International Union and building trades.
The primary is limited to registered Democrats, meaning that independent voters, who have given Sanders margins of 70 percent or more, cannot cast ballots in New York. The Sanders campaign spent much of its efforts in New York urging young people and other registered independents to re-register in the Democratic Party before the March 25 deadline to vote in the primary.
Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson, who has previously downplayed Sanders chances, wrote Friday, If not for a certain Manhattan billionaire, Bernie Sanderss surprising strength and Hillary Clintons relative weakness would be the big political story of the year. Clinton has won in 18 states, while Sanders has taken 14, making the contest far more competitive than expected.
The weakness of the Democratic frontrunner was increasingly obvious, he wrote: look at the bigger picture: Its April and Clinton has not managed to put away a 74-year-old avowed socialist who wasnt even a Democrat until he began his campaign. Why is that not worrisome?
The Sanders campaign has won a response among millions of young people and sections of the working class, revealing a broad shift to the left in the thinking of working people, and their turn to a political program described by the candidate and the media as socialist. At the same time, Sanders himself remains a conventional capitalist politician, whose policies would not touch the foundations of the profit system, and go no further than the liberalism that was standard in the Democratic Party 50 or 60 years ago, but has long been discarded as the Democrats moved steadily to the right.
Thirteen DPS principals and one businessman were charged this week in a kickback scheme for contracts, scamming the district out of nearly $2.7 million over 13 years. U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade said Tuesday that the school officials were paid more than $900,000 in cash, gift cards and checks.
Norman Shy, who ran supply company Allstate Sales, is charged with bribery, while 13 principals and administrators, have been charged with taking bribes to award Shy lucrative contracts and pay invoices for goods that were never delivered. Among the schools losing funds in the scheme are special education school Jerry L. White Center High School, as well as Spain Elementary, recently in headlines for deplorable conditions.
The scandal comes on the heels of months of teacher and student protests for better conditions. In a decades-long bipartisan effort, the Democratic and Republican parties have drastically cut funding to Detroit Public Schools, creating desperate conditions for teachers and students. The Detroit Federation of Teachers has been complicit in this destruction, receiving benefits after cuts and layoffs were imposed.
Notably, the source of the bribery allegations is the head of the Education Achievement Authority (EAA), Veronica Conforme, a close contact of the administration of Republican Governor Rick Snyder, who cooperated with the Department of Justice investigation into the kickbacks.
The EAA is made up of former DPS schools transferred without public consent to state control and is notorious for its own corruption. In January, a prominent EAA principal, Kenyetta Wilbourn-Snapp, pled guilty to bribery.
The scandals plaguing the district are driven by the longstanding effort to gut the Detroit Public Schools. Schools are run separately from the district, meaning that in the recent years of budget cuts principals have been compelled to find their own cost-cutting measures in order to please emergency managers and district administrators. The immense pressure to cut costs can lead to allowing powerful interests to win bids and then provide subpar or nonexistent services.
Wilbourn-Snapp described the atmosphere surrounding the pervasive outsourcing of services in an interview with the Detroit Free Press. When I got there, it was like Brewsters Millions, she said, in a reference to the 1985 Richard Pryor movie whose main character must spend $30 million in 30 days to inherit $300 million. She said officials told her, You have to spend almost a million dollars.
Eight years of emergency management imposed on the district by Democrats and Republicans, under the guise of balancing budgets, have been exposed as a fraud. In fact, the emergency managers themselves have condoned and participated in the same type of giveaway schemes as the principals charged this week.
Emergency managers have given no-bid contracts to friends, or even their own companies. Former EM Jack Martin famously switched the district healthcare benefits to HAP, where he sat on the board of directors. Former EM Robert Bobb hired his former firm to help create a deficit-elimination plan. Conforme hired a group of her colleagues from New York at double the rate of the lowest bidder.
The timing of the charges is suspect given the current plans aimed at completely restructuring the school district. Republican state Senator Arlan Meekhof immediately seized on the charges, commenting that the kickback charges are further evidence of the need for reform and oversight of the schools in Detroit.
Former bankruptcy judge Steven Rhodes, the current Detroit Public Schools emergency manager, wrote to the district, We want to do whatever is necessary to prevent this from happening again.
As the judge overseeing the bankruptcy of Detroit, Rhodes worked with the Democratic and Republican parties and the trade union bureaucracy to cut the pensions and healthcare of tens of thousands of city workers. Rhodes task in overseeing DPS is to sell the restructuring of the district to the teachers and community.
On Tuesday, Snyder signed legislation that gives Detroit Public Schools a $48.7 million package in order to maintain operations until the end of the school year. Prior to this legislation, teachers were faced with the threat of payless paydays after April 8.
The funding package comes with a stopgap measure to ensure a dictatorship over the district. Any time the district is without an emergency manager it will be under the dictates of a Financial Review Commission (FRC). The FRC is a nine-member team of Detroit business representatives, Detroit city councilors, and state representatives that was created through the 2013 Detroit bankruptcy.
Meanwhile a deal for the restructuring of DPS is currently being worked out in the state legislature. One version of the deal puts the new district under another education commission and creates an A-F school rating system to expedite the school closure process. Another version would provide for more oversight over the district and limit collective bargaining for teachers.
Regardless of their slight differences, the restructuring plan is meant to end public education and allow private interests free rein over the funds allocated for public education. Millions of dollars stand to be made. Through schemes like public-private partnerships, private corporations will extend their influence to run schools as a profiteering business: cutting labor costs, cutting education costs, and controlling the curriculum.
As in the bankruptcy, what happens in Detroit will be used as the model for attacks on social rights throughout the United States. The DPS restructuring scheme will be replicated throughout the country. The conditions for teachers in public schools will continue to decline, with further cuts to salaries and benefits for teachers and staff, the removal of seniority rights, and major changes in work standards.
Angry residents packed an auditorium in Flint and signed up for an opportunity to testify before Michigan legislators at a hearing held Tuesday. Even though the proceedings lasted a total of nine hours, people waited until the last part to speak, where residents were allowed three minutes each to speak.
A state legislative panel, the Michigan Joint Committee on the Flint Water Public Health Emergency, convened the session, and posed questions to those testifying. The legislators were both Republicans and Democrats, including State Rep. Ed Canfield, State Sen. Joe Hune, State Rep. Ed McBroom, State Sen. Jim Stamas, State Sen. Jim Ananich and state Rep. Jeff Irwin.
LeeAnne Walters, the Flint mother whose children were diagnosed with lead poisoning months after the city switched its water source from treated water pumped from Lake Huron to the corrosive Flint River gave the first testimony. Walters presented a detailed chronology of her ordeal after it became very apparent that the city was not being truthful in providing answers about the water, when she was accused by authorities of having an agenda. She described eventually turning to water expert Dr. Marc Edwards from Virgina Tech University to conduct a sampling of the entire city of Flint.
A member of the committee asked about improper testing being carried by state water officials. Walters told of three loopholes in the lead and copper rule concerning sampling and said the state is still violating proper procedures. She told the committee, to the applause of the audience, nobody trusts the city or the state or the EPA. They trust Virginia Tech.
Pediatrician Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha described how she came to conduct a study revealing the spike in childrens blood-lead levels after the switch to Flint River water. Last summer, when the Virginia Tech testing of Flints water for lead began to make headlines, she invited a long-time friend, who happened to be a water engineer, to dinner. It was the friend who suggested to Hanna-Attisha that she use her access to blood-lead results to do a study.
Once Hanna-Attisha became focused on the pursuit of those answers, she and an assistant conducted the work that would have taken six months for a normal research team, in only two weeks, by not sleeping at night. Other health agencies were not helpful. When she contacted the Genesee County Health Department for help, their response was that it was not in our jurisdiction.
Hanna-Attishas testimony shed light on some of the deep-going social issues around the citys lead poisoning. She described the traumatic response of many of her patients parents, with deep anxiety and guilt.
In response to a question on cuts in food stamps and nutrition programs for pregnant mothers, she said, I think nutrition is probably the most important thing we can do with this issue. We were hit harder by this because of pre-existing poor nutrition. She added, We need long-term great nutrition. We have no full-service grocery story stores in the city of Flint. None.
Flint Utilities Manager Mike Glasgow, who at the time of the switch to Flint River water was the water departments lab supervisor, was also questioned. Before the changeover, he had sent an email to Mike Prysby of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) saying that the plant was not ready and objecting to the April 25, 2014 deadline. He described higher-up officials as having an agenda.
Glasgow testified that in 2005 when he came to work at the Flint water treatment plant, there were some 40 employees. That is when the plant was virtually mothballed, serving only as an emergency backup for the Detroit system. By the time the switch was to be made, there were only 26 workers. He said that he got no response to his email protesting the rushed schedule.
Glasgow testified that he had expected to continue the orthophosphate treatment that Detroit had been using for decades, but Prysby told him that the corrosion control treatment would not be necessary. In addition, the technology needed to apply the treatment into the water had not been installed at the plant.
After the session had gone on for six hours, other Flint residents were allotted three minutes each to speak. Their anger became so apparent from the first speaker on, that the panel dared not enforce the time limit.
Dorothy Batchelder, who has nieces and nephews who have been poisoned, challenged the legislators on the panel over their lack of knowledge on the Flint situation. She asked how many had read a 2007 sediment report on the Flint River which characterized the river as a Superfund site, i.e., a candidate for federal environmental cleanup funds. She asserted that the river should never have been used as a water source.
She went on to slam the emergency manager law, which was used by the Governor Rick Snyder to install emergency managers in Flint who made the decision to switch water sources. I am mad and I am angry! She went on, I thought I lived in a Republic where democracy ruled and the Constitution meant something! I am tired of living in an oligarchy!
Keri Webber described how the lead poisoning affected her family. She said, If you look at the governors 75-point plan, there is still nothing in there for those over the age of six or seven.
Her husband has lead-induced high blood pressure and it is killing him by the day. And due to a Medicaid spend-down, they are $8,800 in debt just for medical issues relating to his eye. Her 16-year-old daughter has liver issues and bone scans show lead lines throughout her entire body. Her 20-year-old-daughter had pneumonia for three months and didnt find out until December that she had been infected with the Legionella bacteria.
Adam Murphy worked at the General Motors parts plant that disconnected from Flint water in October 2014. He spoke with his whole family about their conditions: I was working at General Motors when we heard about this. A gentleman working on the line in the engine plant noticed some corrosion on the parts they were making.
So, 90 days went by with us realizing not just the lead in the water, that happened after, the corrosive chemical that doesnt really get talked about, went down our throats and into our body. Thats what was corroding all these parts.
That 3.4 million dollars in damage was done to General Motors. Several months6 months, 8 months. I dont knowthey wait to let the public know. And as thats going on, this project, theyre putting all new pipes in, they shut the switch off from the Flint River, and they get the Detroit water.
Murphy said GM can switch water sources because money is power. He added, Wheres my job? I made $85,000. Its all gone. I want something. Enough is enough with this mindsetheartless business. Murphy continued emotionally, My teeth are falling out. All our teeth. My kids. Brand new teeth coming in. Theyre corroding.
Cheryl Little also spoke: I get so tired of hearing: Flint, Flint, its the poor little city people General Motors was built on my back. And a whole lot of other people built Flint and everything else around the world. We made the cars and the trucks. Now what were getting for thanks. We are poisoned. Blatantly poisoned.
On Wednesday evening, about 2,000 refugees and aid workers demonstrated in Athens against the recent agreement between the European Union and Turkey. The agreement finalizes the closing of the Balkan route and allows thousands of refugees in Greece to be deported to Turkey. A law spelling out the implementation of the agreement is now being discussed in parliament so that the first 500 deportations can begin as soon as April 4.
The movement Unified against Racism and the Fascist Threat called the demonstration. The demonstrators, including many refugee families with children, marched from Omonia Square through the downtown area, past the Greek parliament building, and ended at the offices of the European Commission. Some 700 refugees from the Piraeus port alone had made the trip to the centre of Athens to take part in the demonstration. The demonstrators chanted, Open the borders and condemned fortress Europe and the Greek prison on a banner.
Some of them carried signs with the demand Human rights and no discrimination to bring attention to the war situation in their home countries. Residents and passers-by reacted to the demonstration with solidarity, according to the daily paper Ethnos.
In the past few days, opposition has developed among refugees in Idomeni and on the Aegean islands. They are desperately defending themselves against the closing of the borders and insisting on their right to travel to northern Europe.
In Idomeni, on the border between Greece and Macedonia, refugees have been occupying the railway tracks for 13 days and are blocking freight traffic. On Tuesday they clashed with police units, who sought to clear the tracks. Some refugees hurled stones and they freed a woman who was being detained by the police. On Monday, refugees blocked traffic for several hours with a sit-down strike on the highway near Evzoni.
Every new day serves to increase the despair and anger of the refugees. Last weekend, people travelled in buses to Idomeni after a rumour was spread on social networks that the border would be opened. The rumour turned out to be false and the desperate refugees were forced to turn back or else remain in a muddy tent camp, where some 12,000 have already been living for over a month. As the state television station ERT reports, the majority of refugees are afraid of imprisonment and deportation and do not want to be brought into another camp.
Karl Kopp, the European spokesperson of the refugee organization Pro Asyl, accused Europe of an inhumane logic of deterrence, in an interview with the German newspaper Tagesspiegel .
The people who have sealed the Balkan route want the ugly images from Idomeni in order to deter refugees. To this end, they are willing to accept catastrophes, he said. People will come anyway because of the war and misery in their own countries. In practice, Europe only decides whether these people arrive dead or alive, Kopp added.
He confirmed the concerns of the refugees, who do not want to resettle in another camp. The so-called alternative camps are also misery camps. Inhumane conditions prevail there as well, said Kopp. All of the alternative large camps are de facto extensions of homelessness, with which the refugees are already familiar from Idomeni.
Volunteers have already given thorough accounts of the horrifying conditions in some of the refugee lodgings and have provided access to them over Facebook to refugees and aid organizations.
For example, in the open Camp Fillipiada in the northwest of Greece, there are only 15 showers and no hot water for nearly 680 refugees, including many children and some pregnant women. The food is insufficient for everyone. There are no NGOs, aid workers, or media present. The tents have no light and no proper floors, so that refugees have to sleep with mats and sleeping bags on the bare ground.
The situation is even worse in Cherso, a camp in a village not far from Idomeni that refugees are only allowed to enter once they have been registered. In this camp, 3,900 people, many of them families, have a total of only 400 tents without floors. The hygienic conditions are atrocious. The refugees share only 30 toilets and five showers. There is no hot water. There are also no interpreters and no media at the location.
Both camps are overseen by the Greek military. Since Internet service is not provided at most camps, refugees are unable to get current information.
In addition to the open camps, there are five Hot Spots on the Aegean islands, which are now closed detainment centres. Aid workers are provided only restricted access to them.
Photographs are forbidden at all of these camps. Paul Oswald, who published a column in the German newspaper Handelsblatt about his experiences in the aid organization Better Days for Moria, received photos and news secretly sent by refugees at the now closed Moria camp until their cell phones died. The refugees were unable to charge their phones because of the lack of power outlets at the camp.
We fled from war, and now we are sitting in prison in Greece under inhumane conditions, wrote one refugee over WhatsApp. Since then we have to sleep on the ground of the muddy courtyard because there is simply no more space. The police watch and if we ask for water, they say that we should wait for rain.
The Moria detention centre is on the island of Lesbos, where there are more than 2,200 refugees. In recent days, refugees have protested repeatedly against their internment. The police take refugees in handcuffs for medical exams at the hospital. While the organization Doctors without Borders has to a large extent ended its work in these camps in protest against the conditions there, the relief organization Doctors of the World continues to take care of refugees on the islands.
However, the organization emphasizes that the continuation of the work does not mean that they accept the new mode of operation of the centres. They see it as their task to help the refugees and to document and condemn the inhumane conditions in the detention centres. In a press release on the agreement between the EU and Turkey, they say that they fear that people who are fleeing will be viewed increasingly as a mass that can relocated at will.
In the Vial detention camp on the island of Chios, there are also regular protests. With more than 1,440 refugees and a maximum capacity of 1,100, the centre is already over full. Mainly Afghan refugees, who have scarcely any chance at all of being granted asylum in Europe, demonstrate almost daily at dinnertime against the EU agreement. In this heated mood, there are conflicts between refugees occurring with increasing frequency. On Tuesday, an individual who was badly injured during a conflict between Iranian refugees had to be taken to the hospital.
Late on Wednesday evening, a harmless incident turned into a violent conflict between Syrian and Afghan refugees at the port in Piraeus. Eight people were injured and the police intervened. These conflicts are the unavoidable result of the brutal EU refugee policy that pushes people to the brink of exhaustion and despair. In this tense situation, all it takes is a spark to ignite open violence.
There are now over 5,800 refugees crowded in Piraeus. There are 1,100 tents all around the port building. The majority of those detained have no access to drinkable running water or adequate nourishment. As a result, the government is trying to resettle the refugees in two new camps in Eleona and Kyllini.
The unbroken solidarity in the population, which is also expressed in numerous self-organized initiatives, has now become the target of the Greek government under Syriza (the so-called Coalition of the Radical Left). The draft legislation for implementing the EU-Turkey agreement requires all NGOs to register with the coordination department of a new asylum service led by the interior ministry. This measure is a targeted attempt to increase state control over refugees and aid organizations.
In the last period, the independent and self-organized solidarity structures, which until now have carried the full weight of providing aid, were dissolved. The goal is now to transfer the support of these people to the police and the military, Efi Latsoudi, a representative of the Lesbos volunteers, told the news outlet Ethnos.
The police ordered volunteers at a shelter on the Tsamakia beach near Mytilene to leave the area so that the beach could be rented privately. The Pikpa camp on Lesbos, where mainly sick and weak refugees were accommodated, will also be closed despite the opposition of aid workers.
There is a deep abyss between the widespread solidarity of the Greek population and the policy of the Syriza government, which is playing the role of border police for the European Union. Syriza is working closely with the German government to fulfil the agreement. The refugee crisis has led to friendly overtures between Prime Minister Tsipras and the chancellor, said the Handelsblatt. It talks about a German-Greek spring. The two governments are in constant contact.
Over the weekend, Vice Foreign Minister Dimitris Mardas demonstrated the extent to which Syriza has travelled to the right. On Skai TV, he recommended the creation of an economic profile for all refugees. Anyone who had savings of 250,000 abroad and wanted to invest this money in Greece would receive better lodgings. Mardas justified his perfidious proposal for a social selection of migrants on the basis of a 2014 law passed by the right-wing coalition government of PASOK and New Democracy.
At least 24 people were killed and up to 90 injured when a 150-metre section of a 2.2-kilometre flyover under construction in Kolkata [Calcutta], West Bengals state capital, collapsed at midday on March 31. The project crossed over Vivekananda Road in the heavily-congested Burrabazar area, the location of the citys largest wholesale market.
The flyover was being built by IVRCL Infrastructure, which has projects throughout India as well as in Sri Lanka, the Middle East and Africa. Following the failure of a restructuring plan for IVRCL early this year, the company was taken over by Indian banks, which now own 51 percent.
Volunteers and local people desperately attempted to rescue victims trapped under tonnes of concrete rubble and twisted steel immediately after the collapse. Their initial efforts, however, were handicapped by the absence of gas cutters and cranes. Some eye-witnesses told the media that they first thought the disaster had been caused by an earthquake. Others said the collapsing structure sounded like a massive bomb blast.
Engineering experts from Kharagpur-IIT and Jadavpur University told the Indo-Asian News Service that the disaster was a product of inadequate planning, lengthy construction delays, cost-cutting, bad design and questionable tendering processes.
In a desperate attempt to wash his companys hands of any responsibility, IVRCL Infrastructures human resources chief, Panduranga Rao, cynically told the media that the incident was an act of godprovoking a storm of public criticism.
The catastrophe is clearly the responsibility of successive West Bengal state governmentsStalinist Communist Party of India (Marxist), CPM-led Left Front and Trinamul Congress alike. These administrations have turned a blind-eye to sub-standard and dangerous methods throughout the construction industry.
IVRCL Infrastructures cost-cutting and its use of below-standard materials were well known throughout India. The heavily-indebted company was blacklisted by the Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand state governments, as well as the rail ministrys Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL).
Satish Agnihotri, RVNLs managing director, told the New York Times that IVRCL was a major defaulter. He said RVNL decided to terminate all of its contracts with the company three years ago over poor performance.
IVRCLs elevated road over Vivekananda Road was initially commissioned by the Left Front state government in February 2009. The company was given 18 months to complete the project but missed eight deadlines over the next six years. Despite this, the current Trinamul Congress government maintained its contract with the company.
The West Bengal government has feigned concern about the tragedy and begun moving against the company in an attempt to contain popular anger.
Kolkata police yesterday raided and sealed three IVRCL offices and filed cases against the company under sections 304, 308 and 407 of the Indian Penal Code. These charges include a criminal complaint of culpable homicide and criminal breach of trust. According to press reports, eight employees were detained.
The state government also announced a 500,000-rupee ($US7,550) compensation package for each of the families with relatives killed, 200,000 rupees ($3,020) for the critically injured and 100,000 rupees ($1,510) for those suffering minor injuries.
The flyover collapse occurred on the eve of state assembly elections, to be held in six phases from April 4 to May 5. All the major contending parties, which are implicated in one way or another, have seized on the tragedy in an attempt to blame their rivals and deflect attention from their own political culpability.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, leader of the opposition Congress Party, which is in an alliance with the CPM-led Left Front in the state elections, demanded the arrest of the Kolkata city mayor and Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee countered: It is not the time to play politics. Rather we should work for the rescue and relief of the injured. She declared, however, that the flyover construction began under the former Left Front government and that it was responsible for the collapse. A blacklisted company, she said, shouldnt have got the project.
The former Left Front urban development minister, Asok Bhattacharya, blamed his successor Hakim for the disaster. Both are equally responsible for ignoring IVRCLs cost-cutting methodsBhattacharya when the contract was originally agreed, and Hakim in the current administration.
The Kolkata-based Telegraph reported that engineers working on the flyover were stunned when Chief Minister Banerjee publicly announced last November that the project would be ready in February 2016. At that point, only 76 percent of the work was complete.
With only about six hours of work allowed each day, between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., the engineers had told this paper that there wasnt enough time to complete the project by February. As expected, the February deadline passed and a new one was set for August, the Telegraph said.
An engineer with another infrastructure company told the newspaper: There are telltale signs when a scaffolding cant bear the weight of concrete, and basic monitoring can detect these. If the scaffolding cant hold on, then it will bend and nuts and bolts will come loose. One should immediately stop work and reinforce the scaffolding. But when in a hurry, such points can get ignored.
Banerjee clearly wanted the flyover construction completed by February in order to present it as a government success story for the state election campaign.
This weeks disaster is the just the latest in an escalating number of construction disasters in India. Over 300 men, women and children were killed and thousands injured in 12 separate building collapses between 2007 and 2014.
Together with those killed in Kolkata, they are innocent victims of the criminal neglect of basic safety procedures in the construction industry as well as political negligence and cover-up by Indias ruling elite.
Asia
India: IDBI Bank workers hold national stoppage
Up to 18,000 employees of the government-owned IDBI Bank (Industrial Development Bank of India) began a four-day national strike on Monday to oppose further privatisation of the bank. Workers demanded a written assurance from the government that its stake in the bank would not be reduced below 51 percent. The national government currently has a 72 percent share.
This is the second strike on the issue in the past six months. The previous walkout was in November when the government first proposed reducing its stake.
On February 29, the Prime Minister Modis BJP-led government revealed in its budget that the process of transformation of IDBI Bank had already started and the government was considering reducing its stake to below 50 percent.
The strike was jointly called by the All India IDBI Employees' Association, IDBI Officers Organisation, United Platform of IDBI Bank Unions, United Forum of IDBI Officers & Employees, IDBI Workers' Union and IDBI Karamchari Sangh.
Pakistan: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa paramedics strike
Around 15,000 paramedics at government health facilities in Pakistans northern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa walked out on Tuesday to demand a new service structure that includes a pay-scale upgrade and new health allowance. Their action followed a one-day strike earlier last month by paramedics in the Mardan and Hazara divisions but which failed to win a response from the government.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Paramedical Association claimed that despite promises to implement the new service structure, the government continuously failed to honour its promise. Paramedics said they would continue to call for a service structure for colleagues who often retired on the same grade that they were originally hired.
Sri Lankan mine workers demand festival bonus
Over 60 mine workers at the Kahatagaha Graphite Mine in Sri Lankas North Western province ended their three-day protest on Wednesday, after management agreed to their demands. The miners stopped work and occupied the mine1,100 feet (335 metres) undergroundto call for a 15,000-rupee ($US100) festival bonus. The strikers were also concerned that the government had falsely claimed that the mine was running at a loss and was planning to sell the operation to an Australian company.
Cambodian garment workers oppose new labour law
Garment workers at over 100 factories in Kampot, Preah Sihanouk and Kandal provinces, as well as Phnom Penh, held lunchtime demonstrations outside their factories on Monday in opposition to a draft trade union law due to be presented to the National Assembly on April 4. Workers held banners saying Dont create a law that oppresses worker rights. The draft law, originally requested by business owners in 2007 to curb strikes, sets rules on how unions are formed, operated and dissolved.
Workers complained that under the new law a strike would be legal only if approved by more than 50 percent of participants at a union meeting where more than half the union members are presenteffectively making strikes impossible for unions with several thousand members. The draft law would also enable courts to dissolve unions for infractions committed by union leaders.
Australia and the Pacific
Australian immigration and customs workers strike
Federal Immigration and Border Force, and Agriculture and Water Resources workers resumed protected industrial action on Wednesday at international airports throughout Australia in their two-year dispute over new work agreements. A planned 24-hour strike for last week at major airports in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane was called off by the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) in the wake of the Brussels airport bombings.
The industrial action impacts on eight international airports and overseas shipping terminals and will continue until April 7. It includes daily rolling stoppages during morning and evening peak times.
After two years of negotiations, almost 85 percent of the total federal public sector workforce of 160,000 still do not have a new enterprise agreement. Government proposed enterprise agreement offers would eliminate existing rights, including family-friendly conditions, in return for a two-year wage freeze and 2 percent annual pay increases over three years.
Workers in nearly all departments rejected the offers and are seeking a union reduced pay demand for annual pay increases between 2.5 and 3 percent in a three-year agreement with no loss of conditions. This week, staff at the National Library of Australia became the latest to reject the Turnbull governments harsh bargaining policy, with 75.1 percent voting No to a proposed agreement.
The CPSU, which is attempting to wear down workers resistance to the governments inferior pay offer, has lodged a case in the Fair Work Commission accusing the Turnbull government of refusing to allow department heads to negotiate in good faith.
New South Wales power utility workers vote to strike
Thousands of workers at the state-owned electricity network provider Essential Energy this week voted for protected industrial action in their dispute over a new enterprise agreement.
Over 90 percent of workers who participated in the ballot voted for work stoppages of between one and 72 hours and bans on a work practices, including overtime, training, paperwork, and the use of computers, mobile phones and other technologies. The industrial action will occur this month.
Electrical Trades Union (ETU) members rejected managements enterprise offer that includes the axing of 800 jobs over the next two years and unlimited job cuts after 2018. Other attacks include a two-year wage freeze, continuation of the current ban on re-employing redundant workers within two years except for casual or temporary positions; halving the amount workers are paid when called in for emergencies from a minimum four hours pay to two; and cuts to wages and conditions of outsourced contractors.
Workers are standing by their initial claims of zero trade-offs, job security for all employees, and annual wage increases.
The government-owned company has lodged a case with the Fair Work Commission to terminate a range of agreements covering redundancy provisions, staff redeployments, and salary maintenance. While the ETU claims to oppose the enterprise deal it has allowed the destruction of more than 1,000 Essential Energy jobs since 2013.
New Zealand Pakn Save supermarket workers strike
Pakn Save supermarket workers in Richmond, on New Zealands South Island, walked off the job on March 24 after a breakdown in wage negotiations. The striking workers from the morning fill, bakery and butchery teams made up about half of the total numbers stocking shelves.
A spokesman for the FIRST Union said the union had been trying to negotiate a collective agreement since November but the owner refused to discuss pay rates.
Workers want their hourly rates increased by $2 to bring them into line with Pakn Save workers on New Zealands North Island. Pakn Save workers at the Invercargill supermarket, also on the South Island, demonstrated outside their store on March 19 over the same demands.
Pakn Save employees want standard hours of work and no change in working times without a mutual agreement between employee and management. They are also employed on individual contracts and have told the media that the combination of low wages and a working week below 20 hours keeps them on the poverty line.
Papua New Guinea power workers strike
Workers at PNG Power Limited (PPL), the nations electricity provider, held a nationwide strike this week over outstanding entitlements. Employees at revenue generating centres in Lae, Port Moresby, Yonki and Mt Hagen held a sit-in on March 23. The entitlements owed include a 17.7 percent pay loading.
Most employees have worked for the state-owned enterprise for over twenty years and want their entitlements to be paid out before PPLs key assets are privatised.
PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill this week blamed the striking workers for repeated power blackouts in the nations main cities. Deliberately cutting the power supply has now been declared a criminal offence.
Hundreds of the UKs public libraries have been closed since 2010, as revealed by a BBC News Freedom of Information request.
A report compiled by the BBCs data team shows that 343 libraries across the country have been forced to close due to drastic cuts to local government spending. In the same period, almost 8,000 library workers lost their jobsabout a quarter of the overall total. A further 111 libraries are expected to be closed in the coming year as part of the governments relentless, draconian attacks on public services.
Particularly badly hit have been the local areas under the Labour-dominated councils of Sefton in Merseyside, Brent in North London, and Sunderland, where more than half their libraries have been closed since 2010. Libraries in Stoke-on-Trent, with its Conservative/UK Independence Party/independent coalition, have been closed at a similar rate.
Sheffield suffered from the worst job cuts, with the number of paid library employees across the city sharply declining from 420 workers in 2010 to a mere 165 in 2015. The largest percentage drop in library workers was in Harrow in northwest London. In 2010 the council paid 164 people, but now there are just 60 employees. These are employed by an external provider, which now runs the service.
Many other libraries that have managed to withstand closure have had their opening hours dramatically reduced.
A further 50 libraries have been handed to external organisations to run, while 174 libraries have been transferred to community groups to be managed by unpaid and largely untrained volunteers. More than 15,000 volunteers have had to be drafted in to plug the huge staffing deficit left by the funding cutbacks. The number of unpaid volunteers has risen from 15,861 in 2010, to 31,403 as of the March report.
Volunteers are not a viable substitute for professional library staff. Nick Poole, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP), stated, Volunteers have always been a vibrant part of our library service, but they cannot replace the expertise, ethics and professional skills of qualified staff who are fundamental to providing the quality library services that we are entitled to by law.
Under the 1964 Public Libraries and Museums Act, the government and its local authorities have a legal obligation to provide public library services.
Local residents and librarians all over the country have protested these cuts to their public services, with many protests attracting the support of high-profile names such as classicist Mary Beard and actor Brian Blessed. Demonstrations have been held in many towns and cities and residents have signed petitions and staged sit-ins.
Legal challenges have been brought by CILIP and local residents against the Department of Culture, Media and Sport over its failure to fulfil its legal duty to keep branches open and to provide quality library services.
In Lambeth, South London, hundreds of residents turned out in protest at the proposed closure to their local libraries, while in November of last year librarians and other staff at the London boroughs 10 public libraries walked out in an unofficial strike against the conversion of three libraries into healthy living centres.
On March 31, dozens of local residents occupied Carnegie Library in south London in an attempt to prevent its closure. The library was to close for the last time at 6 p.m. that evening, with around 80 people remaining in the building. Labour-run Lambeth Council is closing the library, which is due to reopen in a year as a healthy living centre, including a vaguely defined neighbourhood library service, as part of its cost-cutting programme.
On February 9, bestselling authors Cathy Cassidy, Alan Gibbons and Philip Ardagh addressed a packed hall in Westminster, London as librarians, students and other supporters from across the UK rallied to petition Parliament against the cuts. Labelling the closure of hundreds of libraries as a national scandal in her speech to protesters, Cassidy said, Libraries build communities, weave those communities together and help people climb the ladder towards their own potential, one book at a time. It is beyond shameful that Britain can even think of closing libraries, slamming the door on culture and opportunity for young and old alike.
In Birmingham, police were called to the citys main library after around 30 students staged a sit-in, refusing to leave the library for many hours after its official closing time to protest against reduced opening hours and staff redundancies.
Birmingham Library, which cost approximately 189 million to construct, is Europes largest public library. It houses over 1 million books, as well as theatres, music rooms and a gallery and has been named one of the UKs most visited attractions.
However, in 2015, less than two years after it first opened, the librarys budget was slashed by 1.3 million. Its opening hours were reduced by 50 percent, with 100 staff expected to be made redundant as part of Birmingham City Councils wider plans to cut 6,000 jobs and to make 300 million in savings. As with the vast majority of councils in the UKs main urban centres, the council is run by the Labour Party.
Birmingham Library was forced to request extra voluntary assistance and to plead for donations of recently published books from the public, after their book-buying fund was paused.
Figures from the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) revealed that UK library expenditure on books, newspapers, periodicals and magazines fell by 10.6 percent within a year, from 72 million in 2013/14 to 64 million in 2014/15.
According to the data, funding to local libraries was slashed by 180 million in the same period and the number of visits to public libraries has fallen by 14 percent since the election of Prime Minister David Camerons government in 2010. Book borrowing has steadily declined in every year since 2010.
In a comment during an interview with the BBC, childrens author Alan Gibbons stated, Councils learnt early on how unpopular simply closing libraries is so they have had to cut the vital service in other, less obvious ways. It can come across in many forms: reduced opening hours, reduced book fund, reduced maintenance and reduced staffing. It is harmful to the service, creating the risk that once-loyal users of libraries will come away disappointed and stop using them. Our public library system used to be envy of the world. Now it is used as a cautionary tale that librarians use worldwide to scare their colleagues.
At a time of growing poverty, unemployment and homelessness, public libraries are one of the few free services used by millions of working class people in Britain.
US President Barack Obama yesterday concluded the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, involving more than 50 countries, with a bland statement highlighting his presidencys supposed achievements in limiting the spread of nuclear weapons. In reality, the Obama administration has greatly heightened, not lessened, the danger that nuclear devices will be used.
The summit was held under the banner of the war on terror, with the supposed purpose of engendering international collaboration in preventing Al Qaeda or Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) gaining access to nuclear weapons. There is no doubt that if these madmen ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material they most certainly would use it to kill as many innocent people as possible, Obama declared.
The greatest danger confronting humanity, however, is not that ISIS or Al Qaeda will obtain and use nuclear weapons, but rather that the madmen in the White House have recklessly inflamed flashpoints in the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Asia, setting the stage for a catastrophic conflict between nuclear-armed powers.
So acrimonious are relations between Washington and Moscow that Russian President Vladimir Putin refused to attend the summit. On the eve of the gathering, the US military announced that by February 2017, it plans to maintain a permanent footprint of three armoured brigades in Eastern Europe in NATO countries bordering Russia.
In the Middle East, using the pretext of combating ISIS, the US and its allies are engaged in a dangerous confrontation with Russia to oust Moscows allythe Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad. The potential for a military clash was underscored last November when NATO ally, Turkey, shot down a Russian aircraft that allegedly intruded briefly into its airspacea provocation undoubtedly sanctioned by Washington.
The absence of Russia from the summit highlights its fraudulent character. The US and Russia together hold 90 percent of the worlds nuclear bombsa huge arsenal of around 10,000 warheads in servicemaking a mockery of Obamas vision of a world without nuclear weapons. The aim of Washingtons non-proliferation policy is not to rid the globe of nuclear bombs but to ensure the US retains its dominant position over any potential rival, including Russia.
The White Houses chief focus at the nuclear summit was on China. When Obama met with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on the sidelines on Thursday, the tensions were palpable. In a comment in the Washington Post the previous day, the US president flagged North Koreas continued provocations as unfinished business. While China and the US agreed on the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, Xi firmly opposed the Pentagons plans to base a Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system in South Korea.
Since coming to office, Obama has stymied any resumption of six-party talks to eliminate North Koreas weapons and facilities. Instead, he has repeatedly exploited flare-ups on the Korean Peninsula to justify the US military build-up in South Korea and Japan, as part of its broader pivot to Asia against China.
Despite US assurances to the contrary, the anti-ballistic missile system is primarily directed against China, not North Korea. While the constant drumbeat from Washington is about the threat posed by Chinas military expansion, the US has overwhelming superiority in the sophistication and size of its nuclear arsenalsome 5,000 warheads in service, compared to an estimated 260 for China.
Moreover, while promoted as a defensive weapon, the THAAD system is part of the Pentagons efforts to achieve nuclear primacy over any rival. Unlike China, the United States has never ruled out a nuclear first strike. The THAAD systems are to ensure any Chinese weapons that are not destroyed in a pre-emptive US nuclear attack can be shot down before reaching any American targets.
Xi and Obama also traded diplomatic blows over the South China Sea. Before their meeting, US officials again accused China of militarising islets under its control and warned against any declaration of an Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ). On Wednesday, Deputy Defence Secretary Robert Work branded an ADIZ as destabilising, saying the US would not recognise it. In 2012, the Pentagon flew nuclear-capable B-52 bombers into the East China Sea after Beijing announced an ADIZ in that region.
The rising instability in the South China Sea is a direct consequence of the actions of Washington, which has encouraged countries like the Philippines and Vietnam to aggressively press their maritime claims against China. Over the past year, the US has repeatedly condemned Chinas land reclamation and expansionism in the South China Sea. On two occasionslast October and again in Januarythe US dispatched US navy destroyers to conduct freedom of navigation operations within the 12-nautical-mile territorial limit around Chinese-administered islets.
According to the New York Times, Obama on Thursday again pressed Xi on Chinas construction of military facilities in the South China Sea. In response, Xi told Obama he hoped Washington would strictly abide by its commitment not to take a position on the territorial disputes and adopt an objective and impartial attitude. According to Chinas Xinhua news agency, Xi warned that Beijing would not accept violations of its sovereignty in the name of freedom of navigation.
This week, the New York Times provided another example of propaganda posing as journalism, with first-hand accounts from an embedded reporter on board a US navy cruiser in the South China Sea. The on-the-spot reporting made clear that US military encounters with Chinese forces are now routine in the South China Sea. Each of these encounters poses the danger of a miscalculation leading to an armed clash and a wider conflict.
The New York Times article on Thursday, entitled Patrolling disputed waters, US and China jockey for dominance, reported a conversation overheard two weeks ago between Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, General Joseph Dunford, and Admiral Harry Harris, commander of the US Pacific Command. Would you go to war over Scarborough Shoals [reefs claimed by China and the Philippines]? Dunford asked. The reply was not heard.
Whether the answer was yes or no, the fact that two of the US militarys most senior commanders were casually discussing war with China is revealing in itself. Moreover, there is an inherent logic to Washingtons escalation of tensions in Asia. Were the US to refuse to back the Philippines over the Scarborough Shoals, or Japan over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu islets, or South Korea over an incident with North Korea, the whole web of US alliances in Asia and internationally would be called into question.
It is this underlying dynamic, notwithstanding Obamas posturing at the Nuclear Security Summit, that poses the very real danger of a nuclear war.
There has been considerable discussion in the media about the deep social anger among working people and youth toward the entire political establishment that has found expression in the US election campaign. The broad and unanticipated support for nominally anti-establishment candidatesthe quasi-fascist billionaire Donald Trump on the right and the self-described socialist Bernie Sanders on the lefthas evoked outbursts of incredulity and ire that have only underscored the chasm that separates the entire ruling establishment from the general population.
The combination of cluelessness and contempt that prevails in top circles was summed up in early March by President Barack Obama following the release of last months employment report, which showed a larger-than-expected gain in payrolls for February. Saying the report was a vindication of his economic policies, which had made the US economy the envy of the world, Obama derided what he called an alternative reality out there from some of the political folks that America is down in the dumps. On the contrary, he gushed, America is pretty darn great right now.
He failed to mention one figure in the report that pointed starkly to the social catastrophe lurking behind the headline job number: Only 11.7 percent of the new jobs created in February were full-time. This on top of the fact that the vast majority of the new jobs were low-wage service-sector positions, many of them temporary. Employment in manufacturing and mining continued to fall.
The administrations response to Fridays tepid jobs report for Marchwhich again recorded declines in manufacturing and mining and a preponderance of new jobs in cheap labor sectors, with part-time and temp positions accounting for a huge proportion of thesewas similar.
Labor Secretary Thomas E. Perez boasted, The remarkable US recovery continues The wind is once again at our back. Jason Furman, chairman of Obamas Council of Economic Advisors, declared, The private sector has now added 14.4 million jobs over 73 straight months of job growth, the longest streak on record.
But what kind of jobs? A new report released this week demonstrates that under first the Bush and then the Obama administrations, the whole structure of employment in America has been radically altered to reduce the status of workers to that of a super-exploited casual and contingent labor force, lacking any job security or health and retirement benefits.
The report, by Princeton University and the RAND Corporation, documents the fact that all net full-time job growth in the US between 2005 and 2015 was accounted for by alternative work arrangements, i.e., people working as independent contractors, temps, through contract firms or on-call. There were actually fewer conventional full-time positionsby 400,000in 2015 than a decade earlier.
One particularly revealing indication of the brutal conditions facing growing sections of workers is the fact that the proportion of contingent workers holding multiple jobs has more than quadrupled over the past 10 years, from 7.3 percent in 2005 to 32 percent in 2015. Nearly one-third of people working with no benefits or job security are holding down an additional part-time or full-time job just to make ends meet.
Another report released this week, this one by the Pew Charitable Trusts, provides further insight into the conditions facing low-income workers that are fueling anti-establishment and anti-capitalist sentiment. Entitled Household Expenditures and Income, the study reports that housing costs for the lower third of income groups in the US rose 33 percent between 2013 and 2014, the biggest annual jump in housing spending for the 19 years that Pew has studied the question.
With spending on transportation and food also rising, 2014 became the first year studied by Pew in which median spending on these basic necessities surpassed median income. By 2014, median income had fallen by 13 percent from 2004 levels, while expenditures had increased by 14 percent.
These exposures of the social crisis follow a series of earlier reports showing a sharp increase in life span divergences between the rich and the poor and a dramatic decline in life expectancy for poor middle-aged Americans, rising death rates for both young and middle-aged white workers and a reversal of decades of declining infant mortality.
The indignation and frustration born of such conditions are intensified by the utter complacency and indifference of the political establishment, particularly the Obama administration and what passes for the left in official politics, grouped around the Democratic Party.
This was on full display in an op-ed piece by economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman published on Friday. Entitled Learning from Obama and including a blowout saying, What progressive success looks like, the article exemplifies the outlook of the privileged and smug upper-middle class social layers that make up the base of the Democratic Party.
In a thoroughly dishonest panegyric to Obamas economic and social policies, which he credits with creating 10 million jobs and enacting progressive health and financial reform, Krugman ignores the record growth of social inequality under Obama, whose policies have accelerated the process by which the share of national income going to the top 1 percent has nearly tripled, increasing from about 8 percent in the 1960s and 1970s to more than 20 percent today.
Krugman praises as working to tax the rich, help the less fortunate and rein in the excesses of the market an administration that has funneled trillions to Wall Street while pushing wage and pension cuts for workers (the auto bailout, the Detroit bankruptcy), reduced health benefits and increased out-of-pocket costs for millions of workers (Obamacare) and enabled the biggest banks to strengthen their grip on the economy.
Behind the lies of Krugman and others like him is contempt and outright hatred for the working class. This is commonly articulated by the liberal establishment and its pseudo-left hangers-on in the form of denunciations of the white working classin keeping with their reactionary obsession with racial and identity politics. They either ignore the broad support for Sanders from white workers who are attracted to what they mistakenly believe or hope to be a socialist campaign, or equate it with support for Trump among more backward layersbranding it as an expression of white privilege.
Kevin Williamson, writing in the right-wing National Review, recently gave vent in unadulterated form to the anti-working class outlook of these social layers, stating: The truth about these dysfunctional, downscale communities is that they deserve to die. Economically, they are negative assets. Morally, they are indefensible the white American underclass is in thrall to a vicious, selfish culture whose main products are misery and used heroin needles.
Behind the crisis of the American two-party system revealed in the 2016 elections is a vast class polarization and political radicalization of the working class. Trump reflects the turn of the financial mafia of which he is a part toward fascistic politics. He has been able to attract support from certain sections of the working class primarily because of the viciously anti-working class policies of Obama and the Democrats.
The many more workers moving to support Sanders are looking for a genuinely radical and socialist alternative to capitalism. They will not find it in the Vermont senator, whose campaign is not an expression of working class militancy and radicalization, but rather the response of sections of the ruling class to the danger posed by this development. His conscious aim is to preempt the emergence of an independent political movement of workers and youth and suffocate social opposition by channeling it back behind the Democratic Party.
None of the candidates in any serious way discuss the real issues before American working peopleand workers all over the world: the rising danger of world war, the growth of social inequality and the movement toward dictatorship. These issues must be brought into the election campaign as part of the struggle to build an international socialist movement of the working class against war and imperialism.
On March 18, the European Union (EU) struck a deal in Brussels with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu to make way for the mass deportation of refugees arriving in Greece to Turkey.
The agreement aims to seal off Europes borders to the millions of desperate people fleeing the social misery produced by a series of wars and military interventions led by the imperialist powers. It is a flagrant violation of international law, leaving the refugees at the mercy of the Turkish government for which it will receive up to 6 billion in financial assistance and fast-tracking of its request to join the EU.
When the draft EU-Turkey agreement was first debated in the Spanish Congress, on March 11, Socialist Party (PSOE) leader Pedro Sanchez called it a pact of shame that was immoral and illegal while pseudo-left Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias tweeted that he felt ashamed of the EU, which systematically is not respecting human rights.
A spokesperson for the right-wing Ciudadanos (Citizens) party, Miguel Angel Gutierrez, said the agreement was a symptom of weakness because it was subcontracting EU authority to Turkey. The leader of the Stalinist United Left (IU), Cayo Lara, echoed the approach of Citizens, stating that the refugee crisis was the result of the EU being subordinated to US geostrategic interests in the Middle East and that it must start having its own and sovereign policies.
As a result, the draft agreement was defeated, jeopardising the whole EU-Turkey negotiations, which required the approval of all 28 EU member states. Only the Popular Party (PP) led by caretaker Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, voted in favour.
However, just five days later, on March 16, Rajoy was able to get the unanimous approval of Congress to an 11-point joint declaration. Under the fig leaf of humanitarian concern, the expulsion of refugees to Turkey was approved. The only caveat was that deportations should be delayed until any application for asylum a refugee may make has been processed.
The first two points of the declaration read:
1. We manifest our opposition to the adoption of any agreement with Turkey that expressly or indirectly establishes the possibility of proceeding with collective expulsions to Turkish territory, or to any non-member state of the European Union.
2. We consider it essential that the declaration or agreement expressly guarantee that any expulsion to Turkey will only be possible when it is adopted following the definitive outcome of the corresponding individual asylum file with all guarantees.
Spains acting PP Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo declared, Anyone arriving on European territory must have the right to individualized attention, to file an asylum request that will be taken into consideration, and the right to appeal if the request is denied.
This is the height of hypocrisy. Since the Syrian refugee crisis erupted, the PP government has stepped up its attempts to seal the country off from asylum seekers. In 2015, less than half of those who applied for asylum in Spain had their applications accepted. Of the 14,000 that Rajoy announced the country would accept in September 2015, only 18 have arrived, according to the Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid.
Congress not only ratified the expulsion of refugees, but it also demanded the EU communitise its migration policy, make it binding on all member states and develop the European Asylum System. In other words, it was a demand, signed by Podemos, for the EU to beef up its Fortress Europe policy.
In the event, the final EU-Turkey deal statement included the PSOE-Podemos-IU fig leaf saying that migrants arriving in the Greek islands will be duly registered and any application for asylum will be processed individually thus excluding any kind of collective expulsion.
Hypocritical talk from Spains politicians about human rights and respect for international law is a cover for the defence of the national interest of the Spanish bourgeoisie. A major concern of the ruling elite over the EU-Turkey deal is that the closure of the Balkan route will encourage more sea crossings from North Africa to Spain and increase pressure on the countrys African enclaves, Ceuta and Melilla, in Morocco. The EUs foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, has warned that there are already nearly half a million displaced people in neighbouring Libya.
The model on which the EU is basing its mass expulsion policy with Turkey is in fact inspired by the decade-long close collaboration of the Spanish and Moroccan authorities. Spain gives Morocco benefits and political support in exchange for keeping migrants and refugees from crossing the borders into the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla in Africa on the Moroccan coast, and making the sea journey across the Strait of Gibraltar. This is enforced by systematic violations of the migrants rights, according to a wide range of NGOs including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.
The Open Migration organisation points out in its February 29 report, A political laboratory: how Spain closed the borders to refugees, that of the 1 million sea arrivals in Europe in 2015, only a few thousand occurred in Spain. Out of the 1.3 million asylum applications made, only 13,000 were lodged in the country, despite the fact that Spain is the only EU member that has territory in Africa.
The report describes how Spain has become a political and technological laboratory for border surveillance. The Integrated External Surveillance System (Sistema Integrado de Vigilancia Exterior, SIVE) introduced in 2000 has expanded into a complex control apparatus, constantly processing data received from boat radars operating in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, video feed from watch posts along the coast, satellite and aerial signals. As a result, barely a few hundred boat people now reach the Canary Islands, compared to 30,000 or more in 2006.
According to the EU border agency Frontex, it was also the very good operational cooperation, between Spain, Senegal, Mauritania and Morocco that significantly reduced the pressure on the route towards the Canary Islands and south of Spain.
The PSOE government that was in power from 2004 to 2011 under Jose Luis Zapatero was responsible for these measures. It turned Ceuta and Melilla into what Open Migration describes as the symbol of exclusion surrounded by kilometres-long six-metre high razor wire fences, watch towers, CCTV, spotlights, noise and movement sensors, patrolled by police, drones and satellites.
The treatment being meted out to refugees has exposed the role of Podemos and the IU. They make no criticism of the savage anti-migrant record of PSOE as they plead with Sanchez to form a left coalition administration with them. The country has been without a government since the December election produced a stalemate.
Both parties continue to sow illusions that the EU can be democratised to serve citizens interests, rather than being a mechanism for the subjugation of the continent to the dictates of the financial markets, a forum in which competing states fight among themselves and jointly perpetrate a social counterrevolution against the working class.
Likewise, they have remained completely silent in regards to the Greek governments role, led by their pseudo-left ally Syriza, as guardians of Fortress Europe. There is no question that both would carry out the same policies should they come to power.
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Greeces Syriza government detains refugees
[26 March 2016]
The Greeks: Agamemnon to Alexander the Great, at the Field Museum in Chicago, November 25, 2015April 10, 2016. The exhibition catalog is edited by Maria Andreadaki-Vlazaki and Anastasia Balaska. Hellenic Republic Ministry of Culture and Sports. Athens, Kapon Editions, 2014.
The most comprehensive exhibition of Greek art and artifacts ever to tour outside Greece opened at the Field Museum of Chicago on November 25. This highly recommended show will be on view until April 10. From Chicago, it will move to the National Geographic Museum in Washington, D.C. and be on display from May 26 through October 9.
The Greeks were a diverse group of peoples inhabiting mainland Greece and the Greek islands, and, in ancient times, the coast of what is now Turkey. They shared a common language and religion, and many of the same political institutions.
Over the course of the several millennia of their ascendancy, the Greeks passed through a variety of social formations: from early class societies on the basis of the Neolithic Revolution in agriculture that began some 10,000 years ago in western Asia to the societies, based to a large degree on slave labor, which provided the material basis for a flowering of Greek culture and politics.
Classical beauty, wrote Hegel in his Aesthetics, with its infinite range of content, material, and form is the gift vouchsafed to the Greek people, and we must honour this people for having produced art in its supreme vitality.
Greek achievements include Homers epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey; the classical Greek drama of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides; the sculpture of Phidias; the foundations of Western philosophy; the political achievement of Athenian democracy; as well as the conquests of Alexander the Great. Hellenic culture had an impact on world history unlike few other civilizations, and to fully understand the development of modern society, it is necessary to study the impressive culture established by the Greeks.
The Greeks was organized by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Education and Religious Affairs in Athens, in cooperation with curators from the four participating museums. It has already toured in Canada to wide acclaim, appearing at the Montreal Archaeology and History Complex and the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Quebec.
The Greeks comes at a time when harsh austerity measures have been imposed on the Greek people and the tourism industry has suffered. The Greek government has been driven by the ongoing economic crisis to sponsor a blockbuster exhibition it hopes will attract tourists from North America.
Greece today is a country being bled white by the big European banks. Unemployment stands at over 25 percent, pensions have been slashed, the health care system devastated and homelessness and hunger have increased to levels unheard of since the Second World War.
The pseudo-left government of Syriza (Coalition of the Radical Left) was elected in January 2015 by millions of Greek workers in the hopes it would fight austerity. Syriza quickly betrayed those hopes and made even deeper inroads into the quality of life for millions of Greeks. Its measures have had a devastating impact not only on the health and wellbeing of Greeks, but on the legacy of Greek culture itself. In 2012 museums laid off of 30-50 percent of their staffs, with further cuts in the years following. Greek police have estimated that since austerity measures began in 2009, the theft of antiquities has increased by 30 percent.
In October last year, the Syriza government raised the price of admission to hundreds of museums and historical sites by between 66 and 150 percent.
The exhibition at the Field Museum brings ancient Greek history to life, through some 500 artifacts in all, loaned from 21 museums throughout the country. The curators have organized the contents chronologically and thematically into a meet the people experience encompassing six diverse and lively zones.
The Bronze Age (3500-1050 B.C.) is the star attraction of the first half of the exhibition. Civilization advanced rapidly from its Stone Age beginnings, when bronzean alloy of copper and tinbecame the principal material for making tools and weapons.
The Cycladic, Minoan and Mycenaean cultures benefited from their positions on important sea and land routes that allowed them to develop extensive trading networks.
Cycladic civilization flourished at the end of the third millennium B.C. Its sculpture is characterized by an abstract treatment of the human form. Marble statuettes with folded arms and oval, flat heads are typical.
The Minoans developed a sophisticated culture on the island of Crete. Precious metals and other materials were abundant (e.g., tin, copper, silver, gold, ivory). A wealthy ruling class supported the arts. Examples of Kemares ware (pottery) are impressive, with dramatic geometric motifs. A goddess figurine with upraised arms and cylindrical skirt has a bird atop her head, symbolizing divinity.
Mycenaean society developed in southern regions of mainland Greece, with the emergence of large towns anchored by great palaces. Mycenae became a powerful government and cultural center, dominated by a military aristocracy.
The Mask of Agamemnon, the mythical king of Mycenaea victor in the Trojan Waris the stunning centerpiece of the exhibition, towering over the other displays. This breathtaking gold funerary mask, 3,000 years old, was discovered in a royal grave by German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, who exclaimed: I have gazed upon the eyes of Agamemnon! However, the burial had taken place three centuries too early to be that of Agamemnon. A replica is presented here.
Mycenaean metalwork is opulent and exotic. Lions and eagles were favorite decorative motifs in this warrior culture, symbols of power and valor. A dagger on view featuring a gold inlaid spiral decoration is a masterpiece of Mycenaean craftsmanship.
The first writing systems were syllabary (a set of written characters representing syllables and serving the purpose of an alphabet) scripts on clay tablets. The visitor should not miss a display of tablets with a script known as Linear B, an early version of Greek, developed around 1300 B.C., found in Minoan and Mycenaean contexts on Crete and mainland Greece. Linear B was deciphered in 1952 by Michael Ventris, an English linguist, thereby demonstrating that the Mycenaeans were one of the first Greek-speaking cultures. A short film illustrates how pictogramssymbolizing wine, olive oil, armor, animals, men or womenwere burned into the wet clay.
With the collapse of Mycenaean civilization, the Greeks lost their writing system and it was not until the Eighth Century B.C. that they borrowed an alphabet from the Phoeniciansanother great seafaring peopleand adapted it to the Greek language. A prime requirement in choosing an alphabet was its ability to transcribe complex epic poetry from the oral tradition.
Homers Iliad and Odyssey, epics written in the Eighth century B.C., depict events occurring at the dawn of the turbulent Iron Age, in tribal kingdoms along the periphery of mainland Greece. These epic poems, one of the foundations of Western literature, have a universal theme: the struggles of human beings with nature (which appear in the ancient world as fate) and with each other. Most scholars believe that the tales existed within an oral tradition, some 500 to 700 years before Homer wrote them down.
In the Iliad, Homer tells the story of the Trojan War. A famous scene from the Iliad painted on a clay vase of the late sixth century B.C. depicts the Greek warrior Achilles avenging the death of his close friend Patroclus, who had been killed by Hectora prince of Troy. Achilles kills Hector in revenge and drags his body along the ground, tied to a chariot.
A chilling reconstruction of a Homeric funeral pyre is on view from Eleutherna in Crete. The warrior hero has been cremated, but his enemy captive has been decapitated, trapped between the worlds of the living and the dead. These funerary rituals were described in the Iliad.
A helmet made from the tusks of wild boars, of the type worn by Odysseus in the Iliad, is displayed, with an inlay made from hippopotamus ivory.
In the Odyssey Homer tells the story of the return voyage of Odysseus, a leading Greek general, from the Trojan War. Artifacts on display include a clay vase fragment showing the blinding of Polyphemus, a man-eating Cyclops, and a vase painting showing Odysseus enchanted by the music and voices of the seductive Sirensboth referring to episodes in the Odyssey.
A selection of bronze and gold helmets (10 in all) buried with Bottiaean tribal ruler-warriors shows us the face of war in the Archaic period (seventh to sixth century B.C.). The viewer should note the decorative gold mouthpieces, gilded swords, javelins and other weaponry. The Bottiaeans inhabited Central Macedonia.
By the eighth century B.C., the polis (autonomous city-state) had become the basic political unit of Greek civilization. These societies evolved through various forms of governmentruled by aristocracies, oligarchies, tyrannies and, finally, democracies. In the fifth and fourth centuries B.C., Athens was the most powerful polis in Greece. All of these societies had an economic basis in agriculture, especially the cultivation of wheat, wine and olive oil, farmed by a mixture of free peasant and slave labor.
In 480 B.C. at the Battle of Thermopylae, the Spartans under King Leonidas staged a heroic resistance and experienced a bitter defeat at the hands of the Persian Empire, which had attempted to bring the Greek city-states under its sway. Athenian victories over the Persians soon paved the way for Athenian dominance in the Classical Period. A marble statue of Leonidas from the Acropolis of Sparta is prominently displayed.
The Classical Period in Athens represents what archaeologists refer to as an authoritative cultural standard, characterized by developments in philosophy, literature, the arts and sciences and democracy.
Athens was one of the worlds first democracies. Citizens (most free adult men, including both rich and poor) were expected to serve on juries and participate in civic life. A number of small objects used by the courts are displayed, including a pinakion (jurors identification ticket); ballots (round bronze disks), for acquittal or conviction of the accused; court tokens used for paying jurors fees; and wage tokens used to pay salaries of citizens who were chosen by lot to serve a public function.
The spirit of civic competition was evident in the inter-city Olympic Games held every four years. The graphic identification of this in the exhibition is a relief in marble, showing an athlete crowning himself from 460 B.C., considered a metaphor for democracy.
A copy of the famous Stele of Democracy (Law Against Tyranny) is on viewa decree from 337/336 B.C., which depicts the figure of Democracy crowning the enthroned Demos (the people).
With the victory of King Philip II over the Athenians in 338 B.C., Greek power shifted north to Macedonia. Philip was a patron of the arts and culture, and the portion of the show treating this period contains several of the most dramatic artifacts in the exhibition.
A marble statuette of Alexander the Great, achieving immortality as the woodland god Pan with horns, from the early Hellenistic Period (the period associated with the Greeks after Alexanders conquests), is the finest piece of sculpture in the exhibition. Pan is usually depicted as a grotesque creature, part goat. But here, Alexander is the ideal of male beauty.
A spectacular gold enamel myrtle wreath, worn by Queen Meda, wife of Philip II, is described in the catalog as one of the most remarkable gold objects of the ancient world. The myrtle plant is associated with the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite.
The exhibition concludes with the death of Alexander the Great and the spread of Hellenism throughout Asia Minor, the Near East, Egypt and India. Hellenistic civilization thrived in the third and second centuries B.C., until it was overwhelmed by Roman power.
After its loss of political dominance, Athens remained an important cultural center. Its schools of philosophy attracted students from throughout the Mediterranean region. Finally, the Byzantine (East Roman) Emperor Justinian, deeming the pagan teaching of philosophy too threatening to Christianity, forbade the teaching of philosophy in Athens in 529 A.D.
The ancient Greek myth of Prometheus, the titan who stole fire from the gods and gave it to mankind, a revolutionary act, was Karl Marxs favorite. In Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus, the father of dramatic tragedy, fire is the key to wisdom, ensuring humanitys survival and the development of arts and industry. The brilliant craftsmanship and imaginative genius of the artifacts on display at the Field Museum bring out the reality the myth speaks to.
From the introductory film to the closing wall texts, the exhibition comments eloquently on the legacy of eternal Greece, which lives on within human culture as a whole.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull suffered a humiliating defeat at yesterdays Australian Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting with the state and territory leaders.
Just 48 hours after publicly floating a supposed grand plan involving the restructuring of the Australian federation to give the states income tax powers, Turnbull was forced to withdraw the proposal.
The COAG communique declared: There was not a consensus among the states and territories to support further consideration of the proposal to levy income tax on their own behalf. This dashed Turnbulls hopes of getting through at least a face-saving formulation that the COAG leaders agreed to consider the plan.
There isnt anything like a consensus, Turnbull acknowledged at the COAG media conference. His model was finished, he declared. Its withdrawn, its not acceptable.
Two days earlier, Turnbull had suddenly announced that he would ask the state and territory chief ministers to agree to the most fundamental reform to the federation in generations. But he provided no details, and reportedly gave the COAG leaders nothing in writing, even at the meeting itself.
This defeat provides yet another insight into the accelerating crisis of Turnbulls government. The Australians political editor Dennis Shanahan wrote today it made it look like the new Prime Minister cannot deliver on his big ideas because of a lack of authority, negotiating skill or preparation.
Turnbull, however, was not the only one involved. The entire cabinet apparently signed off on the proposal. According to the Australian, Cabinet Secretary Arthur Sinodinos and Treasurer Scott Morrison had worked on the plan, along with Assistant Productivity Minister Peter Hendy, a former business industry spokesman.
In reality, Turnbulls grand idea was a scheme by his Liberal-National Coalition government to make the state and territory leaders bear the blame for sweeping cuts to health, education and other social spending.
Under the proposal, in return for partially restoring income tax powers to the states from 2020 onward, the federal government would slash its grants for public hospitals and other social programs. Most significantly, it would cease providing any funding at all for public schools, while continuing to finance religious and other private schools.
The chief ministers, both Coalition and Labor, immediately threw out the plan, fearing popular opposition and an electoral backlash would erupt over deep cuts to the already chronically-underfunded state public hospital and school systems.
According to the Australian, the draft communique seemed to keep Mr Turnbulls idea alive, but two Labor premiersVictorias Daniel Andrews and Queenslands Annastacia Palaszczukspoke out at 10.30 a.m., one hour into the meeting, to ensure a new sentence was inserted to drop the proposal.
Treasurer Morrison, Turnbulls chief finance minister, reportedly backed that move, further pointing to the rifts and crisis wracking the government. The chief ministers agreed to consider rivalbut equally vagueproposals by Morrison to share personal income tax revenue with the states and reduce the number of tied Commonwealth grants to the states.
The tax-shifting scheme was Turnbulls second desperate manoeuvre in two weeks. It followed his abrupt move on March 21 to threaten a rare double dissolution election of both houses of parliament on July 2, in at a bid to break a deadlock in the Senate, where a number of so-called independents have blocked key government spending cuts since 2014.
Six months after ousting his predecessor Tony Abbott, Turnbull is trying to answer mounting criticisms from the corporate media and financial elite that he has done nothing to deliver on his promise to better sell the full austerity offensive that Abbott had failed to inflict on a deeply disaffected population.
Since Abbott was deposed via a party-room coup last September, the economic situation has worsened sharply. The two-decade mining boom has further imploded, driven by the slowdown in China and the intensifying global impact of the 2008 financial breakdown. Continuing falls in export commodity prices, mine closures and corporate collapses have badly eroded big business profits and share prices. Government tax revenues have been hit, causing multi-billion dollar blowouts in state and federal budget deficits.
While the chief ministers sank Turnbulls plan, they had no basic differences with imposing the burden of this sharp reversal onto the backs of the working class, including via severe cuts to public hospitals and schools.
At the COAG media conference, various premiers protested, for electoral purposes, about the fiscal gap between their depleted revenues and the expenditure needed to maintain services. However, they effectively endorsed the $80 billion cut to health and education funding over the next decade that was unveiled in the Abbott governments 2014 budget, but blocked in the Senate by the combined votes of the Labor opposition and various independents.
For all their posturing about this gap, the Labor premiers joined their Coalition colleagues in expressing gratitude for a pitiful $2.9 billion in hospital funding offered by the federal government for 201720, to supposedly make up for the $57 billion due to be cut by 202425. They also agreed to no extra funding for schools, to cover the $23 billion already cut from the education budget, in return for discussions on new funding arrangements by early 2017.
Turnbull declared that the financing of hospitals and schools would have to take place within the existing fiscal envelope by stretching our dollars further because all governments faced serious structural budget problems.
What this will mean in practice is a deepening crisis in public hospitals and schools. Even more hospital beds will close and waiting times will lengthen further, endangering the lives of increasing numbers of patients. Schools in working-class and regional areas will be deprived of the most essential facilities and support services.
Turnbull also punctured the fraud that has surrounded the extra $80 billion in funding, which was promised to the chief ministers by Julia Gillards Labor government at a 2011 COAG meeting. Turnbull observed that the pledge was never credibly funded.
In fact, the 2011 package was concocted just as the mining boom was starting to show signs of ending. In response, Gillard began gutting social spending, including by cutting sole parents off welfare benefits, but held out the phony prospect of expanded funding for schools and hospitals in the decade ahead.
The continuity between Labors cuts and those brought forward under Abbott and Turnbull was underscored by a provision in yesterdays COAG communique. It said that the $2.9 billion hospital funding agreement preserves important parts of the existing system, including activity based funding and the national efficient price to reduce unnecessary hospitalisations.
These were mechanisms fashioned by the Labor government to drive down health funding by setting ever-lower efficiency prices for medical procedures.
Media commentators expressed bewilderment at the COAG debacle. Australian editor-at-large Paul Kelly, for example, commented that this had been a bizarre end to a bizarre week. At the same time, Kelly claimed it was a precious defeat for Turnbull because it spared him from going to the looming federal election saddled with an over-ambitious big idea that exposed the brittleness of his government.
This alarm is driven by corporate and financial requirements for the government to do much more than slice $80 billion off health and education spending. The ruling elite is demanding a full-scale assault on social spending, along with the slashing of jobs, wages and working conditions.
Todays Australian editorial declared the need to end the unaffordable level of free health and education services and the largesse of welfare payments. It concluded that Turnbull had to sell that unpopular but vital message to voters.
Hidden away in the COAG communique was information that police powers are being boosted, and fundamental legal and democratic rights overturned. Under the cover of countering violent extremism, the chief ministers agreed to draft two draconian sets of matching federal and state laws. One would give police greater powers to detain suspects without charge, and the other would permit the indefinite detention of high-risk offenders after they finished prison sentences.
As with the previous measures introduced in the name of combatting terrorism, these provisions set new precedents, which will be used more broadly against those regarded as a threat to the government and the existing economic and political order, including workers and young people fighting the ever-escalating assault on fundamental social rights.
6 years, 6 months ago by Scott Hardy
Attempted Murder trial set for May 9th
A Quincy man, alleged to have shot a man in late November on the city's northwest side, will go on trial in May after pleading Not Guilty.
A Preliminary Hearing for Nicholas Gavin, 23, was held Friday afternoon in Adams County Circuit court. Gavins accused of attempted 1st degree murder and Aggravated Battery in the November 28th shooting of Robert Phillips outside his home in the 300 block of Chestnut. At that hearing, it was revealed that Phillips was shot in the chest, just above his heart, and suffered a punctured lung and two broken ribs.
The shooting resulted from an argument between Phillips and Gavin during a party in Phillips's home. According to one witness, Gavin was handed a gun by another person at the party, Tyquan "Buka" Campbell. Campbell was one of the men who fought with Steson Crider, shortly before he shot 12 year old Ray Humphrey Junior last March.
Gavin is in the Adams County Jail on 1 million dollars' bond. His trial is scheduled to start May 9th.
6 years, 6 months ago by Scott Hardy
Hannibal police say they'll host a drug take-back program, as part of an anti-drug initiative.
The HPD announced Friday it's started a prescription drug take back program, as part of the Bringing the HEET Initiative with the Marion County Sheriff's Office. Police say anyone can drop off their unused prescription
and over the counter medications at the front lobby of the Hannibal Police Department, Monday through Friday from 8 to 4. No needles, syringes or liquid medications will be accepted.
Chief Lyndell Davis says the program can help prevent abuse that could lead to people seeking out illegal street drugs like heroin. Davis also says that unwanted prescription drugs sometimes are sold illegally, which creates addiction and criminal activity.
6 years, 6 months ago QPD
Jason A Yeakley (33) Quincy for FTA Seatbelt at 18th & Vermont on 4/1/16. Lodged
Ted A. McMahon, 32, 616 Elm for No Valid DL at 10th & Oak on 03-24-16. NTA
Ashley N. Corbin, 25, Philadelphia, MO for Disorderly Conduct - Filing a False Police Report at 1005 Broadway on 03-24-16. NTA
Stephen J. A. Mosley, 26, 1405 N. 6th #A for Possession of Cannabis 2.5 - 10 Grams at 521 Vermont on 03-23-16. NTA
Stephen D. Morris, 32, Homeless, for FTA - DWLS at 5th & Ohio on 04-01-16. Lodged
Elizabeth A. Wade, 35, 1135 State for DWLS, Operation of an Uninsured Motor Vehicle, and Expired Registration Sticker at 12th & Maine on 03-29-16. Cash bond
Olivia A. Atkinson, 22, Griggsville, IL for Operation of an Uninsured Motor Vehicle at 3rd & Oak on 03-18-16. DL
Travis L. Oenning, 23, Quincy for Possession of Meth and Burglary from an incident on 03/04/16 at 2023 1/2 Broadway - lodged -
Melissa S. Hartman, 36, Quincy for Expired Registration - PTC
Darius J. Burse, 18, Chicago for Speeding - PTC
John E. Maglioacchetti, 18, Loraine for Improper Driving - PTC
Deante D. Cooper, 28, Quincy for No Insurance - NTA
ATLANTA (AP) - Lawmakers and advocacy groups are digging in as they await Gov. Nathan Deal's decision on a controversial gun bill.
Deal has until May 3 to decide whether he will sign a bill to allow college and university students ages 21 and up to carry a concealed handgun on campus.
While some legislators believe Deal's conservative reputation will survive in the event of a veto, other advocacy groups are saying it could impact Deal's previous A-plus rating with the NRA.
Rep. Buzz Brockway, a Lawrenceville Republican and co-sponsor of the bill, said supporters will continue to work with the governor, even if he opts to veto it.
"Mr. Prime Minister, the President of the United States is on the line. May I put him through?" Prime Minister Isaac Herzog loosens his tie, sinks deep into his chair, picks up the phone and puts the receiver to his ear.
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"Hello Mr. President, the situation cant go on like this. You have to talk with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, and demand that he help calm this situation down. Since the establishment of my government, in May 2015, weve been accommodating him as much as we can. But the incitement against us and the terror attacks continue unabated. Since the beginning of the escalation, four months ago, dozens of innocent civilians have killed and more than 300 wounded. And this isn't just happening in the territories. It's also happening at the heart of Tel Aviv, in Petah Tikva, and in the Israeli capital. You can probably imagine that the head of the opposition, Benjamin Netanyahu, is rejoicing at this and saying that if he were prime minister, he wouldve already put an end to the intifada."
A smile comes to Herzogs lips when the American president tells him he knows all about Netanyahu's tricks, but that even Bibi knows he would not have been able to eradicate the lone wolf terrorism.
Herzog. Convening the security cabinet. (Photo: Knesset Spokesperson)
"Tonight, I'm supposed to speak at the Knesset, and then convene the Security Cabinet. I'm in favor of negotiations, but we may have to announce a complete closure of Judea and Samaria until further notice and take drastic measures. I expect you to support Israel."
Knesset Speaker Merav Michaeli, a member of Herzog's Zionist Union party, is unable to control the commotion in the assembly. Forty opposition members, led by Netanyahu, have signed a petition demanding that the Prime Minister hold a security discussion and answer their questions. Before the Prime Minister's remarks, the floor was given to MKs from the coalition and from the opposition. MK Ze'ev Elkin of the Likud party bellowed, "You are incompetent. People are afraid to walk the streets. Just hand over the reins and go home. You have lost the public's trust."
Coalition members interrupt him. Michaeli pounds her gavel again and again. "Friends, we'd really like to proceed to the vote."
Welfare Minister Eitan Cabel is up next at the podium, addressing the opposition. "In difficult days like these," he says, "we expect you to stand by the government and not divide the nation."
"I'll remove you," roars Speaker Michaeli at MK Bezalel Smotrich (of the Bayit Yehudi party), who shouts, "You are done, go home. Let us show you how to deal with the Palestinians."
Defense Minister Omer Bar-Lev, who once again presented his plan for separation from the Palestinians just a few days earlier, said flatly, "The government has no intention to ignore the recent attacks. We will reach each and every attacker." Laughter could be heard coming from the direction of the opposition's seats. "This will not prevent the next attack. The next victim," MK Gilad Erdan shouted at the podium. Former Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz exalted the contribution of the outgoing Netanyahu administration in improving the economy, lowering housing prices and the cost of living.
"While you freeze construction in Judea and Samaria, we expanded the construction, maintained a settlement project, and added tens of thousands of housing units in in=-demand areas. And despite the tense security situation, we managed to reduce housing prices," he scolded the coalition, "You received a thriving economy from us, and now - because you do not act against terror - your Finance Minister, Shelly Yachimovich, cant even bring in even a single investor, and the natural gas remains offshore. Shame on you."
Merav Michaeli. Knesset Speaker under Herzog? (Photo: Ido Erez)
Finance Minister Yachimovich demanded the right to speak, and began counterattacking Steinitz him fiercely. "We got a thriving economy? In what imaginary world do you live? The deficit stood at over 5 percent, young people left the country for the benefit of Milkys in Berlin (Milky is an Israeli chocolate pudding snack. A small controversy broke out after it was revealed that a Milky-like snack was being sold for a significantly cheaper price in Berlin, supposedly highlighting the high cost of living in Israel. -ed), and housing prices are going through the roof because of your economic lapses. How dare you say that we aren't doing enough? You left behind a political shambles that affected the economy. Now sit quietly, and let us clean up the mess you made."
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni clarified the government's position, saying, "Our hand is extended for peace, but the Palestinians and the international community must understand that there is a limit to our patience. We expect to receive backup, not boycotts."
Herzog's speech at the assembly began at 8pm, alongside the evening news on Israel's three biggest channels. His gaze was determined, his voice steady. His hair has whitened in the one year that's passed since he was elected Prime Minister. For about 40 minutes, during which he was interrupted repeatedly by right wingers, he promised that his government is doing all that it can to act against lone wolf terrorism. "Netanyahu was Prime Minister up until a year ago. Aside from isolating us from the world he did nothing, and now he's moved into a pundit's position," he said. "Where were you, Mr. Netanyahu? Why did you do nothing? We, however, will not hesitate to act aggressively. In the words of Yitzhak Rabin, I will work for peace as if there is no terrorism, and will fight terrorism as if there is no peace process. Hence I am going to the Cabinet meeting, where we will decide on a series of steps. "
This was the first Cabinet meeting since the terror wave began. Herzog consistently avoided convening it using various excuses. The extended meeting was held at the Defense Ministry offices in Tel Aviv, in a room that first Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion had used in the past. Herzog, a history buff and lover of symbolism, insisted that the meeting be held there. While Cabinet members received a comprehensive review by IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot, Shin Bet Director Yoram Cohen, who was nearing the end of his term, and Israel Police Commissioner Roni Alsheikh, a right wing demonstration began right across the street, near the Azrieli towers. The thousands who came to the "Let the IDF win" demonstration were looking forward to hearing speeches by right-wing leaders Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud and Naftali Bennett of Bayit Yehudi.
Bennett spoke first. After adjusting the yarmulke on his head, he said, "During Operation Protective Edge, when the Netanyahu administration was in power, I called for the eradication of terrorism. We acted. We found Hamas' attack tunnels and demolished them. I called, back then, for the destruction of the Hamas regime. If it were not for the election, leading to the rise of leftist rule with the outside support of the Arabs, we would have stopped the attacks. Instead, they give terrorism a prize and freeze construction in the (disputed) territories. We would have been building on every hill, settling every outpost. Judea and Samaria have always been - and always will be - ours."
Netanyahu. Promises to defeat terrorism. (Photo: Chaim Tzach, Israeli GPO)
Between talk and action
The protestors' shouts could be heard in the conference room, swelling when Opposition Leader Benjamin Netanyahu approached the podium. Wearing a brown leather jacket, a kind of fancy military battle-dress, he asked the audience to let him speak uninterrupted. "But you can applaud," he told them.
"Just recently, I published another edition of my book on the war on terror. This is my specialty. In my book I list a number of steps that could defeat terrorism completely. Among them are the demolition of terrorists' homes, the enactment of a law allowing the deportation of terrorists to Gaza, freezing Palestinian funds until terror stops, instituting of an indefinite closure and revoking VIP cards from the heads of the Palestinian Authority. This government is weak. It does not oppose terrorists with an iron fist, so they dare to raise their heads and hit our city centers.
"When I was Prime Minister, I visited the Gaza Division in the south, and I said that we were conducting the fight for Israel's security on several fronts. Keeping the peace on the Temple Mount, in the West Bank, and in Gaza. Each sector can catch fire and inflame the other sectors. Today, I stand here with former Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon, and I am convinced that the situation is out of control. When I was Prime Minister I managed policies to calm the situation, while conducting action against terrorists and against the forces of terrorism, in a responsible and measured manner, with strength - with a lot of strength when needed. The current government is not doing this."
"We say to our enemies - we will not allow intrusion of our borders or an attack on our territory and our people. I dont get the impression that the message was understood among decision makers here. The situation is deteriorating, and I say to Prime Minister Herzog: Let's schedule new elections and allow the people to decide if they want your reign to continue."
At the end of the Cabinet meeting, the decisions were released to the press. "After long consultations," the official statement said, "the Cabinet, at the direction of Prime Minister Isaac Herzog, has decided, with the advice of the authorized bodies, to recommend that the government immediately begin shuttering breaches in the separation fence in the Jerusalem area, and that it begin construction of a new fence in Tarqumiyah.
MK Naftali Bennett. "Judea and Samaria have always been - and always will be - ours." (Photo: EPA)
"It was also decided to promote the quick enactment of a law punishing transporters and hosts of illegal aliens, to close inciting media outlets, and to deny work and trade permits on a larger scale. It also was decided to prevent Palestinian travel on some main roads and to recruit 1,000 more police officers for community policing missions, in order to increase civilians' sense of security. At the same time, the Prime Minister is calling for the Palestinian Authority President to open negotiations towards an interim agreement that will lead to a permanent arrangement."
Prime Minister Herzog summed up the meeting, saying, "We will not hesitate to strike strongly, but only the restoration of trust between the parties will bring an end to this cycle of violence. Unlike his predecessor, who was strong in words, we focus on deeds."
Meanwhile, outside the conference room, the demonstrators' voices were loud and clear. The frantic mob carried signs protesting the Herzog government, shouting "Herzog go home," "Go Netanyahu," "Only a right-wing government will bring back quiet to the streets," Only Netanyahu will bring security.
Nechama.Duek@Netvision.net.il
There is a tendency to sometimes adopt an aggregative and erroneous attitude towards BDS, the famous anti-Israel boycott movement. First, we should make it clear that BDS is mostly an American movement, with a much smaller representation in Europe, especially in England.
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Unlike product labeling, it is not led by governments and parliaments, but largely by students, academics and intellectuals. The movement is supported by famous members of the public, such as Stephen Hawking, Noam Chomsky, many artists (the most maligned of them being Roger Waters), lecturers and academic organizations, labor organizations, national pension funds and others. It is also aided by, and even led tactically and strategically by, Palestinian officials.
BDS opposes the Israeli occupation in all of the territories, including Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, supports the right of return for all diaspora Palestinians, and full civil rights and equality for Israel's Arab citizens. It is impossible to ignore the fact that a large part of the organizers of BDS and its supporters hate Israel, either its very existence or because of its actions in the occupied territories.
BDS demonstration (Photo: EPA)
But to conduct a genuine debate when it comes to the BDS movement, we must first remove the thick toxic smokescreen that the government has skillfully spread. This smokescreen has caused the confusion of concepts, the distortion of boundaries between areas of discourse, and incitement, so much so that it's difficult to understand which enemy focuses on what matter.
It is important to know that there is no similarity between the demands regarding marking settlement products and the boycott movement. On the contrary, there is a fundamental difference.
Almost all European countries oppose the boycott, and some even have laws prohibiting it. All they say is that occupied territories are not a part of Israel. They want to encourage cooperation and trade with Israel, as well as maintain joint funds and promote scientific research, but they oppose the occupation and oppression.
The conceptual and symbolic separation between Israel and the territories allows Israel's supporters to support it, invest in it, and strengthen their ties with the Jewish nation, knowing that their investments are not directed to empowering the occupation. That explains why the Netanyahu administration and its supporters want to distort the difference.
Another argument is that BDS and product marking stem from anti-Semitic motives. This implies that if the Palestinians were occupied and oppressed by Buddhists and not Jews, the world would sit satisfied and quiet and support it. A similar argument to the one that says terrorists are out to kill us just because we are Jews. Here as well, it's clear that governmental interest is to increase the public's sense of fear.
BDS demonstration in Australia. (Photo: citizenside.com)
It seems to me that the main questions we need to worry about as Israelis are different than these. Will the boycott movement, which is growing, eventually win? And more importantly, would its victory be a good or bad thing? Because what should a person support if they believe that the continuation of the situation as it is would be disastrous for us, our children, and our grandchildren?
What should a person do if they believe that Israel could not exist without standing firmly on its two legs of power and justice, and that occupation and oppression are cutting these two legs off from under it? And what should those who don't wish to flee this place, but want instead to see their children and grandchildren grow up here, believe?
The current situation, in which the two peoples are fighting each other and shedding each other's blood, cant go on forever. So there is a possibility of changing the situation the Bosnian way: Two peoples are fighting for the same plot of land. Hundreds of years of hostilities, atrocities on both sides, and abysmal despair.
Only when the number of fatalities had passed the 100,000 mark and two million people had been displaced did both sides agree on conditions and on an internationally-mediated compromise. Another possibility is a civil war: Maybe someone who believes in the two-state solution will come to power and declare the end of the occupation. In this case, it's safe to assume that a significant portion of the military will rebel and a bloody civil war will commence.
Another option is what happened in Kosovo: International military forces invade Israel and impose order by force. But it is doubtful that the nations of the world will send their sons to get killed here.
And another option is the South African model: Total embargo on both sides, Israelis and Palestinians. When people are forced to stand in line for hours to get baby formula, make do with three hours of electricity a day, and substitute the paralyzed fighter planes with sticks and stones, maybe a majority on both sides will agree to a compromise. Israelis will settle at 75 percent of the ancestral homeland, and the Palestinians will waive the right of return.
So perhaps this should be the solution: A total embargo on both sides, which will force both peoples to come to a compromise, and will prevent casualties, poverty, and suffering.
A year and a half after the end of Operation Protective Edge, the improved security situation in Sderot has led to the opening of nine new restaurants and bars in the city center.
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These restaurants and bars arent owned by any chains or part of any government program; they're simply initiatives by young people in their 20s and 30s who love to cook and want to re-vitalize their city.
One after the other, these little businesses popped up and filled up the city center, which was almost a ghost town before their arrival. Now, it's hard to recognize the place; during the day, the restaurants are filled with diners, while during the night the bars are packed to the brim.
The schnitzels and soups of "Meital's Schnitzeleria" have become a legend in the city, while the special shakshuka from "Sderot Pub" is being devoured alongside beer that is being gulped down. The delicious sandwiches from "TakeORon" are delectable, while people wait in line to eat at "Red Burger," and delicious smells are emanating from "Pasta v'Zehu."
Photo: Haim Horenstein
Every one of these young business owners has something unique to offer, but they all worry about the same thing: the security situation. Despite their concerns, these business owners decided to go all out and open their eateries in a city more known for Qassam rocket attacks than shakshuka. And that's not enough: They all dream of organizing a food festival in Sderot.
"There's a culinary awakening the likes of which we haven't had since this city was founded," said Moti Cohen, 27, owner of Red Burger. Born in Safed, he first came to Sderot to study at Sapir College in the city. He fell in love with it, and decided to stay.
"There's always this fear that the rockets start falling again, and we'll have to close our doors," he continued, "but so far, since Operation Protective Edge, everything has been fine. We work hard, our customer base is growing, and this makes us happy. We pray every day that everything stays quiet."
Idan Kadosh, 30, and owner of Pasta v'Zehu, is also a transplant to the city. Originally from Dimona, he also came to Sderot as a student and fell in love with the city.
"I have no doubt that I've made a good investment, especially given the rapid development Sderot has gone through over the last several years," he explained. "I see growth in the population of the city in the long term. In any case, it's easier to run a business in Sderot than anywhere else in the country. Rent, for instance, is very cheap."
He attributes the success of his business to the fact that his is the only restaurant in the city specializing in pasta. "We succeeded in finding a very unique niche."
Meanwhile, Meital Trableisi and her husband Yogev, owners of Meital's Schnitzleria, were born and raised in Sderot. They cater to everyone in the area Sderot residents, students from Sapir College, and even people from the kibbutzim in the area come to them.
"We make fresh home-style food, and thats what people are looking for," Meital, 34, says.
"People come up to me and tell me 'wow, you're so brave for opening a business in Sderot,'" Meital continues. "But for me, it's natural I love my city and I love to cook, so it's a win-win situation for me. There is always a danger of a flare up, but I believe that the quiet is here to stay."
At night, the area is filled with young people thanks to three bars that opened right next to each other: Sderot Pub, Ze b'Sderot, and Lebobski.
Chen Vankin, 25, owner of Ze b'Sderot, is originally from Ashdod but came to Sderot to study and never left. He explains that "here in Sderot there's a great atmosphere, a great group of young people - all salt of the earth people who love the area and want to have fun. We have special cultural evenings that include poetry readings and meet and greets with musicians from around Israel, famous people and even Knesset members."
What about the security situation?
"There's a large community of young people in Sderot and its environs who just want a place to have fun, and to be honest, it doesn't matter to us if Qassams are falling or not," Vankin replies.
"We're happy with every day of quiet we have, and give thanks for every night which ends with fun, good people, and good beer."
A U.S. drone strike in Somalia has killed a key leader of the al-Shabab militant group who was involved in two attacks in Mogadishu more than a year ago, killing Americans, several U.S. officials said Friday.
Hassan Ali Dhoore and two others were killed in the strike Thursday about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Jilib in southern Somalia not far from the Kenyan border, the officials said. They said Dhoore helped facilitate a deadly Christmas Day 2014 attack at the airport and a March 2015 attack at the Maka al-Mukarramah Hotel, both in the Somali capital. U.S. citizens were among those killed in the attacks, the officials said.
Six months into a wave of stabbings, shootings and car ramming attacks by Palestinians against Israelis, the strain is showing. A survey conducted by the Smith Polling Institute found that the majority of those asked said that they felt the security situation is more serious today compared to the Second Intifada.
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Since mid-September, 34 Israelis have been killed in attacks by Palestinians. In this time period there have been 211 stabbings, 83 shootings and 42 vehicular attacks, according to information on the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs website. Approximately 200 Palestinians were killed by Israelis over the same period, 130 of whom were said by Israel to have been conducting an attack at the time of their death. The remaining 70 people died in clashes with Israeli security forces or with Jewish residents living in the West Bank.
The Second Intifada (Palestinian uprising) lasted from 2000 to 2005 and was responsible for the deaths of an estimated 3,000 Palestinians and 1,000 Israelis. Suicide bombings were a frequent occurrence in those years. Opinion differs as to whether the recent increase in violence in Israel and the Palestinian Territories amounts to a full intifada or not. An indifferent reaction cannot be expected from the Israeli public when the level of risk to the citizens has increased significantly, Pini Schiff, CEO of the National Association of Security Companies, said in a statement released with the findings of the polling. Statistics from the survey were released in anticipation of the Israel Security Conference taking place on April 12 which will bring together elements from the Israeli private security sector and official institutions such as the police, intelligence agencies and the Ministry of the Interior.
Scene of attack in Jerusalem (Photo:Ohad Zwigenberg)
Of the 500 adult Israelis polled, 51 percent said that they found security worse now than in the early 2000s. A further 53 percent said they felt their personal security had diminished in the last two or three years. Now its the Third Intifada and it is the worst one (of the three), Galit, a shop worker selling bags and accessories on Jaffa Road, Jerusalems main commercial street, said. The frequency and the random nature of the current lone wolf attacks are what makes them so scary, she suggested. With the (suicide) bombings it was one at a time one every two, three four months. The stabbings happen every day.
Not everyone agrees. While acknowledging that attacks are occurring more frequently today, Dan Levi, a young Israeli working at the Jerusalem Hostel, said that the lethal nature of the bombings fifteen years ago contributed to a greater feeling of insecurity. The Second Intifada was serious. I was a teenager and I knew people who died. Buses were exploding, it was really scary, he said.
As a result of the current violence, 56% of those asked said that they refrained from travelling on public transportation and/or entering crowded public places. During the Second Intifada it became common for Israelis to avoid eating in restaurants or traveling on buses, both of which were viewed as easy targets for suicide bombers.
Samuel, a young religious Israeli who immigrated to the country from America four years ago, said he felt his security was no better or worse than it was when he first arrived, though he conceded he had changed his behavior because of the recent attacks. I dont walk through the Muslim quarter (of the Old City) anymore on my way to the Kotel (Western Wall). Its quicker, it saves me about ten minutes, but I walk the roundabout way through the Jaffa Gate now, he said. This he does on account of the recent spate of stabbings which Samuel described as the main danger today. A year ago car rammings and attacks on public transport were the greater threat so he avoided standing at bus stops or traveling on the train, he explained.
At the upcoming security conference, the role of security guards and armed civilians as a counter-weight to the unpredictable phenomenon of lone wolf attacks will be discussed. If you look at whats happened in the last six, seven months, most of these terror attacks were stopped by (armed) civilians, Irad Gil, CEO of the security firm HSMT, said.
Jerusalem's Old City has been a frequent target for attacks during the current wave of violence. (Photo: EPA)
A question on the agenda is how much responsibility for security the state should relinquish to civilians. There is a balancing act required between allowing civilians, who may have limited training, to be armed, and protecting people from ongoing attacks, Gil said. In the meantime the role of security guards is emerging as an important, and often first, line of defense.
Just yesterday (parliament) passed a law that security personnel should go home with their weapons (at the end of a work shift). This means an extra 50,000 weapons (will be) on the streets every day, the CEO said.
This might be a comfort to the 69 percent of Israelis polled who said they felt that a civilian carrying a weapon in a public place largely contributes to a sense of personal security.
The United States is "concerned" about Israel's demolition of Arab buildings in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, a State Department spokeswoman said on Friday, adding that it raised questions about Israel's commitment to a two-state political solution to the Palestinian conflict.
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Israeli forces bulldozed a school in the Bedouin village of Khirbet Tana in the West Bank early in March, leaving 23 children with nowhere to study in the community overlooking the Jordan valley. The school had been built by the European Union in an effort to help the community of about 40 families.
After destroying the school, the Israeli forces returned two weeks later and demolished 17 homes, 21 pens for sheep, goats and chickens, and five outhouses, according to B'Tselem, a left-wing Israeli nongovernmental organization.
Demolition of a Palestinian terrorist's home in Silwad.
"These actions are indicative of a damaging trend of demolitions, displacement and land confiscation," spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau told a State Department briefing.
She said Washington was "concerned" and the demolitions, coupled with continuing Israeli construction and settlement activity "undermine the possibility of a two-state solution."
"They also call into question the Israeli government's commitment to that two-state solution," Trudeau said.
The State Department previously made similar comments.
So far this year, Israeli forces have destroyed or dismantled around 400 homes and other structures across the West Bank, more than in the whole of 2015.
Israeli forces also confiscated 579 acres (234 hectares) of Palestinian land near the city of Jericho in the West Bank, a step the State Department also criticized.
Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel (Bayit Yehudi) has allegedly blocked the transfer of funds meant for the development of Israeli communities on the Gaza border because other funds have been withheld from settlements in the West Bank, officials in the Knesset's Finance Committee conjectured earlier this week.
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After Operation Protective Edge, the Israeli government approved a strategic multi-year plan to transfer hundreds of millions of shekels to develop Sderot and other southern Israeli communities in the Gaza border region. However, it recently became clear that the implementation of the plan has been delayed for political consideration.
When Israel has previously attempted to develop a geographic region quickly, it often turned to the World Zionist Organization's Settlement Division, a fast-moving and quality contractor that is exempt from submitting tenders. Thus, the government decided to authorize the Settlement Division to carry out a number of projects to rehabilitate the Gaza border region after Operation Protective Edge in 2014. The main projects include a NIS 34 million budget to renovate the infrastructure of rural communities and a NIS 8 million budget to install backup generators for emergencies.
Uri Ariel (Photo: Gil Yohanan)
However, after the Yisrael Beytenu corruption case and reports of corruption in the Settlements Division, the Justice Ministry stalled the transfer of all budgets to the Settlements Division and froze the Gaza border region development plan. Thus, the Finance Ministry has decided to transfer the funds directly to council leaders, who will hire the same contractors as the Settlement Division to carry out the projects.
But Ariel has refused to allow the funds to be transferred directly to the Gaza border region community leaders.
MK Haim Yellin (Yesh Atid), who served previously as the head of the Eshkol Council, said, "The implementation of the plan is being delayed because of politics, and the Gaza border region residents are suffering because of it. Uri Ariel is politicking and preventing the basic needs and security infrastructure from the Gaza border region simply out of narrow sector-related considerations."
Following a report on Yedioth Ahronoth on Wednesday, MK Stav Shaffir (Zionist Union) asked the minister on the Knesset floor why he wasn't permitting the transfer of funds directly to the councils.
Ariel replied, "These are important projects. I am not minimizing their importance. Everyone knows, including the heads of the regional councils, that it's better to execute them through the (Settlement) Division."
When pressed by Shaffir for a direct answer to his question, Ariel replied, "I'll look into it."
On Thursday, the minister met with the leaders of the regional councils in the Gaza border region, following which he announced, "The government and the Agriculture Ministry are working in close collaboration with the council heads, and, heaven forbid, we are not delaying even a shekel from reaching the residents of the Gaza border region."
Ariel added that he and the government were working to transfer the money to the region "in the fastest and most efficient way possible: via the Settlement Division."
BEIRUT - One man was killed and others injured late on Friday in a Palestinian refugee camp in south Lebanon as a dispute between rival political groups escalated into gunbattles.
Gunfire erupted again in Ain al-Hilweh camp on Saturday morning and continued throughout the day despite efforts to mediate a ceasefire, a Reuters witness said. Rocket-propelled grenades were also being fired.
Two men were shot dead in the camp on Monday amid tension between members of the mainstream Palestinian faction Fatah and a hardline Islamist group.
Fatah member Hussein Othman was killed in Friday's fighting between groups of armed men, Lebanon's National News Agency said.
WASHINGTON - The US military has made an air strike against a senior leader of the al Qaeda-linked militant group al Shabaab in Somalia, the Pentagon said, and African forces said they killed another senior al Shabaab commander.
The Pentagon said the results of its airstrike, carried out on Thursday, were still being assessed. It said its target was Hassan Ali Dhoore, who played a direct role in al Shabaab's Christmas Day 2014 attack on Mogadishu airport, in which an American was among the dead, and in an attack on a Mogadishu hotel in 2015 that killed 15 people, including a Somali-American.
African Union forces (AMISOM) said they killed "notorious al Shabaab commander for Janaale Abdirashir Buqdube together with 22 other terrorists" in an operation with the Somali army in Janaale, south of the capital Mogadishu on Friday night. AMISOM issued its statement on Saturday.
It said another 12 al Shabaab fighters were killed in the previous two days after they ambushed AMISOM and Somali army troops repairing boreholes and clearing roads in the area. Its statement did not mention the US strikes.
German intelligence agency BND has reportedly been spying on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Office for several years, German weekly Der Spiegel reported on Saturday.
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The Prime Minister's Office has declined to comment on the report.
According to the report, the BND has also been spying on the American space agency NASA, the US Air Force, the US State Department, and American diplomats across Europe. In addition, the interior ministers of Austria and Belgium, the British Ministry of Defense and the main headquarters of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were also targeted.
Netanyahu meets with German Chancellor Merkel in Berlin (Photo: AFP)
In October, Der Spiegel reported that the BND was spying on the US Department of the Interior, different European countries and even the Vatican. In addition German intelligence reportedly eavesdropped on conversations of American diplomats stationed in Brussels and in the UN.
The BND also had emails, phones and faxes of embassies and consulate belonging to the US, UK, France, Sweden, Spain and other countries under constant monitoring.
German intelligence wasn't just spying on nation states. According to Der Spiegel, it also spied on international organizations, like the Red Cross's headquarters in Geneva.
In 2013, the BND reportedly made a decision to stop spying on European Union member states, as well as NATO officials, but it appears the espionage continued.
Also in 2013, the German government learned that the United States was spying on Chancellor Angela Merkel, leading to an international uproar and strained ties between the two nations. Mekel condemned the American spying and told US President Barack Obama: "Spying between friends, that's just not done."
In 1945, Aleksandar Lebl returned to Serbia after escaping the extermination of Jews in World War II and reclaimed his family's confiscated house.
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But the 93-year-old is one of the very few of Serbia's Holocaust survivors who came back to recover their homes.
Many thousands of others were murdered or left no heir and their property, seized by the Nazis or the puppet government in Belgrade, was incorporated into the Communist state after the war.
Today, more than seven decades later, Serbia has passed a law offering some belated redress to its now tiny Jewish community.
Aleksandar Lebl, 93, is one of the very few of Serbia's Holocaust survivors who came back to recover their homes (Photo: AFP)
One of the first of its kind in eastern Europe, the "heirless property restitution law" passed in February will see thousands of previously Jewish-owned buildings handed to the country's Association of Jewish Communities.
The association plans to rent out most of the properties, and from 2017 Serbia will also pay an annual 950,000 euros ($1.1 million) for 25 years in financial support to the community.
The funds will be spent on education, fighting prejudice and preserving the memory of Holocaust victims, along with supporting survivors, said its president, Ruben Fuks.
Lebl is one of the last of Serbia's Jews who remembers the war.
By the spring of 1942, more than 80 percent of the 33,000 Jews living in Serbia before the war had been killed, and the Nazis declared the country "free of Jews." Even today, there are fewer than a thousand Jews in Serbia.
"After the war the authorities decided to return the property, but as so many people were killed, there was no one left to take back most of it," said Lebl.
"The Jewish community has never recovered, because the loss (of human life) was so high."
'Moral obligation'
Presenting the new law in parliament, Justice Minister Nikola Selakovic said Serbia had a "moral obligation" towards Jews who "dedicated their lives and work to our Serbia".
He said the move would also "contribute to a greater understanding of human rights, which is crucial for fighting and preventing racial and religious discrimination".
Jewish history can be traced back to Roman times in the territory of present-day Serbia, with the community growing under the Ottoman Empire where they found refuge from the Spanish and Portuguese inquisitions.
Jews supported Serbs in their 19th century independence struggle against the Ottomans and fought alongside them in World War I, peaking in number just before World War II.
Lebl was one of the few Jews who avoided the wartime mass shootings and concentration camps by slipping out of Serbia on a false pass, and he later joined the Yugoslav Partisans' fight against the Nazis.
"I only realized the extent of the killings when I came back from the war... The list is pretty long, between 20 and 30 people from my family were killed," Lebl told AFP in his Belgrade home.
Jewish groups have repeatedly urged Europe's ex-communist states to return, or provide compensation for, assets seized from Holocaust victims estimated to be worth billions of dollars, but few have fully tackled the issue of returning unclaimed property.
In 2009, 46 countries signed the Terezin Declaration, named after a Czechoslovak wartime ghetto, urging the restitution of stolen Jewish assets and social aid for impoverished Holocaust survivors.
The United States said Serbia was the first country to pass such a law on heirless property since then, calling on other governments to take similar action "where justice has long been denied".
Poland, which had Europe's largest pre-war Jewish community, in 2011 suspended work on compensation legislation for property seized by Nazis and post-war Polish communists, intended to apply to both Jewish and non-Jewish victims of expropriation.
Warsaw argued the law would swell the nation's debt to the point where it would breach a European Union (EU) debt ceiling.
'Fewer worries'
In Serbia, some buildings will not be given back because they have been privatized or now house public institutions such as schools or hospitals -- hence the state's extra financial support to the Jewish community.
"We have identified more than 3,000 buildings seized during World War II by Germans," said Fuks, adding that the properties listed so far were in Belgrade, central Serbia and a small part of northern Vojvodina province.
In other parts of Vojvodina which were occupied by Nazi-allied Hungarians or Croatians, seized Jewish property is yet to be tracked down and listed.
One of these areas, Backa, was once home to half of all the Jews in Serbia, Fuks said, hinting that the final amount of property due to be returned is likely to be much higher.
Fuks said the new law offered a chance to commemorate properly those who were killed and to fight against the intolerance that almost destroyed the community.
It also means Holocaust survivors can "live with fewer worries in the last years of their lives, after the horrible personal experiences they have been through", he said.
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Guwahati: With just two days left for the Assam assembly polls, the Indian Army on Saturday claimed to have eliminated two senior Karbi People Liberation Tigers (KPLT) terrorists and apprehended one of their accomplices in an operation launched at Kalyani Reserve Forest in Karbi Anglong district yesterday.
The KPLT terrorist was identified by the army as Sojong Tisso, who was the outfit`s finance secretary. The security forces were looking out for him and his accomplice Mokrang Bey for the last three months.
The apprehended terrorist has been identified as Son Tisso.The army claimed to have seized sophisticated weapons, including HK 33 Rifle and an automatic pistol, from the terrorists."After receiving specific inputs of movement of some of the armed insurgent cadres on March 31, a highly trained team of the army launched an operation in the dense Kalyani Reserve Forest," Lieutenant Colonel Suneet Newton, Public Relation Officer (Defence), said in a statement today while divulging details of the operation.
"Following the tracks of insurgents, the army personnel on about 5 PM on April 1 came in contact with armed insurgent cadres. On being challenged, the terrorists attempted to escape and fired indiscriminately at the army troops," he said.
"In the ensuing fierce encounter, two senior KPLT terrorists were eliminated and one was apprehended alive," said Lt. Col. Suneet Newton, adding that the army had busted a terrorist hideout and seized a cache of arms, ammunition and explosives on Friday."This swift surgical intelligence-based operation just two days prior to the Assam State polls has resulted in a major setback to insurgent groups.
This successful operation has instilled a sense of security and safety in populace residing in East Karbi Anglong," he said.He said that a host of intelligence inputs were being received in the last two weeks of insurgent groups` movement in Karbi Anglong districts, adding the army undertook extensive day-night operations in jungles and in inhospitable terrain with an objective to thwart their designs.
Monrovia: The Librarian government on Friday confirmed a new Ebola case traced to a 30-year-old woman.
The ministry of health in a statement asked the citizens not to panic in the wake of the new Ebola case, according to to Xinhua.
The woman was taken to the Redemption Hospital on Thursday evening, and died on arrival, the statement said in the capital Monrovia.
Her blood specimens were taken and tested positive of Ebola.
This latest pronouncement by the ministry comes more than two months after the haemorrhagic virus that killed more 4,800 was declared over in the country.
A health official told Xinhua that the recurrence is a setback to the progress made in curtailing the virus in the West African nation.
A resurgence of Ebola in Guinea has killed seven people in the last few weeks, but it is not known if the Liberian case is linked.
The recent announcement of Ebola in Guinea prompted the Liberian government to close its border with Guinea.
The World Health Organisation reported Ebola symptoms in Guinea on March 16 while at the same time it made reference to another case in neighbouring Sierra Leone.
Liberia was one of three countries in the West African sub-region worst hit by the outbreak with 4,800 deaths.
The WHO in a statement said that the Ebola outbreak in West Africa no longer constituted an international emergency, voicing confidence that remaining isolated cases in the affected countries can be contained.
Tezpur: The students here are yearning for a change and wants a Chief Minister like Manik Sarkar of next door neighbour Tripura and Arvind Kejriwal of faraway Delhi, who will work for overall development of the state and welfare of all religions in Assam.
"One thing is sure that we need a change. But we need a change for the better. While BJP is saying they are the change, we are worried over some recent incidents," Tezpur University student Uddipana Goswami told PTI at the campus.
She said students are worried about the entry of RSS in Assam and the "communal divide" among people along with "imposition of nationalism over regionalism".
"Just giving an example. Earlier, we students were not bothered about who is eating what. But now university students talk - he is eating beef, she is eating pork etc. It's dangerous," Uddipana said.
Her classmate Sukanya Majumdar said BJP is campaigning against Tarun Gogoi government's corruption but inducted and given importance to once very powerful Congress Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
"Also BJP advertisements are targeted against Tarun Gogoi only. They are not saying what are their plans," she added.
In a different take, Darrang College's Himanka Phukan said it will be a "risk" if BJP comes to power. "But we are ready to take that risk because we want a change. It's a gamble. If BJP does not perform, then we will change them also next time," he said.
Phukan said education sector in the state has not improved compared to other parts of the country during the last 15 years.
His classmate Mayuri Bora said it is not true that there was no development in Assam during three terms of Congress government but people want more as time progresses.
"We are also interested in Rahul Gandhi and what he says. Everyone is talking about development, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. But only words will not work. They have to convince us how will they bring development," she added.
Along with the above duo, some other students of Darrang College Bhaswati Saharia, Amrit Barua, Sumit Kumar Bora, Chandan Das, Pradip Biswakarma,
Martin Milton and Uttam Sonar also want a change but are worried about "communally divisive" politics of BJP.
Washington: India has strongly expressed its disappointment over a "technical hold" on its bid to include JeM chief and Pathankot terror attack mastermind Masood Azhar in the UN sanctions list, terming the move as "incomprehensible".
In a strongly-worded statement, India slammed China's virtual veto of its attempt to blacklist Azhar, saying "this does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism."
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said the UN sanctions committee was taking a "selective approach" in tackling terrorism.
"Its working methods, based on the principles of unanimity and anonymity, is leading the Committee to adopt a selective approach to combating terrorism," Swarup said in a press conference yesterday, adding that the move has implications for the entire international community.
Swarup said India is "disappointed" that a technical hold has been put on its application to include the name of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) chief by a terrorist sanctions committee established by the UN Security Council.
India, he said, finds it "incomprehensible" that while the Pakistan-based JeM was listed in the UN Security Council Committee as far back as 2001 for its known terror activities and links to the Al Qaeda, the designation of the group's main leader, financier and motivator has been put on a technical hold.
"The recent terror attack in Pathankot on January 2 has shown that India continues to bear the dangerous consequences of not listing Masood Azhar. Given the global networking of terrorist groups, this has implications for the entire international community," Swarup said.
The spokesperson said the resolutions of the UN Security Council should aim to protect all member states and their citizens from the activities of terror groups such as JeM its leader Azhar.
Chinese Permanent Representative to the UN Liu Jieyi said Azhar does not qualify to be nailed as a "terrorist" to face UN sanctions as his case "did not meet" the Security Council's requirements. He, however, did not elaborate.
"Any listing would have to meet the necessary requirements," said Liu. "It is the responsibility of all members of the council to make sure that these requirements are followed."
China, one of the five permanent members of the UN group with veto powers, has claimed that its decision is based on facts and rules.
Kolkata: As the sudden collapsing of flyover claimed 24 lives in Kolkata amid political battle in the poll-bound West Bengal, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi will make a visit to the accident site on Saturday.
Heart-wrenching cries of relatives taking custody of the dead and anguished kins waiting for the latest update on the grievously injured were the recurrent scenes in hospitals here on Friday.
Going into the reasons for the flyover crash, a government statement said: "It is apprehended that one cantilever pier no 40 has shifted due to which two spans covering three piers were affected."
Meanwhile, the police filed murder charges against top officials of the joint venture company, Hyderabad-based IVRCL Infrastructure, which was executing the flyover project and detained at least 10 of its employees.
"The charges brought against the company include murder, attempt to murder and criminal conspiracy. So far 10 people, including R.K. Gopal Nanduri, regional business head, have been detained," Joint Commissioner of Police Debashish Boral said.
Three of them - senior assistant general manager M. Mallikarjun, structural manager Pradip Kumar and assistant manager (administration) D. Majumdar - were subsequently arrested.
A 23-member special investigation team (SIT) has been set up to probe the disaster. A police team reached the company headquarters in Hyderabad to question its officials.
The chief engineer and an executive engineer of the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority - the state government unit in charge of the JNNURM project - have been placed under suspension.
An IANS correspondent who visited the site found cranes busy clearing mounds of debris, dust rising from ongoing demolition and fear of eviction loomed large on those living in the vicinity.
The area is still littered with shattered glass and splinters of iron and steel. There were also plastic bottles, a slipper and a children's notebook, strewn next to a truck.
With the government asking 62 families in houses close to the spot to vacate their premises for the removal of the collapsed span, the residents were frantically searching for new addresses.
Many of the residents of the sardine-packed multi-storeyed houses and numerous commercial establishments lining K.K. Tagore Street - right under the flyover - were still in a state of shock.
"I get goose-bumps every time there is a loud noise... This used to be a bustling route. I hope the authorities deal with the mess swiftly and avoid another disaster," said Hari Shaw, caretaker of a small temple.
Army teams which had been carrying out rescue operations have returned to the barracks.
The KMDA has ordered the immediate inspection of the flyover to ascertain its safety and stability.
A petition was filed in the Calcutta High Court for a court-monitored probe into the tragedy.
Filed before the bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur, the PIL (public interest litigation) seeks a CBI investigation as well as a panel of experts from IIT Kharagpur to probe the causes for the flyover collapse.
With the ruling Trinamool Congress facing flak, it field its local MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay, who argued the project was flawed since its inception during the Left Front's tenure but could not be discarded or remodelled due to financial implications.
The Bharatiya Janata Party sought a CBI probe, calling the incident an "act of fraud protected by the West Bengal government".
(With IANS inputs)
New Delhi: In yet another revelation, Pakistan's lie has been nailed once again. World Baloch Womens Forum president Naela Quadri Baloch on Saturday denied having any information about the alleged 'RAW agent' whom Pakistan claims to have arrested from Balochistan.
Hitting out at the Nawaz Sharif-led government, Naela Quadri Baloch strongly condemned Pakistan's atrocities against Balochistan.
She further said India must support the people of Balochistan and stop Pakistan from committing genocide against her people. "The demand of the Baloch people that India should intervene in Balochistan, India should stop Pakistan from genociding Baloch people. India should do it. But India is not doing it. India is not playing their role what they should have," ANI quoted her as saying.
"Balochistan is not in Pakistan, it is occupied by Pakistan," she added.
Rubbishing Pakistan's claim about arresting a 'RAW agent' from Balochinstan, the president of World Baloch Womens Forum said, "There is no RAW or any other agencies who support Baloch. If they really supported us, till now we were free. We would have been an independent country now like Bangladesh."
Talking about the detained Indian naval officer Kulbushan Yadav, who has reportedly confessed in a video about his involvement in an alleged spying activity in the country, especially in Balochistan, Baloch said it is a trap by Pakistan. "It's a lie (arrest of RAW agent), we don't know from where they arrested him & they're showing that it was from Pakistan," she said.
She further said, "They craft the things like this. They don't accept what they are doing in Balochistan. They are genociding Baloch people and killing at mass level. They are raping Baloch women in their captivity. They kill all the men and take all the women and burn the villages."
Urging India and Afghanistan to take a strong stand against all these, Baloch said it was the responsibility of India and Afghan to support them. "Independent Balochistan is a promise for a non-nuclear region. It's a promise for safety of India and Afghanistan, it's a promise for economic development of India and Afghanistan and Central Asia and Arab countries and the whole world. We are the junction the connecting point. If we are occupied by a terrorist Pakistan and you are silent, then how you can expect peace in your country?" she added.
Pakistan earlier released a six-minute video of detained Indian naval officer Kulbushan Yadav wherein he has reportedly confessed to his involvement in an alleged spying activity in the country, and especially in Balochistan.
Recently, according to GEO news, the Pakistani government has written a letter to Tehran asking for their help in investigating the activities of Kulbhushan Yadav.
The Pakistani Interior Ministry has also asked the Iranian government to share details of RAW networks on Iranian soil, the GEO news reported.
According to media reports, Kulbhushan Yadav was allegedly arrested by a intelligence agencies in Balochistan last week and he was later shifted to Islamabad for investigation.
On Friday, Pakistan even protested against the illegal entry and subversive activities of a purported RAW officer arrested in Balochistan province but India said the detained man has no link with the government.
The external affairs ministry spokesperson acknowledged the man was a former Indian Navy personnel but dismissed allegations of espionage, saying India believes a stable Pakistan is in the interest of the region.
Indian high commissioner Gautam Bambawale was summoned by the Foreign Secretary today (March 25, 2016) and through a demarche conveyed our protest and deep concern on the illegal entry into Pakistan by a RAW officer and his involvement in subversive activities in Balochistan and Karachi, said a statement from the Foreign Office.
The statement did not give any other details.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused India of fomenting unrest in Balochistan, the countrys largest province, but it has never offered any evidence to back up its claims. Such allegations have always been dismissed by New Delhi.
(With Agency inputs)
Riyadh: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here on Saturday from Washington on a two-day bilateral visit to Saudi Arabia on the third and final leg of his three-nation tour that began on March 30 with a visit to Brussels. This is the first prime ministerial visit to the oil-rich Gulf kingdom since the visit of then prime minister Manmohan Singh in 2010. Here are the latest updates:
PM @narendramodi in Indian Community interaction event at Hotel InterContinental, Riyadh pic.twitter.com/VGbJYve8tQ PIB India (@PIB_India) April 2, 2016
PM breaks bread with workers - "Your sweat & toil is the pride of India" pic.twitter.com/neuDlJlm6j Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) April 2, 2016 Riyadh(Saudi Arabia): Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with the L&T Workers after his address pic.twitter.com/mKzWbxg121 ANI (@ANI_news) April 2, 2016
We will open more worker resource centres. A second 24*7 Call Centre will be established, assures PM Modi.
Also Read: PM Narendra Modi announces 24X7 helpline for Saudi Arabia expats
Govt has started a programme called e-migrate. In the coming days, we are working to regularise migration: PM Modi.
Aap Narendra Modi app download kar lijiye, mai hamesha aapki jeb mein rahunga. Aapka Pradhanmantri aapki jeb mein rahe, aur aapko kya chahiye, adds PM Modi.
There are forums like MyGov & 'Narendra Modi Mobile App' through which you can reach me & I can communicate with you: PM @narendramodi PMO India (@PMOIndia) April 2, 2016
PM further says: Mai khaali rehta hoon, mujhe koi kaam waam hai nahi. Agar kaam hai toh deshwaasiyon ka kaam hai,mera apna koi kaam nahi hai.
Our External affairs Ministry,Sushma ji give priority to any case that comes up from any part of the world concerning distress to people, says PM.
If an Indian is in trouble anywhere in the World, our govt makes all effort to help them: PM Modi.
You have made India proud with the discipline you have shown in your work: PM Modi at L&T Workers' Residential Complex
I feel your pain when you are not happy because your happiness is my happiness: PM.
He further says that India has the potential, it has the manpower that the world wants today.
When in the times to come, people will see the work you've done, you will realise the importance of your efforts: PM
Your hardwork draws me here, says PM Narendra Modi.
PM Modi starts his address at L&T Workers' Residential Complex in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaches L&T Workers' Residential Complex.
PM Modi meets members of Indian community in Riyadh. This is PM Modi's first official visit to Saudi Arabia pic.twitter.com/5qYfMWAT0q ANI (@ANI_news) April 2, 2016
Our youth is our strength. India is making strides in agriculture, industry and services sector, he adds. India is making strides in agriculture, industry and services sector: PM @narendramodi pic.twitter.com/zeayJuLM95 PMO India (@PMOIndia) April 2, 2016
Youth of India are its strength. World needs a workforce that is talented and well versed with technology: PM Modi.
The Prime Minister further says that India can contribute a lot to the world. Reason for India's growth is the political stability in the country.
Also Read: India growing because it is politically stable, says PM Narendra Modi in Riyadh
World's attention is towards India due to the economic progress in India. India can contribute a lot to the world: PM.
India has once again given rise to new expectations at the world stage,that too in a short span of time, says PM Modi.
PM Modi addressing the Indian community in Riyadh.
PM Narendra Modi to interact with the Indian community shortly.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits galleries on the life & times of King Abdul Aziz at Masmak Fortress.
Also Read: PM Narendra Modi visits Masmak fortress in Riyadh
An evening with history...PM @narendramodi visits the Masmak Fortress. pic.twitter.com/yrBFSwPTqL PMO India (@PMOIndia) April 2, 2016
A Fortress for Unity. PM visits and tours the Masmak Fortress, an important place in the unification of Saudi Arabia
PM @narendramodi ji's visit to Saudi Arabia will strengthen the bilateral relations between the two countries. Shahnawaz Hussain (@ShahnawazBJP) April 2, 2016
The Prime Minister and his delegation are staying at the majestic King Saud Guest Palace at the heart of the city.
PM Modi is scheduled to meet with representatives of the nearly three million-strong expatriate Indian community later today.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives at Al Saud Palace in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) pic.twitter.com/oN5Ppw9SVP ANI (@ANI_news) April 2, 2016
PM Modi received at the King Khalid International Airport by Governor of Riyadh Prince Faisal Bin Bandar Al Saud.
PM Narendra Modi arrives in Riyadh on his first visit to Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Saudi Arabia visit is scheduled to focus on trade, investment, energy, diaspora & counter terrorism cooperation. During Modi's visit, ties between India and Saudi Arabia are expected to be further elevated from the current strategic partnership to a more broad-based one. PM Modi will leave for India Sunday night.
Riyadh: Reaching out to expatriates, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday night announced a 24X7 multi-lingual helpline for them and said a move to regularise migration was in the offing through an online programme.
Asserting that the expatriates could count on the Indian government in the times of crisis, he said they coud use the avenues like the MADAD portal to reach the government for help.
Specifically for Indians in Saudi Arabia, he announced the setting up of worker resource centres in Riyadh and Jeddah to provide them with all necessary help.
Addressing a gathering of L&T workers who are constructing metro rail here, he said the country was proud of their contribution which has enhanced India's image abroad and opened doors for overseas employment opportunities for their compatriots.
"Whenever any good news regarding you people comes, I feel as happy as your family. When there is news of some concern regarding you, I feel the pain like your family would because you are my family," Modi said, adding that he shared their happiness and sorrow.
"Govt has started a programme called e-migrate. In the coming days, we are working to regularise migration," he said.
"In the coming days, we plan to establish worker resource centres in Riyadh and Jeddah to meet your needs and there will also be a 24X7 helpline. A call centre will be established whose facilities can be availed in different languages and through this helpline you can share your problems," Modi said.
Describing the expatriates as the pride of India, Modi
asked them to use forums like MyGov website and 'Narendra Modi Mobile App' "through which you can reach me and I can communicate with you."
"By using this I will be in your pocket all the time. When you can have your Prime Minister in your pocket, what more do you want," Modi said, evoking peals of laughter.
"I am free 24 hours. I have no work. I have the work of over 125 crore people. I have no work of my own," he said.
He said the government has been trying to address the problems of the Indians abroad and cited the example of evacuation undertaken in Yemen. In this context, he praised External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj saying she and her team are giving priority to these issues.
"The MEA, the entire team of officials, Sushmaji...They are always helping Indians who face any problems overseas," he added.
"MADAD portal is a digital way of getting your voice to reach the government of India. When our community faces troubles we reach out to them immediately," Modi said.
Praising the Indians working abroad, he said they have earned respect for the country and as a result, Indians are prefered for services abroad. In this context, he said what he was told by the Saudi rulers about the Indian workers had made him feel proud.
"In this way, you have opened doors for employment opportunities for your fellow Indians," he said.
"India has regained its respect," he said.
Modi said earlier Indians looked at lightly but now they are taken seriously. "Now Indians are seen with respect."
He said in the future, the world will require workforce which only India can provide.
United Nations: China`s Permanent Representative Liu Jieyi has reiterated Beijing`s claim that Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohamed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar does not qualify as a terrorist who would have to face UN sanctions.
Speaking to reporters here Friday after assuming the rotating presidency of the Security Council, Liu asserted that Azhar did not meet "the Council`s requirements" to be considered a terrorist.
Asked about China exercising a virtual veto at the UN sanctions committee by putting a hold on Azhar being declared a terrorist subject to a range of punitive actions, Liu made a general statement: "Individuals and orgnisations on the sanctions list of the United Nations would have to meet the requirements. It is the responsibility of all the members of the Council to make sure that each requirement is followed."
Pressed further about in what way Azhar fell short of being a terrorist, Liu only said: "The Council`s requirements." Implying he did not meet them, Liu would not go into details.
Following the January attack on the Pathankot Air Force base, India had requested the sanctions committee in February to include Azhar in its list of terrorists. The action by the panel, popularly known as the 1267 committee after the Council`s resolution number setting it up, would have required Pakistan and other countries to freeze his assets and ban his travel.
At the committee`s meeting on Monday, all the other 14 members of the Council supported placing Azhar on the list, but China put a hold on it, which is in effect a veto. The exercise of veto through holds by permanent members in the sanctions committee falls into gray area as it appears to extend the right beyond the Council where the veto is recognised by the Charter. India has called it a "hidden veto".
This is the second time that China has come to the aid of Pakistani terrorists in the sactions committee. Last June, China blocked India`s demand for taking action under the Council`s anti-terrorism resolutions against Pakistan for freeing Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, the Lashkar-e-Taiba mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attack in which 166 people were killed.
India has criticised Beijing`s latest action to prop up Pakistan-based terrorists. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said Friday it was "incomprehensible" that while JeM was listed by the sanctions committee as far back as 2001 "for its terror activities and links to the al-Qaeda, the designation of the group`s main leader, financier and motivator has been put on a technical hold".
In the statement issued in Washington, where he is accompanying Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Swarup said the committee`s "working methods, based on the principles of unanimity and anonymity, is leading the Committee to adopt a selective approach to combating terrorism. This does not reflect well on the determination that the international community needs to display to decisively defeat the menace of terrorism".
New Delhi: As Pakistan invites Indian Investigation Team to investigate Pathankot terror attack, Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Saturday raised concerns for probe in 26/11 Mumbai attacks.
Taking to Twitter, Singh wrote, Pakistan welcomes Indian Investigation Team to visit Pakistan to investigate Pathankot. What about 26/11 Mumbai attack ?
Pakistan welcomes Indian Investigation Team to visit Pakistan to investigate Pathankot. What about 26/11 Mumbai attack ? digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) April 2, 2016
Has GOI asked Pakistan that they would like to interrogate Hafiz Sayeed and Mohammad Azhar Masood and others involved in Mumbai attack? he asked.
Has GOI asked Pakistan that they would like to interrogate Hafiz Sayeed and Mohammad Azhar Masood and others involved in Mumbai attack ? digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) April 2, 2016
Indian investigators will visit Pakistan to take forward the probe into the terror attack on the strategic IAF base in Pathankot in the aftermath of Pakistan JIT's visit to India.
Dates for the visit will be be worked out later, Director General of NIA Sharad Kumar told reporters here at the end of five days of discussions with Pakistani Joint Investigation Team (JIT) which returned on Friday.
"We expressed that a team of National Investigation Agency (NIA) could be sent to Pakistan for a probe in that country since conspiracy has been hatched in that country. They welcomed the idea and the dates will be worked out later," he said.
Kumar said NIA presented the JIT with "concrete evidence" against the office bearers of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) who conspired in the attack and the handlers of the terrorists who facilitated and guided them.
"NIA also sought voice samples of some senior office bearers of JeM ," he said without naming anyone.
(With PTI inputs)
Washington: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held bilateral talks with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit here in Washington D.C.
"Like the cherry blossoms, an important relationship is continually renewed. PM & PM @AbeShinzo meet in Washington DC," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) official spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted.
This meeting concluded the Prime Minister`s two-day trip to Washington following which he will depart for Saudi Arabia in the final leg of his three nation tour.Earlier in the day, he called on his British and Canadian counterparts David Cameron and Justin Trudeau respectively, reaffirming bilateral ties with the nations.
Prime Minister Modi also met with the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev and Switzerland President Johann Schneider-Ammann.During his two day visit to Saudi Arabia, the Prime Minister aims to revive India`s strategic partnership with the oil-rich nation, particularly in areas of counter-terrorism, energy and trade.He is also expected to hold bilateral talks with King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud on issues including ways to step up existing counter-terrorism mechanisms. (ANI)
Riyadh: On the third and last leg of his three-nation tour, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reached Saudi Arabia on Saturday to hold bilateral talks with King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
The PM was received by Governor of Riyadh Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz.
This is the first prime ministerial visit from India to the Gulf kingdom after the visit of then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in 2010.
Modi left for Saudi from US late at night after attending the Nuclear Summit in Washington DC.
Farewell Washington! After 2 days of intense diplomacy, PM @narendramodi leaves for final leg of his 3 nation tour pic.twitter.com/c6QPdiipSp Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) April 1, 2016
During that visit, the relationship between the two countries was elevated to "strategic partnership".
This was after the Delhi Declaration made during then King Abdullah's historic visit to India in 2006, the first by a Saudi monarch in five decades.
There are four key aspects to India's relationship with Saudi Arabia: energy cooperation, the nearly three million-strong expatriate Indian community, Haj pilgrimage and security cooperation.
Saudi Arabia is India's largest crude oil supplier accounting for one-fifth of the total imports. In 2015, India imported $21 billion worth of crude oil from that Gulf nation.
Saudi Arabia is also India's fourth largest trading partner with exports to that country exceeding $11 billion.
At over 2.96 million, Indians form the largest expatriate community in Saudi Arabia and are crucial to the Indian economy as they send over $10 billion in remittances every year.
Over 134,000 Indians go for the Haj pilgrimage every year and almost 300,000 for Umra.
A key aspect of the strategic partnership between the two countries is the defence cooperation agreement signed during then Crown Prince Salman's visit to India in 2014.
With Saudi Arabia upping the ante against terrorism, security cooperation also has become an important cornerstone of the relationship. In recent times, Riyadh handed over to New Delhi key terror operatives like Abu Jundal and Abdul Aziz alias Gidda.
"India's ties with Saudi Arabia are special," Prime Minister Modi said in a statement ahead of his departure from New Delhi.
"Robust people-to-people ties constitute a key component of our engagement. I plan to work with the Saudi leadership to expand and deepen our bilateral relations. Discussions on the regional situation would also be on the agenda," he said.
The prime minister also said that he wanted Saudi businesses to partner in India's development plans.
Soon after his arrival in Riyadh on Saturday afternoon, Modi will visit the historic Masmak fortress.
The fortress was taken over by King Abdulaziz in 1902 in a sudden attack which marked the start of the history of the third state of Saudi Arabia.
Thereafter, Modi will meet with members of the Indian community which will be followed by a visit to the L&T workers' residential complex.
L&T is doing $2 billion worth of work on the $600-billion Riyadh Metro Project.
On Sunday, the prime minister will visit the Tata Consultancy Services' (TCS) all-women IT centre.
"It is a very happy thing that he will be doing because this centre provides employment opportunities to Saudi women and this is empowerment of Saudi women," Mridul Kumar, joint secretary (Gulf) in the external affairs ministry, said at a media briefing in connection with the visit.
"When the centre started two or three years back, there were 80 people in that centre. It has now grown to over 1,000," he said, adding that 80 percent of the workers there were local Saudi girls.
Stating that this was the first BPO operation by any company in the world in Saudi Arabia, Kumar said that "it is a very important statement that we will be making there".
After this, Modi will meet with select top Saudi business leaders.
The official ceremony at the Royal Court will start in the afternoon when King Salman will receive the prime minister
King Salman will host a lunch in Modi's honour in which key Saudi ministers and other leaders will be present,
This will be followed by a delegation-level meeting and signing of agreements.
The prime minister will leave for New Delhi late Sunday afternoon.
(With Agency inputs)
Riyadh: Lauding his government`s initiatives, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that political stability in India was the reason for country`s growth.
The Prime Minister, who is presently in Saudi Arabia on a two-day official visit, was addressing the Indian community after touring the historical Masmak Fortress.
"Reason for India`s growth is the political stability in India," said the Prime Minister.
Asserting that India has in a very short span of time once again given rise to new expectations at the world stage, he reiterated that India`s youth was its strength, adding the world needs a workforce that is talented and well versed with technology.
"World`s attention is towards India due to the economic progress in India. India can contribute a lot to the world," he said, adding that India was making strides in agriculture, industry and services sector.
Prime Minister Modi later visited the Larsen &Toubro workers residential complex at Dahiat Namar here.
The L&T, with partnership of Italian and Saudi companies, is constructing a 42 km long segment of Line-3 of Riyadh Metro.The Prime Minster will be meeting Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud`s son, Prince Mohammad bin Salman, who many diplomats and Saudis feel could be the future monarch.He is the fourth Indian Prime Minister to visit Saudi Arabia after Manmohan Singh in 2010, Indira Gandhi in 1982 and Jawaharlal Nehru in 1956.
During his meetings with the Saudi leadership, Prime Minister Modi is expected to focus on counter-terrorism initiatives and ways to ensure the greater involvement of Indian companies in upstream and downstream oil, gas and hydrocarbon sector projects.
Jammu: Principles of faith need to be segregated from contours of culture, Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari said on Saturday even as he questioned if a more complete separation of religion and politics might not better serve Indian democracy.
Quoting set of judgements in Bommai case, the Vice President said, "The principle so laid down is emphatic. Despite its clarity, however, different interpretations were placed on it and there is no real consensus within the Court on what secularism entails. It has been opined that what the Court said is different from what it did.
"Observers have noted that subsequent pronouncements of the Supreme Court have effectively vindicated the profoundly anti-secular vision of secularism of some quarters. For this reason, it has been argued whether a more complete separation of religion and politics might not better serve Indian democracy," Ansari said while addressing 16th convocation of the University of Jammu.
"The difficulty lies in delineating, for purposes of public policy and practice, the line that separates them from religion...Since a wall of separation is not possible under Indian conditions, the challenge is to develop a formula for equidistance and minimum involvement.
"For this purpose, principles of faith need to be segregated from contours of culture since a conflation of the two obfuscates the boundaries of both and creates space to equivocalness. Furthermore, such an argument could be availed of by other faiths in the land since all claim a cultural sphere and a historical justification for it," he said.
He said few years ago in a volume published on the occasion of Golden Jubilee of the Supreme Court, two eminent jurists had observed that "as we transit into the next millennium, the Supreme Court has a lot to reflect upon and not least on how to protect the minorities and their ilk from the onslaught of majoritarianism".
He said unless the court strives in every possible way to assure that the Constitution, the law, applies fairly to all citizens, the court cannot be said to have fulfilled its custodial responsibility.
"Is it therefore bold to expect that the Supreme Court may consider, in its wisdom, to clarify the contours within which the principles of secularism and composite culture should operate with a view to strengthen their functional modality and remove ambiguities that have crept in?" Ansari said.
New Delhi: The HRD Ministry on Saturday said normalcy has been restored at NIT Srinagar, which witnessed clashes between local and non-local students over India's defeat in the semi-final clash with West Indies in the ongoing World T20 Cup.
As per a statement released here by the ministry, Rajat Gupta, Director NIT Srinagar, reassured the students, faculty and parents that the temporary situation arising out of tensions from disappointment at the outcome of the cricket match on March 31 had been overcome.
The situation on the campus and at the hostels was normal, and academic activities would continue on Monday, the statement said.
The National Institute of Technology (NIT) here was shut down yesterday till further orders in the wake of clashes between local and non-local students over India's defeat in yesterday's semi final clash with West Indies in the ongoing World T20 Cup.
A local student had said the non-local students were irked by the celebrations witnessed in Kashmir following India's defeat.
"The non-local students, being in majority in the NIT, just picked up a fight with local students and thrashed few of them," alleged the student, who did not wish to be named.
"There was an unruly situation on campus and we thought it provident to shut down the campus till further orders as a precautionary measure," an official of the NIT said.
The HRD Ministry said that the district administration and local authorities had extended the fullest cooperation, enabling the situation to be contained.
"The group of students have been counselled in the presence of senior officials," it added.
The Director, NIT Srinagar, assured the parents, students and all concerned that there is no cause for apprehension and students are safe, secure and on campus, said the statement.
All scheduled programs in the institution will take place, including the 'National Research Scholar Conclave' scheduled for today and tomorrow, it added.
Nashik: BJP workers will spread the message about the work done by the Maharashtra government so far at the village-level, party's state unit chief Raosaheb Danve said on Saturday.
"The Centre has so far provided aid for drought (affected areas) and the Maharashtra government has also undertaken various solutions to tackle the situation," he told reporters.
The meeting of the Maharashtra BJP unit started here wherein host of issues like the drought situation in the state will be discussed.
The former Union Minister said the party has also given the responsibility of drought-affected tehsils to its 122 MLAs and 23 MPs from the state and all of them are monitoring the situation.
According to Danve, BJP workers will spread the message about the works done by the government so far in villages across the state.
BJP entered into an alliance with Shiv Sena in Maharashtra from October 2014.
On farmer's suicides, Danve said during the UPA regime, then Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar had waived loans of farmers but (the number of) their suicides could not be reduced.
"Our government has offered farmers wheat at Rs 2 per kg, rice at Rs one per kg, electricity connections and agriculture ponds to the needy but it was very shameful that farmers are still committing suicide," Danve said.
The state BJP chief also claimed the present government has provided more financial aid to farmers than the earlier (Congress-NCP) government in the state.
Meanwhile, when asked about Shiv Sena's opposition to BJP in Nashik, he said both BJP and Shiv Sena are different political parties.
"Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) polls are much ahead, our workers have already started its work," he quipped.
Presently, MCGM is controlled by Shiv Sena with BJP's help.
Meanwhile, on BJP-Sena alliance in forthcoming MCGM polls, Danve said there was much time left for the Mumbai civic elections.
"We will discuss the issue for alliance and if not possible, we will contest those polls independently like the Assembly polls (in Maharashtra)," he added.
Kolkata: Hours after saying he was not in Kolkata to do 'politics' over the flyover tragedy, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi chose to hit out at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the issue, at a rally in Kulti, Asansol.
After visiting the injured in the hospital earlier today, Rahul had said, "I am saddened and am here to meet the injured who are in hospital. I don't want to indulge in 'politics' now.
However, while addressing Congress supporters at the rally, Rahul asked, In Kolkata, a bridge collapsed and many people lost their lives. Mamata ji said politics should not be done over this.
I agree with her but I want to ask Mamata ji - why was work related to bridge stalled for 5 years?
He also hit out at the Trinamool Congress chief over the Saradha scam, and said, It was one of the biggest scam in the country yet Mamata ji did not even utter a word on it.
Rahul alleged that Mamata Banerjee wants to have one-person rule in Bengal like Narendra Modi.
Taking on PM Narendra Modi as well as Mamata in one go, the Congress vice-president said, Narendra Modi removed Congress government in Uttarakhand over an alleged sting operation, but looked the other way in Bengal after the Narada sting operation.
The Congress leader predicted Mamata government would lose the upcoming Assembly Elections.
Ever since the Congress party and the Left have joined hands, the entire Bengal has come to know that Mamata ji's government will not return here, he told the crowd.
First priority for our government will be to provide jobs to the youth of West Bengal if we come to power, he said further.
Kolkata: Two top Maoist leaders were arrested from the city on Saturday by the Special Task Force (STF) of the Kolkata police.
Acting on a specific intelligence input, the STF nabbed Bikas alias Manasharam Hembram and his wife Tara alias Thakurmani Hembram from near the Brigade Parade Ground here.
A state committee member of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist, Hembram, along with his wife, were involved several acts of violence including the 2010 attack in a Eastern Frontier Rifles (EFR) camp in Silda in West Midnapore district in which 24 paramilitary personnel were killed.
"Bikas Aand his wife Tara, who is the leader of Maoist's Salboni squad, were involved in several incidents of violence including those in Silda," said Joint Commissioner of Police (STF) Vishal Garg.
"Following their interrogation, we raided a house in Mogra area in Hooghly district and seized an AK 47 rifle along with several rounds of live ammunition, Maoist literature and some letters in tribal language," he added.
The duo will be presented before a court on Sunday.
The arrests come two days ahead of the first phase of the West Bengal assembly polls in which 18 assembly constituencies spread across the three Maoist-affected districts of Bankura, Purulia and West Midnapore go to the hustings on Monday.
Of the 18 constituencies, 13 were not long ago the hub of red ultra activities, that peaked between 2006 and 2009.
Kolkata: BJP state unit on Friday released its manifesto for the West Bengal Assembly polls highlighting that the party would seek to drive out all infiltrators from the state if voted to power.
Former state president of BJP Rahul Sinha claimed there were nearly 2.5 crore infiltrators in West Bengal.
"If BJP comes to power, we will indentify them and take action by sending them back to their countries", Sinha, who is contesting from Jorasanko seat, said while releasing the poll manifesto.
He said the party was, however, not against refugees who have come here to take shelter and would take the initiative for granting them citizenship status by consulting with the Centre.
"The infiltrators are either from Bangladesh or Pakistan who have sneaked into the state for some particular reasons and all were from the minority community", Sinha claimed.
He alleged that these infiltrators were "exerting influence" on almost 125 assembly constituencies in the state. "Infiltration has assumed alarming proportions in West Bengal", he said.
Regarding deareness allownace (DA) issue, he attacked the ruling Trinamool Congress for "cheating" the state government employees by paying "50 per cent less" DA than the amount offered by the Centre.
"The party is for bringing parity between the central and state DAs within a period of two years if voted to power", he said.
The party manifesto also said that electricity tariff in West Bengal was the highest in the country and that it vouched for a 40 per cent reduction.
It also contained issues related to finance, agriculture, industry and education, culture, health, corruption and criticised the ruling party on all such counts.
BJP has fielded candidates for almost all the 294 Assembly seats going to polls which kick off next week.
Yerevan: Arch foes Armenia and Azerbaijan accused each other Saturday of unleashing heavy weaponry across the front line of Nagorny Karabakh, in an apparent surge of violence in the festering dispute over the breakaway region.
Armenia`s defence ministry said that "Azerbaijan on Friday night launched a massive attack along the Karabakh frontline using tanks, artillery, and helicopters", and that separatist forces had shot down an Azeri helicopter and inflicted "serious losses" on the enemy.
"As a result of the Karabakh army`s counterstrike, Azeri forces were repelled and sustained serious losses in manpower," a defence ministry statement said. "Heavy fighting is underway."
Azerbaijan dismissed the claim that one of its helicopters was brought down and insisted its forces were counter-attacking after coming under fire from "large-calibre artillery and grenade-launchers" by the Armenian side.
"Azerbaijani armed forces have immediately undertaken retaliatory measures against Armenian forces," Azerbaijan`s defence ministry said in a statement, adding that "fighting continues in the Agdere-Terter-Agdam and Khojavend-Fizuli directions."
The Armenian-backed defence ministry in Karabakh said a 12-year-old boy was killed in Azeri army`s shelling of Armenian villages in the secessionist region.
Ethnic Armenian separatists backed by Yerevan seized control of the mountainous Nagorny Karabakh region, which was part of Azerbaijan during the Soviet period, during a war the early 1990s which claimed the lives of some 30,000 people.
A 1994 ceasefire failed to lead to a peace deal, with clashes erupting regularly and the two countries remaining on a war footing.
The two sides frequently exchange fire across the frontline but the latest surge in violence appeared to be an intensification from the usual sporadic clashes.
Energy-rich Azerbaijan, whose military spending exceeds Armenia`s entire state budget, has repeatedly threatened to take back the breakaway region by force if negotiations fail to yield results.
Moscow-backed Armenia says it could crush any offensive.
Russia`s foreign ministry said that it was "closely following the information being received" about the alleged increase in violence.
Seoul (South Korea): North Korea has fired another ballistic missile off its east coast as regional leaders met in Washington to discuss the threat of Pyongyang`s nuclear weapons programme.
South Korean Defence Ministry said the missile was fired at about 12.45 pm local time on Friday from near Sondok airport in the east, reports the Guardian.However, the range and trajectory could not be confirmed immediately.
North Korea continues missile launches during elevated military tension on the Korean peninsula.
The launch came in the middle of a two-day Nuclear Security Summit being hosted by US President Barack Obama in Washington in which he held talks with China, South Korea and Japan on Pyongyang`s actions.
The United States, Republic of Korea and Japan yesterday vowed to deter and defend against North Korean nuclear threats and stand united in fighting global terrorism.
President Obama highlighted the need to vigilantly enforce the strong UN security measures imposed on Pyongyang after its latest nuclear test and subsequent long-range rocket launch.
Meanwhile, North Korean state media labelled the ongoing Nuclear Security Summit as a nonsensical effort to find fault with its legitimate access to nuclear weapons.
The existing UN sanctions ban North Korea from conducting any ballistic missile test, although short-range launches tend to go unpunished.
Washington: Terrorist organisations like al Qaeda and ISIS will use nuclear weapons if they ever get hold of it, US President Barack Obama warned on Saturday a day after he hosted leaders from over 50 countries including India for the Nuclear Security Summit (NSS).
"Fortunately, because of our efforts so far, no terrorist group has yet succeeded in obtaining a nuclear device or producing a dirty bomb using radioactive materials," Obama said in his weekly web and radio address to the nation.
"We know that al Qaeda has tried. ISIL has already used chemical weapons in Syria and Iraq. And, if they ever got hold of a nuclear weapon or nuclear material, we have no doubt they'd use it," the US President said.
"That's why we've been leading a global effort to secure the world's nuclear materials. With summits like this, we've made important progress. Working with other nations, we have removed or secured enough nuclear material for more than 150 nuclear weapons material that will now never fall into the hands of terrorists," he said.
Obama said whole of South America is now free of these deadly materials and Central Europe and Southeast Asia are on track to be free of them later this year.
That means that as terrorists and criminal gangs look around for the deadly ingredients for a nuclear device, vast regions of the world are now off limits.
"This is a remarkable achievement. And at this summit, we pledged to keep up our efforts to prevent the world's most deadly networks from obtaining the world's most deadly weapons," Obama said.
According to the US President, the NSS was another opportunity to make sure the world remains united and focused on destroying ISIL.
"A majority of the nations who came here are part of our global coalition against ISIL. A number of our countries have been targeted by ISIL. Just about all our nations have seen citizens travel to join ISIL in Syria and Iraq," he said.
Noting that ISIL continues to lose ground in Syria and Iraq, Obama said the US-led coalition continues to take out its leaders, including those planning terrorist attacks against countries.
"They're losing their oil infrastructure and revenues. Their morale is suffering," he said.
Diyarbakir: Turkish authorities Saturday detained the suspected perpetrator of a car bomb attack in its main Kurdish-majority city that killed seven police, as a new bombing hit the troubled southeast.
The suspect, named as AC, was detained in the Kocakoy district of Diyarbakir, where the seven police were killed and 27 others wounded by Thursday's massive car bomb attack on a police bus, the Dogan news agency reported.
The attack was claimed on Friday by the military wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which had been battling the security forces since a truce broke down last summer.
The bombing -- unlike previous recent attacks in Turkey -- was not a suicide attack but remotely detonated, officials said at the time.
Dogan said AC is believed to be the man recorded on security camera footage walking away just before the attack from a parked white car which would later explode when the police bus passed.
The Dogan report said nine others suspected of links to the attacks had been detained yesterday prior to AC's arrest.
In new violence blamed on the PKK overnight, one civilian was killed and 18 people wounded in an attack on a military sub-station in the Kiziltepe district of the southeastern Mardin province, the army said.
The civilian killed was reportedly a Syrian who had been working on a building site project.
The PKK formally took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984 in an insurgency that initially sought an independent Kurdish state for Turkey's largest ethnic minority but which now focuses on autonomy and greater rights.
It declared a truce in March 2013 but it collapsed last summer and the government has since moved to eradicate the group's presence in urban centres in a relentless military campaign.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier this week that 355 members of the security forces had been killed in the fighting since then.
He also claimed 5,359 members of the PKK had been killed but it was not possible to confirm that toll.
Turkey has been shaken this year by two attacks in the capital Ankara claimed by Kurdish rebels that killed dozens and two deadly bombings in Istanbul blamed on jihadists that targeted foreigners.
Istanbul: Turkish armed forces on Saturday launched artillery strikes on positions of the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria, reports said.
Turkish artillery fired shells from howitzers positioned in its border region of Kilis against IS targets in settlements around the town of Azaz in northern Syria, the Dogan news agency said.
A fragile ceasefire backed by Turkey has taken effect in Syria, but the deal does not apply to territory held by the IS group and Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front.
This was the the first time there had been reports of Turkey striking IS in Syria since early March.
The report said the artillery strikes were carried out following air raids in the same region by the US-led coalition against IS.
Security in the Turkish border region -- which has on occasion been hit by deadly IS shelling from Syria -- has been stepped up as a result, it added.
From mid-February, Turkish artillery had also on successive days shelled targets of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) inside Syria, with the military saying it was responding to incoming fire.
But Turkey has not shelled any positions held by Syrian Kurdish fighters inside Syria since the ceasefire was implemented from February 27.
Washington had urged Ankara to halt its fire on the PYD and its People`s Protection Units (YPG) militia.
The issue of the Syrian Kurds had caused a rare rift between Ankara and Washington, which regards the YPG as the most effective fighting force on the ground against IS and wants Turkey to focus on the fight against jihadists.
Washington has applauded Turkey`s role in the anti-IS coalition but US officials on occasion have urged Ankara to do more.
Manila: Thousands of US and Filipino soldiers will on Monday launch annual war games that this year are being seen as a show of strength in the face of China`s increasing assertiveness in the region.
The 11-day Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) exercises are expected to show how the Philippines, though severely outgunned, can counter China with the help of the United States, its longest-standing ally.
China has in recent months built massive structures including radar systems and an airstrip over reefs and outcrops in the contested South China Sea, sparking international concern.
Beijing lays claim to almost all of the waters, which are important for international shipping and believed to hold valuable mineral and energy deposits, and neighbouring countries fear China could impose military controls over the entire sea.
The joint manoeuvres come ahead of a decision this year by a United Nations-backed tribunal on a legal challenge by Manila to China`s territorial claims.
Adding to the tensions, the Philippines is preparing to host US troops in five bases under a defence pact born out of US President Barack Obama`s plan to reassert American influence in the Pacific.
Balikatan has evolved from counter-terrorism manoeuvres against Islamic extremists like the Philippines` Abu Sayyaf, to simulations of retaking and protecting territory as disputes with Beijing have escalated.
However, Filipino and US officials insist the exercises are not explicitly aimed at China.
Balikatan spokesman Captain Celeste Frank Sayson said 55 US aircraft would take part in the drills, while the Philippines will deploy fighter jets it has recently acquired.
While no specific staging areas have been disclosed, the two allies have in recent years held war games at air bases just 230 kilometres (140 miles) from the disputed areas in the South China Sea.
Rene de Castro, an international studies professor at the De La Salle University in Manila, told AFP the drills appeared to have China`s expansion in the South China Sea in mind.
"Looking at the features of Balikatan -- the mobile missile-launchers, the fighter planes -- that is an indication that the alliance is being geared for territorial defence," he said.
Richard Javad Heydarian, a political science professor at the De La Salle University in Manila, added that the exercises "aim to enhance interoperability among allies nations and signal their preparedness to confront China if necessary".The Philippine military said the US High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), designed to shoot down aircraft, will be sent to Palawan, the Philippines` westernmost island on the South China Sea, during the war games.
The Philippines operates one airstrip in the South China Sea, on Thitu island, where there are around 350 civilian residents.
It also keeps small military contingents in smaller outcrops, including Second Thomas Shoal, where Marines are stationed on a decaying World War II ship.
The Philippines, which has one of the weakest militaries in the region, has sought to counter China`s overwhelming military advantage by improving ties with the United States and Japan.
While it has acquired new fighter jets and surplus US naval ships, the Southeast Asian nation still has far to go, De Castro warned.
China`s defence budget dwarfs that of the Philippines and Beijing is this year set to outspend its smaller neighbour by a factor of around 60.
The Philippines is also increasing its military engagements with the US with the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement, which took effect in January.
Under the deal, US troops will rotate through five military camps including two air bases that are strategically positioned near the South China Sea.
"It is very apparent that the thrust of (the agreement) is air power," said former national security adviser Roilo Golez.
Australia, which recently criticised China`s assertiveness in the disputed waters, is sending 80 troops to join parachute drills as part of the manoeuvres, Sayson said.
Obama this week confronted Chinese President Xi Jinping over Beijing`s actions in the disputed seas.
Tensions have flared between the superpowers since the US sent warships close to disputed islands twice in the past six months.
Columbia: US officials are weighing sending more special forces troops to Syria, where the contingent of American fighters currently numbers around 50, a senior military official told AFP on Saturday.
A US official speaking on the condition of anonymity said the additional troops would be used to bolster US special forces sent to Syria several months ago.
"Presumably they would do more of what they're already doing," said the official, who said the mission would be expected to take on "no new capabilities but an increase of the current capabilities."
The official said no determination has been made about the number of troops who could be sent or whether they will be sent at all.
"Nothing has been decided yet," the official said.
The Pentagon last year said it was sending about 50 special operations troops to work with anti-IS fighters in Syria, although officials have said next to nothing about their whereabouts or progress since, and have worked hard to ensure no information about the commandos` presence is released, citing security reasons.
US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has said the American forces are directly engaged in pinpointing targets in Syria.
Some were involving in helping identify targets during coalition air strikes in late February to liberate the Syrian town of Shaddadi from IS control.
Washington has led an international coalition against the IS group in Iraq and Syria since August 2014.
The United States, which has ruled out large-scale troop deployments on the ground, has stressed the importance of special operations commandos working with sympathetic local forces and helping to advise and equip them to fight IS.
US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Joe Dunford recently said that the White House and Pentagon had discussed providing troop reinforcements in Iraq, where some 3,900 US forces are currently on the ground.
Russia acknowledged last week that it also has dispatched special forces to Syria, in support of troops fighting to bolster the regime of Syrian President Basher al-Assad.
Moscow has also been flying a bombing campaign in Syria since September 30, also launching cruise missiles from ships and submarines.
A truce brokered by Moscow and Washington went into effect late February to end hostilities between the Damascus regime and Syrian rebels. The ceasefire did not extend however to fighters with the IS group or the Al-Nusra Front, the Syrian offshoot of Al-Qaeda.
It's been two days since the first article detailing the contents of a trove of leaked emails from Unaoil, an obscure family company from Monaco that was revealed to be the fixers in a global web of bribery in corruption that helped the biggest blue-chip companies on earth loot the oil-fields of some of the world's most vulnerable, poor, and war-torn nations.
Following the revelations, the police in Monaco have raided the offices of Unaoil, while Australian, UK and US cops announced investigations into the companies named in the dump. Peter Gregg, now CEO of Australia's Primary Health Care, has been revealed as being under criminal investigation for a $15 million payment from when he was CFO of intfrastructure giant Leighton Holdings (Primary apparently knew this when they hired Gregg, and say they're OK with it because they're "comfortable with the performance and conduct of Mr Gregg").
Gregg, meanwhile, threatened to sue Fairfax and a reporter if he wrote about the story.
In the latest revelations to emerge from the trove of Unaoil's email traffic, Fairfax Media has discovered the deep involvement of a number of well-known Asian companies who worked with Unaoil. The emails reveal corruption inside Malaysia's national oil company Petronas, as well as South Korean titans Hyundai and Samsung, and even the Chinese government giant Sinopec. The oil industry's biggest ever scandal has also exposed Asian conglomerates Yokogawa of Japan, South Korea's ISU, Singapore's Keppel and Malaysian firm Ranhill. The emails show some Asian executives are enthusiastic participants in graft, underscoring the pervasive culture of corruption across the region. It's an alarming proposition as Asian companies develop into some of the most powerful and influential players in global business.
Police raids and more revelations: the fallout of the Unaoil scandal
[Nick McKenzie, Richard Baker, Michael Bachelard, Daniel Quinlan/Sydney Morning Herald]
(via Naked Capitalism)
On Wednesday, Fairfax and Huffington Post broke the Unaoil story, revealing that they had been leaked a trove of email from an obscure Monaco family business that had acted as a global fixer in bribery and bid-rigging that looted the treasuries and oil-fields of some of the world's poorest countries, from Iraq to Yemen, acting on behalf of blue-chip companies like Rolls-Royce and Halliburton.
By week's end, police in the UK, US and Australia announced criminal investigations against top executives, and the Monaco police raided Unaoil's HQ.
But the BBC a national broadcaster charged with impartially reporting on the news has literally never mentioned Unaoil in any of its online news coverage. Many of the companies involved in the scandal are headquartered in the UK, and some, like Rolls-Royce, are practically synonymous with British industry. Meanwhile, the news coverage has described how Unaoil used the City of London as its go-to money laundry.
This is a terrible failing that discredits the Beeb, making it seem like financial corruption increasingly the brand identity of UK, plc is a no-go zone for its coverage.
Sorry, there are no results for unaoil. [bbc.co.uk]
(via Reddit)
By Dasha Afanasieva and Tulay Karadeniz ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey has illegally returned thousands of Syrians to their war-torn homeland in recent months, highlighting dangers for migrants sent back from Europe under a deal due to take effect next week, Amnesty International said on Friday. Turkey agreed with the EU this month to take back all migrants and refugees who cross illegally to Greece in exchange for financial aid, faster visa-free travel for Turks and slightly accelerated EU membership talks. But the legality of the deal hinges on Turkey being a safe country of asylum, which the rights group said in a report was not the case. Amnesty said it was likely that several thousand refugees had been sent back to Syria in the past seven to nine weeks, flouting Turkish, EU and international law. Turkey's foreign ministry denied Syrians were being sent back against their will, while a spokesman for the European Commission said it took the allegations seriously and would raise them with Ankara. Separately, the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said it had asked for access to Syrians returned to Turkey from Greece "to ensure people can benefit from effective international protection and to prevent risk of refoulement", referring to unlawful deportations of refugees at risk of persecution. Ankara said it had maintained an open-door policy for Syrian migrants for five years and strictly abided by the "non-refoulement" principle. "None of the Syrians that have demanded protection from our country are being sent back to their country by force," a foreign ministry official told Reuters. But Amnesty said testimonies it had gathered in Turkey's southern border provinces suggested authorities had been rounding up and expelling groups of around 100 Syrian men, women and children almost daily since the middle of January. "In their desperation to seal their borders, EU leaders have wilfully ignored the simplest of facts: Turkey is not a safe country for Syrian refugees and is getting less safe by the day," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International's director for Europe and Central Asia. Under the deal, Turkey is supposed to be taking in migrants returned from Greece on April 4, but uncertainty remains over how many will be sent back, how they will be processed, and where they will be housed. The aim is to close the main route by which a million migrants and refugees crossed the Aegean Sea to Greece in the last year before heading north, mainly to Germany and Sweden. (Additional reporting by Gabriela Baczynska in Brussels and Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva; Editing by Nick Tattersall and John Stonestreet)
By Aaron Ross KINSHASA (Reuters) - Leading opposition parties in Democratic Republic of Congo endorsed a prominent former governor, Moise Katumbi, for president on Wednesday, hoping to rally support for an alternative to President Joseph Kabila. The multi-millionaire Katumbi governed Congo's southeastern copper mining heartland from 2007 until last September when he quit Kabila's ruling party, accusing it of plotting to keep the president in power beyond the country's two-term limit. Kabila, who has ruled since 2001, is barred by the constitution from standing for a third term in an election slated for November, though critics say he is deliberately delaying the poll. The G7 group of opposition parties, which were dismissed from Kabila's ruling coalition last September after publicly calling on the president to leave office this year, announced their decision to back Katumbi at a convention in the capital Kinshasa. "Moise Katumbi Chapwe presents the ideal profile to assume such leadership and realise the common programme in government of the G7," said the moderator Didier Molisho to cheers from a hall packed with supporters. Katumbi, who has yet to announce his candidacy, could not be immediately reached for comment. The G7 announcement could galvanise opposition parties to present a united front against Kabila, analysts said. The biggest opposition party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress, has not said whom it plans to support. Several local and provincial elections have already been missed, with the government citing logistical and budgetary constraints. Congo's electoral commission president, Corneille Nangaa, told U.S. radio earlier this month that he would ask the constitutional court for "a small extension" to November's election to update voter rolls. (Reporting By Aaron Ross; Editing by Edward McAllister and Gareth Jones)
By Aaron Maasho ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - An Ethiopian opposition group said on Friday that police had arrested more than 2,600 people in the last three weeks for taking part in land protests and that the government was thereby aiming to deter future protests. Plans to requisition farmland in the Oromiya region surrounding the capital for development sparked the country's worst unrest in over a decade, with rights groups and U.S.-based dissidents saying as many as 200 people may have been killed. An opposition coalition said the arrests over protests in the four months up to February came despite government assurances of clemency. Representatives of the government were not immediately available for comment. Authorities scrapped the land scheme in January and pledged not to prosecute the demonstrators, while Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn issued an apology in parliament last month saying his administration would work to address grievances over governance. Despite the pledges, the Ethiopian Federal Democratic Unity Forum (MEDREK) said 2,627 people have since been "illegally rounded up" and remain under custody. "It is an act of reprisal," MEDREK's chairman Beyene Petros told Reuters. "The whole purpose why they are increasing their witchhunt is to simply stop the public from planning or initiating any future public protest," he added. The coalition said in a statement that the arrests took place in 12 different areas of Oromiya, Ethiopia's largest region by size and population. The second-most populous nation in Africa with 90 million people, Ethiopia has long been one of the poorest countries in the world per capita, but has made strides toward industrialization, recording some of the continent's strongest economic growth rates for a decade. But reallocating land for new developments is a thorny issue in a country where the vast majority of the population still survives on small farms. The opposition says farmers have often been forced off land and poorly compensated. (Reporting by Aaron Maasho; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Three Libyan political leaders opposing the U.N.-backed unity government are from Friday subject to European Union's economic sanctions, the EU official journal said. Fearful of derailing peace efforts, EU governments hesitated for months before agreeing in March to move on with restrictive measures. The asset-freeze measures were formally adopted on Thursday and take effect on Friday, two days after the members of the Libya's unity government reached Tripoli by ship, defying attempts to keep them out of the city. The three men hit by the EU measures are Nouri Abusahmain, president of Libya's General National Congress in Tripoli, one of two rival parliaments; Khalifa al-Ghwell, prime minister of the self-proclaimed Tripoli government; and Aguila Saleh, the president of Libya's internationally recognised parliament. The EU official journal said they played a central role in obstructing the establishment of a unity government in Libya. (Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; Editing by Alison Williams)
By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations Security Council could vote as early as Friday on a French-drafted resolution that would request options for a U.N. police deployment to Burundi, diplomats said, but it was not clear if it had the support of the United States. Council diplomats said on condition of anonymity that the United States, which has veto power as a permanent member of the council, was unhappy with vague language that asks the U.N. to work with the government of Burundi in the areas of disarmament, security and rule of law. The United States is concerned about linking the United Nations efforts to broker peace in Burundi with the country's security forces, who have been accused of human rights abuses, one council diplomat said. The United Nations said in January it has documented cases of Burundi's security forces gang-raping women during searches of opposition supporters' houses and heard witness testimony of mass graves. [nL8N14Z1G5] France has asked China, the Security Council president for April, to schedule a vote on the draft resolution on Friday. Burundi has been embroiled in political violence since President Pierre Nkurunziza said last April he would seek a third term, which his opponents said was illegal. Since then, at least 439 people have been killed and more than 250,000 have fled. The United Nations is under growing pressure to show it can halt the bloodshed in Burundi more than two decades after the 1994 genocide of ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus by the Hutu majority in neighboring Rwanda. Rwanda and Burundi have a similar ethnic makeup. In January, the 15-member Security Council made its second visit to the landlocked state in less than a year, where fears of an ethnic war have also led to an economic crisis. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also visited in February. The draft council resolution would ask Ban, in consultation with the Burundi government and coordination with the African Union, to present options within 15 days for the deployment of a U.N. police contribution to increase U.N. capacity "to monitor the security situation, promote the respect of human rights and advance rule of law." Russia's Deputy U.N. Ambassador Petr Iliichev said there was no need to send U.N. police units to do the work of the Burundian police, but "any kind of assistance that the U.N. can provide will be more than welcome." Burundi's U.N. ambassador, Albert Shingiro, said in February that any potential U.N. help would be limited to civilian assistance in the development, or "capacity building," of the police and monitoring the border with Rwanda. [nL2N15R2C7] (Editing by Bernadette Baum)
Thirteen people have been arrested during anti-immigration protests in the Port of Dover.
Dozens of demonstrators from the right-wing South East Alliance were marching through the area when they were met by counter-protesters from anti-fascist groups.
A wall of police stopped the two sides coming into direct contact with each other.
Some of the far-right protesters were seen burning a European Union flag at the port before they returned back along their route.
Kent Police said eight people were detained for illegal assembly, while three others were arrested in connection with a violent protest in January.
One person was held for possession of offensive weapons, while another was arrested on suspicion of stealing a police baseball cap.
Dover MP Charlie Elphicke tweeted photographs from the protests, and called for anti-fascist demonstrators to "go away".
The Conservative politician later said: "Our nation's economy has been disrupted, as well as the town of Dover and our local economy.
"It's too high a price to pay and it's not acceptable that people can come here, demonstrate, and cause this level of disruption to people going about their daily lives.
"I think we need to look again at the law governing these sorts of situations and make it proportional to the rights of people going about their daily business."
Despite his criticism of demonstrators on both sides, Mr Elphicke praised the police's handling of the protests - and said forces were better prepared for the disruption compared to similar events earlier in the year.
Roads throughout Dover were closed during the marches, causing large queues of lorries to form - with police lining the streets in an attempt to prevent further clashes between the two groups.
Neil Jerome, an assistant chief constable at Kent Police, said: "I fully appreciate the frustration caused when a road is closed. This decision is not made lightly.
"It was necessary to allow us to facilitate the protest and ensure the safety of both motorists and protesters."
While anti-immigration protesters chanted "no more refugees" along their route, counter-demonstrators could be heard shouting "fascist scum, off our streets".
By Bozorgmehr Sharafedin DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's top leader on Wednesday said missiles were key to the Islamic Republic's future, offering support to the hardline Revolutionary Guards that have drawn criticism from the West for testing ballistic missiles. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei supported last year's nuclear deal with world powers but has since called for Iran to avoid further rapprochement with the United States and its allies, and maintain its economic and military strength. "Those who say the future is in negotiations, not in missiles, are either ignorant or traitors," Khamenei, who has the final say on all matters of state, was quoted as saying by his website. "If the Islamic Republic seeks negotiations but has no defensive power, it would have to back down against threats from any weak country." His comments may have been directed at former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the de facto leader of a more moderate political alliance, who last week tweeted "the future is in dialogue, not missiles". Iran's Revolutionary Guards conducted ballistic missile tests earlier this month, in what they said was a demonstration of Iran's non-nuclear deterrent power. AMBIGUOUS RESOLUTION The United States and several European powers said the tests defied a U.N. Security Council Resolution that calls on Iran not to test nuclear-capable missiles, in a joint letter seen by Reuters on Tuesday. However, Washington has said that a fresh missile test would not violate a July 2015 accord under which Iran has restricted its disputed nuclear program and won relief from U.N. and Western financial sanctions in return. That agreement between Iran and six world powers was endorsed in Resolution 2231. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that Iran's ballistic missile had caused "alarm" and it would be up to the major powers in Security Council to decide whether fresh sanctions should be applied. But Russia, a veto-wielding permanent member of the Security Council, said the tests did not violate Resolution 2231. "You may like it or not that Iran launches ballistic missiles but that is a different story. The truth is that in the 2231 resolution there are no such bans," Interfax cited Mikhail Ulyanov, head of the ministry's department for non-proliferation and arms control, as saying. Iran has consistently denied its missiles are designed to carry nuclear weapons. (Reporting by Bozorgmehr Sharafedin, additional reporting by Lidia Kelly in Moscow and Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva; Writing by Sam Wilkin; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
A gender-neutral bathroom is seen at the University of California, Irvine in Irvine, California, in this file photo taken September 30, 2014. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/Files (Reuters)
By Colleen Jenkins
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Reuters) - After scoring wins for same-sex marriage rights and anti-discrimination protections, U.S. equality advocacy groups now find themselves in a battle over bathrooms.
North Carolina last week became the first state to enact a law requiring transgender people to choose restrooms that match the gender on their birth certificate rather than the one with which they identify.
At least 13 other states also have considered so-called bathroom bills targeting the transgender community this year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The measures, which have sparked heated debate between supporters and opponents about privacy and safety expectations, have had mixed results in statehouses.
"Most of these bills didnt even make it to a committee vote," said Cathryn Oakley, senior legislative counsel for the Human Rights Campaign, a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender advocacy organization. "Theyre such a bad idea, they didnt actually go anywhere."
In North Carolina, the key exception, Republican Governor Pat McCrory has defended his state's law.
"Legislation was passed to protect men, women and children when they use a public restroom, shower or locker-room," he said in a statement on Tuesday. "That is an expectation of privacy that must be honored and respected."
South Dakota's Republican governor, however, vetoed legislation earlier this month that sought to dictate what bathrooms transgender students could use in public schools. A similar bill in Tennessee appears stalled in committee, though opponents are awaiting a hearing on the matter next week.
Measures also failed last year in eight states that tried to restrict access to sex-segregated facilities based on birth gender, the National Conference of State Legislatures said.
This year's proposals are among the nearly 200 anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender bills civil rights organizations are tracking across the country, a record that is about twice as many as in 2015, Oakley said.
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BATHROOM WARS
Bathroom wars have a long history in the United States. Jim Crow laws, which enforced racial segregation on state and local levels in the South, forced African Americans to use restrooms that were separate from those used by whites into the mid-1960s.
The latest fight is unfolding along with legislation introduced after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year legalizing same-sex marriage.
Social conservatives have pushed measures allowing people to deny services to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender men and women on the grounds of religious beliefs.
Governors in Georgia and Virginia vetoed such bills this week, saying they could have allowed state-sanctioned discrimination.
North Carolina's new law goes beyond what bathrooms transgender people are allowed to use.
As part of the measure, lawmakers also established a statewide nondiscrimination policy that protects people on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin and biological sex but not gender identity and sexual orientation. The law effectively blocks local governments from passing their own anti-discrimination ordinances that include those broader protections.
That leaves the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community vulnerable to discrimination at work and public places such as hotels and restaurants, said Wake Forest University law professor Shannon Gilreath. He called the measure the most anti-gay legislation in the United States.
"Bathrooms are such a small part of it," said Gilreath, an expert on gay rights issues. "Gays and lesbians have been robbed of so much more."
McCrory said the claims that anti-discrimination protections have been eroded are untrue. North Carolina, which now faces a federal lawsuit over the law, has been the target of a "vicious, nationwide smear campaign," he said.
It is unclear how the state's bathroom provision will be enforced. The law establishes no penalties for violators, though legal experts and lawmakers suggested charges could be issued under trespassing or public nuisance statutes.
Rose Saxe, senior staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union, said state agencies, public schools and universities will have license to act as "potty police."
"Who gets asked to provide their papers before going into a bathroom is left unknown," she said.
(Reporting by Colleen Jenkins; Editing by Diane Craft)
By Greg Roumeliotis (Reuters) - Anbang Insurance Group Co's unexpected withdrawal this week of its $14 billion offer to buy Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc is a wider blow to the unprecedented drive by Chinese companies to acquire North American and European assets. Fresh disclosures by Starwood on Friday showed how Anbang's hard-charging Chairman Wu Xiaohui backed out of the deal even after calling Starwood Chief Executive Thomas Mangas as early as March 29 to assure that the Anbang consortium needed "a couple of days" to finalize its proposal. Instead, on the afternoon of March 31 a representative of Anbang consortium's legal counsel Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP delivered the unexpected news to Starwood's legal counsel Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP that the Chinese-led consortium is abandoning the multi-billion dollar bid for Starwood. That brought down the curtains on two weeks of high drama during which Anbang and its consortium partners J.C. Flowers and Chinese private equity firm Primavera Capital came within striking distance of owning some of the world's best known hotel brands including Sheraton and Westin hotels. "Though Anbang has decided to withdraw from the Starwood situation, don't yet count it out," Primavera chairman Fred Hu told Reuters. From semiconductors and industrial equipment, to financial services and real estate, China's insatiable appetite for Western companies has pushed the country's announced outbound cross-border M&A to $101.1 billion year-to-date, nearly surpassing the full-year record of $109.5 billion set last year. Yet Anbang's abrupt move, which came after Starwood said on Monday that the Chinese insurer's latest offer was "reasonably likely" to be superior to a cash-and-stock deal with Marriott International Inc, added fuel to concerns that many Chinese companies may not be able to deliver on their acquisition expectations. "To succeed in the U.S., Chinese companies will have to adapt to American styles of governance and transparency. It will be difficult to close mega deals without a more open style, so we may see more modest deals until China changes," said Erik Gordon, a professor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business. To be sure, the largest M&A deal of this year thus far globally is by a Chinese company: China National Chemical Corp's agreement to acquire Swiss seeds and pesticides group Syngenta for $43 billion. Several Chinese companies, however, are having trouble convincing Western peers that they are a credible M&A counterparty. Earlier this week, for example, U.S. gene-sequencing products maker Affymetrix Inc rejected an offer by some of its former executives that was financed by a Chinese investment firm, even though they offered more money than an existing deal with Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc, on the basis of financing and regulatory risks. Anbang's case could make corporate boards in the United States and Europe more skeptical about the ability and motives of Chinese buyers, investment bankers and lawyers said. CONCERNS OVER STARWOOD'S INTENTIONS Starwood had declared Anbang's previous $78 per share cash offer superior to Marriott's on March 18. This meant that Starwood deemed it to be fully financed, and that it expected it to clear the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, an interagency panel that reviews deals to ensure they do not harm national security. Marriott, however, raised its bid on March 21, and Starwood responded with a new $82.75 bid disclosed on March 28. Anbang was expected to firm up that offer in order for Starwood to deem it superior. Anbang said on Thursday that it withdrew its offer due to "market considerations", without elaborating. One of Anbang's private equity partners, Primavera chairman Hu, said Anbang walked away to avoid a protracted bidding war, even though Marriott had not disclosed a higher offer. "We have little independent insight into what happened, but based on what Starwood has told us, Anbang did not deliver the same kinds of undertakings or arrangements that would have allowed the Starwood board to conclude that they were credible at $82.75," Marriott Chief Executive Arne Sorenson told investors and analysts on a conference call. Anbang became concerned that Starwood had no intention of declaring its latest offer superior and was stalling for time for Marriott to come in with a new offer, according a source close to Anbang's consortium. Sources close to Starwood, however, said Anbang did not deliver the assurances on financing its latest offer it had said it would on Monday, and had since had no communication with Starwood until its withdrawal on Thursday. Chinese financial magazine Caixin reported last month that China's insurance regulator would likely reject a bid by Anbang to buy Starwood, since it would put the insurer's offshore assets above a 15-percent threshold for overseas investments. Defending Starwood decision to declare Anbang's first bid as superior, Starwood Chief Executive Mangas said he had found both Anbang and its chairman Wu to be "very credible". "They moved mountains to persuade our board. They moved quickly and were incredibly shrewd in how they worked with us to get a deal done quickly," Mangas said. (Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Additional reporting by Matthew Miller in BEIJING and Denny Thomas in HONG KONG; Editing by Nick Zieminski & Shri Navaratnam)
PARIS (Reuters) - Salah Abdeslam, the Paris attacks suspect who was arrested in Brussels last month, refused to blow himself up on the day of the attacks, his brother Mohamed told French news channel BFM TV. Abdeslam, who will be extradited to France, has renewed an offer to cooperate with French authorities investigating the Nov. 13 attacks that killed 130 people, his lawyer said this week. "There would have been more victims had I done it," Salah Abdeslam told his brother. "Luckily, I couldn't go through with it." After his arrest in Brussels on March 18, Abdeslam answered some investigators' questions but then exercised his right to silence following the suicide bombings in Brussels on March 22 that killed 32 people. Investigators believe the attacks in Paris and Brussels were carried out by militants from the same Islamic State network. (Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain. Editing by Jane Merriman)
Tall and stereotypically thin, Chinese fashion model Xu Naiyu exudes a happy optimism but is matter-of-factly realistic about the fickleness of her chosen career, and how conventions of beauty change around the world.
The 21-year-old has been a frequent sight on the runways of China Fashion Week, which concludes Thursday, showing off everything from a simple green top to a pieced-together dress accessorised with protective goggles and a yellow-streaked wig.
In this industry, luck is so important, she said in between events at the Beijing Hotel, a longstanding establishment near Tiananmen Square in the Chinese capital.
Its not even about trying hard, because theres nothing you can do to change how you look if people dont happen to like it.
Concepts of beauty vary drastically across cultures, said Roye Zhang, chief agent for China Bentley Culture & Media, which represents Xu and has been operating since 2003, when Chinas fashion industry was in its infancy.
There are big differences between eastern and western aesthetics a face we find beautiful in China wont necessarily work abroad, and vice versa, he said.
Overseas shows sought men with single eyelids and small eyes, who are thinner and not so tall, and women who look like Mulan from the Disney cartoon shes not exactly pretty, but shes memorable at just a glance.
Women like Ju Xiaowen announced as a new face of L'Oreal Paris in February did well abroad because they had something unique, he said, rather than adhering to Chinese traditional aesthetic standards, which prize very big eyes, double eyelids, and pale and serene beauty.
The gulf in perception is so wide that his agency brings in foreign CEOs and bookers to assess their pre-vetted Chinese talent.
The vast majority of our models are more suitable for the Chinese market - theres only a very few of them who will be able to go abroad, he said.
Xu, her agent said, has the kind of pretty face and eyes that appeal to Chinese people but falls somewhere in the middle; she can appeal to both people in China and abroad.
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Competition is fierce, as shows abroad will only use a few Asian models at most, but the middle way can be lucrative when they return to China, those who have strutted foreign runways are able to earn double or triple their mainland-only counterparts.
- Pale shadow -
Xu wanted to be a model from childhood and dreams of walking shows for famed brands like Prada or Chanel.
Her parents sent her to classes when she was still at school to learn to strut and pose.
I love how it feels to stand on the catwalk, she said. Especially now, when Im both young and pretty, I want get out there and give this industry a try, whether it works out in the end or not.
Now a second year at the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology studying modelling and design, she booked her first professional gig only in 2014 but has since walked dozens of shows both in China and abroad at the star-studded Milan and New York Fashion Weeks her first trips overseas.
The Chinese version is a pale shadow of such events, she noted, with no major foreign brands, simple sets and just two locations.
The fashion industry of the worlds second-largest economy is replete with brands unknown elsewhere, and few designers are integrated with the international fashion buyer system.
If you want to get to the next level, you still have to go abroad to fashion capitals like Milan or Paris, because this profession is one that came into China from the outside world, Xu explained.
The industry was torturous at times, she admitted.
Im not that kind of single-eyelid girl whos instantly recognisable, she said.
Youll go to 20 castings in a day and come back with nothing, and its devastating. Its like theyre shopping for clothes - youre picked over, assessed and put aside.
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Some of the money to make the hit movie "The Wolf of Wall Street" was allegedly laundered from a scandal-hit Malaysian firm founded by the country's leader, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Embattled Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has been under fire over allegations that hundreds of millions of dollars were stolen from state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), and his acceptance of a $681 million overseas payment.
Both Najib and the now debt-stricken company strongly deny any wrongdoing.
According to the WSJ, it took six years to produce the movie, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio and is directed by Martin Scorsese, because Hollywood studios were reluctant to invest in an R-rated movie about financial corruption.
A small production company called Red Granite Pictures, which had made only one movie, came up with the more than $100 million needed to turn the film into reality, the newspaper said in its report Friday.
Global investigators believe much of that money was diverted from 1MDB, an investment vehicle founded in 2009 by Najib with the stated goal of stimulating local economic growth, according to the story.
The Red Granite Pictures website names Riza Aziz -- which the Journal identifies as Najib's stepson -- as the company co-founder and co-chairman.
Investigators in two countries believe that some $155 million that originated with 1MDB moved into Red Granite in 2012 through an intricate route involving offshore shell companies, the newspaper said, citing unnamed people familiar with the probes.
FBI agents have issued subpoenas to several current and former Red Granite employees and to a bank and an accounting firm the company used, the Journal added.
"The Wolf of Wall Street" is based on the life of Jordan Belfort, who in the 1990s become a wealthy stock broker living a life filled with sex and drugs by swindling investors in a securities scam. Belfort went to prison after pleading guilty to fraud and stock market manipulation.
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On the 1MDB allegations, Najib claims he is a victim of political conspiracy.
He initially denied reports he received the overseas payments, but his government later acknowledged Najib was the recipient of $681 million, saying it was a gift from the Saudi royal family -- most of which was given back -- to "promote moderate Islam".
That explanation is yet to be confirmed by Saudi Arabia and is widely dismissed in Malaysia as a cover story.
Thousands of US and Filipino soldiers will on Monday launch annual war games that this year are being seen as a show of strength in the face of China's increasing assertiveness in the region. The 11-day Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) exercises are expected to show how the Philippines, though severely outgunned, can counter China with the help of the United States, its longest-standing ally. China has in recent months built massive structures including radar systems and an airstrip over reefs and outcrops in the contested South China Sea, sparking international concern. Beijing lays claim to almost all of the waters, which are important for international shipping and believed to hold valuable mineral and energy deposits, and neighbouring countries fear China could impose military controls over the entire sea. The joint manoeuvres come ahead of a decision this year by a United Nations-backed tribunal on a legal challenge by Manila to China's territorial claims. Adding to the tensions, the Philippines is preparing to host US troops in five bases under a defence pact born out of US President Barack Obama's plan to reassert American influence in the Pacific. Balikatan has evolved from counter-terrorism manoeuvres against Islamic extremists like the Philippines' Abu Sayyaf, to simulations of retaking and protecting territory as disputes with Beijing have escalated. However, Filipino and US officials insist the exercises are not explicitly aimed at China. Balikatan spokesman Captain Celeste Frank Sayson said 55 US aircraft would take part in the drills, while the Philippines will deploy fighter jets it has recently acquired. While no specific staging areas have been disclosed, the two allies have in recent years held war games at air bases just 230 kilometres (140 miles) from the disputed areas in the South China Sea. Rene de Castro, an international studies professor at the De La Salle University in Manila, told AFP the drills appeared to have China's expansion in the South China Sea in mind. "Looking at the features of Balikatan -- the mobile missile-launchers, the fighter planes -- that is an indication that the alliance is being geared for territorial defence," he said. Richard Javad Heydarian, a political science professor at the De La Salle University in Manila, added that the exercises "aim to enhance interoperability among allies nations and signal their preparedness to confront China if necessary". - Manila courts US, Japan - The Philippine military said the US High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), designed to shoot down aircraft, will be sent to Palawan, the Philippines' westernmost island on the South China Sea, during the war games. The Philippines operates one airstrip in the South China Sea, on Thitu island, where there are around 350 civilian residents. It also keeps small military contingents in smaller outcrops, including Second Thomas Shoal, where Marines are stationed on a decaying World War II ship. The Philippines, which has one of the weakest militaries in the region, has sought to counter China's overwhelming military advantage by improving ties with the United States and Japan. While it has acquired new fighter jets and surplus US naval ships, the Southeast Asian nation still has far to go, De Castro warned. China's defence budget dwarfs that of the Philippines and Beijing is this year set to outspend its smaller neighbour by a factor of around 60. The Philippines is also increasing its military engagements with the US with the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement, which took effect in January. Under the deal, US troops will rotate through five military camps including two air bases that are strategically positioned near the South China Sea. "It is very apparent that the thrust of (the agreement) is air power," said former national security adviser Roilo Golez. Australia, which recently criticised China's assertiveness in the disputed waters, is sending 80 troops to join parachute drills as part of the manoeuvres, Sayson said. Obama this week confronted Chinese President Xi Jinping over Beijing's actions in the disputed seas. Tensions have flared between the superpowers since the US sent warships close to disputed islands twice in the past six months.
AFP News
Pro-Russian authorities on Saturday urged residents in the southern Kherson region, which Moscow claims to have annexed, to leave the main city "immediately" in the face of Kyiv's advancing counter-offensive. It comes as President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had launched 36 rockets overnight in a "massive attack" on Ukraine, following reported strikes on energy infrastructure that resulted in power outages across the country. And Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida became the latest world leader to reproach Moscow for its talk of using nuclear weapons. Kyiv's forces have been advancing along the west bank of the Dnipro river, towards the Kherson region's eponymous main city. Kherson was the first major city to fall to Moscow's troops, and retaking it would be a major prize in Ukraine's counter-offensive. In recent days, Russia has been moving residents in the region -- which Moscow claims to have annexed in September -- east to Russia, in efforts Kyiv has denounced as "deportations". "Due to the tense situation on the front, the increased danger of mass shelling of the city and the threat of terrorist attacks, all civilians must immediately leave the city and cross to the left bank" of the Dnipro river, the region's pro-Russian authorities announced on social media. A Moscow-installed official in Kherson, Kirill Stremousov, told Russian news agency Interfax on Saturday that around 25,000 people had made the crossing. Sergiy Khlan, the Ukrainian deputy head of the Kherson region, said Russians were removing property and documents from banks and the passport office as they withdrew. Ukraine's general staff said Moscow's forces had abandoned two more settlements in Kherson and were evacuating medical personnel from a third, accusing them of looting local civilians. - A 'serious threat' - Earlier Saturday, Japan's Kishida denounced Moscow's comments regarding the possible use of nuclear weapons in the Ukraine conflict. "Russia's act of threatening the use of nuclear weapons is a serious threat to the peace and security of the international community and absolutely unacceptable," he said. The 77-year period of no nuclear weapons use "must not be ended", said Kishida, speaking in Australia. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, Putin has made several thinly veiled threats about his willingness to deploy tactical nuclear weapons. Earlier this month, the European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned that the Russian army would be "annihilated" if Russia launched such an attack. Washington has also warned Moscow of "catastrophic" consequences should they use such weapons. Japan is the only country ever to have been hit with nuclear weapons: the US atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, which killed 140,000 people, and the second US bomb on Nagasaki, three days later, which killed 74,000 people. - 'Afraid for our lives' - At a train station in the town of Dzhankoy in the north of Crimea, a peninsula that Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014, Kherson residents were boarding a train for southern Russia, an AFP reporter saw Friday. "We are leaving Kherson because heavy shelling started there, we are afraid for our lives," said Valentina Yelkina, a pensioner travelling with her daughter. More than a million households in Ukraine have been left without electricity following Russian strikes on energy facilities across the country, the deputy head of the Ukrainian presidency Kyrylo Tymoshenko said on Saturday. Fresh Russian strikes targeted energy infrastructure in Ukraine's west, the national operator said earlier, with officials in several regions of the war-scarred country reporting power outages as winter approaches. Russians "carried out another missile attack on energy facilities of the main networks of Ukraine's western regions", Ukraine's energy operator Ukrenergo said on social media. "These are vile strikes on critical objects," said Zelensky. "The world can and must stop this terror." Power outages were reported in other parts of the country and local officials repeated calls to reduce energy use. Some parts of Ukraine have already cut their electricity use by up to 20 percent, according to Ukrenergo. "Saturday in Ukraine starts with a barrage of Russian missiles aimed at critical civilian infrastructure," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Twitter. He once again urged Kyiv's allies to hasten the delivery of air defence systems. In the Russian Belgorod region bordering Ukraine, at least two civilians were killed in strikes on Saturday, according to the local governor Vyacheslav Gladkov. Nearly 15,000 people were left without electricity, he added. Russia last week reported a "considerable increase" in Ukrainian fire into its territory, saying attacks had largely concentrated on Belgorod region and neighbouring regions of Bryansk and Kursk. bur-imm/jj/ah
Criminal charges are being readied against seven more individuals in connection with the $81-million money laundering case, as investigators from Bangladesh are set to arrive in the country next week to begin their own probe on the loss of their governments money to hackers.
A source told The STAR the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) is gathering more evidence against the seven, who may have been among those who appeared at the recent Senate Blue Ribbon committee hearings on the issue. The source declined to share other details, including the identities of the seven persons to be charged.
On Thursday, Bangladesh Ambassador John Gomes said members of their Criminal Investigation Department would dig deeper into the case, in coordination with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
They will start their own investigation on how the money entered the country and who are the people involved, Gomes said after witnessing the turnover of $4.63 million by casino junket operator Kim Wong to the AMLC office at BSP headquarters in Manila.
Gomes added officials of Bangladesh Bank are also scheduled to arrive tomorrow.
The officials, he said, would visit the AMLC on Monday and attend the fourth hearing of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee on Tuesday.
We are hopeful that the entire amount will be recovered. The return of $4.63 million from Wong is a step in the right direction, he added.
He said the Bangladesh government hopes Wong would return another P450 million that was part of the P1 billion brought in by two Chinese casino players.
Gomes said the Bangladesh government would also pursue the $17 million left with Philrem Services owned by the Bautista family as alleged by Wong.
We hope to recover the rest of the amount, he added. Philrem owner Salud Bautista said she delivered P600 million and $18 million in cash at Solaire Resort and Casino between Feb. 5 and 13 to Weikang Xu, who is not a junket operator but merely a gambler.
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An earlier anti-money laundering complaint has been filed against Xu before the Department of Justice (DOJ). Wong is also a respondent in the complaint.
Gomes thanked the Senate, the AMLC and the BSP for their help in efforts to recover the money stolen from the account of the Bangladesh Bank at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York last February.
The money entered the country via the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) and found its way to two casinos.
For her part, AMLC executive director Julia Bacay-Abad clarified Wong is not yet off the hook despite his having returned $4.63 million last Thursday.
Abad pointed out the money laundering case filed by AMLC against Wong and Xu at the DOJ would not be withdrawn.
AMLC has also filed a similar case against RCBC Jupiter branch manager Maia Santos-Deguito and holders of four accounts where the money was deposited. The depositors turned out to be fictitious.
The return of the money will not result in the dropping of the charges, she added.
Abad said the AMLC is seeking the help of the Chinese embassy in locating Gao Shuhua and Ding Zhizie, identified by Wong as the individuals who brought in the $81 million.
We are coordinating with them, she said.
Casino operators invited
As the AMLC continues to build up cases against those possibly involved in the $81-million heist, the Senate Blue Ribbon committee has summoned two other junket operators to appear in the next hearing on April 5.
Invitations have been sent to Suncity Group Junket and the Goldmoon Junket, through the Solaire Resort and Hotel Casino, on the motion of Sen. Bam Aquino at last Tuesdays hearing.
Aquino wanted to know from the two junket operators the whereabouts of Gao Shuhua and Ding Zhizie or if they were real people at all.
Wong had tagged the two Chinese as the ones responsible for bringing in the stolen money through RCBC.
Upon the request of Sen. Ralph Recto, invitations have also been sent to Rey de Guzman, the representative to Midas Hotel of the Philippine Gaming Amusement Corp. (Pagcor); Pinky Macaalay, manager of RCBC Unimart branch; and Mark Palmares, Philrem messenger.
Also summoned was the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) representative tasked to look into all Philrem Service Corp. transactions with the casinos.
Sen. Sergio Osmena III, chairman of the Senate committee on banks and financial institutions, said he is optimistic the Blue Ribbon committee would be able to find the rest of the stolen funds.
We are certain that the committee will be able to track down more stolen funds. The search will continue. The money should be turned over to its rightful owner ASAP, he said.
We commend Kim Wong for returning the funds that were stolen from Bangladesh Bank, Osmena added.
But some senators said Wongs gesture was not enough and that others who got their hands on the loot should do the same.
Kim Wong returning $4.6 million is only the first step, Aquino said.
In the previous hearing, we know that he received much more than that. In fact, I am hoping that all institutions that received the illegally acquired funds will return it at the soonest possible time, Aquino said.
In the last hearing, Wong also testified that he got P450 million out of the loot, representing what he said was Gaos debt to him.
The amount returned by Wong did not include the P450 million.
We should insist that the other junket operators, casinos and other institutions return the money that coursed through them, in good faith, and because it is the right thing to do, Aquino said.
He also said Wong is not yet absolved of any liability despite his having returned part of the stolen funds.
Of course, these actions will not absolve any party as the investigation by the authorities is ongoing and the true picture of what happened is still unclear to the public, he said.
Sens. Aquilino Pimentel III and Recto also said they welcomed Wongs move but stressed this did not clear him of any possible criminal liability.
Innocence in a criminal case is not for sale. If a crime has been committed like theft, estafa or money laundering, returning the loot will not erase the crime, Pimentel said in Filipino.
What he did was merely some sort of help to Bangladesh, he added.
I welcome its return. Eventually it will be given back to the Bangladeshi people, Recto said. With Jess Diaz, Marvin Sy, Christina Mendez
BEIJING Chinas defense ministry has warned the US Navy to be careful in the South China Sea and slammed a newly signed agreement between Washington and the Philippines.
Earlier this month, Manila agreed to give US forces access to five military bases, including some close to the disputed South China Sea, where tensions have risen over Beijings assertion of its territorial claims.
China claims virtually all of the South China Sea despite conflicting claims by Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines, and has built up artificial islands in the area in recent months, including some with airstrips.
Washington has since October carried out two high-profile freedom of navigation operations in which it sailed warships within 12 nautical miles of islets claimed by China.
Asked about a recent report on US patrols in the sea, defense ministry spokesman Yang Yujun told a briefing on Thursday: As for the US ships which came, I can only suggest they be careful.
The agreement between Washington and Manila applies to the Antonio Bautista Air Base on the western island of Palawan, directly on the South China Sea.
Candid discussions
In Washington, US President Barack Obama opened a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping yesterday with a promise of candid discussion over Beijings alleged military buildup in the South China Sea.
We will have candid exchanges about areas where we have differences, issues like human rights, cyber and maritime issues, Obama said as he sat across the conference table from his Chinese counterpart.
US officials have expressed concern that Chinas actions in the South China Sea are not consistent with Xis pledge at the White House last year not to pursue militarization of the hotly contested and strategically vital waterway.
We do continue to be concerned about militarization in the South China Sea, said senior Obama foreign policy aide Ben Rhodes ahead of the meeting with Xi.
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We certainly have seen developments, reports that are not consistent with commitments to avoid and to non-militarize the South China Sea.
This will be certainly an important topic of conversation between the two presidents.
Xi spoke of the need to avoid misunderstandings and big disruptions in the major power relations between the two countries. AFP
Brazil's ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a key player in the political storm engulfing Latin America's biggest country, said Saturday that he hopes the Supreme Court will approve his entry into the government by Thursday. Current President Dilma Rousseff named Lula her chief of staff in a bid to stiffen her desperate campaign to avoid impeachment in Congress. However, the appointment was temporarily blocked in the Supreme Court after an opposition outcry that Lula was scheming to gain ministerial immunity so that he could avoid arrest in a federal corruption probe. The court is due to make a final ruling shortly. "On Thursday I will take up my post as chief of staff, if the Supreme Court approves, so that I can help President Dilma," Lula told a rally in the north-eastern city of Fortaleza. "We have to guarantee Dilma's ability to govern," he said in a speech, quoted by the website of his Workers' Party. Lula's struggle to enter the government is one of the many subplots of a political upheaval paralyzing Brazil as it sinks into its worst recession in a generation. The court's ruling will come just as the impeachment fight approaches a new peak. Rousseff, accused of illegal government accounting practices, will wrap up her defense at a congresional impeachment commission on Monday. The commission will deliberate before issuing its recommendation on about April 11. The full lower house of Congress will then vote within days whether or not to send the impeachment case for a trial in the Senate. Rousseff is frantically trying to find enough votes to prevent the two-thirds majority required in the lower house to trigger a trial. That became harder last week when the main coalition partner to her Workers' Party switched to the opposition. Lula, who is accused of money laundering in a case linked to a huge corruption probe centered on state oil company Petrobras, is a hero to Brazil's left and seen by some as the only politician capable of turning Rousseff's flailing presidency around. However, he is also detested by many in the center and on the right, and his attempt to enter government has energized the pro-impeachment camp. Addressing loyalists in Fortaleza, the region where the Workers' Party and Rousseff retain strongest support, Lula said he had "never seen such a climate of hate in the country as there is now." "Those who love democracy, those who like politics, wish respect for the most basic thing -- that is respect for the popular vote which elected Dilma," he said.
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan has asked Iran to investigate the case of a suspected Indian spy who Pakistani authorities say has confessed to spying against Pakistan from Iran, according to a copy of an Interior Ministry letter to Iran obtained by Reuters on Friday. Last month, Pakistan said it had detained the suspected spy, Kulbhushan Jadhav, in the violence-plagued province of Baluchistan after he had illegally entered the country from Iran. Pakistan says Jadhav was working for India's main external intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). India has confirmed that the man was a former Indian navy official but denied the man was a spy. In video footage aired by the Pakistani government this week, Jadhav said he had set up an office in Chabahar in southeast Iran in 2003 and later worked for the Indian agency. It was not clear if Jadhav made the comments on the video tape freely or under duress. Pakistan's interior ministry, in a letter to Iran's ambassador in Islamabad, Mehdi Honardoost, said the Indian had made "startling revelations" about an Indian spy network operating against Pakistan from Iranian soil. "His mission included spying and sabotage, in addition to fomenting insecurity and instability in the provinces of Sindh and Baluchistan," the ministry said in the letter, a copy of which was provided to Reuters by an Interior Ministry official. Pakistan asked Iran to provide information about the Indian man's activities, and the people he interacted with there, the ministry said. Honardoost was not available for comment. The Iranian embassy in Islamabad issued a statement on Friday on the "detention of the Indian agent" and said unidentified "elements" were not happy with good ties between Iran and Pakistan and were trying to undermine them. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani visited Pakistan last week and signed an agreement to increase annual trade volumes between the two countries to $5 billion by 2021. (Reporting by Asad Hashim and Mehreen Zahra-Malik; Writing by Mehreen Zahra-Malik; Editing by Robert Birsel)
By Peter Maushagen MUNICH (Reuters) - Air France-KLM is getting good traffic volume and has seen no major impact from attacks on the Brussels airport and underground system last week, its chief executive told Reuters. The Franco-Dutch airline took a 120 million euro (96 million pounds) hit on sales in the last two months of 2015 from attacks in Paris in November, where gunmen targeted restaurant and concert goers, killing 130 people. Airline and travel stocks dropped again after the suicide bomb attacks in Brussels on March 22 that killed 32 people. "So far we have not seen a significant impact from the Brussels event on our traffic," Air France-KLM Chief Executive Alexandre de Juniac told Reuters in an interview in Munich, though he added it was too early to say how much it could end up costing. De Juniac said Air France-KLM was still feeling the effects of the Paris attacks and that traffic from Japan was the worst affected. "China and the North America are still suffering a little. But these markets are recovering. Japan is not recovering," he said, adding that the carrier was keen to agree partnerships in Asia, similar to a joint venture with Delta on North Atlantic routes, to boost its position there. Still, overall, traffic volumes are good at the moment, he said, helped by the low oil price, which meant it swung to a profit for 2015. LOW-COST GROWTH Like rival Lufthansa , the Franco-Dutch group is expanding low-cost operations via one of its units, Transavia, a Dutch budget carrier founded in 1965 which has been wholly owned by KLM since 2003. The group wants to expand Transavia in France, which offers a bigger domestic market than the Netherlands, but it is facing opposition from French pilots over the contracts on offer. "We would welcome to have the same agreement for Transavia France so we could open bases in other countries," de Juniac said. Transavia's CEO said the carrier was aiming to bring its cost base down to a level similar with rivals easyJet and IAG-owned Vueling . "We have room for improvement. But our cost base is half of that what Air France-KLM has," Transavia CEO Mattijs ten Brink said. It would also like to grow quickly so that it could take part in consolidation of the low-cost sector in Europe, and plans to make a decision this summer on new destinations and bases for 2017. Lufthansa's Eurowings is aiming to overtake rivals such as Norwegian and Wizz to become Europe's third largest low cost carrier behind Ryanair and easyJet. "We don't have any concrete goal in terms of market position... But if we could be in the top 5 in a couple of years that would be good," ten Brink said. (Reporting by Peter Maushagen; Writing by Victoria Bryan; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)
VIENNA (Reuters) - Austria and its neighbors in central Europe and the Balkans will press the European Union to create a new auxiliary force to help countries deal with any influx of migrants, Austria's defense minister said on Friday. Austria has suggested setting up a "bridging mission" that would help EU border agency Frontex process and deport migrants arriving in Greece from Turkey until Frontex is fully staffed there, which Vienna has said could take months. Meeting defense and other officials from the region in Vienna on Thursday, Defence Minister Hans Peter Doskozil said those present backed a modified version of that concept, which could be sent to Greece or elsewhere. "It is ... a mixed civil-police-military mission that should be deployed where necessary," Doskozil said, adding the aim was to help secure the European Union's external borders and deport migrants not entitled to stay in the bloc. Austria has broken ranks with its neighbor Germany on how to deal with Europe's migration crisis, coordinating a cascade of border restrictions through the Balkans that have left tens of thousands of migrants stuck in Greece. Germany says it prefers common European measures, but Austria said it risked turning into a crowded "waiting room" if migrants had kept streaming across its territory towards Germany and its larger neighbor tightened its border controls further. With the main migrant route through the Balkans and Austria now largely closed, Vienna says there is a risk that new routes will develop through Bulgaria or Albania, as Mediterranean crossings to Italy from Libya resume. Greece, which is furious at the border restrictions coordinated by Austria, was invited to Thursday's meeting but did not attend, Doskozil said. Italy was also not present. Doskozil said those present - including EU members Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Croatia - would send a letter detailing the proposal to EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini ahead of an EU defense ministers' meeting on April 19. (Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
By David Brunnstrom and Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China said talks on Thursday between President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Barack Obama were constructive, even as the two sides remained far apart on the South China Sea and U.S. missile defence plans for South Korea. Meeting on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit in Washington, Xi and Obama agreed to step up cooperation to ensure nuclear security worldwide and to do more on cyber security. They also agreed to continue to work on a bilateral investment treaty, China's assistant foreign minister, Zheng Zeguang, told a news briefing. But Zheng made clear that China and the United States remained at odds over the contested South China Sea, where Beijing's broad territorial claims have riled its neighbours, and over U.S. missile defence plans following North Korea's recent nuclear and rocket tests. Xi told Obama that he hoped Washington would "strictly" abide by its commitment not to take a position on sovereignty issues and instead play a constructive role to maintain peace and stability, Zheng said. "The hope is that all parties will correctly view and handle the South China Sea and adopt an objective and impartial attitude ... particularly countries outside this region," he said. China's official Xinhua news agency also quoted Xi as warning that China would not accept violations of its sovereignty in the name of freedom of navigation - a reference to air and naval patrols the United States has conducted within what China considers its territorial waters. China claims most of the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. Neighbours Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims. The United States says it takes no sides in the disputes but wants to ensure free navigation. It has said it will increase what it calls freedom-of-navigation operations by its Navy ships through the waters. 'RULES-BASED ORDER' Obama, speaking after an earlier meeting with the leaders of Japan and South Korea, said the three countries shared a common vision for the Asia-Pacific based on "a rules-based order in which all countries, regardless of size, act according to shared norms and shared principles," in an apparent criticism of China's pursuit of territorial claims in East Asia. U.S. officials have expressed concern that Beijing could declare an air defence identification zone, or ADIZ, in the region, as it did in the East China Sea in 2013. On Wednesday, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defence Robert Work said the United States had told China it would not recognise an exclusion zone in the South China Sea and would view such a move as "destabilising." Zheng said Xi also told Obama that China was "firmly opposed" to U.S. plans to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence, or THAAD, missile defence system in South Korea after North Korea's fourth nuclear test in January and a rocket launch into space in February. "Such deployment will undermine China's security interests and will affect this region's strategic balance," he said. The United States and South Korea began talks last month on possible THAAD deployment. China backed tough new sanctions on North Korea following its nuclear and rocket tests but complains that THAAD has a range that would extend far beyond the Korean peninsula and into China. (Reporting by David Brunnstrom and Lesley Wroughton; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in Beijing; Editing by Don Durfee and Peter Cooney)
By James Pearson PANMUNJOM, South Korea (Reuters) - In a tiny mess hall set amid pine trees and rose bushes on the heavily fortified Korean border, a lunch of steak and asparagus is served. Outside, birdsong competes with the drone of North Korean loudspeakers blaring propaganda. "This is the best restaurant in the DMZ," says Major General Mats Engman, who heads the Swedish delegation to the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission (NNSC), set up after the 1950-53 Korean War to uphold a fragile armistice in place of a peace treaty. Originally a four-nation commission including representatives on the North Korean side from Poland and the former Czechoslovakia, only the Swedes and Swiss remain, based in 1950s-era huts just metres from North Korea. The camp is staffed by five Swedish and five Swiss officers, a fraction of the 200 based there in the mid-1950s. The NNSC holds weekly meetings in a light blue hut straddling the border inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), the world's most heavily defended frontier, sharing with the North Koreans the minutes of its proceedings in a wooden mail box. "Since May 1995, they've never emptied that pigeon hole," said Swiss Major General Urs Gerber. "Their argument is they can't take mail from an organisation which doesn't exist," said Gerber, who this week presided over the group's 3,500th meeting. The NNSC empties the mail box every few months to stop it overflowing. North Korea, which has long sought a peace treaty with the United States, has said the armistice is "long defunct" and, with it, the NNSC has been "forgotten in history". Isolated North Korea and the rich, democratic South are still technically at war after the 1950-53 conflict ended in the armistice, not a treaty. China and North Korea fought side-by-side against a U.S.-backed South Korea, which joined forces under the U.N. flag. U.S. troops now in South Korea are under the command of a U.S. general who also heads the United Nations Command - the only active U.N. fighting force in the world. 'GHOST ORGANISATION' North Korea stopped recognising the NNSC in 1995 when it expelled the Polish delegation after the Soviet Union collapsed. Two years earlier it had kicked out its Czechoslovakian delegation after the country split into Slovakia and the Czech Republic. "They call us a ghost organisation," said Gerber. The only independent military body on the Korean peninsula, the NNSC has reinvented its post-Cold War self as an impartial observer to the annual U.S.-South Korea military exercises that the North complains are preparation for attack and the U.S.-South Korean side says are defensive. Through regular inspections, Swiss and Swedish officers make sure those exercises don't infringe the armistice. The NNSC also operates an education programme, travelling to South Korean frontline units to lecture on the armistice that ended hostilities in 1953. And it is that document, not the Swedish, Swiss or U.S. capitals, from which the NNSC takes its orders. "Only a peace treaty or war would end our operation here," said Gerber. 'POPS IN THE FOREST' A bright red Swiss Club houses a pool table and is decorated with cow bells, while its Swedish counterpart has a fireplace and Viking helmet. In the early 1970s, before enemy soldiers were locked in a face-to-face stand-off at Panmunjom, North Korean generals would occasionally visit for a quiet drink at the Swiss Club bar. "It's like a resort here," said Engman, a Swedish air force general. "It's nice and quiet. The air is fresh". Wary of the complacency the holiday camp atmosphere can breed, NNSC staff remain on high alert to the dangers beyond the camp's perimeter fence. No independent body exists to make sure Pyongyang upholds its side of the armistice. The sound of a pop from the thick North Korean woods can be heard some nights, as a deer or wild boar treads on a landmine. This year, the biggest disturbance has been North Korean propaganda broadcasts, turned on in response to South Korean speakers after Pyongyang tested its fourth nuclear device in January in defiance of U.N. resolutions. "It's an irritation," Engman said. "It's not on the level that we can't sleep. But some nights you have to use ear plugs." (Editing by Tony Munroe and Nick Macfie)
By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - North Korea will pursue its nuclear and ballistic missile program in defiance of the United States and its allies, a top Pyongyang envoy said on Friday, adding that a state of "semi-war" now existed on the divided Korean peninsula. So Se Pyong, North Korea's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, denounced the huge joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises taking place which he said were aimed at "decapitation of the supreme leadership of the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea)" and conquering Pyongyang. North Korea conducted a fourth nuclear test in January and launched a long-range rocket in February. The South Korean military said on Friday that North Korea had fired a missile into the sea off its east coast. "If the United States continues, then we have to make the counter-measures also. So we have to develop, and we have to make more deterrence, nuclear deterrence," So, who is also North Korea's envoy to the U.N.-sponsored Conference on Disarmament, said in an interview with Reuters conducted in English. "Simultaneous policy is the policy of my country, and my party also, meaning nuclear production and economic development," he said, referring to the twin aims of the policy course of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un which is expected to be endorsed at a congress of the ruling Workers' Party in May, the first in 36 years. So had no information about the latest missile firing or about South Korean allegations that his country was disrupting GPS signal reception which Seoul says has forced some boats to return to port amid heightened tensions. "They (Seoul) are making too many manipulations, too many false reports," he said. U.S. President Barack Obama joined South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday in vowing to ramp up pressure on North Korea in response to its nuclear and missile tests. The three leaders recommitted their countries to each others' defense and warned they could take further steps to counter threats from Pyongyang. "Actually that summit, we call it ... a kind of propaganda," So said, dismissing the talks on securing vulnerable atomic materials to prevent nuclear terrorism. "WE ARE GOING ON OUR OWN WAY" Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday also called for dialogue to resolve the "predicament" on the Korean peninsula during a meeting with Park in Washington, Xinhua news agency said on Friday. Asked whether his reclusive country felt pressure from its ally China and other powers, So replied: "Whether they are going to do anything, we don't care. We are going on our own way. "(We are) not having dialogue and discussions on that." The Security Council unanimously passed a resolution in early March expanding U.N. sanctions aimed at starving North Korea of funds for its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. "We are going against that resolution also because that is not fair and (not just). At this point, because this is really the war now ... We are busy to deal with this semi-war status of the situation on the peninsula now." Regarding the joint military exercises being conducted by U.S. and South Korean forces, he said that 300,000 troops were taking part: "Now they open (show) their true color, meaning the decapitation of the supreme leadership of DPRK." Asked about prospects for resuming stalled six-party talks on his country's nuclear program, So replied that denuclearisation of the peninsula was no longer on the table. "If the United States stops their hostile policy towards the DPRK and comes to the peace treaty, then something (might be) different," he said. (Editing by Richard Balmforth)
ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek lawmakers on Friday passed an asylum amendment bill needed for the implementation of a European Union agreement with Turkey for the return of refugees and migrants from Greek islands to Turkey starting on Monday. The deal aims to end the uncontrolled influx of refugees and other migrants after more than one million people crossed into Europe last year. Both Greece and Turkey had to amend their legislation to permit the start of the scheme - denounced by the U.N. refugee agency and rights groups for lacking legal safeguards - to send back all migrants who reached Greece after March 20. The bill was passed by 169 lawmakers in the 300-seat parliament. The legislation does not explicitly designate Turkey as a "safe third country" - a formula to make any mass returns legally sound. The European Commission sees this as not essential, provided rules are in place to allow people to be sent back to a "safe third country" or a "safe first country of asylum", with each case examined individually. EU officials have said the formula was devised to get around unease among lawmakers in Greece's ruling Syriza party to declare Turkey safe when it is waging a military crackdown on Kurdish separatists and is accused of curbing media freedom and judicial independence. The Greek government has said it will ensure human rights of asylum seekers are protected under international law. "A blame-game against our country is starting, that based on the new agreement we will encroach on human rights," Migration Minister Yannis Mouzalas told lawmakers before the vote. "I assure you and I believe this will relieve everyone that we will strictly adhere to human rights procedures as stipulated by international law and the Geneva Convention," he said. (Reporting by George Georgiopoulos and Karolina Tagaris; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
By Jeremy Wagstaff and Jim Finkle (Reuters) - No need for stocking masks and sawn-off shotguns. The unprecedented heist of $81 million from the U.S. account of Bangladeshs central bank is the latest among increasingly large thefts by criminals who have leveraged the speed and anonymity of hacking to revolutionize burgling banks. Hundreds of millions of dollars, and perhaps much more, have been stolen from banks and financial services companies in recent years because of this alliance of traditional and digital criminals, with many victims not reporting the thefts for fear of reputational damage. Typically, security and cyber-crime experts say, hackers break into the computer systems of financial institutions and make, or incite others to make, fraudulent transactions to pliant accounts. Organized crime then uses techniques developed over decades to launder the money, giving the alliance much higher rewards than a hold-up or bank vault robbery, with much less risk. "The internet has made it easier for criminals to get inside banks," said Shane Shook, an independent security consultant. "Criminals are moving away from consumer-targeted attacks to much more substantial bank hacks because it takes less effort to get more money." There's no evidence that old-fashioned bank robberies are in the decline. But there are increasing instances of the cyber variety of the crime. Last year, researchers at Russian security software maker Kaspersky Lab publicized the activities of the prolific Carbanak gang, which it says hacked into banks, then ordered fraudulent money transfers and also forced ATMs to spit out cash. Kaspersky estimates the group hit as many as 100 banks, with losses averaging from $2.5 million to $10 million per heist. A Turkish computer hacker pleaded guilty in a U.S. court in March to one of the most astonishing crimes in this category: "Cashing crews" pulled $40 million out of automated teller machines in 24 countries over a 10-hour period. The 2013 heist was accomplished with the precision of a Hollywood drama, thanks to hackers who breached financial networks, then inflated balances on prepaid debit cards. In another case, Russian banks lost more than $25 million over the past six months to a hacker group infecting their computers using tainted phishing emails, according to Russian security firm Group IB. The malware gave the hackers access to the banks inner network, allowing them to craft seemingly authentic transfer requests via networks including the same SWIFT messaging system used in the Bangladesh Bank attack. "It (the malware) provides remote access to the attacker. Then the attacker manually orders fraudulent transfers over SWIFT or other payment systems," said Dmitry Volkov, head of cyber intelligence for Group IB. In the Bangladesh case, the bank says unknown hackers used malware to access the central bank's computers and spoof messages to the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank. They transferred $81 million from the central bank's account at the New York Fed to Philippine banks. The funds were then passed on to casinos and handed over in cash to a junket operator in Manila, according to testimony at a senate hearing in the Philippines. A transfer of $20 million to an entity in Sri Lanka was reported as suspicious because of a spelling mistake in its name and reversed. UNREPORTED HEISTS Cyber fraud experts say they expect more big heists because the industry has yet to properly defend itself. "The fact is that most of the breaches that happen don't get reported," said Bryce Boland, chief Asia Pacific security officer of computer security company FireEye. One senior banking security executive, who declined to be identified because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said he had worked on three cases of cyber thefts that his bank clients had not reported to regulatory authorities. He said the largest involved about $20 million. In many jurisdictions, banks and financial services companies were not required to report breaches unless there's a material impact, Boland said. The definition is left vague enough so that many are not reported at all. Boland said that while 20 percent of his banking customers had been targeted in the second half of last year, FireEye had also found cases of financial services companies not realizing they had been breached, in one case leaving the attackers inside their computers for five years. An ongoing Senate hearing in the Philippines is still struggling to determine how the stolen money was laundered, with another hearing scheduled for next week. In most cases the heists go unpunished and the perpetrators remain a mystery. FireEye's Boland said the company has compiled detailed dossiers on six of the groups behind attacks on financial services companies, but he said he had less complete data on 600 other groups. Not all focus on extracting money, he added. Hackers aimed at specific institutions, often at specific individuals, and often for financially useful data - inside information on mergers and acquisitions, for example, or data that could be used to create fake credit cards. (Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)
SYDNEY/MILAN (Reuters) - Authorities in Monaco raided the offices of energy services company Unaoil and the homes of its directors after Britain sought help investigating alleged corruption in the global oil industry. Monaco's government said in a statement on its website that it acted after receiving an urgent request for international judicial assistance in criminal matters from Britain's Serious Fraud Office (SFO). Unaoil directors were questioned by Monaco police on Tuesday and Wednesday, the government said. Joint reports by Australia's Fairfax Media and the Huffington Post said that the U.S. Department of Justice and anti-corruption police in Britain and Australia had launched a joint investigation into the activities of Unaoil. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating the allegations against Unaoil, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The U.S. Department of Justice declined to comment. Monaco-based Unaoil provides industrial solutions to the energy sector in the Middle East, Central Asia and Africa, according to its website. "Due to recent developments it would be inappropriate for the company to comment at this time," a Unaoil spokesman said in an emailed statement. The chairman of Unaoil Group, Ata Ahsani, could not be reached for comment. The media reports, citing hundreds of thousands of emails, also link several multinationals to corrupt practices, including claims of bribery and bid rigging to win oil contracts in countries such as Kazakhstan and Iraq. Italian oil major Eni , one of the companies mentioned in the report, indicated that it would hold an internal inquiry into the allegations. "We do not comment on the results of possible internal investigations," a spokesman for ENI said. The alleged behaviour of some of its employees was to the detriment of the group and clashed with its code of ethics, the spokesman said. "None of the people mentioned in the articles are currently employed by Eni," the spokesman said in an emailed response to Reuters about the report. The media reports said U.S. construction giant KBR Inc , which until 2007 was owned by oilfield services provider Halliburton Co , paid Unaoil millions of dollars from 2004 until at least 2009. KBR said it does not tolerate illegal or unethical practices and is committed to complying with all applicable laws. "We take any allegations of corruption and unethical business practices seriously," KBR said in a statement. Halliburton declined to comment. A spokesman for Britain's SFO said it was "aware of the allegations," but would not comment further. Agencies in Australia were aware of allegations of the involvement of a number of Australian companies in foreign bribery matters, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said in a statement emailed to Reuters. The AFP said it was conducting ongoing investigations into a number of allegations, but declined to comment specifically on the focus of its probes. WorleyParsons and Primary Health Care , both named in the media reports, denied any relationship with Unaoil. Australia's opposition party leader Bill Shorten said he will push for a senate inquiry into global bribery when parliament resumes this month. He said the "revelations" were "deeply disturbing." (Reporting by Byron Kaye, Jane Wardell and James Regan in Sydney; additional reporting by Julia Harte in Washington, Mica Rosenberg in New York and Terry Wade in Houston,; Rachel Armstrong in London and Stephen Jewkes and Oleg Vukmanovic in Milan; editing by Susan Fenton, G Crosse and Chizu Nomiyama)
The Independent
Elon Musk plans to lay off most of Twitters workforce if and when he becomes owner of the social media company, according to a report by The Washington Post.Musk has told prospective investors in his Twitter purchase that he plans to cut nearly 75% of Twitters employee base of 7,500 workers, according to Thursday's report.If confirmed, the cuts would leave the company with a skeleton crew, according to the Post.The newspaper cited documents and unnamed sources familiar with the deliberations.San Francisco-based Twitter and a representative for Musk attorney Alex Spiro did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.SEE MORE: What Happens If Elon Musk Buys Twitter?While job cuts have been expected regardless of the sale, the magnitude of Musk's planned cuts are far more extreme than anything Twitter had planned.Musk himself has alluded to the need to cull some of the company's staff in the past, but he hadn't given a specific number - at least not publicly.Already, experts, nonprofits and even Twitter's own staff have warned that pulling back investments on content moderation and data security could hurt Twitter and its users.With as drastic a reduction as Musk may be planning, the platform could quickly become overrun with harmful content and spam.After his initial $44 billion bid in April to buy Twitter, Musk backed out of the deal, contending Twitter misrepresented the number of fake spam bot accounts on its platform.Twitter sued, and a Delaware judge has given both sides until 28 October to work out details.Otherwise, there will be a trial in November.Additional reporting by The Associated Press.
By Phil Stewart and Yeganeh Torbati WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Friday it has started training dozens of Syrian opposition fighters to battle the militant group Islamic State as part of a revamped programme that aims to avoid mistakes that doomed its first training effort in Turkey last year. Training for the first group of recruits includes how to identify targets for U.S.-led coalition airstrikes to allow coalition aircraft to better strike Islamic State from the air. "That allows us to bring significantly more fires into play in any of these skirmishes, battles, and firefights that are taking place throughout Syria," said U.S. Army Colonel Steve Warren, a Baghdad-based spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition. Warren said no Syrian fighters had yet graduated from the programme. The Pentagon has declined to say where the training is being conducted, but U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have told Reuters it is in Turkey. The failure of the original programme, which sought to train thousands of fighters, has been a concern for President Barack Obama, whose strategy depends on local partners combating Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq. The 2015 programme was problematic from the start, with some of the first class of Syrian fighters being attacked by al Qaeda's Syria wing, Nusra Front, in their battlefield debut. At one point, a group of U.S.-trained rebels handed over ammunition and equipment to Nusra Front. Instead of trying to pull entire units from the fight for training, as the Pentagon sought to do last year, the new programme will take small groups of fighters from the front-lines for training. "If it works we'll do more. And if it doesn't, we'll shift again," Warren said. The U.S. strategy against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, where the Sunni militant group has carved out a self-declared caliphate, aims to force the collapse of its two major power centres of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria. Although Iraq-led operations to retake Mosul have already begun, U.S. officials have declined to say if they think the city can be recaptured this year. The timing of any operation to capture Raqqa is less clear. (Reporting by Phil Stewart and Yeganeh Torbati; Editing by Toni Reinhold)
By Shihar Aneez COLOMBO (Reuters) - When Hagoda Gamage Shalika Perera, a small Sri Lankan businesswoman, got a deposit of $20 million (14 million) in her account last month, she said the funds were expected but had no idea they were stolen from Bangladesh's central bank in one of the largest cyber heists in history. Unknown hackers breached Bangladesh Bank's systems between Feb. 4 and Feb. 5 and tried to steal nearly $1 billion from its account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Many of the payments were blocked. But $20 million made its way to Perera's Shalika Foundation before the transfer was reversed. Bangladesh central bank officers said they acted after a routing bank, Deutsche Bank, sought clarification on the transfer because hackers misspelled the company's name as "Fundation." Another $81 million was routed to accounts in the Philippines, and diverted to casinos there, where the trail runs out.. The Philippines Senate is holding hearings in the case, but until now, few details had emerged on the Sri Lanka link. In her first public comments on the case, Perera, a struggling businesswoman who heads Shalika, told Reuters she expected $20 million to come from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to help fund a power plant and other projects in Sri Lanka. She said she had no direct dealing with JICA, but the deal was arranged by an acquaintance who she met in Sri Lanka but had connections in Japan. Shalika was set up in October 2014 and says in its registration documents that it constructs low-cost houses and provides other social services. Reuters was unable to independently confirm Perera's account or to reach the acquaintance she named, via the email and phone numbers she provided. JICA, a Japanese government agency that provides official development assistance, said it has no ties with Shalika Foundation, including through any intermediaries. "We have had no exchange with them, and that includes such areas as loans and grants," JICA spokesman Naoyuki Nemoto said. The Sri Lankan police's criminal investigation division declined to comment because the probe is ongoing. "GENUINE PEOPLE" "We are very genuine people. We are not doing any illegal things," said Perera, speaking in English and Sinhalese in an interview in Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital. The 36-year-old was accompanied by her husband, Ramanayaka Arachchige Don Pradeep Rohitha Dhamkin, also a director in her company. Perera said she now thinks the acquaintance was either a victim of the hackers or in league with them, and she was hoodwinked into becoming a part of their scheme. She showed Reuters a copy of an inward remittance advisory from the SWIFT bank messaging system to put the $20 million in her company's account. The remitting entity was shown as a Bangladesh government electricity agency that had taken a loan from JICA in 2010 to fund an electricity project. The head of the Bangladesh government agency, the Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board, said it was "ridiculous" to think that the money could have come from them. "Maybe they used this government organisation's name to make it believable," said Brigadier General Moin Uddin, the agency head. Police have questioned Perera's acquaintance, according to an investigation report filed in the Colombo Magistrate's Court on Thursday. The man told authorities that a Japanese middleman had helped arrange the funding, according to the report. The report provided the names of Perera's acquaintance whom Reuters has been unable to locate and the Japanese middleman. Reached by phone, the middleman said he was travelling and unable to provide immediate comment. The court has ordered a travel ban on Perera, her husband, the acquaintance and four other people listed as directors of her company. Perera maintains she is innocent and describes the government's move as "an injustice". STRUGGLING BUSINESSWOMAN Perera is, by her own admission, struggling. She said she has four other enterprises, including a publishing firm, an auto parts company, a construction company and a catering firm. In 2014, losses from her publishing firm were so bad that she was forced to sell her computers. She said she now does her business from Internet cafes, and held meetings with potential investors at Pizza Hut and other restaurants. In early February, Perera said her acquaintance, who had been helping her for more than a year to meet investors, told her to expect $20 million from JICA. Under their agreement, the payment would be split, between her power plant project and a housing project controlled by her acquaintance, she said. According to a Sri Lankan police investigation report seen by Reuters last week, Perera told her bank, a Colombo branch of Pan Asia Bank, that the company expected to receive $20 million from a Japanese fund. A Pan Asia Bank official declined to comment, citing the investigation. Perera said she had not seen the report, which was submitted to the magistrate's court last week. According to the report, bank officials said Perera left instructions with them to transfer $7.72 million to her own personal account and $11.12 million to an account controlled by her acquaintance once the transaction had cleared. Perera confirmed she had given the instructions to the bank, and said they reflected the money earmarked for the two projects and commissions. The rest was to be used for taxes, she said. The money was remitted by the Pan Asia Bank to Shalika Foundation's account on Feb 4, but the bank refused to release the funds as the amount was unusually large and sought further verification, according to last week's police report. On Feb. 9, Perera was told by her bank that the Bangladesh central bank had asked for the transaction to be reversed, according to the report. (Additional reporting by Ranga Srilal in Colombo, Serajul Quadir in Dhaka and Kiyoshi Takenaka in Tokyo; Writing by Paritosh Bansal, Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)
By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on countries on Wednesday to re-settle nearly half a million Syrian refugees in the next three years, but only Italy, Sweden and the United States immediately announced plans to play a part. The United Nations refugee agency aims to re-settle some 480,000, about 10 percent of those now in neighbouring countries, by the end of 2018, but concedes it is battling to overcome widespread fear and political wrangling. Prior to Wednesday's ministerial-level talks, countries had pledged 179,000 places since 2013, refugee agency figures show. "We have heard pledges that increase resettlement and humanitarian admission to over 185,000," UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said at the end of the meeting - signalling an increase of just 6,000 places. Commenting on the outcome, aid groups Oxfam and the Norwegian Refugee Council said governments had shown "a shocking lack of political and moral leadership." "Almost all states attending have failed to show the level of generosity required," they said in a joint statement. The European Union proposed that 54,000 places never attributed under the EU's own relocation scheme be used to admit Syrian refugees from Turkey, on a voluntary basis, Grandi said. "Altogether it could provide solutions for tens of thousands of Syrian refugees," he said. The EU and Turkey last week struck an agreement intended to cut off the flow from Syria, but arrivals along the main migrant route into Greece rose sharply on Wednesday. Migrant flows from sub-Saharan Africa across the Mediterranean are picking up too, and Italy's coast guard and navy vessels rescued 1,361 from boats and rubber dinghies on Wednesday. Ban urged countries to pledge new legal pathways for admitting the refugees, such as resettlement or humanitarian admission, family reunions, as well as labour and study opportunities. "Success at this high-level meeting today will drive momentum in the months ahead," Ban told reporters, pointing to a series of upcoming conferences. 'PEOPLE WITH DEATH AT THEIR BACK' Italy and Sweden made concrete pledges to resettle an additional 1,500 and 3,000 refugees a year respectively, but not all of them would be Syrians. "Last year over 163,000 people, 51,000 of those from Syria, applied for asylum in our country the highest number per capita in all of Europe," said Sweden's Justice and Migration minister Morgan Johansson. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Heather Higginbottom, referring to commitments already announced by the Obama administration, said her country could resettle at least 10,000 Syrian refugees by the end of September. European Union Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos said 4,555 refugees from Syria's neighbours had been resettled in 11 EU states in its scheme for 22,504 people established last July. The Russian Federation said it was doubling places for Syrians eligible for free university studies to 300. "My country is working on strengthening the ceasefire and assisting the (Syrian) government in combating terrorist groups," Gennady Gatilov, a Russian deputy foreign minister, said. The five-year conflict has killed at least 250,000 people and driven nearly 5 million refugees abroad, mostly to neighbouring Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq. "These are people with death at their back and a wall in their face," U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said. Syria's ambassador Hussam Aala urged countries to "repatriate refugees and not resettle them in third countries" so as to ensure against "brain drain". He also urged support for Syrian peace talks while lifting "unilateral economic coercive measures". (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Richard Balmforth and John Stonestreet)
By Joseph Nasr BERLIN (Reuters) - Arabic-language guide Razan Nassreddine says Syrian refugees visiting Berlin's Museum of Islamic Art often ask her how and when the artefacts clearly marked as stemming from their war-torn country ended up in the German capital. Others jokingly wonder if the shrapnel holes on centuries-old palatial facades and gates brought from the Middle East were caused by fighting between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the rebels seeking to unseat him. More than 1,600 refugees from Syria and Iraq have visited the museum since November, when it launched the Multaka (or "meeting point" in Arabic) project, which trains refugees from those countries to become Arabic tour guides for their peers. "What we see here is evidence that our region, the Levant, was always a place where different religions and cultures co-existed," said 35-year-old Syrian visitor Zafer El-Sheikha, standing outside The Aleppo Room, where 400-year-old ornamental paintings depict Jewish, Christian and Islamic themes. "When I look at what is happening there now, it makes me sad," added El-Sheikha, who came to Germany with his wife six months ago from a town near Damascus. At the Mshatta Facade, which was excavated in Jordan in the 19th century and presented as a gift from the Ottoman sultan to the German emperor in 1903, Nassreddine explains to a group of Syrian refugees who attend the same German language class that the shrapnel holes were caused by a bomb during World War Two. "It makes me happy that Syrians from all walks of life, old, young, religious, secular, opposition, regime supporters come here and are happy to see something from Syria," said Nassreddine. She is also Syrian though came to Germany in 2012 from Spain, where she had been a student. Museum director Stefan Weber, who speaks perfect Arabic, said refugees often said after visits that the impressive collection makes them "hold our heads high". "One of the goals of the project is to tell people who lost their homes that there is still something to be proud of and this has worked out well," he said. (Reporting by Joseph Nasr; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
Modified On Apr 02, 2016 11:47 AM By Akshit
The Supreme Court of India has extended the ban on the registration of diesel cars and SUVs above 2000cc in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) until the next hearing of the case. The apex court did not immediately say when it would hear the case next, but it is expected to take place sometime in April.
The three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice T.S. Thakur also said that an exorbitant environmental compensation cess would be imposed on these high-end diesel vehicles as a possible condition to lift the ban. We can modify our order, but buyers (of bigger cars) will have to pay the cost to help the environment, Thakur remarked. Any decision on levying an extra charge on diesel cars would spell further stress on an industry thats already suffering from ailing sales and the recently introduced infrastructure cess.
The Supreme Court had banned registration of private vehicles with engines displacing 2-litres or more on December 16, 2015, in a bid to cut down the rising levels of harmful particulate matter emissions in the city. The ban was to continue till March 31, 2016.
Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata and Jaguar Land Rover are some of the carmakers that have been the worst hit by this three-month ban. However, M&M bypassed the ban by announcing sub 2.0-litre variants of its successful SUVs the Scorpio and the XUV500.
Cars that are worst -hit by the diesel ban: read more here.
Published On Apr 02, 2016 12:18 PM By Akshit
Volvo India today announced a price revision for its entire model range. While the prices for almost all the models have been hiked by 3 percent, two models from the companys Indian lineup have witnessed a price reduction.
All the models have undergone an upward revision to increase the Ex-showroom prices by 3 percent, the company said in an official statement.
The Indian subsidiary of the Swedish carmaker is attributing the price increase to the recently proposed taxation norms on cars across various categories in the Budget 2016.
As mentioned above, the prices of two models have been reduced, which includes Volvos smallest offering in the country the V40 Cross Country D3 Inscription (by INR304,000) and its sedan the S60 Kinetic (by INR151,000) and Momentum (by INR24,000). The revised prices shall be effective from 1st April, 2016.
The Ex-showroom (Delhi) prices for all models are as below:
MODEL Old New S60 Kinetic INR 32,40,000 30,88,970 S60 Momentum INR 35,25,000 35,00,970 S60 Inscription INR 38,35,000 39,03,700 S60 R-Design INR 40,25,000 41,71,500 S60 Cross Country Inscription INR NA 38,90,000 S60 T6 Petrol INR 42,00,000 43,26,000 XC60 Kinetic INR 43,50,000 44,80,500 XC60 Momentum INR 46,60,000 47,99,800 XC60 Inscription INR 50,20,000 51,70,600 XC60 R-Design INR 52,00,000 53,56,000 XC90 Momentum INR 68,90,000 70,96,700 XC90 Inscription INR 77,90,000 80,23,700 V40 D3 Kinetic INR 24,75,000 25,49,250 V40 R-Design INR 27,70,000 28,53,100 V40 Cross Country D3 Inscription INR 32,50,000 29,45,800 V40 Cross Country T4 Petrol INR 26,50,000 27,29,500
Speaking on the price revision, Tom von Bonsdorff, Managing Director, Volvo Auto India said, This years budget has forced us to relook at the pricing in order to provide the best in class products to our customers. At the same time, we are pleased to be able to offer a significant price reduction on S60 Kinetic, S60 Momentum and V40 Cross Country D3 Inscription variants, without compromising on the features and specification levels. Efficiencies of scale have enabled us reduce cost and hence pass on the price discount to our customers.
Volvo isnt the first carmaker to hike the prices of its cars post the 2016 budget. From Maruti Suzuki to Mercedes-Benz, almost every car company has increased the prices of their cars.
COLUMBUS, Ohio In a little over a year, Ohio State University Extension has trained more than 10,000 Ohio farmers on best practices to apply fertilizer for optimum crop yield, reduce the risk of nutrient runoff and improve water quality throughout the state. And more training opportunities are scheduled to reach even more farmers.
FACT
Known as Fertilizer Applicator Certification Training (FACT), this program allows farmers and commercial fertilizer applicators to meet the educational requirements of Ohios new agricultural fertilization law. Passed in 2014, the legislation requires individuals who apply fertilizer to more than 50 acres to become certified by Sept. 30, 2017.
FACT was developed by researchers and educators with the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at The Ohio State University and is offered in partnership with the Ohio Department of Agriculture. The training provides research-based tactics to keep nutrients in the field and available to crops while increasing stewardship of nearby and downstream water resources.
Experts say soluble phosphorus runoff from farms is a contributor to the harmful algal blooms plaguing Lake Erie and other bodies of water in recent years.
Since we started offering this training in the fall of 2014, we have reached more than 10,000 farmers statewide, averaging about two training sessions per county, said Harold Watters, an OSU Extension field specialist for agronomic systems. I expect we will be at about 11,000 farmers when the winter training season ends this April 1.
OSU Extension is the statewide outreach arm of the college.
2 million acres impacted
According to 2015 U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics, the average Ohio farm is 188 acres. Using this figure, 11,000 farmers trained would represent a little over 2 million acres of farmland impacted so far by FACT.
We need to reach a total of approximately 25,000 farm owners that need to be certified, Watters said. We are less than halfway there but are planning to offer summer field days and additional training before the fall to capture more farmers before we hit the next winter meeting season, when the bulk of the training takes place.
Each three-hour training session focuses on teaching farmers and commercial applicators the methods and management techniques needed to achieve the appropriate rate, timing, placement and source for fertilizer applications.
The main goal of this training is to help farmers continue to achieve high levels of productivity while reducing input usage and cost by keeping more of that fertilizer in the soil where crops can use it, said Greg LaBarge, also a field specialist for agronomic systems with OSU Extension.
These practices will then translate into better water quality because less nutrients will be washed off farmland and end up in water sources.
Training
The training also provides information on the link between phosphorus, harmful algal blooms and agriculture; best management practices for phosphorus and nitrogen applications; and soil testing as a valuable tool for confidence and adaptive management.
Watters said a big part of the training revolves around awareness of the link between farm fertilizer runoff and water quality issues.
I would say about 90 percent of participants have a level of acceptance of the role of agriculture in the current water situation, he said. We try to explain their role in the problem and how they can help improve water quality through the techniques and practices we are teaching them.
Stewardship
LaBarge added that FACT has helped farmers and applicators understand the issue of water pollution better and to see the connections between production and environmental stewardship.
Farmers receiving this training see that we are talking about issues of importance to them both in terms of economics and the environment, he said. All these issues relate to production, as we are trying to help them better match the inputs that go in the soil with the yield that comes out.
Nutrients lost to runoff impact production and water quality at the same time, so its in everyones interest to reduce that loss.
Watters and LaBarge agree that training and implementation of best management practices represent a long-term process and that it will take years to see quantifiable results.
Were early in the process and need to be patient, Watters said. We need to do more, but we are headed in the right direction.
Lights, camera, action! This months Screening the Green will be an action-packed evening designed to inspire you to participate in projects that build resilience in your community.6:30 PM Potluck snacks and Meet and Greet7 PM Community Organizer Susan Silber leads a lively discussion about organizing to build resilient communities and the upcoming Community Resilience Challenge. Local eco-heroes Wanda Stewart, Catherine Sutton Dave Drummond and Carole Bennett-Simmons will also share stories and secret organizing ingredients of their successful projects.7:30 PM - Get fired up to organize your own project! Join the ProAction Cafe, a structured conversation that will get you excited to plug into existing community projects or organizing a new project.8:30 PM The short film Reclaiming Community. takes place in Oakland and Toronto and demonstrates that it only takes a few brave souls who refuse to give up on community to take back public spaces to use for the benefit of all.For more info: info [at] transitionberkeley.com website: http://www.transitionberkeley.com This event is co-sponsored by Transition Berkeley, the NorCal Community Resilience Network and BFUU's Social Justice Ctee.Suggested donation $5-$20. No one turned away.Wheelchair accessible.For occasional email notices of peace/eco/social justice alerts and related events at BFUU, send any email to:For weekly notices of BFUU services etc. go to:
Oakland has an emergency housing crisis that has resulted in thousands of renters being displaced from their housing due to excessive rent increases, and unfair evictions!
Oakland Declaration of Housing State of Emergency and Moratorium, and Moratorium on Evictions and Rent IncreasesBy Lynda Carson - April 1, 2016Oakland - Activists urge you to join them as speakers at the Tuesday, April 5, 2016 - 5:00pm Oakland City Council meeting, to support Agenda Item #12, the Declaration of Housing State of Emergency and Moratorium, and Moratorium on Evictions and Rent Increases.Oakland has an emergency housing crisis that has resulted in thousands of renters being displaced from their housing due to excessive rent increases, and unfair evictions. Activists want as many people as possible to support the proposals to protect renters, known as Agenda Item #12.Declaration Of Housing State Of Emergency And MoratoriumSubject: Declaration Of Housing State Of Emergency And Moratorium From: Member Of The Public Recommendation: Adopt The Following Pieces Of Legislation: 1) A Resolution Declaring, Renewing And Continuing The City Council's Declaration Of A Local Housing Emergency Due To The Severe Impacts And Calamities Caused By The Critical Housing Shortage, Lack Of Affordable Home Ownership Opportunities And Skyrocketing Rental Rates Causing Displacement Of Long-Term Residents And Gentrification; Establishing A 90-Day Moratorium On No-Cause Evictions And On Rent Increases Not Authorized By Existing Rent Control Provisions; AndMoratorium On Evictions And Rent Increases2) An Urgency Measure Adopting An Interim Ordinance Pursuant To Government Code Section 65858 Imposing A Moratorium On Certain Residential Rent Increases And On Evictions From All Residential Rental Units Except For Just Cause EvictionsMoratorium On Evictions And Rent IncreasesSubject: Department Of Housing Emergency Moratorium From: Council President Gibson McElhaney & Council Member Guillen, On Behalf Of Members of the Public Recommendation: Interim Emergency Ordinance To Temporarily: 1) Eliminate The Exemptions From Rent Control For Owner-Occupied Duplexes And Triplexes And Substantially Rehabilitated Properties; 2) Place A Moratorium On Rent Increases Above The Annual CPI Adjustment; 3) Affirm The Citys Prohibition On Illegal Evictions; 4) Affirm The City's Duty To Publicize City Policies Establishing Tenant Rights; And 5) Direct The City Administrator To Evaluate Potential Permanent Rent Stabilization MeasuresList Of Suggestions To Be ConsideredThe list of suggestions below was submitted to the City Council, and contains some actions that can be taken during the temporary housing state of emergency. If adopted by the City Council they can provide long-term protections to Oakland residents being displaced by unjust evictions and excessive rent increases. Require owners to file a petition with the Rent Adjustment Program for any rent increase above the approved Consumer Price Index (CPI). Enact mandatory mediation to be facilitated by the Rent Adjustment Program in the event of intended or threatened evictions 3-day, 7-day, or 60-day notices provided that mediation action is prior to filing for unlawful detainer. Change the definition of affordable housing to require that at least 5 percent of units be available to households at 15 percent to 30 percent of AMI (area median income). Strictly enforce Oaklands 50 percent local hire policy, and extend the policy to private employment (with justifiable small business exemptions) to better assure access to jobs for Oakland residents and to better help lower income households pay median rents. To avert further displacement, city actions that reduce funds for provision of direct services to unemployed and other vulnerable residents that aim for success in the job market should be halted (unless such reduction is commensurate with reduction in state and federal revenue and grant funds). Make it illegal for owners to deny receiving rent payments of Tenants who are in complete compliance with their rental agreements and are being unjustly evicted by owner schemes that by-pass the Just Cause for Eviction law and reset to Costa-Hawkins rents. Require the same relocation benefits for tenants that were recently enacted for the Ellis Act (OMC 8.22.400) in situations where relocation is due to no fault of the tenant. Immediately enact the revised Condominium ordinance, which, despite completed legal reviews and re-revisions, has languished for at least the last two years. Require a 5 percent fee to be paid by sellers to offset the disruptive effects of flipping and property speculation. Stockpile and lease residential-suited city-owned land and buildings at cost to the Oakland Land Trust for production of permanently affordable (a) artists cooperatives, (b) transitional shelter for homeless, and (c) rental housing. Track and monitor owner move-ins for the first 2 years to assure that tenant displacement was legitimate. Provide an option to multi-unit housing developers to include either 25% affordable units on-site, or pay $200,000 per proportionate units into the citys Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Establish a program to punish discrimination based on Section 8 as source of income.To Get Involved As Speakers:It is crucial for renters to appear early at the Tuesday, April 5th - 5:00pm meeting at the Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, so the Council Members can hear directly why this proposal is so important for the communities of Oakland. Please feel free to fill out a speaker card to be a speaker for Agenda Item #12.Supporters of renter protections from all across the Bay Area are invited to send emails to the Oakland City Council, to urge them to pass the renter protections.Oakland City Council membersD. Kalb dkalb [at] oaklandnet.com A. Guiillen aguillen [at] oaklandnet.com L. Mcelhaney lmcelhaney [at] oaklandnet.com A. Cambell-Washington acambell-washington [at] oaklandnet.com N. Gallo ngallo [at] oaklandnet.com D. Brooks dbrokks [at] oaklandnet.com L.Reid lreid [at] oaklandnet.com R.Kaplan rkaplan [at] oaklandnet.com Oakland Mayor L. Schaaf officeofthemayor [at] oaklandnet.com Sample Letter:Dear City Councilmembers:I support the proposals to protect renters in Oakland as a way to provide stabilization to residents who live and work in Oakland. I am proud to support renter protections as a way to stabilize housing for our neighbors, communities, and growing workforce.I absolutely agree that we have a an emergency housing crisis. Rent control and just cause eviction are the solutions to that problem, but are not enough. The renter protection proposals are the correct options and the right approach. The renter protection proposals will stabilize communities in oakland, and will stop landlords who are involved in economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system.I encourage you to support the proposed renter protections in the list of suggestions, and urge you to support these renter protections indefinitely. Doing so will help to bring an end to economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system in Oakland, whole stabilizing communities in the process.It is time to stop punishing renters by ignoring the plight of the working class, including school teachers, union workers, city workers, seniors, the disabled and low-income renters being displaced by greedy landlords involved in economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system.Please adopt the suggestions provided to city leaders for Agenda Item #12 as real solutions to real problems. Lets continue to work together to support the communities of Oakland, by stopping the economic cleansing taking place by those who are involved in the eviction for profit system.Sincerely,(Your Name)The tenants civil rights movement is also active throughout California. Stay connected and support the renters movement in your city, and other cities across the nation.Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com >>>>>>>
It is crucial for renters to appear early at the Monday, April 4th - 7:00pm meeting at the San Mateo City Hall, 330 West 20th Ave., San Mateo, so the Council Members can hear directly why this proposal is so important for the communities of San Mateo!
San Mateo may enact just cause eviction protections & emergency rent controlBy Lynda Carson - April 1, 2016The city staff of San Mateo has recommended that the City Council should pass an urgency ordinance that would enact just cause eviction protections and temporarily ban any rent increases.The ordinance could take effect immediately if it is adopted at its April 4th City Council meeting, and would last 90 days. The ordinance could be extended at a later date if necessary to protect the working class, poor, elderly, and disabled community members of San Mateo.Due to greedy landlords being involved in economic cleansing, the eviction for profit system, unfair rent increases, and unjust evictions, City staff is compelled to do what is right for the communities of San Mateo with the temporary measure.If adopted, the proposed emergency ordinance would enact the following renter protections:-Prohibit any rent increases at properties built before Feb. 1, 1995, and will freeze existing rents.-Would protect renters with just cause eviction protections in all rental properties including single family homes.-Would require property owners to request permission from the city to increase rents.-Property owners would be financially liable for tenants attorney fees and emotional distress when trying to displace a household with an unlawful eviction case that loses in court.-Landlords would have to seek permission for the extent of renovations being done at properties in addition to how much in costs they may pass on to the tenants for rent charges.Just cause eviction protections and rent control works to stabilize communities, stops unreasonable rent increases and unjust evictions, while providing a fair amount of return in rent to the landlords. It is a win, win, situation for all parties involved, including the City of San Mateo.To Get Involved As Speakers:It is crucial for renters to appear early at the Monday, April 4th - 7:00pm meeting at the San Mateo City Hall, 330 West 20th Ave., San Mateo, so the Council Members can hear directly why this proposal is so important for the communities of San Mateo.Supporters of renter protections from all across the Bay Area are invited to send emails to the San Mateo City Council, to urge them to pass the renter protections.City Council Contacts:Mayor Joe Goethals, 650.522.7522 etx.6264 jgoethals [at] cityofsanmateo.org Deputy Mayor David Lim, 650.522.7522 ext.6267 dlim [at] cityofsanmateo.org Council Member Maureen Freschet, 650.522.7522 ext.6268 mfreschet [at] cityofsanmateo.org Council Member Rick Bonilla, 650.522.7522 etx.6263 rbonilla [at] cityofsanmateo.org Council Member Diane Papan, 650.522.7522 etx.6265 dpapan [at] cityofsanmateo.org Sample Letter:Dear Mayor Goethals and Councilmembers:I support the proposals to protect renters in San Mateo as a way to provide homes to residents who live and work in San Mateo. I am proud to support renter protections as a way to stabilize housing for our neighbors, communities, and growing workforce.I absolutely agree that we have a housing problem. Rent control and just cause eviction are the solutions to that problem. The renter protection proposals are the correct options and the right approach. The renter protection proposals will stabilize communities in San Mateo, and will stop landlords who are involved in economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system.I encourage you to support the proposed renter protections, including just cause eviction protections and rent control, and urge you to support these renter protections indefinitely. Doing so will help to bring an end to economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system in San Mateo, whole stabilizing communities in the process.It is time to stop punishing renters by ignoring the plight of the working class, including school teachers, union workers, city workers, seniors, the disabled and low-income renters being displaced by greedy landlords involved in economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system.Please adopt rent control and just cause eviction protections as real solutions to real problems. Lets continue to work together to support the communities of San Mateo, by stopping the economic cleansing taking place by those who are involved in the eviction for profit system.Sincerely,(Your Name)The tenants civil rights movement is also active in Oakland, Richmond, Alameda, San Francisco, and other cities throughout California. Stay connected and support the renters movement in your city, and other cities across the nation.Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com >>>>>>>
Representatives from farmworker unions in Washington state and Baja California - citing abuses including wage theft, broken contracts, pesticide poisoning, and sexual harassment and coercion - led a march to the Watsonville headquarters of berry distributor Driscoll's, where they spoke out on their experiences as workers and demanded Driscoll's force growers to provide dignified working conditions.
31 March, 2016, 10:50 am, Watsonville, CAA loose circle of people, many dressed in green t-shirts bearing the message Boycott Driscolls!, stood around in an empty space in the parking lot shared by an Applebee's, a AAA, and Watsonville's Green Valley Cinema.Does anyone want to make a sign? asked Michael of the Watsonville Brown Berets, carrying a bag of markers and white posterboard. Three people took him up on the idea and kneeled on the asphalt to sketch out designs. Boycott Driscolls!, #sanquintin, and Union Contract for Farmworkers were some of the slogans that flowed out of their marker tips, as well as images of crossed out strawberries.The circle grew over the next half hour as cars drove up and unloaded passengers with more signs and banners. Organizers with the Santa Cruz support committee for the now cross-border Driscoll's berry boycott walked between small groups in the circle and handed press releases to media representatives.Si se puede lograr tener una reunion, por favor? asked Ramon Torres, trying to gather together the assembled people, who then numbered nearly forty. Torres, president of a Washington state berry-pickers union called FUJ or Familias Unidas por la Justicia, is on a month-long tour of Oregon and California to publicize the union's struggles with their employer, Sakuma Brothers. However, FUJ's beef extends to Driscoll's because Sakuma distributes its berries through the larger company. The press release distributed by the local support committee explains further: FUJ first called for a boycott of Sakuma in 2013 after signed agreements made in mediated negotiation between the company and an elected committee of 11 workers were all broken by the company. In 2014 FUJ called for a boycott of Driscoll's when Sakuma stopped using their own label and had workers picking directly into Driscoll's flats. Torres is accompanied by Lazaro Matamoro, also a berrypicker and member of Familias Unidas.FUJ was not the only farmworker union present. Gloria Gracida, a representative from el Sindicato Independiente Nacional Democratico de Jornaleros Agricolas a recently formed union representing upwards of 80,000 campesinos (field workers) in San Quintin, Baja California stood alongside the FUJ members. On March 17th, to begin her part of the coastal boycott tour, Gracida walked for four days from San Quintin to Tijuana before crossing the border there to participate in the California-Oregon tour.These people gathered on March 31st to march to Driscoll's corporate headquarters in Watsonville and deliver a message asking the company to pressure its client growers to bargain for and respect agreements made with independent unions of farmworkers. The march began just before noon and traveled a short distance down the road to the Driscoll's building, a one-story building located in a complex of glass-fronted offices and parking lots. The marchers stopped on the sidewalk before the office, where they displayed signs and listened to speeches from Torres and Gracida.Speaking in Spanish and accompanied by a translator, Gracida highlighted the brutal working conditions under which she and other campesinos in Baja exist.I have seen many little girls (ninas) and women working in the fields [who become] sick from agricultural chemicals, [who are] raped and sexually harrassed in the fields. For this we shout 'Boycott Driscoll's!'Gracida also demanded that workers receive fair compensation for their labor.Driscoll's website says workers receive between five and nine dollars per hour in San Quintin, she said, Eso es una mentira [a lie]! Driscoll's is slavery!She then issued a challenge to the company to refute her claims.Here in front of Driscoll's, I challenge you to declare publicly that it's true or false that workers in Mexico make six dollars for twelve hours of work!Driscoll's corporate website states that it has a zero tolerance policy for child labor, coercion, abuse, harrassment, and health and safety conditions posing immediate threat to life and limb. It also states that violations of this zero tolerance policy must be corrected immediately by suppliers or result in termination of business relations. This policy is the lynchpin on which the workers demands swing. They say the company can pressure its suppliers to change their practices.Ramon Torres spoke to the simple, specific demands of the farmworker unions, highlighting requests for medical care, dignified and sanitary housing for workers, pensions, a fifteen-dollar minimum wage, and union contracts for workers organized independently of larger, more established unions. These demands would provide long term stability to farmworker families. You have the power to stop exploitation, Torres said, Our children don't deserve the fields, they deserve opportunity!Two Driscoll's employees came out from the offices with a plastic jug of water and paper cups for the protestors, as well as a sign printed on office paper stating Driscoll's respect for the assembled people's right to be present and a request that such protest occur peacefully. They were met with hisses and boos from the crowd. One person yelled, Water? This is bullshit, they want justice, not your water! Gracida stated that the water was an insult, saying that the same respectful treatment is lacking in Baja, where workers commonly carry water with them in empty soda cans because no clean water is available in the fields.The Driscoll's employees spoke to the assembled crowd. We admire your passion, they said. Torres then held an extended conversation with them. Do you know that kids in Washington berry fields get paid only 85% of what adults are paid? Talk to your bosses. He reiterated a central demand of the boycott movement as well, saying, We want a union contract.The protest continued on until about 1pm. Marchers gathered before the Driscoll's office to take a group photo with signs and banners. Representatives from community organizations including the Center for Farmworke Families, the International Migrants Alliance, and the Watsonville Brown Berets took turns on the megaphone with messages of support.Torres, Gracida, and Matamoros have a long trip ahead of them still. Speaking on March 30th at Barrios Unidos on Soquel Avenue in Santa Cruz, Torres explained that they want to build boycott coordinating committees in seventy cities on the west coast. So far, they're at fifty-three. FUJ and the San Quintin workers want to build a movement on the scale of the United Farm Workers grape strike headed by Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez in the 1960s, a historical specter of which they are very aware. Gracida made a point in her speech to recall that March 31st is in fact Cesar Chavez's birthday and invoked his figure, saying, In Cesar Chavez name, boycott Driscoll's! Both unions have agreed to not sign union contracts unless the other is given one as well, tying their fates together for the near future.For more information on this issue, look for coverage by the Los Angeles Times and the Nation Magazine. Additionally, Driscoll's corporate website can be found at http://www.driscolls.com , Familias Unifas por la Justicia at http://boycottsakumaberries.com , and el Sindicato Independiente Nacional Democratico de Jornaleros Agricolas at Sindja on facebook.
Tens of thousands of teachers, students, service workers and youth rallied, picketed and protested in Chicago against the attacks on education, racism and starvation wages that millions face. Chicago Teachers Union CTU struck and they were joined by other public education unions throughout the city who face massive attacks
Fed Up! Chicago Labor Rises Up April 1 To Defend Public Education, Services & Fight For Living WagesTens of thousands of teachers, students, fast food workers and service workers struck, picketed, marched and rallied on April 1, 2016 In Chicago, It was one of the largest mass labor protests held in recent years. The Chicago Teachers who are represented by the Chicago Teachers Union CTU were joined by state universities and community college faculty, staff and students. They are facing shutdowns of public education statewide by Governor Rauner who is seeking to destroy the public education system and eliminate the unions in Illinois. Corrupt Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel has also angered Chicago students joined the protest against the frontal attack on their right to an education and the blatant racist character of these policies which are primarily aimed at the African American, Latino and working class youth. Rahm Emanuel and Governor Rauner who spent $27 million of his money to get elected have laid down the gauntlet to workers and organized labor in their drive to privatize all public education and public services. Educators and students speak out on privatization, charters, union busting, and the need to fight for living wages. International trade unionists also joined the protests from KCTU Korea, Brazil, Japan, Mexico and other countries. They also demand the removal of Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel and Govrnor Rauner and made calls for an independent workers party. Members of Chicago Teachers and AFT members from throughout the country along with ATU 241, SEIU and AFSCME talk about why they are fed up.Production of Labor Video Project
This is a Call to Action Against Slavery in America In one voice, rising from the cells of long term solitary confinement, echoed in the dormitories and cell blocks from Virginia to Oregon, we prisoners across the United States vow to finally end slavery in 2016.
PDF version
On September 9th of 1971 prisoners took over and shut down Attica, New York State's most notorious prison. On September 9th of 2016, we will begin an action to shut down prisons all across this country. We will not only demand the end to prison slavery, we will end it ourselves by ceasing to be slaves.
In the 1970s the US prison system was crumbling. In Walpole, San Quentin, Soledad, Angola and many other prisons, people were standing up, fighting and taking ownership of their lives and bodies back from the plantation prisons. For the last six years we have remembered and renewed that struggle. In the interim, the prisoner population has ballooned and technologies of control and confinement have developed into the most sophisticated and repressive in world history. The prisons have become more dependent on slavery and torture to maintain their stability.
Prisoners are forced to work for little or no pay. That is slavery. The 13th amendment to the US constitution maintains a legal exception for continued slavery in US prisons. It states neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States. Overseers watch over our every move, and if we do not perform our appointed tasks to their liking, we are punished. They may have replaced the whip with pepper spray, but many of the other torments remain: isolation, restraint positions, stripping off our clothes and investigating our bodies as though we are animals.
Slavery is alive and well in the prison system, but by the end of this year, it won't be anymore. This is a call to end slavery in America. This call goes directly to the slaves themselves. We are not making demands or requests of our captors, we are calling ourselves to action. To every prisoner in every state and federal institution across this land, we call on you to stop being a slave, to let the crops rot in the plantation fields, to go on strike and cease reproducing the institutions of your confinement.
This is a call for a nation-wide prisoner work stoppage to end prison slavery, starting on September 9th, 2016. They cannot run these facilities without us.
Non-violent protests, work stoppages, hunger strikes and other refusals to participate in prison routines and needs have increased in recent years. The 2010 Georgia prison strike, the massive rolling California hunger strikes, the Free Alabama Movement's 2014 work stoppage, have gathered the most attention, but they are far from the only demonstrations of prisoner power. Large, sometimes effective hunger strikes have broken out at Ohio State Penitentiary, at Menard Correctional in Illinois, at Red Onion in Virginia as well as many other prisons. The burgeoning resistance movement is diverse and interconnected, including immigrant detention centers, women's prisons and juvenile facilities. Last fall, women prisoners at Yuba County Jail in California joined a hunger strike initiated by women held in immigrant detention centers in California, Colorado and Texas.
Prisoners all across the country regularly engage in myriad demonstrations of power on the inside. They have most often done so with convict solidarity, building coalitions across race lines and gang lines to confront the common oppressor.
Forty-five years after Attica, the waves of change are returning to America's prisons. This September we hope to coordinate and generalize these protests, to build them into a single tidal shift that the American prison system cannot ignore or withstand. We hope to end prison slavery by making it impossible, by refusing to be slaves any longer.
To achieve this goal, we need support from people on the outside. A prison is an easy-lockdown environment, a place of control and confinement where repression is built into every stone wall and chain link, every gesture and routine. When we stand up to these authorities, they come down on us, and the only protection we have is solidarity from the outside. Mass incarceration, whether in private or state-run facilities is a scheme where slave catchers patrol our neighborhoods and monitor our lives. It requires mass criminalization. Our tribulations on the inside are a tool used to control our families and communities on the outside. Certain Americans live every day under not only the threat of extra-judicial executionas protests surrounding the deaths of Mike Brown, Tamir Rice, Sandra Bland and so many others have drawn long overdue attention tobut also under the threat of capture, of being thrown into these plantations, shackled and forced to work.
Our protest against prison slavery is a protest against the school to prison pipeline, a protest against police terror, a protest against post-release controls. When we abolish slavery, they'll lose much of their incentive to lock up our children, they'll stop building traps to pull back those who they've released. When we remove the economic motive and grease of our forced labor from the US prison system, the entire structure of courts and police, of control and slave-catching must shift to accommodate us as humans, rather than slaves.
Prison impacts everyone, when we stand up and refuse on September 9th, 2016, we need to know our friends, families and allies on the outside will have our backs. This spring and summer will be seasons of organizing, of spreading the word, building the networks of solidarity and showing that we're serious and what we're capable of.
Step up, stand up, and join us.
Against prison slavery.
For liberation of all.
Find more information, updates and organizing materials and opportunities at the following websites:
Free Alabama Movement
IWOC
Sacramento, CA Having a Having a California unemployment insurance claim denied can be surprising, especially for workers who feel they meet all the criteria for filing a claim. But sometimes employers misrepresent the reason for terminating employment, leading to an unfair California unemployment insurance denial. In such cases, workers can file a claim to have their case considered by the Employment Development Department (EDD). Although there are tight deadlines that must be met, it can be financially beneficial to speak with an attorney to discuss options.
Filing an appeal might also be logical, given that Californias Employment Development Department was audited in 2014, over its handling of thousands of unemployment insurance claims. According to the(3/12/14), officials were concerned that more than half of the unemployment insurance claimants who appealed their EDD decision won their appeal. Applicants at the time also complained about unanswered phone calls and delays in payments being made.One claimant interviewed in the article, Niki Lee, said she wound up homeless after EDD failed to respond to her requests to postpone an eligibility interview. Despite winning her appeal of her denial, she had not received money by the time this article was written.As a result of such concerns, an audit was ordered. That audit, also reported on by the(8/28/14), found hundreds of thousands of claims for jobless benefits were wrongly denied and later overturned by administrative judges. The audit also found claimants waited months to receive benefits they depended on to pay for their bills, including housing.Among the auditors findings were that EDD workers did not properly investigate claims - including not adequately gathering vital information from claimants and employers. The audit was carried out by State Auditor Elaine M. Howle, who noted that part of the problem could be that EDD workers are often forced to make quick decisions rather than conducting thorough claims reviews. Such quick decisions reportedly included failing to adequately show that applicants were purposely lying about how much they earned before they lost their jobs rather than making honest mistakes in reporting their income.Of the more than 390,000 decisions the appeals board made in each of the last three full fiscal years and of the nearly 230,000 decisions made between July 1, 2013 and April 23, 2014 at the first level, 91 percent were from appeals filed by claimants, and the appeals board decided in favor of claimants between 45 percent and 51 percent of the time, Howells report notes. Consequently, those claimants may have waited unnecessarily to receive their unemployment benefits.Claimants applying for unemployment insurance are often in financially vulnerable positions and need the income to make ends meet. But they face strict deadlines for filing their appeals. In such cases, an experienced unemployment appeals attorney can help navigate the system.
Fact-checking is one of the most important aspects of news writing as anonymous sources are always ready to leak unconfirmed facts, photos and videos.
In most cases, these fake news gather a lot of public attention and receive a refutation in the end.
Legit.ng presents to you 5 of the biggest hoax in Nigerian history:
1. Shekau finally surrenders
Abubakar Shekau
Reports emerged in the early hours on Thursday, March 24 suggesting that Boko Haram had finally surrendered to the superior power of Nigeria.
A video published by Leadership, shows the groups leader, Abubakar Shekau, who was previously rumoured to have been killed, advising his followers to surrender to save themselves.
However, analysis of the speech by Shekau casts doubt on the claims of the terrorist leaders surrender. Legit.ngs editors who carefully listened to the viral speech by Shekau could not verify any message urging the Islamists to lay down their weapons in the video.
READ ALSO: Boko Haram finally surrenders (Updated)
2. Ngige faints in senate
Senator Chris Ngige
On Thursday, February 18, reports suggested that Nigerias minister of labour and employment, Dr Chris Nwabueze Ngige, collapsed at the National Assembly.
However, a couple of hours after the numerous publications Ngige denied reports that he collapsed during National Assembly budget defence. Speaking aboard an aircraft from South Africa, he described the report as rumour aimed at damaging his strength and personality. Senator Ngige said the collapse rumour is laughable and a failed attempt by never to do well politicians for their selfish interest.
3. Iara Oshiomole files for divorce
Adams and Iara Oshiomhole
Unconfirmed reports broke a month ago that the beautiful wife of Edo state governor, Iara Fortes Oshimhole, had filed for divorce.It was alleged that Mrs Iara was filing for divorce on claims that her husband, Adams Oshiomhole, is fetish and diabolic. Iara was alleged to have also accused her husband of being responsible for the death of his former wife Mrs Clara Oshiomhle who died on December 7, 2010, at the Abuja clinic, Maitama, after a protracted battle with breast cancer.
Finally, a media aide of the Edo state governor confirmed to Legit.ng that the couple are happy together.
4. President Buhari closes down Aso Rock Villa church
President Muhammadu Buhari
In September 2015, mass media was filled with reports that President Buhari has allegedly ordered the closure and relocation of the Aso Rock Villa Church.
Former president Olusegun Obasanjo allegedly built the Villa Chapel too close to the residence to enjoy worship from the comfort of his bedroom. Thus President Buhari decided to relocate or even close the church as it doesnt apply to his religion.
Nevertheless, Femi Adesina, the presidents special adviser on media and publicity, denied the story, saying that the alleged closed church is still open and functioning. Adesina also tweeted photos from service held on Sunday, September 6, 2015.
READ ALSO: Senator Chris Ngige denies collapse reports (updated)
5. Nnamdi Kanu apologizes to President Buhari
The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the founder of Radio Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu had allegedly apologised to President Muhammadu Buhari for referring to him (Buhari) as a terrorist, evil and a paedophile in his radio broadcasts. The apology was reportedly contained in a statement which the 48-year-old pro-Biafran agitator made available to the DSS on October 23, 2015.
However, this information has been denied by Vincent Obetta, the lawyer of Nnamdi Kanu. According to the lawyer, the government was trying everything possible to destroy Kanus defence.
Source: Legit.ng
Legit.ng is #1 online trusted source of the latest news in Nigeria. We are covering Nigeria news, Niger delta, world updates, and Nigerian newspaper reviews. We guide our readers to the world of politics, business, energy, sports, entertainment, fashion, lifestyle and human interest stories.
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When looked at a distance of 1,00,000 km, EVs come out to be significantly economical even before no-maintenance advantages kick in
With this update, the Tesla Model S and Model X Performance also gain more endurance for back-to-back launches
To a true car enthusiast, electric cars can never be as engaging as a proper petrol (or even a diesel) car. However, one cannot deny the fact that electric powertrains are witnessing rapid development while ICE engines are inching towards their limit of advancement. Today, there are many EV brands with products that are arguably better or at least on par with their ICE counterparts. Notable examples include Rimac Automobili, Rivian, etc., but in the minds of the wider mass, Tesla would always be at the forefront.
Tesla, Inc., really set the benchmark for modern-day electric vehicles. The team under Elon Musk proved that electric cars are not supposed to be weird, quirky and undesirable but technologically loaded, good-looking (thanks to Franz von Holzhausen; except for the Cybertruck) and better than an ICE alternative coming in the same price range if not for anything else, this stands true for the Tesla Model 3 Performance.
It is a bit difficult to list out all the advantages of a premium electric vehicle over a similarly-priced petrol or diesel model. However, the ability to receive new features and improved performance via an Over-The-Air or OTA update (like on a smartphone) is something which was an out-of-the-world thought during the time of regular cars. Now, a new update is on the way for the Model S and Model X Performance models featuring the brands new Raven powertrain.
As per a tweet shared by Tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee, the Tesla Model S Performance sedans 0-100km/h acceleration time comes down to 2.3 seconds while the figure stands at 2.6 seconds for the Model X Performance crossover. Meanwhile, quarter-mile times drop down to 10.4 seconds and 11 seconds, respectively. In addition to this, the cars receive more endurance for back-to-back launch controls. Tesla has already introduced a new Cheetah Stance launch mode.
This is a free update and various reports state that the cars get almost 50bhp. Do take a moment to imagine your car, parked in the garage, getting a significant bump in output by connecting to your WiFi. Yes, automobiles have come a long way!
While we cannot blindly believe the statement that electric cars can save the planet, it is fair to say that emission-free modes of transport would be an important step in conserving the environment. However, there should be a balance between electric and electrified or cleaner ICE engines to actually help Mother Earth. The reason is that in many developing nations, electricity is still generated using fuming coal power plants.
Source
Global warming means much warmer winters in the Arctic, with more rain and icing. Researchers are working to understand what that will do to plants that have evolved to overwinter under a thick blanket of snow.
In January 2014, a group of researchers conducted an unusual, some might say paradoxical, experiment in the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard: Their goal was to encase small plants growing out on the tundra in a thick layer of ice.
While this might seem odd -- nature does a pretty good job of encasing plants in Svalbard with ice and snow -- the researchers were trying to use their experiment as a kind of biological crystal ball.
Global warming means that it will rain more in places like Svalbard during the winter, and the researchers wondered what this change in climate would do to a common tundra plant, called Cassiope tetragona, or arctic heather. This is more than just an academic question, since climatologists say that Svalbard has already seen the greatest increase in temperatures of any place in Europe over the last three decades.
"We already see large changes in Svalbard's climate, and we expect more to come" because of global warming, said Brage B. Hansen, a biologist at the Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and one of the paper's authors. "We know that when we have summer warming, plants will grow more, but when we have winter warming, which is even more profound in a place like Svalbard, we don't really know how this affects plants."
And so Hansen and his fellow scientists at the University Centre in Svalbard and the University of Aberdeen designed an experiment to see if they could figure out how Cassiope would fare encapsulated in a sheet of ice.
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Ice boxes
The study, published in Ecology and Evolution in February, was what researchers call a pilot project -- where they test out an idea to see if it merits pursuing.
Logistics proved to be a big part of the challenge they faced in deciding to do the study.
Outside of Longyearbyen, which has a year-round population of about 2000 people, there are a few scattered settlements but essentially no infrastructure. If the researchers wanted to freeze their plants in natural settings out on the tundra, they would have to haul every drop of water out to their selected research site via snowmobile, in the pitch black and bitter cold of the polar night.
Their experimental design involved using 50 x 50 cm wooden, bottomless boxes, or frames, to isolate areas of Cassiope so that they could create a thick cover of ice inside the box. "We were testing out our ideas and logistics and started out relatively small, with six boxes where we encased plants in ice, and six control plots for later comparison with untreated plants," says ystein Varpe, associate professor at the University Centre in Svalbard.
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Then came the surprisingly difficult challenge of actually encasing the plants in ice. The researchers used 40 litres of water to freeze the plants inside each of the bottomless treatment boxes. They quickly learned if they poured water into the open-bottomed boxes too quickly it would just run out the bottom. If they ran out of water they had to drive back to Longyearbyen to tank up again, so every lost drop added to the difficulty of getting the experiment set up. They finally came up with a system where they built slushy walls of snow around the perimeter of the boxes to hold the water in until it could freeze.
"It's a cold, wet and challenging job when it is -15 C and you are working with water," Hansen said. "You have to work pretty hard to make it work."
More damage but more growth
When summer came and the researchers returned to see the effects of the icing, they found that the plants that had been encased in ice were more likely to have damage. Cassiope is actually a tiny shrub that grows by either prolonging its shoots or sending up new shoots. "The icing treatment damaged and actually killed some of the plant's shoots and the ice-encased plants also flowered less," Varpe said. Neither of these findings surprised the team.
But what did surprise them was that plants that had been encased by ice actually had more growth in their remaining undamaged shoots compared to the plants in the control plots. Initially, that didn't make sense -- if a plant had been harmed by freezing, why would it grow more?
Hansen said he and his colleagues believe this happened because the plants were compensating for the damage. If they had fewer shoots (because some had been killed off) and didn't put energy into making flowers, the energy that might have gone into flowering and supporting the dead shoots could instead be channeled to the surviving parts of the plant, he said.
"Maybe this reflects their life history strategy," he said, adding that the scientists are speculating and don't yet have definitive proof for the cause. "If you have really bad conditions, you skip reproduction and some stems die, but you allocate more of your resources to the growth of the remaining stems."
Even though they had relatively few sample plots to analyse, the trend was so strong that it was statistically significant.
Cassiope as a measure of past weather events
One reason the researchers decided to study Cassiope is because of the way it grows and how other researchers have used this distinctive growth pattern in climate research.
Researchers have long used tree rings as a kind of time machine, especially when it comes to weather and climate. In temperate deciduous forests, for example, a tree adds growth around its trunk each year. This ring of growth is visible when you cut the tree down and look at the distinctive pattern of concentric rings in the cross-section of the tree trunk.
Not surprisingly, these growth rings are thicker when growing conditions are good, and thinner if growing conditions are bad. Trees that live a very long time, like bristlecone pines (which can live for thousands of years), offer a kind of tree's-eye view of the growing conditions for each year of growth shown in the tree rings.
It turns out that also Cassiope, even though it is only a little arctic shrub, has a specific kind of growth pattern that researchers can use to measure annual growth, much like a tree ring. Each year, every surviving shoot produces a distinct new growth section with a length that can be easily measured and compared with previous years' sections.
These researchers have long assumed that if Cassiope grows a lot in a year, that they can assume that growing conditions have been good, and if it grows poorly, then growing conditions were bad. This assumption has been used by some researchers to reconstruct temperature records in the Arctic back as far as 1840.
This assumption might now have to be reconsidered, Hansen said.
"We have to be aware that some of the findings we have (about plant growth) might be confounded by other climatic correlations," he said. "If you had a really warm summer and then you saw increased shoot growth, you might easily conclude that the warm summer was responsible for the increased growth, while it might actually be the warm winter and plant damage."
Three master's students will find answers
The surprising findings of the 2014 pilot study encouraged Hansen and his colleagues to begin a larger, more complicated study this past winter.
This time, instead of six boxes paired with six controls, the researchers now have 22 different boxes with different experimental setups. They are also conducting their research on plants that are important as forage for herbivores on Svalbard, such as reindeer, geese and ptarmigan, instead of Cassiope, which is not eaten by grazers at all.
This summer, three master's students will measure growth and flowering of all the plants in the different boxes to see what happens. The study will also extend over several years, because sometimes the effects of a harsh winter can be delayed.
"We know there can be delayed effects," he said. "Maybe if you produce a lot of flowers one year then you don't produce a lot of flowers in the next, or vice versa."
Removing a brain tumor is a delicate task, if not done properly it can have catastrophic consequences, such as brain damage, motor impairment or failure in controlling a vital organ function. In order to make this work more precise, the Mexican David Oliva Uribe designed, at Brussels, Belgium, a "smart scalpel" that determines whether an area is healthy or tumorous.
The device is designed to be used in the operating room when a brain tumor is already diagnosed and the only solution is to remove it. The tool has the size of a scalpel, but the tip is spherical and of a diameter smaller than one millimeter.
The prototype was tested in artificial tumors and brain tissue from pigs, where excellent results were obtained and demonstrated the feasibility of entering the phase of human trials.
It features integrated sensors that by wiping the surface warns the neurosurgeon with visual and/or auditory displays about the status of tissue, refraining to be a distraction. The results are obtained in less than half a second, saving vital time during the operation.
"Although imaging techniques such as an MRI and an ultrasound locate a tumor accurately before the surgery, during the cranial opening and throughout the surgical procedure there are many factors that can lead to the loss of this position, so the resection (the removing of the tumor) depends on the experience, as well as the senses of sight and touch of the surgeon," said the Master of mechanics, by the Tecnologico de Monterrey.
During surgery, the doctor only has two ways to recognize the edges of a tumor; through microscopic observation or tissue manipulation tools, with which brain texture sensitivity is lost, hence the importance of having a precision instrument that is more sensitive to the touch than the surgeon.
David Oliva, president of the Mexican Talent Network Abroad chapter Belgium, explained that the instrument is designed to locate tumors at an early stage, when it is visible through an MRI but not in the operating room because its physical characteristic are similar to those of healthy tissue, making it difficult to discern.
The design of the device has been worked on for six years, the mechanical and sensory components were made at the University of Hannover, Germany, and specialized neurosurgery hospitals, and digital processing was developed at the Free University of Brussels, Belgium (VUB).
Technology for medical instruments
Oliva detailed that the sensor technology can be miniaturized and adapted to detect tumors in other areas of the body such as stomach or intestine where it is necessary to introduce a tiny device called endoscope to evaluate the tissue and remove the malignant area.
Furthermore, it is possible to extend the device to the application in assisted surgeries by robots, because the sensor technology has the quality to empower these teleoperation devices.
When they're not in the line of duty protecting the men and women of their community, these two kindhearted cops in Texas take time out to be of service to lonely pets as well. Every Thursday, officers Amy Thomas and Ashley Uribe of the Austin Police Department spend their lunch breaks walking shelter dogs - a sweet tradition that's as uplifting for them as it is for the animals they spend time with.
Amy Thomas
Thomas told The Dodo that she and Uribe were first inspired to get involved after reading a post online from the Austin Animal Center, an adoption facility where they've become regular visitors. "I saw they needed volunteers to come walk with the dogs," she said. "We don't have a lot of free time, but this offered us the opportunity to help."
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Amy Thomas
As self-described animal lovers, both of whom have rescued dogs from the shelter to join their families, volunteering there to help other pets just felt like a perfect fit. "They're in a cage 24 hours a day," said Thomas. "If they don't get out, they're just stuck there. The dogs might be a little shy at first, but the more positive human interaction they have, the better their chances of getting adopted."
Amy Thomas
More than just giving the dogs socialization and the chance to leave their kennels and walk around for a while, the officers say the time they spend walking them raises their spirits, too. "They're so affectionate and loving," Uribe told The Dodo. "They get so excited, and you get kisses. It just makes you feel better after walking a shelter dog. There's something about it that just helps. It's like therapy."
Amy Thomas
Thomas agrees: "You can be in a totally bad mood, but after walking the dogs it makes you feel better knowing that you're helping."
Amy Thomas
The officers say they hope that as more people learn about the routine they've come to love, others will be encouraged to donate their time in service of shelter animals as well. "If you could volunteer just 30 minutes a week, it would make a huge difference," said Thomas. "Even if it's a little time, it adds up to a lot. Maybe you get a break from work, you can do something good and walk a dog."
Amy Thomas
More than anything, however, Thomas and Uribe are eager to show that these homeless are as deserving of love - and a forever home. "Some people are reluctant to get a shelter dog, because they think these dogs are broken in some way. That's not true. There's a dog in there for everybody. They just need a second chance," said Uribe. "Hopefully, by us going out there and giving those dogs attention, other people will give them attention as well."
Amy Thomas
Marc Ching
In his four trips to Asia, Marc Ching has almost died three times. He's been beaten, robbed, shot at and held at machete blade. Basically, describing what he does for a living is no easy story. A fourth-generation Japanese herbalist and holistic nutritionist for pets Ching's real passions lie in his organization, Animal Hope & Wellness Foundation, for which he travels to China and South Korea, saving dogs from the underground meat and fur trade. And that's where things get kind of complicated. "It's very dangerous. I don't recommend it," Ching told The Dodo. "My first trip was a scouting mission in Beijing, China, to find out if I could even do what I'm doing now. I tried to go to this slaughterhouse and I actually got held hostage. So, it didn't go well." Ching seemed modestly nonchalant about this last part, before saying, "I saved 57 dogs that trip."
Ching's first trip to China, September 2015. "I saved 57 dogs. A duck. And a little sheep today from getting all her fur ripped out," he wrote on his website. | Marc Ching
"I don't speak Chinese," he said. "I couldn't get a translator to come with me because it's dangerous, so I ended up going there myself." While investigating the slaughterhouse, a tip he'd received from a local source, Ching noticed a driver pull up to the facility and begin to unload dogs from his truck. So he quickly snapped some pictures. When he tried to talk to the men, however, that's when things went south.
Bound dog saved from Chinese slaughterhouse | Marc Ching
"Before I knew it, they grabbed me and threw me to the ground. My arms were being held, so I couldn't escape," he said. "One of the guys kicked me so hard that I kind of went flying, which is actually how I got away." Every year in China, as many as 10 million dogs are killed for their meat, according to Humane Society International (HSI), with as many as 10,000 killed for China's Yulin dog meat festival alone. Some dogs are even bred specifically to be slaughtered. Opposition to the festival, and Asia's dog meat trade in general, has grown lately thanks to campaigns by organizations like HSI and outspoken celebrities, such as Ricky Gervais and "Real Housewife" Lisa Vanderpump.
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"There is a real divide here in Yulin between the older generation dog meat traders and the younger generation Chinese animal campaigners who want this horror to stop," Adam Parascandola, director of animal cruelty issues for the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), said in a statement. Ching's second trip overseas was where he really hit his stride. The next time around, he relied on a translator who helped him research where to find nearby slaughterhouses and the locations where dogs were being bred, beaten or tortured. Then he tried to get them out.
Dog saved from meat trade | Marc Ching
"What I'm doing is very different from what other people out there are doing," he said. "People push trucks carrying different dogs from farm to slaughterhouse off the road. That's the typical practice." Ching operates using a more thoughtful strategy, targeting slaughterhouses and breeding operations directly. "Unfortunately, I can't take them all," he said. "Financially, it's exhausting, so I take the dogs who need me the most, dogs who've had their feet or their legs cut off."
Rescued dog getting his legs freed | Marc Ching
And he's learned a lot since his first trip. "Now, I have a cover," he said. "I go in as a buyer for the dog industry in the United States. Then, all the dogs that I can take, who are abused or cut up, I take to the vet. I have a system now." These days, Ching brings a van with him and fills it up with as many dogs as he can. He has also formed relationships with a few vets in Beijing and surrounding provinces where he can safely bring the dogs he's rescued. Once they're healthy, some of the dogs can be rehomed locally.
Dog saved after being electrocuted | Marc Ching
"But the dogs who matter most to me," he said, "which I guess is a lot of them, the dogs I feel most connected to, I fly out. I want to give them a life."
Rescued pup being warmed by Ching's translator | Marc Ching
For some of those abused dogs, a new life means healing alongside people who have been through trauma themselves. In addition to saving animals from the international dog meat trade, Ching's Animal Hope & Wellness Foundation runs a victim adoption program in the U.S. "I try to adopt to people who have been through horrific crimes," he said. "Most of them are rape victims - their stories are so traumatic they have a hard time being normal again. So, I try to show them how a dog who has been through some type of abusive situation, when you're sad or having a hard time, they love you no matter what."
Abuse survivor from Ching's victim adoption program | Marc Ching
One woman (whose name has been kept anonymous to protect her privacy) was assaulted and robbed at gunpoint, Ching said. Then, one of the men circled back to the woman, aimed his gun at her face and pulled the trigger. Thankfully, the gun had only been loaded with BB pellets. But she was left with permanent scars, physically and emotionally, from the ordeal. Eventually, with the help of the victim adoption program, she was placed with a small, terrified dog named Dot, who had lost her leg in the dog meat trade. Together, they're helping each other heal and learn not to be afraid of other people. The introduction of dogs to victims of abuse or trauma can lead to decreased anxiety, lowered risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and an increase in trust over time, according to a 2011 study that observed a group of female assault survivors interacting with dogs during therapy sessions. "So many of these China and Korea dogs are actually going to these victims," Ching said. "I kind of look at it like, even though we're saving animals, were using these animals to save people."
Abuse survivor and Dot | Marc Ching
"I'm actually very successful with this program," he said. "When I adopt a dog to a victim of abuse, a survivor, it really changes their life. It's magic and it's miraculous."
Abuse survivor and Dot | Marc Ching
"When you meet them, when they hold the dog in their hand, they're crying," he said. "I hear their story and then I bring the dog out and tell them the history of the dog ... it's so powerful, it's amazing." Ching also works tirelessly to rescue dogs in Los Angeles, where he currently lives. Toby is a small pup currently up for adoption, rescued by Ching and members of his foundation. He had been "smashed into the ground, kicked and stepped on repeatedly," according to The Animal Hope & Wellness Foundation Facebook page. Because of the abuse sustained, Toby's lungs contain fluid and he coughs frequently. Now he's ready for a new home.
Below are just some of the many dogs available for adoption through Animal Hope & Wellness Foundation.
These animals are available for adoption in Los Angeles.
And here are some photos from Ching's latest trip to South Korea this January.
Marc Ching
Marc Ching
Marc Ching
Marc Ching
Shutterstock
SeaWorld has admitted what's behind its recent decision to stop breeding orcas, and it's not welfare. It's money. Earlier this month, SeaWorld announced that it would stop breeding orcas, making the two dozen in its care the company's last generation of captive whales. The decision was praised as an overdue step forward for the company, but many questioned whether this was a true change of heart for the embattled company or just a response to several years of troubled stock prices and profits. SeaWorld CEO Joel Manby cleared that right up during a webcast with the public on Wednesday. "We understand some customers are upset and you may feel betrayed, but in a simple way, the data and trends showed it was either a SeaWorld without whales or a world without SeaWorld," he said. "We are an organization that needs to have cash flow to [succeed] and unfortunately, the trends were not in our favor."
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Shutterstock
Yes, Manby used "unfortunately" to describe SeaWorld's decision to end its breeding program. Of course, SeaWorld's a profit-driven company - not an animal rescue group - so it's not unexpected that the company would be driven by its stockholders' welfare over that of its whales. But Manby's admission is a reminder that the company's PR team seems to be running the show, and that it seems to be the same old SeaWorld behind the scenes. SeaWorld's already made that clear in the days since the breeding ban. When people responded to its apparently humane decision by wondering whether SeaWorld would relocate the remaining orcas to sea sanctuaries - the logical next step if SeaWorld were truly committed to animal welfare - the company released a statement decrying sea sanctuaries as a "death sentence" for its whales. Among other things, SeaWorld said that sea sanctuaries would be even worse than dropping the captive-bred orcas into the middle of the ocean alone - a claim one marine biologist described as "ludicrous" - and said that they'd be at risk of "hurricanes." The company seemed to forget that the U.S. Navy successfully keeps dolphins in sea pens just down the coast from SeaWorld San Diego.
Correction: The original version of this review referred to Yiyun Li as a man. This version has been corrected.
This cunning bit of cocktail-party fodder asks 100 notable people, from actors to authors, to choose one book that changed their life: an irresistible exercise of the desert-island type. The Books That Changed My Life, edited by Bethanne Patrick, is an engaging exemplar of those gifty cheerleading-for-culture tomes that nonreaders buy for people they dont know very well brain candy for the harried, the uncommitted and the moderately curious. It doesnt hurt that a portion of the proceeds from the book will go to the literacy organization 826 National, unquestioned good guys in the literary firmament.
The collection also serves as a telling survey of the anthropology of cultural consumption and influence. What kind of books do Patricks subjects choose? Over three-quarters were published in the 20th or 21st century, with a handful coming from the 19th century. Blake and the Japanese haiku master Issa speak for the 18th century, and Homer, Plato and the Bible represent the classical and pre-modern eras.
Of the titles that can be ascribed to a single author, two-thirds are by men (including Evelyn Waugh, contra Time magazine). Joyce, Beckett and Salinger show up twice each, but so does The God of Small Things, by Arundhati Roy. What this says to me, and I hope to you, writes Patrick in her foreword with winning aplomb, is that life-changing books dont come with Read Here labels attached.
Well, maybe. Patrick has done a good job of recruiting a reasonably broad crosscurrent of respondents. As a strategy, this has the benefit of being heartily inclusive, as well as broadening the collections appeal. The downside, not surprisingly, is that the essays are dramatically uneven. Many are wise and perceptive, but others sound like they were transcribed from hurried phone interviews. Several of them are vaguely horrifying: Tommy Hilfiger chooses a biography of Steve Jobs because it shows that even a brilliant maverick like Jobs makes a lot of mistakes, while Nelson DeMille cites the tonic impact of Ayn Rands lessons of individual freedom and nonreliance on government. The actor Melissa Rivers implores teachers to give Bill OReillys history books a chance, because reading this kind of stuff is how you get your students to learn!
The responses from writers carry a higher batting average. To me, the most amusing entries are the ones where Patricks subjects crankily resist the question. Amanda Foreman rejects the idea of Damascene conversions and says, with a touch of asperity, that the majority of those you have spoken to will have shaped that narrative to fit the circumstances, helpfully adding, Im not saying theyre lying. The inimitable Fran Lebowitz says, Listen, if you wanted to find out which book changed my life, you should have asked me when I was six. Fay Weldon avers, I am not fond of books as objects, and she seems not entirely fond of them as concepts or narratives, either.
Others spin the question in interesting ways. An emotionally draining encounter with a Jean Rhys novel leads Porochista Khakpour to the bracing suggestion that more people should write about the books that disturb them and unnerve them and wont let them sleep at night. Ron Charles, of The Washington Post, takes the question aggressively literally, citing Richard Russos Straight Man simply because it was the first book he reviewed professionally. Writers have never been very good at following directions.
And a number of the responses are deeply thoughtful, even moving. Yiyun Li speaks of how Turgenev brought her much closer to the real me than all the requirements in my culture to be happy. Sarah Waters writes that Angela Carters The Bloody Chamber showed her that a feminist viewpoint didnt have to be academic or prim. It could be messy. It could be frightening. And a movie producer named Caldecot Chubb goes even deeper, noting that most of life is about creating resonant narratives. . . . Few things drive me more crazy than the current locution of content. One way or another, he adds, were all in the story business.
Michael Lindgren is a writer and musician in New Jersey.
Recommendations Exceptional Excellent Very Good Availability information is based on distributor records. Wines might not be in stock at every listed store and might be sold at additional stores. Prices are approximate. Check Winesearcher.com to verify availability, or ask a favorite wine store to order through a distributor.
(Deb Lindsey/For The Washington Post)
These roses will put you in the mood for warm weather. Three are from Provence, one is from southern Italy and one is from Virginia. And one is kosher for Passover. (More roses to come in the weeks ahead.)
D.M.
Domaine du Dragon Grande Cuvee 2015
Cotes de Provence, France, $15
This perennial favorite balances the ripeness of the 2015 vintage with perfect acidity. The result is a scintillating wine with strawberry, raspberry and herbal flavors. If you dont believe a pale rose can be complex, try this one. Alcohol by volume: 13 percent.
Distributed by Dionysus: Available in the District at DVines, Rodmans, Whole Foods Market (Foggy Bottom, P Street, Tenleytown). Available in Maryland at Balduccis and Bradley Food & Beverage in Bethesda, Finewine.com in Gaithersburg. Available in Virginia at Balduccis (Alexandria, McLean), Chain Bridge Cellars in McLean, Ellwood Thompsons Local Market, J. Emerson Fine Wines & Cheese in Richmond, Unwined (Alexandria, Belleview), Vinocity in Culpeper, Whole Foods Market (Alexandria, Arlington); on the list at Tuscarora Mill in Leesburg.
Cantele Negroamaro Rosato 2014
1/2
Salento, Italy, $13
This wine is a good reminder that we should not ignore the previous vintage. It is spicy, deep-colored and vibrant with woodsy, herbal accents to its tart flavors of Montmorency cherries. It cries out for food, not just patio sipping. Try it with grilled seafood or with vegetable crudites and garlicky hummus. ABV: 12.5 percent.
Distributed by Country Vintner in the District and Maryland, Roanoke Valley in Virginia. Available in the District at A. Litteri, Grand Cata, Rodmans; on the list at Arcuri, Ghibellina, Woodward Table. On the list in Virginia at Il Fornaio in Reston.
Boxwood Estate Rose 2015
1/2
Middleburg, Va., $17
The popularity of rose has prompted more local wineries to produce it. Boxwoods has been a favorite of mine for several years. The new release features bright strawberry flavors and an appealing bitter note on the finish. Delicious. ABV: 13 percent.
Distributed by Roanoke Valley: Available in the District at Calvert Woodley, Potomac Wine & Spirits, Magruders, Pearsons, Rodmans, Schneiders of Capitol Hill; on the list at Brasserie Beck, Centrolina, the Source by Wolfgang Puck. Available in Maryland at the Tasting Room Wine Bar & Shop (National Harbor); on the list at Republic in Takoma Park, Urban Butcher in Silver Spring. Available in Virginia at Balduccis (Alexandria, McLean), the Tasting Room Wine Bar & Shop in Reston, and at the winery in Middleburg.
Listel Grain de Gris 2015
Sable de Camargue, France, $11
The attractive bottle conjures French atmosphere, and the wine does not disappoint. Bright watermelon flavors with a hint of mint make this a warm-weather refresher. ABV: 12.5 percent.
Distributed by M. Touton Selection: Available in the District at Best in Liquors, Capital City Wine & Spirits, Cork & Fork, Harrys Reserve Fine Wine & Spirits, Martins Wine & Spirits, Morris Miller Wine & Liquor, S&R Liquors, Tenley Wine & Liquor, Universal Liquor, Wine Specialist, World Liquors. Available in Maryland at Frederick Wine House, Old Farm Liquors, Riverside Liquors, Rosewick Wine & Spirits in La Plata, Silesia Liquors in Fort Washington, Village Mart Beer & Wine in Frederick.
Les Favrieres Rose 2015
1/2
Coteaux Varois en Provence, France, $20
Anyone looking to add a summery note to the Passover Seders should consider this kosher rose, with its textbook flavors of watermelon and mint. ABV: 13 percent.
Distributed by M. Touton Selection: Available in the District at Cleveland Park Wine and Spirits. Available in Maryland at Old Farm Liquors. Available in Virginia at the Vineyard in McLean.
The mass of protesters gathered outside the White House couldnt quite wait for 4:20 Saturday afternoon, the pre-planned time they had designated to light their marijuana-packed joints and pipes in protest of the federal laws that prohibit the drugs consumption.
Just past 4:17, plumes of smoke arose from the crowd of more than 100 people, which was surrounded by officers from the U.S. Park Police, Metropolitan Police and the Secret Service. Still, because the activists remained on the street owned by the District, which has legalized pot possession and off the sidewalks owned by the federal government, which has not no one was arrested. Just two people were given citations and $25 fines for public consumption. A man who knew the pair said they were confronted by police only after a member of their group accidentally blew smoke in an officers face.
The protests centerpiece was a giant balloon created to look like a marijuana joint. Initially the protesters carried the 51-foot tube to the corner of 15th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, but Secret Service agents refused to let them bring the object to the White House while it remained inflated. The activists deflated it, brought it over on a cart and, shortly after 4 p.m., inflated it again, defying law enforcements orders.
[Marijuana advocates plan to light up outside White House]
The officers remained calm, however, and quickly maneuvered those carrying the balloon north through Lafayette Square and onto the sidewalk along H Street NW.
Police surround marijuana activists holding a massive fake joint outside the White House on Saturday, April 2. (Twitter.com/DCMJ2014)
Adam Eidinger, the protests organizer, has said that President Obama must work harder to remove marijuana from the list of Schedule 1 controlled substances, which includes heroin and ecstasy.
Protesters gathered outside the White House. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)
Eidinger described the smoke-in as the most aggressive way he could of think of to draw attention to the roughly 5 million marijuana-related arrests since Obama took office, though it seemed clear Saturday that he and the other activists were careful to not smoke on federal land, where their chances of growing the number of marijuana-related arrests would have been much higher.
Briar Woods High School, a half-hour drive from the CIAs headquarters in Northern Virginia, might have provided an ideal training ground for the agencys bomb-sniffing dogs. Its labyrinthine hallways and voluminous classrooms are home to something that can wreak havoc for the canines: polished floors, which cause dogs to slip and lose their focus as they hunt for explosives.
That was one reason the school, which educates nearly 1,700 students in Ashburn, played host to a CIA dog team for a training exercise while students were on spring break last week, according to the Loudoun County school system. But the choice to go to a public school for the quiet exercise has led to an only-in-Washington embarrassment for the elite spy agency, which left explosive material behind in the engine compartment of a school bus that then shuttled special-needs children for two days this week.
A mechanic discovered and removed the explosive putty which county Supervisor Koran Saines (D-Sterling) said was the demolition explosive C-4 during a routine bus maintenance check Wednesday. Until then, no one noticed that it was missing.
[CIA left explosive material on a Loudoun school bus after training exercise]
That the CIA was using live explosives and lost track of them in a place where children and teachers spend their days has raised concerns among parents about the use of a school facility for such kinds of law enforcement training. It also illuminates the fact that local authorities and school systems feel obliged to prepare for scenarios that once seemed unthinkable, such as gunmen firing at schoolchildren and bombs hidden on buses.
Loudoun County schools spokesman Wayde Byard described the material as putty-like, and the CIA said the material is very stable and insensitive to physical shocks, descriptions that are consistent with plastic explosives, which require special detonators to set off. Saines, who was briefed on the mishap Wednesday by county personnel, said county officials confirmed that it was C-4.
Dean Boyd, a CIA spokesman, said that the training team left behind explosive material used as a training device for K-9s. This material is commonly used by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to train K-9s in explosives detection.
The agency has taken immediate steps to strengthen inventory and control procedures in its K-9 program to prevent such incidents from happening again, Boyd said, noting that the CIA has done a full inventory of explosive material used in the training program. CIA is a part of the Northern Virginia community and we will do whatever it takes to prevent this from happening again.
The CIA opened a center to train bomb-sniffing dogs for police departments and other agencies in the Washington region in December 2010, after the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives curtailed its program. Since then, the intelligence agency has trained dogs for the Fairfax County Police Department, the Loudoun County Sheriffs Office, the Loudoun County Fire Marshals Office, the FBI and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, according to the CIA and Loudoun officials. The sheriffs office has been working with the CIA K-9 unit since 2012.
In addition to providing initial training courses, the CIA has organized recurring training for dogs, including the session at Briar Woods High. The countys schools make their facilities available to law enforcement agencies for training; Byard said all law enforcement training in school facilities has been suspended pending a review of protocols.
Kraig Troxell, a spokesman for the Loudoun County Sheriffs Office, said the office sent two dogs and their handlers to join the CIA team at the training. It was at least the second time this year that the CIA has done a dog-training exercise at Briar Woods High. Troxell said it is essential for dogs to train in scenarios they will encounter on the job. He said four county schools have been searched for explosives during the past year.
Real-world training exercises enable law enforcement agencies across the country to prepare and test their personnel on how they respond to critical incidents such as terrorism, active-shooter incidents and other emergencies, Troxell said. In conducting training at these schools, were taking the opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the school so that when the call does come in to respond for operational reasons, whether its to a bomb threat or an active shooter, we can be as effective as possible in mitigating any possible threat to our kids and teachers.
Since school attacks in Columbine, Colo., in Newtown, Conn., and at Virginia Tech, law enforcement and school security officers have worked together to drill for all sorts of potentially catastrophic events. Darrel Stephens, executive director of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, said it is a common practice for police departments to use school facilities to train for active-shooter situations.
[See The Washington Posts Virginia Tech shootings archive]
They normally will use them during the summer months when the children are out of school, Stephens said. This training does not involve the use of live ammunition or explosives. . . . It is to ensure that the training takes place in a safe environment.
Experts and former CIA officials said it seemed highly unusual for the CIA to use live explosives in a school for a training exercise, and community members said it was stunning to learn that explosives would ever be present at a school.
School board member Debbie Rose (Algonkian) said she was surprised when she heard that the CIA accidentally left the explosives on a school bus and added that she did not know that the agency was using school grounds for training.
We know, too, that preparation and training does save lives, Rose said. Its an unfortunate reality of the world today that we have.
The Loudoun County Fire Marshals Office typically trains its bomb-sniffing dog in a school facility at least once a month using real explosives, Deputy Fire Marshal Jerry Swain said. His department has strict inventory protocols, such as weighing materials to ensure that no explosives are left behind at the schools, warehouses and county-owned facilities they use.
One of the things that we try to do with all canines is expose them to as many different environments and surfaces as we can, so then when the real call comes in, they will already be familiar with that particular environment, Swain said. The animals being familiar with the environment theyre going to work in makes them less apprehensive . . . theyll be more focused.
It is unclear what, if any, sanction a CIA employee would face for leaving the explosives behind, and a Loudoun fire department spokeswoman said officials determined that there was no crime involved. But having explosive materials on a school bus or on school grounds normally would lead to serious consequences for a student or a teacher, even if it was an accident, advocates for reforming school discipline policies said.
If this had been a young person, they probably would have been arrested and most certainly would have been suspended from school and they would have had their education disrupted substantially, said Thena Robinson-Mock, a lawyer for the Advancement Project, a national organization that advocates for an end to harsh school discipline policies.
Robinson-Mock pointed to incidents in which students have been arrested even though no crime was committed and no one was in danger, such as when Texas teen Ahmed Mohamed brought a homemade clock to his high school. Other students have been suspended, expelled or arrested for chewing a pastry into the shape of a gun, having a toy gun on a bus and having a knife in a gym bag that was used for equipment maintenance.
Were holding young people, particularly children of color, to a very different standard, said Robinson-Mock.
Jen Underwood, the mother of two elementary school students in Loudoun, praised school officials efforts to communicate with families about the incident. The school system informed all parents of its 77,000 students about the mishap via email Wednesday night.
I appreciated that they were pretty forthcoming as opposed to trying to hide it, she said.
Underwood said it makes sense for law enforcement agencies to train inside schools. They need to know how to respond in a school situation, she said. Theres a lot of stuff that happens inside schools, and Id rather they know how to respond than not.
But she said she wanted to know more about how the CIA managed to overlook the explosive material it left behind.
Im surprised that if they use those school buses for training, which makes sense, and they use explosive material, which also makes sense, that they dont have some kind of inventory, Underwood said. Like, I brought this much with me, Im taking this much home with me.
The patent documents for the Wright brothers flying machine, which were lost for 36 years and recently discovered. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)
The beat-up manila envelope sat on a table in the National Archives office in Kansas City, Mo. It had just been fetched from a limestone cave outside of town, and conservator Lauren Varga had been sent with a security escort from Maryland to bring it home.
First, she had to check the contents. She opened the envelope and examined one of the folders inside. There, on the cover, was the famous patent No. 821,393. There were the famous names Orville Wright and Wilbur Wright.
And next to the word invention, the cover form read: Flying Machine.
It was, indeed, the century-old patent file for the Wright brothers pioneering airplane a file that contained one of historys greatest patent applications. And until last month, it had been missing for 36 years.
A sleuthing archivist found the file March 22 in a special records storage cave in Lenexa, Kan., where it was sent at some point after it vanished around 1980.
Jay Bosanko of the National Archives, right, and Mitch Yockelson, an investigative archivist, look over the patent documents for the Wright brothers flying machine, lost for 36 years and recently discovered. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)
It should have been stored in a treasure vault with other priceless documents in the Archives building in Washington, National Archives and Records Administration Chief Operating Officer William J. Bosanko said last week.
But when officials preparing for a commemoration looked for it there in 2000, it was gone, he said.
Experts had been searching for it ever since.
Then two weeks ago, Kansas archivist Bob Beebe emailed a colleague at the Archives complex in College Park: We found it.
Varga, a senior conservator, brought it back Tuesday, and gave it a check up in the Maryland conservation lab Wednesday. It was in decent shape.
But how did such a treasured record wind up in a storage cave 1,000 miles from Washington?
Most likely through a simple filing mistake decades ago, Bosanko said. Unfortunately, with billions of pieces of paper, things sometimes go where they shouldnt be, he said.
A photograph that was included with the patent application. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)
Parts of the file are scheduled to be exhibited in the National Archives Museums West Rotunda Gallery in Washington starting May 20.
[Exhibit shows travails faced by immigrants over the years]
The find came as the agency beefs up its Archival Recovery Program, which hunts for missing documents and artifacts, said investigative archivist Mitchell Yockelson.
Two extra archivists were detailed to what is essentially a cold case squad in February, he said.
There was the possibility the Wright patent file had been stolen, as other documents have been, such as telegrams from Abraham Lincoln, Yockelson said in an interview Wednesday at the College Park facility.
But . . . we felt, I guess, all along . . . that it was probably misfiled, he said. And figuring out where is that misfile, among the millions of patent papers, was the challenge.
Bosanko said: If somebody puts something back in the wrong place, its essentially lost. In this case, we didnt know. We had to ask ourselves, Is it something that could have been stolen?
The Archives has numerous missing documents from letters of Civil War generals and telegrams from Lincoln, to World War II bombing maps. The Wright brothers patent file is among the most prominent.
[Walt Whitman letter, written for dying soldier, found in National Archives ]
The Wrights, tinkerers and bicycle mechanics, had applied for a patent for their airplane on March 23, 1903, less than a month after they started building it. The craft was made mostly out of fabric and wood.
It was nine months before they got their flyer into the air on Dec. 17, 1903, at windblown Kill Devil Hills, on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The flight lasted 12 seconds and covered 120 feet.
It was the worlds first heavier-than-air, powered, controlled flight, according to the National Park Service, which maintains a historic site there.
By the time the patent was granted in 1906, the file was filled with letters, affidavits, fee receipts, drawings, photos and examiners notes, among other things.
One document begins:
Be it known that we Orville Wright and Wilbur Wright, both citizens of the United States, residing in the city of Dayton and state of Ohio, have jointly invented a new and useful machine for navigating the air.
History would prove it most useful.
Archivist Chris Abraham had been working for the recovery program for about three weeks and had volunteered to hunt for the Wright patent file.
I had an interest in the Wright brothers, he said in an interview. This has been on our list for quite some time.
The file had once been stored in the National Archives building in Washington, but in 1969, it was transferred to a federal records center in Suitland, Md.
In 1979, parts for the file were lent to the Smithsonian for an exhibit and then returned to Suitland.
We had a pull slip from our files saying that the document was returned to the National Archives in 1980, Abraham said. But . . . thats where the trail goes cold.
Abraham knew the Wrights had other patents, which werent in the treasure vault.
He thought that they were with the Archives vast patent records stored in the Lenexa cave. He asked Beebe to check for Wright patents there to see if the missing file might be among them.
The cave records center opened in 2003, and the Archives patent files were sent some years later, Beebe said. We have pretty much everything, except for certain files that are deemed very historical.
He said he memorized the missing Wright patents number and, guided by Abraham, began checking box after box of records in the 15-foot-high underground stacks.
He struck out.
At that point, Im like, Man, Im not going to find it, he said by phone Thursday.
But he was asked to check one more box, which he did around 7:30 a.m. March 22. He said he lifted the lid, and there, stuffed among the neat patent folders, was a fat manila envelope.
The upper left-hand corner bore the logo the White House. And in the center someone had written Wright Brothers Patents. As he removed one of the folders inside, he spotted a partially obscured number that ended in 393.
This is what were looking for, he said he thought at the time.
With shaking hands, he emailed Abraham, who contacted Yockelson.
I was stunned, Yockelson said. If I had to pick one [crucial] document . . . thats missing, this was it . . . Its the holy grail.
He said he thinks the file hasnt been seen by archivists or historians since 1980.
Abraham said he did not know why no one had thought to check the other Wright patent files before. It was just one of those things, he said.
As for the White House logo, Bosanko said some frugal archivist probably used a recycled envelope.
This wasnt hidden in the White House or anything all these years, he said.
Officials conduct an investigation at the scene of a police-involved shooting in Baltimore on March 31, 2016. (Patrick Semansky/AP)
A father and son armed with a pistol and a semiautomatic rifle appeared ready to open fire on other people Thursday when they were killed by two police officers, who fired 56 rounds during the late-afternoon encounter in an East Baltimore neighborhood, police said.
Police Commissioner Kevin Davis said Friday that officers on patrol watched Matthew V. Wood Jr., 43, and his son, Kimani Johnson, 18, pull up on East Lanvale Street near Green Mount Cemetery about 4 p.m. and emerge from a vehicle holding weapons.
Officials said police thought the men were poised to shoot at a group of people on the other side of the street.
If not for the Baltimore Police Department yesterday, we could have had a mass shooting on our hands, where several innocent lives could have easily been taken, Davis said at a news conference at police headquarters.
Neither Wood nor Johnson fired, Davis said, but he commended the officers for preventing them from shooting. At the news conference, police displayed a large pink rifle they say Wood was carrying.
We dont run from bad guys with guns. We engage them, Davis said. We fired 56 rounds yesterday until this threat was eliminated.
Two law enforcement sources said investigators think Wood and Johnson were affiliated with the Black Guerrilla Family gang, which is believed to be causing much of the violence in some city neighborhoods.
A convicted member of the gang was fatally shot Wednesday night in the Barclay neighborhood, a few blocks north of Thursdays shooting in Greenmount West.
The gunfire by police happened steps away from a playground asneighborhood residents were returning from work.
More than 150 people have been shot in the city this year, with homicides up 11 percent compared with the same period last year and nonfatal shootings up 49 percent. Last year saw the highest per-capita homicide rate in the citys history, kick-started by a surge in violence after the death of Freddie Gray in April.
Johnson was free on $100,000 bail awaiting trial for a handgun charge, court records show. Wood, meanwhile, was on probation after receiving a sentence of time served about three months in October for a gun charge.
The charge to which Wood pleaded guilty should have brought a mandatory sentence of five years in prison without parole, but Judge Alfred Nance of the Baltimore City Circuit Court said prosecutors agreed to step off that requirement, according to a recording of Woods plea hearing.
Police identified the officers as Norman Jones, who has been on the force for two years, and Sgt. Joseph Wiczulis, who has eight years service.
Wiczulis has been involved in two previous shootings since 2010. In one he shot a man who had shot two officers.
Jones, Wiczulis and a third officer, who did not fire, are on routine administrative leave. The prosecutors office declined comment on its investigation.
Davis said the officers were in civilian clothes with vests that identified them as police.
The commissioner said the officers happened to be riding by when they came upon the two armed men. He said the team had been patrolling the area in an unmarked car as part of a broader crime-fighting effort in the community.
They rode by this car. You can just imagine, theyre driving by this Volvo that just parked on the side of the road and out pops two . . . gunmen. One with a long gun; ones got a pistol, Davis said.
It is unclear how many people the men were thought to be targeting, but Davis said Wood and Johnson were moving toward a group of people across the street. The rifle was loaded to capacity with 25 rounds and the handgun had seven rounds, police said.
Before the officers opened fire, Davis said, Wood and Johnson said something threatening to the group across the street, witnesses told police.
A woman who identified herself as Johnsons mother, declined comment on the shooting, but called him the first true love of my life. She said he was to turn 19 on Monday.
Woods gun arrest in October came after police said they saw him dealing drugs outside his home and later found a pistol in his home.In 1996, he pleaded guilty and received probation on a handgun charge.
The head of the police Office of Professional Responsibility said a number of civilian witnesses corroborated statements from the witness officer.
Baltimore Sun
Sun reporter Yvonne Wenger contributed to this report.
Trooper Chad P. Dermyer, right, receives his graduation diploma from Col. W. Steven Flaherty in November 2014. Dermyer was shot and killed at a Greyhound bus station in Richmond on March 31. (Virginia State Police via AP)
The funeral service for Virginia State Police Trooper Chad P. Dermyer, who was fatally shot while on duty Thursday in Richmond, will take place Tuesday at the Liberty Baptist Church in Hampton, Va.
A private graveside burial will follow in Gloucester County, Va.
Dermyer, 37, was killed at the Greyhound bus station in Richmond during a training exercise for the departments counterterrorism and criminal interdiction unit, which he had just joined.
A visitation is scheduled at the church, 1021 Big Bethel Road in Hampton, on Monday from 3 to 5 p.m. and from 6 to 8 p.m. The funeral will be the following day at 11 a.m.
[Virginia State Police trooper killed by man carrying 143 rounds of ammo]
Dermyer joined the state police force in 2014 after having worked at police departments in Newport News and in Jackson, Mich., where he grew up. He had been a U.S. Marine. He is survived by his wife, two children and other relatives.
Police said the gunman, identified as James Brown III, 34, of Aurora, Ill., was in the terminal restaurant and walked toward his three bags, which he had left near the main entrance. Police said he then turned away from the bags. Dermyer approached him and within seconds police said Brown shot him in the chest with a .40-caliber semiautomatic handgun.
Two other troopers then shot and killed Brown. Police said they found 143 rounds of ammunition in one of Browns bags. A motive has not yet been determined.
Larry Blair, a D.C. jail inmate, makes use of the library at the jail. (Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post)
Larry Blair is finally reading books.
The 61-year-old dropped out of middle school after an armed robbery arrest and never considered himself much of a traditional academic.
He has called a jail cell home for a combined 40 years, drifting in and out for a jumble of theft, drug and assault convictions. Each time hes released, he reverts to stealing and lands back behind bars.
Blair will complete his sentence this month, and he says itll be different this time. He promises to keep reading.
The D.C. Public Library system opened its first location in the citys only jail in March 2015, introducing inmates to books and library programming that also will be available to them after release. In its first year, 1,100 inmates checked out 4,600 books.
Larry Blair, a D.C. jail inmate, reads books such as "Dreams From My Father," by Barack Obama. (Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post)
When I got on the streets, I never had time to read, said Blair, dressed in an orange jumpsuit in the basement library. Now, I promised, I will always have a book.
In 2013, advocates began asking for a library in D.C.s jail, citing anecdotes and programs showing how reading can rehabilitate and empower the incarcerated. The library is one of a handful of programs, including GED classes and occupational training, intended to make inmates more literate and employable. An employed former convict is less likely to return to a cell block, according to data from the Urban Institute.
Some D.C. inmates have been exposed to books and libraries in federal prisons. The Districts program, in part, also seeks to help transition inmates from using the jails library to the libraries in their neighborhoods upon release.
When Blair gets out, hell leave with a library card.
Its amazing how small things make a huge difference, said Regina Gilmore, the reentry coordinator for the D.C. Department of Corrections. Of course, the library reduces idleness, but it also starts dialogue. They talk about the books with each other, they relate to it. It helps with their communication skills.
The library system foots the programs $293,288 annual bill. A full-time librarian, Danielle Zoller, is in charge of the nearly 4,000 books in the jails basement. Zoller pushes a cart of books through the jails corridors each day, allowing inmates to take their pick.
Sometimes, theyll request a book theyve heard about from a fellow inmate. Other times, Zoller will bring books from the basement that she thinks inmates will enjoy based on past preferences.
A selection of books sits on a cart for inmates to choose from at the D.C. jail. (Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post)
She recently led a book club discussion of D.C. Noir a George Pelecanos-edited anthology of stories set in the District that The Washington Post described in 2006 as offering a startling glimpse into the cityscapes darkest corners.
The most popular book among inmates at the moment? Sharp Objects, a 2006 thriller by Gillian Flynn about a reporter covering the murder of two girls in her home town.
A lot of books just become popular by word of mouth here, Zoller said. Many of the guys tell me that the first time theyve read is when they get locked up.
While most inmates prefer fiction, Blair sticks to real-life stories. He likes redemption tales about someone who beat the odds and has a triumphant story to tell.
He recently finished I Am Malala the memoir of Malala Yousafzai, the teen girl who advocated for education in Pakistan and was shot in the head by the Taliban on her school bus.
Blair grew up in a poor family with little parental support along H Street NE. He participated in the 1968 riots following the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. He never forged a career outside of jail. He said he plans to write a memoir, telling the story of how he learned to forgive those he never thought he would.
[Malala] said she had no animosity to the person who shot her in the head, Blair said. It took me a while to forgive and not worry about what people say.
D.C. inmates have long been able to obtain legal publications, but before the jail got its library, prisoners had access only to a hodgepodge of donated leisure books that Blair said often were torn and raggedy. Now, the books are the same as those in any District library, although the jail library is prohibited from housing books that glorify violence, Zoller said.
The library system plans to implement a program that teaches parents the importance of reading, which would include a story time with inmates and their visiting children.
Last year, inmates were invited to participate in the librarys citywide summer reading program, where adults tally how many books they read.
The D.C. resident who read the most books? An inmate who clocked in at 101 books in a year.
MS-13 has had a presence in the D.C. area in recent decades. Montgomery County Park Police Lt. Dave McClintock checks out an MS-13 sign carved into a tree in the vicinity of Veirs Mill and Randolph roads in 2007. (Michael Williamson/The Washington Post)
Gerson Adoni Martinez Aguilar was in trouble with fellow members of his gang, MS-13. He owed them $600 from drug sales, and he was accused of having sex with another members girlfriend.
In March 2014, a half-dozen gang members allegedly lured Aguilar to a park in Fairfax County and told him he had to face a beating, the customary punishment for breaking MS-13 rules. But instead of beating him, they killed him, stabbing him repeatedly with knives and machetes, then chopping off his head, according to prosecutors.
The slaying is part of a sweeping criminal case that went to trial this week, accusing people in the gang of carrying out three murders and an attempted murder in Northern Virginia between October 2013 and June 2014. Seven alleged MS-13 members are being tried in federal court in Alexandria and could face life in prison. Another six have entered into plea agreements, with conditions that they work with prosecutors.
The proceedings are expected to last six to eight weeks in front of U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee, during which time the court will be under increased security. A jury will hear testimony from leading gang experts, law enforcement agents and former gang members, some of whom participated in the alleged crimes.
The trial comes at a time when the Justice Department and local police say MS-13 has sought to reestablish itself in the Washington region after several years of relative quiet. Also known as Mara Salvatrucha, MS-13 has long been considered one of the regions most dangerous street gangs, with members linked to brutal murders, beatings, drug trafficking and prostitution.
Seven male defendants in their early to late 20s, along with their attorneys, packed a top-floor courtroom in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia on Wednesday for the start of trial. Most wore light collared shirts with dark pants and had close-cropped hair. Three defendants wore headsets to hear the proceedings translated in Spanish.
In opening statements, prosecutors said the defendants all belonged to a prominent MS-13 clique known as Park View Locos Salvatruchas that operates in Northern Virginia. Prosecutors said gang members killed to bolster their reputations and climb ranks within the gang.
MS-13 glorifies violence above all else, Assistant U.S. Attorney Julia Martinez said. You must commit murder or another act of violence. Gang members did just that.
The governments case will hinge on testimony from a confidential informant and several defendants who have agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in exchange for potentially lighter sentences.
The informant, identified only as Junior, has worked with the FBI for more than a decade. Over the course of nearly a year, prosecutors said, Junior infiltrated the Park View Locos Salvatruchas, secretly recording cellphone conversations and gang meetings. He was not present for any killings, but gang members frequently bragged to him, prosecutors said.
Also scheduled to take the stand are some of the MS-13 members who prosecutors say helped commit the murders but took plea deals.
Defense attorneys are seeking to play down their clients roles in the case by questioning the credibility of those witnesses. In opening statements, they argued the defendants who pleaded guilty could not be trusted to give honest testimony, saying they had every reason to pin the blame on other members.
The government has really scraped the bottom of the barrel as far as witnesses go, said Manuel E. Leiva, a lawyer for Jose Lopez Torres, who faces murder and attempted murder charges. They have so much blood on their hands. They have every motive in the world to cooperate and fabricate.
Defense attorneys said one cooperating defendant, Jose Del Cid, took part in nearly every crime alleged in the case. They said he is known to have a history of violence both in the United States and while living in El Salvador.
A person who spent almost a lifetime killing is now a star witness for the government, said Amy Austin, a lawyer for Alvin Gaitan Benitez, who is charged with helping murder Aguilar.
An attorney for Del Cid did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Prosecutors unsealed a nine-count indictment in the case in October 2014, charging 13 people with murder, conspiracy, attempted murder and firearms violations.
The indictment offered few specifics about the alleged offenses. But in opening statements, prosecutors laid out the charges in vivid detail.
Martinez described Aguilar as a minor player in the gang who sold drugs and was having sex with the girlfriend of a gang member who was incarcerated. His behavior angered the gang enough that seven members plotted to kill him, she said.
When gang members killed Aguilar, Martinez said, they put his severed head in a canvas bag and buried his body in Holmes Run Stream Valley Park in Fairfax County.
It was not the first time they had carried out such a plan, she said.
Six months earlier, the cliques leaders allegedly ordered the killing of a fellow member, identified by prosecutors only as Peligroso or D.F., who they believed was trying to leave MS-13.
On an evening in October 2013, gang members drove to Gar-Field High School in Woodbridge, Va., to intercept the man as he was leaving night classes. They were carrying two machetes and a sawed-off shotgun, records show. But when they arrived, police were there waiting for them. An informant had alerted authorities a day earlier.
Peligroso was fortunate, Martinez said. No one came forward and told police that these other victims were going to die.
The gang thought one of its members, Nelson Omar Quintanilla Trujillo, was the rat who told police about the plot, Martinez said. A week after the failed killing of Peligroso, four gang members allegedly brought Trujillo to Holmes Run Park, saying they were having a gang meeting. There, they stabbed him in the stomach with knives and slashed his face with a machete, killing him, Martinez said.
After burying his body in the park, two gang members returned later to rebury it in a less conspicuous location, fearing someone would find it, prosecutors said. Authorities were only able to discover Trujillo and Aguilars bodies after Junior, the FBI informant, persuaded a gang member to show him where they were hidden, Martinez said.
Martinez added that the gang was mistaken about Trujillo going to police.
In the third alleged killing, prosecutors claim a small group of gang members went out in Alexandria in June 2014 searching for rival gang members to fight. One gang member, Jesus Alejandro Chavez, allegedly confronted Julio Urrutia as he was hanging out in front of an apartment complex. After an argument about Urrutias gang affiliations, Chavez allegedly shot Urrutia in the back of the neck, prosecutors said.
The case mirrors other indictments brought by the Justice Department in recent months. In January, prosecutors indicted 56 members of MS-13 in the Boston area on conspiracy, murder, drug trafficking and other charges. In Maryland, three members of the gang were indicted last summer on charges of murder and attempted murder. And last May, 37 gang members in Charlotte were indicted on similar charges.
Formed in Los Angeles in the 1980s and with leadership in El Salvador, the gang has spread throughout the United States, operating in the D.C. area since the 1990s. The gang has an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 members in the region, gang experts say.
MS-13 gained notoriety more than 10 years ago after a series of bloody attacks in Northern Virginia. In one incident in 2004, gang members chopped off a 16-year-old boys fingers with a machete. The following year, gang members killed a pregnant member after learning she was cooperating with prosecutors.
Police in Montgomery County said a 31-year-old man charged last week with sexually abusing a young girl that he reportedly met through fake modeling ads on the Internet may have abused other youngsters as well.
Police on Friday said they found ads linked to the suspect going back to 2014. They were posted on a social media site called Kik under the username Roddanger86 and an alias of Rodney, according to police.
Investigators believe there may be additional victims, particularly in the Baltimore region, police said in a statement. The suspect has been identified as Roy David Evans Jr. of Essex, east of Baltimore in Baltimore County. He is charged with three sex offense counts involving juveniles and has been freed pending trial after posting a $150,000 bond.
Evanss phone number was disconnected on Saturday and he could not be reached. An attorney is not listed in online court records.
This is just the most recent case of a local person being accused of prowling social media for victims. In February, police in Virginia charged an 18-year-old Virginia Tech student from Columbia, Md., with killing a 13-year-old girl that he had conversed with over Kik and Instagram.
Roy David Evans Jr, 31,. of Essex, is accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl he met through ads posted on the Internet. (Montgomery County Police)
[Killing of girl in Virginia highlights dangers of social media]
Police said they were first made aware of the case involving Evans in February. They saida 14-year-old girl from Montgomery County first met the suspect in June 2015, when she replied to a Craigslist ad soliciting young models. Police said she conversed with the man on Kik. Police said they confirmed that the Roddanger86 username on Kik belonged to Evans. Police also said that the victim contacted Evans through email and Kik, and told him she was 14 years old.
Police said that the girl met Evans at her residence in August, November and December of 2015. Police said they obtained an arrest warrant for Evans on March 23 and arrested him March 31.
Anyone who thinks that they may have encountered Evans is asked to contact Montgomery County police at 240-773-5400, or their local police department.
A 46-year-old man who was fatally stabbed Friday night during what police initially believed had been a street fight in Arlington was actually attacked during a domestic dispute inside a residence, police said Saturday.
The victim was identified as Dennis Adams, of Arlington. He was pronounced dead at George Washington University Hospital, shortly after the 8 p.m. stabbing on South Glebe Road near Arlington Boulevard. A juvenile who suffered minor injuries in the incident was not identified.
A spokesman for the Arlington County Police Department said a 17-year-old relative of the victim has been arrested and charged with murder and stabbing while committing a felony.
The suspects name was not immediately made public because he is being initially charged as juvenile. But a police spokesman said authorities expect the case to be turned over to adult court, at which time the suspects name will be released. The spokesman declined to say how the suspect and victim are related.
[Police investigate fatal stabbing in Arlington County]
Police were first called to the 100 block of South Glebe Road for an assault, where they found an injured juvenile. They later found Adams a couple of blocks away, near Third Street and South Glebe Road.
In a statement released Saturday, police said their initial account of one person stabbing two people on the street came from a detailed account from the injured juvenile. But during the investigation, the statement says detectives uncovered a number of inconsistencies in the juveniles account. That and other evidence led those detectives to believe his account was fabricated, police said.
Police said detectives learned the stabbing occurred inside a residence in the 3600 block of Third Street and that the victims somehow got to the street. No other details were provided.
Aprils night sky blooms with early springs planetary presents.
Low on the western horizon now after sunset, fleet Mercury leads off the night. This fast little planet beams bright at -1.3 magnitude and sets around 8:30 p.m. very early this month.
Mercury reaches perihelion April 5, the planets closest run to the sun, and on April 8, find a sliver of a baby moon near the fast planet at dusk. A week from now, it will be about 15 degrees above the western horizon at sunset.
Sadly, the planet becomes more dim at zero magnitude, but its generally bright enough to see. By April 18, the planet climbs to 18 degrees above the horizon, setting around 9:30 p.m. and spending the rest of April dimming.
Bigger than life, Jupiter the Babe Ruth of planets ascends the eastern night sky after sunset. This bold, bright planet commands the night heavens at -2.4 magnitude. Early in the month, it crosses due south about 11:30 p.m., in the middle of April about 10:30 p.m. and at months end around 9:30 p.m.
While the waxing gibbous moon loiters near the front legs of Leo the Lion on April 16, our lunar companion saunters toward Jupiter on April 17.
Next in the planetary batting order, Mars rises just before midnight now. Find it in the east-southeast, hanging out between the constellations Ophiuchus and Scorpius.
Our red neighbor is at zero magnitude, which is bright enough to see from urban locations, as it crosses due south at 4:45 a.m. now and then late in the month around 3 a.m.
Saturn climbs the eastern heavens around 12:30 a.m. now, in the vicinity of Ophiuchus and Scorpius. Throughout April, Mars, Saturn and the red variable double star Antares form a triangular, cosmic congregation. In the hours before sunrise, all three are between 25 and 30 degrees above the horizon.
A special treat arrives later in the month: On April 24, the bright moon just past full joins the small group for a few nights.
Ironically, the moon celebrates Earth Day on April 22 by becoming full. The annual Lyrid meteor shower peaks April 22, but the portly full moon effectively washes out these shooting stars. For a week before the shower peak or a few days afterward, you might catch a glimpse of a stray Lyrid meteor.
If youre looking for Venus in April, youre out of luck. It skims the eastern horizon early in April but soon hides in the suns glare until July.
Down-to-Earth events:
April 5 Astronomer Dennis Bodewits explains results from the Rosetta mission at the University of Marylands Observatory, College Park. 8 p.m. Enjoy the real heavens through telescopes afterward, weather permitting. www.astro.umd.edu/openhouse
April 7 From Cowboy Boots to Space Boots, a talk by NASA astronaut Danny Olivas on his journey from Texas to space. He will present his custom cowboy boots (which rode with him on the space shuttle Discovery) to the National Air and Space Museum. 1 p.m., at the Moving Beyond Earth gallery, National Air and Space Museum. airand
space.si.edu
April 9 The Origin of the Moon: New Insights Accompany New Controversies, a talk by Richard Walker, geology chair at the University of Maryland, at the regular meeting of the National Capital Astronomers, which meets at the University of Maryland Observatory, College Park. 7:30 p.m. capital
astronomers.org
April 10 Astronomer Cal Powell reimagines the Big Bang, in a talk at the Northern Virginia Astronomy Club meeting, 163 Research Hall, George Mason University. 7 p.m. novac.com
April 13 First Rock from the Sun: Exploring Mercury by Spacecraft, a lecture by Sean Solomon, a Columbia University professor, on the MESSENGER spacecrafts examination of our most inner planet. 6:45 p.m. At the Carnegie Institution for Science, 1530 P Street, NW (16th and P streets). Registration required. carnegiescience.edu
April 15 The Exploration of Pluto, a lecture by Alan Stern, the principal scientist for NASAs New Horizons mission. Loaded with instruments, the historic mission visited Pluto last year to unveil fresh scientific insight. This 85th Joseph Henry Lecture (named for the Smithsonians first secretary) is hosted by the Philosophical Society of Washington, at the John Wesley Powell Auditorium, adjacent to the Cosmos Club, 2170 Florida Ave. NW. 8 p.m. www.philsoc.org
April 16 Explore quantum gravity and the fabric of physical reality, at a Montgomery College planetarium presentation. Takoma Park, 7 p.m. www2.
montgomerycollege.edu/
departments/planet/
April 20 NASA astronomer Stefanie Milam discusses the James Webb Space Telescope and provides a research update at the University of Marylands Observatory, College Park. 8 p.m. Afterward, enjoy the night sky using telescopes. www.astro.
umd.edu/openhouse.
Blaine Friedlander can be reached at PostSkyWatch@yahoo.com.
Eric Engberg, longtime CBS News correspondent, covering the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. (Courtesy of CBS News/Courtesy of CBS News)
Eric Engberg, a longtime political correspondent and investigative reporter for CBS News, who developed one of the first fact-checking segments in broadcast news, died March 27 at his home in Palmetto, Fla. He was 74.
The cause was a heart ailment, said his wife, Judith Engberg.
After beginning his career in radio, Mr. Engberg spent 27 years at CBS News, based primarily in the Washington bureau. He covered presidential campaigns and traveled overseas to report from Northern Ireland, the Middle East, China and other hot spots. He covered the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
He was our go-to man anytime there was an especially difficult story, former CBS Evening News anchor Dan Rather said in a Facebook post about Mr. Engberg, particularly if it required deep-digging investigative skills and the guts to face controversial blow-back from powerful people.
In the 1990s, Mr. Engberg became known for his weekly Reality Check segments on the CBS Evening News, holding politicians and governmental agencies accountable for their words and deeds. His reports were forerunners of modern-day fact-checking efforts at many news organizations, including The Washington Posts Fact Checker, the Tampa Bay Timess PolitiFact.com and the independent FactCheck.org.
Eric Engberg, longtime CBS News correspondent, reporting from Air Force One. (Courtesy of CBS News/Courtesy of CBS News)
The idea for Reality Check was launched during the 1992 presidential campaign, when Mr. Engberg and other reporters examined promises made by candidates. After the election, Mr. Engberg took over the franchise, focusing on fraud and waste in the federal government.
After citing a particularly outrageous example, he would shout, Time out! He then set the record straight, relying on information from document searches and Freedom of Information requests.
Im not a cynic, and I dont hold bureaucrats or public servants in contempt, Mr. Engberg told the Associated Press in 1995. Im just thinking: What would the average taxpayer say if he knew this is going on?
Mr. Engberg was among the first to report on an $18 million subway built under the U.S. Capitol for the exclusive use of senators. He found that federal agencies employed more than 700 historians a number larger than Yale Universitys entire faculty at the time.
He looked into the security arrangements for Cabinet officers, learning that the secretaries of agriculture and interior were more closely guarded than the secretary of state.
When we found out that not only the secretary of agriculture but also the deputy secretary of agriculture was protected by armed guards, Mr. Engberg told the AP, I said to my producer, Protecting him from what? Woodlice?
Mr. Engberg made one of his most dramatic discoveries in 1998, when he presented evidence that the Vietnam veteran buried in the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery could be identified.
CBS correspondent Eric Engberg at the Great Wall of China. (Courtesy of CBS News/Courtesy of CBS News)
A seven-month CBS News investigation has revealed that the identity of that unknown serviceman is almost certainly known and that some military officials, for whatever reason, knew it all along and tried to hide it, Mr. Engberg said in his report.
He said the person in the tomb was almost certainly Michael J. Blassie, an Air Force pilot whose plane was shot down in 1972. Mr. Engberg interviewed members of Blassies family and technicians at a military laboratory.
Because science had made it possible to identify virtually any human remains through DNA testing, the lab workers said they were all but certain of Blassies identity. Nonetheless, the evidence was ignored by top Pentagon officials, Mr. Engberg said, when the remains were placed in the Tomb of the Unknowns in a 1984 ceremony presided over by President Ronald Reagan.
Months after Mr. Engbergs report, the remains were exhumed and subjected to DNA analysis. Blassie was identified beyond doubt, and his family had him reburied in his native St. Louis.
Mr. Engberg and his CBS team won a Columbia University DuPont Silver Baton award for the investigation.
Since that time, no remains of U.S. service members have been placed in the Tomb of the Unknowns.
Eric Jon Engberg was born Sept. 18, 1941, in Highland Park, Ill. His father was an accountant for an electrical utility.
Mr. Engberg graduated from the journalism school at the University of Missouri in 1963 and worked for a Missouri radio station before moving to Washington in 1968. He was a radio reporter at WTOP and WMAL before joining the Westinghouse broadcast group in 1972.
He joined CBS in 1975, worked in Dallas for several years, then returned to Washington in 1981. He retired in 2002 and moved to Florida.
Survivors include his wife of 52 years, Judith Klein Engberg of Palmetto; three sons, Robin Engberg of Palmetto, Jason Engberg of San Francisco and Mark Engberg of Fort Collins, Colo.; a brother; and five grandchildren.
Last year, Mr. Engberg waded into a fray concerning his experiences with Fox News personality Bill OReilly. In 1982, both were in Buenos Aires to cover the Falklands War for CBS.
In his book The No Spin Zone, OReilly wrote that he was in a combat situation in Argentina and that many were killed in riots he covered. He also said he rescued a cameraman who had been struck during the protests and was bleeding from his ear.
After Mother Jones magazine published an article early in 2015 casting doubt on OReillys story, Mr. Engberg wrote a 1,700-word post on Facebook. He refuted many of OReillys claims about the Buenos Aires disturbance, noting that it consisted mostly of chanting, fist-shaking and throwing coins at the uniformed soldiers who were assembled outside the palace.
There was no record that anyone was killed or that an injured camera operator was pulled to safety by OReilly, then a junior reporter at CBS. OReilly, Mr. Engberg wrote, is misrepresenting the situation he covered, and he is obviously doing so to burnish his credentials as a war correspondent.
When Mr. Engberg refused to appear on OReillys show, a furious OReilly said, Eric Engberg is a coward.
In a subsequent CNN investigation, seven witnesses failed to corroborate OReillys version of events.
Among journalists, Mr. Engberg was known for his loud voice, his generous expense account and a tough demeanor that served him well in the field. After covering a trial in New York on New Years Eve 1984, he was accosted and robbed by two young men who said they had a gun.
After they took his wallet and fled, Mr. Engberg gave chase, calling on bystanders for help.
I yelled, Hey! They just robbed me, Mr. Engberg told The Post in 1985.
People came from everywhere, like ants from an anthill, he said. One guy knocked down one of the kids and several others jumped on him.
Police made an arrest and returned Mr. Engbergs wallet.
Dont tell me, Mr. Engberg said, people in New York are cold and heartless and dont want to get involved.
MISSISSIPPI
Vote would deny services to gay couples
Government employees and private businesses in Mississippi could deny services to same-sex couples who want to marry under a bill passed by the House on Friday, one of numerous attempts across the country to enact so-called religious-protection statutes in the aftermath of a Supreme Court ruling that effectively legalized gay marriage.
Mississippi is among 10 states that have passed or are considering such legislation. Work on the bill began months ago, but Fridays vote came a day after a federal judge blocked Mississippi from enforcing the last state law in the nation to ban same-sex couples from adopting children.
Gov. Phil Bryant (R), who has often said he believes marriage should be between a man and a woman, would not say Friday whether he will sign House Bill 1523.
He signed a 2014 bill promoted by opponents of gay marriage, saying government cannot put a substantial burden on religious practices. This years bill is similar to the one Georgias Republican governor vetoed Monday amid objections from businesses that said it would permit discrimination.
The Mississippi bill is also similar to North Carolinas first-in-the-nation law that limits bathroom options for transgender people in government buildings.
The Mississippi House passed the final version of the bill 69 to 45 Friday, two days after the Senate passed it 32 to 17. Republicans hold a majority in both chambers.
Associated Press
KENTUCKY
New marriage license form receives approval
Kentucky lawmakers have given their final blessing to creating a single marriage license form for same-sex and straight couples in an effort to defuse the states ongoing controversy over gay marriage.
The proposal is a response to Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, who spent five days in jail last year for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples based on her religious beliefs. Davis said she could not issue the licenses because they had her name on them.
The Republican-led Senate gave the bill its final passage Friday, sending it to Gov. Matt Bevin (R).
Under the final bill, marriage license applicants would have the option of checking bride, groom or spouse beside their name. The form would not include the clerks name.
Associated Press
Juneau turns uno for a day: On April Fools Day, the capital of Alaska was going by the name of card game uno, not Juneau no joke. It was part of a promotion with game and toy maker Mattel, which is drawing attention to new wild cards in its uno game by partnering with the capital city. Juneaus website Friday said Welcome to UNO! and featured a new logo. The citys Facebook page also promoted the change, and a banner flew outside a downtown municipal building. Mattel made a $15,000 donation to the Juneau Community Foundation in honor of late mayor Greg Fisk, who died last year shortly after taking office, a company spokeswoman said. Mattel also was providing hundreds of decks of cards to residents. City Manager Kimberly A. Kiefer made clear that the name swap would be for one day only.
Associated Press
WHITE HOUSE
Obamas hold private dinner on future plans
President Obama and his wife Michelle hosted a private dinner Saturday night at the White House to discuss his post-presidency plans and the Chicago-based Barack Obama Foundation, according to individuals familiar with the gathering.
The president and first lady are having a private dinner tonight with friends and longtime supporters, many of whom are assisting the outside work of the Foundation as it gets up and running, White House spokesman Eric Schultz said Saturday in an email. The president is continuing his conversations with friends regarding his future plans for his Foundation, including the library and programming.
The president will pay for the meal out of his personal funds, according to White House officials, and the gathering will not involve fundraising. Obama has pledged not to raise money for his foundation while in office.
Attendees were to include the foundations board chair, Marty Nesbitt; its executive director Robbin Cohen; and its vice president of civic engagement, Mike Strautmanis, according to a foundation official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the dinner had not yet taken place. Both White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett and White House deputy chief of staff for operations for Anita Decker Breckenridge were also to be there, the official added.
Juliet Eilperin
Virgin America received offers from JetBlue and Alaska Air after putting itself up for sale, people familiar with the matter said last week. (David Mcnew/Reuters)
AIRLINES
Alaska close to buying Virgin America
Alaska Air Group Inc. is close to buying Virgin America Inc., the carrier backed by billionaire Richard Branson,according to people with knowledge of the matter.
While negotiations are advanced, the deal could still fall apart and a last-minute bid from JetBlue Airways Corp. may be possible, the people said, asking not to be identified as the details arent public.
Virgin America received offers from JetBlue and Alaska Air after putting itself up for sale, people familiar with the matter said last week.
A deal may face particularly heavy regulatory scrutiny in light of Justice Department challenges to the merger of American Airlines and US Airways, and a proposed swap of takeoff and landing rights between Delta and United Continental at New Jerseys Newark Liberty International. If approved, the Virgin America deal would be the first merger for the U.S. airline industry since American and US Airways combined in December 2013.
Bloomberg News
A general view taken on March 31, 2016 shows a photographer holding his picture of the Arc du Triomphe taken on March 14, 2014 in front of the remains of the historic monument after it was destroyed by Islamic State. (Joseph Eid/AFP/Getty Images)
IRAQ
Trapped civilians slow attack on ISIS town
Tens of thousands of trapped Iraqi civilians have stalled the governments advance in the battle against the Islamic State in western Anbar province, Iraqs elite counterterrorism force said Friday. The civilians are trapped between the Iraqi forces lines and extremists hunkered down in the center of the town of Hit, 85 miles west of Baghdad.
On Thursday, Iraqi forces re-launched an offensive on Hit under cover of heavy airstrikes by the U.S.-led coalition, Iraqs counterterrorism chief, Sabah al-Numan, said Friday. Over the past week, the coalition launched 17 airstrikes in and around Hit, according to Pentagon statements. The government forces reached within two miles of Hits center Thursday before being forced to stop, Numan said.
The city lies along a supply line linking Islamic State fighters in Iraq and those in neighboring Syria. Iraqi commanders have said that retaking Hit would be key to building on the retaking of Ramadi, the Anbar provincial capital, earlier this year.
Associated Press
RUSSIA
Ambassador accuses Turkey of aiding ISIS
Russia is accusing three Turkish foundations of supplying weapons and military equipment to Islamic State fighters in Syria and says $1.9 million worth of explosives and chemicals were smuggled across Turkeys border to extremist groups.
Russias U.N. ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, said in a letter to the U.N. Security Council circulated Friday that Turkey is the main supplier of weapons and ammunition to Islamic State fighters. He said the transfers are overseen by the countrys National Intelligence Organization. Turkeys U.N. mission did not immediately answer calls seeking comment on the Russian letter.
Also Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in a phone conversation with Secretary of State John F. Kerry, said militants are still crossing from Turkey into Syria, the Foreign Ministry said. Lavrov last month called for full implementation of Security Council resolutions demanding an end to terrorists crossing into Syria from other countries.
Associated Press and Reuters
Kurdish rebel group claims bombing in Turkey: The outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) on Friday claimed responsibility for Thursdays car bomb attack that killed seven police officers and wounded 27 people in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir. The attack, a day before Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglus visit to the largely Kurdish southeast, was one of the largest car bombings in months of unrest in the region. The southeast has been wracked by violence since a cease-fire between the PKK and the government collapsed last July. The government has said it has killed thousands of militants since then, while more than 350 members of the security forces have been killed in the fighting.
South African president apologizes for scandal: President Jacob Zuma apologized Friday for a scandal over millions of dollars in state spending on his private residence and said he would abide by a Constitutional Court ruling that he should pay back some funds. In a nationally televised address, Zuma said he acted in good faith in the long dispute over his Nkandla home, which fueled concerns about alleged corruption at the highest levels of government as well as opposition calls for the president to resign. In a unanimous ruling, the court on Thursday ordered Zuma to pay back some of the $16 million spent on his sprawling private residence, and declared that he had failed to uphold and respect the constitution, an impeachable offense.
WHO says Ebola virus resurfaces in Liberia: The Ebola virus has resurfaced in Liberia, where a 30-year-old woman has died of the disease, the World Health Organization and local authorities said Friday. The woman died Thursday while being transferred to a hospital in the capital, Monrovia, according to WHO. The case marks Liberias third flare-up of Ebola since its original outbreak was declared over in May 2015.
Indian firms officials arrested in connection with deadly overpass collapse: Indian police on Friday arrested three officials and detained seven more from a company constructing an overpass that collapsed Thursday onto a crowded Kolkata neighborhood, killing at least 24 people and injuring more than 80. Rescuers cleared the crumbled concrete and twisted metal rods a day after the collapse in the eastern Indian city. They have pulled out 67 people alive.
British court convicts delivery driver of plotting attack: A British delivery driver was convicted Friday of planning to attack American military personnel in the United Kingdom with knives or a bomb in a plot inspired by the Islamic State. Prosecutors said that Junead Khans work for a pharmaceutical firm took him past several U.S. air bases in eastern England and that he discussed ways of targeting them with an Islamic State militant in Syria. Khan, who will be sentenced May 13, faces life in prison.
From news services
HIS 15-YEAR-OLD grandson had been killed in a shooting over the Easter weekend, and Victor Leonard was in D.C. Superior Court on Tuesday as the suspect in the death made an initial court appearance. Hes just a kid himself was his shell-shocked observation as a slight 17-year-old, dressed in jeans and a black hooded sweatshirt, stood in shackles to face a second-degree murder charge. Maurice Bellamy is accused of pulling out a gun and for no reason whatsoever shooting Davonte Washington as he waited with his mother and sisters for a Metro train at the Deanwood station in Northeast last Saturday.
How could someone so young be capable of such mindless violence? How did he get a gun? Were there things that could have been done to prevent the tragedy? And are there steps that need to be taken to prevent other young lives from being lost and ruined? Those are the questions that need to be answered as Washington like other urban areas struggles with a wave of gun violence that disproportionately affects young black men.
According to authorities, the two youths did not know each other. Charging papers by prosecutors detail a split-second chain of events in which Maurice confronts Davonte. What the f--- you keep looking at me for? the older teen said, according to the documents, before pulling out a gun and shooting the younger boy twice in the torso. Absolutely no reason for it, said Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier. Davonte, a student at Largo High School who was leaning toward a career in the military, was described as a great athlete who was liked by everybody.
Not a lot is known about his accused killer. Charging documents cite the use of a juvenile offender database in helping identify him as a suspect, and documents obtained by Post reporters show he was arrested in 2014 for making threats against an employee at Ballou High School. He was placed on probation and spent time in a shelter home in Northwest Washington. But his probation had ended at the time of the killing. Court officials routinely review cases in which defendants re-offend so officials who came into contact with this young man will try to determine if there were signs that were missed.
And because this tragedy is a textbook case of how easily petty matters like a wrong look can turn deadly when guns are easily available, we hope officials find out all they can about the gun used to snuff out the life of a boy on his way to get a haircut in time for Easter.
Mary Kane is a freelance reporter who lives in Arlington.
Like many longtime reporters, I celebrated the Oscar victory for Spotlight and the fearless journalism that exposed the Catholic Churchs clergy sex abuse scandal.
I would soon see the story, and the scandal, from a very different perspective.
Two days after the Oscar ceremony, news broke about another widespread church coverup. I found myself poring over a grand jury report outlining in sickening detail the abuse of hundreds of children by at least 50 priests and religious leaders in western Pennsylvanias Altoona-Johnstown Diocese in my hometown.
I moved away long ago, but I still have family there. I visit regularly, and my mom was a devoted parish volunteer during her lifetime. I figured I might recognize a few of the accused or some of the churches. I quickly realized things stretched far beyond that.
The names of priests and parishes from my childhood appeared, one after another, all familiar. My grade school priest. Not one but two pastors from my neighborhood parish, a half block from my childhood home. The principal, vice principal and music director from my high school. A priest I once met with to consider officiating my wedding. The priest at the church my four nieces and nephews attended. The chaplain of the nearby Catholic hospital, where my mom volunteered.
I couldnt believe what I was reading. Two of the priests, leaders at Bishop McCort High School, where my parents sent me and my three brothers in the 1970s to receive a quality religious education, were sexual partner[s] who worked together to molest a 13-year-old boy, the report said. They coordinated visits to his house. Once one priest had satisfied himself, the report said, the other took advantage of a victim he believed to be compliant.
One had been my religion teacher.
First, I called my brothers, to vent. Then I tried comprehending the scale of the abuses. The Spotlight team identified about 80 predatory priests in an archdiocese of 1.8 million Catholics. The grand jury report found at least 50 priests and religious leaders in a diocese of fewer than 100,000. That was stunning enough. But there was more.
Spotlight depicted the Catholic clubbiness of Boston that allowed for abuse. In small-town Pennsylvania, corruption extended into all corners of the community. The church exercised overwhelming access and influence, even handpicking community leaders, including the police and fire chiefs. The mayor would have them come to me, and I would interview them and I would tell him which I would pick, a top bishops aide testified.
I appreciated how Spotlight highlighted the crucial role that journalism plays in challenging the powerful. In my home town, however, I saw how it sometimes falls short. George Foster, manager of an outdoor billboard advertising company and a former high school classmate of mine, emerges as the hero not an investigative reporting team.
Fosters brother was a priest; the two heard rumors of abuses and began looking into them. In 2002, Foster wrote an op-ed for the local paper, calling on the church to clean up its house.
Immediately, he was inundated with tips and evidence from victims, attorneys and even the police. He also did something no journalist had: He went through the files at the Blair County Courthouse from the 1994 civil trial of the Rev. Francis Luddy, a priest accused of molesting boys. The lawsuit against Luddy was filed in 1987, but records were sealed at the churchs request. They became public during the trial.
Foster found in the files documents showing church officials knew of credible allegations against many additional priests but kept them secret. He confronted then-Bishop Joseph Adamec. If this were a movie, outraged authorities would have taken action. But that didnt happen. Adamec rebuffed him.
Finally, in 2014, state investigators in a different child abuse case contacted Foster, and he provided his files. The report cited them extensively and called Fosters actions nothing short of heroic.
I wondered where the journalists had been. Local media covered the Luddy trial, and the Johnstown paper, tipped off by Foster, wrote about the Luddy files in 2002. But none of it drew national attention. I called Richard Serbin, the attorney in the Luddy case, who regularly represents clergy sex-abuse victims. There wasnt a paper with the prestige of the Boston Globe to make an impact, Serbin said. It happened in a small community in decline, and few noticed or cared. The facts were all there, back in 1994, Serbin said. And no one bothered to look at them.
Spotlight ends with a lengthy list of investigations of church abuses worldwide. In Pennsylvania, the grand jury report offers prayers that the current bishop makes the right choices going forward. I hope that works. Im not exactly in the mood for prayer.
OVER THE past two months, according to the United Nations, some 38,000 people have been driven by hunger from South Sudan to seek refuge in the Darfur region of Sudan. This is every bit as bleak as it sounds: Todays hungry are migrating to yesterdays killing fields in hopes of survival. This is but one glimpse of how South Sudan is spiraling ever deeper into disaster.
President Salva Kiir and Riek Machar, a former deputy, wasted two years fighting a senseless and miserable civil war. It was foolhardy to plunge a state now only five years old into war, a conflict in which thousands were killed and 2.3 million displaced from their homes. There have been separate investigations by the African Union and the United Nations; the latest U.N. report found that government and opposition forces killed civilians, raped women and girls, pillaged and destroyed civilian property such as houses, humanitarian infrastructure, medical facilities including hospitals and schools.
In August, Mr. Kiir and Mr. Machar reached a peace agreement, under pressure from President Obama, among others. They promised to halt the fighting, set up a transitional government and create tribunals to seek justice for possible war crimes and expose the truth of human rights abuses.
Today, the peace agreement is dangerously stalled. Mr. Machar sent bodyguards to the capital, Juba, but he has not yet arrived to begin the transition. Meanwhile, Mr. Kiir is going ahead with dividing the existing 10 states into 28, deepening tensions everywhere. The redivision is regarded by Mr. Kiirs foes as a way to reward his allies and penalize enemies. Violence is spreading in the west, and it continues to tear apart towns and villages across a country the size of France. The violence has also grown more fragmented among South Sudans numerous ethnic groups. On Feb. 17, government soldiers and other armed men attacked a U.N. site devoted to the protection of civilians at Malakal; 18 were killed and 90 wounded. Recent visitors report to us that while foreign diplomats in the capital fret over how to implement the peace agreement, Mr. Kiir and Mr. Machar continue their pitiless war with impunity.
South Sudans nationhood was midwifed by the United States and celebrated as a triumph of peace after a two-decade civil war. But the warring leaders have squandered American goodwill. For some time, there has been hope that the pair could be leveraged to do the right thing by the threat of an arms embargo. But the threat is not working. It is time for the Security Council to impose a comprehensive arms embargo to prevent further atrocities against civilians. The United Kingdom has endorsed it, and so should the United States. It may not be a perfect solution, and Russia remains opposed, but an arms embargo would send a blunt message that Mr. Kiir and Mr. Machar need to hear: Patience with you has run out.
Civil rights lawyer Wang Yu was among the attorneys accused last year by the Chinese government of being troublemakers intent on illegal activism. (Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press)
Chen Guangcheng is author of The Barefoot Lawyer: A Blind Mans Fight for Justice and Freedom in China. This piece is adapted from a statement read before the American Bar Association.
Last summer, the Chinese Communist Party regime began a nationwide crackdown on human rights activists and attorneys. Its time that the American Bar Association, the largest attorneys organization in the worlds most powerful democracy, took a clear, unequivocal stand on the crackdown in defense of universal values and the rule of law.
Since July, more than 300 people who dared to reveal their names publicly have been caught in the Communist Partys dragnet the so-called 709 crackdown, named for the date it began with estimates of an additional 2,000 to 3,000 people detained or harassed because of family connections with attorneys and activists. Those detained can be subjected to coercion, beatings and torture, and are routinely denied access to lawyers.
Part of the ABAs mission is to hold governments accountable under law, and to increase public understanding of and respect for the rule of law, the legal process, and the role of the legal profession at home and throughout the world.
In keeping with its mission, I fully support the efforts of ABA members to encourage the organization to speak openly about human rights violations in China, and I urge the ABA to work with attorneys organizations in other democratic nations to condemn the regimes behavior.
There are three fundamental realities that cannot be ignored when it comes to China today: The party is an authoritarian regime that holds the nation captive to its interests; in an authoritarian system, there is no rule of law, though the party uses laws and regulations as tools to control the people as it sees fit; very few if any open, independent organizations are able to act outside of the control and scrutiny of the party.
Organizations such as the All China Lawyers Association and local bar associations act on behalf of the party to keep watch on the ABA in China and also to control and coerce Chinese lawyers. Through the ACLA, Chinese lawyers receive benefits for good behavior; if they stray from what the party expects, their law offices may be closed and their legal licenses revoked, and they may be subjected to harsh persecution.
Many in the international community fear that raising human rights issues will anger the regime, endangering foreign access to China or to Chinese organizations. However, the party regime is more worried about international, open criticism than it lets on, and targeted, unified statements from the outside have an impact.
When I was in captivity, I saw that vocal criticism from the West led to improvements in my treatment. Without outside pressure, political prisoners can do very little to defend themselves, as legal procedure is used as a facade to legitimize repression. In my case, accusations against me (disrupting traffic and destroying public property) were concocted, and my so-called trials were a farce: Witnesses were paid to make false statements, evidence was manufactured and my attorneys were not given time to meet with me to name but a few violations of Chinese law in a Chinese court. My attorneys were repeatedly harassed and beaten: In December 2006, when they tried to visit me, they were attacked with clubs and one suffered serious head trauma and hospitalization.
This is the lawless environment in which human rights activists are working, and the treatment human rights lawyers who try to operate within the Chinese legal system face. Judges and courts cannot act independently. I was told point-blank by judges and prosecutors that they had to obey the party line: There is no independent judiciary, no legal system backed by transparent processes.
Victims in the 709 crackdown have been unlawfully denied the right to speak with their attorneys; the party also uses torture or threats to family members to force them to dismiss their attorneys, a tactic it once tried on me as well. Many are forced to confess crimes via the partys mouthpieces, such as CCTV or the Xinhua News Agency website. This not only violates the U.N. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, but it also violates Chinas own criminal procedure law, which states that individuals cannot testify against themselves.
From the Tiananmen massacre to today, the Chinese people have turned to the law to push the regime into acting lawfully. But each time, the party has crushed its people with violence, revealing its authoritarianism. And since Xi Jinping came to office more than three years ago, the human rights situation has only continued to deteriorate.
Despite these conditions, the Chinese people are fighting back. The regime now spends more on domestic security than it does on national defense, creating a constant undercurrent of fear. But as more people overcome their fear, change will come to China, and freedom and the rule of law will prevail.
I urge the ABA to unite with lawyers organizations around the world to censure the Chinese Communist Partys violent behavior, to call on democratic nations to use their laws to sanction and punish officials who violate human rights and to use its legal resources to help bring a civil suit against the Communist Party.
The ABA should stand with the Chinese people, in keeping with its values as expressed in its mission values drawn from the bedrock of American democracy. Let the ABA stand for the rule of law and freedom worldwide.
The March 19 news article U.S. policy toward Israel called harmful to both identified the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs as a D.C.-based magazine featuring articles questioning Israeli government policies and U.S. aid to the country. In fact, it is knee-jerk anti-Israel, sometimes virulently. Years ago it published articles that called Israels U.S. supporters a cancer and alien intrusion and compared the Jewish state to Nazi Germany.
The article said speakers at a Washington Reportsponsored event spoke gloomily of the prospects for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict . . . made more difficult as Israeli settlements have expanded on land Palestinian Arabs want. It didnt say Palestinian leadership has rejected U.S. and Israeli offers of two-state solutions in 2000, 2001 and 2008 and spurned renewed talks on such an agreement proposed by Secretary of State John F. Kerry in 2014. It omitted mentioning that settlements comprise less than 5 percent of the disputed territory and that compensating land swaps have been proposed.
Also, the article repeatedly quoted Gideon Levy, identified as a leftist author who writes columns for an Israeli newspaper, as implying a comparison between the Holocaust and Israels security presence in the West Bank. Perhaps thats sufficient self-incrimination. But identification as a far-leftist commentator prone to blame the Jewish state first and only would have been more accurate.
Journalists often demand full disclosure from public officials and other news sources. Readers deserve the same from them.
Eric Rozenman, Washington
The writer is Washington director of the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America.
The March 31 front-page article A lot of people wanted her dead shed light on the murder of natures guardians, but it missed a crucial point: Berta Caceres Floress murder was rooted in her governments catastrophic failure to recognize the land rights of indigenous people and local communities. This problem is not unique to Honduras, or even to Latin America, as the murders of Indra Pelani in Indonesia, Chai Bunthonglek in Thailand and Yunis Akumu in Uganda demonstrate. Worldwide, indigenous and other local communities have legal ownership rights to just one-fifth of their lands. This gap allows governments to sell their territories to the highest bidder, agreements that are legal on the surface but violate long-held rights and the international agreements that support them.
Environmental activists in Latin America are not trying to prevent development of remote lands. These lands are theirs. Many indigenous peoples and local communities, including Caceress Lenca people, have lived on their lands for generations. When their lands are threatened, courageous leaders such as Caceres often refuse to give in to intimidation and threats, and end up paying the ultimate price. It is no mere coincidence that 40 percent of environmentalists murdered in 2014 were indigenous people protecting their lands and livelihoods.
It is critical that governments bring the perpetrators of these crimes to justice, but they also must solve the root issue: Indigenous and community activists will continue to be murdered until governments recognize their rights.
Omaira Bolanos, Washington
The writer is the Latin American program director for the Rights and Resources Initiative.
Legends die hard. One of the most stubborn is the myth that Adolf Hitler dictated Mein Kampf while in Landsberg Prison, rather than writing it. In my book 1924, I tried to make it clear that the legend was wrong. Yet, in an otherwise knowledgeable review, The year when Hitlers strategy began to emerge [Book World, March 13] , Andrew Nagorski called my research a questionable claim, citing long-outdated sources from 1998, 1976 and 1950 to 1960.
The story that Hitler had dictated, not written, his book was first told by Otto Lurker, one of the prison guards, in a short memoir called Hitler behind the Fotress: An Image of Cloudy Days. The tale was transmitted unexamined from historian to historian for 73 years until it was definitively put to rest in 2006 by Austrian historian Othmar Plockinger. His History of the Book: Adolf Hitlers Mein Kampf 1922-1945 instantly became the standard work on the origins, writing and reception of Mein Kampf.
Sir Ian Kershaw, whose 1998 biography of Hitler perpetuated the old myth, acknowledged the validity of Plockingers research in the 2008 revision of his biography. On Page 147, Kershaw wrote: The presumption, widespread at the time and persisting later, that Hitler . . . dictated the indigestible prose . . . is wide of the mark. Hitler typed drafts of the first volume himself (though some of the second volume was dictated [in 1925-26] to a secretary).
Kershaw also spoke at the Jan. 8 launch in Munich of the new annotated academic version of Hitler, Mein Kampf. A Critical Edition. The 1,966-page book (two volumes) is now the definitive study of Hitlers book. Its brilliant, 70-page introduction affirms that Hitler wrote the text himself, typing large sections of the manuscript on a typewriter. (Hitler drafted some sections of the book in pencil, as I noted in my book.)
In his 2015 book, Mein Kampf: The Career of a German Book, German historian-journalist Sven Felix Kellerhoff wrote: [Hitler] did not dictate the text of volume one of Mein Kampf to Rudolf Hess, or to anyone else; on the contrary, he typed it himself in his well-appointed room in Landsberg.
The revision of the old myth is widely known among historians. Alas, in popular discourse it still sometimes runs up against the old fables. Its unfortunate that such a tale made it into this review, suggesting questionable work by the books author.
Peter Ross Range, Washington
Phillip Hoose is author of Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice.
On March 2, 1955, a young African American woman boarded a city bus in Montgomery, Ala., took her seat and, minutes later, refused the drivers command to surrender it to a white passenger. It felt like Harriet Tubman was pushing me down on one shoulder and Sojourner Truth was pushing me down on the other shoulder, she mused many years later. History had me glued to the seat.
Two police officers arrived and pulled her from her seat. They forced her into the back of a squad car, one officer jumping in after her. She prayed furiously as they sped out, with the cop leering over her, guessing at her bra size. She was fingerprinted, denied a phone call and locked into a cell. Charged with disturbing the peace, breaking the bus segregation laws and assaulting the officers who had apprehended her, she was released later that night.
Although some of the details might seem familiar, this is not the Rosa Parks story. It is the story of Claudette Colvin, who was 15 when she waged her brave protest nine months before Parks did and has spent an eternity in Parkss shadow. Now 76 and retired, Colvin deserves her place in history. As civil rights attorney Fred Gray put it, Claudette gave all of us moral courage. If she had not done what she did, I am not sure that we would have been able to mount the support for Mrs. Parks.
After her arrest and release to the custody of her pastor and great-aunt, the bright, opinionated Colvin insisted to everyone within earshot that she wanted to contest the charges. Her timing was superb. For months, Montgomerys NAACP chapter had been looking for a court case to test the constitutionality of the bus laws. With funding from church donations and activities organized by the chapter, Colvin had her day in court. She was convicted on all charges, appealed and lost again.
The court declared her a ward of the state and remanded her to the custody of her family. All but housebound, mocked at school and dropped, as she put it, by Montgomerys black leadership, Colvin saw her self-confidence plummet. That summer she became pregnant by a much older man.
At the time, black leaders, including the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., had been seeking to stir the outrage of African Americans and sympathetic whites into civic action. Almost nine months after Colvins bus protest, she heard news reports that Parks, a 42-year-old seamstress, had likewise been arrested for a bus seating protest. I was thinking, Hey, I did that months ago, Colvin recalled. I was glad that an adult had finally stood up to the system, but I felt left out.
Parkss protest helped spark the Montgomery bus boycott, which black leaders sought to supplement with a federal civil suit challenging the constitutionality of Montgomerys bus laws. But attorney Gray found it all but impossible to find riders who would potentially risk their lives by attaching their names as plaintiffs. He went back to Colvin, now seven months pregnant. Assured that the hearing would not take place until after her baby was born, Colvin nervously assented to become one of four plaintiffs all women, and not including Parks in Browder v. Gayle.
Colvins feisty testimony was instrumental in the shocking success of the suit, which ended segregated seating on Montgomerys buses. I heard about the court decision on the news, Colvin recalled. By then I didnt have much time for celebrating anyway. I had been kicked out of school, and I had a 3-month-old baby.
Unable to find work in Montgomery, Colvin moved to New York in 1958, while her son Raymond remained behind with family. She spent the next decade going back and forth like a yo-yo between the two cities, she said. After training, she landed a job as a nurses aide in a Catholic hospital in Manhattan.
The story of Colvins courage might have been forgotten forever had not Frank Sikora, a Birmingham newspaper reporter assigned in 1975 to write a retrospective of the bus boycott, remembered that there had been a girl arrested before Parks. Sikora telephoned a startled Colvin and wrote an article about her. This led to a few articles and profiles by others in subsequent years.
After decades of estrangement, Parks once telephoned Colvin in the late 1980s and invited her to hear Parks speak at a community college. Colvin went to her job instead. Rosa didnt give me enough time to put in for a day off, she recalled.
Colvins son Raymond died in 1993. A second son, Randy, born in 1960, gave her four grandchildren, who are all deeply proud of their grandmothers heroism.
It is time for President Obama to award Colvin the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nations highest civilian honor, to recognize her sacrifice and passionate dedication to social justice. She deserves our attention, our gratitude and a warm, bright spotlight all her own.
On Easter morning, the congregation at the historic St. Marys Episcopal Church in the Districts Foggy Bottom community prayed for those caught up in tragedies in Brussels and Ivory Coast.
The toll of the onslaughts was great.
Claimed by the Islamic State, the March 22 bombings at the airport and metro station in Brussels left at least 35 dead, including three attackers, and more than 300 injured.
The March 13 attack at an Ivory Coast beach resort in Grand-Bassam left 22 dead, including six gunmen, two soldiers and 14 civilians. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility.
The St. Marys congregation prayed for those who lost lives, those working to save lives, those worried for people they love and those who will see their loved ones no longer. They prayed for the Lord to have mercy upon them.
The parishioners had no way of knowing that a suicide bombing that day in a crowded area of a park designated for women and children in Lahore, Pakistan, had killed at least 72 people. Or that the attack was directed at Christians who were celebrating the Resurrection. And that a splinter faction of the Pakistani Taliban had claimed responsibility for the attack.
Had they known about that, they likely would have included the Pakistani victims in their prayers for people in despair with tears yet to dry and in need of mercy and peace.
Easter was, for some, a day of joy for the victory over death. For others too many others it was a day of suffering, of dying and the dead.
On Saturday, church staff in Foggy Bottom, busy preparing for Sunday, were unaware of the warning issued by Turkish police that day of possible Islamic State attacks against Christians and Jews. Turkish authorities said that Islamic State terrorists may have scouted out places of worship and that churches and synagogues, especially in Ankara, should be on their guard. A subsequent report said that the Islamic State was planning attacks on Jewish schools and kindergartens in Turkey.
For believers who proclaim that death has no dominion over them, this, indeed, is a time of testing.
When we consider the carnage in Lahore, the bombings in Brussels, the attacks in Ivory Coast, is comfort drawn from a belief in life everlasting?
The test, perhaps, constitutes more than that. And it applies to believers and nonbelievers alike: How to respond to the princes of darkness, those evil powers militant Islamist terrorists who exist under names such as the Islamic State, al-Qaeda and the Taliban?
A place to start is recognizing that Islam and militant Islamist fundamentalism are not the same thing. Most Muslims have nothing to do with the radicals who carry out violence in the name of Islam. And as the Anti-Defamation League points out, The greatest number of Islamic terrorist attacks are directed at Muslims and often at their religious institutions and on religious holidays.
The problem is the extremist ideology that drives the killing of Christian mothers and children and Ivorian beachgoers and which threatened Jewish schools in Turkey.
Extremist Islamist ideology is an evil to be resisted. Its followers are visible enemies who, when discovered, must be crushed. But thats not done by patrolling and securing Muslim neighborhoods or imposing a ban on Muslims entering the United States or by basing immigration policy solely on a religious test.
Crucial to the resistance is a clear understanding of what children in Lahore and in Jewish schools in Istanbul, and worshipers in parishes such as St. Marys, are up against. As Maajid Nawaz wrote in the Daily Beast this week, radicals in the form of the Islamic State, al-Qaeda and the Taliban all drink from the same doctrinal well of widespread, rigid Wahhabism the ultraconservative, puritanical form of Islam that comes with a brutal intolerance. They are all unified, Nawaz wrote, behind a theocratic desire to enforce a version of Sharia as law over society.
That is the enemy, as President Obama said last Saturday in his weekly address, that must be rooted out and defeated. It poses a threat to the civilized world. Obama also observed that another weapon can be used against groups such as the Islamic State besides airstrikes, military power and counterterrorism work: the power of our example. Obama referred to our character, values and history as a nation built around the idea of religious freedom, and to our vision of the future.
It is a vision of justice and peace among all people, and respect for the dignity of every human being. That was also among the prayers voiced at St. Marys on Sunday a powerful antidote to a hateful cause.
Read more from Colbert Kings archive.
As a matter of politics, Donald Trumps comment that women who have abortions should suffer some form of punishment was a disaster. As a matter of intellectual and moral consistency, Trumps got a point one that exposes a fundamental tension in the Republican Party between its assertion that life begins at conception and the legal and moral implications of that absolutist view.
The partys platform has been clear for years, even if its own presidential candidates, for obvious reasons of self-protection, have strayed from its strict dictates.
We assert the sanctity of human life and affirm that the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed, the 2012 platform stated, echoing a plank that has been present since 1984. In other words, no exceptions for pregnancies that result from rape or incest.
Indeed, if the fetus has a fundamental individual right to life, why should it matter in any way how the pregnancy came into being? Either abortion is the taking of a human life that is, murder in which case it should not be permitted, or it isnt. (To be clear, Im in the it-isnt-murder camp.)
But heres the problem with the party platform: This stance is out of sync with the vast majority of voters. Which is why the past five Republican presidential nominees Mitt Romney, John McCain, George W. Bush, Bob Dole and George H.W. Bush all supported exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. So do Trump and John Kasich; Ted Cruz does not back exceptions in the case of rape and incest.
Responding to a question from MSNBC's Chris Matthews, Republican front-runner Donald Trump said women who have illegal abortions should be punished. Here's where other candidates stand as well. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post)
The question of whether to punish a woman who obtains an abortion raises similar issues. If abortion is the taking of a human life, why punish only the doctor who performs the abortion and not the woman who procures one? Surely no prosecutor would fail to bring charges against a mother who murdered her newborn child. If the fetus is in the same legal position as a child, why not charge the mother?
Except that if forcing a 13-year-old who has been raped by her father to bear a child is unpopular, imagine how people would respond to carting women off to jail for choosing to terminate their pregnancies. This goes too far even for the no-exceptions crowd.
Of course we shouldnt be talking about punishing women, Cruz smarmily proclaimed in the aftermath of Trumps comments. We should affirm their dignity and the incredible gift they have to bring life into the world. Oh yes, lets respect women and affirm their dignity by denying them the freedom to choose what to do with their own bodies.
Or, as Trump put it, once he got his act together, The woman is a victim in this case as is the life in her womb. Poor woman, too weak or emotional to know what is in her best interest, or to be held legally responsible for her choice.
It is true that states, pre-Roe v. Wade, punished abortion providers, not women who obtained abortions, even in places where the statutes technically made it a crime for women to procure abortions. Current antiabortion laws, such as the prohibition on partial-birth abortion, similarly target only providers.
But my point is not that there is a real-world risk of prisons overflowing with women who have had abortions. It is that antiabortion activists are unwilling to follow through on the logic of their abortion-is-murder argument. Rather, they insist on viewing women as less than fully in control of their faculties and therefore not entirely responsible for their actions.
Since time immemorial, the law has recognized that male coercion, abandonment, or indifference has been at the center of most abortions, Clarke Forsythe of Americans United for Life wrote for National Review after Trumps remarks. Really? How would the law know? This is paternalism masquerading as legal reasoning.
You could analogize the argument for differential treatment to the distinction between going after drug traffickers and choosing not to prosecute users. But that would seem to diminish the grave moral harm that those who oppose abortion rights believe is at the heart of the argument. I would not so trivialize their concerns.
Trumps gaffe was telling. It revealed not only his own unreadiness for prime time but also his partys intellectual dishonesty on this most incendiary of issues.
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IT WAS a day that all of Burma smiled, said the Irrawaddy, a news website, and understandably so: Last Wednesday, after 54 years of military rule, a democratically chosen civilian president was sworn into office. The man who took the oath, Htin Kyaw, is by his own account a stand-in for Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel-prize winning former political prisoner whose National League for Democracy won a landslide victory in Novembers parliamentary election. It was a moment of triumph for Ms. Suu Kyi and the many Burmese who fought for decades to end a brutal, corrupt and economically incompetent dictatorship. Yet it remains to be seen whether she and her party will be allowed to govern.
According to the militarys plan, the civilian leadership will remain powerless in key areas. The generals hold a quarter of parliamentary seats, enough to block any amendment to the constitution they imposed on the country. They appoint the ministers of defense, border affairs and home affairs, as well as one of the two vice presidents, and hold a majority on the powerful national security council, which has the authority to dissolve parliament and impose martial law.
What this means is that Ms. Suu Kyi and her cabinet may have little ability to pursue one of her top priorities, which is making peace between the central government and ethnic minorities with which it has long been at war. A settlement would likely require devolving power from the capital, which the generals will resist.
Though Ms. Suu Kyi appointed herself foreign minister, the military will still try to control the all-important relationship with neighboring China, which backs some of the ethnic rebels. Its not even clear that the president or parliament will be able to free the 100 or so remaining political prisoners, or drop the ongoing prosecution of hundreds more; that could require the assent of the national security council.
What the military hopes is that the new government will attract foreign investment, which has already begun to happen, and tackle the development problems it could not manage, such as agricultural reform, while staying away from national security matters as well as the generals economic interests. For her part, Ms. Suu Kyi appears determined not to be hemmed in. She has been working methodically to accumulate power, appointing herself to four cabinet positions and pushing a law that would create a position for her of state counselor, which would be akin to a prime minister. The new president says he will propose constitutional amendments in spite of the militarys veto power.
At best, Ms. Suu Kyi, 70, will use her five-year term to gradually expand the authority of the civilian government. Economic growth will help, if she can spur it. But she will also need strong backing from the United States. Congress, which imposed sanctions on the military regime, and President Obama, who pushed the generals toward this partial liberalization, can claim a measure of credit for Htin Kyaws inauguration. The next step must be to help empower the new government.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stirred up controversy when he said there should be "some sort of punishment" for women who have abortions. Here's a look back at how he "evolved" into his pro-life views. (Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stirred up controversy when he said there should be "some sort of punishment" for women who have abortions. Here's a look back at how he "evolved" into his pro-life views. (Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)
Donald Trump came under fire yet again for delivering clumsy answers to questions about abortion rights, angering conservatives by asserting on CBSs Face the Nation that abortion should remain legal.
Right now, the laws are set. And thats the way the laws are, the Republican presidential candidate told CBSs John Dickerson, according to a transcript of the interview released Friday. At this moment the laws are set. The laws are set. And I think we have to leave it that way.
The Susan B. Anthony List, a prominent antiabortion organization, blasted Trump and accused the billionaire of repeatedly reversing himself on abortion. He has completely contradicted himself. If this is his position, he has just disqualified himself as the GOP nominee, said Marjorie Dannenfelser, the groups president. At some point, the candidates words must stand on their own. What do you believe, Mr. Trump? No one knows.
[Trumps revealing interview with the Posts Bob Woodward]
Soon after the release of the transcript, the Trump campaign issued a statement clarifying Trumps remarks.
Mr. Trump gave an accurate account of the law as it is today and made clear it must stay that way now until he is president, the campaign said in a written statement. Then he will change the law through his judicial appointments and allow the states to protect the unborn. There is nothing new or different here.
During a campaign event here Saturday, Trump said that his comments on Face the Nation were taken out of context, alleging that CBS took words out that I said. Trump did not, however, address abortion rights directly while speaking to hundreds of supporters at the Racine Civic Center.
What I said was perfect. . . . What I said was so good, it was so perfect, he said. The only reason I tell you this is because I want you to watch it. Now if I did something wrong, I wouldnt want you to watch it.
The real estate mogul blamed the negative response to his remarks on the media, which he said holds him to a double standard.
No matter what you do, no matter what you say . . . they can take something you said and turn it around, Trump said.
The episode was Trumps latest reversal on abortion rights, which his critics in the Republican Party have eagerly exploited to discredit him among conservatives.
Last week, antiabortion and abortion-rights groups alike criticized Trump for indicating that he would support some form of punishment for women who sought abortions if the procedure were banned nationwide.
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Within hours, Trump recanted that position in several statements, first saying that decisions about punishments should be left to the states and later adding that health-care providers, and not the women themselves, should face criminal punishment.
Although the Trump campaign has moved quickly to mitigate the fallout of those remarks, the stumbles have given his rivals a path to question his grasp of conservative ideas. Many, including his chief rival for the GOP nomination, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), used the gaffe to further paint Trump as a false conservative who is fooling voters with talking points.
At least 30 soldiers and a boy were reported killed as heavy fighting erupted Saturday between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The fighting was the worst outbreak since a full-scale war over the region ended in 1994. Since then, mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh officially part of Azerbaijan has been under the control of local ethnic Armenian forces and the Armenian military.
Armenian forces also occupy several areas outside Nagorno-Karabakh. The sides are separated by a demilitarized buffer zone, but small clashes have broken out frequently.
Each side blamed the other for Saturdays escalation.
In a statement, Azerbaijans Defense Ministry said 12 of its soldiers became shahids Muslim martyrs and one of its helicopters was shot down.
The statement also claimed that more than 100 Armenian forces were killed or wounded and six tanks and 15 artillery positions were destroyed.
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told his national security council that 18 Armenian soldiers were killed and 35 wounded.
Armenia earlier claimed to have inflicted heavy damage on Azerbaijani forces but did not immediately give figures. A statement from the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Ministry claimed more than 200 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed, but there was no corroboration for that figure.
This is the most wide-scale military action that Azerbaijan has tried to carry out since the establishment of the 1994 cease-fire regime, Sargsyan said.
The Armenian Defense Ministry said Azerbaijan used aircraft, tanks and artillery to try to make inroads into Nagorno-Karabkh and that Azerbaijani authorities bear all responsibility for the unprecedentedly supercharged situation.
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said the fighting began when Armenian forces fired mortars and large-caliber artillery shells across the front line. Ministry spokesman Vagif Dargyakhly told the Associated Press that more than 120 shots were fired, some of which hit civilian residential areas.
David Babayan, a spokesman for Nagorno-Karabakhs separatist president, said a boy of about 12 was killed and two other children were wounded in a Grad missile barrage by Azerbaijani forces.
Years of negotiations under the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe have brought little progress in resolving the territorial dispute.
The negotiation efforts are led by a troika of envoys from the United States, Russia and France. On Saturday, the envoys jointly issued a statement calling on the sides to stop shooting and take all necessary means to stabilize the situation on the ground.
Belgian federal prosecutors confirmed Saturday that a third suspect in Belgium has been charged in connection with plotting what officials are calling a major terrorist attack on France.
The suspect, identified only as Y.A., was taken into custody Friday. Prosecutors said that Y. A. is a Belgian citizen born May 4, 1982, making the suspect 33, but declined to provide further information in the interest of the investigation.
The arrest comes as part of the same investigation that led to the March 24 arrest of Reda Kriket, 34, in the Paris suburb of Argenteuil, and another suspect in the Netherlands a few days later.
Two other suspects have been arrested in Belgium for colluding with Kriket: a man authorities have identified only as Rabah M., 34, and Abderrahmane Ameroud, 38. Both were arrested in Brussels on March 25 and both are Algerian citizens.
In the apartment Kriket occupied in Argenteuil, police discovered assault rifles, handguns and explosives including TATP, the type of explosive that has become a trademark of Islamic State jihadists. The substance was used in the November attacks on Paris and in the Brussels attacks.
At the time of Krikets arrest, French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said the apprehended suspect was in the advanced stages of planning an attack in conjunction with a terrorist network.
Dutch authorities, at the insistence of their French counterparts, arrested a French citizen, Anis Bahri, 32, in Rotterdam on March 27. Authorities say Bahri was involved in plotting the France attack.
Although the extent of Krikets network remains unclear, he was sentenced in Belgium in absentia in July 2015 to 10 years in prison for being part of a jihadist channel stemming from Syria. Also sentenced in absentia was Abdelhamid Abaaoud, a ringleader of the November terrorist attacks in Paris who was killed five days later in a police raid in a Paris suburb.
After the March 22 attacks on the Brussels airport and the citys metro line, Belgium remains on the highest level of alert. The climate of palpable anxiety has resulted in increased security throughout the capital, where on Saturday police detained protesters for attempting to break an imposed ban on demonstrations.
According to Brussels media, two far-right protesters were arrested after prohibited weapons and molotov cocktails were found in their vehicle. They were trying to take part in a planned anti-immigration rally in Molenbeek, a heavily Muslim neighborhood of Brussels, where Salah Abdeslam, a suspect in the Paris attacks of last November, was arrested on March 18, after four months in hiding.
Molenbeeks mayor, Francoise Schepmans, quickly banned Saturdays protest because of the potential public order disturbances it posed.
Meanwhile, at least 10 counterprotesters were detained at a rally on the Place de la Bourse, where the city has largely come to grieve since the attacks. The event was organized by the Ligue des Droits de lHomme (Human Rights League) to combat Islamophobia.
1 of 28 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad Photos: Scenes from Brussels after deadly blasts at airport and metro station View Photos More than a dozen people were killed, and several others were injured, after explosions at an airport and metro station in the Belgian capital. Caption More than a dozen people were killed, and several others were injured, after explosions at an airport and metro station in the Belgian capital. March 22, 2016 An image from a security camera shows three suspects of the attacks at Brussels Airport, in Zaventem, pushing trollies with suitcases. The Belgian federal prosecutor confirmed, April 9, that Mohamed Abrini, right, who was arrested in connection to the attacks in Paris on Nov. 13, 2015, was the man in the hat captured in surveillance footage at the airport on March 22. Belgian Federal Police/AP Wait 1 second to continue.
Still, the city continues to try to return to normal order. On Saturday, officials announced that a limited number of passenger flights would resume from Brussels Airport on Sunday. Security at the airport will be tighter.
A Syrian refugee waits to be transferred to the Moria registration center, after arriving at the port of Mytilene on the Greek island of Lesbos, following a rescue operation by the Greek Coast Guard at open sea on March 21. (Alkis Konstantinidis/Reuters)
On the isle of Lesbos, there are now two facilities to house the migrants who risked their lives crossing the sea. The Syrian refugees call them the good camp and the bad camp.
The good camp is airy and open, and migrants are getting ready to sail to the Greek mainland, where there is still a chance they may reach their dream destinations in Germany, Sweden or France.
In the bad camp, there is razor wire and a locked gate, and the police are preparing the asylum seekers for a forced ferry ride back to where they came from.
The two transit centers show in stark relief the past and future for migrants clamoring to reach Europe.
It is here that Europe will answer the big questions: Will Greece really send people fleeing war and chaos in Syria and Iraq back to Turkey, by force if necessary?
The Europeans say they will starting Monday.
Greek officials said the first ferries are scheduled to take the first migrants back to Turkey next week. They hope the move stems the tide of newcomers.
Humanitarian organizations, along with the U.N. refugee agency, warn that the returns are being rushed, that Greece could be overwhelmed. The asylum seekers will not get a full hearing, they say. The aid organizations worry that traumatized people may balk at being herded onto boats and sent to uncertain conditions in Turkey.
The risk is that they will do everything very, very quickly and create an assembly line for returns, said Michele Telaro, project coordinator on Lesbos for the group Doctors Without Borders.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Heather Higginbottom was on Lesbos this week to assess the situation. There is still a lot of work going on to determine how people will be processed and what that will look like, she said. Were eager to see those details as much as everyone else.
The Greek parliament passed legislation late Friday designed to ease concerns about whether the human rights of irregular migrants would be protected under international law. The asylum amendment bill stated that people will be sent back to a safe third country or a safe first country of asylum without explicitly designating Turkey as safe.
[The mass migration of refugees from Turkey to Greece has stalled]
1 of 12 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad Migrants get stuck in Greece as door closes to Europe View Photos After a year and a half of massive migration to the continent, some nations along the route are saying no. Caption After a year and a half of massive migration to the continent, some nations along the route are saying no. March 1, 2016 Yazidi asylum seekers from Shengal, Iraq, rest outside an Ikea house at the Diavata migrant camp recently built by Greece on the outskirts of Thessaloniki. Jodi Hilton/For The Washington Post Wait 1 second to continue.
Tensions are rising. As disturbances broke out at migrant hot spots on the Greek mainland this week, authorities announced plans to send additional police to the islands to keep order. Activists told reporters that Greek police used stun guns on Syrians and Iraqis on the nearby island of Chios, where fences were torn down in protest.
In the good camp on Lesbos, where the last hundred refugees are waiting for a ferry ride to the Greek mainland, the residents still can dream of making it to the heart of Europe. These asylum seekers were smuggled to the Greek island from Turkey before Europe shut the door to new arrivals on March 20.
The camp is spotless, with fresh herbs growing in flower boxes and a quartet of Greek musicians serenading the residents, who are smothered with help from a dozen humanitarian aid groups.
We dont call them refugees. They are our guests, said Stavros Myrogiannis, manager of the Kara Tepe site, correcting a visitor. He seemed sad to see them go.
This is the Europe with open arms, the Europe of 2015.
Myrogiannis estimated that, over the past six months, he has hosted hundreds of thousands of travelers from war-torn Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan who made the perilous trip across the Aegean Sea.
Asked what he thought when he learned that the people of Lesbos and the other Greek islands were to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for their acts of charity, Myrogiannis waved away the flattery.
We acted like human beings, he said. That is enough.
One of his last guests was Hasan Zaheda, 31, a landscape designer from Damascus, Syria. He, his wife and toddler son barely made it before the cutoff date. The first raft they were put on by smugglers in Turkey sank, the second trip was foiled by police, the third by foul weather. The fourth was the charm. They were rescued by the Greek Coast Guard.
About 400 people have died in the Aegean Sea crossings this year. Most of them drowned, according to the Greek Coast Guard. An additional 170 are missing and presumed dead.
We know we are lucky, Zaheda said.
He said he hopes to live in Paris, where his brother-in-law works at the Pasteur Institute.
A few miles away, at the bad camp, life and prospects for the future are far less sunny. Thousands of migrants are detained behind high fences at a former military base near the village of Moria. The toilets are overwhelmed, the asylum seekers complain, and the food is disgusting now that aid organizations such as Doctors Without Borders and the International Rescue Committee pulled out in protest, refusing to work at what they called a detention facility.
This is Europe 2016. These are the migrants who had the misfortune to arrive in Greece after March 19.
I am living in a prison, said Mohammad Al Balkhi, 21, a Syrian college student from Damascus, who stood by the fence, amid a pile of cigarette butts, speaking with a reporter before a police patrol shooed his visitor away.
Get us out of here, he said. He seemed amazed that the difference of a day or two would determine his fate.
[E.U. strikes deal to return new migrants to Turkey]
If Europe is to make good on its promise to shut down the deadly smuggling route through the Eastern Mediterranean, which has brought more than a million migrants to the continent, then it will happen here in the islands.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said uncontrolled illegal mass migration across the Aegean Sea, assisted by rapacious smugglers who put passengers on unseaworthy rafts, must stop. Allowing the migration to continue is not only wrong, it is deadly.
The European Union and Turkey agreed last month that all irregular migrants who arrive in Greece after March 19 will be returned to Turkey.
The E.U.s Frontex agency, which is responsible for stopping illegal immigration, is bringing 1,500 police officers, asylum case workers and interpreters to Greece to begin processing the migrants.
The ferries will leave Lesbos and head to Dikili on the Turkish coast. Mustafa Nazmi Sezgin, the deputy governor there, said the Turks would erect a temporary transit facility to receive the returnees. They wont stay here, he said. They will go to other places in Turkey. He was not sure where.
He agreed that war refugees would be angry to find themselves back in Turkey, but shrugged.
The European Union, including the Greek government, argue that Turkey is a safe haven, proven by the fact that the country already hosts about 3 million Syrian refugees.
As of Friday, there were more than 5,000 migrants on six Greek islands; the largest number, almost 3,000, were on Lesbos. The number of migrants making the trip from Turkey to Greece has plummeted in recent weeks from thousands a day to hundreds. Aid workers and migrants say the reason was a combination of rough seas and anxiety over what will happen to new arrivals.
Another 46,000 asylum seekers are on the Greek mainland, spread out at more than 40 camps, where the security situation and living conditions are deteriorating.
The mass migration to the heart of Europe was stalled in Greece after Macedonia shut down its border to new arrivals a month ago.
Smugglers in Turkey told The Washington Post that the trafficking cartels were exploring alternative routes to Western Europe through Albania, Bulgaria and Romania. They also warned that smugglers may reopen routes using derelict trawlers and freighters from Libya to Italy, a trade that could incorporate militias operating in Libya, including the Islamic State.
Aid workers said the first people to be sent back to Turkey may likely be the easy cases those deemed immediately inadmissible for asylum in Europe, such as economic migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh or Nepal.
Everyone is waiting to see what happens next, said Panos Navrozidis, country director for the International Rescue Committee. Thats part of the problem for everyone. Not knowing.
Read more:
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7 things to know about the incredibly complicated migrant crisis
Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world
Business / Companies
by Staff reporter
The government will this month start clearing the US$10 million debt owed to creditors in London to pave way for the re- introduction of Air Zimbabwe's Harare-London flight.At least US$2.6 million should be paid as deposit for landing fees, fly over fees and other aviation services while the rest will be paid in monthly instalments until the debt is cleared.The arrangements to commence the payments were made earlier this year when a team from the national airline was sent to London to negotiate a payment plan with the creditors.Air Zimbabwe's Harare-London flight was the most lucrative as it was the only airline that flew non-stop between the two cities after British Airways pulled out, but the national airline also suspended the flights in 2012.The government is targeting bringing the airline to operate at full capacity ahead of the African Airlines Association annual conference to be held in November in Victoria Falls.Transport and Infrastructure Development Minister Dr Joram Gumbo says once the first instalment has been paid, Air Zimbabwe will announce the dates for the resumption of the Harare-London flight.The national airline is in the process of resuscitating its fleet with one of the three Boeing 737-200 aircrafts having undergone a D-check.Air Zimbabwe also requires an additional US$1.6 million to pay for one of the airbus A320 aircrafts that is undergoing a C-check at Oliver Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg.
The FBI and Justice Department are debating whether the hacking tool that helped the bureau unlock the iPhone of one of the San Bernardino, Calif., terrorists can be used to help state and local law enforcement, officials said Friday.
That will be a challenge because the bureau has classified the tool, making it difficult to use in state and local criminal prosecutions requiring disclosure of evidence to defendants, officials said.
Theres a desire to be forward-leaning to help state and local law enforcement, said a senior law enforcement official, who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. But no one knows quite what the answer is.
Moreover, the tool itself likely will have a shelf life of only a few months, as tech companies may find and fix the vulnerabilities that the tool exploits, and they periodically update the underlying software.
The firm that helped the bureau not the Israeli company Cellebrite, as had been widely rumored charged a one-time flat fee, officials said.
The bureau is not releasing the companys name and has declined to discuss details of the solution. Officials last week said the approach was aimed at dismantling security features on the iPhone 5C to permit investigators to make many attempts to crack the passcode without wiping data from the device.
Since its announcement, the bureau has been peppered with inquiries from state and local law enforcement officials seeking to know whether the solution might be useful for their cases.
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. was among those who called. But, he said, he recognized that the solution itself may not be applicable to the more than 200 iPhones that he has sitting in a crime lab and his technicians cannot unlock.
None is a 5C running iOS 9, which is the model and operating system of the phone used by Syed Rizwan Farook, who was killed by police in December after a shooting attack that claimed 14 lives.
The overwhelming majority of criminal investigations stalled by default device encryption will remain so until Congress intervenes, Vance said.
One-off technical solutions will result in a cat-and-mouse cyber arms race between the government and industry, he said in an interview. I dont think thats the smart way to approach public safety or privacy policy.
The classification of the method highlights a tension between criminal and national security cases in which the most sophisticated tools are not always available to law enforcement. Unlike state and local courts, federal courts have procedures to protect classified information.
The FBI has found a way into San Bernardino Syed Farook's iPhone, and is now dropping bids to force Apple to help them crack into the phone. See all the latest developments in the case, and why the case isn't over yet. (Jhaan Elker/The Washington Post)
Its been a challenge for law enforcement for a while, said Austin Berglas, a former assistant special agent in charge of the FBIs New York cyber branch and now head of cyber investigations at K2 Intelligence, a consultancy firm.
[How spy agencies keep their toys from law enforcement]
Berglas has worked cases on both sides of the divide, including one federal cybercrime investigation in which he was not given permission to use a classified tool because intelligence officials feared it would be disclosed in court.
The FBI is very prudent when deploying the technologies, Berglas said. The question is: Is it going to help the greater good by using this? Knowing that we may never have the ability to use this capability against the adversary again, are we willing to take that risk and use it?
To referee the issue, the government has an interagency process headed by the attorney general to decide which capabilities should be classified. This is separate from the vulnerabilities equities process managed by the White House, which decides which software flaws should be disclosed to the software maker.
Now that the bureau owns the solution, it could conceivably have a local agency submit a phone to be unlocked to see if the solution works on it. But there would be constraints. For instance, the FBI likely would not testify about the tool in court, and the local agency would likely have to avoid using data retrieved from the phone as evidence in a criminal prosecution.
So it would depend on how heavily that evidence weighs in that case. If its a small part, maybe they can build a case around it, the senior official said. If not, he said, the tool is not for them.
Peter Modafferi, chief of detectives of New Yorks Rockland County, said he does not fault federal authorities for keeping some of their tools on a high shelf. Thats life, he said. The bureau goes out of its way to help us when they can, but theres a difference between national security and local law enforcement.
Read more:
U.S. Marines with Fire Base Bell in northern Iraq fire an M777A2 Howitzer at an Islamic State infiltration route on March 18. (Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Andre Dakis)
The Islamic State is facing an unprecedented cash crunch in its home territory, U.S. counterterrorism officials say, as months of strikes on oil facilities and financial institutions take a deepening toll on the groups ability to pay its fighters or carry out operations.
For the first time, U.S. officials are seeing clear evidence of the financial strain on the groups leadership, as reports surface of clashes among senior commanders over allegations of corruption, mismanagement and theft.
Cash shortages already have forced the group to put many of its Iraqi and Syrian recruits on half-pay, and accounts from recent defectors suggest that some units havent received salaries in months. Civilians and businesses in the Islamic States self-proclaimed homeland complain of being subjected to ever-higher taxes and fees to make up the shortfall.
U.S. officials attribute the economic upheaval to a months-long campaign to destroy the groups financial underpinnings, including weeks of punishing strikes on oil facilities as well as on banks and other repositories of hard currency.
The strikes against oil fields, refineries and tankers have cut oil production by about a third, according to several counterterrorism officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence from the region. Meanwhile, overall revenue from the Islamic States oil business has plummeted by as much as 50 percent because of falling oil prices and a diminished capability to make and sell refined products such as gasoline, the officials said.
For the first time, theres an optimistic tone, Daniel Glaser, assistant secretary for terrorist financing at the Treasury Department, said of the financial war against the Islamic State. I really do think were having a significant impact.
But, he added, they still make a lot of money, and we still have a long way to go.
[Obama calls on world leaders to jointly confront ISIS]
U.S. military operations, meanwhile, have killed a number of high-ranking financial officials, including the groups finance minister, Haji Imam,whose death in an airstrike was announced late last month.
Moreover, because of the groups territorial losses in recent months military defeats have shrunk the size of the self-declared caliphate by about 40 percent over the past year the terrorists now have a significantly smaller population to exploit for cash, U.S. officials and analysts say. Unlike al-Qaeda, which relied on outside donors for revenue, the Islamic State has traditionally generated much of its income locally, through extortion and other criminal enterprises as well as through taxes and fees imposed on businesses and civilians.
The successful pushback of ISIL from the territory they control is huge, said Matthew Levitt, an expert on terrorist financial networks who worked at the Treasury Department and the FBI, using one of the common acronyms for the Islamic State. If they dont control the territory, they cant exploit the population. They cant take advantage of natural resources, whether its oil or wheat or water.
Some terrorism experts think the recent terrorist attacks in Europe are partly a response to the groups worsening prospects on its home turf. In the short term, pressure on the Islamic States finances could make the group more dangerous and unpredictable, some say.
The United States, Russia and other powers came to an agreement on a cessation of hostilities in Syria, but the deal was met with caution and skepticism. (Jason Aldag,Ishaan Tharoor/The Washington Post)
You corner a wild beast and its going to lash out, said Levitt, now a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
[Brussels terrorists used explosive nicknamed the Mother of Satan]
Counterterrorism officials have seen little evidence of significant financing or material support from the Islamic States central branch for the recent attacks in Paris and Brussels. Indeed, the group appears to be providing little, if any, monetary aid to its new affiliates elsewhere in the Middle East and South Asia, counterterrorism experts say.
While some provinces may have received funds, others appear to not be seeing much in return for fighters sent to Syria and Iraq, said Katherine Bauer, until recently a senior adviser on terrorist financing at the Treasury Department.
U.S. officials caution that the Islamic State has recovered from serious setbacks before, and the groups leaders are both resilient and creative in overcoming obstacles. Hisham al-Hashimi, an Iraqi military strategist, expressed skepticism about U.S. claims of success in inflicting serious damage to the terrorists financial infrastructure.
Theyre not going through a financial crisis that will lead to their collapse, Hashimi said. They still have 60 percent of Syrian oil wells and 5 percent of Iraqs.
For the United States and its allies, the task of cutting the Islamic States financial lifelines has proved to be exceptionally difficult, in part because of the groups economic self-sufficiency but also because of the huge amounts of cash its fighters acquired after capturing several major Iraqi cities in 2014, officials say. That initial financial windfall estimated at more than $700 million instantly made the group the worlds wealthiest terrorist organization.
That cash is now mostly gone, U.S. officials say, much of it having been either spent on salaries or incinerated in recent weeks in a series of carefully targeted airstrikes.
Col. Steve Warren, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, said the ongoing strikes are believed to have destroyed tens of millions of dollars worth of hard currency once held by the Islamic State. Some U.S. officials said the losses were probably in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
They stockpile their cash in various locations: large quantities of cash, millions of dollars in one spot, Warren said. And we find out where they are and destroy it.
[How vulnerable is the United States to a Brussels-like attack?]
The losses in oil revenue have been at least as great. In 2014, when its fighters were sweeping across eastern Syria and western Iraq, the terrorists seized control of oil wells and refineries, which were soon employed in producing oil and gas for the black market. As recently as a year ago, the group was generating a half-billion dollars annually by selling petroleum products to buyers in Turkey and Syria.
Obama administration officials initially expressed reluctance about targeting oil facilities that could someday aid the rebuilding of Iraq and Syria. But since the November terrorist attacks in Paris, a U.S.-led military offensive dubbed Operation Tidal Wave 2 has carried out more than 200 strikes against oil wells, refineries, pipelines and trucks.
Since the start of the campaign, the Islamic States oil production has plummeted, and it has lost both refining capacity and easy access to its black-market dealers in Syria and southern Turkey, U.S. officials say.
With oil revenue down, the terrorist group is increasingly dependent on the money it collects from local populations in the towns and villages it controls, U.S. officials say. Since 2014, the Islamic State has skimmed hundreds of millions of dollars from Iraqis and Syrians through an elaborate system of taxes and fees as well as criminal enterprises including extortion and kidnapping.
A key blow to the groups tax revenue came last year when the Iraqi government agreed to halt salary payments to thousands of government workers in Mosul and other cities under Islamic State control. That one move disrupted a revenue transfer approaching about $2 billion a year, U.S. officials say.
This is money they use to pursue their military efforts and run their government, said Glaser, the Treasury official. Were cutting them off from their sources of revenue and were cutting them off from markets so they cant go out and spend the money they have.
Defectors accounts and social-media postings attest to the toll of such losses on the Islamic States daily operations as well as life in terrorist-controlled districts. Civilians and foreign recruits fleeing the self-proclaimed caliphate have described dwindling supplies of basic goods, as well as higher fees for violating the groups conservative dress code or breaking taboos against smoking or skipping prayers.
Abu Sara, 33, an engineer from the Syrian city of Shadadi, said friends and relatives who joined the Islamic State are expressing disillusionment after months of pay cuts.
Their members are getting quite angry. Either they are not getting salaries or getting much less than they used to earn, said Abu Sara, who now lives in Turkey. All of the people I am in contact with want to escape, but they dont know how.
With travel banned, the only opportunity to escape is after battle, when disillusioned fighters throw down their weapons and mingle with the civilians, he said.
Zakaria Zakaria in Istanbul and Mustafa Salim in Baghdad contributed to this report.
Correction: An earlier version of this report incorrectly identified Shadadi as an Iraqi city. It is a city in northern Syria.
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Road under sniper fire in the souk of Aleppo in early March. This area is now contested between the government forces and the opposition. (Lorenzo Tugnoli for the Washington Post)
Syrias partial cease-fire is unraveling, as fierce clashes between government forces and opposition fighters, including members of al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front, erupted Saturday outside the city of Aleppo.
At least 25 pro-government and 16 opposition fighters died in clashes south of Aleppo, where the Nusra Front and rebel militias captured a hill overlooking a major highway, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The fighting continued throughout the day Saturday close to the village of Tel al-Ais, which overlooks the main road connecting Aleppo with the capital, Damascus.
The coordinated offensive by rebels and the Nusra Front follows weeks of air raids on opposition-held areas despite a cessation of hostilities that came into effect in late February.
The truce agreement, the first of its kind in Syrias five-year war, excludes the Nusra Front and the Islamic State group.
But the Nusra Front is embedded with other groups throughout the country. The government has taken advantage of this ambiguity to strike and besiege opposition-held areas across Syria.
Bombs fell near a school and a hospital in the eastern suburbs of Damascus on Thursday, killing a reported 33 civilians. Opposition officials, accusing the government, said the massacre threatened to derail the peace talks that are scheduled to resume in Geneva in two weeks.
Government airstrikes also targeted the public square in the opposition-held city of Maarat Nouman in northern Idlib province Friday, where residents had protested against the Nusra Fronts presence in the town.
These latest strikes appear to have caused some rebel factions to reassess their positions.
The Islam Army, whose political coordinator heads the opposition delegation during fitful peace talks in Geneva, announced that it had killed 20 government soldiers in fighting outside Damascus on Friday.
A spokesman for a U.S.-backed division of the Free Syrian Army accused the government of scrapping the cease-fire and undermining the talks in Geneva. The group said one of its fighters was killed in the offensive against government forces in the south Aleppo countryside.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - An actor who stars on the TV series Trailer Park Boys has been arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of misdemeanor battery.
Police and jail records show Michael Smith, who plays Bubbles on the show, was arrested in Hollywood around 1:15 a.m. on Friday. He was booked on suspicion of misdemeanor domestic battery and released hours later on $20,000 bail.
No additional details about the arrest, which was first reported Friday by celebrity website TMZ.com, were available early on Saturday.
Later Saturday morning, Smith and the victim, Georgia Ling, both released statements denying the charges brought against the actor.
Mike Smith: "Georgia is a friend of mine and we had a loud and heated dispute. That is all. At no time did I assault her. I am not guilty of the misdemeanour charged against me."
Georgia Ling: "Mike and I did indeed have a heavy argument but it saddens me the way things are being reported and the way it was handled by the police. At no point did I feel I was in danger, otherwise I would've called the police myself, which I did not. The police were called by others not present in the room who mistakenly perceived the argument to be something other than what it was. When the officers arrived I tried to assure them there was no real issue, but they proceeded to arrest Mike."
Trailer Park Boys is produced by Toronto-based Showcase Television. On the show's website, the Netflix program stated, "The other members of the Trailer Park Boys and all staff stand behind Mike and look forward to the matter being resolved favourably."
The show, which is fake documentary about three petty felons living in a trailer park, appears on Netflix.
April 2, 2:17 p.m.: Updated with statements.
Read More: 'Glee' Actor Mark Salling Arrested on Suspicion of Possessing Child Pornography
Cairo (AFP) - A mortar attack on a checkpoint in Egypt's restive Sinai Peninsula killed 13 policemen on Saturday, the interior ministry said in a statement.
The Islamic State group (IS) claimed responsibility for the attack, but said in a statement that it had deployed a suicide bomber who blew up a car at the checkpoint, which jihadists then raided.
Security officials said five attackers were killed in clashes near the checkpoint after the attack.
The attack was the deadliest in months in Sinai, where IS's Egyptian branch is waging an insurgency that has killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers.
The interior ministry said the attack took place at a checkpoint near El-Arish, the provincial capital of North Sinai.
"A mortar round was fired at the Safa checkpoint... which resulted in the martyrdom of 13 policemen," the ministry statement said.
IS said a suicide bomber, identified by the nom de guerre "Abu Al-Qaaqaa the Egyptian", blew up a car packed with explosives at the checkpoint.
"This was followed by the storming of the checkpoint," it said in a statement posted on social media.
Sinai, a sparsely populated peninsula bordering Israel and the Palestinian Gaza Strip, has for years been a haven for Islamist militants.
After Egypt's military overthrew Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013, the jihadists launched an insurgency that has persisted despite a massive army campaign.
The militants have also attacked tourists.
The jihadist group claimed responsibility for bombing a Russian airliner in October, killing all 224 people on board, minutes after it took off from a south Sinai beach resort.
The group said it had smuggled explosives packed into a soda can on to the airplane.
That attack prompted Russia to suspend all flights to Egypt, and has lost the country hundreds of millions of dollars in tourism revenues.
The jihadists claimed that they carried out Saturday's Sinai attack to avenge "insults to Muslim women at checkpoints".
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They had claimed other attacks were revenge for a bloody crackdown on Morsi's Islamist supporters, which left hundreds of protesters dead after his overthrow.
Since pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group, which controls parts of Syria and Iraq, in November 2014, the Sinai branch's attacks have grown more sophisticated.
But an apparent attempt to capture a town in Sinai last July was met with air strikes that forced the militants to flee.
The military says it has killed more than 1,000 militants, occasionally publishing pictures of their bodies.
The claims are difficult to verify, with reporters having little access to the north of the peninsula.
It has also become increasingly difficult to verify military casualties, especially after the passage of a law that bans media reporting that contradicts official tolls.
Paris (AFP) - The suspected ringleader of the Paris attacks, Salah Abdeslam, decided not to blow himself up during the wave of killings in the French capital last year, his brother said.
Mohamed Abdeslam said his brother "voluntarily chose not to blow himself up" along with the other Islamic State jihadists who killed 130 people in gun and suicide bomb attacks in November.
"If I wanted, there would have been more victims," Salah Abdeslam told his brother from prison in northern Belgium, according to Belgian media chain BFMTV.
"Luckily, I did not follow through."
Salah Abdeslam, the sole surviving suspect in the November attacks in Paris, was arrested in Brussels on March 18 after four months on the run as Europe's most wanted man.
He is believed to have acted as a logistics coordinator and told investigators he was meant to carry out a suicide bombing at the Stade de France stadium, but backed out.
Four days after he was arrested, the Belgian capital was struck by IS bombings at the airport and a metro station carried out by jihadists with links to the Paris attacks cell.
The 26-year-old, who is about to be extradited to France, apparently told his brother he wants to cooperate with investigators, but denied any role in the Brussels bombings.
The Daily Beast
Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via ReutersWith dozens of newly drafted troops already dead and Russian troops laying the groundwork for a retreat from a key Ukrainian city, the Kremlin has now revealed it is hoping to give its war a second wind by making ordinary Russians feel it as much as possible.Sergei Kirienko, the first deputy chief of staff of the presidential administration, said as much Saturday in a speech to a national conference of teachers, declaring that the war the Kremlin has unti
News / Education
by Ezra Tshisa
PLEASE HELP. I was drawn to a desperate situation of a young student by the name of Yolanda Ngulube. The Ezra Tshisa Initiative was founded for this exact purpose, to highlight and help in such desperate situations. A young lady with amazing potential yet in the clutches of circumstances and poverty needs your urgent help.Yolanda was recently chucked out of the MSU campus in Zimbabwe for failing to pay boarding fees. She is now sharing a tiny room outside the University with a friend and eager to complete her studies.Appeal is made to you people to help pay fees for her last 2 semesters and complete her degree. It's her mother's dream to depart from this world knowing her only daughter has finished her degree program. I call upon our community and everyone anywhere in the world to pull together and help this intelligent student. Let's make Miss Ngulube a graduate and be proud as she serves us with her knowledge and education. No amount is too little. She is $600 away from being a graduate. God bless you all.https://www.gofundme.com/78xc5c5d?pc=email_sh_mb_ctrl&rcid=92f57028f84511e586d0bc764e05901c Posted by Ezra Tshisa Sibanda on Friday, 1 April 2016
https://www.gofundme.com/78xc5c5d
Source - Ezra Tshisa Comments
PLEASE HELP. I was drawn to a desperate situation of a young student by the name of Yolanda Ngulube. The Ezra Tshisa Initiative was founded for this exact purpose, to highlight and help in such desperate situations.A young lady with amazing potential yet in the clutches of circumstances and poverty needs your urgent help.Yolanda was recently chucked out of the MSU campus in Zimbabwe for failing to pay boarding fees. She is now sharing a tiny room outside the University with a friend and eager to complete her studies.Appeal is made to you people to help pay fees for her last 2 semesters and complete her degree. It's her mother's dream to depart from this world knowing her only daughter has finished her degree program.I call upon our community and everyone anywhere in the world to pull together and help this intelligent student. Let's make Miss Ngulube a graduate and be proud as she serves us with her knowledge and education. No amount is too little. She is $600 away from being a graduate. God bless you all.
BOSTON (Reuters) - Billionaire investor William Ackman's Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd fund lost 7.1 percent last month, hurt largely by Valeant Pharmaceuticals' roughly 60 percent tumble in March. March's poor performance leaves Ackman's fund with a 25.6 percent loss for the year, a person familiar with its returns said on Friday. This marks a dramatic turnaround from Pershing Square's 40 percent gain in 2014. Pershing Square owns a 9 percent stake in Valeant and the company's stock tumbled last month when it cut its financial forecasts and said it could face default if it fails to file its annual report by the end of April. Last week the company's chief executive officer agreed to step down and Ackman formally joined the board. (Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Chris Reese)
NAIROBI (Reuters) - The African Development Bank (AfDB) on Friday pledged half a billion dollar relief package to 14 Southern and Eastern African countries most affected by an El Nino-propelled drought. The $549 million package will help an estimated 36 million people needing food assistance as abnormally high temperatures and the worst drought the region has seen in decades scorches staple crops from South Africa to Zimbabwe. The drought response package consists of $5 million in emergency relief and $361 million in short-to-long term support from various windows of the banks financial instruments. "This amount represents new financial resources," the bank said in a statement. The bank will also ensure faster disbursements of funds in ongoing projects, which were designed to build the affected countries resilience to drought. This will see an additional amount of $183 million made available in 2016. (Reporting by Wendell Roelf; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
By Lamine Chikhi ALGIERS (Reuters) - Algeria's state energy firm Sonatrach has awarded a $100 million contract to supply oil and gas drilling tubes to five foreign firms as part of its drive to increase production, a document seen by Reuters on Tuesday showed. The companies named in the Sonatrach document are Germany's CCC Machinery, Dutch firm Van Leeuwen, Vallourec Tubes France, Kurvers Piping France, and High Sealed&Coupled from China. OPEC member Algeria, which has been hurt by a 70 percent fall in oil prices since mid-2014, is campaigning for more foreign investment to increase oil and gas production to sustain exports and meet growing local demand. But recent bidding rounds have failed to attract much interest from foreign oil producers. Sonatrach also said on Tuesday it had made a new oil find with Thailand's PTTEP and China's CNOOC following successful drilling in the Hassi Bir Rekaiz area in Algeria. "This represents 20,000 barrels per day," a Sonatrach source told Reuters. Sonatrach holds a 51 percent stake in the project, with the other two companies owning 24.5 percent each. The state energy company is focusing on developing areas around existing fields and hiking production at its mature fields. It will also invest $3.2 billion over four years to increase pipeline capacity as natural gas output rises from new and existing fields. (Editing by Patrick Markey and Susan Thomas)
By Lamine Chikhi SIDI REZINE, Algeria (Reuters) - Algerian energy company Sonatrach will invest $3.2 billion over four years to increase pipeline capacity as natural gas output rises from new and existing fields, a top company official said on Tuesday. OPEC member Algeria has been hurt by a 70-percent fall in oil prices since mid-2014. Its revenue from energy fell by half last year, forcing the government trim spending and freeze some infrastructure projects. But the government, despite struggling to attract foreign oil companies in recent energy bidding rounds, is determined to increase oil and gas production to keep up exports and meet growing local demand. "Sonatrach will invest $3.2 billion from 2016 to 2020 to boost its transport capacity, including $530 million in 2016," Arbi Bey Slimane, Sonatrach's vice president for pipeline transportation, told Reuters at the company's Sidi Rezine office east of Algiers. He said the company wanted to guarantee increased supplies to European clients. The additional transport capacity aims to deliver more volume as new fields in southeast and southwest add production soon. He did not give specifics on amounts or timing. Algeria produces 1.1 million barrels per day of oil, and 27.44 billion cubic metres of gas, according to official figures. Sonatrach's CEO Amin Mazouzi has pledged a "sizeable increase in production" in 2016 as Algeria looks to end more than a decade of stagnation in energy production. "We will build 1,650 km of pipeline, and six compression and pumping stations by 2020. Our goal is to transport output from new fields located in the south east and south west," Slimane said. Algeria is in talks with the European Union as the EU looks to diversify its energy sourcing away from Russia, which supplies around 30 percent of the EU's gas. Slimane said Algeria would remain a stable gas supplier for southern Europe. "The volume exported in 2015 increased by 2 million tonnes equivalent oil (TEP) to reach 99 million TEP. The 2 million were delivered to southern Europe," he said. (Editing by Patrick Markey and Jason Neely)
Hawaii just doubled the number of known land mammal species that are native to the islands, thanks to the discovery of a number of fossils representing a tiny bat named Synemporion keana.
Found in 13 cave sites over five islands Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Maui and Hawaii the fossils described in a new study represent at least 110 individuals and reveal a bat that was notably different from the only other land mammal species that is endemic to Hawaii the Hawaiian hoary bat.
In fact, combinations of the new bat's physical features were so unique that the scientists determined it was a new genus in the bat family tree, as well as a new species. [Photos: The Creatures That Call Lava-Tube Caves Home]
S. keana probably measured about 2 inches (5 centimeters) long, with a skull length of about 0.4 inches (1 cm), the scientists reported.
Many of S. keana's bones were found in the same locations as hoary bat fossils, suggesting to scientists that the bats shared habitats. But the new bat came to the islands much earlier than the hoary bat, arriving about 320,000 years ago, the researchers found, while the hoary bat's arrival dates back no more than 10,000 years.
The bats coexisted for thousands of years until S. keana went extinct about 1,100 years ago, likely because of human colonization and the introduction of invasive species, the study authors suggested.
Encrusted in crystals
It was 1981 when entomologist Francis Howarth, one of the study's co-authors, discovered near-complete skeletons of the bat on Maui. A distinguished research associate in natural sciences at Hawaii's Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, Howarth told Live Science that he was investigating the fauna, evolution and ecology of Hawaiian lava tubes expansive, cavelike channels formed by flowing lava beneath hardened lava crusts. [Photos of a Rising Lava Lake in Hawaii]
In one cave, he noticed something unusual a small skeleton embedded in the wall. The tiny bones were overgrown with mineral crystals, "So I knew it was very, very old," Howarth said. He gathered several more accessible specimens from the cave floor, including a near-complete skeleton, and brought them to the late Alan Ziegler, a mammalogist colleague at the Bishop Museum and co-author of the new study.
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Howarth recalled that Ziegler already suspected the existence of a "mystery species" that had once lived on the islands, based on assorted individual bones that were discovered over time. Scientists were able to tell that whatever this animal was it was smaller than the hoary bat. But no skulls had been found, and there weren't enough of any other bones for scientists to identify the animal they belonged to.
All of that changed with Howarth's discovery. Now that Ziegler had a near-complete skeleton as a frame of reference, individual bones found in other locations began to fall into place.
A mosaic of features
Ziegler's death in 2003 temporarily suspended work on the project, which resumed with the participation of Nancy Simmons, curator-in-charge in the mammalogy department at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, who joined the investigation in 2006.
Simmons, who studies living and fossil bats, told Live Science that S. keana's skull shape with "a distinct forehead" told them right away that they were looking at a different species from the hoary bat, which doesn't have a well-defined forehead.
But no single feature placed S. keana in a new genus. Rather, it was a mosaic of features that don't appear together in any other known bat species: a particular number of teeth, a certain shape in the molars and skull, and specific proportions of bones in their wings.
"Compared across all other genera of known bats, this particular combination doesn't appear in any of them," Simmons said.
While the isolated Hawaiian Islands are known to host a diverse array of birds and invertebrates, until now, the number of its native mammalian land fauna could be counted not just with one hand, but on one finger. The discovery of S. keana, which doubles the number of endemic Hawaiian land animals, is a surprise that carries an important lesson about diversity, Simmons said.
"It just goes to show that you may think that you know what the diversity of something like an island fauna was like," she said. "Fossils can provide new information, which can be really interesting. And the fossil record of all mammals is always full of surprises."
The findings were published online March 21 in the journal American Museum Novitates.
Follow Mindy Weisberger on Twitter and Google+. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science.
Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
This is no April Fools' Day joke: FXX's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is making TV history.
The cable network has renewed the series for two additional seasons, taking it through season 14 and tying the Rob McElhenney entry with The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet as the longest-running live-action comedy series in TV history.
With the FXX announcement Friday, Always Sunny has scored its latest multiple-season pickup. The comedy was previously announced for seasons 11 and 12 in 2014. Season 12 will premiere in early 2017, with the two-season renewal taking the comedy through 2019.
The recently concluded 11th season ranked as the top scripted comedy on basic and premium cable among the advertiser-coveted adults 18-49 demo as well as adults 18-34 year-to-date. Season 11 also delivered the series' best ratings yet on younger-skewing FXX, including a double-digit gain in total viewers. Factoring in seven days of delayed viewing, Sunny improved 8 percent among adults under 50 (1.1 million) and 13 percent among total viewers (1.4 million). Since its debut on FXX in 2013, Sunny has increased its average viewership among adults 18-49 by 17 percent and among total viewers by 24 percent.
The comedy centers on the misguided dreams and blundered schemes of the gang at Paddy's Pub: Mac (series creator McElhenney), Dennis (Glenn Howerton), Charlie (Charlie Day), Dee (Kaitlin Olson, who booked a pilot but is expected to continue with the series) and Frank (Danny DeVito). The series is exec produced by McElhenney, Howerton, Day, Michael Rotenberg, Nick Frenkel, Tom Lofaro, Scott Marder and David Hornsby. The show is produced by FX Productions.
For FXX, Sunny is part of a comedy lineup that also includes Man Seeking Woman, You're the Worst and repeats of the longest-running overall comedy series, The Simpsons.
News / Health
by Staff reporter
The impasse between the government and the junior medical doctors over contracts has been resolved.All doctors who had embarked on industrial action have been advised to go back to work.The junior doctors who were supposed to sign the adjusted contracts on the 1st of March refused to do so claiming they violated their human rights.More than 60 junior doctors refused to sign contracts alleging they were not happy with the scrapping of the US$300 housing allowance.They viewed the scrapping of the allowance as an attempt to force doctors into government accommodation at hospitals.The Deputy Minister of Health and Child Care Aldrin Musiiwa says the two sides have since met and resolved the matter, adding all the junior doctors who were not reporting for duty are expected to resume work with immediate effect.The contract, according to the doctors, denied female doctors maternity leave if they fell pregnant during the two years they would be attached.The industrial action by the junior doctors had made the situation at Harare hospital and Mpilo hospital in Bulawayo dire with indications that the outpatients departments were no longer attending to cases not considered urgent.
In another startling reminder of the cost of treating and caring for the nations 5 million people with Alzheimers disease and other forms of dementia, a new study released this week found that one out of every five Medicare dollars is spent on Alzheimers a rate that will more than double by 2050.
The report by the Alzheimers Association claims that total government spending this year for the hospital and nursing home care and hospice treatment for Alzheimers victims will reach $236 billion. More than two thirds of that total will come from Medicare and Medicaid, the twin national health care programs for seniors and low-income Americans.
Related: Long-Term Care: The Cost Challenge That Scares the Government Most
That figure represents a $10 billion increase in estimated overall costs to the government since last year, and it doesnt begin to address the financial and emotional toll the disease is having on family members and friends of the victims. Families spend $5,000 a year on average caring for loved ones with Alzheimers, and many family members have to give up their jobs or dip into retirement savings to cover associated costs.
There is no question that the cost of long-term care is very significant, both for individuals and their families and for the government, said Brian Collins, a senior policy analyst specializing in health care for the Bipartisan Policy Center. And individuals who experience dementia, such as Alzheimers, tend to have very prolonged side costs high intensity needs and for a very long time.
Research Funding for Alzheimer's Disease in the United States | HealthGrove
The Congressional Budget Office has repeatedly warned that the federal government is headed back to massive annual deficits of $1 trillion or more in the coming decade unless Congress and the White House find ways to slow the growth of Medicare, Medicaid and other entitlement programs.
Related: The Staggering Cost of Alzheimers Is $226 Billion a Year and Rising
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Yet as more and more Baby Boomers in their late 60s and early 70s develop Alzheimers and other forms of dementia, the number of people requiring government-funded assistance will more than triple, according to the new report. Alzheimers is currently the sixth leading cause of death, and it kills more people annually than breast cancer and prostate cancer.
Medicare, the health care program for seniors, currently pays for acute health care costs of the elderly but does not cover long-term services and support such as help bathing and eating that are so important to Alzheimers patients and their families. Elderly people who are unable to pay for their care after spending down their savings frequently can qualify for long-term services with Medicaid, the health program for low-income people. But you take your chances on the quality of the facility.
By 2050, the number of people age 65 and older with Alzheimer's disease may nearly triple, from 5.2 million to a projected 13.8 million, barring the development of medical breakthroughs to prevent or cure the disease, the report stated. Previous estimates based on high range projections of population growth provided by the U.S. Census suggest that this number may be as high as 16 million.
Related: US Health Care Costs Surge to 17 Percent of GDP
Alzheimers is projected to cost more than $1 trillion by 2050 unless a miracle cure is developed in time to prevent families from going bankrupt and the government from spending more on this one disease than any other government program.
That cure may be in the works at Stanford and other leading research universities, or in the labs of leading pharmaceutical companies. But realistically, experts say we are many years away from a cure for Alzheimers.
If approved, these could be the first drugs that will change the course of the disease, James Hendrix, director of global science initiatives at the Alzheimers Association, told TIME Magazine about promising new drugs now in development. To bring back neurons that have been destroyed by plaques and tangles to me that still seems almost like science fiction, I have a hard time getting to that point.
Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
Luanda (AFP) - Angola's public prosecutor on Monday demanded jail terms of up to 13 years for 17 youth activists accused of rebellion and preparing a coup against President Jose Eduardo dos Santos.
The Angolan opposition sees their trial as evidence of ingrained political repression.
"During questioning it has been confirmed that the accused are guilty of crimes of rebellion, acts preparing a coup against president Jose Eduardo dos Santos and association with wrongdoers," prosecutor Isabel Nicolau Francony said.
Francony said she was asking for sentences from three months to 13 years.
Judge Juanario Domingos was later to announce a verdict date.
One of the accused is popular rapper Luaty Beirao, who went on hunger strike for a month last year to protest his detention.
The activists insist they are peaceful campaigners for the departure of dos Santos, who has ruled the former Portuguese colony for 37 years and is Africa's second longest-serving leader.
Fifteen of the group remain in detention nine months after they were first picked up.
One of the group, Nuno Dala, did not attend Thursday's summons owing to fatigue 12 days into a hunger strike.
Angola has sought to limit coverage of the case, banning international observers, allowing in journalists only intermittently and permitting each accused just two supporters in court.
Amnesty International's deputy director for Southern Africa, Muleya Mwananyanda, in December denounced the trial as a "parody of justice" that cast doubt on the independence of the judicial system.
Dos Santos, 73, said earlier this month he would quit in 2018. But there was scepticism over whether he would do so after two similar pledges in the past.
His current mandate ends at the end of next year.
By Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - An anti-apartheid activist jailed alongside Nelson Mandela called on Jacob Zuma to step down, adding pressure on South Africa's president to quit after a court ruled he acted dishonestly over improper state spending at his private home. Echoing similar calls from opposition parties, Ahmed Kathrada said in a letter published on Saturday that Zuma's resignation would give the country's government the chance to recover from "a crisis of confidence". "In the face of such persistently widespread criticism, condemnation and demand, is it asking too much to express the hope that you will choose the correct way that is gaining momentum, to consider stepping down?" Kathrada asked in the letter, dated March 31. Mandela and Kathrada were among eight African National Congress (ANC) activists sentenced to life imprisonment after being convicted of trying to overthrow the apartheid government during the 1963-1964 Rivonia Trial. South Africa's top court on Thursday held that Zuma had failed to uphold the constitution by ignoring instructions to pay back some of the $16 million in state funds spent on renovations at his sprawling residence at Nkandla. In a televised address to the nation on Friday evening, 73-year-old Zuma apologised and said he would pay back some of the money, as ordered, and that he never knowingly or deliberately set out to violate the constitution. He made no reference to calls for him to resign, led domestically by Democratic Alliance leader Mmusi Maimane and the Economic Freedom Fighters party led by Julius Malema. The opposition also launched impeachment proceedings against Zuma but these are unlikely to be successful because of the ANC's strong majority in parliament. The ANC's top leadership said it was united behind its leader, though the 86-year-old Kathrada's intervention may carry weight within the party, which has governed the country since apartheid ended in 1994. The calls for Zuma to quit dominated local newspaper headlines and got high-profile play abroad. "It is a shame that the ANC is allowing its moral and political authority to be so grievously eroded by Zuma, instead of bringing his corrupt presidency to an end," The New York Times wrote in an editorial on Friday. The scandal is arguably the biggest yet to hit Zuma, who has fended off accusations of corruption, influence peddling and rape since before he took office in 2009. Speaking on Talk Radio 702, Kathrada Foundation Director Neeshan Balton confirmed publication of the letter, which was ran on media websites www.timeslive.co.za and www.enca.com. (editing by John Stonestreet)
Rio de Janeiro (AFP) - Hundreds of taxis blocked main roads in Rio de Janeiro on Friday in a protest against Uber that underlined the potential for disruption when the city hosts the Olympics in four months' time.
"No to illegal taxis," read one of the slogans brandished by irate taxi drivers near Rio's domestic airport in the city center.
"Whoever is against corruption doesn't use illegal taxis," read another, tapping into public disgust at a bribery scandal engulfing Brazil's government and business elite.
Some working taxis spotted with fares were stopped by their protesting colleagues. One woman told CBN radio she had to get three motorbike riders to take her, her husband and their baggage past the blockade to the airport.
The Rio taxi drivers are demanding that Uber, the successful US-based company whose ride-hailing via app is available in more than 60 countries, leave Brazil.
Uber has no authorization to operate in Rio but continues to do so under a court injunction. It recently announced a push into emerging markets such as Brazil, and its fares undercut those of traditional taxis.
The company's passenger base in Rio has shown steady growth, as has the number of its drivers, as people seeking to escape climbing unemployment under Brazil's crushing recession sign on.
Rio's hosting of the Olympic Games in August 5-21 is expected to see many locals and visitors turning to Uber to get around -- setting the scene for further taxi fury and possible protests.
Uber's roll-out around the world has prompted similar blowback from local taxi drivers fearing a threat to their livelihood.
They argue that Uber drivers, who are private contractors using their own vehicles, undercut them because they are not subject to the same costly training, insurance and safety laws taxi drivers face.
News / Local
by Stephen Jakes
The MDC official Discent Collins Bajila said it is now high time people of Zimbabwe should stop Zanu PF nonsense where it denies some villagers food aide on the grounds they have relatives in the diaspora."As we walking into the month of April, let's resolve to be lethal to the regime of Zanu PF. Here's the first move. There are various reports of rural Zimbabweans who are being disallowed Food Aid on the basis of the fact that they have family members in the diaspora," he said."The stupid assumption that people in the diaspora are capable of fully fending of their families back home. The greedy chicanery is that there's NO family in Zimbabwe without a member who is in the diaspora and therefore we might not need Food Aid at all as a nation."He said the time to stop the nonsense is now."If you know of anyone who can present evidence of this abuse of food aid kindly inbox me their details. We will fight on their side," he said.
The future of Asia's top film festival is being threatened by a bitter dispute over what organisers are calling an unacceptable political challenge to their artistic independence, with moviemakers pushing an "empty red carpet" boycott of this year's event.
The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) -- held every October in the South Korean port of Busan -- marked its 20 anniversary last year, but celebrations were soured by a lingering row that has since snowballed into a full-blown crisis.
A flurry of official probes targeting its organisers and an unprecedented cut in state funding have raised serious doubts over the event's artistic and financial viability.
Artistic director Lee Yong-Kwan was forced to step down in February, even as his counterparts from other top international film festivals like Cannes and Berlin wrote an open letter warning that political pressure was threatening BIFF's future.
Organisers say they have become targets of political retaliation for screening a film in 2014 -- in defiance of state opposition -- about the government's handling of the Sewol ferry disaster.
The scathing, highly emotive documentary slammed Seoul's botched rescue efforts in the immediate aftermath of the ferry sinking in April 2014 that claimed more than 300 lives, most of them school children.
- 'Hefty price' -
"We are paying a hefty price for screening the movie that the government disliked," a BIFF spokeswoman, Kim Jung-Yun, told AFP.
"Everyone is concerned about artistic and political independence of the BIFF... this is the biggest crisis we have ever faced," Kim said.
"Diving Bell" (or "The Truth Will Not Sink With Sewol") had its world premiere at the 2014 BIFF, against the wishes of the Busan city mayor, Suh Byung-Hoo, who serves as festival chairman and who deemed the movie "too political".
The premiere went ahead after a barrage of protest from filmmakers who accused Suh of compromising the festival's independence.
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But state funding was nearly halved to 800 million won ($700,000) for the 2015 event, while BIFF director Lee became the target of a series of probes by state auditors and prosecutors over the festival's financial dealings.
Lee was eventually compelled to leave in February after Suh refused to renew his contract.
- Global industry support -
The same month saw the publication of an open letter of protest to the mayor, signed by more than 100 prominent overseas cineastes including the directors of the Cannes, Berlin and Venice film festivals.
"Our concern leads us to call on you... not to damage the festival or its independence, and to stop applying political pressure to the festival's leaders and programmers," the letter said.
"The events of the past year not only threaten that independence but also put the entire future of BIFF at risk," it added.
Hundreds of South Korean actors, directors and producers have staged street rallies for months urging the authorities to back off.
"This festival is not a personal possession of state officials, but a valued cultural heritage nurtured and enjoyed by movie fans," an amalgam of Korean filmmakers' associations said in a joint statement released in March.
The group vowed to boycott the 2016 event unless the Busan city council -- a major BIFF sponsor and stakeholder -- accepts changes to the festival rules that they say would ensure its artistic independence.
- 'Empty red carpet' -
"The world will witness the empty red carpet for the first time in 20 years of BIFF's history and the audience from all over the world will stop coming to Busan for the festival anymore," the statement said.
The council rejected the ultimatum, insisting the government probes and Lee's departure had nothing to do with the controversial documentary.
"I was simply trying to overhaul the unreasonable operations of the festival that have been dominated by a few," Suh told a press conference.
"These people are trying to frame my efforts as political oppression and deceive many citizens," he said.
With the dispute showing no signs of abating, the festival organisers fear its integrity is in peril.
"For now we are trying our best to prepare for this year's event but we are afraid the crisis is greatly hurting our reputation," said spokeswoman Kim.
"Who would want to come to see a film festival with no freedom of expression?"
Moscow (AFP) - The brutal five-year conflict in Syria has cost the country more than $200 billion (176 billion euros), President Bashar al-Assad said in an interview released Wednesday, insisting Damascus would look to Russia, China and Iran to rebuild the nation.
"The economic damage and the damage to infrastructure exceeds $200 billion," Assad told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.
"Economic issues can be settled immediately, when the situation stabilises in Syria, but rehabilitating the infrastructure will take a long time," Assad said in comments translated into Russian.
The Syrian strongman said any future contracts to help rebuild the country would be handed out to companies from nations that had backed Damascus during the bloody conflict.
"Of course we expect that this process will be based on three main countries that supported Syria during this crisis -- Russia, China and Iran," Assad said.
Russia has deployed its military to Syria to back up troops loyal to longstanding ally Assad with a bombing campaign, and the Syrian leader said Moscow's forces would be needed in the country for some time to come.
"We need their presence as they are effective in the fight against terrorism even if the situation in terms of security in Syria is stabilising," Assad said, adding that Russia's bases were also required to maintain "balance in the world".
Moscow announced it was withdrawing part of its forces from Syria on March 14 after a ceasefire between Damascus and moderate opposition saw fighting drop.
Russia has, however, continued air strikes against Islamic State jihadists and played a key role in helping Assad's forces reclaim the ancient city of Palmyra at the weekend.
BERLIN (Reuters) - Austria plans to deploy soldiers at the Brenner border with Italy to stem an expected increase in migrants trying to get to northern Europe, Defence Minister Hans Peter Doskozil told news outlets on Saturday. Austria, whose introduction of border restrictions in February has caused a sharp fall in the number of migrants to Germany, previously said it was preparing to introduce tighter controls if needed. But the minister's choice of words appeared to toughen the discourse. "As the EU's external borders are not yet effectively protected, Austria will soon ramp up strict border controls. That means massive border controls at the Brenner (Pass), and with soldiers," Doskozil told daily Die Welt. Separately, he told the Austrian newspaper Oesterreich he was leaving open-ended the number of soldiers who might be deployed for border duty at the Alpine pass, saying it would be based on need. "From the state of Tyrol alone, there are three companies with 100 men each ready to deploy," Doskozil told Oesterreich. "If we need more forces for border protection, we'll get them." Soldiers, already helping police handle migrants at borders, could help with border protection, migrant registrations, the humanitarian effort and deportations, he said. Doskozil also reiterated his call for a civil-military EU mission to support the bloc's border agency Frontex where needed at external borders, possibly in Greece, Bulgaria or Italy. With the main migrant route through the Balkans and Austria largely closed, the number of migrants entering Germany from Austria fell more than sevenfold in March to below 5,000, the interior ministry in Berlin said on Saturday. In February, 38,570 migrants arrived, already down sharply from 64,700 in January. Austria is the main entry point for migrants crossing into Germany. But Vienna believes new routes will develop through Bulgaria or Albania as Mediterranean crossings to Italy from Libya resume. On Monday, a deal takes effect between the EU and Turkey that is aimed at stopping the flow of migrants to Europe in return for political and financial rewards for Ankara, sealing off the main route by which a million migrants crossed the Aegean into Greece last year. "We expect strong use to be made of the central Mediterranean route in the coming weeks," said Doskozil, adding last week alone 5,000 refugees came that way. "When the weather gets better, these numbers will increase strongly," he said. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, under pressure to stem the influx of migrants to Germany after 1.1 million arrived last year, is critical of tighter border controls and is banking on the EU-Turkey deal being a success. Under that agreement, Germany is to take in 1,600 migrants initially. About 40 people could arrive on Monday, said an interior ministry official. Critics say the deal may make Europe soften its line towards Ankara on human rights, while aid agencies say safeguards needed to start returning refugees to Turkey from next week -- also part of the agreement -- are not yet in place. (Reporting by Madeline Chambers and John Miller in Zurich; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt and John Stonestreet)
When Mike Scanlin and his wife moved into an expensive ground-floor condominium within a four-story building in a posh part of Los Angeles 18 months ago, the real estate agent assured him that there were no noise nuisances, like loud dogs or kids.
It did seem that way at first, but as Scanlin discovered, "There is a 9-year-old boy's bedroom directly above our bedroom. He is, like most 9-year-olds, hyperactive."
Especially in the morning, and the evening, Scanlin says, when the boy "runs, jumps, screams and makes tons of noise."
Scanlin has talked to the boy's mother to no avail. An entrepreneur who works from home, Scanlin also sent building managers complaint letters, who in turn, sent letters to the mom.
"Nothing has worked. It's getting worse," Scanlin says. "Sometimes the kid gets up at 3 a.m. and rearranges the furniture in his room, with wood scraping on wood, directly above our bed."
Scanlin and his wife are moving out next month. They aren't willing to wait around until the kid grows up or hopefully grows out of his behavior.
They say you can't choose your family, but you can choose your friends and neighbors. Easier said than done, when it comes to housing. It isn't easy to move, and for some homeowners, financially speaking, once you do plant your roots, you may not be in any position to go elsewhere. That's why, if you're buying a home, it's critical to have some sense of who's living next door -- or above you. Neighbors are important for renters to consider, too, especially if you're locking yourself in with a lease.
So before you buy or rent, ask yourself the following questions. Because if the answers aren't promising, you may like the solutions at your disposal even less.
[See: 100 Best Places to Live.]
Have I only examined my property? You can't go into other people's homes, of course, and you don't need to. But is there anything you're seeing or hearing that you find a bit annoying? That could be a red flag, says Rachel Stephens, a marketing assistant in Celina, Ohio.
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She lived in an apartment with upstairs tenants who were extremely loud. "We could sometimes hear entire conversations and it was like an earthquake every time they went up or down the stairs," Stephens says.
Looking back on it, Stephens realizes she had heard the tenants when looking at the home and should have picked up on the fact that her upstairs neighbors smoked. The windows were open, and it was a chilly on the day Stephens looked at the place.
"We actually inquired if there was a smoke smell," she says. "The landlord said that he did not know of one and that it should not be an issue. We should have followed our instincts."
But what Stephens says about sound should resonate with everyone. "If you notice [an annoying] sound at all when visiting the home initially, it will be magnified when you live there," she says.
[Read: Is Your Home a Death Trap?]
Am I buying a home next to renters? Allison Hester, editor-in-chief of eClean, an online resource for professional cleaners, says she and her husband bought their first home about 16 years ago, "and it was a nightmare, mostly due to the neighbors."
They purchased a cute little rock bungalow with a huge, double-arched covered porch with a swing. "It was the nicest house on the street," says Hester, who lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas.
But their house was between two rentals. "Over the two years we were there, we probably had 10 neighbors between the two houses," she says.
Hester's neighbors included a couple that liked to drink and yell at each other in the middle of the night.
"One night, after a fight, the drunk husband decided to sit on his front porch at 2 a.m. with a boom box and sing sad country songs at the top of his lungs," Hester says, adding, "Yes, we called the cops."
But the worst was the family with four foul-mouthed kids that dealt meth, Hester says.
Sure, that rental property next to you may have the salt of the earth living there, but there's bound to be turnover, and just as nobody washes a rented car, no tenant will take care of a rental property the way you will with your own.
Have I canvassed the neighborhood? You should. Ask neighbors about the area. (There's no need to tell them you're trying to size them up as well.) Still, even if you can't tell if your neighbors are going to be nice or a nuisance, you may pick up important information about the neighborhood.
Try to talk to the current tenants or people selling your home about the neighborhood. Granted, it's not always feasible (and home sellers will focus on the positives and be reluctant to volunteer that a neighbor is a jerk), but if you can talk, you may pick up some valuable intel. Brian Scios, who works for the Child Domestic Violence Association in New York City, says before he moved into his apartment, he asked the current tenants about the noise.
"They looked at me wide-eyed and mentioned how the guy [next door] was very loud and they had to talk to him a few times," says Scios, who ended up renting the place and, sure enough, has had to talk to his neighbor a few times about the noise. But because he went in knowing what he was in for, and likes his home, he has no regrets.
Scios also advises checking out your prospective home during the day -- and night -- to really get a sense of what the place is like.
What to do if there are problems. Unfortunately, there isn't much you can do, realistically, which is why it's so important to try and assess the neighbor situation before moving in. When you do have a dispute, "these are always difficult situations, without easy legal answers," says David Reiss, a professor of law at Brooklyn Law School.
"When you escalate by calling the police or filing a lawsuit, you risk developing a Hatfield and McCoys scenario with nobody getting what they want," Reiss says. "It's also important to remember that what you think to be utterly reasonable may not be perceived that way by your neighbor or even by disinterested third parties. What is loud music to you may just be a run-of-the-mill Saturday night party to them."
True enough, and your neighbors have rights, too -- which is, again, why it can be difficult to work out a disagreement.
If you can't resolve problems with your neighbors, Reiss says, "you can try to determine whether your neighbor is breaking any local ordinances. For instance, loud noise."
[Read: What to Do When You're a Homeowner Threatened With Eminent Domain.]
You may want to involve the police and see if they will deal with the problem informally, Reiss adds. "They may or may not," he says.
You probably won't be going to small claims court, unless you or your neighbor has a problem that involves money, like a problem with boundary lines and easements, says Zachary Schorr, a real estate attorney at Schorr Law, APC, based in Los Angeles.
"Most small claims courts do not have the jurisdiction or power to provide injunctive relief -- an order from the court prohibiting certain activity," he says.
In any case, avoid court if you can, Schorr says; many cities offer free neighborhood mediation services between neighbors.
"But when all other methods fail, lawsuits are necessary," Schorr says. "There are difficult people in the world, and sometimes they wind up being your neighbor."
BAKU (Reuters) - Azerbaijan pardoned 148 prisoners including journalists, rights activists and political opponents on Thursday, state media said, in an apparent move to deflect Western criticism of the ex-Soviet republic's human rights record. Analysts say President Ilham Aliyev has included some political prisoners in amnesties in recent years to deflect complaints over crackdowns on free speech in Azerbaijan, a major oil and natural gas exporter. Among those pardoned were rights advocates Taleh Khasmamadov, Hilal Mammadov and Rasul Jafarov, opposition National Statehood Party chief Nemat Panahli, six members of an opposition party and a civic youth movement, ex-election watchdog chief Anar Mammadli and journalist Parviz Hasimov. All were jailed after convictions on charges including tax evasion, illegal business activity and drug trafficking. Prominent journalist Rauf Mirkadyrov, convicted in 2014 of espionage and high treason which he denied, was also freed after the Baku court of appeals cut his six-year prison term to a five-year probation period. He was not in the amnesty list. Mirkadyrov and the other freed prisoners denied the charges against them, calling them politically motivated and fabricated. Mirkadyrov was a political correspondent at the independent Azeri Russian-language newspaper Zerkalo (Mirror) in Turkey, from where he was deported to Azerbaijan two years ago. European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini welcomed the amnesty following talks she had in Baku two weeks ago, saying she hoped they would lead to releases of remaining imprisoned rights activists. About 10 are still jailed. The government says Azerbaijan, a Caspian Sea republic of about 9 million people sandwiched between Russia, Iran and Turkey, enjoys full freedom of speech and a free press. (Reporting by Nailia Bagirova and Margarita Antidze; Writing by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
BAKU (Reuters) - Azeri human rights activist and lawyer Intigam Aliyev was freed from jail on Monday, his lawyer said. Azerbaijan pardoned 148 prisoners including journalists, rights activists and political opponents this month in an apparent move to deflect Western criticism of the ex-Soviet republic's human rights record. Analysts say President Ilham Aliyev has included some political prisoners in amnesties in recent years to avoid complaints over crackdowns on free speech in Azerbaijan, a major oil and natural gas exporter. The Baku supreme court on Monday reduced lawyer Aliyev's seven-and-a-half-year prison term to a five-year probation period. Aliyev was detained in the Azeri capital Baku in August 2014 and charged with tax evasion, abuse of office and illegal entrepreneurship. London-based Amnesty International said Aliyev's release was "an overdue step toward righting the injustice against him". "Prisoner of conscience Intigam Aliyev has paid dearly for his frontline human rights work the only 'crime' he committed was to defend his fellow citizens' freedoms," said Denis Krivosheev, Deputy Director for Europe and Central Asia at Amnesty International. Amnesty International said seven prisoners of conscience were still jailed in Azerbaijan. The government says Azerbaijan, a Caspian Sea republic of about 9 million people bordering Russia, Iran and Turkey, enjoys full freedom of speech and a free press. (Reporting by Nailia Bagirova and Margarita Antidze; Writing by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Dmitry Solovyov/Ruth Pitchford)
News / National
by Stephen Jakes
An MDC-T supporter Isaya Ndawana has warned party members to desist from resorting to chanting the slogan Save Chete Chete which means that they are rallying behind party President Morgan Tsvangirai for ever saying they must talk of issues which will objectively promote party's success during the 2018 elections.He said this is the moment of truth and people must avoid being copycats of Zanu PF."Let's not be copycats, following in Zanu-PF's footsteps which raped our economy by a historical monotony. Let's be objective than being subjective," said Ndawana."The Save "Chete Chete" mantra is not productive and is encouraging a waste of time debating on this "chete chete" campaign than coming up with a serious gameplan to win in 2018 harmonised elections."He said there is no good logic behind this as it is promoting argumentative discussions wasting our precious time on a political non-mover agenda."Talk about something productive which will make President Tsvangirai have a better strategy over his opponents in the greater Zimbabwe political sphere. This rant "chete chete is somehow having a hidden agenda as it is very obvious that President Tsvangirai remains our party leader until the final road to state house. What is then behind this "chete chete"?" he said."We must create a united bondage than this "chete chete" and discard the notion of post elective congress which differs on opinions."
LONDON (Reuters) - From the busy, brassy "All You Need is Love" to the softer "Yesterday", a new show takes audiences back in time to when The Beatles recorded their famous hits at London's Abbey Road Studios. "The Sessions - A Live Restaging of The Beatles at Abbey Road Studios" features renditions of songs the Fab Four recorded in Studio 2, with songs from their debut album "Please Please Me" to 1969's "Abbey Road" performed as they were recorded. Surrounded by transparent screens with projected recording details, actors portraying Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison belt out the tunes alongside musicians, to replicate the vocals sung, instruments played and arrangements used at the time. Organizers are billing the show, inspired by the memoir of former Abbey Road Studios sound engineer Geoff Emerick, as a musical documentary and "the closest an audience can get to experiencing The Beatles live and at the height of their glory". "It's pretty true the songs are being performed with ... with the things we would have overdubbed onto the records," Emerick, who serves as the show's creative consultant, told Reuters. "We have got like double track vocals, we've got all sorts of guitar effects and so forth." The show is dedicated to music producer George Martin, who died last month at the age of 90 and an actor portraying the "fifth Beatle" narrates the performance. Martin worked on many of the group's best known hits like "I Want Hold Your Hand", "Can't Buy Me Love" and "Eleanor Rigby". "It seems as though it was only like eight weeks ago but when I've been hearing some of these songs performed I sort of tear up a bit because ... it brings back a lot of memories of the past," Emerick said. "We never dreamt in a million years that these songs would carry on forever." "The Sessions" premiered at London's Royal Albert Hall on Friday after a charity preview in The Beatles' home city Liverpool earlier this week. The show goes on tour around the UK and in certain European countries. (Reporting By Sarah Mills and Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by David Gregorio)
Dhaka (AFP) - Bangladesh's high court on Monday rejected a petition by secular activists to scrap Islam as the state religion in the wake of nationwide protests by hardline Islamist groups.
A special bench of three judges threw out the petition within moments of opening the case and without allowing any testimony, an AFP correspondent at the court said.
The petition, which was first launched 28 years ago, has triggered countrywide protests by Islamist groups in the impoverished nation.
"We are saddened (at the ruling). It's a sad day for the minorities of Bangladesh," said Subrata Chowdhury, who represented the secular activists in the case.
The court did not allow the petitioners to state their case or present any arguments, he said. "The judges simply said the rule is discharged."
Bangladesh was declared officially secular after the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan which created the nation from what was previously East Pakistan.
In 1988 the then-military ruler, General Hussain Muhammad Ershad, elevated Islam to the state religion in an attempt to consolidate power.
Secularists have argued for decades that having Islam as the state religion conflicts with Bangladesh's secular charter and discriminates against non-Muslims.
More than 90 percent of Bangladesh's population is Muslim, with Hindus and Buddhists the main minorities.
- 'Victory' -
The country's largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, responded to the court's decision by withdrawing a call for a nationwide strike. It described the outcome as a "victory of 160 million people".
Hefazat-e-Islam, a hardline Islamist group that has staged violent demonstrations in recent years, also welcomed the court's move.
"We thank the high court for rescuing the country from a massive disaster," Hefazat's organising secretary Azizul Hoque Islamabadi told AFP.
The court's decision to throw out the case threatens to heighten tensions between secularists and hardliners in the conservative nation, which has recently seen a spate of killings of atheist bloggers, religious minorities and foreigners.
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The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for many of these incidents, but the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina blames the banned domestic group Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh for the upsurge in deadly violence.
Some 7,000 activists had taken to the streets of the capital Dhaka after prayers last Friday, chanting anti-government slogans and holding banners to protest against the high court's move to hear the plea.
Bangladesh has been plagued by unrest in the last three years and experts say a long-running political crisis has radicalised opponents of the government.
The secular government launched a nationwide crackdown on Jamaat in 2013, detaining or prosecuting tens of thousands of activists.
A controversial war crimes tribunal has ordered the execution of several top Jamaat leaders, dividing the country and sparking deadly protests.
Constitutional changes dating back over three decades have put Bangladesh in the unusual position of being officially secular while still having Islam as a state religion.
Hasina's government has brought back secularism as a pillar of the constitution, but promised it would not ratify any laws that go against the central tenets of Islam.
Brussels (AFP) - More than a week after its departure hall was wrecked in twin suicide blasts, Brussels airport remains closed, wreaking havoc on the aviation industry and hurting the Belgian economy.
But security concerns stand in the way of its reopening, causing a headache for the government as it tries to get the major European hub back open for business following the country's worst terror attacks.
Even though the airport has said it is "technically ready" to reopen after trialling temporary check-in facilities this week, airport police have threatened to go on strike unless security is further tightened.
Police say they had complained about slack safety standards long before the March 22 Islamic State attacks.
Under pressure to find a solution, government officials, Brussels Airport and union representatives were on Friday locked in tense negotiations.
Brussels Airport, which claims it contributes some three billion euros ($3.4 billion) annually to the Belgian economy, has not released any figures on the economic cost of the attacks, but the ripple effects are being felt far and wide.
With 260 companies on-site employing some 20,000 staff overall, the airport is one of the country's largest employers and accounts for just under one percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
- 'Months' to return to normal -
When the airport does reopen, it will only be working at 20 percent capacity, the operator has warned, handling 800 to 1,000 passengers an hour. Chief executive Arnaud Feist has said it could take months to return to normal.
Alongside an outpouring of support after the unprecedented attacks at the heart of Europe, Brussels Airport spokeswoman Florence Muls said she had also been fielding calls from "tourist offices, who are counting on us to restore the situation".
Thousands of passengers have had to be rerouted to nearby airports in and around Belgium and hotel bookings have plummeted as tourists stay away, either out of fear or to avoid the travel disruptions.
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Belgium's top carrier Brussels Airlines has been the only the company so far to divulge the financial impact of the airport closure, saying it was losing five million euros daily in the "biggest crisis" of its history.
Hotel reservations in the capital meanwhile have fallen by 50 percent since March 22, the Brussels Hotels Association said.
Patrick Bontinck, head of the Visit Brussels tourism office, said the city saw a similar drop in visitors after the November terror assaults in Paris, as anxious holidaymakers stay away "out of fear" of another attack.
- Airport bottleneck -
But in an open letter this week, airport police unions called for a radically new approach once the airport reopens, proposing to use metal detectors to check all visitors before they enter the airport zone and stopping and inspecting all cars at the entrance.
A dangerous idea, the airport operator has countered, warning that such changes would only create bottlenecks outside the busy airport where potential attackers could then target large groups of people.
"Instead of having a concentration (of people) in a large building, you would have one among those standing in line outside," Muls told AFP. "There aren't any European airports that apply such measures."
Anne-Marie Pellerin, a Paris-based aviation security consultant pointed out that in Israel, for example, queues caused by security checks outside nightclubs and other public spaces have been targeted by suicide bombers.
"I don't think that the plan going forward by... any European government or airport operator, would be to set up checkpoints at the entrance ways to the airport," she said.
While impatience for a reopening may be growing in a country keen to turn the page on last week's traumatic events, aviation experts say passenger safety should be the priority right now.
Analyst Pellerin said it was a matter of finding the right balance between security and providing efficient services for passengers.
"The pendulum swings between those two," she said. "And based on what happened, obviously the pendulum is once more towards security.
"People are very focused on that aspect and don't want to act in a rash way, (by) opening up the terminal immediately then having something terrible happen again."
Brussels (AFP) - Belgium on Saturday charged a third suspect with terrorist activities over a foiled plot to attack France, federal prosecutors said.
They named the suspect only as 35-year-old Y.A., giving no further details.
"He has been charged with participation in the activities of a terrorist group," the federal prosecutor's office said in a statement, adding that the development was part of a joint investigation by France and Belgium.
Two others -- Abderrahmane A. and Rabah M. -- are also being held in Belgium over the same plot.
The main plot suspect is Reda Kriket, who was arrested near Paris last week after police found an arsenal of weapons and explosives at his home.
Paris prosecutor Francois Molins said "no specific target" had been identified for the foiled attack but that the cache of weapons showed an imminent act of "extreme violence" had likely been prevented.
The Netherlands is also holding a French national in connection with the same plot and he is currently fighting his extradition to France.
European authorities have been under pressure to step up efforts to crack down on cross-border jihadist networks after close links emerged between the attackers blamed for the November Paris attacks and those behind last week's suicide blasts at the airport and a metro station in Brussels.
BRONX, New YorkMercer Jabul sat quietly at the very top of a hill at St. Marys Park, huddled underneath a hooded white coat as she waited, with an estimated 18,500 others, for Bernie Sanders to arrive in the South Bronx. A black woman in her 60s, Jabul is devoted to Sanders and said she has plans to vote for him in New Yorks April 19 primary. But she wasnt positive she was going to vote at all. It had been quite a while.
I havent voted since Mayor Lindsay! she told me. That would be John Lindsay, the long-ago New York mayor who made unsuccessful bids for president and Senate. He left City Hall in 1973, and the last time he appeared on a ballot was 1980. He died in 2000.
Jabul is a retired social worker who grew up in Harlem and now lives on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Part of her affinity for Sanders stems from the fact that she has seen him more than most New Yorkers in recent years: She owns a second home in Vermont. Bernie hasnt changed for decades, Jabul said. Hes just a fighter.
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If she makes her long-awaited return to the voting booth, itll be for Bernie, or Trump, she told me, to let the whole system implode. But not Hillary Clinton. Definitely not Hillary Clinton at all. Never Hillary Clinton. Jabuls list of grievances with the former New York senator is longfrom her pandering to black people, her start as a Goldwater Girl in the 1960s, her past support for three-strikes-and-youre-out incarceration policies, and the Libya tragedy, which occurred on Hillarys watch.
It would be difficult if not impossible to gather 18,000 people for a rally in the Bronx and not have it called diverse. Compared with Sanderss base of young, white college kids, this event was unrepresentative just by how representative it was. Theres this whole talk about the Bernie Bro. I just dont see it, joked the campaigns state director, Nadya Stevens, as she warmed up the crowd. Apparently, all of you are white, the actress Rosario Dawson said to cheers. There must be something wrong with my eyes.
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Certainly not everyone there shared Jabuls visceral distaste for Clinton, and many Sanders supporters said they would vote for the former New York senator over Donald Trump if it came to it. But this was no undecided crowd. The thousands who gathered around the main stage in St. Marys and the thousands more who stood in an adjacent overflow area were not there merely to get a look, to size up a political curiosity. They were all in for Sanders, chanting his name and frequently booing Clintons.
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Shes not honest, said Tracy Moore, a 25-year-old Afro-Cuban New York University graduate who lives in the Bronx. People in communities like this cant trust her. Moore said she was unemployed and described herself as politically apathetic before this election. I love how authentic he is, she said of Sanders. He seems like the old man in his kitchen who will bang his hand on the table and really talk about these issues.
Others in the crowd looked and sounded more like the young, white, politically liberal, and economically distressed voters who have helped propel Sanders across the country. Jessica Moisa, 28, is a waitress who works two jobs on Long Island, both of which pay less than the minimum wage and offer no benefits. Its really a no-brainer, she said. Hes the only one who actually cares about the real issues. Clinton, Moisa said, was a puppet. I dont think she cares about changing any real problems. She was at the rally with, Brett Polera, 22, a student at Suffolk Community College who noted that Clinton was under investigation and repeated a Trump canard that she might not be allowed to run. I dont know exactly whats true, Polera said.
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When Sanders made it to the stage shortly after 7 p.m., he followed Dawson, Spike Lee, and the Grammy winner Residente. His voice was hoarsehe had actually spoken first to the overflow crowd down the other side of the hill. He paused frequently to gulp from a bottle of water, and each time the crowd chanted his name, as if doing so would keep Sanders from losing the rhythm of his speech. I am, as you know, the very proud United States senator from Vermont, Sanders began, but I am very proud that I was born here in New York City. The crowd roared.
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Sanders often sounds as if hes on autopilot, and his fans have taken to finishing his most famous lines. Thursday night was no different. The South Bronx wanted to hear the classics, and Sanders gave it to them. What this campaign is about is creating a political revolution, he said. You are the heart and soul of this revolution. He mentioned the unacceptably high asthma rates among children in the Bronx, and he made sure to beef up his sections on criminal-justice reform and immigration. But the speech was pretty much the one he has given dozens of times before. When he talked up his pledge for a $15 minimum wage, he cited California and the many cities that had passed it into law. He didnt bother to note that New York was on the verge of doing the same. Sanders did catch himself when he told the New Yorkers, as if they werent already aware, that Goldman Sachs was one of the largest financial institutions. The crowd booed loudly. I gather you know about Goldman Sachs, Sanders joked.
I am, as you know, the very proud United States senator from Vermont, but I am very proud that I was born here in New York City.
Its no surprise that the Sanders campaign is aggressively contesting New York. Trailing Clinton by a significant number of delegates, he cant afford to cede any more states, and the Empire States 247 delegates (allocated by congressional district) are one of the biggest hauls remaining. Sanders put the stakes in stark, if somewhat exaggerated, terms on Thursday night: If we win here in New York, he said, we are going to make it to the White House.
As a former senator, Clinton has the more recent and substantive claim of favorite-daughter status in New York. But Democrats in the state have veered away from the establishment since she left the Senate. In 2013, Bill de Blasio upset City Council Speaker Christine Quinn to become New Yorks mayor, and the following year, Zephyr Teachout captured a surprising 34 percent of the vote against incumbent Governor Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary. A Quinnipiac poll released on Thursday showed Clinton up by 12, a much narrower margin than earlier surveys.
The Clintons have spent the week fortifying what they hope is a New York firewall. The campaign released an ad targeting Trump and celebrating the states diversity and inclusiveness. And while Sanders is banking on younger and disengaged voters to swamp the polls, Clinton is enlisting the party regulars and doubling down on her establishment support. A day after Hillary Clinton rallied with Chuck Schumer and Charlie Rangel at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, Bill Clinton hit four separate union halls in Manhattan to mobilize a labor-backed voter-turnout machine.
The Clinton campaign has been masterful at playing the expectations game in previous primaries and caucuses. But the former president dispensed with all that spin in New York. Losing here is perhaps the only thing that could reverse the trajectory of a primary campaign that remains strongly in Hillarys favor, and Bill Clinton made clear it was a state she had to have. The New York primary and the psychological impact it will have on the rest of the country and the rest of this race is not... he said before trailing off during a speech to the Building and Construction Trades Council. I can just tell you that, for her, it will mean more than you will ever know.
The contrast between the crowds that Bill Clinton addressed in Manhattan and those that Bernie Sanders spoke to in the Bronx could hardly have been greater. Collectively, the union workers in Manhattan were racially diversemainly African American and Latino women at the Service Employees International Unions Local 1199 and older white men in the trades council. But they were there for marching orders, not inspiration. Clinton dug into the details of health-care policy, immigration, and banking reform. And he grew frustrated at the thought that Democrats didnt appreciate the differences between Sanders and his wife. It really matters. The details matter, he told SEIU, jabbing the lectern with his fist. I know people think they dont, but they really do.
The enemy in New York, Clinton said, was turnout. Because the state only holds a presidential primary in the spring, not as many people show up as would if local and congressional races were also being decided. In 2008, New Yorks record primary turnout was still far lower than it was in Illinois, despite its vastly larger population. We have to work to make people understand that this is an important race, he said.
* * *
There are times when the Clinton-Sanders divide seems quite simple, and no different in New York than anywhere else. Clinton supporters like Juanita Perkins, a 59-year-old from Harlem, believe in her pragmatism and worry that Sanders is offering things that he cant deliver. When youre young, a lot of promises sound good, Perkins told me. But what Sanders doesnt often talk about is exactly how he expects to get his ideas through Congress. I just dont want to put our eggs in that basket and get disappointed all over again, Perkins said.
Sanderss supporters, by contrast, are more likely to believe theyll be disappointed either way. No matter what politician makes it in, its going to be difficult, Brett Polera said. And then theres Mercer Jabul, who just might actually cast a vote for Sanders, even if she isnt sure he can achieve the change shes seeking. I want to see him make the fight, she said. If nothing else, he would raise the political consciousness of this country.
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Things Couldnt Be Cheddar
The candidates are looking for a taste of Wisconsin cheddar: The states primary is held on April 5. Wisconsin governor and former presidential candidate Scott Walker endorsed Ted Cruz.
On the Democratic front, Hillary Clinton campaigned in New York, which holds its primary on April 19. Clinton visited the state this week in a rally that, as Russell puts it, served as both reunion and reintroduction.
For Donald Trump, the week came with a few hiccups after his campaign manager Corey Lewandowski was arrested for battery. Ron Brownstein describes how Trump is largely running in place, with any gains among the groups most receptive to him offsetor exceededby losses among those most skeptical.
Over at the U.S. Supreme Court, the justices reached a split decision in Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association in a victory for public-sector unions. In a separate case, Garrett covers the Courts plea for health insurance help.
From Hero to Zero
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This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
Kano (Nigeria) (AFP) - Boko Haram seized hundreds of children from a remote town in northeast Nigeria in late 2014 but initial calls to report the kidnapping were ignored with locals fearful of the government's response, residents told AFP on Wednesday.
A local government administrator, a local chief, another elder and a resident all said some 300 children were among the 500 girls, boys and women taken from Damasak on Monday November 24, 2014.
The numbers involved surpass even the 276 schoolgirls who were taken from Chibok in April the same year, which drew worldwide condemnation and calls for action.
But the government of former president Goodluck Jonathan in March last year denied reports of the Damasak kidnapping while a local senator and a senior intelligence source also doubted the claim.
The administrator, whose seven-year-old child was among those abducted, said: "We kept quiet on the kidnap out of fear of drawing the wrath of the government, which was already grappling with the embarrassment of the kidnap of the Chibok schoolgirls.
"Every parent was afraid to speak out," he said on condition of anonymity.
Locals who managed to flee alerted their political representatives in the Nigerian Senate and House of Representatives but "they kept mute and ignored us", he added.
"The government didn't want the news out," he said, explaining that the decision to speak out publicly came after Human Rights Watch highlighted the case on Tuesday.
- Held in a primary school -
"They went to the private school and Islamic seminaries and carted away children as young as five," added the local chief, who also asked not to be identified.
"They also went into town and forcibly seized children from their mothers, children too old to be breastfed. My 16 nephews were among the children kidnapped. They were aged between five and 16."
Hundreds fled across the river that separates Damasak from Diffa in neighbouring Niger but many drowned, he said, adding that he returned to bury "over 200 dead bodies in mass graves".
Story continues
The Damasak elder said the insurgents killed more than 200 in the initial attack, which happened on market day.
HRW's report interviewed multiple witnesses to the abduction, who said the hostages were initially kept at a primary school, which was then turned into a military base.
The schoolchildren were aged seven to 17 but one witness told HRW she had not seen her two-year-old daughter and four-year-old son since they were seized on the day of the attack.
Men were detained separately and forced to dispose of bodies from the streets and the river in makeshift graves, the witnesses said, with one claiming to have seen hundreds of bodies.
- 'Government must wake up' -
Troops from Chad and Niger liberated Damasak on March 9 last year and discovered about 100 bodies in a mass grave under a bridge on the edge of the town. Some had been decapitated and others shot.
Hundreds more bodies, including of women and children, were found the following month on the streets, in houses and in the dried-up river, local residents said at the time.
They were covered by sand from the encroaching desert and the authorities ordered their reburial in 20 mass graves.
Both the HRW testimony and that gathered by AFP underlines the brutality of a conflict that has claimed an estimated 20,000 lives and made more than 2.6 million people homeless since 2009.
Boko Haram has long used kidnapping as a weapon of war, forcibly conscripting young boys and men into their ranks and using women and young girls as sex slaves and suicide bombers.
But the findings will also raise fresh questions about the previous government's handling of the insurgency, after its response to the Chibok abduction was condemned as slow and lacklustre.
Nearly two years on, 219 schoolgirls are still being held.
HRW's senior Nigeria researcher Mausi Segun, however, said while Boko Haram's abductions could not be justified, President Muhammadu Buhari's government, in power since May last year, also had to act.
"Three hundred children have been missing for a year and yet there has been not a word from the Nigerian government," she said in a statement.
"The authorities need to wake up and find out where the Damasak children and other captives are and take urgent steps to free them."
News / National
by Stephen Jakes
Harare City Council has been accused of targeting the poor residents in demanding payment of their outstanding bills in an effort to dispossess them of their property. This was revealed by the Harare Residents Trust."The City of Harare is only targeting the poor in the high density suburbs in their attachment of properties belonging to residents who owe money in rates and rentals," said the trust."Even the demolitions are being targeted at the poor and weak members of society. Ironically, in Mbare, where there is so much illegal activity taking place in the hostels, Majubheki and Mbare National, the council is turning a blind eye, as if they are not seeing the level of illegality yet they only target those in the other suburbs.The trust said it was demanding that the City of Harare go into Mbare and deal with the illegal tuck shops and operations that are there for all to see."Then we can trust them to be just and fair. They also need to go into the low density suburbs," said the trust.
La Paz (AFP) - A Bolivian court ordered President Evo Morales's ex-girlfriend Tuesday to present the child she says he fathered with her nearly a decade ago, a son the leftist leader insists has died.
The dispute is at the center of a political drama that has gripped Bolivia since an investigative journalist revealed Morales's relationship with Gabriela Zapata, a high-powered executive who is now accused of abusing her influence to win contracts for the Chinese company where she worked.
Morales has acknowledged he had a child with Zapata, whom he says he dated from 2005 to 2007.
But he says the boy died soon after birth, while her family insists he is alive.
Confusing matters further, Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera later said the baby never existed.
Judge Elsa Sangueza ordered Zapata, 28, to present the child in family court "for the purpose of conducting an interview in private," said a ruling published in the Bolivian press.
The ruling is a win for Morales, 56, who took Zapata to court earlier this month to make her prove the boy is alive.
Zapata is currently in jail pending trial on charges of money laundering, embezzlement and influence peddling.
A former manager at Chinese engineering group CAMC, she is accused of using her ties to the president to land $560 million in government contracts for the company.
The case exploded onto the political scene just as Bolivia prepared to hold a referendum on whether to change the constitution to allow Morales to run for a fourth term.
Morales, Bolivia's first indigenous president, went on to lose the February 21 vote -- his first electoral defeat in a decade in power.
The president has said his son with Zapata would now be eight or nine years old, and that he would like to raise him if he were alive.
GABORONE (Reuters) - Botswana's highest court on Wednesday rejected an attempt by the government to ban a gay rights lobby group, providing a rare victory for African gay rights campaigners on a continent where homosexuality remains highly contentious. The president of the Court of Appeals, Judge Ian Kirby, upheld a 2014 lower court judgment that the Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals of Botswana should be allowed to register and campaign for changes in anti-gay legislation. "It is clear that the government's decision (to seek the ban) interferes in the most fundamental way with the respondents' right to form an association to protect and promote their interest," Kirby said. The ruling is a challenge to an anti-gay agenda pursued by the government of President Ian Khama in Botswana, where engaging in homosexual acts remains illegal. Khama's government has refused to distribute condoms in prison, citing the risks of increased homosexual acts, a move strongly opposed by Botswana's HIV and AIDS rights groups. The country has one of the world's highest rates of HIV infection. "There is a lot that still has to be done to ensure the promotion and protection of the human rights of the LGBT persons," said Cindy Kelemi, who works for local health advocacy group BONELA. Homosexuality remains taboo in many African societies where some religious groups have branded it a corrupting import from the West. Nigeria passed a draconian anti-gay law this year and Uganda is debating similar legislation. (Writing by Tiisetso Motsoeneng; Editing by Gareth Jones)
NIAMEY (Reuters) - Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou won a second term with 92.5 percent of the vote in a run-off poll that the opposition coalition chose to boycott, the electoral commission said on Tuesday. Issoufou, an ally of the West in its fight against Islamist insurgents in West Africa, won the first round comfortably last month with 48 percent of votes but failed to clinch the outright majority required to avoid a second round. The candidate who came second, opposition leader Hama Amadou, has been in jail since November on charges relating to a baby-trafficking scandal, but was flown to France for medical treatment last week. Amadou says he is innocent and claims the charges against him are politically motivated. But the size of Issofou's victory is unlikely to draw significant international criticism, in part because of the boycott, but also because the incumbent has only been in power since 2011. The Coalition for an Alternative (COPA), which unites about 20 political parties including Amadou's MODEN, called for a boycott of the polls claiming the process had been tainted by fraud. The turnout was 60 percent, the commission said. The vote is subject to confirmation from the constitutional court. Southern Niger, which borders Nigeria, has been the target of frequent deadly raids by Islamist Boko Haram militants. It also shares borders with Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, where al Qaeda-linked groups are active. Libya, home to Islamic State affiliates, lies on its northern border. (Reporting by Abdoulaye Massalaki; Writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Edward McAllister; Editing by Ruth Pitchford)
Tbilisi (AFP) - Britain's top diplomat on Wednesday praised Georgia, which is seeking to join NATO and the EU, as a "key security partner" and blasted Russia for bullying its eastern European neighbours.
"The UK sees Georgia as key international security partner and regional democratic role model," British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond wrote on Twitter after meeting the pro-Western leadership of the tiny Caucasus nation.
Speaking at a meeting with Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili in Tbilisi, Hammond praised the country's democratic and anti-corruption reforms.
But he urged it to work harder on ensuring media freedom, the independence of judiciary, and the democratic conduct of the upcoming parliamentary elections, which are scheduled for October.
Georgia's bid to join the European Union and NATO have infuriated its former master Russia, which opposes any NATO enlargement that includes former Soviet republics as a perceived security threat.
In August 2008, Georgia fought and lost a brief but bloody war with Russia over its separatist South Ossetia region.
The West and Russia are currently locked in a bitter feud over Moscow's meddling in Ukraine and Hammond criticised Russia for breaking "the rules of the international system".
"That represents a challenge and a threat to all of us," he said.
Just before the 2008 war, NATO member countries ruled that Georgia would one day join the alliance, but have so far refused to put it on a formal membership path.
In 2014, Georgia and the EU signed an "association agreement" aimed at bringing Tbilisi closer to Europe politically and granting Tbilisi a free trade regime on European markets.
On March 9, the European Commission put forward a legislative proposal offering visa-free short-stay travel to the bloc for Georgian citizens.
LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister David Cameron wants Britain and China to work together to tackle over-capacity in the steel industry and that the G20 could be a good forum to address it later in the year, his spokesman said on Saturday. Cameron, who spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping during a Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, is trying to salvage Britain's steel industry after Tata Steel put its British plants up for sale, putting thousands of jobs at risk. The government has said it is working to broker a deal with potential buyers after Tata Steel sought to end its almost decade-long venture in Britain, which employs 15,000 people but has been hit by high costs and Chinese competition. Steelmakers in Britain pay some of the highest energy costs and green taxes in the world, but the government says the fundamental problem facing the industry is the collapse in the price of steel, caused by overcapacity in China. Britain imported 826,000 tonnes of Chinese steel in 2015, up from 361,000 two years earlier, according to the International Steel Statistic bureau. China said on Friday it would impose import tariffs of up to 46 percent on some steel, including a type of hi-tech steel imported from Japan, South Korea and the European Union. (Reporting by Li-mei Hoang. Editing by Jane Merriman)
Yaounde (AFP) - Cameroon has condemned 89 suspected Boko Haram operatives to death for "terrorism" since the start of 2015, a judicial source said Friday.
The sentences come after Cameroon adopted a controversial anti-terror law in December 2014 allowing capital punishment for those found guilty of carrying out terror attacks or complicity in terrorism.
Those convicted were mostly arrested on Cameroon's border with Nigeria, the birthplace of the extremist group that has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group.
Cameroon already had the death penalty for murder, but there have been no executions since the mid-1980s.
Almost 850 people suspected of links to Boko Haram are being held in prison in Maroua, capital of the far north of Cameroon.
They include Nigerians and Chadians as well as Cameroonians, according to regional newspaper L'Oeil du Sahel.
Boko Haram violence has left at least 17,000 dead and forced more than 2.6 million from their homes since 2009.
And nearly 1,200 people have been killed since the Nigerian fighters took their offensive into Cameroon in 2013, according to government figures.
In recent years, Boko Haram fighters slipped back and forth across the frontier, often using Cameroon's remote north as a rear base, acquiring arms, vehicles and supplies there.
But since late November, the Cameroon army has carried out operations in several border areas aimed at weakening the Nigerian jihadists.
As a result, the insurgents turned away from direct confrontation with the military in favour of suicide attacks, increasingly carried out by women and girls.
News / National
by Staff reporter
President Robert Mugabe has made another unexplained stopover in Singapore from his five-day State visit to Japan.The 92-year-old leader travelled to Japan at the invitation of that country's Premier Shinzo Abe on March 23 to lure investment to Zimbabwe. But on his way to the Asian giant, he initially made a curious a four-day unofficial stopover in Singapore before his latest stoppage.According to details of his latest trip as shown on flightradar24, an aircraft tracking site, Mugabe departed Osaka Kasai International Airport on March 31 at 1:22am heading for Singapore and landed at Changi Airport at 08:01am the same day aboard Air Zimbabwe Flight UM1 Boeing 767- 2 NO (ER), registration Z-WPF.Mugabe's stopover in Singapore, which has become his favourite destination for reported medical treatment, was now on its second day minus the four days he spent before he departed for Japan.During the first stopover in Singapore, the Zanu-PF leader, who is travelling with his wife, Grace, left Singapore on Sunday March 27 at 09:55am and arrived at Tokyo's Haneda International Airport at 15:50pm after a six-hour flight across the Pacific Ocean.In Japan, Mugabe was captured on camera somewhat dozing off on the podium while the host premier was addressing the Press.The video that has gone viral on YouTube and other social media platforms shows a frail-looking Mugabe in slumber before cameras. Opposition parties have reacted with anger saying Mugabe was embarrassing himself and Zimbabweans.
TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada will take in an additional 10,000 Syrian refugees, adding to the more than 25,000 already received in the last few months, Immigration Minister John McCallum said on Thursday in Germany, where an influx of refugees has sparked a backlash. McCallum told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp he was responding to complaints from Canadian groups who want to sponsor Syrian refugees but did not have their applications processed quickly enough to be among the government's initial target of 25,000. "We are doing everything we can to accommodate the very welcomed desire on the part of Canadians to sponsor refugees," McCallum said in a phone interview with CBC News from Berlin, where he is meeting with the German interior minister. The Liberal government won election in October 2015 pledging to bring in more Syrian refugees more quickly than the previous Conservative government. Private groups including church, family and community organizations had lined up to sponsor Syrian families. The welcome contrasts sharply to Europe, where resettlement has sparked an anti-migrant backlash amid security fears. While there have been some delays finding permanent housing for refugees arriving in Canada, particularly in large cities like Toronto where the housing market is tight, the resettlement program has been mostly smooth. A poll released last month showed Canadians were divided over whether to accept more Syrian refugees. A total of 26,200 Syrian refugees had arrived in Canada as of March 28, according to the Immigration Department. But nearly 16,000 more applications are in process or have been finalized, even though the refugees have not yet arrived, according to official figures. McCallum said he has instructed bureaucrats to extend the deadline for submitting sponsorship applications to Thursday from the initial March 1 deadline, which should allow the department to process the backlog. (Reporting by Andrea Hopkins; Editing by Tom Brown)
Is she or isn't she quitting modeling?
That's been the ongoing question for those wondering whether or not Cara Delevingne was leaving the runway for the big screen for good. She previously told The Hollywood Reporter that she wasn't quitting modeling, but the question popped up again this week when Delevingne was photographed by Hedi Slimane for Saint Laurent.
The Suicide Squad actress, who parted ways with London-based Storm Models last year, took to Twitter to set the record straight on Thursday evening, revealing that she took a break from modeling because she was suffering from depression.
This isn't the first time the 23-year-old has addressed her ongoing battle with the mental disorder, as she bravely spoke at the 2015 Women in the World Summit and revealed that she pushed herself so far that "it got to the point where I had a bit of a mental breakdown."
Can we just set the record straight...
- Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) April 1, 2016
I never said I was quitting modeling
- Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) April 1, 2016
I do not blame the fashion industry for anything
- Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) April 1, 2016
I suffer from depression and was a model during a particularly rough patch of self hatred
- Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) April 1, 2016
I am so lucky for the work I get to do but I used to work to try and escape and just ended up completely exhausting myself.
- Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) April 1, 2016
I am focusing on filming and trying to learn how to not pick apart my every flaw. I am really good at that
- Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) April 1, 2016
Okay.... Rant over. Just wanted to clarify and word vomit a little
- Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) April 1, 2016
One more confession...
- Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) April 1, 2016
She then posted the following Instagram post.
A photo posted by Cara Delevingne (@caradelevingne) on Mar 31, 2016 at 6:32pm PDT
Los Angeles (AFP) - Brazil's Helio Castroneves set a track lap record en route to winning pole position on Friday for the IndyCar Phoenix Grand Prix.
Castroneves posted a two-lap average speed of 192.324 mph (309.52 Km/h) in his Team Penske Chevrolet to top the qualifying times.
His first lap of 19.0997 seconds (192.631 mph, 310.01 Km/h) was the sixth and final lap of the day that improved on the track record set 20 years ago by Dutchman Arie Luyendyk.
Brazilian Tony Kanaan was second-fastest in a Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet, with a two-lap average of 191.511 mph.
Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya, will start third after qualifying at 191.366 mph.
The pole position is the 46th of Castroneves' career, fourth most in IndyCar history.
It is his second top qualifying performance at Phoenix, which last hosted open-wheel racing in 2005.
The 1.022-mile oval in the Arizona desert was a victim of the feud between Indy and the old Champ Car series, with only a few thousand fans turning up in 2005.
Since then it has regularly hosted popular NASCAR stock car races.
Japan's Takuma Sato and Canadian James Hinchcliffe both were unable to qualify as their cars continued undergoing repairs following separate crashes in morning practice.
Both lost control of their cars entering turn one and spun back first into the barrier between turns one and two.
Neither was seriously hurt, but their teams couldn't get their cars ready for qualifying and they will start Saturday night's race at the back of the grid.
Andretti Autosports Carlos Munoz of Colombia became the third driver of the weekend to hit the wall in nearly the same fashion, on his second qualifying lap.
Munoz was helped from his car and taken by stretcher for medical evaluation, but was later cleared to race.
Washington (AFP) - Chicago police are investigating an attempted murder that the victim apparently captured in real-time using Facebook Live, officials said Friday.
The two-minute video, which went viral on the Internet, showed the victim, a man wearing a cap and sweatshirt, in the street talking on his smartphone in "selfie" mode on Thursday.
Shots ring out and the man appears to fall to the ground, while his smartphone shows the apparent shooter holding a gun with both hands.
The video sequence registers some 15 shots.
Police said the victim, a 31-year-old who suffered multiple gunshot wounds, underwent surgery and remained in critical condition.
"He was shot by an offender that approached on foot, fired shots and fled in a vehicle," police spokeswoman Janel Sedevic said, adding that no arrests had been made.
The mother of the victim told the Chicago Tribune that she found her son soon after the shooting. She said she had seen the video, and then broke down in tears.
Chicago, one of the biggest cities in America with more than 2.7 million residents, has seen a surge in gun violence as gangs fight for drug-trafficking turf.
At least 10 people were shot on Thursday in different parts of the city, three of whom were killed, the Chicago Tribune reported.
According to the latest statistics published Friday by city police, there were 677 shootings in Chicago in the first three months of the year, compared with 359 shootings in the same period last year.
China has blocked a request from India to add the head of the Pakistani militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad to a UN sanctions blacklist, UN diplomats said.
India accuses Masood Azhar of involvement in an attack on the Pathankot air base in the northern state of Punjab in January.
Chinese Ambassador Liu Jieyi on Friday said that the request to add the militant leader to the UN Al-Qaeda/Islamic State sanctions list did not meet certain requirements, but did not elaborate.
"Any listing would have to meet the necessary requirements," said Liu. "It is the responsibility of all members of the council to make sure that these requirements are followed."
UN diplomats said the request would be discussed by the sanctions committee on April 20 and that China would then provide an update on its decision to oppose the request.
The Pakistani extremist Islamist group, which is fighting Indian control of Kashmir, has already been blacklisted by the UN Security Council, but not Azhar.
Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan by a heavily militarized Line of Control since the end of British colonial rule in 1947.
Both countries administer parts of the restive Himalayan territory separately but claim it in full.
BEIJING (Reuters) - Severe floods are expected on China's Yangtze River this year due to a strong El Nino weather pattern, state media said, raising the risk of deaths and damage to property and crops along the country's longest waterway. The El Nino conditions are the strongest since records collection began in 1951, and resemble a 1998 weather pattern that flooded the river and killed thousands, the official Xinhua news agency said on Friday, citing vice minister of water resources, Liu Ning. "Precipitation in the upper, middle and lower reaches of the river is forecast to be as much as 80 percent more than normal from May to August," Xinhua said. Some Yangtze tributaries had already begun flooding and the flood control and drought relief situation was "extremely severe", Liu said, according to the news agency. Provinces and cities along the river needed to make contingency plans, Xinhua cited Wang Guosheng, the governor of central Hubei province, as saying. China has frequently been devastated by natural disasters, particularly by floods and earthquakes that have claimed millions of lives over the centuries. Flooding, an annual problem, has been exacerbated by urban sprawl and poor drainage infrastructure in many cities. Xinhua said 1,320 people died in the 1998 floods, though estimates vary and some put the death toll at more than 4,000. Floods could be a test of the water management capabilities of the controversial $59 billion Three Gorges Dam, which was finished in 2012. Along with power generation and navigation, the dam was designed for controlling the Yangtze's water levels. The ongoing El Nino, a warming of sea-surface temperatures in the Pacific, has been linked to serious crop damage, forest fires and flash flood and drought around the world. Experts have warned that changing global climate leading to extreme weather will likely have an impact on the world's most important commodity crops maize, soybean, wheat and rice. Most of the global production of these four crops comes from a small number of countries such as China, the United States and India. (Reporting by Jessica Macy Yu and Michael Martina; Editing by Nick Macfie)
BEIJING (Reuters) - A top magazine of China's ruling Communist Party lashed out at critics of its ongoing anti-corruption campaign, saying foreign media and individuals from home and abroad were intentionally trying to discredit the effort as a political "power struggle". Chinese President Xi Jinping has pursued a sweeping campaign to root out corruption since assuming power about three years ago, and has promised to strike hard at both senior and low-level officials, the "tigers" and "flies". Nonetheless, there has been persistent speculation that the graft crackdown is also about Xi taking down his rivals. "Some foreign media and individuals take their own countries' anti-corruption efforts as a just display of rule of law, but see our anti-corruption work as a 'power struggle' that entails shadowy business," the influential bimonthly journal Qiushi said. Domestically, there are also some people who "parrot" these words, an article in the magazine's latest issue released this week said. "This kind of viewpoint is perhaps due to a misunderstanding of our anti-corruption efforts, but even more it's a kind of deliberate discrediting and distortion," it said. Xi has warned the problem of corruption could threaten the party's ability to retain power. He has publicly rebuked criticism of the crackdown on graft, including during a state visit to the United States last year, where he told business leaders in Seattle that it was not a "House of Cards"-style power struggle, a reference to the U.S. remake of the British political drama that is popular in China. Several top officials have been felled in the campaign, including disgraced retired domestic security chief Zhou Yongkang, the most senior leader to be ensnared in a graft scandal since the party swept to power in 1949. The article said some unnamed people would suggest that the crackdown was "selective" because no "tigers" have been brought down in Beijing or Shanghai or certain provinces. "From Communist Party institutions to the highest levels of the military, from central ministries to the provinces and cities, there are no gaps in the anti-corruption [campaign]," it said. (Reporting by Michael Martina)
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Defence Ministry denounced as gesticulation on Thursday speculation it would declare an air defense zone over the disputed South China Sea, after the United States said it had told China it would not recognize one. U.S. officials have expressed concern that an international court ruling expected in coming weeks on a case brought by the Philippines against China over its South China Sea claims could prompt China to declare an air defense identification zone, or ADIZ, as it did over the East China Sea in 2013. U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert Work said on Wednesday the U.S. would view such a move as "destabilizing" and would not recognize such an exclusion zone in the South China Sea, just as it did not recognize the one China established over the East China Sea. Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun, asked about Work's remarks, said any sovereign state had the right to set up an ADIZ. "On this, there is no need for other countries to gesticulate," Yang told a monthly news briefing. "Whether or not to or when to set up an air defense identification zone depends on whether there is an aerial threat or the level of aerial threat. It needs many considerations," he added, without elaborating. China claims most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. China drew condemnation from Japan and the United States when it imposed its ADIZ, in which aircraft are supposed to identify themselves to Chinese authorities, above the East China Sea. The ministry's comments come as President Xi Jinping arrived in Washington for a nuclear security summit, where he will meet U.S. President Barack Obama. Tensions between China and its neighbors Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan over sovereignty in the South China Sea have risen after Beijing embarked on significant land reclamations on disputed islands and reefs in the area. The United States has accused China of raising tension by its apparent deployment of surface-to-air missiles on a disputed island, a move China has neither confirmed nor denied. China, for its part, has accused the United States of militaristic the South China Sea through its freedom of navigation patrols in the region and the expansion of military alliances with countries such as the Philippines. Yang said this month's agreement between the United States and the Philippines allowing for a U.S. military presence at five Philippine bases represented "outdated Cold War thinking" which the United States should ditch. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Robert Birsel)
BEIJING (Reuters) - China has agreed to supply petroleum products to Nepal, a landlocked and impoverished country which has been trying to lessen its dependence on India, its large neighbor to the south. After a visit to Beijing by Nepali Prime Minister K.P. Oli, the two countries said on Wednesday they have "agreed to conclude a commercial deal on the supply of petroleum products from China to Nepal". Kathmandu says it wants to import 33 percent of Nepal's annual demand of 1.8 million tonnes of petroleum products from China, but trade officials say poor connectivity and logistics, high costs and transportation through difficult Himalayan terrain pose a challenge to any fuel trade between the two countries. Under the agreement, companies will be encouraged to speed up negotiations on issues including transportation, quality control, and customs and frontier formalities, according to a joint statement from the two governments. China will also build oil storage facilities for Nepal, and will send experts to Nepal to carry out a feasibility study on oil and gas resources research. The two countries will also set up an energy cooperation mechanism to study longer-term projects such as a trans-border power grid, hydro power and solar power, the statement, carried by China's official Xinhua news agency, added. Nepal, which serves as a natural buffer between China and India, adopted its first post-monarchy constitution in September hoping this would usher in peace and stability after years of conflict. But protesters opposing the new constitution blocked trucks from India, leading to acute shortages of fuel and medicine. Nepal blamed New Delhi for siding with the protesters, a charge India denied. The border blockade ended last month but supply of oil and cooking gas has yet to return to normal. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Nerys Avery)
News / National
by Staff reporter
President Robert Mugabe has returned home from his five day visit to Japan.He was met at the Harare International Airport by the two vice presidents, Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko, senior government officials and hundreds of Zanu-PF supporters.Speaking to journalists soon after arrival, Mugabe said the envisaged assistance to be given to Zimbabwe by Japan to the entire spectrum of the Zimbabwean economy is most likely to be fruitful considering the meetings he held with the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.Meanwhile, Mugabe also talked about the meeting he will hold with the war veterans on Thursday the 7th of this month and the central committee meeting to be held the following day.He said the war veterans association should abide by its ethics and express its grievances through the party, adding that those who refuse to tour the line of unity will be expelled.
While Mark Zuckerberg was meeting with officials in Beijing in Shanghai two weeks ago, there was another, far less public meeting on the population aging challenge facing China going on. Both gatherings were about Chinas willingness to open its minds and policies to address the three 21st century mega-trends of population aging, connectedness and innovative technology.
We also recently saw a report that the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is about to overtake Wal-Mart in global sales. Last years OECD workshop at Oxford on ageing and the digital economy was not just about health benefits but how the one billion of us over 60 can engage in commerce and contribute to economic growth. There is no doubt that the demographic over 60 will increasingly benefit from e-commerce.
Related: Who Gets the Most in Disability Pay? 8 Key Social Security Facts
Whatever deal Mr. Zuckerberg is making with Chinese officials, they must know that implementing their 13th Five Year Plan will require some very serious social changes. Not only must they treat their aging population differently, but they must open their economic system to the full measure of trade and investment flows that can drive economic growth.
Note the language used by Chinese President Xi Jinping to explain the profound impact of aging on their economic growth prospects: Over 15 percent of the population is 60 years old or above. The working-age population has started to decrease and the trend is continuing The new policy [of allowing two children without fines] should reduce the pressure of an aging population, increase the labor supply and promote balanced population development.
China today has well over a quarter billion people over age 60 and that number will grow to about the size of todays entire European population. Its a market if ever there was one; its also a challenge if public policy and external conditions are not ripe.
Several public policy proposals that could help ease the pressure were the subject of the Shanghai Roundtable on Active Aging held coincidentally when Zuckerberg was having his meetings in Beijing:
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1. Treat the 60+ demographic in China the same way we are increasingly doing across OECD countries -- as important consumers of product from healthcare to financial services, technology to retail. Growing proportions of this commerce is already taking place through the Internet witness the Alibaba phenomenon and this will grow over the next decades as the aging population in China reaches numbers that are equivalent to America today. Moreover, if Mick Jagger in his seventies can keep singing, how is it not obvious that old in the 21st century is to be redefined?
Related: Harsh New Penalties for Social Security Fraud Are Coming
2. Recognize the special needs of the 80+ demographic, the most rapidly growing segment of the overall population. Technology will be essential to this elder caregiving, especially if China is to meet its goals of 90 percent of this demographic aging in place at home. From telehealth and telemedicine to censors recognizing falls and measuring medicine compliance, China will have to open its borders to the best of what is produced across the globe. Free trade is essential as China confronts an aging population.
3. Like everyone else, keep people working longer the ditch retirement movement is as relevant for China as anywhere.
China is experiencing the medical and health benefits of the 20th century that lead to 21st century longevity. Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Shenyang and the rest of Chinas urban centers are joining New York, Tokyo, Berlin and Sydney where the once rare achievement of long lives is becoming the norm. Young girls and boys born in Shanghai in the 1990s are likely to see three centuries, as are our sons and daughters in the West. We increasingly understand this and more and more are beginning to plan.
What we tend not to fully appreciate is the low birth rates that have now also become a condition of 21st century life across the globe developed and developing, rich and poor, everywhere. Of course, the infamous one-baby policy has only exacerbated the huge challenges of population aging for China. All the more reason that China will have to change its ways to achieve greater openness in trade, the Internet and learning from others on productive urban development.
Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
Athens (AFP) - Three migrants were hospitalised Friday after a brawl in a camp on the Greek island of Chios, aid groups and media said, as the country prepared to begin returning migrants to Turkey under an EU deal.
The agency said police used stun grenades to restore calm during the late-night fight -- the second such incident within two days in Greece -- which caused serious damage to the island's Vial camp, including the medical dispensary, state ANA news agency said.
Medical charity Doctors of the World (MDM) said it had pulled out of the camp to protect its staff.
"The dispensary was almost entirely destroyed and security was no longer sufficient," MDM spokesman Evgenia Thanou told AFP.
Some 700 refugees and migrants on Friday were heading towards another camp in the main town of Chios under police escort, state TV ERT said.
Pro-migrant activists said the trouble began after a demonstration Thursday evening by migrants demanding they be allowed to leave the camp.
There has been anger among migrants and criticism from aid groups over EU plans to imminently begin sending thousands of people denied asylum back to Turkey.
Eight migrants were also hospitalised early Thursday after a fight between Syrians and Afghans in the overcrowded migrant camp at the Greek port of Piraeus near Athens.
Chios is home to one of five "hotspot" centres set up to house and process migrants on the Greek islands, which have been struggling to cope with an influx of migrants, many fleeing the civil war in Syria.
The Vial camp houses 1,500 people at a site which has capacity for just 1,200, ANA said.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu confirmed on Thursday that migrants would start being sent back from Greece to Turkey on Monday, under the terms of last month's controversial EU-Turkey deal.
Under the agreement, all irregular migrants landing on the Greek islands after March 20 face being sent back to Turkey -- although the deal calls for each case to be examined individually.
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For every Syrian sent back from Greece, the EU has agreed to resettle one Syrian refugee directly from Turkey.
Over 51,000 refugees and migrants seeking to reach northern Europe are already stuck in Greece, after Balkan states sealed their borders. Hundreds more continue to land on the Greek islands on a daily basis, despite the EU deal.
Aid groups have criticised the EU-Turkey deal on ethical grounds, warning that the Greek registration sites would become de facto detention centres for people slated to be sent back to Turkey after risking their lives and spending a small fortune to try reach Europe.
They have also raised concerns over the conditions migrants face back in Turkey, which is already hosting an estimated 2.7 million Syrians, most of whom have been forced to fend for themselves given limited space in the country's refugee camps.
News / Press Release
by Zapu
At its quarterly meeting on 2 April 2, 2016 in Bulawayo the ZAPU National People's Council (NPC) set the end of August 2016 as the date for the Party's 10th National Congress which was postponed last December due to financial constraints. The Party is confident that the teams which were put in place to prepare for Congress will succeed in their mandate.The Party welcomes the initiative by members of its former armed wing ZIPRA to form an independent association within the confines of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association. The Party concurs with the sentiments expressed by the ZIPRA Veterans that the ZNLWVA has by and large failed to adequately articulate and address the welfare concerns of the ZIPRA Veterans. Instead that association has mired itself in the partisan politics of the regime and dragged itself into the succession dogfights of ZANU to the detriment of its founding values and principles based on the ignored plight of the country's liberation fighters for the first 17 of the country's independence.As the Party's preparations for Congress aggressively move into top gear the support offered by the ZIPRA Veterans will reaffirm the confidence of the electorate in the revolution. ZAPU reminds the illegitimate and corrupt regime in Harare that the revolution is inevitable, cannot and will not be stopped.ZAPU also advises Emmerson Mnangagwa to either tell the truth about his publicly known role in the Gukurahundi massacre or to just keep quiet and enjoy the feeding frenzy on the gravy train. The victims and their families deserve closure on that painful and shameful chapter in the history of this country. ZAPU knows that the ZANU regime lacks the moral courage to own up to its role in the planning and execution of its massacre of Zimbabwean citizens simply on the basis of their preferred political allegiance. As the government ZANU owes an explanation to the victims, the country and indeed the world at large as to the true motive behind a holocaust similar to the NAZI anti-semitism, not in scale but in cruelty and effect. The ZANU regime has a legal obligation to release to the public the findings of the CCJP and Chihambakwe Commission. We advise Emmerson that should his conscience compel him to talk about Gukurahundi it should be on the above issues and not some thinly veiled attempts to justify his bloody hands.The government should just stop its rhetoric on a Truth and Reconciliation and act to establish the commission to deal with its numerous human rights abuses. The government should draft a comprehensive reparations policy to redress the imbalances caused by its actions amongst the communities affected by its embargo during the Gukurahundi period. The ZANU regime remains the only government to impose internal sanctions and unleash highly trained murderers on its own unarmed civilian population. Those people who now confess losing their sanity should also ask for forgiveness from their victims.
The cast of HBO's Confirmation, including Kerry Washington, Wendell Pierce, Allison Wright, Eric Stonestreet and Zoe Lister-Jones, took to the carpet at Paramount Pictures on Thursday evening to celebrate the film's premiere.
"It's one that still resonates today. It had so many elements in terms of character and human drama on top of relevant issues like race, gender and politics," director Rick Famuyiwa told The Hollywood Reporter, referring to Anita Hill's sexual harassment testimony against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas in 1991.
Members of the cast were complimentary about Kerry Washington's work as a producer, citing her as heavily involved.
"She was absolutely around. I know she had a lot to say in casting and she definitely put together a great group of actors," said Stonestreet.
Gabrielle Union, a friend of Washington who was also in attendance, spoke highly of her producing role and described her as "passionate, knowledgeable and prepared."
Famuyiwa explained that the true-life story had plenty of drama on its own terms, saying, "There was so much about the story that you couldn't make up. You have to be respectful of history and fact."
Wright, a U.K. native playing Clarence Thomas' wife, Virginia, said she was unfamiliar with the case before the film.
"I think when everybody sees the film, they will be relieved," she added.
Confirmation debuts on HBO on April 16.
Read More: 'Confirmation': TV Review
Zagreb (AFP) - Croatia is trying to attract more visitors to its stunning Adriatic coast by showcasing the enduring love story of a male stork which has been flying thousands of miles every year to join his handicapped mate.
The male, named Klepetan by locals, flew over 13,000 kilometres this week to join Malena (or the 'Little One' in Croatian) from his winter home in South Africa, local media reported.
The Croatian Tourist Board this month posted a short animated film called 'True Love Always Returns in Spring' on its Facebook and Twitter accounts as well as on YouTube.
"Through this unique love story our goal was to draw tourists to Croatia as a destination where nice things happen," the tourist board's Ratomir Ivicic said in a statement on Saturday.
"I knew he would return. He never let Malena down," said Stjepan Vokic, who takes care of the female.
"Although some males tried to join her in the nest she was stubbornly chasing them away. She was waiting for her Klepetan and eventually welcomed him."
The retired primary school caretaker from a village in eastern Croatia, adopted Malena more than two decades ago after hunters broke her wing.
The stork couple has raised offspring every year and the baby birds are taught to fly by their father, before they all migrate to South Africa for the winter.
Malena stays in a Croatian village awaiting the return of her faithful partner.
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Centre Ryan Crotty scored a hat-trick as the visiting Crusaders ran in a total of six tries in handing the in-form Lions a 43-37 defeat in Super Rugby at Ellis Park on Friday. It was the second major South African scalp in successive weeks for the New Zealand franchise, seven-times past winners of the southern hemisphere competition, after they had beaten the Sharks last weekend. It took less than a minute for the Crusaders to make their mark as a quick turn over from a counter attack and a clever skip pass saw Crotty cross the line for a first try. The Lions scored a try of their own within three minutes through Lionel Mapoe but there was little time to settle as an intercept pass put Johnny McNicholl through and then Wyatt Crockett add a third try for the Crusaders with less than 20 minutes played. Lions fly half Elton Jantjies, returning from injury, stole around the wing to score a clever try and then converted it himself from a tight angle to bring the score back to 19-17 just before the half-hour mark. Both sides traded penalty kicks as the Crusaders went into half-time with a narrow 22-20 lead. They were expected to struggle after the break in Johannesburgs rarefied air but All Black Crotty showed a clean pair of heels to the home defence with two more tries in the 48th and 51st minutes as the Crusaders went into a 36-20 lead. Home hopes flickered briefly when replacement hooker Akker van der Merwe showed the Crusaders he had some pace of his own to go over to reduce the lead to nine points but almost immediately the Crusaders re-established their hegemony as some crisp passing allowed Mitchell Drummond to make it 43-20. Van der Merwe scored the 10th try of a pulsating match with 10 minutes left and the Lions kept the pressure on in search of an unlikely come-from-behind win but a combination of handling errors and stout defence denied them in the end.
New York (AFP) - Denmark, closely followed by Switzerland, is again the happiest country in the world while crisis-torn Syria and Burundi are the most miserable, according to a global ranking released Wednesday.
The 2016 World Happiness Report seeks to quantify happiness as a means of making societies healthier and more efficient. The United Nations published the first such study in 2012.
As with last year, Iceland, Norway, Finland, Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia and Sweden round out the top 10, making small or medium-sized countries in Western Europe seven of the top 10 happiest countries.
Denmark, which was ranked first in the 2012 and 2013 versions of the report but lost that honor to Switzerland in 2015, now reclaims its title as happiest country on Earth.
Burundi was the most miserable, followed by war-ravaged Syria, Togo, Afghanistan and six other countries in sub-Saharan Africa -- Benin, Rwanda, Guinea, Liberia, Tanzania and Madagascar as the least happy of 157 countries.
The report compared data from 2005 to 2015 showing that Greece, which suffered enormously from the global recession and now faces a crippling migrant crisis, had the highest drop in happiness.
The United States, where sharp polarization has been exposed in the 2016 presidential election campaign, out-ranked several Western European countries to be 13th most happy nation, up two spots from last year.
Germany was 16th, Britain 23rd and France 32nd. A string of Middle Eastern kingdoms -- Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain -- out-ranked Italy, which came in at number 50, and Japan, which took the 53rd spot.
China, the world's most populous country, was ranked 83rd and India, the world's largest democracy, came in at 118.
The authors said six factors -- GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, social freedom, generosity and absence of corruption -- explain almost three-quarters of the variation across different countries.
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The report compared levels of happiness in 2005-2007, before the onset of the global recession, with 2013-2015, the most recent three-year period for which data from a Gallup World Poll is available.
Of the 126 countries for which comparable data was available, 55 had significant increases in happiness and 45 had significant decreases, the report found.
Among the top 20 gainers were Thailand and China, eight countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States and Eastern Europe, seven in Latin America, two in sub-Saharan Africa and Macedonia in the Balkans.
The 20 largest losers of happiness included Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Yemen and Saudi Arabia in the Middle East; Japan and India in Asia; and Cyprus, Spain, Italy and Greece in Europe -- all hard hit by the economic crisis.
Ukraine, where the east has been roiled by a pro-Russian insurgency since 2014, has also fallen into the group of 10 largest happiness declines.
Iceland and Ireland offer the best examples of maintaining happiness in the face of economic crisis due to high degrees of social support, the report found.
News / Regional
by Staff reporter
Ten people died while 16 others were seriously injured when a Mitsubishi Cold and a Toyota Hiace collided head on along the Harare-Bulawayo highway near Vungu River in Gweru this Saturday morning.Eight people died on the spot and two others on admission at Gweru Provincial Hospital while 12 others who were seriously injured were admitted at the same hospital.The villagers say they heard a loud bang and rushed to the scene where they found bodies scattered all over the place while others were still trapped inside the vehicles.Meanwhile, Gweru Provincial Hospital medical superintendent Dr Fabian Mashingaidze has confirmed that of the 16 people admitted, five have severe injuries.
(Reuters) - Top seed Novak Djokovic overcame a strong challenge from Belgium's David Goffin to reach the Miami Open final with a 7-6(5) 6-4 victory on Friday as he continued his pursuit of a fifth title in six years on Key Biscayne. The Serbian world number one shrugged off a slow start in tough on-court conditions before hitting his stride, and sealed the win with a powerful first serve that forced a wayward Goffin return to end an encounter that lasted just over two hours. Australian Open champion Djokovic improved his stellar record for the year to 27-1 and will next face Japan's Kei Nishikori, who ousted Australian Nick Kyrgios 6-3 7-5 in the second semi-final. The 28-year-old Djokovic, a five-times champion in Miami, is bidding to match Andre Agassi's record of six titles at the event and earn a record 28th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown. "It was windy, it was humid, it was warm," Djokovic told reporters. "It was like everything was thrown out there. "And to overcome those obstacles and conditions was something that I'm proud of. I managed to stay tough in the right moments." Djokovic, whose only defeat this year came in February when he retired against Spain's Feliciano Lopez in Dubai due to an eye infection, applauded Goffin's performance. "He plays very clean," Djokovic said. "Also, I think he improved his serve. I had difficulty reading it. Physically, it was a great battle with lots of exchanges from the baseline." With Goffin initially playing much steadier from the baseline in the Miami heat, Djokovic came under intense early pressure and saved three break points in the opening game before holding serve. Djokovic and Goffin traded service breaks in the seventh and eighth games before battling to a tie-break which the Serb clinched 7-5 after his opponent, reaching high for a lob, hit a backhand volley into the net. The second set went with serve until the seventh game when 15th seed Goffin hit a forehand long before netting a backhand to be broken and trail 3-4. Djokovic then comfortably served out to book his place in Sunday's final at Crandon Park where he will seek to add another Miami crown to his titles from 2007, 2011, 2012, 2014 and last year. Goffin, 25, who reached his first Masters 1000 semi-final in Indian Wells two weeks ago, is projected to climb to a career-high 13th in the world rankings on Monday. Nishikori made his first Miami final by taking out brash young Australian Kyrgios in some style. "It's a great feeling to be in my first final in Miami and it was very good playing today so I'm very happy," said the sixth seeded Japanese. "In the second set I got a little bit tight after I broke his service game and I tried to be focused on what I had to do on my service game and the last couple of points I tried to be aggressive." While happy to get through he was under no illusions of what lay ahead on Sunday, when he will be looking to break a five-match losing streak against the Serbian world number one. "Its going to be tough for sure," he admitted. "Hes been playing well and we just played in Australia and I lost in three sets so I will have to do something better. "I hope can play another good match." (Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes/Ben Everill in Los Angeles; Editing by Larry Fine/Nick Mulvenney)
By Karen Lema and Andrew R.C. Marshall MANILA (Reuters) - For Kim Wong, the Chinese casino owner in the Philippines entangled in one of the world's largest bank heists, there are two golden rules for dealing with wealthy punters: always demand to see their money, but never ask where it came from. That seems to be what happened when he took millions of dollars from two Chinese high-rollers in February. He told a Senate hearing earlier this week the two men were responsible for transferring $81 million stolen from the Bangladesh central bank's U.S. account into the Philippines. "In casinos we always say, 'Show your money first before you talk,'" Wong told Reuters on Friday in his first interview with an international news organization. As for the source of that money? "You don't ask. It's disrespectful." The 54-year-old denied any involvement in the heist. But he described one of the two high-rolling gamblers as a long-time friend from Macau who in a single week in 2014 ran up a debt of $10 million at a Manila casino. Wong acted as guarantor until it was paid off. The other high roller was from Beijing, said Wong, adding that he barely knew him. Neither high roller is being sought by Philippine police because no complaint has yet been filed against them. It was not known if they were still in the Philippines. Wong gave a rare peek into a world where Chinese high rollers rack up multi-million-dollar debts at Manila casinos and life-changing sums of money change hands as casually as sticks of gum. Since appearing at the Senate hearing, his cash-drenched profession has dominated headlines in a country where around a quarter of its 100 million people live on two dollars a day. At Solaire, Manila's flashiest casino, the minimum bet in the VIP rooms is $5,000, or as much as a Filipino teacher earns in a year. Wong's lawyers arrived at the Philippine central bank on Thursday to surrender a suitcase packed with $4.63 million in cash. This fulfilled Wong's earlier vow to pay back what was left of $5 million in stolen money he had received via Philrem, a foreign exchange broker. Another 1 billion pesos ($21 million) of the stolen funds ended up in a Philippine bank account of Eastern Hawaii, a company run by Wong, according to a criminal complaint filed by the Philippines' Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC). Of that money, said Wong, 550 million pesos was used to buy gambling chips for clients. The rest he has promised to pay back. "Give me 15 days to a month. I will pay," he said. The rest of the $81 million went to Solaire casino and another junket operator, according to the AMLC complaint. In the Philippines, casinos are outside the purview of the anti-money laundering laws. COLLEGE DROP-OUT Dressed casually in jeans and a polo shirt and showing no signs of wealth, Wong sat in the backroom of a Chinese restaurant in Manila and spoke of his own improbable rise. A stocky bodyguard stood nearby. Speaking mostly in slang-laden Filipino, Wong described how he was an immigrant from Hong Kong who arrived in the Philippines as a boy. He later got rich and befriended many of the country's powerful politicians - including two one-time presidential contenders. Wong said his mother brought him to Manila when he was 11. He still holds Chinese citizenship and said his real name is Kam Sin Wong. He lived in Manila with his father, who worked at a tobacco company owned by a wealthy grand uncle. Wong worked there too after dropping out of college and at a construction firm in the U.S. protectorate of Guam that his uncle also owned. Wong later ran a T-shirt factory and a handful of restaurants in Manila, which allowed him to start developing a wide circle of sometimes influential friends. He first entered the gambling industry as a junket operator at a casino resort at Clark, the former U.S. airbase north of Manila. With partners, he raised one billion pesos to build what is now known as Eastern Hawaii Leisure Company in the sleepy town of Cagayan in the northern Philippines. He said Eastern Hawaii is now one of Cagayan's biggest employers, with more than 1,000 local staff, plus 300 Chinese to take telephone bets from punters on the mainland, where gambling is banned. "VERY, VERY RESOURCEFUL" Wong also forged connections with powerful politicians, starting with Alfredo Lim, an ethnic Chinese Filipino and former Manila mayor who later ran for president. Lito Atienza, who succeeded Lim as mayor, recalled Wong as a hardworking and "very, very resourceful" volunteer during election campaigns. "He is industrious, always ready to serve. That is his character," Atienza told Reuters. Wong is still close to another powerful politician and one-time presidential hopeful. Panfilo Lacson, a former senator and national police chief, calls Wong "a friend of mine" Tuesday was not the first time Wong had been accused of dirty dealings before the Senate. At another hearing in 2001, which probed links between senior police officers and drug traffickers, a key witness identified Wong as a boss in one of the triads, the Chinese organized crime syndicates. Wong denied belonging to a triad, telling Reuters he had been confused with another man of the same name. "Not Mr. Wong. Mr. Wrong!" he joked. (Additional reporting by Manuel Mogato in Manila; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)
Niamey (AFP) - Niger's presidential run-off is far from being a level playing field with President Mahamadou Issoufou's re-election a shoo-in after his challenger Hama Amadou was imprisoned in November and then hastily flown for unspecified medical treatment to Paris just days before the second round vote.
Here are profiles of the two rival veteran politicians nicknamed "The Lion" and "The Phoenix" respectively:
- Issoufou, 'The Lion' -
The 64-year-old president, who is seeking a second term, is nicknamed the "Lion" for his political prowess and capacity to pounce at the right time. But this time round his legitimacy is under question with the opposition boycotting the vote.
Issoufou has repeatedly pledged to bring prosperity to the desolate but uranium-rich country and prevent further attacks by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) fighters based in its vast remote northern deserts.
The twin vows have resonance in the west African nation, where he has been a key political player since the start of multi-party politics in 1990.
"He's a great tactician and has a sharp mind," said an expert on Niger politics.
A mining engineer who worked for French nuclear giant Areva which mines uranium in northern Niger, Issoufou has contested every presidential election since 1993 but was beaten in 1999 and 2004 by his charismatic rival Mamadou Tandja.
His ascent to power began in 1993 when he was named prime minister under Mahamane Ousmane, Niger's first democratically elected president.
He held the post for a year and also served as parliament speaker from 1995 to 1996.
The next years saw him in opposition and spearheading a campaign against Tandja's attempts to extend his tenure beyond its constitutional limit -- a bid that finally led to a February 2010 coup.
Issoufou's patient wait for the top job finally paid off in 2011 when he won a presidential election organised by the military junta that had toppled Tandja.
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His winning pitch was a pledge to restore stability to a country wracked by coups since 1974 and to secure it from jihadist groups active in restive west Africa.
His critics, however, accuse him of bending over backwards to pander to former colonial ruler France, and spending far too much on defence at the cost of welfare schemes in one of the world's poorest countries.
- Amadou, 'The Phoenix' -
Currently holed up at the well-known American Hospital in a western Paris suburb after being evacuated from prison in Niger for urgent but unexplained medical reasons, the 66-year-old Amadou ran an unequal campaign from behind bars where he has been languishing since November.
His ability to rise from the ashes had led to the veteran politician being showered with monikers such as "The Phoenix" along with "Niger's Mandela" for his long stints in prison like South Africa's anti-apartheid icon.
The rallying cry of his supporters has been "from prison to presidency", and they often make cross marks on their face or arms to replicate the tribal scars on his cheeks, which have also sparked another nickname "Hama+".
"Hama+" is also a play on the French word "plus" or "more" and used by his backers in this uranium-rich but deeply poor nation on the fringes of the Sahara.
"Hama plus means more work, more money and more of everything for the people of Niger," was the rallying cry during the campaign for the first round of the election on February 21.
Amadou cut his political teeth during the iron-fisted rule of president Seini Kountche (1974-1987) and after the advent of multi-party politics in the 1990s became prime minister in 1995.
He was one of the key figures in the regime of former president Mamadou Tandja, in power from 1999 to 2010, serving as prime minister before being jailed for allegedly stealing public funds.
Although some had written him off, Amadou's popularity soared after Tandja was toppled following an abortive attempt to prolong his rule, leading to his "Phoenix" nickname.
He joined the opposition and became a leading figure but was jailed in November on baby trafficking charges that he says are trumped up.
Calm, discreet and plain speaking, Amadou is also a "great opportunist and a man of courage," according to an African diplomat.
But whether he will be able to resurrect politically yet again remains to be seen.
CONAKRY (Reuters) - Guinea will soon vaccinate people who have come into contact with more than 500 men who have recovered from Ebola, a senior health official said, the first time it has vaccinated the contacts of survivors. The decision reflects research that indicates Ebola can remain in the bodily fluids of survivors for months. The contacts will include but will not be limited to sexual partners, said Fode Tass Sylla, the spokesman for the West African nation's centre for the fight against Ebola. "We know the virus can stay in the sperm of a healed patient for a certain period of time," Sylla said. "That's why we want to vaccinate the circles of 501 men, to avoid all risk of spreading the disease." The vaccinations will begin in the next few days, Sylla said. The centre also plans an awareness campaign to warn mothers who have recovered from the virus against breastfeeding their newborns, he said. One of three countries at the epicentre of the world's worst recorded Ebola outbreak, along with Liberia and Sierra Leone, Guinea was declared free of active transmissions of the virus in December 2015. But it announced eight new cases last month. There are 10,000 survivors of the deadly hemorrhagic fever in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, according to the World Health Organisation. The WHO said 800 possible contacts of people suffering from Ebola had been vaccinated against the virus in the so-called "ring vaccination" method. That means swiftly vaccinating anyone who has come into contact with an Ebola sufferer and contacts of theirs. More than 1,000 people were under observation. Liberia, which has declared the outbreak over three times, closed its border with Guinea after its neighbour announced its fresh cases. Liberia announced a new Ebola case, a 30-year-old woman who died en route to the hospital, on Friday. It was not immediately clear whether she had traveled to Guinea. (Reporting by Saliou Samb; Writing by Makini Brice; Editing by Larry King)
London (AFP) - A man was handed a two year jail sentence Friday after becoming the first in England to be convicted of keeping his wife "in domestic servitude".
In what the Crown Prosecution Service said was the first case of its kind in England, London's Woolwich Crown Court heard that Safraz Ahmed, 34, imprisoned and beat his wife after an arranged marriage in Pakistan.
The mechanic from Charlton in southeast London forced his wife, Sumara Iram, to cook, clean and look after his mother from 5am to midnight every day after she moved to Britain in 2012.
He also slapped her in the face when she asked him to consummate their marriage, throwing tins of cat food at her head and covering her face with a cushion in other attacks.
Iram, 28, who had a master's degree in Islamic Studies, was forbidden from leaving the house alone and took an overdose before eventually calling the emergency services in 2014, the court heard.
Sentencing Ahmed to two years in prison for holding a person in domestic servitude, Judge Christopher Hehir told him: "She was bullied and controlled by you, given little money and expected to cook, clean and look after your family as if she was a skivvy.
"She described your behaviour as physical and mental torture and in my judgement, she was right."
Damaris Lakin, a Crown Prosecution Service lawyer who worked on the trial, said it was a "ground-breaking case which demonstrates how far we have come in tackling modern-day slavery".
The couple are now divorced.
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."Israel prophets were involved in rainmaking ceremony".Examine this view,To what extent are the Zimbabwean prophets act as rainmakers? (25)The above question requires one to have deep knowledge about the roles of Ancient Israel prophets. In other words, this question requires one to understand the role which is being questioned here!. Rainmaker?- What is a rainmaker?- Why someone is being involved in rainmaking ceremony?- Does this means that prior the event there will be no rain or less rain ?- Which prophet in Israel prophesied during drought?- Did that prophet tried to pray for rain /to be a rainmaker U.S.A dictionary define a rainmaker as someone who enduces rain. This will guide us to a certain degreeIt has been suggested that Elijah the Tishbite ,when he appeared in the Northern region(Israel), predicted that there will be no rain until he give a word(1Kings 17 v 1).The point here is that until he give a "word"Does it mean that Elijah the prophet is one who was responsible for drought? And he is the one who will make it rain?- The Mt Carmel Contest has been suggested that it was a rainmaking ceremony, Ewbank says pouring of water in the 12 stones by Elijah was a kind of sympathetic magic to enduce rain.- Elijah after butchering the 850 false prophets went on to pray in top of the Mount Carmel. NB. Why is he praying,Is he praying for rain?Earlier the writer indicated that Elijah predicted that there will be no rain until he give a word! .Now he is giving a word in (1 kings 18 v 43-45)- Why is he now praying for rain? Is praying for rain ,same thing as rainmaking ceremony? Food for thought!!- With the above info I hope one can prove or justify himself/herself whether Elijah can be regarded as a rainmaker or what?Zimbabwean Context In 1999-2001 Zimbabwea faced a severe drought!No prophet tried to pray for rain!Does this means that Zimbabwean prophets are not rainmakers?- Nehanda Radio newspaper interviewing Nehemiah Mutendi on October 2015 he claimed that his father Samuel Mutendi was a rainmaker ?- We don't know whether he once prayed for rain or what but his son claims so .And it will be injustice if one ignores the such valid information.- Bulawayo well known prophet Blessing Chiza was captured marching around the city campaigning for rain.In other words he was praying for rain.- The AICs church specifically the Vapostori of white garment pray regularly for rain ,at the beginning of the rain season. In 2015 the Vapostori from Johane Masowe predicted that they will be fall of short rains. Element of praying for rain is recognized. Byo24.com and Newsday Newspapers in 2015 on the month of August went on to interview "Gogo/mbuya" of Cowdry Park surbub in Bulawayo who claimed that they he'd went to Njelele to pray for rain.- She went on to state that Bulawayo local prophets joined the ceremony. Personally ,I was forced to research much ,as I was looking for the name of the prophets ! (Fortunately, I found the name but I won't indicate it in this article) On the above info, the point is that Zimbabwean prophets are involved in rainmaking ceremony.As much as Zimbabwean prophets are involved in rainmaking ceremony, one should note that ,mostly this ceremony is done by traditionalist "singing, brewing African beer,talking to ancestors",they claimed that they talked with Mzilikazi and Lobengula, specifically in Njelele or in other shrines.- In 2015 December, a day of praying for rain was scheduled by the Zimbabwe leaders.- Most of the churches participated!Among the churches ,with no point of doubt prophets were available?- After two days Zimbabwe experienced rain after 4-5 months of no rain,Is this incident similar to that of Elijah when he prayed for rain after experiencing 3 years of drought?- What's the however, part of the question?- I won't waste much time in writing you a full essay .I have done enough justice- Conclusion, show the extent ,try to answer the question direct.Some people have tendency of want to be complicated,do away with that.
By Phil Stewart, Warren Strobel and Jonathan Landay WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. administration is considering a plan to greatly increase the number of American special operations forces deployed to Syria as it looks to accelerate recent gains against Islamic State, U.S. officials told Reuters. The officials, with direct knowledge of the proposal's details, declined to disclose the exact increase under consideration. But one of them said it would leave the U.S. special operations contingent many times larger than the around 50 troops currently in Syria, where they operate largely as advisors away from the front lines. The proposal is among the military options being prepared for President Barack Obama, who is also weighing an increase in the number of American troops in Iraq. A White House spokeswoman declined comment. The proposal appears to be the latest sign of growing confidence in the ability of U.S.-backed forces inside Syria and Iraq to claw back territory from the hardline Sunni Islamist group. Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, controls the cities of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria and is proving a potent threat abroad, claiming credit for major attacks in Paris in November and Brussels in March. But there are mounting indications that the momentum in Iraq and Syria has shifted against Islamic State. U.S. officials say the group is losing a battle to forces arrayed against it from many sides in the vast region it controls. In Iraq, the group has been pulling back since December when it lost Ramadi, the capital of the western province of Anbar. In Syria, the jihadist fighters have been pushed out of the strategic city of Palmyra by Russian-backed Syrian government forces. Since U.S.-backed forces recaptured the strategic Syrian town of al-Shadadi in late February, a growing number of Arab fighters in Syria have offered to join the fight against the group, the U.S. officials said. U.S. forces have also had increased success in eliminating top ISIS leaders. Air strikes in recent weeks killed a top official called Abd al-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli, and an Islamic State commander described as the group's "minister of war" -- Abu Omar al-Shishani, or Omar the Chechen. The United States announced last December it was deploying a new force of special operations troops to Iraq to conduct raids against Islamic State there and in neighboring Syria. That followed its announcement in October that dozens of U.S. special forces would be deployed in Syria, the first U.S. ground troops to be stationed there. The additional U.S. forces in Syria would be primarily assigned to establishing sites where they would train Arab tribesmen who have been volunteering to fight ISIS. The tribesmen eventually would be provided weapons, paving the way for offensive against the de facto ISIS capital of Raqqa under U.S. air cover. The dozens of U.S. special operations forces now in Syria are working closely with a collection of Syrian Arab groups within an alliance that is still dominated by Kurdish forces. The United States has been supplying Arabs in the thousands-strong alliance with ammunition since October. While the strategy is showing results so far, U.S. officials and Kurdish leaders agree that a predominately Arab force is needed to take Raqqa, a majority Arab city whose residents would consider Kurds as occupiers. The new push by U.S. special operations forces in Syria would be separate from a revised U.S. military effort under way to train a limited number of Syrian fighters in Turkey. That effort is focused on teaching them to identify targets for U.S.-led coalition air strikes. (Editing by Stuart Grudgings)
HOUSTON (Reuters) - The last group of union workers at Exxon Mobil Corp's giant Baytown, Texas, refining and petrochemical complex voted on Thursday and Friday to accept a contract extension, a union official said on Friday night.
Laboratory unit workers, who make up about 10 percent of the 700 United Steelworkers union (USW) members working hourly jobs at Baytown, joined with refinery and chemical plant workers who had accepted the four-year extension in voting on March 24 and 25.
"Their resolve through the extension has made them the flagship of all three units," USW Local 13-2001 President Ricky Brooks said of the laboratory workers after announcing the vote.
Laboratory workers rejected the extension in voting last week, following the recommendation of USW leaders who had argued against accepting the company's first offer in talks to replace the current contract, which expires on May 15.
An Exxon spokesman hailed the extension's ratification by all three units at Baytown.
"We agree with this successful outcome and early settlement of the contract," said Exxon spokesman Todd Spitler. "The negotiation process was successful and has resulted in an agreement that is mutually beneficial for both the union and the company."
After last week's vote, the USW had asked Exxon to renew the extension offer to give laboratory workers a second opportunity to vote on the proposal that provides a 3 percent increase in hourly wages in 2016 and again in 2017, and a 3.5 percent increase in 2018.
The increases are equal to those agreed to by the USW and U.S. refinery owners following a national strike in 2015.
The pay level in 2019 will be equal to what the USW and refinery owners agree to in talks expected to begin in January 2019.
(Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
(Reuters) - The Federal Bureau of Investigation has assured law enforcement across the United States that it will help unlock mobile devices such as iPhones involved in investigations when it is allowed by law and policy. The FBI said in a letter to local authorities that it understands the challenges they face and that they lack necessary tools to monitor and investigate the communications of suspects who use encrypted mobile devices, according to the correspondence obtained by Reuters on Friday. "As has been our longstanding policy, the FBI will of course consider any tool that might be helpful to our partners," the FBI said. "Please know that we will continue to do everything we can to help you consistent with our legal and policy constraints." The letter came five days after the U.S. Justice Department announced that it had dropped its legal case against Apple Inc and that it had successfully unlocked an iPhone used by Syed Farook, who went on a shooting rampage in San Bernardino, California, in December, when he and his wife killed 14 people and wounded 22. The abrupt end to the legal confrontation that transfixed the tech industry was a victory for Apple, which vehemently opposed a court order obtained by the Justice Department. The justice department sought to have Apple write new software to get into the iPhone and access data on it that was secured by encryption. The FBI said in the letter that it was aware of the "worldwide publicity and attention" that was generated by the Apple litigation and that it was committed to maintaining "an open dialogue" with local law enforcement. "We are in this together," the FBI said. (Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
New York (AFP) - A four-door hatchback Pope Francis used while visiting New York in September has fetched $300,000 at auction, said the website that held the sale.
The black Fiat 500 Lounge was one of two such mini Popemobiles that ferried the pontiff around the Big Apple.
At more than 12 times its base price, it was snapped up by millionaire businessman Miles Nadal, who already owns more than 130 cars and motorbikes, according to the Charitybuzz auction website.
Proceeds will go to Catholic schools and charities in the New York diocese, as well as two international agencies: Catholic Relief Services and the Catholic Near East Welfare Association.
"In a couple of occasions, (Pope Francis) was in the Popemobile. For the rest of his time, when he was not in the Popemobile, this is how he traveled around in the motorcade," New York Archdiocese spokesman Joseph Zwilling told AFP earlier this week.
The second Fiat will also be used to raise money for charitable causes, although plans have not been set, he said.
Charitybuzz had valued the practically new vehicle, featuring a fixed glass roof and premium seats, at $82,000.
That's how much a Fiat used by the Pope in Philadelphia -- another stop on his September 22-27 US trip -- was sold for at a gala in late January.
The Fiat 500 Lounge base price is $24,695, Charitybuzz said.
The auction began March 17, with the first bid coming in at $10,500. On Wednesday, the price-tag had jumped to $195,000 before hitting $300,000 Thursday.
By Matt Siegel SYDNEY (Reuters) - Fiji's government said on Monday it would extend for another month a state of natural disaster in areas of the country still reeling from the impact of a super cyclone, which hit the country last month. Cyclone Winston, which was the worst storm ever recorded in the southern hemisphere, hit the South Pacific archipelago particularly hard, killing 43 people and leaving tens of thousands homeless. More than 25,000 Fijians remained in evacuation centers, according to the latest report from Fiji's National Emergency Operation Centre. The extension of the state of emergency will allow greater access to affected areas, Fiji's National Disaster Controller said in a statement. "The extension period will also allow health authorities to make provisions against any possible disease outbreak especially in severely affected areas," it said. "It will also allow disaster officials to fully utilize available foreign services and expertise in relief and recovery support." Australia has donated A$15 million in aid to Fiji to provide food, clean water and shelter, as well as teams of emergency aid workers. Sune Gudnitz, head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, appealed for patience in dealing with the disaster in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corp's Pacific Beat. "Some of the communities are severely destroyed or affected. The houses are gone and they need to be rebuilt. In some areas they're talking about relocating villages to safer spots away from the shoreline," he said. "This is a disaster of such a magnitude that it would be a while before everything is back to normal - if ever." (Reporting by Matt Siegel; Editing by Robert Birsel)
Opinion / Columnist
Written by; Cde Godfrey Viki ZAPU Silobela Political Activist. Contact no. +27733556638 Email address vikigodfrey@hotmail.com
Silobela is an agricultural district under Kwekwe in the Midlands Province of Zimbabwe. It is located about 60 kilometres west of Kwekwe, 80 kilometres northwest of Gwelo and bordering Nkayi on the west.The inhabitants of Silobela were relocated from the area between Gwelo and Bulawayo called Hogo in the 1940s.The relocation was done to allow for white commercial farmers to take up that land. Most of the population is amaNdebele and the most spoken language is isiNdebele.Crossroads Growth Point is the commercial hub of Silobela, though a major centre in Silobela is Lore to Mission, popularly known as eRoma. Loreto Mission inoperative the Loreto High school, a Roman Catholic boarding school, the Silobela hospital previously known as Loreto Mission Hospital. That's were Godfrey Viki was born, which is the largest medical centre in the region. The Police station with detention cells is also located at Loreto.The Silobela district is divided in small undocumented villages such as Lahleka, Mpinda, Dimbambiwa, Damba, Mtshogwe, Sinangeni, Jikijela, Donsa, Ntobe, Simana, Nzwananzi, Malisa, BB, etc.Silobela is rich in gold deposits. Jena mines inoperative Turtle mines, Empress Mines and Leopard mines. Jena mines are owned by Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC). Jena mines being the major employer in Silobela, is estimated to be employing around 600 people, though the majority of the employees are not locals.Jena mines are estimated tone producing at least 40kg of gold per month.A new power line from the thermal Mnyathi Power Station has enhanced gold production. Jena mines are the biggest gold producer in Midlands.Another gold field was discovered recently the mine was named Peace mine. Locals were gold panning at Peace mine, making a living out of it until recently when the government closed the mine in what is anticipated as the mine takeover by the government. That's depriving the people of Silobela rights to their natural resources and a now major source of income.Our local traditional leadership has failed the people by failing to protect our Godly given resources.Taking into consideration the history of Jena mines that has operated in Silobela for decades but has failed to produce a meaningful development in Silobela, so will Peace mine under government.Regardless of the abundance of gold deposits in Silobela, the people of Silobela have remained poor. As usual the employer will bring imports to come and work at Peace mine that's depriving the locals' employment opportunities and the source of income.Silobela is among the poorest districts in Zimbabwe regardless of her natural resources. People of Silobela remain uneducated as most of the parents fail to send their children to secondary schools due to lack of funds.Having visited Crossroads during this past Ester holidays, I was left shocked by the sore state of Crossroads Growth Point. The place is filthy. There is no plan of combating the littering of the area. The drainage system is nonexistence. One is left wondering if normal human beings lives there! Being a business centre one would expect the local business men to come up with a plan of keeping the Growth Point clean.Having mentioned the sore state of the Growth Point, I would have done injustice if I don't mention the prostitution business taking place there!It must be noted without fear dear residents of Silobela that the local Member of Parliament is running a business of chain stores at Crossroads Growth Point, such as Supermarket, bottle store/ beer Hall and buses.How he fails to clean a place where he lives leaves a lot to be desired. How can he be expected to develop Silobela and keep her clean if he can clean his own back yard!?Going back to the prostitution business at Crossroads Growth Point, it must be loudly said the Member of Parliament is housing the prostitutes in his own business backyard! The Member of Parliament's beer hall is the heaven of prostitutes!But why would the Member of Parliament keep prostitutes in his own premises?The answer is simple.The prostitutes bring business to his businesses as young men having spent the whole day panning gold come to his beer hall to drink and leisure. They get the services of loose women who have accommodation on the backyard.What a shame!The Member of Parliament has no love for the people of Silobela but their hard earned cash. The Member of Parliament seems not to know or does not care that the prostitution destroys the communities.Fathers lose money to prostitutes resulting in them failing to support their families. Prostitution spreads Sexual transmitted diseases such as AIDS which is the biggest killer in the African continent. Our local MP is breeding it!A sick father spread the disease to his unsuspecting wife, resulting in the death if both parents leaving orphans behind.(I just tried to explain in case our local Member of Parliament does not know the consequences of prostitution within a community)It must be said that the prostitutes who roam his business premises are not locals but imports that have come to loot our resources, destroy our families and communities then go back to wherever they came from.Of course they will leave our local Member of Parliament rich in a broken community.
SYDNEY (Reuters) - The former British colony of Australia wants Britain to stay in the European Union, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said, weeks before Britain holds a referendum on EU membership. Bishop told reporters in Washington that "a strong UK as part of the European Union would be in Australia's interests", according to the Australian Associated Press. Bishop said that she told British Prime Minister David Cameron of the Australian position at a meeting in Washington on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit, AAP said. Britain holds a referendum on EU membership on June 23. Britain's entry into the Common Market in 1973 was widely considered a betrayal in Australia, upending decades of tradition and a host of tariff agreements. But now Britain takes only 2.5 percent of Australia's exports, while China takes more than 31 percent. Supporters of Britain's exit from the European Union argue that "family ties" with Commonwealth members such as Australia could compensate for the partial loss of Europe's 444 million customers. David Davis, a Conservative MP and die-hard eurosceptic, outlined their ambitions in a recent exhaustive speech. "This is an opportunity to renew our strong relationships with Commonwealth and Anglosphere countries," he said. "These parts of the world are growing faster than Europe. We share history, culture and language. We even share similar legal systems. The usual barriers to trade are largely absent." (Reporting by Tom Westbrook; Editing by Nick Macfie)
By Nathan Layne
(Reuters) - Tom Coughlin, a former No. 2 executive at retailing giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc and protege of founder Sam Walton, died on Friday, the company said. He was 66.
Coughlin joined Wal-Mart in 1978 and was instrumental in helping build the company from its humble roots in Bentonville, Arkansas, into the world's largest retailer, with thousands of stores across the U.S. and overseas.
Coughlin was also at the center of one of Wal-Mart's biggest scandals, resigning in 2005 after an internal investigation found he misappropriated as much as $500,000 in company funds. He pleaded guilty in 2006 to tax evasion and wire fraud.
The 6-foot-4 Coughlin was a towering figure who still held sway in Bentonville after the scandal. He had a consultancy and was sometimes called on by Wal-Mart executives for advice.
Chief Executive Doug McMillon circulated a note to senior executives about his death.
"Our hearts go out to the family of Tom Coughlin, who passed away earlier today. Like me, many of you worked with Tom over his more than 26 years with the company," McMillon said in the note, which was seen by Reuters. "I know firsthand how much he loved our associates and this company."
Coughlin had been in the intensive care unit of a hospital for several days, people familiar with the situation said. The cause of death could not be immediately confirmed.
No one at the Coughlin family could be reached for comment.
Coughlin began his career in the company's security division and rose the ranks to hold a number of senior roles including head of the U.S. retail division and vice chairman.
Like Walton, his hunting buddy who died in 1992, Coughlin was known for visiting stores and speaking directly with rank-and-file staff. Coughlin was also a tough task master: managers were expected to stand at his meetings and were reminded of the virtues of quick execution by a quote from World War Two General George Patton he put on the wall.
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Ronald Loveless, a retired Wal-Mart executive, said Coughlin had a knack for getting the most out of people.
"As long as you did your job, he would back you and support you, run through the wall for you," Loveless said. "If you didn't, he had no use for you. There's another gentleman I remember just like that. His name was Sam Walton."
(Reporting by Nathan Layne in Chicago; Editing by Nick Macfie)
By Makiko Yamazaki SAKAI, Japan (Reuters) - Foxconn and Sharp Corp <6753.T> on Saturday formally signed a long-awaited deal that would see the Taiwan firm take control of the Japanese display maker, as executives sought to dispel lingering doubts over whether Sharp can turn around its ebbing fortunes. At a packed news conference following the signing of the $3.5 billion deal, Foxconn CEO Terry Gou ducked questions about how - and when - Sharp would become profitable again, but expressed confidence in the Japanese company's ability to bounce back with its highly regarded technology. Gou pointed to Sharp's proprietary know-how to mass-produce the advanced IGZO (indium gallium zinc oxide) display technology as a standout, calling it superior to the popular OLED (organic light-emitting diode) technology. IGZO technology is used in products such as Apple Inc's iPad. "Everybody is saying OLED," Gou said at the event held at Foxconn and Sharp's jointly owned liquid crystal display factory in Sakai, western Japan. "If I was an engineer, I would choose IGZO," he said, noting that they were more energy-efficient than OLEDs. Gou said he expected IGZO technology to be used in 60 percent of Sharp's displays in future, against 40 percent for OLEDs. Nonetheless, turning around a company saddled with losses after two bank bailouts would not be easy and would require Foxconn to work "very hard," Gou conceded. "I'm not going to sugar-coat the challenges," he said. "But I have a clear roadmap in my heart," the Foxconn chief added, suggesting that a detailed turnaround plan for Sharp is far from finalised. Gou said the management had ambitious plans for Sharp to be a key player in next-generation consumer products, including the Internet of Things and "smart" home appliances. "If we cannot drive changes in Sharp our global competitors will eat us alive." Gou said he would try to retain all the jobs at Sharp, though he noted that Foxconn laid off 3-5 percent of its low-performing employees every year. Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co <2317.TW>, agreed to take a two-thirds stake in Sharp at a big discount to its original offer this week, after wrangling over potential liabilities that sowed more doubts over whether the two companies can work together to spark a revival in the Japanese firm. The deal provides cash-strapped Sharp with funds that the Japanese company said would be used in large part to start mass-producing OLED screens, which Apple is expected to adopt for its future iPhones. Sharp is playing catch-up with Korean rivals in OLED panels. (Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki in SAKAI, Additional reporting by JR Wu in TAIPEI; Writing by Chang-Ran Kim; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
By Lisa Baertlein LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Even as General Mills Inc and other companies vow to keep fighting mandatory labeling of genetically modified food ingredients, they have begun rolling out these disclosures across the United States to comply a new Vermont law. The moves come as U.S. lawmakers are unlikely to derail Vermont's law requiring labels on foods made with genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, before it takes effect on July 1. The law sets fines of $1,000 per day per product for noncompliance. "We can't label our products for only one state without significantly driving up costs for our consumers, and we simply will not do that," General Mills recently said on its blog. Earlier this month, the U.S. Senate blocked a bill that would nullify state laws requiring GMO labels and leave such disclosures to the discretion of manufacturers. A similar bill stalled last year. The stakes are extraordinarily high for "Big Food," which depends on ingredients such as corn and soybeans that have been engineered to produce genetic traits such as resistance to insects and pesticides. The United States is the world's largest market for GMOs, which are in the vast majority of packaged foods made there. More than 90 percent of the nation's corn and soybean production is GMO. The combined value of those GMO crops came to $77.6 billion in 2015. The $363 billion U.S. packaged food industry worries that consumers will shun food containing GMOs, forcing manufacturers to switch to more costly, traditional ingredients. Label advocates describe GMO products as "frankenfoods" and say consumers deserve to know what they are eating. One food industry representative, who requested anonymity, said Senate attention had waned after the bill's failure and that there was a lack of consensus over how to proceed. Republican Senator Pat Roberts of Kansas, who sponsored this session's bill to stop Vermont's law, has said he would keep fighting, but he acknowledged the challenge of forging a deal this year. "The unwillingness to compromise by Senate opponents to my bill is about to hit both farmers and consumers directly in the pocketbook," Roberts said in a statement. Coalition for Safe and Affordable Food spokeswoman Claire Parker also said the odds this year were against a solution palatable to her group, which represents food and biotech seed industry efforts to stop mandatory GMO labeling. "The Senate is in danger of ceding control of labeling for a nation of 300 million to a state of only 600,000 people," Parker said. Meanwhile, General Mills, Campbell Soup Co, Kellogg Co, ConAgra Foods Inc and Mars said they were adding GMO labels to their product packaging. The industry is still fighting the Vermont law in federal court. Its lawyers argued their case before the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in October, and a decision could come before July 1. Connecticut and Maine have passed GMO labeling laws, but they will not take effect until more states enact similar measures. Bills are pending in 31 states. (Additional reporting by Karl Plume in Chicago and Patricia Zengerle in Washington; Editing by Peter Henderson and Lisa Von Ahn)
Sao Paulo (AFP) - Police made several new arrests Friday during fresh raids in a probe into money laundering accusations against crisis-hit President Dilma Rousseff's party.
The federal police said in a statement it launched "a new front in investigations" into a "money laundering scheme" involving the ruling Workers' Party (PT).
The sprawling scandal threatens to bring down the government of Latin America's biggest economy, which hosts the Olympic Games in August.
Police said they had warrants to detain two people and question two more, including former PT treasurer Delubio Soares, who was jailed over a previous bribery scandal involving the party.
Friday's raids in Sao Paulo were part of Operation Car Wash, a wide-ranging investigation into corruption at state oil firm Petrobras.
Rousseff faces impeachment proceedings alongside a separate set of allegations of financial wrongdoing.
Her fight against impeachment gathered speed Thursday when tens of thousands of people marched nationwide to oppose what they branded a "coup" against her.
Rousseff's chief ally in the crisis -- ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva -- meanwhile won a court battle that removes him from the jurisdiction of a crusading anti-corruption judge.
Friday's raids aim "to deepen the investigation into the money laundering scheme" involving a bank linked to Petrobras and cash that was allegedly used to pay off PT debts, the police statement said.
By Lefteris Papadimas ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece demanded an explanation from the International Monetary Fund on Saturday after an apparent leaked transcript suggested the IMF may threaten to pull out of the country's bailout as a tactic to force European lenders to more offer debt relief. EU/IMF lenders will resume talks in Athens on Greece's fiscal and reform progress next week aiming to conclude a bailout review that will unlock further loans and pave the way for negotiations on long-desired debt restructuring. The review has been adjourned twice since January due to a rift among the lenders over the estimated size of Greece's fiscal gap by 2018, as well as disagreements with Athens on pension reforms and the management of bad loans. Internet whistleblowing site WikiLeaks published what it said was the transcript of a March 19 conference call of three senior IMF officials discussing tactics to apply pressure on Greece, Germany and the EU to reach a deal in April. The officials were quoted as discussing a threat that the fund might not participate in Greece's third bailout program as a way to force EU creditors, especially Germany, to reach a deal on debt relief before Britain's June referendum on whether to stay in the European Union. "The Greek Government asks the IMF for explanations whether pursuing the creation of bankruptcy conditions in Greece, just before the British referendum, is the Fund's official position," government spokeswoman Olga Gerovasili told state television. An IMF spokesman in Washington said the Fund did not comment on "leaks or supposed reports of internal discussions" but added that the IMF had made its position known in public. "We have stated clearly what we think is needed for a durable solution to the economic challenges facing Greece - one that puts Greece on a path of sustainable growth supported by a credible set of reforms matched by debt relief from its European partners," the spokesman said. TSIPRAS SAYS IMF 'PLAYING GAMES' The purported conversation involved Poul Thomsen, head of the IMF's Europe department, and Delia Velculescu, leader of the IMF team in Greece, and IMF official Iva Petrova. They discussed whether Greece could apply more austerity as a condition for receiving more aid ahead of big debt repayments in July and voiced frustration at the European Commission's reluctance to side with IMF pressure on Athens. They also suggest that Brussels is sticking to unrealistic assumptions about Greece's budget shortfall to minimize the need for debt relief, which is unpopular with Germany and other northern euro zone hawks. If concluded the review will unlock a fresh tranche of about 5 billion euros, which Greece needs to pay off state arrears and ECB and IMF maturing debt. Greece has no major debt redemptions due until July. The Greek government interpreted the leak as revealing an IMF effort to blackmail Athens with a possible credit event to force it to give in on pension cuts which it has rejected. However the transcript, if genuine, appeared to suggest Thomsen saw more prospect of the IMF applying pressure on German Chancellor Angela Merkel to concede debt relief to keep the fund involved in the bailout and secure Greek cooperation in managing Europe's pressing refugee crisis. "Basically we at that time say "Look, you Mrs Merkel you face a question, you have to think about what is more costly: to go ahead without the IMF, would the Bundestag say 'The IMF is not on board'? or to pick the debt relief that we think that Greece needs in order to keep us on board?" Right? That is really the issue," Thomsen was quoted as saying. Commenting on the leak, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told weekly newspaper Ethnos: "It seems that some people are playing games with an aim to destabilize us. We will not allow (IMF's) Thomsen to destroy Europe." (Reporting Lefteris Papadimas in Athens and David Lawder in Washington; Editing by Paul Taylor and Helen Popper)
ONTARIO, Calif.CalExotics recently earned a Red Dot Award in product design for its Silhouette S8.
We are greatly honored and humbled by this award. My team sought out to create something unique and after thoughtful planning the S8 was crafted. Winning the Red Dot Award gives us a huge sense of accomplishment, said Susan Colvin, founder and CEO of CalExotics.
The Silhouette S8 is a body forming massager featuring a completely flexible design, giving users endless possibilities in the bedroom. Twist, turn or bend the S8 in any direction and it will provide unrelenting pleasure wherever youd like. The uniquely shaped massage is made of body-safe silicone and is USB rechargeable making it an environmentally friendly product eco-conscious user can enjoy.
The Silhouette collection by CalExotics is no stranger to awards. In 2015, Silhouette received a Creativity 45th Print and Packing Award for its outstanding creative design. Jackie White, Executive Vice President for CalExotics says, Silhouette is one of our top performing collections. From its sleek packaging to unique product designs this collection has it all.
Participants from 57 nations registered 5,200 products for the Red Dot Award in product design for 2016. Only products that set the bar in innovation, formal quality, functionality and ecological compatibility receive such a high honor. A total of 41 experts compose the Red Dot jury, with judges from all around the world to ensure strict standards and fairness.
The Red Dot Award will be presented during an awards ceremony in July in Germany. All award-winning products will be presented in the special exhibition Design on Stage for four weeks, before becoming part of the permanent exhibition.
CalExotics plans to give even more people a chance to see the Red Dot Design Award-winning Silhouette S8 during a contest this month. Consumers now have the opportunity to bring home an S8, visit this link or the CalExotics Facebook page. Visit Club CalExotics for reviews, articles and videos on this versatile product.
To see more on the Silhouette S8 visit CalExotics.com. To learn more about the Red Dot Awards and to see a full list of winners, visit Red-Dot.org.
Athens (AFP) - Greece on Saturday demanded "explanations" from the International Monetary Fund after WikiLeaks said the lender sought a crisis "event" to push the indebted nation into concluding talks over its reforms.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said he would write to IMF chief Christine Lagarde and reach out to European leaders, after the website published what it said was a transcript of a teleconference in which IMF officials complained that Athens only moves decisively when faced with the peril of default.
An "event" was therefore needed to drive the threat of default and get the Greeks to act, the officials say in the document dated March 19, and released by the whistleblowing website Saturday. The nature of such an "event" is not specified.
The officials also express concern that Britain's referendum in June on EU membership will hold up the negotiations, predicting that the vote will halt the talks on Athens' latest massive international bailout "for a month".
The Greek government reacted strongly to the report, saying it wanted the IMF to clarify its position.
"The Greek government is demanding explanations from the IMF over whether seeking to create default conditions in Greece, shortly ahead of the referendum in Britain, is the fund's official position," spokeswoman Olga Gerovassili said in a statement.
Tsipras' office added: "The Prime Minister will immediately send an official letter to Christine Lagarde over the issue."
In an emailed statement, the IMF said it did not comment on leaks or "supposed reports of internal discussions".
"We have stated clearly what we think is needed for a durable solution to the economic challenges facing Greece -- one that puts Greece on a path of sustainable growth supported by a credible set of reforms matched by debt relief from its European partners," it added.
- 'We need an event' -
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Those taking part in the leaked discussion were Iva Petrova and Delia Velculescu, who have been representing the IMF in the negotiations with Greece, and Poul Thomsen, director of the Fund's European Department.
In it, Thomsen allegedly voices exasperation with the slow pace of talks on the economic reforms Athens has agreed to carry out in exchange for a new 84-billion-euro ($95 billion) international bailout agreed in July, after months of bruising negotiations that saw Greece teeter on the brink of a eurozone exit.
The IMF has yet to officially sign onto Greece's latest bailout and is making its participation conditional on the fact that no ground is yielded on the reforms needed by Athens, especially on pensions.
"In the past there has been only one time when the decision has been made and then that was when (the Greeks) were about to run out of money seriously and to default," Thomson is quoted as saying in the transcript.
Later in the conversation, Velculescu reportedly replies: "I agree that we need an event, but I don't know what that will be."
She also says that Eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselboem is trying to "jump start" a discussion on debt but "not to generate an event."
Mission chiefs from Greece's international lenders -- the EU, IMF, European Central Bank and European rescue fund -- are due to resume an audit of the reforms on Monday.
But the institutions are believed to be clashing over their assessment of the current state of the Greek economy, with the IMF worried that estimates drawn up by the EU and Greece do not add up.
In the WikiLeaks transcript, the IMF officials allegedly say Greece's leftist government is "not even getting close" to accepting their views.
"(The Greeks) don't have any incentive and they know that the (European) Commission is willing to compromise, so that is the problem," Velculescu is cited as saying.
Athens is under pressure to address the large number of non-performing loans burdening Greek banks and to push forward with a pension and tax overhaul resisted by farmers and white-collar staff.
Tsipras has accused the IMF of employing "stalling tactics" and "arbitrary" estimates to delay a reforms review crucial to unlock further bailout cash.
Gunmen on a speedboat have kidnapped four Malaysians from a ship off the east coast of Sabah state in waters where Abu Sayyaf militants are known to operate, the Malaysian government said Saturday.
If the Philippine Islamist group is confirmed to be behind the kidnapping, it would be their second such hostage-taking in as many weeks and comes amid an uptick in such attacks.
"Malaysia strongly condemns the senseless and barbaric act," a foreign ministry statement said.
The ministry added it would work closely with Philippine authorities on investigations and towards securing the Malaysians' release.
Philippine regional army spokesman Felimon Tan said the military was verifying the reported kidnapping after Malaysian authorities informed them of the incident on Friday.
"Whether or not they were seized by the Abu Sayyaf or brought to the Philippines, we have yet to confirm," Tan told AFP.
Sabah police commissioner Abdul Rashid Harun told Malaysia's official news agency Bernama that authorities were still investigating if the kidnapping occurred in Malaysian or international waters.
"The area is vast and we have our assets there. So we are investigating whether it happened in or off our waters," he was quoted as saying by Bernama.
"The five other individuals in the ship comprising Myanmar and Indonesian nationals were released."
Malaysia's foreign ministry said the kidnapping occurred while the MV MASFIVE 6 barge was returning to Malaysia from the Philippines.
Many Western and other embassies routinely issue warnings against travelling to most of the Philippines' Muslim-populated southern regions, which lie just northeast of Sabah, because of the risk of being abducted by the Abu Sayyaf.
On Tuesday, officials said that 10 Indonesian sailors had been kidnapped in waters off the southern Philippines. The incident was believed to have happened last Saturday.
The Philippine military said initial information indicated the sailors may have been taken by an Abu Sayyaf faction to Sulu, a remote southern island that is a hideout of the militant outfit.
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Someone claiming to be from Abu Sayyaf called the vessel's owners to demand a ransom for the sailors' release.
Other recent kidnappings, including of two Canadian tourists and a Norwegian resort owner in areas previously considered beyond the group's reach, have further raised fears.
Last year, Malaysian Bernard Then was kidnapped from a seaside restaurant in Sabah, about 300 kilometres (180 miles) from the Abu Sayyaf's Jolo stronghold. He was later killed by the group.
The Abu Sayyaf has staged cross-border raids into Malaysia before, including in April 2000 when gunmen seized 21 European and Asian tourists from a dive resort. They were released in batches after a ransom was paid the following year.
Founded in the 1990s with the help of late Al-Qaeda mastermind Osama Bin Laden, the Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for some of the Philippines' worst terror attacks, including bombings and kidnappings for ransom.
No web-connected service is safe. If you need more proof of this, consider a recent alleged attack on a porn site that apparently gave a hacker access to more than 237,000 accounts. In the aftermath of the Apple vs. FBI squabble over iPhone encryption, this is a reminder that strong security is needed for connected devices and products.
DONT MISS: April Fools' roundup: All the best jokes from around the web
According to Motherboard, an unknown hacker claims to have stolen the login credentials belonging to users of a porn website called Team Skeet, part of the Paper Street Media (PSM) network.
Motherboard was able to verify some of the credentials the hacker offered, but couldnt confirm whether the hacker indeed had access to that many accounts or whether they were stolen in a recent heist.
I want to publicly shame them for their poor practices, the hacker says.
Hes now selling the credentials on the dark web for almost one bitcoin, or around $400 each. The data includes user names and passwords, as well as physical addresses and emails. The hacker told Motherboard he had access to credit card data but did not take it. The credentials, however, supposedly work on 23 online properties belonging to PSM.
Meanwhile, PSM representatives claim that the breach dates back to 2008. Since then, the security of the network was improved, after PSM decided against paying the ransom.
PSM further said that the company doesnt erase usernames, which explains the number of items in this database. However, as a username expires, it loses access to the sites.
Even so, the hacker proved to Motherboard that he or she could breach the Team Skeet website by briefly defacing it on March 31st. This suggests PSMs security isnt as strong as initially believed.
It appears the hackers tried to contact PSM before reaching out to the press by inquiring whether theres a bug bounty policy in place with the company. But PSM didnt seem to care.
Related stories
Story continues
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More from BGR: Googles hilarious April Fools joke backfires spectacularly
This article was originally published on BGR.com
Port-au-Prince (AFP) - Haiti's interim leader, Jocelerme Privert, officially swore in his cabinet Monday, promising an urgent push forward to get the Caribbean nation's electoral process back on track.
"You will not have the luxury of any grace period: It is already time to get to work" he told cabinet ministers at the National Palace.
Haiti has been fighting to emerge from a political crisis since a runoff presidential election in January was suspended amid allegations of fraud on the part of the government.
Privert, 62, was named acting president to replace the outgoing Michel Martelly and appointed a prime minister in late February -- former central bank governor Fritz-Alphonse Jean. But lawmakers rejected his program to form a government, so Jean could not serve.
Privert, whose mandate began February 14 and is to last 120 days, went back to the drawing board and named Enex Jean-Charles as prime minister.
The 55-year-old civil servant and professor of administrative law has previously served as an adviser to several presidents.
The 15-member cabinet proposed by Jean-Charles was approved in both the senate and the lower chamber.
Privert's main job going forward will be to steer the electoral process back on track and hold the postponed runoff vote.
In October Martelly's favored candidate, Jovenel Moise, won the first round of presidential voting 33 percent to 25 percent over runner-up Jude Celestin.
The opposition politician denounced the results as a "ridiculous farce."
A scheduled January 24 runoff between Moise and Celestin was canceled when Celestin refused to participate unless widespread electoral reforms were enacted, and following violence and protests.
Thirty years after the end of the Duvalier dictatorship, Haiti is still struggling to hold credible elections that would boost development and raise the standard of living for the 60 percent of the population living below the poverty line.
Haiti also is still dealing with the aftermath of the powerful January 2010 earthquake that killed some 160,000 people and caused widespread destruction.
Lima (AFP) - Half of the candidates in Peru's presidential election have abandoned or been banned from next week's polls and one of the leading contenders may follow, plunging the South American country into political uncertainty.
An electoral law in force since January has ruled several candidates out of the running in the April 10 contest. One is even running his campaign from a jail cell.
And further disruption could come if accusations of vote-buying lead to the elimination of banker and economist Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, who is running second in the polls to the conservative Keiko Fujimori, daughter of Peru's jailed ex-leader Alberto Fujimori.
Their faces are already printed on 20 million ballot papers, but they have each been accused of handing out money or gifts to voters during their campaigns.
The new law passed in January cracks down on such activities.
The 40-year-old Fujimori was spared Friday when the National Electoral Board ruled her candidacy could move forward.
A local electoral court is hearing charges against 77-year-old Kuczynski. A ruling is due soon.
Critics complain the new rule is being applied arbitrarily.
"We are the only country in the region with a law that allows for candidates to be banned from an election," said electoral expert Fernando Tuesta.
He said that had not happened since 1950 when the country was under a military dictatorship.
The president of the electoral board, Francisco Tavara, insisted its judges were impartial.
- Banned from the race -
The law originally aimed to strengthen the multi-party system by eliminating vote-buying, said Tuesta.
But lawmakers toughened it so that now a candidate can be excluded even at the last minute before voting starts.
"It has brought us to a dead end," Tuesta told AFP.
Electoral observers say the law sows uncertainty among voters.
"It allows for candidates to be excluded at a very late stage in the electoral process. That is a problem -- it affects candidates and citizens," said Renate Weber, head of the European Union's observation mission.
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The election race started with 19 candidates. Five were banned or dropped out before ballot cards were printed, and four more have given up since.
Centrist economist Julio Guzman was barred for irregularities in party primaries.
Another previous favorite, millionaire former governor Cesar Acuna, was banned for giving out money at a rally.
Of the remaining 10 contenders, leftist former governor Gregorio Santos is campaigning from jail where he is being held over corruption charges.
And an investigation was launched Friday into former president Alan Garcia, who is running fifth in the polls.
Organization of American States head Luis Almagro wrote on Twitter Friday - after meeting with Guzman - that election officials should let the candidates kicked off the ballot run to avoid a "semi-democratic" election.
- 'Tension and mistrust' -
The elections are a decisive moment for Peru, one of the fastest-growing economies in Latin America. While several of its major neighbors have slowed down, its economy grew by more than three percent last year.
President Ollanta Humala, who took office in 2011 and has seen his popularity plummet, is barred from standing for re-election, while his Nationalist Party has pulled its presidential and congressional candidates because of little support.
By law, if a group does not receive at least five percent of the vote they will no longer be formally recognized as a political party.
The state ombudsman warned of "tension and mistrust with regard to the current electoral process," blaming "last-minute" amendments to the electoral law.
Analysts say it is the most turbulent election since 2000, when Alberto Fujimori was accused of cheating in his failed bid to win a third term.
Alberto Fujimori, 78, who also holds Japanese citizenship, is in jail for human rights crimes. He was convicted in 2009 for several crimes including his role in the killings of supposed guerrillas by a death squad in the 1990s, and is serving a 25 year sentence.
Despite that history, his daughter is polling as favorite to become Peru's next president.
A survey by pollster Datum published Friday showed that Fujimori had 36 percent support in a first-round vote, and would then win a run-off, set for June 5.
Its the U.S. Mints birthdayin honor of this Philadelphia-based institution, see how much you know about U.S. coins.
Congress established the U.S. Mint on April 2, 1792. It was the first prominent building established under an act from the new Congress. The Coinage Act of 1792 called for 10 coins to be minted, with the silver dollar as the base unit; gold and copper coins were also in the mix.
The original coins didnt have images of people. Instead, most had the words Liberty and the figure of an eagle on the coin.
The act required that the mint be near the nations capital, which was Philadelphia at the time.
A controversial part of the act was Section 19, which called for the death penalty for anyone found debasing, diluting, or embezzling coins from the Mint.
President George Washington appointed David Rittenhouse as the first director of the Mint. Washington also lived near the Mint and is believed to have donated some of his own silver for the first coins.
The Mint has an interactive timeline of key events in its history, from the Colonial days until now.
But lets see how much you know about U.S. coins. (And please, no looking through your change as you take the quiz!)
Note: If you have problems viewing the quiz, use this link: http://ncc.polldaddy.com/s/u-s-mint-trivia-know-your-presidential-coins
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Mumbai (AFP) - Angry villagers blocked a group of women activists from entering the inner sanctum of a temple in western India Saturday, despite a court order mandating Hindu women's right to worship.
The high court in Mumbai said Friday women had a fundamental right to enter temples and directed authorities not to bar them from any Hindu place of worship across the state of Maharashtra.
Buoyed by the high court order, a group of about 30 women activists tried to enter the shrine of Shani Shingnapur temple in Ahmednagar district on Saturday, television footage showed.
But hundreds of villagers -- both male and female -- who believe in the centuries-old tradition of barring women from entering the shrine formed a human wall, forcing the female protesters to retreat.
"The honourable court has recognised our right to pray. Police must provide us protection and allow us to enter the shrine," Trupti Desai, the activists' leader, told TV channels.
"We will not leave without entering the platform (where the Shani idol is kept)," she said amid chaotic scenes on the temple grounds.
A few Hindu temples in India ban women from entering the inner sanctum, with Kerala's famous Sabarimala temple barring all female worshippers aged between 10 and 50 years.
The court also said Friday that state authorities must implement a 1956 law on Hindu worship, which stipulates that a person who prevents women from entering a temple can be imprisoned for six months.
The court's directive came after Desai challenged the ban and called it "a symbol of gender inequality" that should not be tolerated in the 21st century.
Women have also been prevented from entering Mumbai's Haji Ali Dargah mausoleum since 2011, with its trust saying close female proximity to the tomb of a revered saint is "a grievous sin" in Islam.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had earlier voiced support for Desai, saying Indian culture and Hindu religion gave women the equal right to pray.
Around 80 percent of India's 1.2 billion population is Hindu, but the country is also home to large numbers of Muslims, Christians and Buddhists.
- Defending champion Saina Nehwal stormed into a home turf semi-final at the India Open on Friday, with Japan's number two seed Kento Momota booking his place in men's event. Second seed Nehwal had a tough fight to down fifth seed South Korean Sung Ji Hyun in 83 minutes. The 26-year-old dropped the first set but battled hard to win 19-21, 21-14, 21-19 in front of a cheering home crowd. The Olympic bronze medallist will next meet world number 2 Li Xuerui of China, who beat compatriot Wang Shixian 22-20, 12-21, 21-17 in the quarters. Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon defeated Taiwan's eighth seeded Tai Tzu Ying 12-21 21-14 22-20 in another quarter final, while India's Pusarla Sindhu lost to South Korean Bae Yeon Ju 15-21, 21-15, 21-15. On the men's side, Japan's Kento Momota thrashed Denmark's Hans-Kristian Vittinghus 21-8, 21-9 to qualify for the next round.
AFP
New Delhi (AFP) - Defending champion Saina Nehwal stormed into a home turf semi-final at the India Open on Friday, with Japan's number two seed Kento Momota booking his place in men's event.
Second seed Nehwal had a tough fight to down fifth seed South Korean Sung Ji Hyun in 83 minutes.
The 26-year-old dropped the first set but battled hard to win 19-21, 21-14, 21-19 in front of a cheering home crowd.
The Olympic bronze medallist will next meet world number 2 Li Xuerui of China, who beat compatriot Wang Shixian 22-20, 12-21, 21-17 in the quarters.
Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon defeated Taiwan's eighth seeded Tai Tzu Ying 12-21 21-14 22-20 in another closely contested quarter final match, while India's Pusarla Sindhu lost to South Korean Bae Yeon Ju 15-21, 21-15, 21-15.
On men's side, Japan's Kento Momota thrashed Denmark's unseeded Hans-Kristian Vittinghus in straight sets 21-8, 21-9 to qualify for the next round on Saturday.
Fifth seed Dane Viktor Axelsen beat Wei Nan of Hong Kong 21-17, 21-12.
On Thursday star shuttlers Lin Dan of China and Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei crashed out of the tournament.
The finals for both the men's and women's singles will be played on Sunday at New Delhi's Siri Fort stadium.
VIENNA (Reuters) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani postponed a two-day visit to Austria indefinitely for security reasons on Tuesday, the evening he was supposed to arrive in Vienna, his Austrian counterpart's office said. It was not clear what the security reasons were, a spokeswoman for Austrian President Heinz Fischer's office said. A planned Rouhani visit to Baghdad immediately before the Austrian trip had, however, also been postponed for security reasons, Fischer's office and an Iranian official said. "We were working (on preparations) until 5, 5:30 p.m.," the spokeswoman said, underlining the short notice as Rouhani had originally been expected to arrive around 7:30 p.m. local time. The visit was due to be Rouhani's second to the European Union since international sanctions against his country were lifted in January under a landmark nuclear deal with major powers that was negotiated in Vienna last year. The Austrian Chamber of Commerce had said 1 billion to 2 billion euros ($1.1 billion to 2.3 billion) of business deals would be signed, a sum dwarfed by Rouhani's visits in January to Italy and France but still significant for much smaller Austria. Rouhani, the chief architect of the nuclear deal and keen to open Iran's economy to the world, had been due to meet Fischer and other officials on Wednesday and Thursday. Fischer issued a statement expressing regret and understanding at Rouhani's move, without explaining it. "Of course, it goes without saying that each state must make its own decisions about security and the head of state's security," Fischer said. "The quality of relations with Iran will not be affected by this postponement." (Reporting by Francois Murphy and Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
City officials are planning to lower the speed limit on many streets.
Blythe Bailey, administrator of the city transportation department, said the faster that drivers go the more likely they and others are to be injured or killed in traffic crashes.
Members of the City Council indicated they plan to go along with the changes.
It was noted that when drivers go too fast, it is hazardous for children and others to make it safely across city streets.
Councilman Moses Freeman said when the speed limit was raised on MLK Boulevard that it killed the local businesses as would-be customers sped by.
Here are the changes to be considered April 5 and 12 :
In accordance with the provisions of Sections 24-241 through 24-245 of this Code, the maximum speed on the through streets designated by Schedule I and the additional streets listed herein is as follows:
Removing the following specific speed limits:
Central Avenue, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from East Third Street to Rossville Boulevard.
Chamberlain Avenue, North, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Citico Avenue to Glass Street.
Derby Street, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Third Street to Citico Avenue.
Dodson Avenue, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Third Street to Glass Street.
Dodson Avenue, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Wilder Street to Harrison Pike.
Hamill Road, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Hixson Pike to State Route 153.
Hamill Road, Forty (40) miles per hour from State Route 153 to Cassandra Smith Road.
Jersey Pike, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Oakwood Drive to Highway 58.
Jersey Pike, Forty (40) miles per hour from Shallowford Road to Hancock Road.
Manufacturers Road, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Cherokee Boulevard to U.S. Highway 27.
McCallie Avenue, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Central Avenue to Houston Street, and forty (40) miles per hour from the eastern side of McCallie Avenue Tunnel to Central Avenue.
Ninth Street East, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Georgia Avenue to Central Avenue.
Rossville Avenue, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Main Street to Central Avenue.
Thirty-Eighth Street, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Alton Park Boulevard to Thirty-Seventh Street.
Tunnel Boulevard, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Wilcox Boulevard to New York Avenue.
Wilhoit Street, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Rossville Boulevard to Main Street.
Adding the following specific speed limits:
Bonny Oaks Drive, Thirty-five (35) from New York Avenue to Parkway Drive.
Campbell Street, Thirty-five (35) from Glass Street to New York Avenue.
Central Avenue, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from East Eleventh Street to Rossville Boulevard.
East Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Twenty-five (25) miles per hour from Georgia Avenue to Central Avenue.
Hamill Road, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Hixson Pike to Cassandra Smith Road.
Jersey Pike, Thirty-five (35) miles per hour from Shallowford Road to Bonny Lake Lane.
McCallie Avenue, Twenty-five (25) miles per hour from Central Avenue to Georgia Avenue and thirty-five (35) miles per hour from the eastern side of McCallie Avenue Tunnel to Central Avenue.*
Tennessee Avenue, Twenty-five (25) miles per hour from St. Elmo Avenue to West Thirty-Seventh Street.
Baghdad (AFP) - Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi called Saturday for legal action over allegations that senior officials took millions of dollars in bribes to help major firms secure lucrative oil sector contracts.
Abadi instructed the country's anti-corruption commission to take "legal measures" and called for the judiciary to pursue prosecutions connected to the scandal, a statement from his office said.
The allegations of corruption came to light in an investigation by The Huffington Post and Fairfax Media, which reviewed thousands of internal documents from Monaco-based firm Unaoil.
The report "revealed the involvement of senior Iraqi officials... in corrupt deals and bribes related to oil contracts during the period of previous governments", the premier's statement said.
The investigation found that Unaoil agreed to pay millions of dollars to influence Iraqi officials including oil ministers Hussein al-Shahristani and Abdul Karim Luaibi, the former of whom also served as deputy premier for energy affairs, to help secure contracts for its clients.
Unaoil clients in the Middle East included Rolls-Royce, Weatherford, Petrofac, Clyde Pumps, Cameron/Natco, FMC Technologies, Saipem, SBM Offshore, MAN Turbo and Leighton Offshore, according to the report.
At a news conference on Saturday, Shahristani, who is currently minister of higher education, denied having had contact with Unaoil.
He also said in a statement that if the evidence on which the investigation was based is not turned over to the Iraqi government, it should file a defamation suit.
The report on oil sector corruption has already sparked action in Europe.
Authorities in Monaco searched Unaoil's headquarters and the homes of company officials and also questioned leaders of the firm, the principality said in a statement.
This was done at the request of Britain's Serious Fraud Office as part of "a major corruption case with international ramifications," the statement said.
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On its website, Unaoil says that it "invests locally in frontier markets to provide local capabilities at international standards using leading technology".
"This has made us as the local partner of choice for larger international companies," it says.
Iraq is plagued by endemic corruption that has robbed the country of huge sums of money that could otherwise have been spent on development and services.
Abadi has announced a series of reform measures aimed at reducing government waste and curbing corruption.
But the powerful parties and politicians who benefit from the existing system have opposed the changes behind the scenes, and little in the way of lasting change has been achieved.
By Firas Makdesi PALMYRA, Syria (Reuters) - Islamic State militants retreating from Palmyra laid thousands of mines that they planned to set off simultaneously as the army moved in, a Syrian officer told Reuters in the ancient city after its recapture from the jihadist fighters. The officer said main streets and side roads in Palmyra had been rigged with explosives weighing up to 50 kg. More than 3,000 had already been safely detonated since government forces, backed by Russian jets, retook the city on Sunday, he said. He did not say why the Islamic State fighters failed to set off the explosives before pulling out, but his assertion echoed comments from Syria's antiquities chief, who said the militants intended to dynamite a greater area of the city's 2,000-year-old ruins than they already had. The officer, who did not give his name, said the bombs left behind were linked so they could go off together. "All the government buildings are rigged in a network connected to the Daesh leadership headquarters," he said, using an Arabic acronym for Islamic State. "The idea was that as we enter it would all go off at once, not just bomb by bomb. And there are a really huge number of bombs." Islamic State's defeat in Palmyra was not only a significant military victory for President Bashar al-Assad, opening up the country's central desert to government forces and their allies. It also cast the Syrian army as an effective fighting force against jihadists bent on cultural vandalism and wanton killing. A military source told Reuters on Saturday troops had identified 45 bodies in a mass grave in Palmyra, including civilians and Syrian army members captured by Islamic State. Parts of Palmyra have been cleared, including the road from Homs. But Syrian soldiers -- soon to be joined by Russian de-mining experts -- are still working on defusing or detonating explosives. "We cannot leave them there. We are dealing with 90 percent of them by exploding them because they are buried firmly in the ground, cemented in the asphalt," the officer said. Civilians, most of whom fled before Syrian and allied forces began the offensive, cannot return until de-mining is complete. Smoke could be seen rising from some parts of the modern, residential city of Palmyra, which lies next to the 2,000-year-old ruins, during a visit by journalists on Friday. But few people were to be seen and no shops were open. Residential areas had been damaged and traces of explosions could be seen on the ground. GRAFFITI ON RUINS As well as a network of bombs, Islamic State left traces of their 10-month rule in Palmyra. Graffiti was evident on some of the ancient stones. "Remaining", it read, part of the Islamic State motto of "remaining and expanding". On a stone among the remains of the Temple of Bel was scrawled: "No shooting without the permission of the Emir." A signpost on a road through the ruins, now bent at 90 degrees to the ground, tells travelers in the group's trademark black and white colors to "Respect God". "When we show humility, God will deliver us," the sign says, above a passage from the Koran which says: "God made you victorious at the (battle of) Badr when you were but a humble (force)," referring to a battle from the early Muslim era which the ultra-hardline group looks back to with reverence. The ancient Roman amphitheatre, where Islamic State shot dead around 20 men as it took over the city last May, appears unscathed. The Temple of Bel, an imposing monument before it was blown up last year, has been reduced to a couple of columns and a heap of rubble, although antiquities chief Maamoun Abdelkarim says it is not totally beyond repair. Other structures blown up by Islamic State include Palmyra's triumphal arch, three funerary towers and the temple of Baal Shamin. Before serious renovation can take place, officials say, the area needs to be made fully safe. Moscow has sent de-miners to help with the clear-up, and Russian military servicemen will start defusing mines in Palmyra in a few days, Russian news agencies reported on Saturday, citing the defense ministry. The first batch of specialists has left Russian airbase Khmeimim in western Syria. The convoy, consisting of more than 20 vehicles, will be guarded by Mi-24 and Mi-28 helicopters. The de-miners will deal with more than 180 hectares of territory, Russia's defense ministry has said, citing initial estimates. The aim is to clear the historic part of the ancient city as well as residential areas. (Writing by Lisa Barrington in Beirut.; Additional reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin in Moscow and Kinda Makiyeh in Damascus; Editing by Dominic Evans and Larry King)
Jerusalem (AFP) - Israeli army chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot sent a letter Wednesday warning troops to use appropriate force, after a soldier was caught on video shooting dead a wounded Palestinian assailant.
The soldier -- who last week shot the Palestinian in the head while he was lying prone on the ground -- has been arrested and strongly condemned by top military officials.
But far-right politicians and protesters have rallied to his cause, criticised the military's response and demonstrated for his release.
Following the soldier's arrest, posters were distributed calling for Eisenkot's resignation.
The chief of staff, seen by some Israelis as a voice of moderation amid a wave of violence that erupted in October, said in the letter that soldiers must always behave professionally.
"In all situations, we must act in a professional manner, using force in a measured and considered way in order to remain faithful to our values," Eisenkot said.
"We will not hesitate to hold accountable soldiers and officers who do not respect operational and moral criteria that guide us in our actions."
The 19-year-old soldier who shot the Palestinian appeared in a military court on Tuesday as several hundred of his supporters protested outside.
Prosecutors were seeking to extend his remand in the case, which has gripped the country and sparked political tensions, and the judge decided that he be kept in custody until Thursday.
The soldier's identity has remained secret under a gag order, granted at the request of his lawyers. He holds both Israeli and French nationality.
Video of Thursday's killing in the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron spread widely online and threatened to further inflame Israeli-Palestinian tensions.
It showed a 21-year-old Palestinian, who along with another man had allegedly stabbed a soldier minutes earlier, lying on the ground, apparently after being shot.
The soldier then shoots him again, in the head, without any apparent provocation.
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- Political tensions -
A poll released by Israel's Channel 2 television showed 57 percent of Israeli Jews were opposed to the soldier being prosecuted.
Rights activists have labelled it a summary execution, while Palestinian leaders have called on the United Nations to investigate alleged Israeli "extrajudicial killings".
The activist who shot the video of the incident has said he and his family have since received threats.
The soldier's arrest reportedly sparked a heated debate at Sunday's weekly Israeli government cabinet meeting.
Education Minister Naftali Bennett has defended the soldier, saying he "is not a murderer".
"Have we lost our minds? We are at war, a war against brutal terrorism," he said.
He and the soldier's lawyers have said he may have thought the Palestinian had explosives, though he had reportedly been checked for a suicide belt prior to the shooting.
Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon has hit back, criticising those conducting an "unprecedented incitement campaign against the army, chief of staff, and senior commanders."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu joined condemnations of the soldier's behaviour last week but appeared to backpedal slightly Sunday as political pressure mounted.
In remarks before Sunday's cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said the investigation must take "into account all conditions."
Netanyahu leads one of the most rightwing governments in Israeli history but holds only a one-seat majority in parliament.
It is not the first time Eisenkot has been criticised by the far right.
Some objected to a speech he made in February in which he warned against excessive force.
Eisenkot said that "when there's a 13-year-old girl holding scissors or a knife and there is some distance between her and the soldiers, I don't want to see a soldier open fire and empty his magazine at a girl like that."
Violence since October has left 200 Palestinians and 28 Israelis dead.
Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, according to Israeli authorities.
But Israeli forces have also been accused of using excessive force in some cases, charges which they have firmly denied.
Beersheba (Israel) (AFP) - Israel has spirited 19 Jews out of war-torn Yemen in a "covert operation" to rescue some of the last remnants of one of the world's most ancient Jewish communities, officials said Monday.
The operation transporting them to Israel almost brings to an end the presence of the Jewish community in Yemen, which once numbered around 60,000 people and dates back some 2,000 years.
Only 50 or so Jews now remain and have chosen to stay in the war-ravaged Arabian Peninsula country, according to the Jewish Agency, responsible for immigration to Israel.
Most of them -- around 40 -- live in a protected compound adjacent to the US embassy in Sanaa.
"Nineteen individuals arrived in Israel in recent days, including 14 from the town of Raydah and a family of five from Sanaa," the agency said in a statement.
"The group from Raydah included the communitys rabbi, who brought a Torah scroll believed to be between 500 and 600 years old."
Rabbi Salman Dahari, red-eyed and looking exhausted after his travels, told reporters the scroll had been passed down in his family.
"I got it from my father who was also a rabbi who inherited it from my grandfather, another rabbi," he said in the desert city of Beersheba in southern Israel, where the group will stay initially.
The Yemeni capital and the town of Raydah to its north are both controlled by Iran-backed Huthi-rebels who are battling loyalists of the internationally recognised government and its supporters in a Saudi-led coalition.
The agency declined to provide details of the operation, but a spokesman said it took several months to prepare.
- 'A secret operation' -
Seventeen of those brought to Israel arrived on Sunday night. The other two arrived over the preceding days.
They were taken to an immigration centre in Beersheba.
"We are really tired. We crossed three countries," Dahari said, before being interrupted by an agency official telling him not to elaborate on the details of the journey.
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"If you only knew," Jewish Agency spokesman Yigal Palmor told AFP.
"Maybe one day we'll make a movie out of it. We are talking about a secret operation in a hostile environment. It is not easy to transport people who are visibly and recognisably Jews."
"Being a Jew in Yemen right now is extremely dangerous," Palmor said. "The Huthi militants, for example, are openly anti-Semitic."
Esther, 11, told of her life in Sanaa.
"We were afraid of the tribes," she said. "They used to throw things at us and hit us. Here is nicer than Yemen."
On Monday evening the group was taken to Jerusalem to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and pose for pictures with the unrolled yellowed Torah scroll.
"It's moving that you know how to read the Torah," a statement from Netanyahu's office quoted him as telling them in Hebrew. "That is the foundation.'
The Jewish Agency also arranged for the remains to be brought to Israel of Aharon Zindani, a Jewish man stabbed to death in Sanaa in 2012 by a Muslim who accused him of witchcraft.
Zindani's son and his family arrived in Israel from Sanaa in the latest operation.
- Operation Magic Carpet -
Yemen has been gripped by violence since September 2014, when the Huthis, who had long complained of marginalisation, stormed Sanaa and forced the government to flee south.
The Saudi-led coalition began bombing Huthi positions across Yemen in March last year, but the insurgents still control swathes of the country including the capital.
Al-Qaeda and Islamic State group jihadists have gained ground in southern Yemen since the coalition launched its air campaign.
The Jewish Agency says that more than 51,000 Yemenite Jews have immigrated to Israel since the country was founded in 1948.
Nearly 50,000 were brought over in 1949 and 1950 in a secret airlift known as Operation Magic Carpet.
The Jewish community in Yemen continued to dwindle in subsequent decades, and by the early 1990s it numbered only around 1,000 people.
The lifting of a longstanding travel ban in 1993 sparked a fresh exodus.
Since 2007, authorities in Yemen have moved members of the minority community from the northern province of Saada to the safe compound in Sanaa.
"This chapter in the history of one of the worlds oldest Jewish communities is coming to an end, but Yemenite Jewry's unique, 2,000-year-old contribution to the Jewish people will continue in the state of Israel," the agency said.
Elsewhere in the Muslim world, Iran, Morocco and Tunisia still boast significant Jewish communities.
In Egypt, and war-torn Iraq and Syria, few if any Jews remain.
Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel's top court on Sunday struck down a landmark deal regulating exploitation of Mediterranean gas reserves, in a major defeat for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who called the ruling "mystifying".
A panel of Supreme Court justices said in their ruling that a clause in the plan that prevented it from being changed for a decade was unacceptable.
"We have decided to cancel the gas deal because of the stability clause" that would have barred future governments from altering the deal, they said.
The court however suspended the ruling for a year to enable the parliament to amend the agreement.
Critics of the deal between the Israeli government and a consortium, including US firm Noble Energy, praised the ruling while Netanyahu said it threatened the development of Israel's gas reserves.
Israel's development of its Mediterranean reserves hold serious implications for the country's efforts toward energy independence.
It could also have an impact on regional diplomacy since Israel is expected to export some of its gas.
Netanyahu, who pushed forward the deal and even appeared at the court to defend it, used an obscure clause to override the anti-trust authorities.
That allowed it to move forward with the approval of the economy minister -- a portfolio he holds after the previous one resigned over the gas deal.
-'Mystifying ruling'-
The court ruling was praised by members of the opposition parties, some of whom were part of the petition against the deal.
Opposition leader and Labour head Isaac Herzog called the court's decision "correct and courageous".
"The government can't bind its hands and judgement," he said on Twitter of the so-called stability clause.
Netanyahu disagreed, saying the decision posed a "severe threat to the development of Israel's gas reserves."
"Israel is perceived as a country with exaggerated legal intervention, in which it is hard to do business," he said in a statement.
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"Nobody has reason to celebrate the fact the gas might remain in the depth of the sea, and hundreds of billions of shekels won't reach Israeli citizens," he said.
"We'll find other ways to overcome the severe damage to Israel's economy following this mystifying ruling."
Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked called the ruling a "crude and unnecessary intervention in a government decision".
"It is unacceptable that the government holds the responsibility to the economy and prosperity of the state, but remains without the necessary authority to take action," she said in a statement.
The deal would now have to return to parliament, where its supporters would face fierce opposition and a narrow majority that might not ensure its passing in a similar format.
The Leviathan consortium, however, remained upbeat on the possibility of moving ahead with the planned development of the reservoir.
"The court in its ruling accepted the entire gas deal except for the stability clause," they said in a statement.
"The judges also realise the necessity of regulatory stability and creating conditions to enable the necessary investments to seek and develop gas reservoirs.
"We call upon the government to swiftly regulate the stability conditions so we can meet the deal's goals, first and foremost developing Leviathan by 2019," it said.
The deal, signed in December with Noble and its Israeli partner Delek, would have regulated the development of the Leviathan field in the eastern Mediterranean, one of the biggest recent natural gas discoveries, in addition to other issues.
The consortium is said to have agreed to invest $1.5 billion to develop the Leviathan field over the next two years.
Failing to meet the requirement would have allowed the government to back out of a commitment not to alter fiscal and regulatory terms for the gas industry until 2025.
Israel has been trying to extract offshore gas since the discovery of the Tamar and Leviathan fields in 2009 and 2010.
Production has begun in Tamar, but the far larger Leviathan has been hit by a series of delays.
The size of the Leviathan field is estimated at 18.9 trillion cubic feet (535 billion cubic metres, or bcm) of natural gas, along with 34.1 million barrels of condensate.
Noble and Delek also control Tamar, which holds 250 bcm of natural gas, and lies 80 kilometres (40 nautical miles) west of the Israeli port of Haifa.
All eyes focused today on the March jobs report, with the S&P (^GSPC) little changed after the Labor Department reported that 215,000 jobs were added last month, accompanied by moderately rising wages and an uptick in the participation rate.
But overlooked was arguably the biggest story of the day: Chinas manufacturing report. Chinas official manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) showed growth for the first time in eight months. The PMI jumped to 50.2 in March, the first time since July that it exceeded 50, the dividing line between growth and contraction.
This surprisingly strong official PMI release points to stronger growth momentum in March and was largely supported by domestic demand, especially property and infrastructure investment as a result of policy easing, said Nomuras Yang Zhao. Evidence suggests policy easing could be more aggressive than we had expected, fiscal and quasi-fiscal policy easing in particular , which means a rebound could be stronger and more lasting than we initially thought.
Last month, officials at the National Peoples Congress pledged action to meet their 6.5% to 7% GDP growth target for this year following reassurances given at the G20 meeting, according to analysts. Still, uncertainty and fears about an economic hard-landing in worlds second largest economy remain elevated for Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.
As Deutsche Banks Torsten Slok noted earlier this week, Janet Yellen has become increasingly focused on the potential impact of the rest of the world on the US economy and Fed policy. This rang true during her latest speech at the Economic Club of New York on Tuesday, where she reasserted her dovish stance on monetary policy going forward.
Slok tallied up the frequency with which Yellen has made reference to forces like China and the rest of the world.
Looking forward however, we have to take into account the potential fallout from recent global economic and financial developments, which have been marked by bouts of turbulence since the turn of the year, Yellen said. There is a consensus that China's economy will slow in the coming years as it transitions away from investment toward consumption and from exports toward domestic sources of growth. There is much uncertainty, however, about how smoothly this transition will proceed and about the policy framework in place to manage any financial disruptions that might accompany it.
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Its worth noting that manufacturing activity has picked up in the worlds largest economy: the US.
The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) manufacturing index hit 51.8 in March, up from from 49.5 in February. Its the first time that the gauge reflected growth, exceeding 50, since August.
All of these improvements are sure to put pressure on the Fed to tighten monetary policy sooner than later.
Photo taken on March 30, 2016 shows the International Media Center at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington D.C., United States, March 30, 2016. The Nuclear Security Summit 2016 will be held here from March 31 to April 1. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)
The fourth Nuclear Security Summit is being held in Washington DC on March 31and April 1, with Chinese President Xi Jinping in attendance.
One great disappointment is the absence of Russia from the summit, claiming a lack of cooperation from the USA in the preliminary work. Given that the two countries between them possess 90 percent of the world's nuclear weapons, this means that progress towards disarmament - which itself would improve security by reducing the number of targets for interference - is likely to be limited. (However, U.S. officials have confirmed that, even outside the summit, constructive bilateral dialogue on nuclear security issues is continuing.)
In contrast, the relationship between China and the U.S. in nuclear security cooperation has shown a distinctively positive trend. Just recently, on March18, China and the U.S. inaugurated a bilateral center of excellence to establish best nuclear security practice, in Changyang industrial park near Beijing. This was originally agreed in 2011 and has now come to fruition, demonstrating that this series of summits produces tangible results.
The Chinese priorities for the summit, as set out by Vice Foreign Minister Li Baodong at a press briefing before President Xi's departure, are to consolidate the international consensus on nuclear security, promote capacity-building in individual countries and boost cooperation between them, and establish common practice and a global nuclear security culture.
China's view is that this should not be an occasion for international rivalry or nit-picking, as the dangers this summit is intended to address are not great-power conflicts, for which an appropriate dispute resolution structure already exists, but those of unauthorized access to nuclear weapons by non-state entities and terrorist groups. Here the Chinese view does not significantly differ from that of the U.S. and other major players: in February Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Washington as part of the preparation for the summit, and achieved a broad consensus of views on the issue with President Obama. At the opening of the summit, President Obama welcomed the participation of "a peaceful, strong China."
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ASTANA (Reuters) - Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev's Nur Otan party won 82 percent of the vote in Sunday's snap parliamentary election criticized by Western observers as falling short of democratic standards, preliminary figures showed on Monday. Nazarbayev, 75, congratulated his party at a "victors' forum" event in Astana where he walked triumphantly to the stage as thousands of youths dressed in his party's blue and yellow colors chanted: "Nursultan! Nur Otan!" "This is a great accomplishment of our democracy," he said. The election could open the door for Nazarbayev's daughter Dariga to enter parliament under a party list, a move that would fuel speculation about her as a possible future leader. The result is unlikely to surprise anyone in the oil-rich Central Asian nation Nazarbayev has run since 1989, brooking little dissent. It has never held an election judged free and fair by Western observers. Observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said the vote had fallen short of commitments for democratic elections. "It is clear that Kazakhstan still has a long way to go towards fulfilling its election commitments, although some progress was noted," Marietta Tidei, OSCE Special Co-ordinator for the election observation, told reporters. "The ruling party had a clear advantage over others in these elections, and while the parties were generally able to campaign freely, genuine political choice remains insufficient." DAUGHTER DARIGA Nazarbayev called the vote in January, apparently favoring an early election in case the economy, hit hard by the slump in the price of oil, were to worsen in the course of the year. The Central Election Commission said two other parties, the Communists and Ak Zhol, had passed the 7 percent threshold needed to win seats, meaning that the lower house, the Mazhilis, will include the same three parties as before. Three other parties, the Social Democrats - who denounced the poll as rigged - as well as Birlik (Unity) and Auyl (Village), won less than 7 percent each. Still unclear is the makeup of Nur Otan's faction, as it has a list of 127 candidates vying for places in the 107-seat Mazhilis. Observers are focusing, in particular, on the president's daughter, Dariga Nazarbayeva, who is deputy prime minister and also on the party list as a candidate. Her potential move to parliament, where she could become the speaker of the lower house, would be interpreted as a step towards an eventual transition of power to her. Nazarbayev said on Sunday the vote was unlikely to result in a major reshuffle of cabinet ministers. (Reporting by Raushan Nurshayeva; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Ralph Boulton)
Donald Trump's entire campaign for president was just one huge April Fools' joke, if Jimmy Kimmel is to be believed.
Never shying away from a good prank, Kimmel created a mock ad mixing real Trump footage with a fake Trump voiceover, introducing it as a "bombshell revelation."
"Our country is totally divided - there's so much hatred," says fake Trump. "So that's what I made my campaign about."
He continued, "I said the craziest things I could think of." The video then showed Trump talking about the implications of his small hands and his love of the poorly educated.
"I had no idea it would go this far. No matter how insane I got, millions of you came to support me," says the voiceover. Then comes the revelation, "April Fools America, I'm not really running for president, it was a joke." Kimmel's team superimposed the words "April Fools" onto a sign Trump held up at a rally.
"I can't believe you bought these crappy hats," he said at the end of the clip over an image of the "Make America Great Again" caps. Watch the clip below.
Read More: Stephen Colbert Moderates a "Donald Trump Versus Donald Trump" Debate
Tallinn (AFP) - A Kurdish migrant to the US who became a billionaire by topping its yoghurt market on Friday called for entrepreneurs to help run refugee camps.
Hamdi Ulukaya, who makes a point of employing refugees at his US-based Chobani yoghurt factories, said business people had a role to play in managing refugee camps because organisations like the United Nations had failed to do it well.
Entrepreneurs "have to bring innovation to this area (refugee camps). What are the modern tools we can bring into the camps to make it more humane and faster?" he told delegates at the Creativity For Change Forum, part of Estonia's Tallinn Music Week.
"If you look at how people have suffered (in) these places... you would think 'why did these institutions not act in time?' That goes not only for the United Nations, but also government level, and the European Union, and NGOs...
"I've not seen so much weakness for a long time. There is so much waste. The UN is not working. It's too dysfunctional, too bureaucratic. The UN has never been so important and has never been so dysfunctional."
Ulukaya also called on people to reassess the way they looked at refugees.
"The word 'refugee' used to mean people who bring science and innovation. Now it means people who bring trouble," said Ulukaya, also the founder of refugee charity Tent.org.
"As entrepreneurs, we have to look at it from a completely different perspective. We need to completely change the system, and rebrand refugees," he said.
"We need to separate the terrorists from those who are terrorised."
Ulukaya, 43, is also a member of the Giving Pledge, a campaign intended to encourage the world's wealthiest business people to share their riches.
Launched by US billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffet in 2010, Richard Branson, Tim Cook, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are among its 143 members.
BISHKEK (Reuters) - Kyrgyzstan's president, unsettled by an intelligence report of a coup plot, accused his political opponents on Thursday of trying to destabilize the country by escalating a border standoff with Uzbekistan. Not clearly demarcated, the border zone is a source of bilateral tensions and Uzbekistan stationed two armored personnel carriers and about 40 soldiers there last week, prompting smaller Kyrgyzstan to reinforce deployments on its side. Almazbek Atambayev described the situation there as "tense and unfriendly" and said some of his opponents had tried to foment violence. "Those who say 'Let us oust the Uzbek border guards by force' are effectively calling for war," he told reporters on the 11th anniversary of a revolt that ousted one of his predecessors. "I think this has nothing to do with patriotism and is a betrayal of Kyrgyzstan's national interests." On Tuesday Kyrgyzstan, Russia's closest ally in the Central Asian region, called a meeting in Moscow of a Russia-led security bloc in response to the standoff. Atambayev said he would cancel a planned visit to Uzbekistan in June, to attend a summit of another regional security body, unless the border standoff was resolved. According to the Kyrgyz state news agency, Uzbekistan had since withdrawn the armored vehicles and both countries pulled back most of the soldiers, leaving only a few border guards. Atambayev also referred to allegations made on Wednesday by the state security service that several politicians had been planning to oust him by staging riots across the former Soviet republic. "(Those accused) must be judged according to the law," he said. Violent protests brought down two of the last four Kyrgyz presidents, Askar Akayev in 2005 and Kurmanbek Bakiyev in 2010. The state security service has not charged anyone. But it questioned two opposition politicians, Bektur Asanov and Kubanychbek Kadyrov, according to Zamira Sydykova, the editor-in-chief of Respublika newspaper which is often critical of the government. She told Reuters security service officers escorted both men out of her office. In a statement identifying them only by their initials, the service said they were suspected of "planning actions aimed at destabilizing the social and political situation in the country which were to be followed by the implementation of a plot to violently seize power." Asanov is a former governor of the Jalalabad region, where the border standoff is taking place, and Kadyrov is a former deputy interior minister. Attempts by Reuters to contact both men, who belong to the country's National Opposition Movement, were unsuccessful. Atambayev's presidency ends at the end of next year and he cannot run for a second term. Kyrgyzstan, a mostly Muslim nation of 6 million, hosts a Russian military air base. Its economy has suffered from Russia's recession and slowdowns in other neighboring countries including China. (Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; editing by John Stonestreet)
A last-of-its-kind rocket stage that was left over from a cancelled, controversial chapter in NASA's space shuttle history is hitting the road for Cleveland.
The Centaur-G Prime liquid-fueled upper stage, which was built in the 1980s to launch with a robotic probe inside the space shuttle's payload bay, was hoisted by a large crane onto a wheeled trailer at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama on Wednesday (March 30). The 30-foot-long (9 meter) artifact had been on exhibit adjacent to the museum's full-size space shuttle model, Pathfinder.
"The Centaur is being moved from here to [NASA's] Glenn Research Center in Ohio, where it will be restored and put on display," stated Tim Hall, the vice president for business and media initiatives at the rocket center. "Glenn managed the Shuttle-Centaur program." [NASA's Space Shuttles: Where Are They Now?]
"This is the 75th anniversary of Glenn Research Center, so the timing for us works out really well," David DeFelice, the community relations and artifacts manager at Glenn, said. 'We're planning to have an open house May 21 and 22, so we'll be able to have it here and set up for folks to be able to take it in."
Originally scheduled to fly in 1986, the Centaur-G's use on board the space shuttle was cancelled after the Challenger accident that year. At the time of the tragedy, two Centaur-G Prime stages were in preparation to launch with NASA's Ulysses and Galileo planetary spacecraft to study the Sun and Jupiter, respectively.
A cryogenic liquid-fueled stage, the Centaur was deemed to be too much of a risk to launch on the space shuttle lest another in-flight emergency occur. Although safety precautions had been in place, the program was shelved in favor of a solid-fueled upper stage, which was later used to launch Ulysses and Galileo on the shuttle.
"The Shuttle-Centaur required a lot of complex equipment and was filled with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen that would have been troublesome to maintain in the payload bay throughout launch and on-orbit operations and posed a greater risk than traditional solid propellant stages," said Ed Stewart, director of exhibits and curation at the Space & Rocket Center.
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One of the Centaur-G Prime stages built for the shuttle is believed to have been modified for the launch of NASA's Cassini probe to Saturn atop a Titan IVB rocket in 1997.
The Space and Rocket Center had labeled the Centaur-G now being moved as a mockup, though there is some data that points to it being the other stage originally built for the program. Glenn Research Center's records identify it being a high-fidelity ground test article.
The Centaur-G Prime was exhibited in Huntsville courtesy of General Dynamics, the contractor for the stage, and the nearby NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, which had the responsibility of qualifying the hardware. Glenn Research Center (formerly Lewis), where the stage is now bound for display, developed the Centaur stage, which first launched atop an Atlas rocket in 1963.
"We're going to put it in front of our administration building, near the main gate," said DeFelice. "It is a good prominent viewing spot for one of the most significant artifacts and projects that we have had over the years, and that is the overall Centaur program."
Work to move the Centaur began earlier in March but was delayed as the center needed to arrange for a larger crane to hoist the 14,000-pound (6,350 kg) artifact. In addition to the stage itself, the CISS or Centaur Integrated Support Structure that would have held the stage in the shuttle's payload bay is also being shipped to Ohio.
The Centaur-G and CISS are expected to arrive in Ohio by early to mid-next week.
"We are honored to have shared the Centaur story," said Stewart. "The rocket center is one of the nation's premiere space museums and we believe the Centaur helped us tell the shuttle story in a powerful way."
See more photos of the Shuttle-Centaur being moved onto its transport at collectSPACE.
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Photo provided by Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on March 24, 2016 shows the top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un guiding a ground test for heavy-lift, solid-fuel rocket engine and its separation. [Xinhua/KCNA]
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has test-fired "new-type anti-air guided rockets" under the observation of its top leader Kim Jong Un, the country's official KCNA news agency reported Saturday.
The rockets accurately hit the aerial targets of the simulated enemy, the KCNA said without specifying when and where the test was carried out.
Kim was satisfied with the test, saying it demonstrated the DPRK's rapidly growing defense capability.
The DPRK on Friday fired a ground-to-air missile into its eastern waters, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The launch came just three days after Pyongyang fired a rocket in northeastern direction.
Pyongyang's frequent projectile launches in recent weeks are said to protest the ongoing U.S.-South Korea joint military exercises and newly-adopted international sanctions on the DPRK.
In early March, UN Security Council adopted tougher-than-ever sanctions on Pyongyang over its fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6.
On March 7, South Korea and the United States kicked off their joint annual war games "Key Resolve" and "Foal Eagle." The "Key Resolve" exercise ended last month, but the "Foal Eagle" field training exercise is scheduled to last till April 30.
Pyongyang has repeatedly denounced the U.S.-South Korea military exercises as a dress rehearsal for northward invasion.
Washington (AFP) - The Pentagon warned Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi that he will eventually "taste justice" as the US military continues to target the jihadist group's upper ranks.
"We are hunting him, and we will find him," military spokesman Colonel Steve Warren said.
"Just like we found his mentor, (Abu Musab) al-Zarqawi and killed him. Just like we found the grand master of terrorism, Osama bin Laden, we killed him. We are going to find Baghdadi, and he will taste justice."
Warren's prediction comes after the US-led coalition has targeted several senior IS leaders in Iraq and Syria in recent weeks, including Abd ar-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli -- also known as Haji Imam -- who was second-in-command of the extremist group.
"I don't know if that justice will look like a Hellfire missile, or if it will look like a dark prison cell somewhere, but he will find justice one day," Warren said of Baghdadi.
The US Justice Department had offered a bounty of up to $7 million for information leading to Qaduli. He had been seen as an eventual successor to Baghdadi, for whom a $10 million reward has been offered.
Warren said Baghdadi spends his time in both Iraq and Syria, where the IS group seized large areas of territory in 2014.
Pentagon chief Ashton Carter last week said the military was "systematically eliminating" the IS group's leadership.
Omar al-Shishani, the man known as "Omar the Chechen," who was effectively IS's defense minister, was also killed last month.
MONROVIA (Reuters) - Liberia closed its border with Guinea on Tuesday as a precaution against Ebola following at least four deaths from the virus in Guinea, Information Minister Lenn Eugene Nangbe said. The deaths occurred since Feb. 29, while Liberia was declared free of new transmissions of the virus in January. "We have ordered the border with Guinea closed with immediate effect. The border will remain closed until the situation in Guinea improves," Nangbe told Reuters. "We are not taking any chance at all," he said. A team of medics with protective gear had been sent to the border to improve surveillance. The haemorrhagic fever has killed about 11,300 people in the two countries plus Sierra Leone since late 2013 and it caused global alarm in 2014 as governments and health agencies rushed to help contain the outbreak. New cases have dwindled virtually to zero but the U.N. World Health Organization warns of flare-ups, or emerging clusters, of new cases. (Reporting by Alphonso Toweh; Writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
April is shaping up as possibly a defining moment for Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in the primary season. Here is a look at how those races break down.
clintonsanders536
Unlike the Republicans, who use a complicated system of winner-take-all, winner-take-most, loophole and proportional primaries, the Democrats have a more straightforward system. Most Democratic primaries are proportional, where the candidates divvy up elected delegates based on their share of voting within a state or territory.
Related Link: The numbers behind the April primaries: The Republicans
The bigger difference from the Republicans is the importance of so-called Super Delegates in the Democratic races. These are party leaders are unpledged delegates who get to attend and vote at the party convention in Philadelphia, and they can vote for anyone on the ballot. They are not elected. In 2008, Barack Obama used his advantage over Hillary Clinton to secure the nomination, even though Clinton had more elected delegates.
But as of March 31, Clinton is leading Sanders in both categories, despite three recent wins in western states by Sanders.
The winner in Philadelphia will need 2,383 delegates to secure the nomination. Clinton has 1,266 elected or pledged delegates, compared with 1,038 for Sanders. However, Clintons estimated advantage in unpledged delegates is 471-31, giving Clinton an almost 700-delegate lead heading into April.
And also unlike the Republicans, with just two candidates in the race, there will be no chance of a contested convention in Philadelphia, unless the candidates tie on the first ballot.
Heading into April, 56 percent of delegates will have been chosen for the Democrats, and at the end of the month, 75 percent of the primary race will have concluded.
Here is a look at the eight primaries at stake in April.
Tuesday, April 5: Wisconsin (86 pledged, 10 unpledged)
Polls: Clinton leads by one point over Sanders
Tuesday, April 12: Wyoming (14 pledged delegates, 4 unpledged)
Polls: Not available
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Tuesday, April 19: New York (247 pledged, 44 unpledged delegates)
Polls: Clinton up by 35 points
Tuesday, April 26: Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware
The five states have a total 463 delegates, including 79 unpledged delegates. Pennsylvania is the big prize here, with 189 pledged delegates at stake.
Polls: Clinton up 34 points in New York, 27.5 points in Pennsylvania and 31.4 points in Maryland
The Bottom Line: Sanders could take Wisconsin, but if Clinton wins big in New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland, she will be in striking distance of the nomination. Currently with 1,737 delegates, Clinton could take a big share of the new 531 pledged delegates at stake in New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland, leaving her closer to the 2,383 delegates needed for the nomination. Sanders will need a strong April showing to slow the Clinton momentum, and he will keep winning to force a showdown on June 7 in the last, huge primary day.
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Berlin (AFP) - Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski admitted the Bavarian giants had Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final, first-leg, against Benfica firmly on their minds after their below-par 1-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.
Pep Guardiola's Bayern had to rely on a moment of genius from winger Franck Ribery, whose spectacular 20th minute bicycle kick sealed the Bundesliga leaders' victory on Saturday.
Lewandowski, the league's top scorer, had a quiet afternoon, failing to add to his tally of 25 Bundesliga goals this season and came off with 19 minutes to go at Munich's Allianz Arena.
"We definitely had the Champions League game against Benfica on Tuesday in our heads," Lewandowski admitted openly as they failed to convert their 21 shots into more goals against second-from-bottom Frankfurt.
"We have to play much, much better then than we did today.
"That wasn't a good games for the fans to watch."
Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has warned they can ill afford to rely on another super strike from Ribery against the Portuguese league leaders.
"What was most important was the three goals," said Rummenigge.
"But skills like that won't be enough on Tuesday.
"(Some of the media) have written the (Benfica) game off as a bye into the next round, but it's not a foregone conclusion.
"We have to play much better and be very concentrated."
Nevertheless, Bayern are five points clear in Germany's top flight with six games left.
They remain on course to become the first club to win four straight German league titles.
Bayern also claimed a league record with their eighth straight clean sheet against Eintracht Frankfurt.
No other club has managed the feat as many times in a row against the same opposition in the Bundesliga.
But even Guardiola was talking about Benfica just minutes after the final whistle against Frankfurt.
"I am very impressed with Benfica," said the Spaniard.
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"Here in Germany, everyone is very confident, but it will be difficult to reach the semi-finals.
"We started well (against Frankfurt) and had some good moves, nt just that crazy goal from Franck.
"Things would have got easier with a second goal, but now our full focus in on Benfica.
"I hope for a better performance."
Manama (AFP) - Renault driver Kevin Magnussen will have to start Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix from the pit lane for breaching weight check rules in practice on Friday, organisers said.
The Dane had finished 16th fastest in second practice -- when his infringement took place -- after being 15th quickest in the opening session.
"The driver failed to stop for weighing during P2 when signalled to do so by the red traffic light, the car was not returned to the FIA garage and work was undertaken," said a statement from the stewards which appeared on the official FIA website.
"In accordance with Article 29.1 of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations the driver is required to start from the pit lane."
RIYADH (Reuters) - The spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition battling the Iran-allied Houthis in Yemen has been quoted as saying major fighting in the country is drawing towards a close, one year after the military campaign began. Fighting on two of the main battlefronts in Yemen, along the border with Saudi Arabia and in the city of Taiz, has calmed this month following mediation by local tribes and there have been secret talks in Saudi Arabia towards finding a resolution. Saudi TV channel al-Arabiya quoted the spokesman, Brigadier General Ahmed al-Asseri, as saying on Thursday that "the major fighting in Yemen is nearing an end ... (and) the next phase is a stage of restoring stability and reconstructing the country". Arabiya gave no further details and Asseri could not be immediately reached for comment. The Saudi-led coalition began its military campaign a year ago with the aim of preventing the Houthi group and forces loyal to Yemen's ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh from taking control of the country. It also aims to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power in the capital Sanaa. Asseri and Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir have in recent days said that any peace talks can only take place between Hadi and the Houthis, and through the U.N. special envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed. Asseri announced last April that the coalition's initial operation had ended, saying it had "neutralized most of the military capabilities of the Houthi militias and their allies that represented a threat to Yemen and neighboring countries". However, the fighting then intensified as the coalition added small numbers of ground troops to support Yemeni fighters, backed by an increasingly heavy air campaign. The coalition retook Yemen's second city, Aden, from the Houthis and Saleh's forces in July, the northeastern town of Marib in September and the small northwestern port of Midi this year. Bitter fighting in Taiz since the autumn calmed somewhat this month and a Houthi siege of the city ended. Near-daily attacks on Saudi border positions have gone on for months, killing hundreds of the kingdom's soldiers and civilian residents of frontier regions. More than 6,000 Yemenis, about half of them civilians, have been killed in the fighting and airstrikes over the past year, the United Nations says. Millions more have been displaced. (Reporting By Angus McDowall; Editing by Gareth Jones)
By Katy Migiro NAIROBI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Malawi will reopen a former refugee camp to cope with an influx of around 250 Mozambicans a day fleeing political discord and worsening fighting between former civil war foes at home, the United Nations refugee agency said on Tuesday. The drought-stricken southern African nation will struggle to provide for the new arrivals, as the 25,000 refugees already in Malawi have been receiving half rations of food aid since October due to funding shortages [nL8N15334C]. Almost 11,500 Mozambican refugees have crossed into Malawi since December, UNHCR said, most of them going to Kapise, a village five kilometres inside Malawi and some 100 kilometres (60 miles) south of the capital, Lilongwe. "From around 130 people a day before late February we are now seeing around 250 people every day in Kapise," UNHCR spokesman Leo Dobbs told a Geneva briefing on Tuesday. "We need $1.8 million to meet immediate needs, but more will be needed to cope with the growing number of arrivals." Mozambicans who arrived earlier in the year spoke of having fled deadly attacks on their villages, he said, while more recent arrivals were fearful of clashes between the government and Renamo guerrillas. Renamo, Mozambique's main opposition group, has said it wants to take control of six northern provinces. Renamo fighters have attacked police outposts near the Malawi border, where they have public support, while government forces retaliate by torching villages where they believe rebels are hiding, security sources say [nL8N159160]. One million people died and a further million fled to Malawi during Mozambique's 1976 to 1992 civil war between Renamo, originally a guerrilla force backed by neighbouring white-minority powers and Frelimo, the communist movement which took power at independence in 1975 and remains the ruling party. Preparations are under way to reopen the former camp, Luwani, which closed in 2007. It is 65 kilometres from the border and has more space and better security than overcrowded Kapise, UNHCR said. The refugee influx is putting a strain on Malawi's stretched resources at a time when one of the worst droughts in its history is expected to plunge 2.8 million people into hunger. Aid funds are in short supply across southern Africa, where 14 million people need food aid as a result of the El Nino weather phenomenon. (Reporting by Katy Migiro, editing by Tim Pearce. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, womens rights, trafficking, property rights and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org to see more stories.)
Bamako (AFP) - Security forces in Mali said Tuesday they were hunting a fugitive gunman wounded in a failed attack on the headquarters of the European Union's military training mission in the capital.
"We are looking for a wounded terrorist, who ran off," a Malian security source told AFP, adding that one of two suspects arrested following Moday's attempted attack was a person "of interest" to the ongoing investigation.
An unknown number of gunmen attempted to force their way into the Azalai Nord-Sud hotel where the EU mission is based on Monday night, but were held back by return fire from security guards, with one attacker shot dead.
The establishment is in Bamako's upmarket ACI 2000 neighbourhood, also home to the luxury Radisson Blu hotel where 20 people were killed by Al-Qaeda-linked extremists in November.
A European military source said Tuesday the dead gunman was just 16 years old, reflecting a growing trend of young, sub-Saharan Africans staging attacks on hotels and symbolic Western targets in Mali, where once Arab and Tuareg fighters dominated.
"In his bag we found grenades and other evidence that clearly indicates he was a terrorist," including several documents, the source said.
No EU personnel were harmed in the attempted attack, the European Union Training Mission in Mali (EUTM) confirmed in social media postings.
Police showed AFP a photo they said was of the dead gunman, who was pictured shaven headed and wearing blue jeans, slumped in a pool of his own blood.
- Security stepped up -
The number of would-be attackers remains disputed, with as many as four and as few as two given by different authorities, and there has not yet been any claim of responsibility.
The EU training mission aims to reinforce the Malian army's ability to engage in combat operations as they battle a jihadist insurgency and rampant banditry across vast swathes of the desert nation.
Security was stepped up across Bamako on Tuesday, notably in the district where Mali's government ministries are located, with those lacking the correct identification turned away from work.
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Speaking while on a visit to Namibia, President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita told journalists the latest attempt to bring terror to Bamako's streets would not hold back attempts to implement a peace accord in Mali.
"We have come a long way," he said, referring to a landmark agreement reached last year between the Mali government and Tuareg-led rebels who have led several uprisings against the state.
"This agreement clearly disturbs the terrorists because it allows (us) to see from now onwards who is a terrorist, who is for peace in Mali and who is truly Malian," Keita added.
Since being chased from northern Mali by French-led forces in 2013, extremist groups once allied with Tuareg rebels have staged sporadic attacks on the country's military forces and the UN peacekeeping mission based in the country, killing dozens.
More recently they have turned to more spectacular civilian targets, with Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) claiming responsibility for three recent attacks in west Africa.
The chief of the UN mission Mahamat Salah Annadif called for a swift investigation into the perpetrators of the botched attack in a statement released on Tuesday.
"The enemies of peace are behind this act and those responsible must be identified and brought to justice," he said.
Max Irons ("Woman In Gold") and Holliday Grainger ("Cinderella") have been cast in the film adaptation of Jane Austen's "Sanditon", reports Screen Daily.
Irons and Grainger will be joining Charlotte Rampling ("45 Years") in the upcoming film to be directed by Jim O'Hanlon ("A Hundred Streets"). Filming is expected to begin in June in the UK.
Jane Austen's "Sandiion" follows the story of Charlotte Heywood (played by Grainger) who is invited by entrepreneur Tom Parker to spend the summer at the Sanditon seaside resort. She takes up the offer, curious to see the workings of high society.
This is the first time that Jane Austen's final and unfinished novel "Sanditon" has ever been made into a film.
By Karolina Tagaris and Lefteris Karagiannopoulos ATHENS (Reuters) - Migrant and refugee arrivals to Greece from Turkey rose sharply on Wednesday, just over a week after the European Union and Turkey struck an agreement intended to cut off the flow and as hundreds marched through central Athens to protest that deal. The demonstrators included human rights activists, students and migrants from among the thousands stranded in Greece by recent border closures across the Balkans. Greek authorities recorded 766 new arrivals between Tuesday morning and Wednesday morning, up from 192 the previous day. Most entered the country via the northeastern Aegean island of Lesbos. Italy reported an even larger jump on Tuesday, when officials there said 1,350 people - mostly from Africa - were rescued from small boats taking a longer migration route across the Mediterranean as the weather warmed up. The EU Commission said on Tuesday that flows from Turkey to Greek islands had reduced in the last week, with only 1,000 people arriving compared to an average of 2,000 a day in the last couple of months. It was not clear why numbers had dropped, but the Aegean Sea had been hit with bad weather and gale force winds, making the journey from Turkey on small rubber boats even more dangerous than usual. Under the deal in effect since March 20, migrants and refugees who arrive in Greece from Turkey will be subject to being sent back once they have been registered and their individual asylum claim processed. Returns are due to begin from April 4, and for each Syrian returned from the Greek islands to Turkey, one will be sent the other way for direct resettlement in Europe. Human rights groups and some governments have expressed concerns about the legality of the scheme. "We should be under no illusion that the EU-Turkey deal will bring an end to the refugee crisis," Jane Waterman, of aid group International Rescue Committee, said on Wednesday. Following the Balkan border closure that preceded the Turkey deal, an estimated 51,000-plus refugees and migrants, among them Syrians, Afghans, Iraqis and others fleeing conflict in the Middle East and Asia, are currently stranded in Greece. "OPEN THE BORDERS!" Some were among the around 1,000 people who joined the march to parliament and the adjacent local offices of the European Commission late on Wednesday, a police official said. They pushed children along in strollers and chanted "open the borders!" Others held up banners that read: "No borders, no nations, stop deportations" and "Abolish the racist EU-Turkey agreement." "I am here to press Greece to make Macedonia open the borders," said 26-year-old Afghan Mohammad Ansari who has been in Greece for a month. "Why are we staying here? We should go." Some of the protesters had taken the train to Athens from the nearby port of Piraeus, the country's biggest, where nearly 6,000 people remain stuck after having arrived there on ferries from Greek islands close to Turkey before the deal. Scores have found shelter in passenger waiting lounges while hundreds more sleep in the open, either in flimsy tents or on blankets spread on the dock. Queues for the few portable toilets are long, and scuffles have broken out in recent weeks over mobile phone chargers and food distribution. International rights group Human Rights Watch has described conditions at the port, including basic hygiene, as "abysmal". Among those stranded in Piraeus on Wednesday was Mariam El Musa, a 37-year-old teacher from Aleppo, Syria. "The problem here is the psychology of the people," she said. "People are angry and depressed because the borders are closed, because it takes ages to have a meal and because we are dirty... We Syrians thought we would stay in Greece for only two or three days." (editing by John Stonestreet)
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If you give the wind enough time and enough sand, it can move mountains, new research suggests.
A new study published this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters shows that the huge mounds of Martian dirt may have been carved by Martian winds over the course of billions of years.
"On Mars there are no plate tectonics, and theres no liquid water, so you dont have anything to overprint that signature and over billions of years you get these mounds, which speaks to how much geomorphic change you can really instigate with just wind," co-author of the study Mackenzie Day said in a statement.
SEE ALSO: NASA and Microsoft plan to take you to Mars with the HoloLens
"Wind could never do this on Earth because water acts so much faster, and tectonics act so much faster."
Spacecraft at Mars have seen these mounds of dirt, which pile in craters, since NASA's Viking missions in the 1970s.
More recently, NASA's Curiosity rover has been exploring Mount Sharp a 3-mile-high mound in Mars' Gale Crater. The rover discovered that thick mounds are made of sedimentary rock, with the bottom layers transported to craters by water millions of years ago.
The tops of the mounds were then crafted by winds moving material to other parts of the planet, according to the new study.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Theres been a theory out there that these mounds formed from billions of years of wind erosion, but no one had ever tested that before, Day added.
For this study, Day and her fellow authors tested that idea by creating a small crater filled with moist sand and placing it in a wind tunnel, mimicking the environment during the Martian epoch that saw the world change from cool and wet to cold and dry.
The scientists then tracked how the wind moved the material in the mock crater.
What the researchers saw in the wind tunnel looked like the Martian mounds and craters, according to the study.
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Researchers continue to piece together the Martian past in order to figure out if the red planet may once have hosted life.
Scientists know that Mars used to be warm and wet based on collected during other missions to the red planet. Curiosity, for example, found that the Gale crater once had the conditions to support life, and there may have been long-lived lakes on the world too.
NASA's MAVEN mission even figured out how the planet likely lost its atmosphere to space thanks to the sun's wind.
Mars' climate changed as the solar wind ripped away much of its atmosphere after its magnetic field disappeared about 4.2 billion years ago, according to recent estimates.
This story first appeared in the April 8 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
While the Crawleys of Downton Abbey might have scoffed their last supper, several new posh period dramas have appeared on the horizon looking to take their well-heeled place in the drawing room.
Among the major titles is Victoria, ITV Studios' big scripted push on the Croisette. It stars Doctor Who sidekick Jenna Coleman as a teen Queen Victoria and is earmarked as a Downton replacement, having been allocated that show's Sunday slot on Masterpiece when it lands in 2017. Then there's Hat Trick International's Doctor Thorne - adapted by Downton creator Julian Fellowes from the Anthony Trollope novel - another big-house-in-the-country affair that ticks the usual themes of fortune, marriage and entitlement and was nabbed by The Weinstein Co. And from War & Peace producers Lookout Point comes Amazon co-production The Collection, an ambitious delve into post-World War II Paris fashion that is being shopped by BBC Worldwide.
Despite his show's French storyline, Lookout Point CEO Simon Vaughan suggests Collection and others like it should doff their top hats to the recently departed Emmy-amassing great.
"Downton opened doors none of us could have believed would be opened," he tells THR, adding the show has become "everybody's best friend" when it comes to positioning "ambitious, returnable" period dramas. Ruth Clarke, executive vp global content strategy and investment at ITV Studios, adds that the U.K. industry repeatedly proves there remains an eager audience for high-end period dramas.
"Most international broadcasters would tell you that first and foremost they're looking for contemporary drama," she says. "Yet the British production community keeps bringing out these great period dramas that become global sensations."
Read More: Critic's Notebook: Farewell to 'Downton Abbey,' and to a More Gracious Time
By Anuradha Nagaraj CHENNAI, India (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - At least two children go missing every day in India's Tamil Nadu state, raising concerns they may be trafficked into prostitution, handed over to criminal gangs or sold for illegal adoption, the national human rights commission said. Alarmed by the disappearance of 271 children in Tamil Nadu in the first three months of 2016, the commission asked state authorities this week to account for the situation. "The mafia that controls begging and even those involved in child prostitution and adoption rackets could be behind these disappearances," the commission said in a statement. The Indian authorities say 2,711 children have disappeared in the southern state of Tamil Nadu in the past 15 months. However, comparative figures were not immediately available. In the past month alone, two infants were taken from their families in the port city of Chennai as they slept on the streets next to their homeless parents. Police said CCTV footage showed a car stopping near the pavement from where one child was abducted. "It seems to have been a planned snatching. The knot with which the mother had tied her 10-month-old daughter to her sari was cut and the baby quietly taken," a police officer told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, requesting anonymity. In the second case, an eight-month-old boy was taken as his family slept near a bus station. Rights groups say homeless children are particularly vulnerable to being exploited by traffickers, with many missing children sold on to unsuspecting adoptive parents or forced to beg by criminal gangs. "The poor have little resources and often hesitate to go to the police," said Andrew Sesuraj from the Tamil Nadu Child Rights Observatory, a non-governmental organization. "Their children are very vulnerable, lying in the open, their exhausted parents fast asleep nearby." India's women and child development ministry has introduced a scheme to track missing children across the country, CHILDLINE India Foundation, another child rights charity, said more needed to be done. "This will work only if there is a countrywide hook-up between the police and agencies working with children. Unless the details of missing children are immediately put out, the chances of finding them reduce," said Anuradha Vidyasankar, the head of CHILDLINE's office in Chennai. "A missing child is not just missing but actually getting into bigger trouble. The time factor is crucial because in a matter of two days the child can be taken out of the country," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. A Tamil Nadu state official said about a third of children reported missing to the police are eventually traced. (Reporting by Anuradha Nagaraj, Editing by Katie Nguyen; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking and climate change. Visit www.trust.org)
Nobody can say they didnt see this coming: A group of protesters who claim they were assaulted at a Donald Trump rally in Louisville, Kentucky, last month are suing Trump along with his presidential campaign, a white nationalist Trump supporter and two other men who attended the rally -- for assault, incitement to violence and various other charges.
The suit was filed in Jefferson County circuit court by Kashiya Nwanguma, Molly Shah and Henry Brousseau, three protesters who were physically removed from the rally at the instruction of Trump himself, speaking from the podium.
Related: 13 Awful Things More Popular than Donald Trump
In addition to Trump and his campaign, the suit names Matthew John Heimbach, a 25-year-old white nationalist activist who, among other things, has been banned from entering the United Kingdom because of his racist views and support of violence, as well as 75-year-old Alvin Bamberger.
The suit was filed on Thursday, just days after police in Jupiter, Florida, formally charged Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski with battery for manhandling a reporter following a Trump press conference in March.
The complaint alleges that Heimbach, Bamberger and a third unnamed individual pushed, punched and verbally abused the three protesters while forcing them out of the event.
The complaint says that Trump himself and his campaign apparatus are in part responsible for the violence at his rallies. Donald J. Trump has decided to break with American tradition and the rule of law by inciting his supporters to physically attack protesters at his rallies and campaign appearances. Worse still, these attacks often carry with them the blatant stamp of racism, religious intolerance, misogyny, or any combination of the three.
Related: The Simple Reason the GOP Wont Take trumps SC Delegates Away
The complaint details Trumps well-documented history of encouraging violence against protesters, and even offering to pay the legal fees of any who are charged as a result of injuring them.
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While telling his supporters to remove the protesters, Trump said Dont hurt em, but at the same time made it clear that wasnt his real preference in the matter by adding, If I say go get em I get in trouble with the press, the most dishonest human beings in the world.
As hes done in the past, Trump also expressed his longing for the days when violence at a political rally was socially acceptable.
In the old days, which isnt so long ago, when we were less politically correct, that kind of stuff wouldnt have happened.
Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Morocco has asked the United Nations to close a military liaison office in the disputed territory of Western Sahara as a spat between Rabat and the U.N. chief over his recent remarks escalates, a U.N. spokesman said on Monday. Dozens of U.N. international staffers pulled out of the Western Sahara mission, known as MINURSO, on Sunday after Morocco demanded they leave because U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon used the term "occupation" during a recent visit to the region. "MINURSO has ... received a request to close its military liaison office in Dakhla in the coming days, which would be the first request directly targeting the military component," U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters. "There is no reason, none, for this escalation," he said. MINURSO's mandate comes from the Security Council. "We cannot allow the principle to be upheld that member states can arbitrarily go against their status of mission agreements and their commitments under the U.N. charter ... to abide by Security Council resolutions," Haq said. Without a properly functioning peacekeeping mission, Haq said, there was a risk of a resumption of conflict. Ban planned to raise Western Sahara with Security Council members on Monday, Haq said. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric chided the council on Friday for not taking a strong stand in the dispute. The controversy over Ban's comments is Morocco's worst dispute with the U.N. since 1991, when the U.N. brokered a ceasefire to end a war over the Western Sahara and established the mission. Morocco had demanded last week that 81 U.N. international civilian staff and three African Union staff leave the mission. Haq said 73 of the U.N. personnel were temporarily reassigned. He noted that 11 individuals that MINURSO ordered out of the mission no longer worked there. Morocco had initially given the mission three days to withdraw the specified personnel but later extended that to "within the coming days." Rabat accused Ban earlier this month of no longer being neutral in the Western Sahara dispute when he used the word "occupation" to describe its annexation of the region in 1975, when Morocco took over from colonial power Spain. Ban had visited refugee camps in southern Algeria for the Sahrawi people, who say Western Sahara belongs to them. They fought a war against Morocco until the 1991 ceasefire. The Polisario Front wants a referendum on independence, but Morocco says it will only grant autonomy. Before the reductions, the mission had nearly 500 military and civilian personnel. (Reporting by Louis Charbonneau; Editing by G Crosse and Steve Orlofsky)
By Aziz El Yaakoubi and Louis Charbonneau RABAT/UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Morocco's decision to reduce United Nations staff at the Western Sahara mission is sovereign and irreversible, but the government is committed to military cooperation with the U.N. to guarantee the ceasefire there, the foreign minister said on Thursday. Morocco this month ordered the U.N. to pull out dozens of civilian staffers and close a military liaison office for the MINURSO peacekeeping mission after criticizing U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for using the word "occupation" to describe Morocco's annexation of the disputed territory. "Our decision is sovereign and irreversible," Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar told reporters in Rabat. Morocco took over most of the territory in 1975 from colonial Spain. That started a guerrilla war with the Sahrawi people's Polisario Front who say the desert territory on Africa's northwest belongs to them. The U.N. brokered a ceasefire in 1991 and sent in its MINURSO mission, which consists of military and civilian staff, to monitor the ceasefire and organize a referendum over the region's future. But deadlock has delayed the vote for years. U.N. officials had repeatedly urged the U.N. Security Council to publicly voice its support for Ban and MINURSO, something the 15-nation body was unable to do until late on Thursday in New York. Rabat has accused Ban of dropping the U.N.'s neutral stance on the dispute, which U.N. officials deny, saying the secretary-general's remarks were merely an emotional response after meeting with Sahrawi refugees. Angola's U.N. Ambassador Ismael Gaspar Martins, president of the council this month, told reporters council members "expressed serious concerns about developments" in Western Sahara and took "due note" of U.N. fears about the potential negative impact of the expulsion of personnel on MINURSO. The council did not explicitly order Morocco to reverse its decisions or address Ban's use of the word "occupation." However, Martins said council members "stressed the importance of addressing in a constructive, comprehensive and cooperative manner the circumstances that led to the current situation so that MINURSO may resume its full capacity to carry out its mandate." Diplomats had blamed the council's days of silence on the issue on Morocco's traditional ally France, along with Spain, Egypt and Senegal. Mezouar said military contacts with MINURSO had not been disrupted and Morocco was committed to cooperation to ensure the continuity of the ceasefire. Mezouar said Morocco was ready for serious talks that would not ignore the reasons for the current situation. Polisario representatives say Morocco is putting a ceasefire at risk by expelling U.N. staffers and trying to scuttle the referendum, including on the question of independence. Morocco has offered an autonomy plan as the only way forward. (Writing by Patrick Markey and Louis Charbonneau; Editing by Ruth Pitchford, Mark Potter and Diane Craft)
ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea signed an agreement to establish combined patrols to bolster security in the Gulf of Guinea, which has been plagued by piracy in the last few years, a spokesman for Nigeria's president said on Wednesday. Garba Shehu said the agreement, which comes amid the backdrop of a rise in pipeline attacks in the oil-producing Niger Delta region of Africa's biggest crude producer, was signed late on Tuesday by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari. Pirate attacks in West Africa's Gulf of Guinea, a significant source of oil, cocoa and metals for world markets, pose a threat to shipping companies. Pirates target oil tankers, usually wanting hostages for ransom and to sell stolen fuel. "The conclusion and signing of the agreement is expected to enhance security in the Gulf of Guinea and help in curbing maritime crimes such as piracy, crude oil theft, sabotage of oil rigs and arms smuggling," said Shehu. In a statement, Shehu said the agreement -- signed at the end of Buhari's two-day visit to Equatorial Guinea's capital, Malabo -- established "a combined Maritime Policing and Security Patrol Committee". The creeks and waterways of the Niger Delta are connected to the Gulf of Guinea. Earlier this week Nigeria's information minister vowed that the government would prosecute those who attack the country's oil pipelines. Security experts say pirates have emerged from militant groups in Nigeria's oil-producing Niger Delta, such as the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). (Reporting by Felix Onuah; Writing by Alexis Akwagyiram; Editing by Toby Chopra)
ABUJA (Reuters) - Total assets of Nigeria's sovereign wealth fund grew to 213.67 billion naira ($1.07 billion) in 2015, up by 20 percent compared with the previous year, its managing director said on Friday. Nigeria, Africa's biggest oil producer, established the Sovereign Investment Authority (SIA) in 2011 with $1 billion of seed capital in an effort to manage oil export revenues. President Muhammadu Buhari took office last May and has prioritised cracking down on corruption and mismanagement, particularly in the oil sector, which has deepened an economic crisis exacerbated by falling crude prices. "Total assets recorded a growth of 20 percent to 213.66 billion naira at year end," the fund's managing director, Uche Orji, said in a report issued on Friday. The total assets were up from 177.84 billion naira ($894.57 million) the previous year. And investment income grew by 47 percent to close at 5.8 billion naira ($29.18 million). The report said 2015 was a "difficult year" but the SIA had "managed to protect its capital in a harsh and volatile market environment". The fund is divided into three parts, a 'Stabilisation Fund' to act as a buffer against economic turbulence, an Infrastructure Fund and a Future Generations fund. In November officials announced that $250 million from liquid natural gas export proceeds would be injected into the wealth fund. Orji said this additional capital was received in February 2016 and will be invested within the new fiscal year. He said it would be invested using the existing deployment ratio of 40 percent in Infrastructure Fund, 40 percent in Future Generations Fund and 20 percent in Stabilisation Fund. It is the first fresh money since the previous administration injected $1 billion in 2014. ($1 = 198.8000 naira) (Reporting by Camillus Eboh; Writing by Alexis Akwagyiram)
Panama City (AFP) - Panama's police destroyed nearly nine tons of drugs, mostly cocaine, seized from smugglers so far this year, officials said.
The 6.3 tons of cocaine, 2.5 tons of marijuana and 3.8 kilograms (eight pounds) of heroin were incinerated on the outskirts of Panama City under tight security, sending a column of thick black smoke into the sky.
A police official, Manuel Bonome, told reporters that the destruction showed the ability of the country's law enforcement to counter organized crime and drug smuggling.
Central America has become a major staging ground for stockpiling drugs on their way from South America to the principal markets of the United States and Europe, according to the United Nations.
Panama last year seized a record 58 tons of drugs. Authorities estimate they have confiscated 462 tons since the beginning of this century.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has overseen the test of a new anti-aircraft weapon system, state media said on Saturday, the latest in a series of missile trials as tensions run high on the divided Korean peninsula.
Over the past month the young leader has supervised several military drills, including the test-firings of medium ballistic missiles, a multiple rocket system and long-range artillery, in response to Seoul-Washington joint army drills south of the border.
The latest launch came as a two-day nuclear security summit was being hosted by Barack Obama in Washington, at which North Korea was the focus of the US president's talks with the leaders of China, South Korea and Japan.
Pyongyang's official KCNA news agency said Saturday Kim "guided the test of a new-type anti-air guided weapon system" to check its capability.
"Under his observation, AA rockets were fired to accurately hit mock enemy aerial targets", it said.
The South's defence ministry said the North fired an anti-air missile around 12:45 pm (0345 GMT) Friday from the eastern city of Sondok.
Kim "expressed great satisfaction over the successful test", calling it another striking demonstration of the the rapidly growing defence capability of the country, KCNA said.
Obama spoke Thursday of the need to "vigilantly enforce the strong UN security measures" imposed on the North after its fourth nuclear test in January and a subsequent long-range rocket launch.
Pyongyang's state media labelled the summit a "nonsensical" effort to find fault with the North's "legitimate access to nuclear weapons".
Existing UN sanctions ban North Korea from conducting any ballistic missile test, although short-range launches tend to go unpunished.
LIMA (Reuters) - The head of the Organization of American States criticized Peru's elections on Friday, suggesting they would not be fully democratic if steps were not taken to ensure all candidates can participate. The comments follow the electoral board's barring of two leading presidential hopefuls last month in an unprecedented move that many consider unfair. "We call for measures to reestablish the right to political participation for everyone and avoid semi-democratic elections," OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro said on Twitter. Almagro did not make any specific recommendations and declined requests for an interview. It was unclear what could be done ahead of elections in just 10 days. The prime minister has ruled out postponing the vote. Almagro posted a picture of himself talking with Julio Guzman, an outsider who was tossed out of the race because his party did not comply with minor electoral procedures. Another candidate, wealthy former Governor Cesar Acuna, was barred for handing out cash while campaigning in violation of a new ban on vote-buying. The controversy has shaken this year's race, threatening to tarnish the legitimacy of the next president and stoking opposition to front-runner Keiko Fujimori. Many Peruvians think center-right Fujimori has been unfairly favored by the electoral board, which issued a final ruling on Friday that cleared her of allegations she also broke the ban on vote-buying. The electoral board has repeatedly denied any political bias and no evidence of wrongdoing has surfaced. "In Peru, equality for everyone before the law is indispensable," Almagro said after meeting with Guzman in his office in Washington. He said the electoral board was applying a system for disqualifying candidates that "does not offer needed guarantees." The five-member electoral board responded to Almagro on Twitter, saying that elections were democratic. "Equality before the law is a constitutional guarantee that Peru respects," it said. The head of OAS's mission to Peru, Sergio Abreu, did not express any concern about the legitimacy of this year's vote during an official visit last month and said the electoral board had "clear jurisdiction" to bar Guzman and Acuna. Fifty-seven percent of Peruvians polled in a March 28 Ipsos survey said they thought the electoral board was acting on behalf of political interests. Only one leading presidential candidate has questioned the fairness of the disqualifications - leftist lawmaker Veronika Mendoza, who surged in an opinion poll to tie Pedro Pablo Kuczynski at second place. (Reporting by Mitra Taj)
By Roberta Rampton, Matt Spetalnick and David Brunnstrom WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama urged world leaders on Friday to do more to safeguard vulnerable nuclear facilities to prevent madmen from groups like Islamic State from getting their hands on an atomic weapon or a radioactive dirty bomb. Speaking at a nuclear security summit in Washington, Obama said the world faced a persistent and evolving threat of nuclear terrorism despite progress in reducing such risks. We cannot be complacent, he said. Obama said no group had succeeded in obtaining bomb materials but that al Qaeda had long sought them, and he cited actions by Islamic State militants behind recent attacks in Paris and Brussels that raised similar concerns. There is no doubt that if these madmen ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material, they would certainly use it to kill as many innocent people as possible, he said. "It would change our world. Obama hosted more than 50 world leaders for his fourth and final summit focused on efforts to lock down atomic materials to guard against nuclear terrorism, which he called "one of the greatest threats to global security" in the 21st century. Obama has less than 10 months left in office to follow through on one of his signature foreign policy initiatives. While gains have been made, arms-control advocates say the diplomatic process which Obama conceived and championed - has lost momentum and could slow further once he leaves the White House in January. A boycott by Russian President Vladimir Putin, unwilling to join in a U.S.-dominated gathering at a time of increased tensions between Washington and Moscow over Ukraine and Syria, may have contributed to summit results marked by mostly technical measures instead of policy breakthroughs. At the closing news conference, Obama, a Democrat, made clear that the raucous Republican presidential race, particularly controversial comments by party front-runner Donald Trump, weighed on leaders' discussions on the summit sidelines. Obama sternly dismissed as proof of foreign-policy ignorance Trumps recent suggestion that Japan and South Korea should be allowed to build their own nuclear arsenals, putting him at odds with decades of U.S. policy. The person who made the statements doesn't know much about foreign policy or nuclear policy or the Korean peninsula, or the world generally," Obama said, adding that Americans dont want anyone with such views to occupy the White House. 'DIRTY BOMB' THREAT Deadly bomb attacks in Brussels last month have fueled concern that Islamic State could eventually target nuclear plants, steal material and develop radioactive dirty bombs. Militants were found to have videotaped the daily routine of a senior manager of a Belgian nuclear plant, Obama said. Obama said the required 102 countries have now ratified an amendment to a nuclear security treaty that would tighten protections against nuclear theft and smuggling. We have measurably reduced the risks, he said. But he acknowledged that with roughly 2,000 tons of nuclear material stored around the world, not all of this is properly secured. Obama, wrapping up the summit, said leaders had agreed to strengthen their nuclear facilities against cyber attacks, something that outside experts see as a major weak point. The United States and Japan also announced they had completed the long-promised task of removing all highly enriched uranium and separated plutonium fuels from a Japanese research reactor. Japan is an avowedly anti-nuclear-weapons state as the only country to have ever suffered a nuclear attack. Despite significant strides by Obama in persuading dozens of countries to rid themselves of bomb-making materials or reduce and safeguard stockpiles, much of the world's plutonium and enriched uranium remain vulnerable to theft. Obama convened a separate meeting of world powers to take stock of the landmark nuclear pact they negotiated with Iran last July. It is a critical component of his nuclear disarmament agenda and a major piece of his foreign policy legacy. LANDMARK PRAGUE SPEECH Obama inaugurated the first Nuclear Security Summit nearly six years ago, after a 2009 speech in Prague laying out the goal of a world free of nuclear weapons. There is no guarantee that Obama's successor will keep the issue a high priority. Obama made no public mention of Putin as a summit no-show. But he did say that because of the Russians leaders emphasis on building up his military, there was unlikely to be any further deals for reducing the two countries vast nuclear weapons stockpiles during what is left of the Obama presidency. For now, U.S. experts are less concerned about militants obtaining nuclear weapons than about thefts of ingredients for a low-tech dirty bomb that would use conventional explosives to disperse radioactive material and sow panic. U.S. officials said they had no doubt that Islamic State, which controls swaths of Syria and Iraq, was interested in obtaining such materials, but authorities had no explicit evidence that the group had tried to do so. Obama held a special summit session to coordinate the overall fight against Islamic State. He touted gains against the group in Iraq and Syria, which he said were forcing it to lash out elsewhere, and called for stepped-up efforts to stem the flow of foreign fighters to and from the battlefield. Also looming over the summit was continuing concern about North Korea. Obama joined South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday in vowing to ramp up pressure on Pyongyang in response to its recent nuclear and missile tests. But So Se Pyong, North Korea's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, told Reuters on Friday that Pyongyang will pursue its nuclear and ballistic missile program in defiance of the United States and its allies, saying there is now a state of "semi-war" on the divided peninsula. (Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom, Doina Chiacu, Patricia Zengerle, Lesley Wroughton, Idrees Ali, Timothy Gardner, David Alexander, Susan Heavey and Jeff Mason; Writing by Matt Spetalnick; Editing by James Dalgleish, Leslie Adler and Mary Milliken)
Washington (AFP) - President Barack Obama said Friday he would like to further cut the US nuclear arsenal, admitting he has concerns about efforts to modernize America's most deadly weapons.
"My preference would be to bring down further our nuclear arsenal," he told reporters at the end of a Nuclear Security Summit he hosted in Washington.
Obama, who won a Nobel Peace Prize in his first year in office for his commitment to non-proliferation, was responding to a question about updates to the US arsenal.
He was asked if there was a risk that US rivals like Russia and China would feel compelled to expand their stockpiles if America improves the lethality of its own.
"I think it's a legitimate question, and I am concerned," Obama said.
"Here's the balance that we've had to strike. We have a nuclear stockpile that we have to make sure is safe and make sure is reliable."
Obama said the modernization was designed to make America's missiles more safe, and that he hoped to be able to work with powers like Russia to reduce global warhead stocks.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday said he was troubled by trends in Turkey against a free press and said he had urged President Tayyip Erdogan not to pursue a strategy of repression and shutting down democratic debate in his country. Obama, speaking to reporters at the conclusion of a nuclear security summit, said Turkey's cooperation with the United States had been critical on a number of international issues despite disagreements between the two countries. Two high-profile journalists are on trial in Turkey for publishing footage that purportedly showed Turkey's intelligence agency shipping truckloads of weapons to opposition fighters in Syria in early 2014. Erdogan has said he will continue to sue anyone who insults him in Turkey, where journalists and critics of the president have been put in prison. "I think the approach that they've been taking towards the press is one that could lead Turkey down a path that would be very troubling," Obama said. "(Erdogan) came into office with a promise of democracy, and Turkey has historically been a country in which deep Islamic faith has lived side by side with modernity and an increasing openness. And that's the legacy that he should pursue, rather than a strategy that involves repression of information and shutting down democratic debate." (Reporting by Jeff Mason and Timothy Gardner; Editing by Sandra Maler)
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A passenger in a car died when a small plane carrying two people made an emergency landing on a Southern California highway on Saturday and struck the vehicle in a crash that left five others injured, officials said.
The single-engine Lancair IV came down on I-15 near Highway 76, in the area of Fallbrook, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor in an email.
The propeller plane made an emergency landing on its belly and skidded along a lane for more than 100 feet (30 meters), crashing into the back of a Nissan Sentra parked at the side of the highway, said North County Fire Protection District spokesman John Buchanan.
Before the plane came down, the four people in the Nissan had stopped to sync the sedan's Bluetooth wireless system, Buchanan said.
The crash killed a woman in the car's back seat, Buchanan said.
The plane's pilot, a man in his 60s, was transported to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, according to Buchanan, while his passenger and three occupants of the car were all hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries.
"It was pretty nerve-wracking seeing the plane coming right over top of me and then hit the road and then slide up here and then hit that car," truck driver Bill Senclare told San Diego television station KGTV.
A spokesman for the California Highway Patrol, which responded to the crash less than 40 miles (64 km) north of San Diego, could not immediately be reached for comment.
It was not clear what caused the plane to come down on the highway.
Gregor said the National Transportation Safety Bureau and the Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the crash.
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by James Dalgleish and Alistair Bell)
By Kathryn Doyle (Reuters Health) Women with an excess growth of uterine lining tissue may also be at higher risk of coronary heart disease, according to a new study. The condition, called endometriosis, affects up to five million women in the U.S. Uterine tissue can grow on the ovaries, behind the uterus or on the bowels or bladder and can cause pain, infertility and very heavy periods. Many girls and women do not realize that distressing menstrual cramps and pelvic pain can be due to endometriosis, said senior study author Stacey A. Missmer, director of Epidemiologic Research in Reproductive Medicine at Brigham and Womens Hospital in Boston. Girls and women can be treated through surgery that removes the endometriosis lesions or by hormonal medications including oral contraceptives, but there is no outright cure, Missmer told Reuters Health by email. The researchers used data on more than 116,000 women in the Nurses Health Study II, which ran from 1989 to 2009 including about 5,200 women with surgically confirmed endometriosis. Those with endometriosis were more likely than others to suffer a heart attack, to have coronary bypass or stent surgery, or to have angina, the chest pain that can be a sign of coronary artery disease. The increased risk for these conditions was highest for women up to age 40, who were about three times as likely to have any combination of the heart disease end points as those without endometriosis. The difference in heart disease risk shrank at older ages. As has been seen in the past, women who had their uterus or ovaries removed were also at higher risk for coronary artery disease endpoints than others, the authors reported in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. Systemic chronic inflammation, heightened oxidative stress and higher cholesterol levels associated with endometriosis may explain the link between the condition and heart disease risk, Missmer said. Additionally, endometriosis and coronary heart disease may share common genetic susceptibilities, she said. From our study, we can conclude that surgical and hormonal treatments following endometriosis diagnosis may impact the risk of cardiovascular disease, but they did not negate the risk entirely, Missmer said. It is important for women with endometriosis even young womento adopt heart-healthy lifestyle habits, be screened by their doctors for heart disease, and be familiar with symptoms because heart disease remains the primary cause of death in women. The new study used existing data from the past rather than following a group of women diagnosed with endometriosis recently, and it doesnt really tease out the fine points of treatment for endometriosis, said Dr. Gaurang Daftary, a reproductive endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, who was not part of the new study. There is a possibility that heart disease may have a link with endometriosis, Daftary told Reuters Health by phone. But it is still unclear whether treating the endometriosis, medically or surgically, impacts heart disease risk, and if so, in which direction, he said. The study is a good starting point, but it wouldnt change my practice for a patient with endometriosis, he said. SOURCE: http://bit.ly/XaY6j7 Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, online March 29, 2016.
Peshawar (Pakistan) (AFP) - Authorities in Pakistan's northwest announced a bounty for killing rats after receiving hundreds of complaints of rodents infesting the region's biggest city.
Rats described as being up to 12 inches (30 centimetres) long are making life miserable in Peshawar, residents said.
They are so huge that "even cats are scared of them," Hammad Khan, a Peshawar resident, told AFP Thursday, adding that the rodents were gnawing "everything: food, clothes, even damaging the structure of the house".
Residents said the toothy creatures make their home in an open sewer which flows through the city and come out at night, scurrying about poor neighbourhoods.
"We were receiving such complaints constantly and that's why we announced the reward," district mayor Arbab Mohammad Asim told AFP.
The bounty was set at 25 rupees (25 US cents) in most parts of the city, though in some areas it goes up to 300 rupees, officials said.
"We are hopeful that it will help in getting rid of these huge rats," said Asim.
Provincial minister Inayatullah Khan said a committee has been formed to find out what is driving the infestation, though residents said it was likely recent monsoon rains had sent the rodents scurrying into the city.
Khan also said the committee would chalk out plans for "complete elimination" of the pests.
He also confirmed local media reports that at least five babies have died in the last three years after being bitten by rats.
Pakistan has detained more than 200 people since the Easter Sunday park bombing which killed 73 people including many children, officials said Tuesday, as the militants behind the attack taunted the prime minister.
The raids across the eastern province of Punjab were announced as parks reopened under tight security in the teeming provincial capital Lahore.
But Gulshan-i-Iqbal, where explosives packed with ball bearings ripped through crowds near a children's play area, remained closed.
Hundreds were injured in the suicide bombing claimed by the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar faction of the Pakistani Taliban, whose official name is the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
A spokesman for the group said it had targeted Christians, a minority community in overwhelmingly Muslim Pakistan.
"More than 5,000 people were searched and interrogated and most of them were allowed to go, but some 216 have been apprehended for further investigations," Punjab provincial law minister Rana Sanaullah told reporters Tuesday.
Sanaullah said police, paramilitary troops and intelligence agents had launched 56 intelligence operations in the last 24 hours in Punjab.
More were being undertaken in all districts of the province "against sectarian militants and extremists", he said.
Security for hundreds of churches was increased.
Many of the victims were children and anguished families spent Easter Monday burying their dead.
On Tuesday the death toll climbed to 73 after a 16-year-old boy succumbed to his injuries, doctors said.
"The boy had lost his father and sister in the blast while his mother is being treated for critical injuries," Dr Tariq Mohsin told AFP.
- Taliban taunts -
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his powerful military chief have both vowed to bring those behind the attack to justice.
"Terrorists cannot dent our resolve. Our struggle will continue until the complete elimination of the menace of terrorism," the premier said Monday after visiting victims in the provincial capital, a stronghold of his ruling Pakistan Muslim League.
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But on Tuesday Ehansullah Ehsan, spokesman for the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar faction, derided the prime minister on Twitter.
"After the Lahore attack, Nawaz Sharif repeated old words to give himself false assurances," he wrote.
"Nawaz Sharif should know that war has reached his doorstep, and God willing the mujahideen will be the winners in this war."
Kashir Nawab, a 32-year-old Christian from the Youhanabad district of Lahore, said a "pall of gloom" hung over the area as mourners visited the homes of those lost in the blast.
Nawab said he was working to help arrange funeral services.
"Everybody is frightened and the Christians particularly feel unprotected," he said.
The attack was the worst so far this year in a country grimly accustomed to atrocities, and will further fray inter-religious ties.
Christians make up an estimated 1.6 percent of Pakistan's 200 million people and have long faced discrimination.
Twin suicide attacks against churches in Lahore killed 17 people in March last year, sparking two days of rioting by thousands of Christians.
The country is still scarred by a Taliban assault on a Peshawar school in 2014 that killed 150 people, mostly children.
A military operation targeting insurgents was stepped up in response. Last year the death toll from militant attacks was the lowest since the TTP umbrella grouping was formed in 2007.
But analysts have warned the group is still able to carry out major attacks.
By Mehreen Zahra-Malik and Mubasher Bukhari LAHORE, Pakistan (Reuters) - A year ago, Wasif Masih, 16, had a narrow escape when a suicide bomber from a faction of the Pakistani Taliban blew himself up during Sunday worship outside his church in a Christian neighborhood in the eastern city of Lahore. This past Easter Sunday, Wasif died when the same Taliban faction, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, sent another suicide bomber to a Lahore park full of families, killing 72 people including at least 29 children. Wasif was so close to the blast that the bombers head fell at his feet, his mother, Zubaida Masih, said as the family mourned at their house in Nishtar Colony, a neighborhood with both Christian and Muslim families. "It was as if they were following him. He escaped them then but they came after him again, in the park," Masih said. "If there was better security, this wouldn't have happened." Two days after the attack, a sense of vulnerability is growing among members of the Christian community, who are calling on the government of Muslim-majority Pakistan to do more to protect them. Christians, who number around 2 million in a nation of 190 million people, have been the target of a series of attacks in recent years. Last March, suicide bombers struck Masih's Christ Church and another close by, killing at least 14 people. In 2013, a pair of suicide bombers blew themselves up outside a 130-year-old church in Peshawar after Sunday Mass, killing at least 78 people. Now the Easter attack by Jamaat-ur-Ahrar, which once swore support for Islamic State, has fueled worries that militants in Pakistan are increasingly subscribing to the IS brand of ultra-sectarian violence against those perceived as infidels. "Terrorists didn't used to be so focused on our community. Now all their attention is on us," said Irshad Ashnaz, the Christ Church vicar. "Perhaps it's time for the government to turn their attention toward us also." "These people are roaming around freely and no one is stopping them," Ashnaz said at the church, its windows cemented over after the attack. Pope Francis condemned the attack as "hideous" and demanded that Pakistani authorities protect religious minorities. "PEOPLE WHO LIVE TO DIE" Since the attack, Pakistan's deadliest since the 2014 massacre of 134 school children at a military-run academy in Peshawar, authorities have launched a crackdown on Islamist militants in the Punjab province, the countrys richest and most populous and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's political heartland. On Tuesday, a provincial minister said authorities had detained more than 5,000 militant suspects but later released most of them. Punjab government spokesman Zaeem Qadri said the government had stepped up security at churches after the previous attacks, which was why militants had picked a park this time. He said over the past year, the government had uncovered more than 200 plots and arrested around 15,000 suspects. "Parks are public places. On a public holiday there should have been more vigilance. But there was a gap," Qadri said. Christians "are as safe as anyone else. They are as safe as any other Pakistani is." Irfan Jamil, the bishop of Lahore, said the government was trying its best. "There are people who live to live and there are people who live to die," Jamil said. "How much protection is enough protection against such people?" But he added, "There is always room for improvement. Many of us don't feel that we are secure." UNKNOWN VICTIM On Tuesday, survivors lined the wards of Jinnah hospital in Lahore. The explosion wounded more than 300 people. Above each bed is a sign that says, 'blast victim', followed by the victim's name. One bed is only marked with the word "unknown." A three-year-old boy whose lungs were punctured and eyes gouged out is struggling to breathe through a tube. Visitors have placed flowers and juice packs next to his pillow. "We don't know who he is," a nurse said as she held his hand. "Two days after the blast, no one has come looking for him." Amid the fear, many Christians called for unity and brotherhood. At a vigil on Monday in Gulshan e Iqbal park, where the bomber struck, Father Jamal Albert said the message is "whether you are Christian, Hindu, Jewish or Muslim, you are unsafe and they are trying to break down our nation, destroy our sense of oneness, our sense of being Pakistanis". He added: "Rest assured we will not be deterred by such episodes. This is our country just as much as anyone else's. In fact we are more resolved than ever to go on." (Writing by Paritosh Bansal; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
Panama will inaugurate its newly expanded canal on June 26, nearly two years behind schedule, the head of the state canal authority said Wednesday.
"With the inauguration of this project, we will claim once again our historic vocation as a route of transit and a meeting point of civilizations," the Canal Authority's CEO Jorge Quijano said at a ceremony alongside Panama's President Juan Carlos Varela.
"We are aware that the enlargement work has not been easy," Varela added. "Despite the setbacks, successful progress has been made toward its completion."
The massive, multibillion-dollar project had originally been scheduled to end in October 2014 but has been successively pushed back.
It has suffered construction and labor problems, legal issues and the discovery of fissures in one of the widened locks.
Work to enlarge the 50-mile (80-kilometer) long waterway to handle more traffic and bigger cargo ships started in 2007.
The project's cost is estimated to have ballooned from an initially budgeted $5.3 billion to around $7 billion.
Some five percent of the world's commercial shipping passes through the Panama Canal.
The Central American country earns $1 billion a year in revenue from shipping fees. With the expansion, it hopes to triple that within a decade.
NIAMEY (Reuters) - Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou is heading for a crushing victory in a run-off election that became a near-formality when the opposition coalition declared a boycott, partial results on Tuesday showed. With 226 constituencies counted from a total of 308, Issoufou received 93 percent of Sunday's vote, according to the national electoral commission. Turnout was around 61 percent. Issoufou, an ally of the West in its fight against Islamist insurgents in West Africa, won the first round comfortably last month with 48 percent of votes but failed to clinch the outright majority required to avoid a second round. The candidate who came second, opposition leader Hama Amadou, has been in jail since November on charges relating to a baby-trafficking scandal, but was flown to France for medical treatment last week. Amadou says he is innocent and claims the charges against him are politically motivated. The Coalition for an Alternative (COPA), which unites about 20 political parties including Amadou's MODEN, called for a boycott of the polls, claiming the process had been tainted by fraud. Southern Niger, which borders Nigeria, has been the target of frequent deadly raids by Islamist Boko Haram militants. It also shares borders with Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, where al Qaeda-linked groups are active. Libya, home to Islamic State affiliates, lies on its northern border. (Reporting by Abdoulaye Massalaki; Writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
Dakar (AFP) - The pro-government "Yes" camp claimed a sweeping victory in Senegal's constitutional referendum on Monday, following a controversial vote widely seen as a test of the president's popularity.
Turnout was reportedly low Sunday in the vote on several constitutional reforms, including on cutting the presidential term from seven to five years.
"The results that we've seen, from our grassroots committees combined with those from the press, show a strong trend from the referendum towards a clear 'Yes' victory, across the country," said El Hadji Momar Samb, a senior figure in the "Yes" camp, at a Monday press conference.
Opposition parties and several civil society groups had urged Senegalese to vote "No", saying Sall has reneged on a promise to leave office early and criticising the referendum as a cop-out.
The pro-government side claimed to have won in 43 of Senegal's 45 administrative departments, with a strong showing in the northwestern city of Saint Louis.
On Monday morning, the front page of the pro-establishment "Le Soleil" had already proclaimed "The people say yes to Macky Sall," referring to the president, while the independent "La Tribune" cried "'Yes' snatch it".
The press compiled results from provisional figures recorded on Sunday night, also handing victory to the "Yes" camp.
Sall was elected in 2012 saying he would reduce the presidential mandate from seven years to five.
He originally campaigned as an alternative to ex-president Abdoulaye Wade, who was seeking an unpopular third stint in power.
Since then, Sall has said his hands are tied by the country's constitutional court which rejected his proposal to cut his own term, meaning he himself will still serve the full seven years.
The referendum's official results will be published on Friday by the country's electoral commission and require constitutional court approval.
By Sharon Bernstein
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) - A plan to raise California's minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2022 cleared its first legislative hurdle on Wednesday, putting the state on track to become the first in the nation to commit to such a large pay hike for the working poor.
The measure, incorporating a deal Governor Jerry Brown reached with labor leaders and fellow Democrats in the Legislature, was approved on a party-line vote of 12-7 by the Assembly Appropriations Committee, where a previous version of the bill had stalled last summer.
One Democrat, Tom Daly, joined six Republicans in opposing the measure, which now advances to the full Assembly for action as early as this week. It would then return to the Senate for a final vote.
If enacted, the bill would put California, home to one of the world's biggest economies, in the vanguard of a growing number of U.S. states and cities that have moved in recent years to surpass the federal minimum wage, which has remained at $7.25 an hour since 2009.
Supporters say such measures are necessary to help low-paid workers who have been slipping into poverty due to stagnant earnings and rising living expenses. Opponents say raising the mandatory wage floor puts undue strain on businesses still struggling to rebound from a prolonged U.S. economic slump.
The measure would gradually raise California's hourly minimum wage from the current level of $10 to $15 by 2022 for large businesses and by 2023 for smaller firms.
It also would head off a pair of competing ballot initiatives lacking a provision to allow the governor to suspend the increases in hard economic times, a deal breaker for Brown.
Raising the minimum wage has cropped up on many Democratic candidates' agendas ahead of the November elections, and the issue could help galvanize supporters at the polls.
But passage is not assured without backing from more moderate Democrats, including business-friendly Assembly members in swing districts who have recently held up bills that were priorities for the party's progressive wing, including a plan to cut the state's greenhouse gas emissions.
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According to the governor's office, 2.2 million Californians earn the state minimum wage of $10 an hour. The bill would ultimately benefit 5.6 million workers, raising their wages by an average of 24 percent, according to an analysis from the University of California, Berkeley.
Retail employees account for 16 percent of affected workers, and restaurant employees 15 percent.
(Reporting by Sharon Bernstein; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Private funding to fight modern day slavery rose by nearly 60 percent over a two-year period but remains too little to make any meaningful impact against the global problem, anti-slavery organizations said on Friday. Between 2012 and 2014, some $233 million of private funds was spent on anti-slavery initiatives - an amount dwarfed by the estimated $150 billion in profits forced labor generates every year, the Freedom Fund and Humanity United said in a report. It said funding for such initiatives reached a record high of $99 million in 2014, a 57 percent increase in two years. "There is no way that such a relatively small amount of money is going to be able to have any impact at all against a criminal trade such as this," Kate Kennedy, North America managing director at the Freedom Fund, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone from New York. An estimated 21 million people are trapped in forced labor worldwide according to the International Labour Organization (ILO). Many are enslaved in brothels, farms, fisheries, factories, construction and domestic service. The top five funders: Dutch Postcode Lottery, Humanity United, Minderoo, Open Society Foundations and NoVo Foundation, together contributed more than $103 million, or 44 percent of the total funding between 2012 and 2014. In September, the 193 U.N. member states made ending modern-day slavery one of the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which will shape development and poverty eradication efforts for the next 15 years. (Reporting by Magdalena Mis; Editing by Katie Nguyen; Please credit Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, womens rights, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org)
Outbreaks of the Zika virus are likely to occur in the United States; so to prepare, health officials are developing plans to combat Zika that focus on protecting pregnant women from the virus.
More than 300 local, state and federal officials met today (April 1) to discuss these plans at a "Zika Action Summit" in Atlanta. Although the virus, which is carried by mosquitoes, is not yet spreading in the United States, officials stressed that action is needed now to prevent the virus from affecting pregnant women here. (Some cases of Zika have already occurred in the United States, but so far, the only people who caught the virus were either infected while traveling, or had sex with a person who was infected while traveling.)
Although the infection itself is mild, infants born to women infected during pregnancy face an increased risk of microcephaly, a congenital condition that causes an abnormally small head and brain, and brings severe, lifelong cognitive impairments.
"We have a few short months to stop Zika virus from gaining a foothold in the United States," Dr. Edward McCabe, medical director of the March of Dimes, said today at a news conference. "If we don't, the consequences will be dire, McCabe said, adding that early action could save dozens or many hundreds of babies from being born with health problems.
"The risk is to pregnant women and the developing fetus, and all of our activities need to be focused on mitigating that risk," said Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which hosted the summit.
Outbreaks of Zika are likely in the United States because the mosquitoes that transmit the virus are common in some parts of the country. Each state or county will have a different plan for Zika, depending on the risk of the virus spreading there, officials said. These plans could include ways to control local mosquito populations and test for the virus in mosquitoes, as well as ways to educate people on how to protect themselves from mosquito bites.
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The plans also could include prevention "kits" for pregnant women, which New York state already plans to distribute. These kits contain insect repellent, condoms (to prevent the sexual transmission of the virus) and larvicide tablets (that can kill mosquito larvae) to treat standing water.
Texas, Florida and Hawaii are thought to have the highest risk for local Zika spread, based on their history with similar viruses, such as chikungunya and the virus that causes dengue fever. [Zika Virus FAQs: Top Questions Answered]
Officials stressed that they will need funding for their Zika prevention efforts a total of $1.9 billion has been requested but has not been approved by Congress..
It'sestimates that the health care of a single child with microcephaly can cost $10 million over a lifetime, Frieden said.
Follow Rachael Rettner @RachaelRettner. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science.
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Los Angeles (AFP) - US authorities are sounding the alarm after nearly 40 people in California either overdosed or died from street drugs laced with fentanyl, a powerful painkiller.
"The overdoses are occurring at an alarming rate and are the basis for this public safety alert," the US Drug Enforcement Administration said in a statement Friday.
It said that since last week, 36 people had overdosed and nine had died in the region of Sacramento, California's capital, after ingesting pills laced with fentanyl.
The victims ranged in age from 18 to 59.
Fentanyl is an odorless substance considered to be 25 to 50 times more potent than heroin and 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. It is used to relieve severe pain during and after surgery and is often prescribed to cancer patients.
Officials believe that pills tainted with the drug are being sold on the street under the guise of being hydrocodone, a prescription pain medication.
Among the victims in Sacramento is a 28-year-old father of three who died after taking a tablet of what he believed was the narcotic Norco.
Law enforcement officials say an illicit version of fentanyl has been spreading to the western part of the country in recent years through Mexican drug networks, after first surfacing in Midwestern cities.
The fentanyl scare in California comes as the United States grapples with an epidemic of heroin and prescription drug abuse.
President Barack Obama addressed the issue at a summit on drug abuse earlier this week, saying that more people were dying from opioid overdose in the United States than traffic accidents.
The Red Cross appealed for more funds to help disaster-stricken Fiji on Thursday, saying 60,000 people remain homeless six weeks after a super cyclone battered the Pacific nation and killed 44.
The charity said Fiji still faced a huge rebuilding task in the wake of severe tropical cyclone Winston -- the most powerful storm in its history -- which lashed the country on February 20.
The Red Cross launched an international appeal on March 1 but so far has reached only 22 percent of its US$7.0 million target.
Fiji Red Cross director general Filipe Nainoca said more donations were needed to fund the 250 staff and volunteers distributing aid in Fiji.
"Many people affected by the storm are showing great resilience but this is the biggest disaster they've ever faced, and the psychological scars will be there for a long time," he said.
"We will be alongside them as they recover, but need the world's help to do that."
The cyclone hit with wind gusts of 325 kilometres (202 miles) per hour and the Red Cross said it damaged 32,000 houses, 500 schools and 88 health facilities.
The Fiji government has estimated the damage bill at FJ$1.0 billion (US$480 million), although the figure could climb once a comprehensive assessment is finished.
Nainoca said 100,000 people out of the 900,000 population still had no access to clean water and rebuilding would be a long-term task.
"We are going to be supporting some of those affected by the cyclone for the next year," he said.
BEIRUT (Reuters) - One man was killed and others injured late on Friday in a Palestinian refugee camp in south Lebanon as a dispute between rival political groups escalated into gunbattles. Gunfire erupted again in Ain al-Hilweh camp on Saturday morning and continued throughout the day despite efforts to mediate a ceasefire, a Reuters witness said. Rocket-propelled grenades were also being fired. Two men were shot dead in the camp on Monday amid tension between members of the mainstream Palestinian faction Fatah and a hardline Islamist group. Fatah member Hussein Othman was killed in Friday's fighting between groups of armed men, Lebanon's National News Agency said. Ain al-Hilweh camp, near the southern Lebanese coastal city of Sidon, has regularly seen factional disputes spiral into deadly violence. The Palestinian camps mainly fall outside the jurisdiction of Lebanese security services. (Reporting by Lisa Barrington; Editing by Andrew Roche)
SANTIAGO (Reuters) - South American neighbors Chile and Bolivia, which have long had thorny relations, are at loggerheads again - this time over access to a river that crosses their shared border. Over the Easter weekend, Bolivian leftist President Evo Morales threatened to go to the International Court of Justice in the Hague to resolve a long-running but until now low-profile dispute over the river Silala. Morales, who has been under pressure at home over an unfolding scandal involving a former girlfriend, argues that Chile has no right to use the water of the river, which originates in Bolivian territory and then flows into Chile. But top copper exporter Chile, which uses some of the water in the parched Atacama desert to feed mine operations, says the waters are international. Center-left President Michelle Bachelet said on Monday that Chile would counter with its own case in the Hague if Bolivia went ahead with its threat. "We will carry out all necessary actions to protect our national sovereignty," she said. Bolivia is already pressing a case against Chile in the Hague, seeking to force its neighbor to enter negotiations to grant it a corridor to the Pacific Ocean. (Reporting by Felipe Iturrieta; Writing by Rosalba O'Brien; Editing by W Simon)
Astana (Kazakhstan) (AFP) - The ruling party of energy-rich Kazakhstan's ageing autocrat President Nursultan Nazarbayev secured a landslide victory in parliamentary elections, results showed Monday, a poll OSCE observers said failed to meet international democratic standards.
According to the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) Nazarbayev's Nur Otan party won 82 percent of votes in Sunday's election and will share parliament with the pro-government People's Communist Party and Ak Zhol, who each secured just over seven percent of the vote.
The vote -- which saw little real opposition to Nazarbayev -- came as the ex-Soviet country sees its once-booming economy slump on the back of falling oil prices and an economic crisis in northern neighbour Russia, but the strongman's grip on power appears as firm as ever.
Celebrating the victory with supporters on Monday, Nazarbayev -- who during the poll warned outsiders "not to rush" Kazakhstan towards democracy -- said he was in a "joyful state" following the announcement of the results.
"Our party has won. The 77 percent turnout is a record and 82 percent of votes received for Nur Otan -- a record!" he said.
"We demonstrated to the whole world open, direct voting on a competitive basis in the presence of thousands of international observers and journalists."
But an international vote monitor mission headed by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said Monday that "genuine political choice" was "insufficient" in the vote and that the country "still has a considerable way to go" in meeting international standards for democratic votes.
"Extensive reporting on the president's activities dominated in most media outlets, and the ruling party used his position to its benefit," the mission's special coordinator Marietta Tidei said.
Nazarbayev -- who maintains close ties with former master Moscow -- has ruled Kazakhstan virtually unopposed since before its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, and the 75-year-old was elected to a new five-year term last year with 98 percent of the vote.
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Nazarbayev called the presidential vote ahead of schedule, with analysts saying he was keen to get elections over with in case the economic situation worsened.
Nazarbayev has not confirmed his intention to stand again when his term ends in 2020 and observers are eyeballing government appointments for any indications they might give of a potential heir emerging.
Three other parties competing on Sunday failed to clear the seven percent threshold to enter the parliament, including the only party claiming to represent the opposition.
The National Social Democratic Party (NSDP) said Monday it did not recognise the CEC tally which gave it just over one percent of the vote.
Moscow (AFP) - Russia on Thursday launched a cargo ship to the International Space Station on an unmanned mission to resupply crew currently in space.
"The 63rd Progress resupply ship is beginning its two-day treck to ISS," a NASA commentator said as Russia's Roscosmos space agency aired a live lift-off from its Baikonur launchpad.
The ship went through a flawless ascent to reach space and is expected to dock with one of the modules of the station at 1800 GMT on Saturday, April 2.
The Progress-63 is hauling some three tonnes of food, fuel and supplies to Russian cosmonauts Yuri Malenchenko, Oleg Skripochka and Alexey Ovchinin and NASA astronauts Tim Kopra and Jeff Williams.
A previous cargo vessel was disconnected from the station on Wednesday and will slowly descend to Earth to plunge into the Pacific Ocean on April 8.
Russia is solely responsible for manned flights to the International Space Station, but resupply missions are also carried out by the United States.
On March 26, the Cygnus cargo ship packed with science and research equipment plus food, water and clothes successfully docked at the International Space Station.
Another cargo craft, the SpaceX Dragon, will also dock there on April 10, making it a rare occasion when six spacecraft -- including two Soyuz ships and another Progress ship -- will be attached to the station at the same time.
A Russian tourist was mauled to death by a crocodile in a popular diving site in Eastern Indonesia, an official said Saturday.
The body of Sergey Lykhvar was discovered on Tuesday in Raja Ampat islands of West Papua, four days after he was reported missing.
Local search and rescue head Prasetyo Budiarto said Lykhvar was reported missing to the authorities last week, one day after he left to snorkel around the remote Minyaifun island.
Budiarto told AFP that rescuers spotted a large saltwater crocodile trailing behind Lykhvar's body when he was discovered.
"We believe he was killed by a crocodile judging from the missing body parts and the extent of his injuries," he said.
The 37-year-old normally snorkelled with his friends and a guide but decided go alone the morning before he was reported missing, Budiarto said.
He added that the location where Lykhvar's body was retrieved was quite remote, and dangerous because of the strong currents and sharp rocks.
The Russian tourist's body was later taken to Sorong, about a two-hour boat ride away from Raja Ampat. His was body cremated as per his family's request.
"We are still communicating with the Russian embassy, from what I've heard his family would come to pick up his ashes in Indonesia," Budiarto said.
The huge Indonesian archipelago is home to a vast array of exotic wildlife, including several species of crocodile.
Death by crocodiles is not uncommon in Indonesia but it is rare for foreign tourists to be killed.
Kigali (AFP) - A Rwandan military tribunal on Thursday condemned two senior army figures to 20 years in prison for inciting rebellion, an AFP correspondent at the Kigali court said.
"The court condemns Colonel Tom Byabagamba to 21 years in jail and a reduction in rank, and retired general Frank Rusagara to 20 years in prison," said Judge Narcisse Nsengiyumva.
Both men were once close to the inner circle of Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
Byabagamba, a serving colonel who was once head of the presidential guard, was also convicted of withholding evidence. And Rusgara, a retired brigadier-general and former secretary-general of the defence ministry, was also convicted of illegally possessing a firearm.
The two men were arrested in August 2014 and charged with inciting rebellion by "spreading rumours" and "tarnishing the image of the country and government". Both denied all the charges against them, and following the verdict, vowed to appeal.
According to military prosecutors, Byabagamba had attempted to turn military officials against the government, while Rusagara had been relaying "propaganda" from the dissident Rwanda National Congress (RNC), an exiled opposition group that includes several former top members of Kagame's ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF).
During the trial, the prosecutor said Rusagara had been heard saying Rwanda "is a police state and a banana republic", and that he had described Kagame as a "dictator".
Critics of Kagame, however, say the trials expose the workings of a paranoid state that is increasingly nervous over the activities of the RNC.
Kagame, 58, has run Rwanda since his ethnic Tutsi rebel army, the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF), ended a 1994 genocide by extremists from the Hutu majority, in which an estimated 800,000 people were massacred, the vast majority of them Tutsis.
Elected first in 2003 and again in 2010, he recently announced plans to run for an exceptional third seven-year term in 2017, drawing criticism from the United States and the European Union.
Rusagara's driver, former army sergeant Francois Kabayiza, was also sentenced to five years of prison for withholding evidence. He had also denied the charges and vowed to appeal.
Bernie Sanders broke his monthly fundraising record in March, taking in more than $44 million and ensuring that he can continue to battle Hillary Clinton for weeks, if not months, to come.
"What this campaign is doing is bringing together millions of people contributing an average of just $27 each to take on a billionaire class which is so used to buying elections, Sanders said in a statement.
Related: Heres the Map That Shows Why the GOP Is Freaking Out About Trump
The haul broke the Vermont lawmakers record $43.5 million mark set in February, raising roughly $5 million on the last day of March. The self-described democratic-socialist has raised a total of $109 million in the first quarter of 2016 and has bested Clinton over the last couple months.
The fundraising windfall comes as the Democratic primary is taking on a new, nasty tone.
The increased friction boils down to this: Clintons campaign believes the former secretary of state has a nearly insurmountable lead in terms of delegates and believes Sanders should tone down his rhetoric to avoid damaging her before the general election against Donald Trump or Ted Cruz.
But its clear that Sanders, and his supporters, arent about to back off.
Related: Sanders Gets Some Wins, but the Numbers Still Point to Clinton
At a campaign event in New York on Thursday an activist from Greenpeace approached Clinton to ask if she would "reject fossil-fuel money in the future" in her campaign. Visibly annoyed, the former First Lady replied that she has only received contribution from oil company employees, not the firms themselves.
I am so sick, I am so sick of the Sanders campaign lying about me. Im sick of it, Clinton said.
Sanders camp is trying to make the most out of rare flare-up by demanding Clinton apologize for her remarks.
I think she probably owes the senator an apology for that because the senator is not lying about her record, Sanders campaign manager Jeff Weaver said Friday on MSNBC.
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Related: For Now, Democrats Savor a Clinton-Trump Matchup This Fall
Weaver later issued a statement citing research from a Greenpeace report that claims she accepts donations from industry lobbyists and bundlers.
If the Clinton campaign wants to argue that industry lobbyists giving thousands of dollars to her campaign wont affect her decisions if shes elected, thats fine, he said. But to call us liars for pointing out basic facts about the secretarys fundraising is deeply cynical and very disappointing.
The back-and-forth promises to grow more heated ahead of Tuesdays primary in Wisconsin. Sanders leads Clinton by slightly more than 2 percent in the state, according to the latest Real Clear Politics average of polls.
A Sanders win next week, following his clean sweep of three states last weekend, could once again make Clintons operatives nervous that her frontrunner status is weakening.
The 74-year-old Sanders is certainly sounding confident these days, predicting he will beat Clinton in New York, the state she represented in the U.S. Senate, when it holds its primary on April 19.
We are going to win New York, the Brooklyn native said on CBS This Morning.
Were going to do rallies all over the state, and I think we have a good shot at this, he added.
Clinton leads Sanders by 27 points in the Empire State, according to the poll average from Real Clear Politics. But Sanders is gaining steam: A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday shows him down only 12 points to Clinton, 54 to 42 percent.
Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
Sean Astin has countless dear memories of his mother, Anna Marie "Patty" Duke, but one of his most cherished occurred while he was filming the 1985 classic Goonies.
Astin, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, recalled watching dailies for the adventure comedy on the Warner Bros. lot when his mother, unbeknownst to him, slipped into the room.
"There was this one shot, the cinematographic quality was reminiscent of [Warren] Beatty or [Robert] Redford, and [on screen] I look and I make this heroic statement like: 'It all starts here.' And I turned and looked at her ... and she just has this look of, not just pride, but mortal gratitude. It was just confluence of a lot of things. She was incredibly proud of me. And she didn't have to say anything, she just hugged me."
Duke died Tuesday at 69. In addition to her husband, Michael Pearce, and Sean, survivors include another son, Mackenzie Astin and three grandchildren. A service for friends and colleagues in the industry will be held in the near future, Astin notes.
An Oscar-winning actress and TV sitcom star, it was Duke's work and advocacy for those afflicted with mental illness which Astin says was most important to her and best exemplified who she was as a person.
"So many people said her work, her books in particular, helped them find peace and helped them seek counsel and try to find a wellness plan and get past the stigma of trying to find treatment," Astin told THR. "My mom came along at a really important development of not just medicine and science but the national understanding of what the mental health arena really was in the country. There were many important voices, and she was one of them."
Read More: Patty Duke, Oscar Winner and Sitcom Star, Dies at 69
Now, Astin, best known for his work in Goonies, Rudy and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, among numerous other films, is trying to carry on his mother's legacy of helping others.
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Recently, the 45-year-old married father of three started raising funds for the Patty Duke Mental Health Initiative, which is described as "an initiative that will fuel a multi-level approach to achieving results for those suffering with mental illness and their families and communities."
"If I get anywhere near the goal - $250,000 - we'll have enough money to try and put a structure in place, a board, an executive director who's got a lot of experience in actual fundraising and some early staff," Astin tells THR. "I have an extraordinary responsibility on my hands for taking this on because my mother's spirit and my stepfather's righteous physical might will make sure that it's managed in a way that really honors her and captures the thrust of the work she was doing."
Astin also runs a charity, Run3rd, which benefits elementary afterschool running programs in underserved areas.
Duke suffered from manic depression, an illness that, at times, would cause her to snap into uncontrollable rages.
In one instance, she broke her Academy Award, which she won in 1962 at the age of 16 for her portrayal of Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker.
"In a manic rage, before she was diagnosed, she broke it," Astin says. "And then later in her life, the Academy wanted to showcase it. She was embarrassed, and they said don't be, we'll fix it. They fixed it. They showcased it for six months or a year or whatever they did, and they sent it back to her, and she was eternally grateful."
For the past 10 years, the gold statue sat "conformably next to the fish tank" in her north Idaho home, there for visitors to see, hold and admire, Astin says,
Duke was not just tough, "she was a steely-eyed warrior," her son says.
"She endured so many challenges throughout her life," he tells THR. "She was in agony a lot, certainly in the last days of her life. It was really just unfair. Hopefully God doesn't give people more than they can handle, but boy, it looked like he got pretty close with my mom."
Space, that is what Duke gave Astin when he was young, he says. He always had her encouragement, but was free to make his own choices. That meant a lot for the then-child actor.
"I was allowed to make my own decisions about what movies I did or didn't do, what schools I went to," Astin says. "She infused my life with a sense of hope and expectation. She set a tone for me about my importance. She made me believe I was important."
However, his mother did once offer a key piece of advice for his flourishing acting career: "Never say anything you don't want to see in print," he recalls, laughing.
"A lot of time the lessons she imparted weren't spoken. You could tell when she approved of something and you could tell when she thought you weren't firing on all cylinders," he adds.
His mother was perhaps his biggest fan and would regularly see his films, "but she didn't like them if they were too violent or too salty."
Still, Astin says it's a moment is his harrowing performance as Samwise Gamgee in the climax of the Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King where he feels he most channeled his mother.
"Samwise is crying on the volcano, saying these words, and I swear the tone and the pitch and the tenor of my voice, if you were to put it into a computer and then have her read it and put it into a computer, and overlapped them, they would be identical," Astin says. "And in that sense, we were part of the same project."
As for the trait passed on which Astin says he most values - his mother's work ethic.
"She was a professional's professional," Astin says proudly. "She was head of the [Screen Actors Guild], and she appreciated the rank and file members. She had lot of problems ... but I dare you to try and find anyone who said she wasn't decent, authentic, kind and extremely hardworking."
See More: Remembering Patty Duke's Famous 'Valley of the Dolls' Moments
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The UN Security Council on Friday unanimously backed a resolution that lays the groundwork for deploying a UN police presence in Burundi to help quell nearly a year of violence.
Drafted by France, the resolution tasks UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon with drawing up within 15 days a list of options for the proposed police force, in consultation with the Burundian government and the African Union.
The council is under pressure to take action in Burundi where the descent into violence has raised fears of mass atrocities, similar to those that convulsed neighboring Rwanda in 1994.
"This resolution is a first step towards a strengthened UN presence in Burundi to help ensure the respect for human rights and alert the international community on the reality of the situation on the ground," French Ambassador Francois Delattre said.
The vote capped days of tough negotiations between France and the United States over the wording of the resolution, the second measure adopted by the council over the Burundi crisis.
The resolution provides for the "deployment of a United Nations police contribution to increase the United Nations capacity to monitor the security situation, promote the respect of human rights and advance rule of law" in Burundi.
The text does not specify the size of the proposed police force but Burundi's UN Ambassador Albert Shingiro said he expected between 20 and 30 police to be deployed as unarmed "experts and observers."
"For the government, it is very important to have an international presence in Bujumbura in order to work in transparency," Shingiro told reporters ahead of the vote.
Under an agreement with the African Union, some 200 human rights observers and military monitors are to be deployed in Burundi, but fewer than 50 have in fact arrived, US Deputy Ambassador David Pressman told the council.
- French-US negotiations -
Burundi has been in turmoil since President Pierre Nkurunziza announced plans in April to run for a third term, which he went on to win.
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Violence has left more than 400 dead and driven more than 250,000 people across the border.
After France pushed for a quick vote on the resolution, the United States complained that the text was being rushed through and raised objections to some of the language.
The final revised text dropped a reference to UN support for "disarmament" in Burundi -- a term that the United States saw as a potential source of problems after the Burundian government launched a crackdown to disarm opposition activists.
At a council meeting last week, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said reports of torture were on the rise since the beginning of the year and that Burundians "live in terror."
A recent visit by UN rights officials to detention centers in the capital Bujumbura found that almost half of detainees had been tortured or ill-treated, some seriously, he said.
The resolution calls for beefing up the UN team of envoy Jamal Benomar, but the mandate of the enhanced political mission was not spelled out.
By Madeline Kennedy (Reuters Health) Elderly patients with hip fractures may get better care at smaller hospitals, a new study suggests. Seniors with hip fractures waited longer for surgery and were more likely to be rehospitalized if they were treated at a major trauma center than if they went to a smaller emergency room, researchers found. Seniors in so-called level 1 trauma centers were also more likely to develop blood clots in their legs, compared to their peers who were treated in settings designed for less serious injuries, the researchers write in Medical Care. Level 1 trauma centers have the resources to treat very serious injuries, said lead author Dr. David Metcalfe of Brigham and Womens Hospital in Boston. However, because they care for the most complex patients, these hospitals are often very busy. There is therefore a risk that some groups of patients might be disadvantaged or lost in the system, Metcalfe told Reuters Health by email. For example, patients with multiple injuries or bones breaking through skin may be treated before seniors with hip fractures. Each year in the U.S. alone, more than 250,000 people aged 65 and older are hospitalized for hip fractures, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study team used statewide data from California on 91,401 seniors hospitalized between 2007 and 2011. All were over age 65 and had surgery for hip fractures. Overall, six percent were treated at a level 1 trauma center, 18 percent at a level 2 trauma center (where very seriously injured patients can be stabilized), and 70 percent in a non-trauma center. On average, patients stayed in the hospital for five days and waited one day for surgery. Patients in level 1 trauma centers stayed for one day longer than those in the other settings and waited nearly eight hours longer for surgery. Seniors treated at level 1 centers were 62 percent more likely to be readmitted to the hospital within a month of their surgery than seniors treated in level 2 or non-trauma settings. Seniors were also 32 percent more likely to develop blood clots in their legs at level 1 centers. Patients at level 2 trauma centers had the same outcomes as those at non-trauma centers, the authors found. There was no difference between any of the groups in risk of death, bed sores, or pneumonia, however. We now know that it is important to treat patients with hip fractures as quickly as possible, said Metcalfe, noting that older adults who wait too long for treatment may be at risk for bed sores, blood clots, and lung infections. The concern is that this delay will lead to increasing length of stay in hospital as well as increased complications for the patients because they spend longer in bed waiting for surgery, said Dr. Chris Gooding, a surgeon at Addenbrookes Hospital, a level 1 trauma center in Cambridge, UK. Gooding was not involved in the study. This is an important subject as in developed countries we have an aging population and as a result we are seeing increasing numbers of patients with hip fractures, Gooding told Reuters Health by email. At the same time, Gooding noted, there are also a growing number of level 1 trauma centers. One of the best ways to help these patients is to get their operation done quickly so that they can start walking again and return to their own homes as soon as possible, Metcalfe advised. SOURCE: bit.ly/1PHZ2ys Medical Care, online March 11, 2016.
Belgrade (AFP) - In 1945, Aleksandar Lebl returned to Serbia after escaping the extermination of Jews in World War II and reclaimed his family's confiscated house.
But the 93-year-old is one of the very few of Serbia's Holocaust survivors who came back to recover their homes.
Many thousands of others were murdered or left no heir and their property, seized by the Nazis or the puppet government in Belgrade, was incorporated into the Communist state after the war.
Today, more than seven decades later, Serbia has passed a law offering some belated redress to its now tiny Jewish community.
One of the first of its kind in eastern Europe, the "heirless property restitution law" passed in February will see thousands of previously Jewish-owned buildings handed to the country's Association of Jewish Communities.
The association plans to rent out most of the properties, and from 2017 Serbia will also pay an annual 950,000 euros ($1.1 million) for 25 years in financial support to the community.
The funds will be spent on education, fighting prejudice and preserving the memory of Holocaust victims, along with supporting survivors, said its president, Ruben Fuks.
Lebl is one of the last of Serbia's Jews who remembers the war.
By the spring of 1942, more than 80 percent of the 33,000 Jews living in Serbia before the war had been killed, and the Nazis declared the country "free of Jews." Even today, there are fewer than a thousand Jews in Serbia.
"After the war the authorities decided to return the property, but as so many people were killed, there was no one left to take back most of it," said Lebl.
"The Jewish community has never recovered, because the loss (of human life) was so high."
- 'Moral obligation' -
Presenting the new law in parliament, Justice Minister Nikola Selakovic said Serbia had a "moral obligation" towards Jews who "dedicated their lives and work to our Serbia".
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He said the move would also "contribute to a greater understanding of human rights, which is crucial for fighting and preventing racial and religious discrimination".
Jewish history can be traced back to Roman times in the territory of present-day Serbia, with the community growing under the Ottoman Empire where they found refuge from the Spanish and Portuguese inquisitions.
Jews supported Serbs in their 19th century independence struggle against the Ottomans and fought alongside them in World War I, peaking in number just before World War II.
Lebl was one of the few Jews who avoided the wartime mass shootings and concentration camps by slipping out of Serbia on a false pass, and he later joined the Yugoslav Partisans' fight against the Nazis.
"I only realised the extent of the killings when I came back from the war... The list is pretty long, between 20 and 30 people from my family were killed," Lebl told AFP in his Belgrade home.
Jewish groups have repeatedly urged Europe's ex-communist states to return, or provide compensation for, assets seized from Holocaust victims estimated to be worth billions of dollars, but few have fully tackled the issue of returning unclaimed property.
In 2009, 46 countries signed the Terezin Declaration, named after a Czechoslovak wartime ghetto, urging the restitution of stolen Jewish assets and social aid for impoverished Holocaust survivors.
The United States said Serbia was the first country to pass such a law on heirless property since then, calling on other governments to take similar action "where justice has long been denied".
Poland, which had Europe's largest pre-war Jewish community, in 2011 suspended work on compensation legislation for property seized by Nazis and post-war Polish communists, intended to apply to both Jewish and non-Jewish victims of expropriation.
Warsaw argued the law would swell the nation's debt to the point where it would breach a European Union (EU) debt ceiling.
- 'Fewer worries' -
In Serbia, some buildings will not be given back because they have been privatised or now house public institutions such as schools or hospitals -- hence the state's extra financial support to the Jewish community.
"We have identified more than 3,000 buildings seized during World War II by Germans," said Fuks, adding that the properties listed so far were in Belgrade, central Serbia and a small part of northern Vojvodina province.
In other parts of Vojvodina which were occupied by Nazi-allied Hungarians or Croatians, seized Jewish property is yet to be tracked down and listed.
One of these areas, Backa, was once home to half of all the Jews in Serbia, Fuks said, hinting that the final amount of property due to be returned is likely to be much higher.
Fuks said the new law offered a chance to commemorate properly those who were killed and to fight against the intolerance that almost destroyed the community.
It also means Holocaust survivors can "live with fewer worries in the last years of their lives, after the horrible personal experiences they have been through", he said.
By Tom Esslemont LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Facebook was investigating on Friday a report that people smugglers were using its U.S.-based website to sell tickets on a new boat route from Turkey into the European Union that lands in Italy and avoids the main entry point of Greece. A spokeswoman for the social networking company told the Thomson Reuters Foundation that they were looking into the origins of an advert which was offering passage on boats to Italy from the Turkish port of Mersin at $4,000 per person. The advert, reported by Britain's Guardian newspaper on Friday but no longer visible on Facebook, appeared after Turkey agreed with the European Union this month to return migrants and refugees who cross illegally to Greece. In the past two years scores of would-be migrants seeking to escape conflict in the Middle East have used Facebook as their compass for finding the people smugglers they hope will lead them to a better life in Europe. But this advert appeared to shed light on a new, more lucrative route used by traffickers with the trip to Italy costing about four times as much as a boat to Greece, the main route used by more than one million migrants in the past year. "The trip is on Saturday, from Mersin to Italy, on a merchant ship 110 meters long, equipped with food, water, life jackets and medicine," the Guardian quoted the Facebook post as saying. Reacting to the advert, some refugees told the Guardian that the scheme could be a scam as scores of would-be migrants have been tricked in the past two years by people posing as organizers of similar trips. Turkey has agreed to start retaking rejected asylum seekers from April 4 with the plan designed to end the uncontrolled influx of migrants and refugees across the Aegean Sea to Greece in the past year. More than a million people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and beyond have poured into Europe in the last year, most ending up in Germany, triggering a political backlash and pitting EU governments against each other. Under the terms of the deal, Turkey would receive financial aid, faster visa-free travel for Turks and slightly accelerated EU membership talks. But the United Nations called on Friday for legal safeguards to be in place before refugees are returned to Turkey under the agreement with the EU, while warning that conditions in Greece are deteriorating. (Reporting By Tom Esslemont, Editing by Katie Nguyen and Belinda Goldsmith; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, womens rights, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org)
Johannesburg (AFP) - A South African anti-apartheid veteran who was jailed with Nelson Mandela has urged beleaguered President Jacob Zuma to step down after a damning ruling found him in violation of the constitution.
In an open letter seen Saturday, Ahmed Kathrada, 86, joined a growing chorus of leading figures calling for Zuma to leave office.
The criticism comes after the Constitutional Court on Thursday found Zuma in breach of the constitution for using public funds to upgrade his private home at Nkandla village.
Zuma, who has long denied wrongdoing for the work valued in 2014 at 216 million rand (then $24 million), on Friday apologised to the nation for the misuse of public funds.
In his letter dated March 31, Kathrada asked if Zuma did not think that his continued stay would deepen the crisis of confidence in the government.
"Today I appeal to our president to submit to the will of the people and resign," read the letter published in local media.
"I know that if I were in the presidents shoes, I would step down with immediate effect," Kathrada wrote.
In a televised address, Zuma said he would abide by the Constitutional Court's verdict, which ordered him to pay back money spent on a swimming pool, chicken run, cattle enclosure and amphitheatre built at his rural home as so-called "security" measures.
The ruling is the latest scandal to tarnish Zuma's presidency.
Kathrada, held, like Mandela, as a political prisoner on Robben Island, asked if Zuma was aware that his "outstanding contribution to the liberation struggle stands to be severely tarnished if the remainder of your term as president continues to be dogged by crises, and a growing public loss of confidence in the ANC (African National Congress) and government as a whole."
Zuma, 73, whose second presidential term ends in 2019, has also faced scathing criticism over his friendship with the wealthy Gupta family, who are said to have undue influence over his government.
But the Nkandla scandal became a symbol of alleged widespread corruption and greed within the ANC party, which has ruled since Mandela won the first post-apartheid elections in 1994.
By Ed Cropley JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - When he became South Africa's top judge in 2011, Mogoeng Mogoeng was derided as everything from a legal lightweight and political stooge to Christian zealot and apartheid lackey. Five years later, the 55-year-old son of a miner and a housemaid is being feted as the savior of a young democracy. Alongside damning findings against President Jacob Zuma, who made him Chief Justice, Mogoeng laid out with unassailable legal clarity and flashes of literary flair the soul of a 20-year-old constitution cherished as a blueprint for a better society. For the millions who watched on television, it was the day the supreme law, embodied in the 11 judges - black and white - sitting impassively in an old apartheid prison in Johannesburg, reasserted itself in a state that has lost its way since the idealism of Nelson Mandela's four years in office. In a unanimous ruling, the court ordered Zuma to pay back some of the $16 million spent doing up his sprawling private residence, and declared that he had failed to uphold and respect the constitution, an impeachable offence. Although the judgment may not mean Zuma's immediate political demise - the African National Congress and its large parliamentary majority could yet protect him - it reaffirmed the faith of many South Africans in their broader democracy. "It's a winning situation. Everyone is very happy with the ruling," said student Fighter Makobudi. "I'm quite sure that the president is going to do the right thing and step down." The rand, pummeled since December by a string of Zuma-related scandals, most notably his unexplained axing of a respected finance minister, hit a four-month high. For many, there was a sense of relief that the ANC, whose dominance has reduced parliament to little more than a rubber stamp, was being held to account. "I feel like I am breathing new air," said one caller to the Talk Radio 702 station. "UGLY HEAD" Although Mogoeng receded into the background after his ruling, his intervention is likely to be felt for years to come as South Africa's fractured society negotiates and contests the basis of political power. One of his main detractors, cartoonist Jonathan Shapiro, who has depicted Mogoeng as a moron, Bible-bashing fanatic and salivating Zuma lapdog, admitted publicly he had got it wrong. "Justice Mogoeng, you have really proved yourself," Shapiro, better known by his pen name Zapiro, said on the ENCA television channel. "I'm eating humble pie." Newspapers heralded the judgment as the start of a new chapter for a country that has been floundering under the weight of a stagnating economy, sliding credit ratings and a procession of scandals emanating from Zuma's front door. "South Africa wakes up to a new reality - we must not allow ourselves to be intimidated or abused by those in power," the Times said in an editorial. "Today, we remain resolute that the constitution is the bedrock of our democracy." Before the ruling, Zuma's legal team had begged the court to keep its judgment as narrow as possible for fear of political fallout months before important provincial elections. Mogoeng ignored them, laying out how the constitution's checks and balances were designed to stop abuse of power - and how they had been undermined by Zuma, who for two years disregarded the findings of Public Protector Thuli Madonsela, a constitutionally mandated watchdog. "Constitutionalism, accountability and the rule of law constitute the sharp and mighty sword that stands ready to chop the ugly head of impunity off its stiffened neck," he stated in a preamble that set the tone for the hour-long ruling. He likened Madonsela to a "Biblical David" taking on the Goliath of state corruption, a simile that spawned lurid cartoons and headlines. "Chop Zuma the Ugly Head", the Sowetan newspaper, a popular read among Johannesburg's black middle classes, said on its front page. The government said Zuma was studying the ruling and would decide the appropriate action in due course. ANC'S CHOICE This is not to say the ruling has resolved all the questions hanging over many of Zuma's actions. A policeman denounced by a judge as "biased and dishonest" and a liar under oath is still in charge of the force's elite investigations unit. Nor has there has been an explanation for the government's flouting last year of its legal obligations to arrest Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir, wanted by the International Criminal Court on genocide charges. And there is still no clarity about the political role of the Guptas, a wealthy family of Indian-born businessmen with close ties to Zuma accused last month by deputy finance minister Mcebisi Jonas of offering him the top job in the Treasury. But it has shown that some of South Africa's institutions are working in the interests of the public, rather than a ruling party that, in the words of opposition leader Mmusi Maimane, must now choose between its leader and its country. "The choice is final: it's the constitution or Jacob Zuma," Maimane said. "It cannot be both." (Reporting by Ed Cropley; editing by Giles Elgood)
By Lisa Baertlein (Reuters) - Democracy Works Inc, a non-partisan, non-profit group trying to encourage more Americans to take part in elections, said on Wednesday it is joining forces with Starbucks Corp, Spanish-language television network Univision and others in an attempt to boost U.S. voter turnout to 80 percent by 2020. The project, called the TurboVote Challenge, comes during one of the most contentious and unpredictable U.S. presidential races in many years, marked by strong participation in both Republican and Democratic primary elections and caucuses. Democracy Works, which aims to create "a more representative and inclusive democracy," said voter turnout had not been above 80 percent since 1888. An estimated 57.5 percent of eligible citizens voted in the 2012 presidential election, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center. The project's other founding partners include lodging web service Airbnb, Arizona State University, the Fusion TV network, ride-sharing company Lyft, news company Mic, online music service Spotify, email newsletter theSkimm, retailer Target Corp, mall operator Westfield Corp, shared workspace provider WeWork and the Video Game Voters Network. The parties will promote voter registration and encourage participation in local and national elections, among other things. Starbucks Chief Executive Howard Schultz, who previously has weighed in on U.S. politics, government gridlock and social issues, said the dysfunction and polarization he first spoke about two years ago has only worsened. "We must do everything we can to reclaim and reimagine the American dream," Schultz said at Starbucks' annual meeting in Seattle on Wednesday. Univision anchor Jorge Ramos made headlines this political season for being one of the first high-profile journalists to publicly challenge Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. "Univision is committed to informing and empowering Hispanic, millennial and multicultural audiences to reach their full potential in the United States," Univision Chief Executive Randy Falco said in a statement. (Reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles; Editing by Paul Tait and Bill Rigby)
By Arshad Mohammed WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department has suspended plans for an internal review of whether classified information was properly handled in former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's emails at the request of the FBI, a spokeswoman said on Friday. Clinton, the front-runner in the race for the Democratic Party nomination in the Nov. 8 presidential election, has apologized for using a private email server for official business while in office from 2009 to 2013 and said she did nothing wrong. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is probing the arrangement. On Jan. 29, the State Department said 22 emails sent or received by Clinton had been upgraded to top secret at the request U.S. intelligence agencies and would not be made public as part of the release of thousands of Clinton's emails. It said that none of the emails was marked classified when sent. At the time, the department also said it would conduct an internal review on whether the information in the emails was classified at the time it passed through Clinton's private clintonemail.com account run on a server in her New York home. The State Department consulted the FBI about this in February, and in March the law enforcement agency asked the State Department to halt its inquiry. "The FBI communicated to us that we should follow our standard practice, which is to put our internal review on hold while there is an ongoing law enforcement investigation ," State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau told reporters. "The internal review is on hold, pending completion of the FBI's work," she added." We'll reassess next steps after the FBI's work is complete." A U.S. State Department official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the State Department had really only done "administrative work" on its review but had held off while waiting for a response from the FBI. "It took a little bit of time for the FBI to respond to our request for advice and in the interim we did not pursue the review out of prudence," said the official, who declined further comment on the State Department review. The government forbids handling of classified information, which may or may not be marked that way, outside secure government-controlled channels, and sometimes prosecutes people who remove it from such channels. The government classifies information as top secret if it deems a leak could cause "exceptionally grave damage" to national security. Two judges have allowed a group suing for Clinton's records to seek sworn testimony from officials. On Tuesday, one judge said there was "evidence of government wrongdoing and bad faith" over the arrangement.
A dovish Yellen, a strong jobs report, and a Tesla boom - these stories are all driving stocks higher this week. Catch the Final Round at 4p ET with Editor in Chief Andy Serwer, markets correspondent Nicole Sinclair, and Zor Capital's Joe Fahmy.
Tesla Model 3 pre-orders hit 198K
And the big story today: Tesla. The new Model 3 revealed with pre-order activity booming, now at 198,000, and the stock is soaring. Did Tesla finally deliver what the customers, and investors, have been asking for?
Winners and losers
Stocks in the green today include biopharma firm Regeneron on positive drug results, Netflix higher as it avoids an FCC probe into video throttling, and Urban Outfitters. The retailer's shares are on the move as it forecast better than expected comparable same-store sales growth for the current quarter.
On the flipside, stocks ending the week in the red include former smartphone king Blackberry as revenue slumped, Ford on weaker than expected auto sales, and Delta Airlines. The carrier was downgraded along with American Airlines by Deutsche Bank, which cited macro concerns and compressed multiples.
Looking ahead
By Ramkumar Iyer
(Reuters) - Struggling solar developer SunEdison Inc is planning to file for bankruptcy protection in the coming weeks, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Then company's shares, down about 98 percent over the past 12 months, fell a further 45 percent in heavy extended trading to 23 cents each.
Once the nations fastest growing renewable energy developer, SunEdison is preparing to seek Chapter 11 protection and is in talks with two creditor groups for a loan to fund its operations during the process, the newspaper reported.
A spokesperson for Belmont, California-based SunEdison did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The company faces a cash crunch after an aggressive acquisition strategy saddled it with $12 billion debt, and it has said in filings it faces scrutiny from regulators at the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over a failed deal and other issues.
The company's creditors are likely to take control of the company and its portfolio of power projects, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing the sources.
The newspaper reported that SunEdison has been meeting with creditors to negotiate a loan to see it through bankruptcy, but competition for the deal among lenders has delayed an agreement.
Senior bank lenders led by Deutsche Bank AG form one camp of lenders while the other comprises a group of creditors, most of which are hedge funds focused on distressed companies, that participated in a junior debt offering in January that raised about $725 million, the newspaper said.
A bankruptcy at SunEdison, whose investors include prominent hedge fund investor David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital, would rank among the largest involving a non-financial company in the past 10 years, according to bankruptcydata.com.
Greenlight, which holds a seat on SunEdisons board of directors, declined to comment.
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SunEdison warned in March it had been unable to file its annual financial results due to allegations made by former executives of incorrect disclosure about the companys liquidity.
SunEdison said on Thursday it had received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice seeking details related to its failed deal to buy Vivint Solar Inc and transactions involving TerraForm Power Inc and TerraForm Global Inc .
The latter two companies are publicly traded yieldcos that were spun off from SunEdison and hold solar and wind power assets.
The TerraForm assets have long-term power purchase contracts with utilities that allow them to pay shareholders rich and stable dividends.
ALLEGATIONS OF BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY
Large investors in TerraForm Power include billionaire David Tepper, who runs hedge fund Appaloosa Management. Appaloosa owns more than 10 percent of TerraForm and is agitating for governance changes there.
Appaloosa has sued SunEdison, alleging the company breached its fiduciary duty by installing a sham committee to monitor conflicts of interest at TerraForm. The company, which has delayed filing its annual report twice, said this month it had identified material weaknesses in its financial reporting controls.
In addition, SunEdison is being investigated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to see if it had exaggerated its liquidity position, the Journal reported on Monday.
(Reporting by Ramkumar Iyer in Bengaluru, and Jessica DiNapoli in New York; Editing by Peter Henderson and Cynthia Osterman)
(Reuters) - SunEdison Inc is planning to file for bankruptcy protection in the coming weeks, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter. Shares of the solar energy company were down 42 percent at 25 cents in extended trading on Friday. The solar energy company is preparing to file for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 and is in talks with two creditor groups for a loan to fund its operations during the process, the newspaper reported. SunEdison, whose aggressive acquisition strategy has saddled it with almost $12 billion of debt, is at "substantial risk" of bankruptcy, one of its two publicly listed units warned on Tuesday. The company's creditors are likely to take control of the company and its portfolio of power projects, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing the sources. A spokesperson for Belmont, California-based SunEdison did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The newspaper reported that SunEdison has been meeting with creditors to negotiate a loan to see it through bankruptcy, but competition for the deal among lenders has delayed an agreement. Senior bank lenders led by Deutsche Bank AG form one camp of lenders while the other comprises a group of creditors, most of which are hedge funds focused on distressed companies, that participated in a junior debt offering in January that raised about $725 million, the newspaper said. The company, which has delayed filing its annual report twice, said this month it had identified material weaknesses in its financial reporting controls. According to a loan agreement filed with regulators, SunEdison could breach a covenant if it does not file its annual report within 90 days after the end of each fiscal year - in this case, March 30. The company has at least $1.4 billion in first-lien and second-lien debt, according to filings. In addition, SunEdison is being investigated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to see if it had exaggerated its liquidity position, the Journal reported on Monday. Up to Friday's close, SunEdison's shares had dropped about 98 percent this year, valuing the company at $136.2 million. (Reporting by Ramkumar Iyer in Bengaluru and Jessica DiNapoli in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler)
In Cambodia, rice paddies account for more than 80 percent of cultivated land, and women tend many of them. Mom Thany, an undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, recently acknowledged womens important role in the sectorbut said they should try harder to learn new farming techniques, how to adapt to climate change, and so on, according to Voice of America.
Its not so easy, however, to escape the limitations of smallholder farmingwhich Rick Bates, a professor of horticulture at Penn State University, notes are often called very resilient poverty traps. Thats why he and a team of researchers launched a project early this year designed to improve nutrition and empower Cambodian women in the four provinces around Tonle Sap Lake in the northern part of the country, where the poverty rate tops 45 percent in some areas and there are high concentrations of stunting and malnutrition.
The $1 million project will work directly with 250 women farmers and will run until September 2019. Its funded by the Feed the Future Sustainable Intensification Innovation Lab at Kansas State University, which currently funds similar projects in in Bangladesh, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Senegal, and Burkina Faso focused on using a farming practice called sustainable intensification, or SI, to address the food and nutritional security of smallholder farmers.
Basically, SI involves growing more food, on existing land, using less resources and in an ecologically friendly manner, Bates wrote in an email to TakePart.
RELATED: Closing the Gender Gap on the Farm Could End World Hunger
For rice, which Cambodia has been exporting more of in the last several years, SI involves planting seedlings at a younger age than usual, which encourages resilient roots that can withstand drought or intense rain. Plants are also spaced at wider intervals, which encourages more leaf growth. Conventional rice methods call for continuous flooding, but SI methods call for a minimum of water to keep soil moist.
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The results are significant: Paddy yields increase by an average of 50 to 100 percent, decreased seed usage results in costs declining by as much as 80 to 90 percent, and irrigation water use declines by 25 to 50 percent, according to a presentation given by Cornell University professor Norman Uphoff at the World Bank in 2012. Lotus Foods, the rice brand at your local Whole Foods, works with farmers who use these methods.
For the team from Penn State, deploying SI principles in Cambodia isnt just about ecological resilience. The project is aimed squarely at improving the socioeconomic and nutritional status of women and their familiesnot only through increased production, food, and economic security, but through overcoming the barriers that prevent womens access to various links in the agricultural value chain, including markets. The goal, coprincipal investigator Leif Jensen said, is for this approach to serve as a model for the entire country and region.
Cambodia represents a best-case scenario for promoting SI through the increased involvement of women, who already play a significant and often nearly autonomous role in agriculture in much of the country, Bates said.
When women farmers have the same access to resources as men do, they can increase yields on their farms by 20 to 30 percent, and in Cambodia, unlike many other developing nations where women are smallholder farmers, women often control the household finances. That puts them one step closer to improving the living conditions for their families: Studies show that when women have control over their familys income, they spend 90 percent of it on their families, compared with the 30 to 40 percent that men spend, and childrens health and nutrition improves.
The Cambodian government supports efforts like these. In late 2015, it set out policies to improve the circumstances of women in rural areas and encourage more women in agriculture.
[Women] are important partners in farming, a 29 year-old farmer said at Cambodias recent National Champion Woman Farmer forum. They help provide income for the stability of their familys livelihood. They can be a good model for the next generation, as well as for other women in the community.
Take the Pledge: Let's Put an End to Food Waste
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Original article from TakePart
By Mia Shanley STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - In a country where family-run business spheres dominate the landscape, Fredrik Lundberg, often referred to as Sweden's Warren Buffett, is tackling bigger rivals on several fronts. A new center dedicated to Sweden's Nobel Prize is planned near his company's headquarters on one of Stockholm's Baltic promenades, with funding from the Wallenberg investment empire and the Perssons who created retail giant Hennes & Mauritz. Lundberg's own firm and its real estate company, whose deputy CEO is his daughter, have objected to the scale of the proposed metal and glass building, citing concerns about their sea view and the value of their century-old properties. The Nobel Centre says its architects have cut it back by 20 percent. The hitherto Sweden-focused Lundberg began competing directly with the Wallenbergs and others last year when he became chairman of Industrivarden , which backs firms that employ almost half a million people around the world in everything from telecommunications to banking. He saw the opportunity to turn it around after a corporate spending scandal and a decade of dismal returns; bankers say there may be asset sales at the likes of steel manufacturer SSAB and truckmaker Volvo as he brings down debt. The 64-year-old magnate, who inherited his construction and property holding Lundbergforetagen from his father in the 1980s, earned the Buffett moniker with steadily rising returns: they totaled 160 percent over the past 10 years, well above Sweden's index. http://reut.rs/22g8HFA Analysts say his track record bodes well for Industrivarden whose return over 10 years only matched Stockholm's blue-chip index <.OMXS30>, but his rivals are formidable. Other investment companies such as Wallenberg-backed Investor Group and Kinnevik , backed by the Stenbeck family, have returned about 180 percent to shareholders over 10 years, albeit more unevenly, as they tested unchartered areas like e-commerce and put more money into private equity. UNCLE FREDRIK "The Wallenbergs have built over 150 years a contact network across the whole world which they have grown and constantly invested in," said Ronald Fagerfjall, an author who has penned several books on Swedish business and the Wallenbergs. "Lundberg is standing at the start of that journey, if it is one he wants to take." One of Sweden's richest men, Lundberg moved his family to Switzerland in 1985 for almost a decade to escape high taxes but is now firmly based at home, where his conservative reputation has given him the nickname "Farbror Fredrik", Swedish for "Uncle Fredrik". Industrivarden has eight portfolio companies and major stakes in telecommunications giant Ericsson , Volvo and lender Handelsbanken . Together with Investor Group it is involved in more than half of the market capitalization of Stockholm's main index. Lundberg stepped in as chairman in May after building up a total 22.1 percent voting share since 2002, stirring speculation in Swedish media he wants to merge the company with his own, an investment firm with far less debt and less cyclical holdings. "No, it is not happening at all," he told Reuters after Lundbergforetagen reported earnings last month, saying analysts who saw synergies between the two companies were wrong. "The different portfolio companies have their respective agendas and don't have anything to do with one another," Lundberg said. "What we are doing is capital management." CONTROL His company is 40 percent invested in real estate and has exposure to engineering group Sandvik, outdoor equipment maker Husqvarna and Industrivarden, while the bigger investment group has a complicated series of crossholdings known as "the System". "We get from Lundbergforetagen's perspective a diversification of our assets in big companies which we wouldn't have been able to do on our own directly," he said. "One can say that Lundbergs and Industrivarden complement each other." He has cleared out the old guard from Industrivarden and recruited 45-year-old private equity executive Helena Stjernholm, who is known for being sharp and personable, as CEO in August. "We are more specific and more concrete. And yes, more of an activist," Stjernholm told Reuters, saying the group would stay in listed companies with a weight towards engineering and plans to enter smaller companies. "You have to be very clear about what you want to achieve." Investors want activism after reports of corporate excess last year at hygiene products maker SCA , in which Industrivarden holds a 10 percent stake, the largest. Newspapers said SCA flew in chefs and hunting dogs for an executive function in northern Sweden and the corporate jet returned empty to Stockholm to pick up a forgotten wallet, leading to the ousting of Industrivarden executives. With Lundberg, the main perceived danger is micromanagement. Asked about this, Roger Ekstrom, Lundbergforetagen's press chief, said: "He wants to have control - macro to micro. This is not management by fear." One senior former employee said he had not found it a problem. "I quickly realized the way to handle it was to keep him well informed," said the source. Lundberg was not overly concerned by quarterly reporting or short term share moves, he said. "His leadership style is about being informed but not necessarily taking over... He doesn't like surprises." To minimize surprises, Industrivarden recently set a target to bring gearing down to 0 to 10 percent from 15 percent. Standard & Poor's upgraded Industrivarden last month due to a perceived lower risk profile and M&A bankers are lining up pitches, saying SSAB could do a rights issue or dispose of its construction business to improve its finances. Swedish business daily Dagens Industri speculated this month Industrivarden could sell its share in Ericsson, one of its original holdings, or trim its share of Handelsbanken. Mining equipment maker Sandvik and Volvo have struggled but now have new CEOs - two recruits from within the Wallenberg sphere who are driving change. SCA could spin off its forestry assets and Volvo could sell its construction business, banking sources say. "I think we will also look into divestments if the opportunity looks right," Stjernholm said. She declined to offer details but said that while the company has the luxury of an "evergreen timetable" it will not hold companies "forever". It has already told Ericsson, whose largest shareholder is Investor, to improve profitability in several of its businesses. This week, Nordea analyst Elias Porse raised the bank's recommendation on Industrivarden, what it called a "once-sleepy investment company", to a buy from hold in a note to investors entitled "A new S(tj)eriff in town". (Additional reporting by Sven Nordenstam; editing by Alistair Scrutton and Philippa Fletcher)
Ahmad Alabdullah was a sophomore studying fine arts at Aleppo University when the Syrian conflict erupted in 2011. With the city divided into government- and rebel-controlled sections, simply walking to school became a perilous journey. Alabdullah regularly saw women and children killed in the streets and snipers hiding out in high-rise buildings on his way to class.
Life could come to an end in a split of a second in a city divided into two opposing camps by the road that led to my college, he wrote of his experience. Id say farewell to my family every morning as if it is the last time Id see them.
Alabdullah eventually fled Aleppo and now lives in Turkey with his family, working several jobs to make ends meet. But he still has high hopes for his education, with his sights set on earning a Ph.D. in animation from the University of Porto in Portugal. Alabdullah is one of several students featured on crowdfunding site Iduka, which is working to connect refugees with higher education in Portugal.
Other refugees featured on Iduka include a Palestinian-Syrian woman hoping to earn her master's degree in architecture and young man who fixes smartphones in Lebanon after being forced to abandon his dreams of obtaining a Ph.D. in computer science in Syria.
RELATED: Online University Offers Free Education to Refugees
Portugal isnt exactly a popular choice among refugees looking for a new place to call home, with the majority looking to northern European nations such as Germany or Sweden. Fewer than 1,000 refugees applied for asylum in Portugal last year.
Portugals economy has struggled to recover from the global financial crisis of 2008, with unemployment at 12 percent. Of the 10 million people living in Portugal, nearly half a million have emigrated in the past four years, the AFP reports. Now, Portuguese officials are actively encouraging refugees to resettle in the small Western European country to help replenish the countrys dwindling workforce and pump up the economy. In February, Prime Minister Antonio Costa pledged to accept 10,000 refugees, with 2,000 spots reserved for specifically for university students.
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That pledge makes Iduka founder Miguel Martim confident that the students featured on his site will be able to obtain student visas. And having funds for a years worth of living expenses should cinch the deal.
Funding is critical in order to start the process, Martim wrote in an email to TakePart. We need to show the Portuguese authorities proof of sufficient resources to support students financially throughout their stay in Portugal.
All of the students are seeking 7,000 ($7,966) to jumpstart their educational aspirations. Thanks to Portugals low cost of living, thats enough to cover a year of tuition and living expenses. The average Portuguese university charges between 950 to 1,250 ($1,050 to $1,422) per year for bachelors and masters programs. And the collegiate hopefuls may not even have to pay full price.
There are quite a few universities that have already expressed interest in enrolling refugee students, and some may be willing to drastically cut or abolish tuition and admission fees altogether, Martim explained. Iduka has partnered with the organization Refugees Welcome, which offers a collaborative residence where students can live together and learn Portugals language and customs.
Our goal is to go beyond the financial assistance and implement a comprehensive program for refugee students who want to study in Portugal in order to guarantee their social, cultural, academic, and economic integration in our society, Martim said.
But despite the plans for integration, many of the students featured on Iduka still hope to take their talents back to Syria when the conflict there ends.
I believe that the art centers in Syria will need huge planning and renovation work get to back to life again, Alabdullah explains in his Iduka profile. Im planning to work on bringing back the art and culture in my society, which have been discontinued because of the war.
Take the Pledge: Pledge to Call Attention to the Global Refugee Crisis Today
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Original article from TakePart
Geneva (AFP) - UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday called for greater global efforts to tackle the Syrian refugee crisis, as he opened a conference on securing resettlement places for nearly half a million of those displaced by the five-year conflict.
"We are here to address the biggest refugee and displacement crisis of our time," Ban told the conference in Geneva. "This demands an exponential increase in global solidarity."
The UN secretary general, a South Korean, recalled his own experience of fleeing his village with his family as a six-year-old during the Korean War sixty years ago and said that for him stories of refugees stranded in camps with meagre resources "have personal meaning."
"Attempts to demonise people fleeing conflict are not only demeaning, offensive and counter-productive, they are factually wrong," Ban told journalists after his speech, in an apparent reference to rising anti-migrant rhetoric voiced by some political leaders across the developed world.
The Geneva meet follows a conference in London in February where nations pledged $11 billion (9.7 billion euros) to help manage one of the largest displacements of people since World War II.
The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) estimates that 4.8 million Syrians have fled the country during its five-year civil war, with another 6.6 million people internally displaced.
While calling for a humane approach to care for those displaced, the UN chief stressed that a peace deal must be part of a lasting solution.
"There is no alternative to negotiating a political transition that will lead to a new Syria," Ban said.
Talks led by Ban's Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura paused last week, but the sides remained deadlocked over the fate of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whom the opposition insists must leave power before a transitional government is agreed.
Jihadist forces including the Islamic State group, which is excluded from the peace process, continue to be targeted in the Russian-backed regime's offensives.
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Soldiers were locked in heavy fighting with IS fighters on Wednesday in central Syria after dealing the jihadists a major blow by seizing the ancient city of Palmyra.
A ceasefire between Damascus and non-jihadist opposition forces has broadly held since February 27, but isolated clashes persist in the conflict that has killed more than 270,000 people.
- 10 percent -
The aim of the Geneva meet is to secure relocation pledges from countries -- excluding Syria's neighbours -- for 10 percent of Syria's refugees, or 480,000 people, within three years.
Ban said the 480,000 figure was "a relatively small number," compared with those being hosted by Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.
The British charity Oxfam on Tuesday noted that wealthy countries had so far only resettled 67,100 Syrian refugees -- a mere 1.39 percent of those forced to flee.
It identified Canada, Germany and Norway as the only countries who have promised to go beyond their "fair share."
- EU-Turkey deal -
The UN continues to voice concerns over a deal agreed between Turkey and the European Union, under which all migrants landing on the Greek islands face being sent back to Turkey.
UNHCR and the UN's rights office have warned that the deal might violate some migrants' legal right to asylum.
Noting concerns about the deal, Ban described it as "a good start", as it demonstrated engagement from the EU and Ankara on the Syria refugee issue.
UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi, speaking after Ban, noted that the pact included a larger resettlement programme and therefore may prove to have positive elements in the weeks ahead.
More than one million migrants -- about half of them Syrians -- reached Europe via the Mediterranean last year, a rate of arrivals that has continued through the first three months of 2016.
Thousands have died making the harrowing journey, often on rickety boats run by people smugglers.
Some European states have temporarily shut borders and called for tough measures to stem the movement of people through the continent.
Ban argued that migrants should be viewed as assets, noting "the famous refugee work ethic" while arguing that welcoming migrants "provides the best way to safeguard economic success as populations (in Europe) grow older."
By Nailia Bagirova and Hasmik Mkrtchyan BAKU/YEREVAN (Reuters) - A new wave of fighting broke out in the Nagorno-Karabakh region on Saturday, killing dozens and drawing international calls for an immediate ceasefire to stop violence spreading in the South Caucasus. Nagorno-Karabakh, which lies inside Azerbaijan but is controlled by ethnic Armenians, has run its own affairs with heavy military and financial backing from Armenia since a separatist war ended in 1994. The Azeri defense ministry said on Saturday the army had "liberated strategic heights and settlements" in the region. "Six Armenian tanks were destroyed (and) more than 100 Armenian servicemen were killed and injured," it said in a statement, saying 12 Azeri servicemen had also been killed. Armenia's government denied the Azeri report on the number of casualties. Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan told a State Security Council meeting about 18 were killed and 35 injured. It was not immediately clear if the death toll included soldiers only. Earlier on Saturday, Nagorno-Karabakh's military said Armenian anti-aircraft forces had downed an Azeri helicopter. Baku admitted that its Mi-24 helicopter was shot down. Both sides also reported civilian casualties and accused each other of violating a 1994 ceasefire, a sign that the two-decade-old conflict which has left some 30,000 people dead is far from a peaceful resolution. Similar violence was reported last month. The violence has forced Russia, a key mediator in the conflict, to step up diplomatic efforts to quench it. President Vladimir Putin urged the warring sides to immediately observe the ceasefire and "to exercise restraint so as to avert new human casualties," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu have talked by phone with their Armenian and Azeri counterparts. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, meanwhile, called on both sides "to immediately stop fighting and to fully respect the ceasefire." Azerbaijan frequently threatens to take Nagorno-Karabakh back by force. Clashes around the region have fueled worries of a widening conflict breaking out in the region, which is crossed by oil and natural gas pipelines. On Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry called for "an ultimate resolution" of the conflict between during talks with Azeri President Ilham Aliyev at the State Department. (Writing and additional reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin in Moscow and Madeline Chambers in Berlin; Editing by Larry King)
BAKU/YEREVAN (Reuters) - Clashes erupted between troops from Azerbaijan and the rebel Nagorno-Karabakh region on Saturday, the two sides said, disputing who had violated a fragile ceasefire again. Nagorno-Karabakh's military also said that Armenian anti-aircraft forces downed an Azeri helicopter, although the report was denied by Azerbaijan. Nagorno-Karabakh, which lies inside Azerbaijan but is controlled by ethnic Armenians, has run its own affairs with heavy military and financial backing from Armenia since a separatist war ended in 1994. Both sides report numerous casualties, accusing each other on Saturday of violating a ceasefire, a sign that the two-decade-old conflict which has left some 30,000 people dead is far from a peaceful resolution. Similar violence was reported last month. "The enemy, using tanks, artillery and aviation made attempts to get deep into the defence lines of the Nagorno-Karabakh Army of Defence and capture tactical positions. The enemy was thwarted," the Armenian Defence Ministry said in a statement. War erupted over Nagorno-Karabakh in 1991 as the Soviet Union broke up, and killed about 30,000 people. A ceasefire was called in 1994 but violence has sporadically broken out since. (Reporting by Nailia Bagirova in Baku and Hasmik Mkrtchyan in Yerevan; writing by Vladimir Soldatkin, editing by Louise Heavens)
Leading up to yesterday's Model 3 unveiling, the pressure was on for Tesla to hit it out of the park. Indeed, the company's entire existence has been predicated on delivering an affordable EV for the mass market. With the Model 3 being years in the making, Tesla would only have one shot to get it right. From a technical perspective (i.e. range, speed), there were few doubts that Tesla would deliver the goods. But from a design perspective, well, no one quite knew what to expect.
RELATED: Videos offer first look at what its like driving Teslas Model 3
Despite immense interest in the Model 3 before its unveiling, the last thing Tesla could afford was a design that didn't resonate with its passionate fanbase, a'la this Homer Simpson designed car from the "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?" episode of The Simpsons.
homer car tesla
People undoubtedly love Tesla, but nobody wants to pay $35,000 for a car that's just plain ugly. And with Elon Musk teasing that the Model 3 "wouldn't look like other cars", the curiosity surrounding the car's design only continued to build.
With that as a backdrop, the pressure was on for Tesla to deliver a car design that people would get excited about. At a base level, all Tesla had to do was deliver a car that wasn't ugly.
Suffice it to say, they did just that. And then some.
black tesla model 3
The Tesla Model 3 is not only sleek, but it's one of the best looking cars you can get on the market in the $35,000 range. More importantly, a perusal of Tesla message boards and car-oriented websites reveals that folks who stood in line to put down their $1,000 deposit really love the design. What's more, many folks have commented that the Model 3 actually looks a lot better than what they were expecting.
While some critiques, however rare, raise the point that the Model 3 is simply a mashup of various luxury cars like a Porsche Panamera and an Aston Martin, I think that this actually works in the Model 3's favor. While luxury car aficionados might scoff at the design and exclaim that it's nothing they haven't seen before, the Model 3 gives buyers in the market for a $35,000 car a taste of luxury on the cheap.
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Is the Model 3 as gorgeous as a $50,000 BMW? Perhaps not, but it's important to remember that the Model 3's purpose isn't to be the best looking car ever created. Rather, it's meant to be an affordable EV that you can drive without feeling embarrassed. You know, an EV that actually looks like a regular car.
With the Model 3 design, Tesla accomplished this with great success.
tesla model 3 road
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This article was originally published on BGR.com
By Andy Bruce and Kate Holton
PORT TALBOT, Wales/LONDON (Reuters) - Britain battled to save its steel industry on Wednesday after India's Tata Steel put its British operations up for sale, leaving thousands of jobs at risk as a result of cheap Chinese imports.
The move comes less than three months before Britons vote on the country's membership of the European Union in a referendum dominated by concerns about the economy.
The government said it was working to broker a deal with potential buyers after Tata Steel sought to end its almost decade-long venture in Britain, which employs 15,000 people but has been hit by high costs and Chinese competition.
"This is my fourth time that I've been placed under the threat of redundancy," 51-year-old steelworker and union representative Mark Turner said outside Tata's plant in Port Talbot in Wales, Britain's biggest steel works.
"If this shuts, there is nowhere else to go."
The move could have an impact on Britain's closely fought June 23 vote over whether to stay in the EU.
Britain's eurosceptic media have blamed Brussels for preventing London from taking greater steps to protect the industry and one of the campaign groups hoping to lead Britain out of the EU said it was "killing our steel".
But supporters of EU membership said the bloc was not responsible for the industry's plight and that the EU was a big buyer of British steel.
Britain's business minister Sajid Javid said he was seeking investors to take over the assets.
"There are buyers out there," he said as he cut short a trade trip to Australia to return to Britain. "It might require some kind of government support and we are more than ready to look at all ways that we can provide commercial support."
Javid rejected a call from the opposition Labour party for the government to take a stake in the industry.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn traveled to Port Talbot to criticize the government for not responding more strongly to the surge in imports from China.
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"It seems to me that too many people are not prepared to say to the Chinese government: sorry, your behavior is not right, not fair, not proper and certainly not within the rules of the World Trade Organization," he said.
Steelmakers in Britain pay some of the highest energy costs and green taxes in the world, which, along with cheap Chinese steel imports, mean it could be hard to find a buyer.
Analysts said Tata would likely struggle to find a buyer for the entire UK division but could try to sell it in parts.
The sale ramps up pressure on Prime Minister David Cameron's right-leaning Conservative government, which has sought to cultivate closer ties with China.
His fate already hangs in the balance over Britain's future in the EU, and his government, which is campaigning for Britain to stay in the bloc, has sought to avoid controversies during the run-up to the vote.
However the Conservatives are still resented in Britain's industrial heartlands for the demise of mining and manufacturing under former prime minister Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s.
A vital part of the economy through the 19th and 20th centuries, many of Britain's former steel towns have been decimated by the industry's decline since its peak in the 1970s.
The Port Talbot plant, which dominates the small coastal town with its giant furnaces, still employs about 4,000 people, and Tata is one of the biggest private companies in Wales.
COLLAPSING STEEL
Tata Steel's problems in Britain arose almost as soon as it bought Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus in 2007. Industry bankers said Tata overpaid for Corus at the peak of the market. Despite heavy investment, Tata Steel struggled to compete.
Cameron's government has said it is taking measures to help the steel sector but the fundamental problem remains the collapse in the price of steel, caused by overcapacity in China.
Britain imported 826,000 tonnes of Chinese steel in 2015, up from 361,000 two years earlier, according to the International Steel Statistic bureau. EU diplomats say that Britain tends to vote against anti-dumping duties due to its free trade approach.
Tata Steel is the second-largest steel producer in Europe. It has a crude steel production capacity of over 18 million tonnes per annum in Europe, but only 14 million is operational.
Two of its three main European units, Port Talbot and Scunthorpe, are in Britain, with the rest in the Netherlands.
Its share price has halved in the past five years over which it wrote down the value of its UK assets by $2.9 billion.
News of the sale prompted talk amongst industry analysts and bankers of a wider consolidation of the European steel sector.
Tata said it was still in talks with investment firm Greybull Capital over the sale of its British long products unit at Scunthorpe. A source close to Greybull said it was unlikely to be interested in the new assets coming to market however.
(Additional reporting by Clara Ferreira Marques and Promit Mukherjee in Mumbai and Paul Sandle, Freya Berry and Clara Denina in London. Editing by Stephen Coates, William Schomberg, Peter Graff and Giles Elgood)
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - More than 100 victims have come forward in the Central African Republic with appalling new accounts of sexual abuse, including bestiality, by UN peacekeepers and French troops, the United Nations said Thursday.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was "shocked to the core" by the allegations that emerged after a UN team traveled to south-central Kemo prefecture to interview the women and girls.
"We must face the fact that a number of troops sent to protect people instead acted with hearts of darkness," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
UN rights officers have so far interviewed 108 alleged victims, "the vast majority" of whom are under-age girls who were raped, sexually abused or exploited by foreign troops, he said.
UN teams received accounts that troops from France's Sangaris force coerced girls to engage in bestiality in return for small amounts of money.
AIDS-Free World, a civil society group that tracks peacekeeper sex abuse cases, said three girls told a UN rights officer that in 2014 they were tied up and undressed by a Sangaris commander inside a camp and forced to have sex with a dog.
Dujarric stressed that "the facts have not been ascertained" in what could be the most serious wave of allegations to date to hit the troubled peace mission in the Central African Republic.
France's UN Ambassador Francois Delattre and US Ambassador Samantha Power both called the allegations "sickening."
French authorities are determined to "shed full light" on the reported cases and will take "exemplary disciplinary action" if the allegations are substantiated, said Delattre.
France sent its Sangaris intervention force to the Central African Republic in December 2013 and while the troops are not part of the UN mission, they have been mandated by the Security Council to help restore peace to the country.
- 'Widespread' abuse -
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After the UN Security Council held a closed-door meeting on the latest allegations, US Deputy Ambassador David Pressman said they appeared to show that the abuse was "widespread and systematic."
Describing the claims as "extremely concerning", Pressman said they should be met with a "swift, full and urgent response."
UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein called for investigations that "leave no stone unturned."
Under UN rules, the responsibility for investigating and prosecuting peacekeeper sexual abuse lies with the countries that contribute the troops and police to the peace missions.
In a first, Dujarric said the United Nations would carry out joint investigations with Burundi and Gabon of the allegations that took place between 2013 and 2015.
The Central African peacekeeping operation, known as MINUSCA, counts about 12,600 foreign police and soldiers, as well as more than 500 foreign civilians.
The UN mission took over from an African Union force in September 2014 as the country was still reeling from a wave of sectarian bloodshed.
As disturbing allegations of sexual assault by troops targeting civilians mounted, Ban in August fired the mission chief, but new claims have continued to emerge.
Earlier this week, the United Nations reported two new cases of sexual abuse by Burundian and Moroccan troops, including one that involved a 14-year-old girl.
In an interview with AFP before the bestiality allegations were disclosed, UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous denounced the wave of allegations as "abominable".
"I am pushing for two ideas: firstly, contributor countries must agree to hold court martials on the spot, where their troops are serving," he said in Central Africa's capital Bangui.
"Secondly, when Blue Helmets are recruited, DNA samples should be taken -- on a confidential basis," he added, explaining these biological records could prove crucial to establishing the truth of any future allegations.
Washington (AFP) - US abortion laws are set for now, Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump said Friday, reiterating that he thinks abortion is "murder" days after igniting a firestorm by suggesting women who have them should be punished.
Trump has been criticized by abortion supporters and opponents for not being clear about his position on the hot-button political issue.
Abortions are still fiercely opposed by many Republicans, four decades after the US Supreme Court affirmed its legality nationwide.
"The laws are set now on abortion and that's the way they're going to remain until they're changed," Trump said in an interview with the CBS News program Face the Nation.
Later in the interview, which will air in full on Sunday, Trump said he agreed that "abortion is murder".
Hours after the interview excerpt was released on Friday, Trump campaign spokesperson Hope Hicks denied his candidate was backtracking on his opposition to abortion.
"Mr. Trump gave an accurate account of the law as it is today and made clear it must stay that way now -- until he is president," Hicks said.
"Then he will change the law through his judicial appointments and allow the states to protect the unborn. There is nothing new or different here."
The 69-year-old Trump -- who has been a Democrat, a political independent and is only a recent convert to the "pro-life" anti-abortion position -- has been accused of flip-flopping on the issue.
Trump shocked many television viewers in an interview broadcast Wednesday on MSNBC when he said "there has to be some form of punishment" for a woman who has an abortion.
The Trump campaign later issued a statement saying that if abortion were to become illegal under US law, then the doctor or any other person involved in performing the procedure would be legally responsible.
"The woman is a victim in this case as is the life in her womb," the statement read. "I am pro-life with exceptions."
Doha (AFP) - A Turkish military base being built in Qatar will be ready within two years, Ankara's defence minister said in Doha on Wednesday.
It will be the first Turkish military facility in the region, Ismet Yilmaz told journalists on the sidelines of three-day Dimdex defence and security fair in Qatar.
"It (the base) will be completed within two years," said Yilmaz, adding the deal had been approved by the Turkish parliament.
The deal is part of a defence agreement concluded by Qatar and Turkey in late 2014, which allows for agreement in the fields of military training and the deployment of the Turkish armed forces on Qatar's territory.
"We want to achieve cooperation in the field of (military) training and exercises, and contribute to stability in the region," said Yilmaz.
The defence minister said the deal was reciprocal and said there were Qatari military personnel and aircraft currently stationed in Turkey.
Qatar is already home to the biggest air base in the Middle East, Al Udeid, where some 10,000 military personnel are stationed, and is the forward headquarters of United States Central Command.
Qatar and Turkey are increasingly close allies, and both have backed rebels trying to overthrow Syria's President Bashar al-Assad.
Ankara (AFP) - Turkey on Saturday vehemently rejected accusations by Amnesty International that it was forcibly returning Syrian refugees to the conflict-torn country, as Ankara prepares to take back, under an EU deal, Syrians who travelled illegally to Greece.
"The allegations do not reflect reality in any way," the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement. "It is sad that this kind of news was shared with the public (by the media) in such an intense way," it added.
Amnesty International accused Turkey on Friday of illegally forcing groups of some one hundred Syrians a day to return home, saying the alleged expulsions showed the "fatal flaws" in the migrant deal agreed with the EU.
Greece is due on Monday to start sending back to Turkey all migrants, including Syrians, who crossed the Aegean Sea illegally.
Amnesty said its revelations showed Turkey was not a "safe country" for Syrian refugees to return to.
But the Turkish foreign ministry insisted there was "no change" in the open-door policy that for the last years has allowed any Syrian fleeing the civil war there to seek refuge in the country.
"Turkey is committed to continue to provide protection to Syrians fleeing violence and instability under its international obligations," it added.
BERLIN (Reuters) - Turkey's Foreign Ministry summoned Germany's ambassador last week over a satirical broadcast by German television station NDR, Spiegel magazine's online edition reported on Monday. The ambassador, Martin Erdmann, was called to the ministry last Tuesday over the NDR broadcast on March 17 that featured a two-minute satirical song mocking Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Spiegel Online reported. The German Foreign Ministry declined to comment. Turkish officials could not immediately be reached to comment. The report comes at a time when German Chancellor Angela Merkel is actively seeking closer ties with Turkey, a candidate for European Union membership, whose help she needs in tackling Europe's migrant crisis. Merkel led efforts to seal a controversial EU deal with Turkey earlier this month intended to halt illegal migration flows to Europe in return for financial and political rewards for Ankara. Erdogan has harshly criticized Western diplomats after several showed up on Friday to support Can Dundar, editor-in-chief of the Cumhuriyet newspaper, and his colleague Erdem Gul on the first day of their trial in Istanbul. Erdogan is known for his sensitivity to criticism. Turkish prosecutors have opened nearly 2,000 cases against people for insulting Erdogan since he became president 18 months ago, the country's justice minister said this month. They include cartoonists, academics and even schoolchildren. (Reporting by Christina Amann; Writing by Paul Carrel; Editing by Gareth Jones)
By Dasha Afanasieva and Mehmet Emin Caliskan DIKILI, Turkey (Reuters) - Turkey's coastguard stopped nearly 200 people trying to reach Greece on Saturday, underlining the challenge security forces face in convincing migrants contemplating the voyage that they will not be allowed to enter the EU. A controversial European Union deal to return refugees and migrants who landed on the Greek islands in the last fortnight to Turkey is due to take force on Monday. A group of 118 Eritreans, Syrians, Iranian and Lebanese people were halted on Saturday as they headed to the Greek island of Chios from Cesme in Turkey in two dinghies, local news agency Dogan reported. Another group of 63 were stopped as they attempted to travel to Greece's Lesbos from the Turkish coastal town of Dikili. Reuters Television pictures showed the men, women and children sitting in a white tent after being caught, shielding their faces, with a heap of orange life-jackets piled outside. Disagreements over how to deal with hundreds of thousands of migrants from Syria and elsewhere threatens to tear the 28-nation EU apart, making the deal with Turkey critical to resolving the crisis. Turkey agreed last month to take back all migrants and refugees who crossed informally into Greece after March 20 in exchange for financial aid, visa-free travel for Turks and slightly accelerated bloc-membership talks. Thousands of migrants are still attempting the dangerous sea crossing, although arrivals have slowed. More than 1,900 people have reached Greece so far this week despite poor weather conditions, and a total of 5,622 have been registered by Greek authorities since March 20. With Turkish authorities silent on their plans, uncertainty remained over how many will be sent back, how they will be processed and where they will be housed. But on Saturday the first modest signs of preparation were visible. Broadcaster CNN Turk showed a center being erected in Cesme where some returned migrants were expected to pass. In Dikili, where migrants returned from Lesbos were due to be taken, two room-size tents were set up on the pier of its cramped port. Two portable toilets were installed nearby. Dikili mayor Mustafa Tosun, who is from the opposition CHP party, told Reuters he wanted more help from the government. He said the General Directorate of Migration Management, which is responsible for the process, had sent two employees so far. "They will check the ID of each refugee on a Turkish database in the port and then they will move on," he said. A few hundred people turned out to a protest against a refugee camp in the small town. Others said refugees should be kept at the main camps close to Syria. Some waved Turkish flags, and a few chanted: "We don't want to see dead babies' bodies at our seaside." In September, the photograph of the body of three-year-old Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi found washed up on a Turkish beach sparked global outrage at the perceived inaction of developed nations in helping refugees, many of whom have fled Syria's five-year civil war. (Editing by Ayla Jean Yackley and Helen Popper)
Istanbul (AFP) - Two Turkish journalists accused of spying remained defiant on the second day of their trial Friday, in a case seen as a test of press freedom under the increasingly autocratic President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Can Dundar, editor-in-chief of leading opposition daily Cumhuriyet, and Erdem Gul, his Ankara bureau chief, are also charged with revealing state secrets over a story accusing the government of seeking to illicitly deliver arms to rebels in Syria.
The journalists could face life in prison, but a defiant Dundar voiced optimism they would be found not guilty at the Istanbul criminal court.
"We will win. We have always won throughout history," the bespectacled editor told reporters. "We think the laws will show we are right and we will be acquitted."
The prosecution has sparked outrage among opposition and rights groups in Turkey as well as in the West, where it is seen as proof of Erdogan's determination to silence his opponents.
Almost 2,000 people have been prosecuted for "insulting" him since the former premier became president in August 2014, Turkey's justice minister said in March.
US President Barack Obama on Friday said he was troubled by Turkey's clampdown on press freedom, the day after meeting his Turkish counterpart at the White House.
"It's no secret that there are some trends within Turkey that I have been troubled with," Obama said.
"I think the approach they have been taking toward the press is one that could lead Turkey down a path that would be very troubling."
Erdogan sparked fresh controversy on Thursday, when his security detail clashed with the media at the Brookings Institute in the US capital.
One of the guards aimed a chest-high kick at an American reporter attempting to film the harassment of a Turkish opposition reporter.
Turkish security also tried to keep out two Turkish journalists, one from the opposition daily Zaman that has been seized by the government, prompting a tense standoff with Brookings staff.
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"We have increasingly seen disrespect for basic human rights and press freedom in Turkey," Washington's National Press Club president Thomas Burr said.
"Erdogan doesn't get to export such abuse."
- 'Journalism on trial' -
Reporters Without Borders ranked Turkey 149th out of 180 countries for press freedom in 2015, citing the widening clampdown on critics of the president.
Turkish police in March seized control of the top-selling opposition daily, Zaman, drawing international condemnation.
As on the first day of the trial, which opened March 25, Friday's hearing in Istanbul was held behind closed doors for reasons of national security.
"It's journalism that is on trial here. This trial should not be taking place," said Gul.
"We are defending information and freedom of expression. Justice will take its course," he added. "There is no reason for this trial -- journalism is not a crime."
A knot of supporters including opposition lawmakers and NGO staff gathered to shout their support, yelling: "You can't gag press freedom."
The pair were not remanded in custody when the court was adjourned, but they are forbidden from leaving the country before the trial resumes on April 22.
Cumhuriyet's report on a shipment of arms being intercepted at the Syrian border in January 2014 sparked a furore when it was published in May, fuelling speculation about Turkey's role in the Syrian conflict and its alleged ties to Islamist groups in the country.
Erdogan reacted furiously to the allegations, personally warning Dundar he would "pay a heavy price". The court on March 25 accepted the president and Turkey's intelligence agency as civil plaintiffs in the case.
Dundar and Gul won a first victory on February 26, when the Constitutional Court -- one of the last institutions not under the full control of Erdogan's Justice and Development Party -- ruled they should be freed.
A vexed Erdogan declared he had "no respect" for the court's decision.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military has carried out an air strike against a senior leader of the al Qaeda-linked militant group al Shabaab in Somalia, the Pentagon said on Friday. The results of the air strike, which was carried out on Thursday, were still being assessed, it said. The target of the operation, Hassan Ali Dhoore, played a direct role in al Shabaab's Christmas Day 2014 attack on the Mogadishu airport in which one American was among those killed and an attack on a Mogadishu hotel in 2015 that killed 15 people, including a Somali-American, the Pentagon said. "Removing Dhoore from the battlefield would be a significant blow to al-Shabaab's operational planning and ability to conduct attacks against the government of the Federal Republic of Somalia, its citizens, U.S. partners in the region, and against Americans abroad," the Pentagon said in a statement. The strike came weeks after the United States targeted an al Shabaab training camp in Somalia in an air strike that the Pentagon says killed more than 150 fighters. That operation, using both manned aircraft and unmanned MQ-9 Reaper drones, targeted al Shabaab's "Raso" training camp, a facility about 120 miles (190 km) north of the capital Mogadishu. Al Shabaab was pushed out of Mogadishu by African Union peacekeeping forces in 2011 but has remained a potent antagonist in Somalia, launching frequent attacks in its bid to overthrow the Western-backed government. The group, whose name means "The Youth," seeks to impose its strict version of sharia law in Somalia, where it frequently unleashes attacks targeting security and government targets, as well as hotels and restaurants in the capital. Al Shabaab has also been behind deadly attacks in Kenya and Uganda, which both contribute troops to an African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia. (Reporting by Phil Stewart; Additional reporting by Eric Beech; Editing by G Crosse, David Gregorio and Mohammad Zargham)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. climate envoy Todd Stern, who helped hammer out an international agreement in Paris last year to curb carbon emissions and spur development of clean technologies will step down on April 1, the State Department said on Monday. Stern, who was climate envoy for seven years, "played an enormous role in achieving so many of our climate milestones, and the tireless work by Todd and his team over many years will benefit future generations in every corner of the globe," Secretary of State John Kerry said in a release. Stern will be replaced by Jonathan Pershing, a geologist, who has spent the last three years at the Department of Energy, serving as senior climate adviser to Ernest Moniz, the department's secretary. Fighting climate change has been one of President Barack Obama's top priorities. His administration, which is in its last year, says it can still meet its climate goals, despite the Supreme Court's putting a pause on his Clean Power Plan. The plan has helped prompt a wide ranging switch from coal-fired power plants to natural gas-burning plants, which release less carbon emissions. (Reporting by Timothy Gardner; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
(Reuters) - The U.S. Navy plans to conduct another passage near disputed islands in the South China Sea in early April, a source familiar with the plan said on Friday, the third in a series of challenges that have drawn sharps rebukes from China. Other U.S. officials, speaking after Reuters reported the plan, disputed that such an exercise was imminent. But they made clear Washington will continue to challenge what it considers Beijing's unfounded maritime claims. The United States has conducted what it calls "freedom of navigation" exercises in recent months, sailing near disputed islands to underscore its right to navigate the seas. U.S. Navy officials have said they plan to conduct more and increasingly complex exercises in the future. "Our long-standing position is unchanged - we do not take a position on competing sovereignty claims to naturally formed land features in the South China Sea," a senior Obama administration official said on Saturday. "We routinely conduct such operations throughout the world to challenge maritime claims that would unlawfully restrict rights and freedoms provided in international law. This applies to the South China Sea as well," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. The USS Stennis carrier strike group is currently operating in the South China Sea. The next freedom of navigation exercise is unlikely to be conducted by a carrier like the Stennis, but rather by a smaller ship, the source said. Experts predict the next U.S. challenge to the various claims in the South China Sea could occur near Mischief Reef, a feature claimed by the Philippines and which was submerged at high tide before China began a dredging project to turn it into an island in 2014. Mischief Reef is now the site of one of three military-length airfields China has built on man-made islands in the Spratly Islands archipelago. U.S. Navy ships regularly patrol the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion of world trade travels every year. China claims most of the area, and Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims. In recent months, with tensions rising around China's reclamation activities, U.S. ships have been frequently and routinely shadowed by Chinese ships and regular communications with Chinese vessels have often been tense. News of the planned exercise came a day after U.S. President Barack Obama met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a nuclear summit in Washington. During the meetings, Xi told Obama that China would not accept any behavior in the disguise of freedom of navigation that violates its sovereignty, in a clear warning to the United States. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told Reuters on Saturday that China opposed any such exercise. "China consistently respects and supports the freedom of navigation and fly over that all countries' enjoy in the South China Sea under international law, but resolutely opposes any country using so-called 'freedom of navigation' as an excuse to damage China's sovereignty, security and maritime rights," Hong said. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Additional reporting by Michael Martina in BEIJING; Editing by Don Durfee, Sandra Maler and Mary Milliken)
Uber has become a staple for many travelers around the world, and despite some less than desirable headlines recently, the ride-share company (which is worth an estimated $62 billion) has turned into the girl that every travel company wants to dance with.
From airlines to hotels, Ubers partnerships span the travel industry, and ultimately, travelers are the ones benefiting.
This week Uber announced it was expanding its partnership with Hilton (HLT) by integrating the two companies apps. Now, guests staying at a Hilton can order an Uber straight from the HHonors app, making the process of getting transportation to and from the airport virtually seamless. Travelers must have both apps downloaded on their smartphone in order for this to work.
And passengers riding in an Uber can now tap the view stay details option on the Uber app, which will direct them to the HHonors app. There, they can check in, make a room selection, and request a digital key. Essentially, it allows them to bypass the check-in process at the counter.
The relationship with Uber and Hilton originally started last September, when they unveiled the ability for guests to use the HHonors app to set automatic reminders to request an Uber. Guests could also use their HHonors app to access a guide of restaurants, bars, and other hot spots Uber riders frequented.
Hilton is just the latest travel-related company to partner with Uber and its eight million users. Here are some other deals Uber riders might want to be aware of when theyre on the road:
Starwood
In February 2015, Uber and Starwood (HOT) worked out a deal where Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) members would earn one Starpoint for every U.S. dollar they spent with Uber. Furthermore, if a guest is staying at a Starwood hotel and uses Uber, they earn an additional 2 Starpoints. That number jumps to 3 Starpoints if youre a gold or platinum member, and 4 Starpoints if youre a Platinum member with 75 nights. Starpoints can be used towards booking rooms, flights on Delta Airlines,, and discounted tickets to music and sporting events.
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After linking your SPG and Uber accounts, guests simply have to log one stay per calendar year at any Starwood hotel to start earning points.
American Airlines
The partnership between Uber and American Airlines (AAL) has some great perks, but only for select members.
Travelers who have American Airlines Executive Platinum status or own an AAdvantage Aviator Mastercard will get a one-time coupon for $25 off their next Uber ride. Even better, Uber riders who pay using their AAdvantage Aviator MasterCard will earn 2 bonus miles per dollar on rides until July 31, 2016.
IHG
Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) is the parent company for major hotel brands like Holiday Inn, Intercontinental, and Crowne Plaza. Like Uber, they operate all over the world, so its only fitting the two companies would partner up.
IHG Rewards club members who are new to Uber can sign up using an IHG promo code which makes their first ride free (up to $20) and rewards them with 2,000 IHG Rewards Club points, which can be used toward a future stay.
Like Hilton, IHG guests can set Uber ride reminders before their stay, and starting this year, they will be able request a ride from within the IHG app through the Uber app.
United Airlines
If you log into the United Airlines (UAL) app, you can book a trip, check your flights status and order an Uber.
Thats right, under the reservations tab theres the option to order a car to pick you up or take you to the airport. Like many of the other partnerships, you must have both apps downloaded for it to work.
Do you have a question about Uber? Email us at yfmoneymailbag@yahoo.com.
By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was disappointed by the Security Council's failure to take a strong stand in a dispute between him and Morocco over Western Sahara and will raise it with council members soon, Ban's spokesman said on Friday. The government of Morocco last week accused Ban of no longer being neutral in the conflict and on Thursday ordered the United Nations to cut 84 international staff from its Western Sahara mission, MINURSO. The 15-nation council discussed the crisis for several hours on Thursday. Afterwards, Ambassador Ismael Gaspar Martins of Angola, council president this month, said members had voiced their concern but agreed to individually approach Morocco to ensure the situation is "evolving in a positive manner." In a cautiously worded rebuke of the council, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric made clear Ban's disappointment. "It would have been better had we received clearer words from the president of the Security Council," he said, without elaborating. Dujarric said that Ban would raise the issue in his monthly luncheon with council members. Diplomats said the council members that argued against a strong statement of support of Ban and in favor of countries dealing with the issue bilaterally included Morocco's traditional ally France along with Spain, Egypt and Senegal. Council statements need to be unanimous. The controversy over Ban's comments is Morocco's worst dispute with the United Nations since 1991, when the U.N. brokered a ceasefire to end a war over the Western Sahara and established the mission. Rabat last week criticized Ban for his use of the word "occupation" to describe Morocco's annexation of the region at the center of a struggle since 1975, when it took over from colonial power Spain. Earlier this month, Ban visited refugee camps in southern Algeria for the Sahrawi people, who say Western Sahara belongs to them and fought a war against Morocco until the ceasefire. Ban also accused Morocco of supporting a demonstration against him that he described as a personal attack. The Sahrawi people's Polisario Front wants a referendum, including over the question of independence, but Rabat says it will only grant semi-autonomy. Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar complained on Thursday of Ban's "stubbornness" and said his remarks on the issue were "unacceptable." The Polisario's U.N. representative Ahmed Boukhari told reporters that Morocco's goal was to shut down MINURSO, which he said "would mean the shortest way to the resumption of war." (Reporting by Louis Charbonneau; editing by Grant McCool)
Sanaa (AFP) - UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed arrived Saturday in Yemen's rebel-held capital to try to restart peace talks between Iran-backed insurgents and the internationally recognised government.
The Mauritanian diplomat met Ali Hajar, a foreign affairs representative of the Huthi rebels, Sanaa airport director Khaled al-Shayef told AFP.
It came a day after the UN envoy held talks in Riyadh with Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi.
Yemen's Saba news agency said Ould Cheikh Ahmed met Hadi to relaunch "efforts to reestablish peace in Yemen".
"All doors are open to reach peace based on (UN) Security Council resolutions," Hadi was quoted as saying.
Yemen has been gripped by violence since September 2014, when the Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who had long complained of marginalisation, stormed Sanaa and forced the internationally recognised government to flee south.
A Saudi-led coalition began bombing raids on Huthi positions across Yemen in March 2015 but the insurgents still control parts of the country including the capital.
Hadi's government has declared the southern city of Aden to be the country's provisional capital.
The year-long coalition campaign has faced criticism over civilian casualties.
The UN said Friday that Saudi-led raids are responsible for the vast majority of the estimated 3,200 civilian deaths in the Yemen war.
This week coalition spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed al-Assiri told AFP that the alliance was at "the end of the major combat phase", raising hopes of a possible relaunch of peace talks.
Previous UN-sponsored negotiations between rebels and government officials failed to reach a breakthrough, and the most recent round ended in acrimony in December.
Hadi's government insists that the Huthis must abide by UN Security Council resolution 2216, which states the rebels must withdraw from seized territories and disarm, before peace talks can progress.
The World Health Organization says fighting in Yemen has killed more than 6,200 people over the past year and the United Nations has warned of an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe.
By Tulay Karadeniz and Dasha Afanasieva ANKARA (Reuters) - Five days before Turkey is due to begin taking back illegal migrants from Greece under a deal with the European Union, neither side is fully ready, with officials scrambling to be able to make at least a symbolic start as new arrivals rise. Turkey agreed with the EU this month to take back all migrants and refugees who cross illegally to Greece in exchange for financial aid, faster visa-free travel for Turks and slightly accelerated EU membership talks. The returns are supposed to begin on April 4 under the plan, which aims to close the main route by which a million migrants and refugees poured across the Aegean Sea to Greece in the last year before heading north mainly to Germany and Sweden. But uncertainty remains over how many will be sent back, how they will be processed, and where they will be housed. The plan risks being overwhelmed by the continued flow of migrants to Greece, where arrivals rose sharply on Wednesday. A series of steps needs to be taken by Monday for the deal to get underway, according to people familiar with an internal European Commission report. These include legislative changes in Greece and Turkey, transport and other logistical arrangements, and clarity on how Turkey will treat non-Syrian refugees. The report, which followed meetings in Ankara on Wednesday between EU special envoy on migration Maarten Verwey and Turkish officials, called on EU member states to make public reports which portray Turkey as a "safe third country" for refugees. That appeared to be an attempt to ease concern among rights groups and some European politicians about the legality and feasibility of the deal. They have questioned whether Turkey has sufficient safeguards in place to defend refugees' rights and whether it can be considered a safe country for them. The first returnees are expected to be taken by boat from the Greek islands to Dikili, north of the city of Izmir on Turkey's Aegean coast, Turkish officials said. But where they will be housed in the longer term remains unclear. "Our worries are that not just Dikili but the whole region's infrastructure is not ready if they stay here - whether it's health or education facilities. We have expressed these worries," Dikili's mayor, Mustafa Tosun, told Reuters. District governor Mustafa Nazmi Sezgin was quoted by the Haberturk newspaper as saying the plan was not to set up a refugee camp but just a registration center, from where migrants would be sent on to Izmir or other areas within 24 hours. Kerem Kinik, vice president of the Turkish Red Crescent, said his organization was preparing a camp with 5,000 places in the province of Manisa east of Izmir after being asked for help by the government, although it would not be ready immediately. "We will host the first returnees most probably in hotels, seaside holiday camps," he told Reuters. Some might then be housed in refugee camps, but others were likely to return to the Turkish provinces where they had previously settled, he said. DEAL RUSHED THROUGH Turkey has spent almost $10 billion since the start of the Syrian conflict, much of it on refugees camps close to the Syrian border whose standards have won international praise. A new law gives migrants permission to work in Turkey, although there are limitations on where and in which sectors. Syrians would be free to settle outside camps if they wanted, according to an official from Turkey's disaster management agency AFAD, which has taken a lead role in managing the 2.9 million Syrian refugees already in Turkey. "We can't lock them down in accommodation centers. If they want, they can go to camps, or if they have relatives they might stay with them. But if they say 'I can take care of myself' ... we can't pressure them," the official said. Turkey's refugee camps house fewer than 300,000 of its migrant population, who mostly fend for themselves. Critics of the EU-Turkey deal fear some of the returnees from Greece will also end up forced to take illegal jobs or beg on the streets. Under the pact, Ankara will take back all migrants and refugees who cross to Greece illegally by sea. In return, the EU will resettle thousands of legal Syrian refugees directly from Turkey - one for each Syrian returned from the Greek islands. The first European resettlement of 40 Syrians to Germany is planned for next week, a diplomatic source said, declining to be named because the plan has not yet been finalised. Turkey intends to send non-Syrians who do not meet asylum criteria back to their countries of origin, under readmission agreements which Ankara already has with some states and is negotiating with 14 others - including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Eritrea and Somalia - according to foreign ministry officials. That has raised concern among rights groups, who worry the deal has been rushed through by European and Turkish leaders without sufficient thought about its implementation. "Every individual should have access to individualized procedures with the chance to explain if they don't want to return to Turkey... Being able to achieve all this in such a short period of time seems unrealistic," said Irem Arf, regional migration researcher for Europe for Amnesty International. "We don't consider Turkey a safe country for refugees and asylum seekers. We have documented cases of forced returns to Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan," she told Reuters. Amnesty accused Turkey last week of forcibly returning about 30 Afghan asylum-seekers to Afghanistan despite their fearing Taliban attacks. The Turkish Directorate General of Migration Management acknowledged the return of 27 Afghans, but insisted all were returned voluntarily and that none had requested asylum. (Additional reporting by Karolina Tagaris in Athens; Writing by Nick Tattersall; editing by David Stamp)
By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - Conditions for refugees in Greece are worsening and arrival numbers rising but the safeguards needed to start returning some of them to Turkey next week are not yet in place, aid agencies said on Friday. Fighting has broken out in some crowded reception centers in Greece, which now hosts 51,000 refugees and migrants, and the system for registering asylum applications is overloaded, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said. Turkey is due to begin taking back illegal migrants from Greece on Monday under a deal with the European Union, but neither side is fully ready and any start may only be symbolic. UNHCR, which says nine in 10 of refugees arriving on rickety boats are fleeing for their lives, has voiced concern that Turkey may deport refugees en masse to Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq, where they could face persecution or violence. "We are urging parties to the recent EU-Turkey agreement on refugees and migrants to ensure all safeguards are in place before any returns begin," UNHCR spokeswoman Melissa Fleming told a Geneva news briefing. "This is in light of continued serious gaps in both countries." UNHCR wants to keep track of those returned to Turkey to ensure that standards of international protection for refugees and migrants are upheld, she said. "UNHCR has requested access to people returned from Greece to ensure (they) can benefit from effective international protection and prevent risk of ... forcible return," she said. Arrivals in Greece picked up this week amid better weather. At least 170,000 people entered Europe by sea in the first three months of 2016, over eight times that in the same period last year, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. "There seems to be no sign of the migrant surge slowing down," IOM spokesman Joel Millman said, noting increased traffic between Libya and Italy. Some 89 people are now feared to have died in a shipwreck on Wednesday off Libya, which 31 survived, he said. Fleming reported worsening conditions on the Greek islands of Lesbos and Samos - where three people were stabbed in rioting on Thursday night - and at the Athens port of Piraeus and Idomeni at the border with Macedonia. "The risk of panic and injury in these sites and others is real," Fleming said, citing further incidents of fighting. The UNHCR is monitoring conditions at a facility at Moria, on Lesbos, where 2,300 are being held. "People are sleeping in the open and the food supply is insufficient," she said. The EU must provided greater support, as promised, to boost Greece's creaking asylum system, Fleming added. (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz, the German filmmaking team behind Goodnight Mommy, are going Hollywood, setting up their first studio project.
Universal is in final negotiations to pick The Fortress, a horror pitch the team will write and direct. Michael De Luca, who has a first-look deal with the studio, is attached to produce.
Fortress details are being kept locked but the story centers on a group of refugees hidden aboard a container ship who discover their passage to safety is not what it seems.
De Luca Productions' Lucy Kitada will executive produce.
Fiala, a filmmaker, and Franz, a former film journalist and casting director, first teamed up when they co-directed and co-wrote the feature documentary Kern. They made their fiction debut with 2014's Mommy, which generated much acclaim and was Austria's entry for best foreign language film.
Mommy told of twin boys whose mother returns home from surgery with a bandaged face. After a while, the boys begin to suspect that this person may not be their mother after all.
The duo signed with WME for representation in October 2015. They are also repped by Jackoway Tyerman.
Washington (AFP) - The United States condemned "in the strongest terms" fierce clashes that left at least 30 Azerbaijani and Armenian soldiers dead Saturday in a major escalation in violence over the disputed Nagorny Karabakh region.
Secretary of State John Kerry joined Russia in urging an immediate ceasefire after what Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian called the "largest-scale hostilities" since a 1994 truce ended a war in which Armenian-backed fighters seized the territory from Azerbaijan.
"We urge the sides to show restraint, avoid further escalation, and strictly adhere to the ceasefire," Kerry said in a statement.
"The unstable situation on the ground demonstrates why the sides must enter into an immediate negotiation under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs on a comprehensive settlement of the conflict.
"We reiterate that there is no military solution to the conflict."
The Minsk Group, co-chaired by France, Russia and the United States, leads efforts by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to find a solution to the conflict.
Separately, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he was "deeply disturbed."
"He is particularly concerned by the reported use of heavy weapons and by the large numbers of casualties, including among the civilian population," said a statement.
"The secretary-general urges all relevant parties to put an immediate end to the fighting, fully respect the ceasefire agreement and take urgent steps to de-escalate the situation."
Ethnic Armenian separatists backed by Yerevan seized control of the mountainous Nagorny Karabakh region in the early 1990s war that claimed some 30,000 lives and the foes have never signed a peace deal despite the 1994 ceasefire.
The region is still internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan and the two sides frequently exchange fire across the front, but the latest episode marked a surge in violence and sparked frantic appeals for peace from international powers.
Washington (AFP) - The US government is warning its citizens to avoid visiting southeastern Tunisia near the Libyan border as well as the country's mountainous western areas due to "the threat of terrorism."
In a travel warning out Friday, the State Department warns that Islamic State group jihadists have targeted Tunisian security officials, tourists and civilians in the regions.
The warning urges US citizens to "exercise caution" in Tunisia "when frequenting public venues," especially tourist sites, and to avoid political gatherings, "rallies, large crowds and demonstrations, as even demonstrations that are meant to be peaceful can be unpredictable."
Tunisia, the birthplace of the Arab Spring, has suffered from jihadist violence since the 2011 revolution that ousted longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
A raid on the Libyan frontier town of Ben Guerdane, blamed on the IS group, killed 20 people in March.
Last year IS claimed responsibility for attacks on the Bardo museum in Tunis and a popular resort hotel, killing 59 tourists in total, as well as a suicide bombing that killed 12 presidential guards.
The government recently extended by three months a state of emergency imposed following jihadist attacks, while the United States announced a $24.9-million (22-million-euro) project to install an electronic surveillance system on Tunisia's border with Libya.
Thousands of US and Filipino soldiers will on Monday launch annual war games that this year are being seen as a show of strength in the face of China's increasing assertiveness in the region.
The 11-day Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) exercises are expected to show how the Philippines, though severely outgunned, can counter China with the help of the United States, its longest-standing ally.
China has in recent months built massive structures including radar systems and an airstrip over reefs and outcrops in the contested South China Sea, sparking international concern.
Beijing lays claim to almost all of the waters, which are important for international shipping and believed to hold valuable mineral and energy deposits, and neighbouring countries fear China could impose military controls over the entire sea.
The joint manoeuvres come ahead of a decision this year by a United Nations-backed tribunal on a legal challenge by Manila to China's territorial claims.
Adding to the tensions, the Philippines is preparing to host US troops in five bases under a defence pact born out of US President Barack Obama's plan to reassert American influence in the Pacific.
Balikatan has evolved from counter-terrorism manoeuvres against Islamic extremists like the Philippines' Abu Sayyaf, to simulations of retaking and protecting territory as disputes with Beijing have escalated.
However, Filipino and US officials insist the exercises are not explicitly aimed at China.
Balikatan spokesman Captain Celeste Frank Sayson said 55 US aircraft would take part in the drills, while the Philippines will deploy fighter jets it has recently acquired.
While no specific staging areas have been disclosed, the two allies have in recent years held war games at air bases just 230 kilometres (140 miles) from the disputed areas in the South China Sea.
Rene de Castro, an international studies professor at the De La Salle University in Manila, told AFP the drills appeared to have China's expansion in the South China Sea in mind.
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"Looking at the features of Balikatan -- the mobile missile-launchers, the fighter planes -- that is an indication that the alliance is being geared for territorial defence," he said.
Richard Javad Heydarian, a political science professor at the De La Salle University in Manila, added that the exercises "aim to enhance interoperability among allies nations and signal their preparedness to confront China if necessary".
- Manila courts US, Japan -
The Philippine military said the US High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), designed to shoot down aircraft, will be sent to Palawan, the Philippines' westernmost island on the South China Sea, during the war games.
The Philippines operates one airstrip in the South China Sea, on Thitu island, where there are around 350 civilian residents.
It also keeps small military contingents in smaller outcrops, including Second Thomas Shoal, where Marines are stationed on a decaying World War II ship.
The Philippines, which has one of the weakest militaries in the region, has sought to counter China's overwhelming military advantage by improving ties with the United States and Japan.
While it has acquired new fighter jets and surplus US naval ships, the Southeast Asian nation still has far to go, De Castro warned.
China's defence budget dwarfs that of the Philippines and Beijing is this year set to outspend its smaller neighbour by a factor of around 60.
The Philippines is also increasing its military engagements with the US with the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement, which took effect in January.
Under the deal, US troops will rotate through five military camps including two air bases that are strategically positioned near the South China Sea.
"It is very apparent that the thrust of (the agreement) is air power," said former national security adviser Roilo Golez.
Australia, which recently criticised China's assertiveness in the disputed waters, is sending 80 troops to join parachute drills as part of the manoeuvres, Sayson said.
Obama this week confronted Chinese President Xi Jinping over Beijing's actions in the disputed seas.
Tensions have flared between the superpowers since the US sent warships close to disputed islands twice in the past six months.
Caracas (AFP) - Venezuela's opposition-led legislature approved an amnesty bill for political prisoners, setting up an epic political clash with embattled President Nicolas Maduro, who opposes the move.
National Assembly speaker Henry Ramos Allup said the measure passed after a second round of debate, sparking opposition lawmaker chants of "Freedom!" even as the president's socialist party's minority lawmakers voiced disgust.
"This law is aimed at laying the foundations for national reconciliation," said lawmaker Delsa Solorzano, who sponsored the legislation.
The measure demands the release of some 76 political prisoners, and hundreds of people "persecuted and exiled" due to their opposition to the leftist government in power for the past 17 years, she said.
Maduro quickly took a combative stance, broadcasting a speech on national television while the debate was under way.
"You can be certain that that law will not be making it through here, sir. Laws that are out to benefit terrorists and criminals, they will not make it to enactment. No matter what you do," the president said.
Legal experts say the opposition faces an uphill battle for the legislation to take effect. The president can send it to the Supreme Court, which critics claim he has stacked with supporters.
The amnesty law comes two years after the arrest of opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez. He was sentenced to 14 years in jail in September for alleged incitement to violence against the government in 2014 demonstrations that claimed 43 lives.
Venezuela's opposition is counting on the power of the street to force the deeply unpopular Maduro to listen to calls for change, after it won a landslide victory in legislative elections last December only to see the courts hamstring its new authority.
Seventeen years into the socialist "revolution" launched by the president's late mentor Hugo Chavez, a punishing economic crisis has stoked outrage in the once-booming oil giant, where chronic shortages of basic goods, long lines and soaring prices have become the norm.
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Protests have come against the backdrop of a deep economic morass exacerbated by the crash in the price of oil, which long funded Chavez and Maduro's lavish social spending.
Despite holding the world's largest crude reserves, Venezuela's economy contracted 5.7 percent last year, its second year of recession.
Political analysts say all the constitutional options to force Maduro from power face likely rejection by the Supreme Court or the National Electoral Council, which the opposition has also accused the president of packing with allies.
But the president can't ignore the voice of the people either, analysts say.
HANOI (Reuters) - Three Vietnamese women who held a rally and waved national flags of the former South Vietnam were jailed on Wednesday for "anti-state propaganda" after a trial that lasted half a day, domestic media reported. The defendants, all in their late fifties, were found guilty of breaching an article of the criminal code that rights groups and Western governments say is routinely used by the communist country to stifle free speech, against its international commitments. State-run online news media said the women had previously protested about land disputes. They were arrested in July 2014 while demonstrating outside the U.S. consulate in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon, the capital of the now-defunct Republic of Vietnam. North Vietnam toppled the U.S.-backed democratic South in 1975 and formed one nation under communism, an event marked domestically as Vietnam's reunification. The prison terms handed down on Wednesday ranged from three years to four and a quarter years, plus two or three years of house arrest upon their release, media said. The verdict followed a similar case last year, when a man was jailed for 15 months for "disturbing public order" when he wore a uniform of the defeated army of South Vietnam. Rights groups and the United Nations expressed outrage last week over Vietnam's use of criminal laws to jail two political bloggers for "abusing democratic freedom". The United States embassy described it as "disturbing". (Reporting by Martin Petty; Editing by Nick Macfie)
By Martin Petty HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam's parliament swore in Tran Dai Quang as president on Saturday, elevating the head of a controversial internal security agency to one of the communist nation's most powerful political posts. Quang's approval was a formality since he was the only candidate put forward by the party's five-yearly congress in January. The outgoing National Assembly is overseeing the transition to a new government three months earlier than scheduled. Vietnam has no paramount ruler and is officially led by a triumvirate of president, prime minister and Communist Party chief, although experts say the presidency is more ceremonial than the other posts. The party runs Vietnam's complex political system by consensus, with big decisions reached in secret by its 19-member politburo. Quang, 59, is a police general who hails from the Ministry of Public Security, an organization with broad powers and a remit that includes intelligence gathering and thwarting domestic and foreign threats to the party. It has been a focus of Western pressure on Vietnam to improve its human rights record and stop arrests, harassment and imprisonment of activists in return for closer trade and defense ties, including the full lifting of a U.S. arms embargo. A resolution approving Quang's presidency was backed by 460 of the 465 lawmakers who cast votes on Saturday. He swore his loyalty to the party and people. Among his first duties will be meeting U.S. counterpart Barack Obama in May, the first visit to Vietnam by a U.S. president in a decade. Obama's trip will cap off a two-year charm offensive by Washington that has coincided with Hanoi's deteriorating ties with communist neighbor China. Le Hong Hiep, a visiting fellow at Singapore's ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, said Quang may aspire to rise further up the power chain and his clout among the security apparatus could come in handy. "Party leaders may see the selection of Mr. Quang as a safe bet due to his public security background, and that he will be able to protect the regime at a time when the party is coming under increasing pressure for political changes," Hiep said. On Quang's presidency, he said: "It's highly possible that it is just a stepping stone for him." (Editing by Nick Macfie)
By Martin Petty HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam's parliament swore in Tran Dai Quang as president on Saturday, elevating the head of a controversial internal security agency to one of the communist nation's most powerful political posts. Quang's approval was a formality since he was the only candidate put forward by the party's five-yearly congress in January. The outgoing National Assembly is overseeing the transition to a new government three months earlier than scheduled. Vietnam has no paramount ruler and is officially led by a triumvirate of president, prime minister and Communist Party chief, although experts say the presidency is more ceremonial than the other posts. The party runs Vietnam's complex political system by consensus, with big decisions reached in secret by its 19-member politburo. Quang, 59, is a police general who hails from the Ministry of Public Security, an organisation with broad powers and a remit that includes intelligence gathering and thwarting domestic and foreign threats to the party. It has been a focus of Western pressure on Vietnam to improve its human rights record and stop arrests, harassment and imprisonment of activists in return for closer trade and defence ties, including the full lifting of a U.S. arms embargo. A resolution approving Quang's presidency was backed by 460 of the 465 lawmakers who cast votes on Saturday. He swore his loyalty to the party and people. Among his first duties will be meeting U.S. counterpart Barack Obama in May, the first visit to Vietnam by a U.S. president in a decade. Obama's trip will cap off a two-year charm offensive by Washington that has coincided with Hanoi's deteriorating ties with communist neighbour China. Le Hong Hiep, a visiting fellow at Singapore's ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, said Quang may aspire to rise further up the power chain and his clout among the security apparatus could come in handy. "Party leaders may see the selection of Mr. Quang as a safe bet due to his public security background, and that he will be able to protect the regime at a time when the party is coming under increasing pressure for political changes," Hiep said. On Quang's presidency, he said: "It's highly possible that it is just a stepping stone for him." (Editing by Nick Macfie)
Miami (AFP) - A study involving people with diabetes has shown that belly size is a stronger predictor of a dangerous kind of heart disease than body mass index, researchers said Saturday.
The study released at the American College of Cardiology conference in Chicago was based on 200 people with diabetes who had not shown any symptoms of heart disease.
Researchers found that those with larger waist circumferences were more likely than smaller-bellied people to have problems with the heart's left ventricle, which pumps oxygen-rich blood to the brain and the rest of the body.
"We specifically found that waist circumference appears to be a stronger predictor for left ventricle dysfunction than total body weight or body mass index," said principal investigator Boaz Rosen, a doctor at Johns Hopkins University in Maryland.
Previous research has shown that the higher a person's body mass index (BMI) -- a measure of a person's height and weight -- the greater their risk of heart disease.
Having excess belly fat, or having an apple-shaped figure, has already been linked to high blood pressure, high sugar levels, elevated cholesterol, coronary artery disease and heart failure.
"Our research examined patients with diabetes, who are considered high risk for developing heart disease already, and found that the shape of your body determined if you were at a greater risk to develop left ventricular dysfunction," said Brent Muhlestein, co-director of research at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Salt Lake City.
"This study confirms that having an apple-shaped body -- or a high waist circumference -- can lead to heart disease, and that reducing your waist size can reduce your risks."
Problems with the left ventricle can lead to congestive heart failure.
Researchers said more study is needed to see if diabetic patients with large waists and signs of heart problems go on to develop heart failure or artery disease in the future.
Rihanna's "Work" has been sitting atop the Hot 100 for six weeks now, and even Chris Hemsworth can't escape the hit song.
The Thor actor sat in for a dramatic reading of the track's lyrics during a recent visit to BBC Radio 1.
In a video that's shown with a black-and-white filter, Hemsworth is heard reading the "Work" lines out loud in a serious tone - managing to hold in his laughter until the end of the lyric delivery.
"It just drummed up a whole lot of feelings, emotions and past experiences," he joked. "It makes you just want to get to work, doesn't it? Hear that, kids? Get a job."
Watch the video below.
This article originally appeared on Billboard.com.
London (AFP) - Arsene Wenger plans talks with Mesut Ozil after the Arsenal midfielder claimed the Gunners had "screwed up" their Premier League title challenge.
Wenger's side are 11 points behind leaders Leicester despite sitting top at the turn of the year after a miserable run of just three wins in 10 league games.
Ozil responded to Arsenal's poor run by suggesting they had only themselves to blame for wasting the chance to win a first English title since 2004.
Wenger, speaking ahead of Watford's visit to the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, made it clear he was unhappy with the Germany star's comments.
The Gunners boss will discuss with Ozil what he said to the media while away on international duty in a bid to keep his squad united at a pivotal moment in their season.
"I will make sure they don't feel that," Wenger replied when asked if he was worried such comments suggested his players had given up on their title fight.
"The statement is not welcome, I agree with you. Because we have to believe, no matter if it just one chance in 100, we have to believe. We only have a real chance if we believe.
Asked if he would discuss the quotes with Ozil, Wenger said: "We will talk about that. Yes, of course.
"You want to be fair and honest. I think the worst thing in life is to have wrong beliefs.
"So you have to make sure that you give absolutely your best, and at the end accept that if somebody is better than you, that you have given your best.
"The worst thing for us would be not to believe, and then if we had a good run it was available, possible. I believe that we have to make sure that we play with passion until the end."
The risk of nuclear terrorism: President Obama says its real. There is no doubt that if these madmen ever got their hands on a nuclear bomb or nuclear material, they would certainly use it to kill as many people as possible, he said in Washington at a summit on global nuclear security, which is being attended by more than 50 world leaders. He said that though countries had made it harder for terrorists to obtain nuclear material, the threat continues to evolve.
Chicago teachers strike: Public school teachers spent the morning on the picket line protesting budget cuts and state funding for education. Classes were canceled for some 30,000 students.
This is the new Tesla: Nothing to add.
Elon Musk says Tesla has taken $7.5 billion worth of Model 3 preorders https://t.co/mKc1OMVoPa pic.twitter.com/7iE5IC2cS8 The Verge (@verge) April 1, 2016
For a list of April Fools jokes, go here, here, here, and here.
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Last month, Utah became the first state in the U.S. to have an online registry for white-collar crime offenders. The registry, which was approved by Utah legislature last year and has been online since mid-February, includes a recent photo of criminals convicted of second-degree felonies involving fraud in the last 10 years in Utah, similar to other criminal registries.* Although this information is already publicly available, Utahs Attorney General Sean Reyes said that the user-friendly nature of the database is an important tool for consumer protection, especially in light of the states financial vulnerability to a certain types of fraud known as affinity fraud.
Why is Utah so particularly vulnerable to these sorts of schemes? The perpetrators of affinity fraud pray on groups with strong social ties, such as religious and ethnic communities. Usually, it involves a fraudster being, or pretending to be, a member of the group, and subsequently exploiting the trust of that community to run a Ponzi scheme. As Lisa Fairfax, a law professor at George Washington University, wrote, the scam is based on the premise that You can trust me because Im like you. It workswell. The most famous affinity-fraud case in recent years is that of Bernie Madoff, who scammed his (mainly Jewish) clients of nearly $50 billion dollars.
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Although affinity-fraud cases in Utah arent on the scale of Madoffs, theyre not small-time either. Reyes says that estimated losses from affinity fraud in Utah adds up to hundreds of millions annually. Sixty percent of Utahs population is Mormon, which has made the state a prime target for religious-based affinity fraud. According to Reyes, This dynamic exists in Utah and people in our state are very trusting of each other. Trust is a positive characteristic that makes our communities in Utah very family and business friendly. But the downside of trust manifests itself when you trust the wrong people.
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Just last year, an insurance agent who belonged to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was charged with organizing a Ponzi scheme that allegedly cheated 700 people of $72 million. In 2010, fraud-victim losses in Utah topped $1 billion, with popular Ponzi schemes involving foreign currency trading, and commodities and real-estate investments. At the time, the FBI named Salt Lake City as one of the top five Ponzi hotspots in the country. The state has also been deemed one of the top places in the country for affinity fraud.
Recommended: An Ethicist Reads "The Art of the Deal"
Currently, the database has about 100 listings and is expected to grow to over 200 in the coming months. And since, according to one study, around half of white-collar criminals in the U.S. are repeat offenders, the registry is expected to help Utah residents identify previous offenders. Its also the states hope that the registry will provide an incentive for convicted fraudsters to comply with court orders and pay restitution in full, since those who do comply wont appear in the registry. But that hope might be in vain: According to The Wall Street Journal, the SEC has yet to collect more than half of the nearly $18 billion in sanctions from the last five years. Restitution (repayment of lost funds) is almost non-existent, Reyes explained over email. If we could raise restitution from less than one percent to even ten percent, it would represent millions of dollars back to citizens and the economy.
If this kind of public shaming helps deter white-collar criminals, states that see a lot of Ponzi schemesincluding New York, Texas, and Californiamight consider such a measure as well.
* This article originally misstated the launch date of Utah's white collar-crime registry. We regret the error.
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United Nations (United States) (AFP) - Talks aimed at ending the war in Yemen are on track to begin on April 18 in Kuwait, the UN envoy confirmed on Friday.
A nationwide ceasefire is due to come into effect at midnight on April 10 to bolster the new round of talks between the Saudi-backed Yemeni government and Shiite Huthi rebels.
"With political will, good faith and balance, they could take this opportunity to end the conflict and pave the way towards a permanent and durable end of the war," UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said in a statement.
The talks were announced last week after months of shuttle diplomacy by the UN envoy and growing pressure on a Saudi-led coalition to end its air campaign in Yemen.
More than 6,300 people have been killed in Yemen since the coalition -- which includes Kuwait -- began an air war a year ago to push back the Huthi offensive.
The envoy said UN teams were working "at full speed" in Sanaa and Riyadh to prepare the delegations and another team was on its way to Kuwait to finalize preparations.
The peace talks are to focus on militia withdrawal, the handover of heavy weapons, security arrangements, the resumption of a dialogue and the creation of a committee on detainees, said the envoy.
Cheikh Ahmed welcomed a prisoner exchange this week that saw nine Saudis swapped for 109 Yemenis, saying the move provides "an important drive to the political process."
Confirmation of the peace talks came after the Huthi rebels this week mounted a deadly counterattack against government troops advancing down the Red Sea coast from the Saudi border.
The rebels and their allies surrounded a government force that was attempting to recapture the coastal town of Midi and killed 45 loyalist troops on Tuesday and Wednesday, sources said.
At least 15 rebels were also killed in the fighting.
The United Nations has expressed growing alarm over the heavy civilian toll from the airstrikes and the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen, where more than 80 percent of the population is on the brink of famine.
Previous UN-sponsored negotiations failed to reach a breakthrough, while a ceasefire that went into force on December 15 was repeatedly violated until the Saudi-led coalition announced an end to it on January 2.
By Julie Steenhuysen CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. states and cities need to adopt a different mosquito-fighting strategy to battle the species carrying the Zika virus as an outbreak that started in Brazil heads north with warmer weather in the coming weeks, health officials said on Friday. The World Health Organization declared a global health emergency in February as the virus spread rapidly in the Americas, citing Zika's link to the birth defect microcephaly and Guillain-Barre syndrome, an autoimmune disorder in adults that can cause paralysis. The mosquito species responsible for spreading the virus by biting people lives in and around homes, making traditional evening insecticide fogging campaigns from sprayers mounted on trucks an ineffective option, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials said. CDC Director Dr. Thomas Frieden said health departments need to take a "four corners approach," targeting the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes indoors and outdoors as well as focusing on killing both larvae and adult insects. "We think we can at least have significant knockdown and potentially significant disease control," Frieden told state and local health officials and others taking part in a "Zika Action Plan Summit" at the agency's Atlanta headquarters. Most mosquito abatement efforts in U.S. states target nuisance mosquitoes, those that bite at dusk and ruin picnics and barbecues but pose little public health threat. But Aedes aegypti is a daytime biter that dines exclusively on humans, biting several people in a single blood meal. Aedes aegypti has been dubbed "the cockroach of mosquitoes" because it is so hard to kill, Frieden said. "Unfortunately, in some parts of the U.S., it has widespread resistance to some insecticides. But that doesn't mean it's impossible," Frieden said. Zika has been linked to thousands of suspected microcephaly cases in Brazil. The virus is spreading rapidly in Puerto Rico, a tropical island territory of the United States that is expected to be hardest hit by the current outbreak. Zika is expected to reach southern U.S. states soon as temperatures rise in spring and summer months. As in Puerto Rico, the main focus of the U.S. plan is to protect pregnant women from exposure to Zika-carrying mosquitoes. 'PATCHWORK' MOSQUITO CONTROL Dr. Lyle Petersen, director of the CDC's Division of Vector-Borne Disease, said U.S. mosquito abatement is handled by a "patchwork" of mosquito-control districts that are coordinated and funded locally. Some may not be linked to local health departments. Most of these programs, Petersen said, are "primarily funded to control nuisance mosquitoes rather than to control disease-spreading mosquitoes." Surveillance systems in most states and municipalities are geared toward night-biting mosquitoes that breed in larger bodies of water, and are not likely to detect Aedes aegypti, which breeds in flower pots, tires, trash and small pools of water. Unlike many other types of mosquitoes, Aedes aegypti's eggs can dry out and cling to container surfaces, waiting for the next rain to revive them. At the meeting, Petersen showed a map of mosquito abatement districts in U.S. states. One attendee said "abatement" in his area consisted of a man with a pickup truck who plowed snow in the winter and did some mosquito spraying during warmer months. Many officials expressed concerns about the cost of efforts to deal with Zika. Daniel Kass, New York City's deputy commissioner for environmental health, estimated the city, which has high volumes of travelers and prior outbreaks of Yellow fever and a recent case of dengue, will spend $5 million to $6 million on Zika preparedness. Aedes aegypti is not common in New York City, but it is home to Aedes albopictus, another mosquito thought capable of carrying Zika. Umair Shah, executive director of the health department in Harris County, Texas, where Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are common, said he plans to spend about half that much. The county includes the city of Houston. The Obama administration has asked Congress for about $1.9 billion in emergency funds to combat Zika but has encountered opposition from Republicans who contend health agencies should have enough money from prior funding for Ebola virus preparations. Amy Pope, the White House deputy homeland security advisor, said the federal government has already diverted some of the funds from global Ebola efforts for Zika efforts in Puerto Rico. Pope said inaction by Congress is forcing health officials to make difficult choices. Dr. Edward McCabe, the March of Dimes Foundation's medical director, said most birth defects cannot be prevented because their cause is not known. With Zika, the government could save "dozens or even hundreds" of newborns from devastating birth defects, McCabe said. (Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Will Dunham)
The destructive Zika virus has been visualized for the first time, shedding light on similarities and differences between this and related viruses, according to a new study.
The new findings may be helpful in developing effective antiviral treatments and vaccines against the Zika virus, the researchers said.
"The structure of the virus provides a map that shows potential regions of the virus that could be targeted by a therapeutic treatment, used to create an effective vaccine, or [used] to improve our ability to diagnose and distinguish Zika infection from that of other related viruses," Richard Kuhn, the director of the Purdue University Institute for Inflammation, Immunology and Infectious Diseases in Indiana and a co-author on the study, said in a statement.
"Determining the structure greatly advances our understanding of Zika, a virus about which little is known," he said. [Zika Virus News: Complete Coverage of The Outbreak]
Although the Zika virus usually causes mild or no symptoms, health officials are concerned about a link between Zika infection in pregnant women and a birth defect called microcephaly, or an abnormally small head.
The transmission of the Zika virus has so far been reported in 39 countries and territories. Of these locations, Brazil and French Polynesia have reported an increase in microcephaly, according to the World Health Organization. In addition, 12 of the locations with Zika cases have reported increases in cases of a rare neurological condition called Guillain-Barre syndrome, which causes muscle weakness and, sometimes, paralysis in kids and adults.
In the new study, researchers looked at a strain of the virus isolated from a patient who had been infected with Zika during an epidemic in French Polynesia in 2013-14.
The researchers found that the structure of the virus is very similar to that of other flaviviruses, a family of viruses that also includes dengue, West Nile and yellow fever. The structure of the Zika virus appeared to be particularly similar to the structure of dengue, the study said.
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"In essence, all these viruses have the same shape and structure, but they enter different kinds of cells," and therefore lead to different illnesses, said Michael Rossmann, a professor of biological sciences at Purdue University and a co-author on the study.
However, the researchers did find a certain structural difference between Zika and these related viruses. That difference is found in an area of the virus that may be important for how the virus attaches to human cells, which types of cells it may enter and how the resulting disease may progress. [5 Things to Know About Zika Virus]
There is an equivalent of this particular area found in the dengue virus, and it is involved in how that virus attaches to human cells. If the Zika virus's version of this area serves the same function as in dengue, and is therefore also involved in attachment to human cells, that suggests a possible treatment, Rossmann said. "Perhaps an inhibitor could be designed to block this function and keep the virus from attaching to and infecting human cells," Rossmann told Live Science.
It is also possible that this area of structural difference is somehow involved in the association between Zika virus infection and improper brain development in fetuses, but more research is needed to investigate this question, the researchers said.
Though the researchers now have a much better understanding of what the virus looks like, efforts to actually inhibit it may take a long time, Rossmann said. "People should not expect a sudden result," he said.
The new study was published today (March 31) in the journal Science.
Follow Agata Blaszczak-Boxe on Twitter. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on Live Science.
Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
HARARE (Reuters) - Foreign banks operating in Zimbabwe have submitted credible plans on how they intend to transfer majority shares to locals, the country's finance minister said on Saturday, reducing the chances the government could cancel their licences. Under an Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act all foreign companies operating in Zimbabwe were given a March 31 deadline to sell at least 51 percent of their holdings or have their licences cancelled, part of President Robert Mugabe's black empowerment drive. Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa said empowerment plans from Barclays Plc, Standard Chartered Plc, Old Mutual Plc and its two banking subsidiaries as well as South Africa's Standard Bank and African banking group Ecobank were consistent with the law. "I am pleased to advise that all the affected foreign-owned financial institutions operating in Zimbabwe have submitted credible indeginisation plans before the deadline of the 31st March 2016," Chinamasa said in a statement. Chinamasa is leading efforts to end Zimbabwe's isolation from the West and trying to woo the International Monetary Fund, which has previously said the government should ease up its economic empowerment law to attract investment. His comments come two days after another cabinet minister said most foreign banks and mining companies in Zimbabwe had not complied with Thursday's deadline to transfer majority shares to locals. Under the empowerment rules, foreign-owned financial services companies will have to sell at least 20 percent of shares directly to locals, while empowerment credits, such as funding for agriculture and youth and women programmes, make up the balance. Mugabe's black economic empowerment drive has unsettled foreign investors, some of whom fear that Harare could grab their assets in the same way that the government has seized more than 6,000 farms from white commercial farmers since 2000. (Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe. Editing by Jane Merriman)
When Princess Kate and Prince Williamfly to India next weekend, they will do so with their most trusted team by their side.
With an entourage of 11 accompanying them on the six-day tour to India and Bhutan, their carefully chosen elite entourage of aides will make sure every detail from blow dries to diplomatic issues are handled with due attention and care.
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Jetting on an overnight flight to Mumbai on April 10 will be Kate's private secretary Rebecca Deacon and William's private secretary Miguel Head. The pair organize the royal couple's diary on a daily basis and are regularly by their side on official engagements and oversees tours.
Find Out Who's Going with Princess Kate and Prince William to India| The British Royals, The Royals, Kate Middleton, Prince William
Find Out Who's Going with Princess Kate and Prince William to India| The British Royals, The Royals, Kate Middleton, Prince William
Natasha Archer, Kate's personal assistant, will also be present. Known as "Tash" to pals, the royal PA will have had a busy few months preparing Kate's tour wardrobe, which could feature as many as 20 different looks. Responsible for liaising with designers and calling in all of Kate's outfits and accessories, Archer is regarded as Kate's unofficial stylist by those in the know.
Find Out Who's Going with Princess Kate and Prince William to India| The British Royals, The Royals, Kate Middleton, Prince William
On point for Kate's hair: Amanda Cook Tucker. Having traveled with her on the 2014 tour of New Zealand and Australia, the freelance stylist will be contending with frizzy weather conditions. (Temperatures could be as high as 95 degrees when the royals arrive!)
Find Out Who's Going with Princess Kate and Prince William to India| The British Royals, The Royals, Kate Middleton, Prince William
For diplomatic advice, William and Kate will look to Sir David Manning, an ex-British ambassador to the U.S who previously worked with former Prime Minister Tony Blair. Appointed as an advisor to William and Harry back in 2009, the former diplomat advises William, Kate and Prince Harry on foreign affairs.
Find Out Who's Going with Princess Kate and Prince William to India| The British Royals, The Royals, Kate Middleton, Prince William
Leading a four-person publicity team will be Jason Knauf, an American who was appointed communications secretary to the couple (and Prince Harry) last year. A tour secretary and operations manager are also expected to join the team.
President Xi Jinping and US President Barack Obama meet in Washington on Thursday. Kevin Lamarque / Reuters
China and the United States announced on Thursday that they will sign the Paris climate agreement on April 22, as the world's two largest greenhouse gas emitters continue to strengthen their cooperation to combat climate change.
The two countries have pledged to take their respective domestic steps in order to join the agreement as early as possible.
The presidential announcement on climate change was released just hours before a bilateral meeting in Washington between President Xi Jinping and US President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the 4th Nuclear Security Summit.
On Jan 22, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon invited all world leaders to a signing ceremony on April 22 for the Paris agreement. The signing event will take place at the UN Headquarters in New York on the first day that the agreement will be open for signing. It coincides with Earth Day.
The China-US statement noted they were working together and with others and that they had played a critical role in crafting the historic, ambitious global climate-change agreement in December.
China and the US called on other parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to do the same in order to bring the Paris Agreement into force as early as possible, according to the statement.
Cooperation on climate change has become a bright spot in China-US relations, a relationship that is often unsettled by differences on cybersecurity and the South China Sea. As Obama has considered his legacy during his remaining 10 months in office, climate change has been at the top of his list.
David Waskow, international climate director at the World Resources Institute, said the China-US joint statement sends a powerful signal.
"This demonstrates continued momentum from Paris and an ongoing commitment by the United States and China to collaborate and drive climate action forward on the global stage," he said.
A total of 196 parties reached consensus over the Paris agreement last December. It is geared toward spurring action and investment for a low-carbon-emitting world. The goal is to keep the rise in global temperature this century well below 2 C from pre-industrial levels.
"This announcement will foster greater support for the Paris Agreement in the final weeks ahead of the signing ceremony in New York and help drive action on the ground to tackle climate change," Waskow said.